The Verge

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Spotify and a group of European companies are calling on the European Commission to take “swift and decisive action” against Apple over what they describe as anti-competitive practices that have hampered their businesses.The letter, which is also signed by Basecamp, Deezer, and five others, mostly focuses on the App Store. It says Apple places “artificial obstacles” in their way, charges “excessive” fees, and makes “capricious changes” to the rules along the way.“[The European Union] must act fast as every day that passes is a loss for innovation and for the welfare of European consumers,” the companies write.Nearly two years on, the Commission has yet to finish its investigationSpotify has been pushing back against Apple’s... Continue reading…

OpenAI is the creator of AI chatbot ChatGPT. | Image: OpenAI OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has addressed rumors regarding GPT-4 — the company’s as yet unreleased language model and latest in the GPT-series that forms the foundation of AI chatbot ChatGPT — saying that “people are begging to be disappointed and they will be.”During an interview with StrictlyVC, Altman was asked if GPT-4 will come out in the first quarter or half of the year, as many expect. He responded by offering no certain timeframe. “It’ll come out at some point, when we are confident we can do it safely and responsibly,” he said.GPT-3 came out in 2020, and an improved version, GPT 3.5, was used to create ChatGPT. The launch of GPT-4 is much anticipated, with more excitable members of the AI community and Silicon Valley world already... Continue reading…

The Verge Update January 18th, 9:45AM ET: In a memo issued Wednesday morning, Microsoft confirmed plans to fire over 10,000 employees by the end of March. The original story continues below.Microsoft is preparing to announce job cuts tomorrow. Sky News reports that thousands of roles will be cut, with the software giant said to be looking at cutting around 5 percent of its workforce. With more than 220,000 employees at Microsoft, that could mean more than 10,000 layoffs.While Sky News doesn’t name an exact date for the expected cuts, a source familiar with Microsoft’s plans tells The Verge that the company will likely announce layoffs on Wednesday, ahead of its quarterly earnings next week.Bloomberg is also reporting that a number of layoffs... Continue reading…

Idris Elba as John Luther. | John Wilson/Netflix Every year, Netflix puts together a slate of new movies meant to get subscribers excited about what’s coming and convince those who aren’t yet signed up for the streamer that they need to be. While this year’s looking like it’ll be an interesting one for Netflix, a new teaser for all the platform’s upcoming features also makes it seem like the platform’s cooling off a bit in 2023. Here are some highlights: Image: John Wilson / Netflix Luther: The Fallen SunWhen a new string of murders points to there being a serial killer on the loose, the whole of London is set on edge for fear that no one will be able to stop the murderous rampage. But the spate of gruesome killings are exactly the inspiration disgraced detective... Continue reading…

The refreshed live TV guide has a condensed grid and now shows episode descriptions. | Image: YouTube YouTube TV subscribers will notice some refinements and tweaks to the service’s “library” section starting today. The new interface lets viewers see more programming and recommendations at once and includes simplified filters for drilling down into the type of shows you actually want to find. It’s not a wholesale reinvention of the TV guide — but so far, it looks like a quicker way of finding something to watch.“This UI model is almost like the hybrid, I would say, of a grid and a feed. We’re continually thinking about how to reinvent television so that we don’t have to just rely on one model,” Esther Ahn, the head of design for YouTube TV, told me in a call last week.YouTube says its design philosophy is centered around “TV made for... Continue reading…

Illustration: The Verge Microsoft is announcing big job cuts today, affecting 10,000 employees. In a memo, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella says the company will be “making changes that will result in the reduction of our overall workforce by 10,000 jobs through the end of FY23 Q3.”Some employees will be notified today, but the entire 10,000 layoffs should be completed by the end of March. While Microsoft is making cuts, Nadella says the company “will continue to hire in key strategic areas.” Affected US employees will receive “above-market severance pay,” healthcare coverage for six months, continued vesting of stocks for six months, career transition services, and 60 days notice prior to termination.Microsoft currently has more than 220,000 employeesMicrosoft... Continue reading…

The new HomePod in white and gray. | Image: Apple Apple has announced a new $299 HomePod smart speaker with a similar form factor to the original HomePod released in 2018. New features available with this second-generation model include support for the smart home standard Matter, allowing the speaker to control compatible accessories, and an upgraded S7 chip first seen in the Apple Watch Series 7. It will be sold alongside the HomePod Mini, the smaller version of the speaker introduced in 2020. The new HomePod is available to order starting today, and will begin shipping February 3rd.The second-generation HomePod has a single 4-inch woofer paired with five tweeters, (down from seven in the original model) and a total of five microphones (down from seven). Apple says the speaker can... Continue reading…

