The ‘Survivor’ season 48 winner hails from Virginia and works as an attorney, but did you know he’s also married? Learn all about Kyle here!
The ‘Survivor’ season 48 winner hails from Virginia and works as an attorney, but did you know he’s also married? Learn all about Kyle here!
At I/O 2025, nothing Google showed off felt new. Instead, we got a retread of the company’s familiar obsession with its own AI prowess. For the better part of two hours, Google spent playing up products like AI Mode, generative AI apps like Jules and Flow, and a bewildering new $250 per month AI Ultra plan.
During Tuesday’s keynote, I thought a lot about my first visit to Mountain View in 2018. I/O 2018 was different. Between Digital Wellbeing for Android, an entirely redesigned Maps app and even Duplex, Google felt like a company that had its pulse on what people wanted from technology. In fact, later that same year, my co-worker Cherlynn Low penned a story titled How Google won software in 2018. “Companies don’t often make features that are truly helpful, but in 2018, Google proved its software can change your life,” she wrote at the time, referencing the Pixel 3’s Call Screening and “magical” Night Sight features.
What announcement from Google I/O 2025 comes even close to Night Sight, Google Photos, or, if you’re being more generous to the company, Call Screening or Duplex? The only one that comes to my mind is the fact that Google is bringing live language translation to Google Meet. That’s a feature that many will find useful, and Google spent all of approximately a minute talking about it.
I’m sure there are people who are excited to use Jules to vibe code or Veo 3 to generate video clips, but are either of those products truly transformational? Some “AI filmmakers” may argue otherwise, but when’s the last time you thought your life would be dramatically better if you could only get a computer to make you a silly, 30-second clip.
By contrast, consider the impact Night Sight has had. With one feature, Google revolutionized phones by showing that software, with the help of AI, could overcome the physical limits of minuscule camera hardware. More importantly, Night Sight was a response to a real problem people had in the real world. It spurred companies like Samsung and Apple to catch up, and now any smartphone worth buying has serious low light capabilities. Night Sight changed the industry, for the better.
The fact you have to pay $250 per month to use Veo 3 and Google’s other frontier models as much as you want should tell everything you need to know about who the company thinks these tools are for: they’re not for you and I. I/O is primarily an event for developers, but the past several I/O conferences have felt like Google flexing its AI muscles rather than using those muscles to do something useful. In the past, the company had a knack for contextualizing what it was showing off in a way that would resonate with the broader public.
By 2018, machine learning was already at the forefront of nearly everything Google was doing, and, more so than any other big tech company at the time, Google was on the bleeding edge of that revolution. And yet the difference between now and then was that in 2018 it felt like much of Google’s AI might was directed in the service of tools and features that would actually be useful to people. Since then, for Google, AI has gone from a means to an end to an end in and of itself, and we’re all the worse for it.
Even less dubious features like AI Mode offer questionable usefulness. Google debuted the chatbot earlier this year, and has since then has been making it available to more and more people. The problem with AI Mode is that it’s designed to solve a problem of the company’s own making. We all know the quality of Google Search results has declined dramatically over the last few years. Rather than fixing what’s broken and making its system harder to game by SEO farms, Google tells us AI Mode represents the future of its search engine.
The thing is, a chat bot is not a replacement for a proper search engine. I frequently use ChatGPT Search to research things I’m interested in. However, as great as it is to get a detailed and articulate response to a question, ChatGPT can and will often get things wrong. We’re all familiar with the errors AI Overviews produced when Google first started rolling out the feature. AI Overviews might not be in the news anymore, but they’re still prone to producing embarrassing mistakes. Just take a look at the screenshot my co-worker Kris Holt sent to me recently.
