The Verge

Photo by Joao Laet/Getty Images He rose to power by exploiting online platforms — so what happens now that he’s lost? Continue reading…

The side panel is getting an upgrade. | Image: Google Google Chrome has a new sidebar that should make it faster and easier to check out a bunch of search results in a row without having to bounce back and forth between the search page and whatever websites it links to. Google also says that it’s bringing its price tracking feature to desktop after a few months of it being available on mobile versions of the browser.Google’s blog post explains how to access the new sidebar: after you click on a search result, you’ll be taken to the webpage, and a little Google logo will pop up in your address bar. Clicking that button opens the sidebar that shows you results for the search you did to get to the page (though you can search for something new if you like). From there, you can click on... Continue reading…

Outside of stellar game industry coverage, Nibel was best recognized for their Mob Psycho avatar, which displays the titular character Mob against a yellow backdrop. | Image: One / Dark Horse Comics Nibel (@Nibellion) has left the building. The popular Twitter user best known for their steady, reliable stream of gaming industry news and recognizable Mob Psycho avatar announced today that they would be leaving the platform, citing a lack of financial support and concerns over Elon Musk’s leadership.A final message was posted to the now-locked account announcing the departure, definitively saying, “After some introspection, I’ve made the decision to focus my time and energy elsewhere and move on from Twitter. This marks the end of my video games coverage and my active participation in this platform.” Nibel posted a more detailed message to their Patreon subscribers, confirming that the month-old Patreon account would also be... Continue reading…

Gwendoline Christie | Photo by Gareth Cattermole / Getty Images for BFI The second season of Severance has just started filming, and to mark the milestone, we have some new details on the cast. As Deadline reports, there are quite a few fresh faces joining the offices of Lumon Industries for season 2. That includes: Gwendoline Christie, Bob Balaban, Merritt Wever, Alia Shawkat, Robby Benson, Stefano Carannante, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson, and John Noble. That’s a lot of handshakes (available upon request).It’s still not clear when the next season of Severance is due to hit Apple TV Plus; it was first announced in April, just ahead of the season 1 finale. We also have essentially no details on what to expect in season 2, though today, Apple did release this photo of star Adam Scott’s face on Twitter:

Photo by Michael Zelenko / The Verge George Hotz is stepping down from Comma AI. The 32-year-old CEO, who rose to fame under his “geohot” hacker alias when just a teenager, made the announcement on his GitHub page, admitting that he doesn’t feel “capable” to continue running the driver assistance technology company he founded seven years ago.At age 17, Hotz made a name for himself in hacker circles as the first person to carrier unlock the iPhone. A few years later, he got in trouble with Sony for hacking the PlayStation 3 (the company sued and then later settled out of court). In 2015, he got in a fight with Elon Musk, after Musk allegedly tried to hire him, for claiming he could make a better version of Tesla’s semi-autonomous driving software Autopilot. Tesla called... Continue reading…

Image: Activision “We’re not taking Call of Duty from PlayStation” is the message from Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer this week. Spencer has recently been discussing the future of Call of Duty if the Activision acquisition clears, and he’s made his clearest comments yet in a new podcast interview with YouTubers Justine and Jenna Ezarik.“As long as there’s a PlayStation out there to ship to, our intent is that we continue to ship Call of Duty on PlayStation,” says Spencer on the Same Brain podcast. “Similar to what we’ve done with Minecraft, since we’ve owned that, we’ve expanded the places people can play Minecraft. We haven’t reduced the places, and it’s been good for the Minecraft community in my opinion, and I want to do the same as we think about... Continue reading…

Image: Ralph Lauren Ralph Lauren is hopping on the battle bus. The brand is the latest fashion house to partner with Fortnite — and as part of the deal, the company’s iconic horse logo has been redesigned with a cartoon llama.There are two sides to the announcement. First, there’s the digital part, with two Lauren-designed in-game outfits that’ll be available in the Fortnite item shop starting on November 5th. You can check them out below: Image: Ralph Lauren There’s also a physical component with a capsule collection of IRL clothes that will be available starting on November 2nd. This will include hats, hoodies, and — of course — polo shirts. The company also says it’s working on a physical version of the boot the in-game characters... Continue reading…

A SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket carrying satellites for the US Air Force ahead of a launch scheduled for June 24th, 2019, at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. | Photo by Paul Hennessy/NurPhoto via Getty Images On November 1st, SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy is scheduled to launch into space for the first time since 2019. The giant rocket is slated to send payloads into orbit for the US Space Force tomorrow in a mission called USSF-44.The mission is the first National Security Space Launch for the Falcon Heavy, the Space Force said in an emailed press statement. As with all national security launches, details are sparse. The Falcon Heavy is supposed to send a microsatellite called TETRA-1 into geosynchronous orbit, according to launch details posted on the Kennedy Space Center website. Other than that, not much is known about the satellites that are going up.As with all national security launches, details are sparseFalcon Heavy is scheduled to lift... Continue reading…

TuSimple may have defrauded investors by failing to disclose its ties to a Chinese firm. | Photo by Andrej Sokolow/picture alliance via Getty Images Autonomous trucking company TuSimple is under investigation for its ties to a Chinese company, The Wall Street Journal reports. The FBI and SEC are said to be looking into whether the San Diego-based company defrauded investors by financing and transferring technology to Hydron, a company led by one of TuSimple’s founders.It was the latest sign of the hard road ahead for many AV companies, as the industry shrinks, capital dries up, timelines are pushed out, and regulators spot cracks in the system. TuSimple, a leading supplier of autonomous truck technology, is already under scrutiny from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration for a crash involving one of its trucks earlier this year.It was the latest sign of the hard road... Continue reading…

Billions of voice messages are sent every day. | Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Over the past few months of peak TV, the voice message has emerged as one of my favorite ways to talk about what I’m watching. I’ll finish this week’s episode of Andor, mute the show’s credits, and immediately start recording a voice message of my thoughts to send to a friend.The main reason we use voice messages (or voice notes, depending on where you are in the world) is their asynchronicity — we don’t have to both be free at the same time to communicate. Sometimes, he’s managed to watch the episode hours or even days before me and has already sent a message for me to listen to, while other times, I’ll be the first one to share my thoughts. But every week, the format is the same. The recording starts with a spoiler warning, and then... Continue reading…

The fastest Fire TV yet offers extensive hands-free voice controls that you can’t get from any other streaming player, but it still puts too many ads in your face Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Twitter’s combatting an increase in hateful tweets after Elon Musk officially acquired the company on Friday. Yoel Roth, the platform’s head of safety and integrity, said on Twitter that the company’s taking action against an “organized effort” to spread hate speech on the platform.According to Roth, a “small number” of accounts posted a rash of tweets containing “slurs and other derogatory terms” over the past two days, with the goal of making users think Twitter’s policies surrounding content moderation have changed. Roth says that just 300 accounts sent out over 50,000 tweets using a “particular slur,” and that almost all of the accounts in question are inauthentic.

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Telegram removed the ability for users on iOS to create pay-to-view posts due to Apple’s strict App Store guidelines (via 9to5Mac). In a post on Telegram, CEO Pavel Durov says creators on the platform have been using third-party payment or donation bots to sell access to certain posts on their channels, but that Apple was “not happy with content creators monetizing their efforts without paying a 30% tax to Apple.”Apple doesn’t allow developers to use third-party payment processors in their apps and charges up to a 30 percent commission on any in-app purchases. As noted by 9to5Mac, Telegram initially appeared to have been testing a paid posts feature, as spotted by social media consultant Matt Navarra. However, Telegram said in a... Continue reading…

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales Apple’s new M2-equipped 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pros may not arrive until early next year, according to a report from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. While previous rumors suggested Apple could release the upgraded devices by the end of this year, now Gurman believes they’ll launch in the first half of March.As noted by Gurman, this release window would allow Apple to launch the new MacBooks around the same the macOS Ventura 13.3 and iOS 16.3 updates come out, which are expected sometime between early February and March. This prediction aligns with Ming-Chi Kuo's tweet from August that suggests Apple could release the new MacBook Pros early next year, as well as a recent rumor from Korean leaker Lanzuk (yeux1122), which also indicates the new... Continue reading…

The Libby app puts thousands of books into your pocket for free. | Photo by Victoria Song / The Verge I wanted the convenience of ebooks, the curation of a local bookstore, and the affordability of a library. This is how I got it. Continue reading…

The Spin 714 isn’t terrible, but it’s not the champion the 713 was Continue reading…