The Verge If you’re tired of seeing the same profiles in your dating app, you might be tempted to try a different one. After all, there are a lot of them out there: Tinder, Hinge, OkCupid, The League — apps that are all marketed differently and are supposed to provide distinct experiences. But have you ever wondered why using them feels the same?In episode two of Land of the Giants: Dating Games, we’re diving into the backstory of Match Group, the company that helped start online dating in the ‘90s and now owns most of the dating app market. Match became a giant under the leadership of a billionaire entertainment mogul, whose directive was to aggressively eat the competition: it bought OkCupid and Plenty of Fish in the 2010s, incubated Tinder,... Continue reading…

Logitech’s new Brio 300 webcam. | Image: Logitech Logitech is adding a new webcam to its Brio lineup in the form of the Brio 300. At $69.99 (£74.99), it’s at the low end of Logitech’s Brio lineup and only offers up to 1080p / 30fps capture rather than 4K / 30fps or 1080 / 60fps like the $199.99 Brio 4K Pro. It has a single microphone built in and is available in a choice of gray, off-white, or pink. Alongside the Brio 300, Logitech has also announced a business-focused variant, the Brio 305.The Brio 300’s price and specs put it in the same ballpark as Logitech’s ubiquitous C920s Pro HD webcam, which also has an MSRP of $69.99. But the Brio 300 benefits from a sleeker, more modern design and a neatly integrated privacy shutter that can be manually swiveled around to cover its camera... Continue reading…

Last year’s 13-inch MacBook Pro. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Plus a new Samsung camera sensor, and more foldable Pixel rumors. Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Ever since Elon Musk took over Twitter, one of his aims has been to build up its subscription business, launching a revamped Twitter Blue package that gives subscribers a “verified” checkmark, reduced ads, preferential treatment by its algorithm, and other benefits. The subscription, which is still available only via iOS or the web, now offers a discounted annual subscription for customers, which you can pick instead of the $8 per month web pricing or $11 iOS price that shifts Apple’s 30 percent fee to the consumer.If you’d like to kick in some extra funds right away, Twitter Blue annual subscriptions are available on the web for $84 per year, saving you a little over 12 percent compared to paying for a monthly web subscription — or 36... Continue reading…

Image: Mozilla Firefox’s version 109 update, released on Tuesday, includes a new extensions system that sparked years of controversy when it was adopted for Google Chrome, due to the fact that it nerfed some ad-blockers. However, Mozilla promises that its version will still let users “access the most effective privacy tools” and ad-blockers, while still maintaining the cross-compatibility that will let developers easily port their software between browsers.(While Google hasn’t pulled the plug on the system that lets ad-blockers operate as they have been, users do still have to deal with the threat of that happening. It’s currently unclear if Google will wind up keeping the system that’s currently letting them run.)In a Tuesday blog post explaining... Continue reading…

Taking the USB-C charging board out is Step 39 of 60 when trying to tear down to the Screen / Battery assembly of a Galaxy S22 Ultra. | Image: iFixit / Samsung Samsung is finally adding Galaxy S22 parts and manuals to the self-repair program it established last year with partner iFixit. Just as we’re preparing for the Unpacked event that will launch the Galaxy S23, customers can now get access to genuine replacement parts for the S22, S22 Plus, and S22 Ultra, as well as the Galaxy Book Pro (15-inch) and Pro 360 notebooks.When Samsung first launched the self-repair program in August, customers only had access to limited OEM parts like replacement back covers, USB-C charge ports, and screens for previous generation Galaxy S20 and S21 devices, as well as the Tab S7. Even with the addition of S22 devices, not much has changed in terms of what customers can officially fix.Samsung Galaxy S22... Continue reading…

Image: DoorDash DoorDash will soon start delivering Starbucks food and drinks in all 50 US states, the company announced in a blog post. The service will initially roll out to Northern California, Texas, Georgia, and Florida before expanding into the rest of the US in March.Through the partnership, users can place orders with the DoorDash app instead of the Starbucks app. Starbucks says it’ll make about 95 percent of “its core menu” available through the service and will let customers customize their orders as if they were using Starbucks’ own app.While DoorDash first started delivering Starbucks products last year, the program was only limited to select cities, including Atlanta, Houston, Sacramento, Seattle, Portland, and New York City.Meanwhile,... Continue reading…

