Reality Defender, a startup focused on AI detection, has developed a tool to verify human participants in video calls and catch fraudsters using AI deepfakes for scams.

The death of an American woman inside Philip Nitschke’s latest invention reveals the next frontier in the right-to-die debate.

Global Intelligence claims its Cybercheck technology can help cops find key evidence to nail a case. But a WIRED investigation reveals the smoking gun often appears far less solid.

Ivan Mehta / TechCrunch: Spotify starts rolling out music videos in beta for Premium subscribers in 85 additional markets, after introducing the feature in 12 markets earlier in 2024  —  Music streaming company Spotify said today that it is testing music videos for premium users in 85 additional markets.

Bill Toulas / BleepingComputer: WordPress plugin Jetpack releases a critical security update to fix a bug letting logged-in users access forms from website visitors, in all versions since 2016  —  WordPress plugin Jetpack released a critical security update earlier today, addressing a vulnerability that allowed a logged …

Victoria Song / The Verge: Oura Ring 4 review: more sizes, slimmer body, redesigned app, and better battery life and auto workout detection, but needs a subscription and no charging case  —  Oura furthers its lead among smart rings with hardware and software refinements, but its subscription is still its biggest downside.

Active electronics — components that can control electrical signals — usually contain semiconductor devices that receive, store, and process information. These components, which must be made in a clean room, require advanced fabrication technology that is not widely available outside a few specialized manufacturing centers. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the lack of widespread semiconductor fabrication […]

A Tampa-based company that makes atmospheric water generators and the state of Florida were able to supply one to a hospital shortly after Milton made landfall.

“Passkeys,” the secure authentication mechanism built to replace passwords, are getting more portable and easier for organizations to implement thanks to new initiatives the FIDO Alliance announced on Monday.

Our writer tried some of the most popular insect repellents during runs, hikes, and evenings. These are the ones we recommend.

Jennifer Hiller / Wall Street Journal: Google signs an agreement to purchase nuclear energy generated from multiple small modular reactors developed by Kairos Power, targeting 500 MW by 2035  —  Startup Kairos Power plans to build small reactors to help supply electricity to the tech company’s data centers, in a first-of-its-kind deal in the U.S.

Ashley Stewart / Business Insider: Sources: Microsoft lost billions of dollars on HoloLens before discontinuing it and is pulling back work on IVAS, the combat goggles for the US Army  —  – Microsoft is discontinuing HoloLens after losing billions of dollars on the project.  — The company’s 10-year IVAS contract …

Juby Babu / Reuters: Sebastien Bubeck, Microsoft’s VP of GenAI research who is known for his work on Microsoft’s Phi small language models, is leaving the company to join OpenAI  —  Microsoft (MSFT.O) on Monday said that its vice president of GenAI research, Sebastien Bubeck, is leaving the company to join ChatGPT-maker OpenAI.

A new way to store numbers in computers can dynamically prioritise accuracy or range, depending on need, allowing software to quickly switch between very large and small numbers

Stay tuned for eight episodes that speak to both the practical and emotional sides of women’s experiences at work.

A survey of nearly 300 marketing executives found social media investments at a seven-year low.

Four important kinds of connection happen in organizations — but leaders usually only focus on one.

Studio Zero’s new RPG is a massive adventure with a lot to do. Here’s where to start.

For the disability community, technology can be the most valuable travel companion. These apps and services make it easier to get around a new city.

The Irish capital’s embrace of big tech is filtering through to its startups, who are building better tools for IT teams, AI content moderation tools, and RNA screening for herds of cattle.

Evan Ratliff / Bloomberg: A look at the legal dispute between OpenAI and Open AI, run by Guy Ravine, who bought the open.ai domain and filed to trademark “Open AI” in December 2015  —  Guy Ravine’s Open AI (with a space) owns a trademark and website that OpenAI (no space) wants.

Cristina Criddle / Financial Times: LinkedIn says US C-suite users are up 35% and UK C-suite users are up 30% in five years, and their content gets 4x more engagement than other members’ content  —  Pressure is growing on C-suite executives to raise their online game — but they must beware of oversharing

Tom Warren / The Verge: Internet Archive founder Brewster Kahle says the service is now back in a “provisional, read-only manner”, after a DDoS attack and data breach on October 9  —  The Internet Archive is back online in a read-only state after a cyberattack brought down the digital library and Wayback Machine last week.

MIT economists Daron Acemoglu and Simon Johnson PhD ’89, whose work has illuminated the relationship between political systems and economic growth, have been named winners of the 2024 Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel. Political scientist James Robinson, with whom they have worked closely, also shares the award. “Societies with a poor rule […]

For the most sensitive parts of the human body, friction is the enemy. Here’s how to keep it at bay with our favorite lubes made of water, silicone, or natural oil.

With S-tier horsepower and a gorgeous, curved glass case, this is one prebuilt gaming PC that looks as good as it performs.

The On Running Cloudboom Strike LS marathon shoes are sprayed together by robots.