Season 3 of The Witcher hasn’t even premiered yet. | Photo by Taylor Hill/FilmMagic Although season 3 of The Witcher hasn’t premiered yet, Netflix just announced a major change coming to season 4: Liam Hemsworth is replacing Henry Cavill as the titular Geralt of Rivia. Both actors posted about the change on Instagram, with Liam Hemsworth saying he’s “over the moon about the opportunity to play Geralt of Rivia.” Netflix nor Cavill provided a reason for the casting change.“My journey as Geralt of Rivia has been filled with both monsters and adventures, and alas, I will be laying down my medallion and my swords for Season 4,” Cavill said on Instagram. “In my stead, the fantastic Mr Liam Hemsworth will be taking up the mantle of the White Wolf. As with the greatest of literary characters, I pass the torch with reverence... Continue reading…

The customization options let you take things in some wild new directions with your builds | Image: Alice Newcome-Beill A host of bugs and undercooked features keep the addictive building simulator from reaching its full potential Continue reading…

The 10-inch display on the Google Next Hub Max features a terrific camera and can provide personalized info at a glance. | Photo by Dan Seifert / The Verge This weekend we’re talking about Google devices, specifically Google’s Nest Audio and Nest Hub Max, along with a number of other excellent discounts you might want to take advantage of while you still can.First up we have Google’s compact Nest Audio, which is on sale for $49.99 at Best Buy, Target, and the Google Store, saving you $50 on the smart speaker’s regular price. The compact speaker offers excellent sound quality and can even pair with another Nest Audio to provide stereo sound. While the reliability of its voice controls can be a bit hit or miss, the Nest Audio provides a solid listening experience in an attractive and affordable package. Read our review.You can also find the Google Nest Hub Max on sale at Wellbots, Target,... Continue reading…

The projects you can build with Lego’s Mindstorms Robot Inventor kit, which will be going away by the end of the year. | Image: Lego As reported by Lego fan sites like Brick Fanatics and Brickset, Lego is discontinuing its Mindstorms kits, which are meant to let people make robots out of Lego bricks, pins, beams, motors, gears, and other pieces, and then program using Lego’s control hubs (via Gizmodo). The devices have been sold as a way to let children and adults easily build and program robots since 1998.While the company isn’t completely done with the idea of educational robotics kits, it will stop selling its Mindstorms Robot Inventor kit by the end of this year.The company’s statements suggest there’s an end date on its support for the various apps used to program and control Mindstorms robots on iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, and Fire OS, saying that it’ll... Continue reading…

Illustration by Nick Barclay / The Verge Organizers at Apple’s Towson Town Center store in Maryland claim that the company isn’t telling the whole truth when it comes to withholding benefits from workers at the location. As the company’s first retail location to unionize in the US pushes to negotiate a contract, workers say it’s making it difficult for them to bargain for their benefits.In a letter addressed to Tim Cook, the negotiating committee says they’re disappointed to learn the company won’t be offering workers at the location some new health and education benefits that are rolling out to other retail employees. The union also says that Apple has been spreading “misinformation” by saying workers would have to bargain for those benefits to be included in their contract.... Continue reading…

Honda’s power station battery slots are angled for easier access. | Image: Honda Honda delivered a new battery swapping station in Tokyo that’s looking mighty similar to the one Gogoro makes. The automaker’s new power pack exchanger lets electric motorcycle riders easily flip their depleting batteries for fresh ones instead of needing to wait around for a charge.The Honda power station itself looks very similar to Gogoro’s: like a vending machine with a grid of battery packs that slide in and out of slots. Image: Honda Honda’s “Power Pack Exchanger e:” station can be expanded to accommodate a whole lot of batteries in busy parts of cities. You can access fully charged batteries by interacting with the touchscreen, pulling one out, and popping in your discharged ones to charge up for use by... Continue reading…

Learn how to use Google Home Routines in your smart home. | Illustration by Samar Haddad / The Verge Google Home is Google’s smart home ecosystem, where you can control all your compatible smart home devices — such as smart lighting, smart cameras, smart locks, and more. The easiest way to do this is with Google’s smart home Routines. These are multi-action shortcuts that control one or more devices and / or trigger one or more actions to happen automatically based on another single action.For example, you can set a Routine that turns your lights off and your cameras on at 10PM each night. Or you can set one up that adjusts the brightness of your lights when the TV turns on and one that turns the bathroom light on when a motion sensor detects movement. Routines can be tailored by time as well, so if your doorbell rings after sunset,... Continue reading…

Illustration by Samar Haddad / The Verge I recently decided that I was going to figure out how to play custom Beat Saber tracks on my Meta Quest 2, no matter what it took. Thankfully, the free program I ended up using, called SideQuest, only took an hour or two of tinkering to get working, making it the perfect weekend project. Even better, SideQuest is useful for so much more than just modifying Beat Saber — it lets you sideload community-made games and experiences and even change the Quest home environment that acts as the backdrop to the system menus and app picker.If that sounds intriguing, read on: we’re about to go over how to install SideQuest and use it to get software onto your headset.Installing SideQuestThe first thing you have to do is install SideQuest on your... Continue reading…