Music playback was one of the reasons to pick up an older Fitbit smartwatch. Not anymore. | Photo by Brent Rose for The Verge The writing is on the wall for Fitbit smartwatches. Today, the company announced its ending support for Pandora and Deezer on the Sense, Versa 2, and Versa 3 smartwatches. While you can still control media on your phone from the wrist, Fitbit users will no longer be able to download Pandora stations or add Deezer playlists to their smartwatches. That means that after March 31st, no Fitbit smartwatch will support onboard music.Per 9to5Google, Fitbit sent out an email stating that support for Pandora and Deezer will end as of March 31st. At that point, Fitbit users won’t be able to add new music content from those services. They also won’t be able to play anything that was previously downloaded. While Pandora and Deezer might not be as... Continue reading…

The Galaxy S22 Ultra marked a turn in the product line’s evolution as it gobbled up the Note series. | Photo by Allison Johnson / The Verge Samsung has just published a blog post by TM Roh setting the stage for February 1st, when the company will hold its first in-person launch event since the start of the pandemic. Roh doesn’t offer many concrete details but specifically mentions improvements to its smartphone camera system and tells us to expect two new devices that “set the new premium standard for innovation.”Reading between the lines, it looks like that means two new Ultra devices — a lot like last year when we got the Note-esque S22 Ultra and massive Tab S8 Ultra tablet.TM Roh:

Razer’s Blade 16 is only one of the gaming laptops with decked-out screens coming in 2023. | Photo by Owen Grove / The Verge The laptops of 2023 will get new chips and new graphics. Many will get new touchpads, some will get new fans, and a few will get funky styluses. But some of the coolest, weirdest, and most exciting updates are coming to screens.Just a couple years ago, buying a high-end laptop display — particularly for gaming — meant figuring out your priorities. You could have a high resolution or a high refresh rate. You could have OLED or a device that was actually affordable.This year, we’re seeing more of those benefits converge. There are more laptops coming that are both high-refresh-rate and high-resolution than ever before. We’re seeing those elements combined with features that have been unusual and niche on laptops in the past, such as... Continue reading…

Image: Square Enix From the beginning, Forspoken was pitched as a technological showcase for PS5 and PC, offering the latest in SSD game load times and AI upscaling technology. But until today, it hadn’t quite sunk in just how much power the “magical parkour” game will demand. Square Enix has now revealed the PC system requirements, and I’m honestly not sure my midrange gaming rig can handle it.The minimum spec requires a 3.7GHz Core i7 CPU or better, 16GB of RAM, and 150GB of hard drive space to — I kid you not — play this game at a measly 720p resolution at just 30 frames per second. Screenshot by Sean Hollister / The Verge Forspoken’s PC system requirements... start out at 720p 30fps. That’s low. The recommended spec is... Continue reading…

High schoolers have been gassing each other up in this popular app. | Image: Gas Discord has acquired the Gas social app. The poll-based app has become popular among teens in recent months, allowing friends to share compliments with each other. The app is designed for anonymous compliments and positive affirmations or, as kids say, gassing your friends up.Gas has polls that ask users to vote for things like the most beautiful person they’ve met or the classmate that isn’t afraid to get in trouble. It has soared in popularity among high schoolers since launching in August. One of the co-creators of TBH, a very similar teenager app acquired and shut down by Facebook, created Gas, which has caught the attention of more than 1 million daily active users and 30,000 new users per hour in October.“Gas’ founders have a... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Can’t fly to California for Coachella? No problem. You’ll still be able to stream the annual arts and music festival live from the comfort of your own home for at least another few years.YouTube and Coachella organizers Goldenvoice announced on YouTube’s official blog that they’ve renewed their exclusive partnership through 2026. As a result, fans around the world will continue to stream the festival live for free from YouTube as well as watch on-demand videos of performances.“Our partnership with YouTube brings Coachella to everyone around the world,” said Goldenvoice president Paul Tollett. “The 2023 lineup sees performers from Brazil, France, Iceland, India, Jamaica, Nigeria, Puerto Rico, South Korea, Spain, and beyond, and... Continue reading…

The Willow 3.0 in-bra breast pump now comes with a handy Apple Watch companion app. | Image: Willow The Willow 3.0 in-bra breast pump is designed to help nursing parents carry on with their lives while pumping, and its latest new feature adds an extra level of convenience: a companion app for the Apple Watch. The app lets you change modes, control suction, and track your sessions without having to fiddle with the pump itself or pick up your phone. That doesn’t sound particularly earth-shattering, but in case you weren’t aware, I’ll let you in on a little secret: breast pumping is awful, and anything that makes it a little less awful is a godsend.Throughout much of recent history, using a breast pump meant stopping everything that you’re doing every few hours to sit tethered to a bowling ball-sized contraption plugged into a wall... Continue reading…

