Electric scooter company Bird files for bankruptcy
32TechCrunch / 1h
Bird has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, capping off a turbulent year for the electric scooter company. In a press release today, Bird confirmed that it had entered into a “financial restructuring process aimed at strengthening its balance sheet,” with the company continuing to operate as normal in pursuit of “long-term, sustainable growth.” Founded in […] © 2023 TechCrunch. All rights reserved.
'Expats' trailer teases Nicole Kidman searching Hong Kong for her missing son
Mashable / 33min
The official trailer for Expats , a limited series created and directed by Lulu Wang, has arrived. Based on Janice Y. K. Lee’s bestselling novel The Expatriates , the six-episode limited series stars Nicole Kidman, Sarayu Blue and Ji-young Yoo, playing characters bound together after a family tragedy. After a series of life-altering events, their lives are inextricably linked. The show's themes –
The Ghosts of Network Operations Past, Present and Yet to Come
TechRadar - All the latest technology ne... / 1h
In a Christmas Carol, the protagonist is visited by three ghosts that show him the error of his ways, while also offering an opportunity to course-correct. Network cybersecurity teams might find themselves in a similar pattern of reflection as the year winds down and we look ahead. After the year that was, some may well be haunted by the ghosts of past outages, as well as by the ghost of present-
EA changes up Frostbite's logo as its teams are now "free to develop on any engine they choose"
TechRadar - All the latest technology ne... / now
EA's Frostbite engine is going through some changes, with the company introducing a new identity and "philosophy" when it comes to using it for game creation. The engine is used internally to develop various EA projects, including sports titles like Madden NFL 24 and EA Sports FC 24 , to shooters like Battlefield 2042 . Frostbite was also used to create less well-received titles like Mass Effect
Al Mada Ventures, the $110M fund for Africans by Africans
TechCrunch / 3min
Al Mada Holding Group is one of Africa’s largest private investment funds. The Casablanca-headquartered private holding operates in different fields, such as banking, telecommunications, renewable energy and the food industry. Over the years, Al Mada’s approach has centered on acquiring majority shareholdings in some of Morocco’s largest private companies, with its portfolio spanning 27 markets [
The Hot New Market in Crypto? Trading FTX’s Carcass.
NYT > Technology / 5min
Investors are spending hundreds of millions of dollars on FTX bankruptcy claims, betting that the firm’s new leaders will recover the money that Sam Bankman-Fried misappropriated.
The Year in Social Media
NYT > Technology / 5min
You may have forgotten — or wanted to forget — what happened on the internet in 2023. We’re here to refresh your memory.
NordVPN releases new Apple TV VPN app
TechRadar - All the latest technology ne... / 30min
One of the industry's best VPN services has just released a new dedicated Apple TV VPN app. NordVPN is the latest provider that, following Apple's support of third-party VPN applications introduced with the tvOS 17 update, has decided to develop an app to help users boost their streaming experience. This means that you won't have to go through daunting installation processes to enjoy internationa
Bird files for bankruptcy after going public in 2021
Engadget / 35min
After laying off nearly a quarter of its staff last year , e-scooter rental company Bird has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the company announced . Existing lenders have agreed to purchase the assets and the company is being kept afloat via a $25 million loan from Apollo Global Management (Yahoo and Engadget's owner) and second-lien lenders, according to The Wall Street Journal . The company wi
How is 'Percy Jackson and the Olympians' different from the books?
