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Image: The Verge Apple is exempting more developers from the Core Technology Fee (CTF) it introduced in the European Union. In an update on Thursday, Apple announced that developers of free apps without monetization won't have to pay the new fee.To qualify, Apple says free apps must not have revenue of any kind," including money made from physical or digital goods, as well as advertising. This condition is intended to give students, hobbyists, and other non-commercial developers an opportunity to create a popular app without paying the CTF," Apple writes in the update.The company also says small developers with less than 10 million in global annual business revenue will receive a three-year free on-ramp" to the CTF to help them create innovative... Continue reading...

Illustration: The Verge An article in HouseFresh, a site dedicated to air quality, hit a nerve in February: it outlined how independent publishers have been gradually bumped out of Google search results, with big media companies taking their place. Months later, the situation has only gotten more dire, according to a follow-up published by HouseFresh.In February, HouseFresh managing editor Gisele Navarro called out publishers like BuzzFeed and Rolling Stone as some of the culprits that publish content about air purifiers despite a lack of expertise - but Google rewards these sites with high rankings all the same. The result is a search results page filled with SEO-first content, designed to do not much more than rank highly on Google.In a piece published... Continue reading...

Artificial intelligence might someday make technology easier to use and even do things on your behalf. All the Rabbit R1 does right now is make me tear my hair out. Continue reading...

Image: Universal Studios / Nintendo The Super Nintendo World area opening at Universal Studios in Orlando next year will include every attraction from the existing theme parks in Hollywood and Japan - including the first Donkey Kong Country realm in the US. That's according to Universal's latest teaser for its fourth Orlando-based park, Epic Universe, which provides some clarity over what guests can expect on opening day in 2025.Some of the experiences coming to Orlando's Super Nintendo World include Mario Kart: Bowser's Challenge, an interactive track ride already featured at the Hollywood park that's inspired by the Mario Kart racing game series, and a version of the Mine-Cart Madness roller coaster that's under construction in Japan's Donkey Kong Country.Universal... Continue reading...

Illustration: The Verge Microsoft is fully rolling out passkey support for all consumer accounts today. After enabling them in Windows 11 last year, Microsoft account owners can also now generate passkeys across Windows, Android, and iOS. This makes it effortless to sign in to a Microsoft account without having to type a password in every time.You can create passkeys for your Microsoft account by following this link, and you can choose your face, fingerprint, PIN, or a security key to use a device to sign in with a passkey. Image: Microsoft How passkeys work when you sign in to a Microsoft account. Today, you can use a passkey to sign in to Microsoft apps and websites, including Microsoft 365 and Copilot on desktop and mobile... Continue reading...

Image: Surgent Studios There's challenging combat and platforming puzzles, but the hardest part of the game is grappling with its emotional story. Continue reading...

Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge Nvidia is releasing a script that simplifies getting its GeForce Now cloud gaming service up and running on Valve's Steam Deck device. The script automatically installs Google Chrome, adjusts the browser to enable gamepad use, and then adds a GeForce Now shortcut to your Steam library.While the script automates the process of using the SteamOS terminal app to install Chrome and enable gamepad support, you'll still need to make some manual tweaks to get GeForce Now working as you'd expect. Once you launch GeForce Now, you'll need to press the Steam menu button and head into controller settings to change the value of Current Button Layout to Gamepad with Mouse Trackpad." This will allow you to use the trackpad to control the mouse inside... Continue reading...

Image: Microsoft Microsoft says it's investigating reports of VPN connection failures after installing the April 2024 Windows 11 update. The KB5036893 security update was issued on April 9th for all supported Windows 11 versions, and some users have reported that VPN connections with TPM-backed certificates aren't working after the patch was installed.Reddit user Flo-TPG says the Windows 11 update caused a certificate could not be found" error while attempting to use a VPN connection. Microsoft warns that VPN connections could fail after installing this April 2024 security update and that the company is investigating user reports, and we will provide more information in the coming days."The only workaround right now is to uninstall the KB5036893... Continue reading...