Cryptocurrency mining rigs operate in a cargo container in Kutaisi, Georgia, on Monday, January 22nd, 2018. | Photo by Daro Sulakauri / Bloomberg via Getty Images Environmental groups are pushing New York state to scrutinize a crypto mining company’s purchase of a gas-fired power plant, contending in a new lawsuit that turning the power plant into a crypto mine would go against the state’s climate goals and dump more pollution on nearby neighborhoods.Sierra Club and the Clean Air Coalition of Western New York filed a suit on Friday that challenges the New York Public Service Commission’s (PSC) approval of the sale. Under state law, the commission has to give the green light before the transfer of ownership of a power plant can take place. Until now, the commission has mostly focused on whether such a sale would affect residents’ electricity rates or create a monopoly. The commission needs to... Continue reading…

The updated Google Home app can now be used as a digital remote for Works with Google partner TVs and other compatible streaming devices. | Image: Google The Google Home app for Android and iOS has been updated with an improved mobile-based remote for compatible smart TVs and “connected streaming or media devices.” In a tweet announcing the update last week, Google said that Home App users can now “easily control playback, switch inputs, adjust the volume, and more.”The new remote feature isn’t for controlling Chromecast devices or Android TVs — both of which are already supported by the Google Home app. Instead, it links up to Works with Google-compatible devices, which includes connected TV platforms like Roku, Samsung, or LG.

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Twitter confirmed that it’s purposefully blocking third-party apps like Tweetbot and Twitterific following days of silence. In a post on Twitter, the company writes that it’s “enforcing its long-standing API rules,” which “may result in some apps not working.”While the statement confirms suspicions that Twitter had been purposefully locking users out of third-party Twitter clients, it doesn’t even contain a link to the rules that Twitter’s referring to and still doesn’t tell us anything about what’s really going on. This is the first time Twitter’s acknowledging the issue since apps started breaking last Thursday.

Image: Google Google’s Stadia Controller Bluetooth support tool is now live, allowing all Stadia controllers to connect to PCs and other devices with Bluetooth Low Energy. Google’s tool to update Stadia controllers works over the web using Chrome, so it should work for both Windows and macOS users without the need to download an app.The tool itself will disable the proprietary Wi-Fi connectivity on the Stadia Controller and replace it with Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) instead. That means if you want to use Stadia for one final time today or tomorrow, you’ll need to wait to run the update, as it’ll disable the controller’s connectivity with Google’s servers.Disabling the Wi-Fi connectivity also means that many workarounds will no longer function. Some... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge The Federal Elections Commission dismissed a Republican-led complaint that Google’s filters in Gmail unfairly send GOP fundraising emails to spam folders at a higher rate than those from Democrats.The Wall Street Journal was the first to report the FEC’s dismissal on Tuesday, citing a commission letter to Google earlier this month saying that it “found no reason to believe” that Google’s spam filtering algorithms were unfairly weighted against Republicans and could be considered in-kind corporate contributions to Democrats.The Commission’s bipartisan decision to dismiss this complaint reaffirms that Gmail does not filter emails for political purposes,” José Castañeda, a Google spokesperson, said in a statement to The Verge Tuesday.... Continue reading…

The Wyze Cam OG (pictured left) and the Wyze Cam OG Telephoto 3x (right) can be used independently or paired together to make full use of the former’s built-in spotlight and the latter’s 3x telephoto lens. | Image: Wyze Smart home company Wyze has released two new budget security cameras that aren’t short of features. The Wyze Cam OG and the Cam OG Telephoto 3x will serve as a new camera line that provides similar features to the Wyze Cam v3 at a more affordable price.The $19.99 Wyze Cam OG comes equipped with an integrated motion-activated 40-lumen spotlight to pick up greater image detail and help deter unauthorized individuals from your property, while the $29.99 Wyze Cam OG Telephoto 3x instead provides a zoom lens to help users get a clearer view of distant areas such as a mailbox, garage, or shed. Image: Wyze Each camera provides a different security feature, with the Wyze Cam OG’s spotlight helping to illuminate footage... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge The co-founders of the failed Three Arrows Capital (3AC) cryptocurrency hedge fund want $25 million to start up a proposed exchange, as reported earlier by The Block and Bloomberg. It will be called “GTX” — according to its leaked pitch deck — “because G comes after F,” and FTX, the once-huge exchange, is now bankrupt.But like the band Mystik Spiral, they might change the name. After a round of kicking on crypto Twitter, investment firm CoinFlex — which is partnering with the former 3AC founders Kyle Davies and Su Zhu — tried to quiet the controversy by saying GTX “is a placeholder name.” Let’s hope no one has engraved it on their guitar case or anything.Part of GTX’s pitch is letting people buy and sell bankruptcy claims from failed... Continue reading…