Mashable / 1h
Percy Jackson and the Olympians fans, the wait is over. A worthy adaptation of Rick Riordan's beloved novels is finally hitting TV, and I, for one, could not be giddier to relive my childhood. As is the case with all book-to-screen adaptations, Percy Jackson and the Olympians deviates occasionally from the source material. However, the main arc of the series remains the same: 12-year-old Percy Ja
FTC bans Rite Aid from using facial surveillance systems for five years
Engadget / 4h
Rite Aid will not be able to use any kind of facial recognition security system for next five years as part of its settlement with the Federal Trade Commission, which accused it of "reckless use of facial surveillance systems.” The FTC said in its complaint that the drugstore chain deployed an artificial intelligence-powered facial recognition technology from 2012 to 2020 to identify customers wh
ShareChat faces large valuation cut in new funding
TechCrunch / 4h
ShareChat is in final stages of deliberations to secure about $50 million in new funding that trims the startup’s valuation to below $1.5 billion, according to two sources familiar with the matter. Existing backers including Temasek and Tencent are among the investors in advanced stages of talks to invest in the new round, the sources […] © 2023 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use o
A lifetime subscription to this streaming-friendly VPN is on sale for under £40
Mashable / 4h
TL;DR: A lifetime subscription to Ivacy VPN is on sale for £31.83, saving you 58% on list price. With so much of our lives taking place online, it makes sense to arm your devices with protective measures. Just in time for the holidays, Ivacy VPN lifetime subscriptions are currently on sale for a seriously low price. With Ivacy VPN, you can secure either five or 10 of your devices with their onlin
Death Stranding: Director's Cut for Mac and iPhone delayed to early 2024
Engadget / 5h
If you were hoping to play Hideo Kojima's Death Stranding: Director's Cut on a Mac , iPhone or iPad before the year ends, I'm afraid you'll now have to wait a bit longer. 505 Games, the publisher behind this port, announced on X that it needs "a little more time," and that it will have "a new release date in early 2024." Specifically, the Mac App Store now lists January 31, 2024 as the expected d
HP leak reveals the 'World's Lightest' 14-inch gaming laptop
TechRadar - All the latest technology ne... / 5h
HP is reportedly working on a follow-up to its Omen Transcend 16 gaming laptop : the ultra-slim Omen Transcend 14. Images and a full specifications sheet have been leaked by Windows Report revealing the machine will weigh roughly 3.5 pounds (about 1.6 kg) and is less than half an inch thick (18 mm, to be precise). The Transcend 16 by comparison is significantly heftier, clocking in at 4.79 pounds
You Can Get 1TB of Koofr Cloud Storage for $120 Right Now
LifeHacker / 6h
You can get 1TB of Koofr cloud storage on sale for $119.97 right now when you use the code KOOFR through December 25. It can help you keep all of your files, photos, and other data safe and in one place, and since you can access your account across all your devices, you can be able to always find what you need right when you need it. You can even connect your other cloud storage accounts with Koo
Elon Musk Draws the Ire of the Tesla Hoe
Gizmodo / 6h
This week, Tesla made an abrupt change to its in-vehicle entertainment system interface, appearing to cut Disney+ out of the rotation of apps that could be accessed by users. Teslarati initially reported that the car company appeared “to have axed Disney+ from its vehicles.” The site later updated its reporting ,… Read more...
Wordle today: Here's the answer and hints for December 20
Mashable / 6h
Oh hey there! If you're here, it must be time for Wordle . As always, we're serving up our daily hints and tips to help you figure out today's answer. If you just want to be told today's word, you can jump to the bottom of this article for Dec. 20's Wordle solution revealed. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you. Where did Wordle co
Today’s Wordle Hints (and Answer) for Wednesday, December 20, 2023
LifeHacker / 7h
If you’re looking for the Wordle answer for December 20, 2023 read on. We’ll share some clues, tips, and strategies, and finally the solution. Today’s puzzle isn’t too hard; I got it in four. Beware, there are spoilers below for December 20, Wordle #914! Keep scrolling if you want some hints (and then the answer) to today’s Wordle game. How to play Wordle Wordle lives here on the New York Times w
Today's NYT Connections Hints (and Answer) for Wednesday, December 20, 2023
LifeHacker / 7h
Don’t touch that DIAL with any of your fingers! (You'll see what I mean.) If you’re looking for the Connections answer for Wednesday, December 20, 2023, read on—I’ll share some clues, tips, and strategies, and finally the solutions to all four categories. Along the way, I’ll explain the meanings of the trickier words and we’ll learn how everything fits together. Beware, there are spoilers below f
NYT Connections today: See hints and answers for December 20
Mashable / 7h
Connections is the latest New York Times word game that's captured the public's attention. The game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle , Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle. If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the e
You Can Get Windows 11 Pro for $25 Right Now
LifeHacker / 8h