Google may start asking users that still utilize passwords instead of their passkeys to wait 24 hours before they can access their account. | Illustration: The Verge Google is kicking off World Password Day by updating us on its efforts to replace the often hacked, guessed, and stolen form of authentication with passkeys. Their passwordless approach relies on device-based authentication instead, making logging in faster and more secure.In a blog post on Thursday, the company announced that over 400 million Google accounts (of the at least 1.5 billion reported since 2018) have used passkeys since rolling them out, logging over a billion authentications between them. The majority of users find them easier to use than passwords, according to Google, adding that since launching, passkeys have proven to be faster than passwords, since they only require users to simply unlock their device using a... Continue reading...

Another dark day for Peloton. | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Peloton's CEO Barry McCarthy is stepping down after announcing yet another round of layoffs, this time affecting about 15 percent of its remaining workforce, or roughly 400 global team members. It's the fifth round of layoffs to hit the pandemic darling and comes after McCarthy said on its Q1 2023 earnings call that the company was done with layoffs and that the ship was turning."Hard as the decision has been to make additional headcount cuts, Peloton simply had no other way to bring its spending in line with its revenue," said McCarthy in his outgoing message, noting that it's a crucial step as the company seeks to refinance its debt. The layoffs are part of a 12-month restructuring program meant to reduce annual expenses by more... Continue reading...

Taylor Swift's label is returning to TikTok's one billion-plus users. | Photo by DAVID GRAY/AFP via Getty Images Universal Music Group has inked a multi-dimensional" deal with TikTok that will see its roster of artists - which includes Taylor Swift, Drake, and Olivia Rodrigo - return to the social media platform's one billion-plus users. UMG began pulling its music from TikTok on February 1st after the old contract expired.Notably, the deal will address concerns that UMG and its artists have with generative AI. TikTok and UMG will work together to ensure AI development across the music industry will protect human artistry and the economics that flow to those artists and songwriters," reads a press release announcing the deal. TikTok is also committed to working with UMG to remove unauthorized AI-generated music from the platform, as well as... Continue reading...

Edit messages, AI Bitmoji fashion, and reminders round out the new Snapchat update. | Image: Snap Snap is launching a slew of new features in Snapchat, including the ability to edit already sent messages allowing you to rectify a your" vs. you're" typo or other embarrassing errors. Snapchat is also getting emoji reactions, map reactions, and a new AI-powered reminders function.The edit message feature does have a short window: you need to act within five minutes of sending - and only if the recipient has not yet opened it. Snap says the feature will come first" to Snapchat Plus subscribers - a decision that echoes the same feature paywall on Elon Musk's Twitter Blue (now called X Premium) established more than a year ago. GIF: Snap Post-sent message editing is a booming feature to have on messaging apps, with... Continue reading...

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge Health insurance provider UnitedHealth paid a multimillion-dollar ransom to hackers who broke into one of its subsidiaries, disrupting healthcare providers across the country for months, CEO Andrew Witty confirmed on Wednesday.In a hearing before the Senate Committee on Finance, Witty said the decision to pay the $22 million ransom was entirely his. This was one of the hardest decisions I've ever had to make," he said. UnitedHealth admitted last month that it had paid a ransom to the hackers who breached the Change Healthcare system - which is owned by UnitedHealth - but didn't disclose the sum. In March, the company attributed the breach to BlackCat, the same entity responsible for the MGM casino hack in Las Vegas. That same month, W... Continue reading...

Image: Crunchyroll While Crunchyroll's monthly prices haven't jumped in five years, Sony is getting ready to change that for subscribers in a handful of countries.Crunchyroll announced today that the prices for its Mega Fan and Ultimate Fan streaming subscription tiers are going up as a result of the company's investment in more anime, additional services like music and games, and additional subscriber benefits." While the basic Crunchyroll Premium will continue to cost $7.99 / month, subscriptions for the Mega Fan tier are increasing from $9.99 to $11.99 / month, and the Ultimate Fan tier will rise from $14.99 to $15.99 / month. Crunchyroll is also shortening its free-trial period from two weeks down to just one. Notably, the price... Continue reading...

Why wait? | Image: Netflix Want to try the nine games that Netflix now streams from cloud servers directly to your laptop, desktop, or TV? Officially, you're supposed to wait until the beta rolls out more broadly, but for now, there may be an easier way.If you fire up a desktop web browser, log in to Netflix, and click these links, you should be able to start playing, even if you don't see any of these games listed normally.