Wired: How scammers in Southeast Asia are using generative AI, crypto drainers, Starlink terminals, and other tools to expand their pig butchering operations  —  Scammers in Southeast Asia are increasingly turning to AI, deepfakes, and dangerous malware in a way that makes their pig butchering operations even more convincing.

Lim Yu Qian / CoinGecko: Analysis: US regulators have secured $19.45B across eight settlements from crypto firms so far in 2024, including FTX’s $12.7B, and ~$32B since January 1, 2019  —  What Are the Top Crypto Enforcement Actions in the US? … FTX and Alameda’s lawsuit was led by the Commodity and Futures Trading Commission […]

Evan Halper / Washington Post: An energy crunch is forcing continued coal burning in a low-income area in North Omaha, Nebraska, as Meta and Google data centers strain regional power supply  —  An energy crunch forces continued coal burning in a low-income area as data centers strain the regional power supply.

Back in 2021, Morgan Neville thought using AI to recreate the late Anthony Bourdain’s voice would be an interesting Easter egg in his documentary. He ended up being a canary in Hollywood’s AI coal mine.

Long known as a messenger within cells, RNA is increasingly seen as life’s molecular communication system—even between organisms widely separated by evolution.

High-quality imitations of luxury products are rising, and people aren’t ashamed to buy them anymore. How do designer brands retain their appeal?

Victoria Woodcock / Financial Times: How some architects and designers are creating photorealistic virtual spaces in the metaverse; report: 41% of architectural practices use AI to some degree  —  The metaverse is changing the face of contemporary design  —  In 2020, artist and designer Charlotte Taylor and architect Riccardo Fornoni unveiled Villa Saraceni.

Samanth Subramanian / Bloomberg: A look at sports data tech companies like Sportradar, which set betting odds for sports gambling apps and websites, as they build models to keep people betting  —  Big-money data deals and advanced statistical models are helping to predict match outcomes and keep people betting.

Katherine Bourzac / IEEE Spectrum: The Northwest-AI-Hub, which is researching hybrid gain cell memory that combines DRAM’s density with SRAM’s speed, gets a $16.3M CHIPS Act grant via the US DOD  —  CHIPS Act funding boosts research into dense, speedy hybrid gain cell memory  —  Research on a hybrid type of memory that combines …

We’ve spent years riding and testing extra-large ebikes, perfect for hauling both your little ones and groceries around town.

We spent all summer road-testing sunscreen, from mineral and chemical to tinted and spray versions. These are our top picks in each category.

Some companies let you opt out of allowing your content to be used for generative AI. Here’s how to take back (at least a little) control from ChatGPT, Google’s Gemini, and more.

John Pavlus / Quanta Magazine: Q&A with physicist Lenka Zdeborová on how the physics of phase transitions in matter can help model the behavior of algorithms, understanding LLMs, and more  —  Quanta spoke with Zdeborová about the similarities between water and algorithms, using physics …

Anthony Ha / TechCrunch: Matt Mullenweg says WordPress is “forking” Advanced Custom Fields, a plugin developed by WP Engine; ACF team says the plugin was taken away “without consent”  —  The dispute between WordPress founder Matt Mullenweg and hosting provider WP Engine continues …

Washington Post: Some Ukrainian soldiers say SpaceX has not done enough to crack down on illicit use of Starlink terminals by Russia to power its advance in Ukraine  —  Ukraine’s outgunned and outmanned army had one major advantage over its enemy: internet through Starlink terminals.  Now the Russians have it, too.

Consuming cinnamon may have a very small effect on weight, but it’s unlikely to deliver meaningful weight loss without other lifestyle adjustments.

In a world of increasingly powerful hurricanes and other rising climate threats, those with vested interests in promoting certain locations have sold the public a dream.

The Legend of Vox Machina, The Boys, and Fallout are just a few of the shows you should be watching on Amazon Prime Video this week.

Mathew Ingram / The Torment Nexus: Matt Mullenweg’s feud with WP Engine not only presents a significant conflict of interest but has also dragged the WordPress community into a legal mess  —  Hi everyone!  Mathew Ingram here.  This is The Torment Nexus (you can find out more about me and this newsletter — and why […]

Charlie Warzel / The Atlantic: The bleak online discourse about hurricanes Milton and Helene revealed not just a misinformation crisis in the US but a cultural assault on reality itself  —  The truth is, it’s getting harder to describe the extent to which a meaningful percentage of Americans have dissociated from reality.

Hannah Lang / Reuters: Adobe expects US BNPL spending to grow 11.4% YoY to $18.5B in Q4 2024; the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia says most BNPL users make their payments on time  —  As Amazon’s Prime Day kicked off the holiday shopping season this week, U.S. consumers are expected to spend a record $18.5 […]

“All the state leaders should be getting their people out … to watch for ballot stuffing,” wrote the leader of the American Patriots Three Percent militia. “Our nation depends on this.”

PlayStation Plus Extra or Premium? Xbox Game Pass Core or Ultimate? We break everything down so you can spend more time playing.