You can upgrade your PC to Windows 11 Pro on sale for $24.97 right now (reg. $199) through Dec. 25. The activation key is from a Microsoft-verified partner and backed by over 200 user reviews, and the Pro version of Windows 11 has some great features like Azure AD, Hyper-V, Windows Sandbox, and BitLocker Device Encryption. Windows 11 sports an all-new appearance with a centered bottom taskbar and
These Are the Best Last-minute Gift Card Deals for Christmas
LifeHacker / 9h
Whether you forgot to come up with a thoughtful gift because you are too busy with work or you just couldn’t find that perfect gift, most people will agree that buying a useful gift card is much better than getting something you neither want nor need. Plus, there are many great deals on gift cards right now (you might even consider getting some for yourself). Here are some of the best gift cards
You Can Get a One-Year Sam's Club Membership for $20 Right Now
LifeHacker / 9h
You can get a one-year Sam's Club membership on sale for $20 right now (reg. $50) until December 25. The big box retailer carries everything from groceries and electronics, to household basics and seasonal items, and members can also use same-day delivery from their local store. Other Sam's Club perks include members-only gas prices available at select locations, a Tire and Battery Center that of
This Budget HP Laptop Just Dropped to Its Lowest Price Yet
LifeHacker / 9h
Best Buy is having a 24-hour flash sale (ends Wednesday at 1 a.m. ET) featuring the AMD Ryzen 7 HP Envy x360 for the lowest price it’s been over the last four months, according to Honey’s price history . If you’re reading this past the deadline, worry not: Best Buy also has the AMD Ryzen 5 HP Envy x360 for a similar discount, bringing it down to its second lowest price over the past four months,
Quordle today - hints and answers for Wednesday, December 20 (game #695)
TechRadar - All the latest technology ne... / 9h
It's time for your daily dose of Quordle hints, plus the answers for both the main game and the Daily Sequence spin off. Quordle is the only one of the many Wordle clones that I'm still playing now, around 18 months after the daily-word-game craze hit the internet, and with good reason: it's fun, but also difficult. What's more, its makers (now the online dictionary Merriam-Webster) are also keep
How to Test Your Car Battery (and Why You Should)
LifeHacker / 10h
Although your vehicle's battery is essential to its operation, it's also easy to forget about—or at least take for granted—when everything is running smoothly. That, of course, changes when your battery starts showing signs of weakness, or stops working altogether. But there's no reason to be caught off guard by a dying battery when you can test it yourself. If you've never tested a car's battery
NASA Streams Cat Video From Deep, Deep Space
1KNYT > Technology / 10h
Using laser communication, NASA streamed a cat video from almost 20 million miles away, or 40 round trip flights to the moon.
Xfinity waited 13 days to patch critical Citrix Bleed 0-day. Now it’s paying the price
Financial Theft (Enterprise T1657)•
41Ars Technica - All content / 10h
Enlarge / A Comcast Xfinity service van in San Ramon, California on February 25, 2020. (credit: Getty Images | Smith Collection/Gado ) Comcast waited 13 days to patch its network against a high-severity vulnerability, a lapse that allowed hackers to make off with password data and other sensitive information belonging to 36 million Xfinity customers. The breach, which was carried out by exploitin
Blue Origin’s suborbital rocket flies for first time in 15 months
28Ars Technica - All content / 10h
Enlarge / Blue Origin's New Shepard booster comes in for landing in West Texas at the conclusion of Tuesday's suborbital flight. (credit: Blue Origin) With redesigned engine components, Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket took off from West Texas and flew to the edge of space on Tuesday with a package of scientific research and technology demonstration experiments. This was the first flight of Blue
25 Last-Minute Deals on Gifts That Will Arrive by Christmas
Wired / 10h
It's not too late to finish your shopping. We rounded up deals on WIRED-approved gifts that ship quickly.
Caught in the Crossfire: How Delta Air Lines Became The Center Of A Political Storm Over Immigration
View from the Wing / 11h
Some anti-immigration Republicans are now calling for a boycott of Delta Air Lines after a commentator filmed the carrier flying migrants from Phoenix to New York. Normally the complaint is that undocumented immigrants crossing into border states like Arizona and Texas overburdens those states and so they want them moved to New York (or Martha’s Vineyard)? Continue reading ...
Update Your Mac to Avoid a Humiliating Screen Sharing Disaster
LifeHacker / 11h
Apple released a new update for Mac on Tuesday, Dec. 19. However, you won't find a suite of new features and changes when you install the update, as you did when upgrading to macOS 14 Sonoma . Instead, the update might just save you in your next virtual meeting. According to Apple's security release notes , macOS Sonoma 14.2.1 patches one solitary WindowServer bug: "A user who shares their screen
Magic: The Gathering Formally Bans the Use of Generative AI in 'Final' Products
Gizmodo / 11h
An error in judgement earlier this year—when a D&D artist confirmed they had used generative AI program s to finish several pieces of art included in the sourcebook Glory of the Giants —saw Wizards of the Coast publicly ban the use of AI tools in the process of creating art for the venerable TTRPG. Now, the publisher is… Read more...