Illustration: Alex Castro / The Verge T-Mobile has completed its acquisition of Mint Mobile, the carrier partially owned by Ryan Reynolds. In an update on Wednesday, T-Mobile says Mint Mobile will continue to offer its $15 per month / 5GB of data plan (that requires paying for three months upfront), while also offering access to some of T-Mobile's perks rolling out now and over the next few months."The acquisition also includes Ka'ena Corporation, the parent company of Mint Mobile, along with the two other companies under its umbrella: the prepaid brand Ultra Mobile and the wholesale wireless provider Plum. Both Mint Mobile and Ultra Mobile customers will get T-Mobile's scam call screening service as part of the merger.Additionally, Mint and Ultra customers will get free... Continue reading...

Illustration: The Verge WhatsApp is adding a new way to plan and organize events in group messages, making it easier for friends and organizations like schools and neighborhoods to set up virtual and in-person meetings.The new events feature lets members of a group set up birthday parties, work meetings, and more, similar to various e-vite services that send out invitations via email. New WhatsApp events get pinned to a group's information page and also get their own group chat thread so everyone can see who is down, hear out inevitable excuses for those who can't make it, and confirm who is bringing cookies. WhatsApp is additionally adding the ability to reply to Announcement Groups" so members can add comments and feedback for the admin. It... Continue reading...

Photo by Justin Sullivan / Getty Images It's gone from one piece to three.Tesla's ambitious plans to manufacture the underbody of its vehicles into a single piece, a process known as gigacasting, has been put on hold, according to Reuters, citing two sources with knowledge of the move. It was another sign that the company was pulling back from some of its previously reported plans as it struggles to adapt to falling sales and shrinking profits.Typically, automakers piece together the underbody from hundreds of individual parts. But Tesla has been a leader in using huge presses to die-cast large sections, with the goal of eventually producing the entire underbody in a single piece. The goal was to simplify the process while also dramatically reducing the costs of its... Continue reading...

Inviting friends to your PS5 multiplayer sessions is getting much easier. | Image: Sony Interactive Entertainment Sony is working on an easier way for anyone to join your gaming sessions - whether you're friends on the PlayStation Network or not. The company says that in the coming months," you'll be able to generate a link either on your PS5 or in the PlayStation App that you can share with others so they can join your multiplayer session.On the PS5, that means popping up a QR code from the game lobby that players will need to scan using a smartphone, while the PlayStation App just creates a link users can copy or share through their phone's share sheet. In its blog post today, Sony doesn't say exactly how you get from tapping a link on your phone to playing a multiplayer game on your PS5, but presumably, you would need to have the PlayStation... Continue reading...

It was already the cheapest Qi2 multi-charger, and now the price is even better. | Image: ESR If all-in-one chargers are your jam and you've been waiting for a great opportunity to upgrade to Qi2, check out this deal on ESR's latest model. You can save $56.99 ($16 off) on ESR's Qi2 3-in-1 wireless charging station after clipping the coupon at Amazon. That's the lowest price we've seen on this particular model and easily the best deal you'll find on a Qi2 3-in-1 charger from any brand right now.The multipurpose charger has everything you'd expect: It uses magnets to hold your iPhone and Apple Watch in place and still has a free spot to charge your AirPods. The charger offers 15W charging speeds on any Qi2 phone, which, for now, is limited to the iPhone 12 and newer. The base of the charger accepts AirPods and other wireless... Continue reading...

Image: Bethesda Softworks Starfield players on Xbox will no longer have to deal with the game's 30-frames-per-second (fps) cap. As part of an update arriving on May 15th, Bethesda will let Xbox Series X players run the game at 60fps.The 60fps option comes as part of several new display customization settings. The game will let you choose to prioritize visuals to [keep] the highest resolution while maintaining full detail for special effects, lighting, and crowds" or choose to prioritize frame rate performance, which will [lower] internal resolution and detail for special effects, lighting, and crowds." Bethesda recommends choosing the performance mode when running the game at 60fps or above.It also recommends a variable refresh rate (VRR) display running at... Continue reading...