Driverless cars aren’t going to change the world. | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge The driverless car startups that haven’t run out of money, gone out of business, or been bought out want you to know that driverless cars aren’t going away. These companies insist that skepticism about the technology is expected but unwarranted and that driverless cars will, in the words of one co-founder, “change the world.”Where have we heard this before? Oh right, practically every tech company and Silicon Valley partisan that has emerged in the last decade or so has insisted that their only goal is to empower mankind and change the world (and not, I don’t know, make gobs and gobs of money).I do agree autonomous vehicles are coming (many are already here), but I think we need to rein in the “change the world” rhetoric. Like,... Continue reading…

Cars are lined up in traffic on Airline Drive in Houston, Texas, on April 13th, 2020. | Photo by MARK FELIX / AFP via Getty Images Traffic jams are linked to lower birth weights, new research finds. Pregnant people in the most congested neighborhoods gave birth to babies who weighed less than babies in less congested areas, according to a study published today in the journal Science Advances.A baby with low birth weight faces a greater risk of health complications — from infection to sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). The new study adds to the body of evidence showing that clearing up pollution from cars and trucks will help babies stay healthier. It shows that it’s not just the volume of traffic that affects air quality and health outcomes — the flow of that traffic matters, too.A baby with low birth weight faces a greater risk of health complicationsBabies... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Snapchat is decreasing the reward money creators can get when they make content for the platform’s TikTok competitor — again.Business Insider reports that the pot of cash up for grabs for users making Spotlight videos now sits at millions of dollars per year. In February, Snap said it was offering up millions a month to creators making high-performing short-form videos for Spotlight. Even that was a dip from when Spotlight first launched in the fall of 2020, and Snap made splashy promises of paying out $1 million a day for a period of time to people making TikTok-style videos.Snap spokesperson Farrin Jay confirmed the fund sits at “millions of dollars throughout the year” and said the company is focused on rewarding Spotlight creators... Continue reading…

Signalis. | Image: Humble Games If you miss the days of old-school Resident Evil and Silent Hill, this is just the thing Continue reading…

Image: PlatinumGames / Nintendo Bayonetta 3 launches today and streamers might need to adjust some settings before they happily dig their seven-inch gun-barreled heels into the game, as one of the songs might get you slapped with a copyright strike.One of the prevailing themes of the Bayonetta series was that there’s always a pop-y remix of a classic song that accompanied our bundled busty bad bitch Bayonetta as she stomped demons, angels, and now, scientific horrors to death. The original Bayonetta featured “Fly Me to the Moon,” and Bayonetta 2’s theme was “Moon River.” Bayonetta 3 keeps up the tradition of remixing the golden oldies with “Moonlight Serenade,” and that’s where content creators might get into a bit of trouble.In its review embargo for the game,... Continue reading…

Bucks Gaming celebrating winning the 2022 NBA 2K League 5v5 finals in August. | Photo by Ron Hoskins/NBAE via Getty Images The NBA 2K League has announced that six players and a coach have been “disqualified indefinitely” following a gambling controversy. The esports league made the announcement yesterday.The suspended players include Christopher Lafanette, Dorian Earl Miller, and Robert Nastasi from the league’s affiliate of the Portland Trail Blazers; Zekirri Dennis of Mavs Gaming; and Kimanni Ingram of Jazz Gaming, who the league said “wagered or attempted to wager on NBA 2K League games, either on their own or through other individuals, and also violated the rules by failing to report violations or cooperate fully with the investigation.” Also receiving punishment are Blazers coach Andrew Maxie and player Marquis Gill for “failing to report violations... Continue reading…

Image: Activision If you’re itching to play the latest Call of Duty game that releases today but you’re in the sad state of not owning a game console to play it on, we have a deal for you. At Target, you can pick up the $299.99 Xbox Series S online or in-store, and you’ll receive a free digital copy of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (no, not the 2009 classic; Activision is just reusing old names now). Buying that game by itself normally costs $70, so this could be a great promo for you to take advantage of before it expires Saturday, October 29th, at 11:59PM PT.The Series S is a great console with or without this deal. It’s small, so it won’t hog a bunch of space in your entertainment center. And despite being significantly less powerful than the Series... Continue reading…