10 Movies to Stream Tonight If You Can't Stand Christmas
Gizmodo / 11h
Christmas horror movies are never not popular —but what about those holiday-themed dramas, film noirs, and action comedies that never seem to surface on festive watch lists? We’ve gathered 10 movies to stream if all the traditional titles make you want to gouge your eyes out with candy canes. Read more...
Whipped Ricotta Is the Easiest Way to Upgrade Your Holiday Appetizer Spread
LifeHacker / 11h
Whipped ricotta is one of those divine menu items that high-end restaurants will charge you a hefty sum to enjoy with a piece of toast—and why shouldn’t they? It’s silky, creamy, and a decadent appetizer you’d never be able to make, right? Well, I don’t want to ruin your favorite restaurant for you, but I do have to destroy the mystique of whipped ricotta. Only because it’s the easiest cheese hac
Micromobility.com gets delisted from the Nasdaq
TechCrunch / 11h
Micromobility.com, formerly Helbiz, was delisted from the Nasdaq on Monday as a result of the company’s noncompliance with the stock exchange’s listing rules, according to a regulatory filing. Competitor Bird — the only other shared micromobility company to brave the public markets — was also delisted from the stock exchange in September. The company’s common stock […] © 2023 TechCrunch. All righ
Everything you should know about Bank of America’s Preferred Rewards program
The Points Guy / 11h
While it’s wonderful to redeem your points and miles for travel arrangements, such as lodging and flights, there can be many other expenses involved in planning a trip, such as car rentals, train tickets, gas and campsite fees. Luckily, using cash-back rewards in combination with your points and miles can save you even more money on your next vacation. With that in mind, let’s examine the often-o
iOS 17.2.1 update: What's coming to your iPhone?
Mashable / 11h
The new iOS 17.2.1 update was released on Tuesday, but the question is, what is it bringing to your iPhone? Don't expect any major features à la iOS 17.2 , which delivered the Journal app and spatial recording for the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max . This update is a minor one. SEE ALSO: iOS 17.2 is here — 17 new features coming to your iPhone iOS 17.2.1: Does it have any new features? If yo
Tesla requests pause in federal racial bias lawsuit as it wraps up other cases
TechCrunch / 11h
Tesla wants to pause a federal agency’s lawsuit against the automaker for racial bias against its Black workers at its Fremont assembly plant. The electric vehicle maker, in a filing in San Francisco federal court Monday, accused the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) of rushing to file a lawsuit in September against Tesla as […] © 2023 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For person
Microsoft Copilot's new AI tool will turn your simple prompts into songs
TechRadar - All the latest technology ne... / 11h
Thanks to a newfound partnership with music creation platform Suno, Microsoft Copilot can now generate short-form songs with a single text prompt. The content it creates not only consists of instrumentals but also fleshed-out lyrics and actual singing voices. Microsoft states in the announcement that you don’t need to have any pre-existing music-making skills. All you need is an idea in your head
INTERPOL Arrests 3,500 Suspects in Sweeping Cybercrime Operation
Gizmodo / 11h
Interpol, an international police organization, has arrested nearly 3,500 people allegedly connected to cybercrime in a sweeping operation announced on Tuesday . $300 million worth of assets across 34 countries were reportedly seized. The operation, Haechi IV, blocked over 80,000 suspicious bank accounts and warned… Read more...
Cory Doctorow Blasts AI as a Fraud-Filled Bubble
89Futurism / 12h
Renowned journalist and science fiction author Cory Doctorow is convinced that the AI is doomed to drop off a cliff. "Of course AI is a bubble," he wrote in a recent piece for sci-fi magazine Locus . "It has all the hallmarks of a classic tech bubble." Doctorow likens the AI bubble to the dotcom crisis of the early 2000s, when Silicon Valley firms started dropping like flies when venture capital
Sam Altman's Life Extension Guy Warns of Injections That Cause Wild Tumor Growth
Futurism / 12h
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has invested a whopping $180 million in a startup called Retro Biosciences that's looking for novel ways to extend human longevity. As Bloomberg reports , the company has an unusual way of exploring new treatments: it's investigating not just one area of research, but five — an extremely costly and high-risk approach in the world of anti-aging science. Altman, who recently w
Meta says a bug briefly blocked news for Canadian users on Threads
34Engadget / 12h
Meta has fixed a bug that temporarily prevented some Threads users in Canada from reading and sharing news on the app, a company spokesperson told Engadget. Even though Meta pulled news content from Canadian users’ Facebook and Instagram feeds earlier this year, the block hasn’t carried over to Threads. But a number of Threads users wondered if that had changed when they began to see alerts that
Secondaries investors say some valuations are still too high
TechCrunch / 12h
While valuations have fallen quite a bit, some sectors are still too inflated for secondaries investors to find attractive. © 2023 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.