Photo by Justin Sullivan / Getty Images Microsoft invested $1 billion in OpenAI in 2019 because it was very worried" that Google was years ahead in scaling up its AI efforts. An internal email, titled Thoughts on OpenAI," between Microsoft CTO Kevin Scott, CEO Satya Nadella, and co-founder Bill Gates reveals some of the high-level discussions around an investment opportunity in the months before Microsoft revealed the partnership.The email was released on Tuesday as part of the ongoing US Justice Department antitrust case against Google, Business Insider reports.We are multiple years behind the competition in terms of machine learning scale," Scott writes in his June 12th, 2019, email to Nadella and Gates. He details how it took six months for Microsoft engineers to... Continue reading...

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Audible is testing a new section that provides audiobook recommendations based on your Prime Video viewing history. The test is rolling out to half of all users with both Audible and Amazon Prime, and there's no way to opt out for now.If you have both services, you might see a new carousel on the mobile and web app titled Based on what you watched recently on Prime Video." It will contain audiobooks relevant to what you've watched on Prime Video, such as Dune, Project Hail Mary, and Fourth Wing. Image: Audible Audible is trying out the change after seeing connections between new releases on Prime Video and what audiobooks people are listening to. For example, the average daily listening minutes for Jack Reacher... Continue reading...

Image: The Verge Anthropic, which makes the Claude 3 family of AI models, is launching an iOS app and adding a second paid tier for groups to share access to the models.The Claude mobile app can act as a chatbot, and users can also upload photos straight to the app for image analysis." Previously, Claude was only available through Anthropic's Claude.ai website and third-party model libraries like Amazon Bedrock, Hugging Face, or Microsoft Azure.Scott White, product manager at Anthropic, says many Claude users have been accessing the AI models through the mobile web, which led Anthropic to offer an app version of Claude.ai. He says the company will come out with an Android version soon.Anthropic, though, is a little late with its mobile app.... Continue reading...

The Verge For many of us, Google storage is the modern-day hard drive. It's the place where our most important thoughts, documents, and memories reside. But just like with a traditional hard drive, the space isn't infinite, and running out of room can be a real problem.By default, Google gives you 15GB of space to use for everything associated with your account. That includes content connected to Gmail, Google Drive, and all Google photos (except those saved before June 1st, 2021). Needless to say, data adds up fast.You can check your current storage status by visiting this page, and if push comes to shove, you can purchase more space there, too, for as little as $2 a month for an extra 100GB. But shelling out more money might not be necessary.... Continue reading...

Image: Meta Today, Meta has announced that the next entry in the iconic Batman: Arkham series will be Batman: Arkham Shadow, a VR game that's exclusive to the Meta Quest 3.Iron Man VR developer Camouflaj and Oculus Studios are developing the game, which is set to release later this year. Meta didn't share much about the game itself, giving us a short trailer featuring Batman's POV as he swoops over the grimy, rain-slicked streets of Gotham.Though light on the actual gameplay features, the trailer suggests a big part of the game will likely include a lot of those glide through Gotham" traversal sections that made Batman: Arkham City so damned cool. Meta also hasn't yet shared who will be voicing Batman. Kevin Conroy, the voice actor best known for... Continue reading...

The shark still looks fake. | Image: Wes Davis / The Verge Remember Google's AR search, which can make augmented reality bugs, dinos, neat NASA objects like the Apollo 11 command module, and buildings appear atop the real world through the lens of your phone? On Monday, 9to5Google noticed they seemed to be disappearing, as it was only able to find a handful of the extensive collection that Google has built up over the years.My editor, Richard Lawler, saw the same thing on his Pixel 8 Pro - as did I when I checked my Pixel 6. But when I searched in Safari on my iPhone 15 Pro, there they were: a T. Rex, Spinosaurus, rhinoceros beetle, jewel beetle, and giant panda!Google insists that nothing has changed. None of the AR features referenced have been removed from Search," spokesperson Colette... Continue reading...

Image: Nvidia Nvidia is updating its experimental ChatRTX chatbot with more AI models for RTX GPU owners. The chatbot, which runs locally on a Windows PC, can already use Mistral or Llama 2 to query personal documents that you feed into it, but now the list of supported AI models is growing to include Google's Gemma, ChatGLM3, and even OpenAI's CLIP model to make it easier to search your photos.Nvidia first introduced ChatRTX as Chat with RTX" in February as a demo app, and you'll need an RTX 30- or 40-series GPU with 8GB of VRAM or more to be able to run it. The app essentially creates a local chatbot server that you can access from a browser and feed your local documents and even YouTube videos to get a powerful search tool complete with summaries... Continue reading...