Apple’s Intel-based Mac Pro launched in 2019. | Photo by Avery White for The Verge In the process of updating its Mac Mini lineup, Apple has discontinued the last remaining Intel-based Mac Mini computers. Its online store now lists three main variants of the miniature desktop computer powered by M2 and M2 Pro chips, with no sign of the Intel Core i5-powered model that was listed on the site as of earlier this week.Discontinuing this old Intel-powered Mac Mini means that Apple has just one computer left to transition to its own Arm-based Apple silicon chips: the Mac Pro. The company initially said it expected the transition from Intel to Apple silicon to take around two years when it first announced the initiative in June 2020, meaning it’s missed its self-imposed deadline to transition its entire Mac lineup onto its... Continue reading…

The M1 chip offers more performance headroom than the newer A15 Bionic — plus it’s paired with 8GB of RAM. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Apple just announced that its MacBook Pro and Mac Mini lineup are getting the latest M2 chips. That’s great news if you need a fast computer, but if you’re in the market for a speedy tablet instead, check out this $100 discount on the 2022 iPad Air that has an M1 processor. You can grab the latest model for $499.99.This might actually be the iPad for you if you’re considering Apple’s 10th-gen base iPad, which starts at $449.99. While they might look similar (that’s intentional), the iPad Air is the better choice in several ways: it’s faster, it supports the second-gen Apple Pencil with wireless charging support, its USB-C charging port supports faster data transfer, and it has a better laminated display. It also has access to a better... Continue reading…

Keychron’s Q1 Pro comes in a 75 percent layout with a volume dial. | Image: Keychron Keychron is launching a wireless version of one of its best keyboards. The new Keychron Q1 Pro has a very similar design to the company’s existing Q1 keyboard — which we think is one of the best off-the-shelf keyboards you can buy — with a gasket-mount design and aluminum case. But the difference with the $194 Q1 Pro is that it can connect via USB cable or Bluetooth, where it offers a battery life of up to 300 hours. It can remember wireless connections to up to three devices.The Q1 Pro is launching on Kickstarter today. As well as the standard fully assembled model, there’s also a bare-bones option that comes without keycaps or switches for $174. Unfortunately, you’ll need to get this bare-bones version if you’re in Europe, as the... Continue reading…

Photo by Naomi Rahim/WireImage Nick Cave isn’t too impressed with ChatGPT’s capacity for music. On his personal blog, the singer-songwriter gave a withering rebuke to a set of lyrics written by the AI chatbot “in the style of Nick Cave.”“What ChatGPT is, in this instance, is replication as travesty,” writes Cave. “ChatGPT may be able to write a speech or an essay or a sermon or an obituary but it cannot create a genuine song ... Songs arise out of suffering, by which I mean they are predicated upon the complex, internal human struggle of creation and, well, as far as I know, algorithms don’t feel.”The lyrics were submitted to Cave by a fan named Mark. The Australian musician thanks Mark but goes on to say — “with all the love and respect in the world, this song is... Continue reading…

Uber is expanding its electric vehicle partnership with Hertz to Europe. The ridehail company says it will make 25,000 EVs — mostly Tesla and Polestar vehicles — for drivers in select European capitals through Hertz by 2025.Uber drivers in London will be the first to get access to the new EVs through Hertz, with drivers in Paris and Amsterdam soon to follow. The ridehail company has announced an ambitious plan to electrify its fleet in the US and Europe by 2030, with the Hertz partnership serving as a vital piece of that effort.“Expanding our partnership with Hertz into Europe will significantly boost our transition to zero-emissions, helping drivers reduce running costs and cleaning up urban transport,” Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi... Continue reading…

Leaks suggest Google is working on its own first-party tracking tags to use alongside its in-development Finder Network. | Illustration: The Verge Google is reportedly working on a location tracking tag to compete with the likes of Apple’s AirTags and Tile trackers, according to developer (and reliable leaker) Kuba Wojciechowski. Wojciechowski discovered references that indicate Google is working on support for locator tags in Fast Pair — Google’s method for quickly pairing nearby Bluetooth devices — and claims in a Twitter thread that Google is developing its own first-party tracker to use with the feature (seen via Sammobile).The tracker, according to Wojciechowski, is codenamed “Grogu” (the name of the baby Yoda character from the Star Wars series The Mandalorian) alongside the alternate names “GR10” and “Groguaudio,” and is currently being developed by the Google Nest team.... Continue reading…