Passport Proliferation: Nearly Half of Americans Now World-Ready, Are You? [Roundup]
View from the Wing / 12h
A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips. Continue reading ...
Finally: US passport processing back to pre-pandemic timeframe
44The Points Guy / 12h
If your passport’s expiration date is coming up in the next year, there’s a bit of good news. For the first time, passport processing times are back down to what they were before the pandemic, the U.S. State Department said Tuesday. Processing times for new passports and those being renewed are now estimated at six to eight weeks for routine service. For expedited service, which costs an extra $6
Wolverine-developer Insomniac Games sees 1.67TB of secrets leaked in data breach
Ars Technica - All content / 12h
Enlarge / An officially released image for Insomniac Games' upcoming game Wolverine . (credit: Insomniac Games ) Acclaimed Sony-owned game development studio Insomniac Games became the victim of a large-scale ransomware attack this week, as initially reported by Cyber Daily . Ransomware group Rhysida dumped 1.67TB of data, including assets and story spoilers from unreleased games, a road map of u
Use a 'Single Source of Truth' to Be More Productive
20LifeHacker / 12h
When you get your first office job, you learn a whole new language. Suddenly, you’re learning about your team’s “workflow,” being forced to declare if you have the “bandwidth” to take on a new responsibility, and forever “circling back” and “drilling down,” all in the name of achieving "learnings." One piece of workplace jargon you may not have yet learned is the “single source of truth"—and it's
You Can Learn Spanish on Rosetta Stone for Less Than $100 Right Now
LifeHacker / 12h
Latin American Spanish on Rosetta Stone is on sale for $95.99 right now (reg. $299) with promo code SAVENOW through December 25. Rosetta Stone is the highly-trusted language learning platform used by top organizations like NASA, Calvin Klein, and TripAdvisor, and it helps you learn by engaging with interactive activities, hearing native speakers using real-world scenarios, and TruAccent speech-re
The Google Play Store Ruling Is Bad News for Longtime Android Phone Users
22Gizmodo / 12h
Last week, Epic won a years-long suit against Google for anti-competitive practices within the Play Store. We were all left wondering: what would happen to Android’s app store moving forward? Today, Google laid out what’s happening in its Keyword blog , and it’s all in time for the holiday when we can finally slow down… Read more...
Volkswagen, Porsche, Audi to adopt Tesla’s charging standard
78TechCrunch / 12h
The Volkswagen Group is the latest automaker to announce it will adopt Tesla’s so-called North American Charging Standard (NACS), marking one of the last major automakers to embrace what is now the de facto EV plug in the United States. The German giant said Tuesday that future vehicles in its portfolio of brands — including […] © 2023 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only.
What We Do in the Shadows Is Coming to an End
95Gizmodo / 12h
The finest residents of New Yohrk Citaaaaaay are bowing out. Vulture reports that as What We Do in the Shadows prepares to begin production on its sixth season next month, it is doing so knowing that it will be the last. Read more...
A magical guide for how to plan a trip to Disney World this year
100+The Points Guy / 12h
Editor’s note: This is a recurring post, regularly updated with new information and offers. If you want to know how to plan a trip to Disney World, you’ve come to the right place. This guide includes tips for choosing the right Disney World hotel for your budget, deciding which ticket type is right for you, determining which extras are worth splurging on and how to plan a trip that’s fun and memo
Astrobotic ready to launch Peregrine lunar lander in early January
TechCrunch / 12h
Astrobotic’s first lunar lander is ready for lift-off. The company announced Tuesday that the lander, called Peregrine, has completed final checkouts and fueling after it was mated with United Launch Alliance’s Vulcan Centaur rocket last month. All that’s left now is launch on January 8 — followed, of course, by a historic lunar landing. “If […] © 2023 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For persona
California Working on System to Turn Raw Sewage Into Drinking Water
21Futurism / 12h
Tapped In Legislators in the state of California are slated to approve new measures to create a filtration system that, as gross as it may sound, turns wastewater into drinking water. As the Los Angeles Times reports , the so-