Image: The Verge The US could lose out on valuable AI and tech talent if some of its immigration policies are not modernized, Google says in a letter sent to the Department of Labor.Google says policies like Schedule A, a list of occupations the government pre-certified" as not having enough American workers, have to be more flexible and move faster to meet demand in technologies like AI and cybersecurity. The company says the government must update Schedule A to include AI and cybersecurity and do so more regularly.There's wide recognition that there is a global shortage of talent in AI, but the fact remains that the US is one of the harder places to bring talent from abroad, and we risk losing out on some of the most highly sought-after people in... Continue reading...

Wastewater pipes at a reclamation plant in California on Wednesday, August 4, 2021. | Getty Images aBig brands are paying startup Vaulted Deep $58.3 million to shoot poop and other organic waste products into underground wells as a way to fight climate change.The deal was brokered by a group called Frontier Climate, which Stripe, Alphabet, Meta, Shopify, and McKinsey Sustainability launched in 2022 to support emerging climate tech. Specifically, Frontier is interested in trying to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. They connect buyers with startups like Vaulted Deep that are developing ways to capture CO2 and sequester it underground so that it doesn't heat up the planet.Vaulted Deep's strategy is to gather sewage, manure, and agricultural and paper mill waste and inject it deep underground to keep carbon in the waste from... Continue reading...

It's unclear how many TikTok users are being prompted in-app to visit its website for cheaper TikTok Coins. | The Verge TikTok appears to be probing App Store rules that require it to pay the Apple tax" on in-app purchases. According to Sendit app co-founder David Tesler, some TikTok users are being directed to purchase TikTok coins - digital tokens used to tip creators during live streams - on the company's website via an in-app link, effectively dodging the 30 percent commission Apple takes on digital purchases.Screenshots acquired by Tesler show at least two instances where iOS users are encouraged to recharge" their TikTok coins on TikTok.com to explicitly avoid in-app service fees." Tapping the try now" link on these notifications opens an embedded web view where users can access payment options like Apple Pay, PayPal, or credit/debit cards to... Continue reading...

I mean, at least it's just $200? | Image: David Pierce / The Verge Since it launched last week, Rabbit's R1 AI gadget has inspired a lot of questions, starting with Why isn't this just an app?" Well, friends, that's because it is just an app.Over at Android Authority, Mishaal Rahman managed to download Rabbit's launcher APK on a Google Pixel 6A. With a little tweaking, he was able to run the app as if it were on Rabbit's own device. Using the volume-up key in place of the R1's single hardware button, he was able to set up an account and start asking it questions, just as if he was using the $199 R1.Oh boy.Rahman points out that the app probably doesn't offer all of the same functionality as the R1. In his words: the Rabbit R1's launcher app is intended to be preinstalled in the firmware and be... Continue reading...

Image: Fubo The face-off between streaming TV service Fubo and Warner Bros. Discovery is continuing to escalate. Fubo announced via a late afternoon press release that it has dropped Discovery networks effective immediately - including Discovery, HGTV, Food Network and TLC, among others" - and has been unable to reach a separate deal to bring Turner sports networks TNT, TBS, and truTV to its customers.The company claims that it had little choice but to drop the batch of Discovery channels after talks with WBD went nowhere, and it's accusing WBD of bad-faith negotiations and an abuse of massive market power that ultimately limits consumer choice."Fubu says that it offered WBD market rates" to secure all of this content but that it never received... Continue reading...

Illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photos from Getty Images More news organizations, including the New York Daily News, Chicago Tribune, Orlando Sentinel, San Jose Mercury News, and four others, are suing OpenAI and Microsoft for alleged copyright infringement.The publications, all owned by the hedge fund Alden Global Capital, claim that both OpenAI and Microsoft trained on their articles without compensation or permission. The plaintiffs included as evidence several excerpts from conversations with both ChatGPT and Copilot showing that both chatbots reproduced lengthy excerpts of specific articles on command, indicating that their training datasets included the texts of those articles.They also showed screenshots of Copilot, which can search the web in real time, reproducing entire news... Continue reading...