I don’t think it’s an accident I/O 2025 ended with a showcase of Android XR, a platform that sees the company revisiting a failed concept. Let’s also not forget that Android, an operating system billions of people interact with every day, was relegated to a pre-taped livestream the week before. Right now, Google feels like it’s a company eager to repeat the mistakes of Google Glass. Rather than trying to meet people where they need it, Google is creating products few are actually asking for. I don’t know about you, but that doesn’t make me excited for the company’s future.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/googles-most-powerful-ai-tools-arent-for-us-134657007.html?src=rss
The first device OpenAI is putting out with Jony Ive won’t be a phone or a wearable and may not even have a screen at all, according to The Wall Street Journal. OpenAI chief Sam Altman reportedly talked about the company’s plans to employees after announcing that it has purchased Ive’s startup called io. The Journal said Altman told employees that they have “the chance to do the biggest thing [they’ve] ever done as a company.”
Altman and Ive gave out clues for what the company’s first device could be: They said it will be fully aware of its environment and the user’s activities, that it will unobtrusive and could either be carried around in one’s pocket or placed on a desk. The executives also believe that it’s bound to become one of people’s “core” devices after a laptop and a phone. According to the Journal, it won’t be a phone and that one of Ive’s and Altman’s goals is to wean people off screens, which means it most likely wouldn’t come with a display. Altman reportedly said that it won’t be a pair of glasses, and Ive wasn’t keen on building a product users can wear in the first place.
Whatever the device is, they intend on guarding specifics until it’s time to release it in order to prevent their competitors from copying it. They’re hoping to launch their new AI device late next year and are hoping to ship 100 million units “faster than any company has ever shipped 100 million of something new before.” Ive’s team, the Journal said, has been talking to vendors that can mass produce the device over the past four months.
OpenAI apparently started working with Ive’s startup a year-and-a-half ago. The original plan was to have Ive’s company build a product that uses OpenAI’s technology, but they realized that it could become the primary way users will interact with OpenAI’s generative AI models. And that is why OpenAI ended up acquiring the startup founded by Apple’s former chief design officer for $6.5 billion. We’ll have to wait and see whether the combination of Ive’s design and OpenAI’s tech is compelling enough to convince people to buy yet another device from a new category. A company called Humane, for instance, tried and failed to get people to purchase the Ai Pin, which it marketed “as a tiny replacement for smartphones.” In February, the company disconnected all the Pins it had sold, leaving customers without access to all of its features.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/openais-first-device-with-jony-ive-reportedly-wont-be-a-phone-or-a-wearable-130024787.html?src=rss
Fujifilm has already released one unusual camera this year in the GFX100 RF medium format compact, but it’s latest model may be the most offbeat yet. The $850 X Half is an 18-megapixel digital compact camera, but it uses half of a 1-inch sensor to shoot 3:4 vertical photos. To drive home the retro vibe, it has a rear screen dedicated to displaying the camera’s 13 film simulation modes and can only shoot JPEG and not RAW images.
The name comes from “half-frame” cameras popular in the ’60s, like the famous Olympus Pen F, that use a 35mm film frame sawed in half (18mm x 24mm in size). The backside-illuminated sensor on Fujifilm’s X Half is, well, half that size in both dimensions (8.8mm x 13.3mm) or a quarter the area. It’s also the smallest sensor on any recent Fujifilm digital camera, as the X-series uses the APS-C format and GFX models medium format. In fact, the X Half has the same 3:4 vertical ratio as Fuji’s Instax Mini instant cameras — so you can make prints using an Instax Mini printer via the new dedicated X Half smartphone app.
The X Half naturally uses Fujifilm’s film simulation and grain effect modes. Among the new ones are “light leak” for a blown-out quality that happens when film get exposed to light inadvertently, “expired film” and “halation,” an effect caused by light bouncing off film emulsion layers. To really get you into that analog film mood, you can switch to the new Film Camera Mode that limits your view to the optical viewfinder, makes you pull a frame advance lever for each new shot and only lets you see the photos once they’re “developed” through the X Half app. It even produces a “contact sheet” layout for 36, 54 or 72 images.
Another feature is 2-in-1 images that let you combine two still images or movies into one composition in-camera for extra artistic possibilities (using the film advance lever again). That also means the X Half can shoot video as well as photos, with a vertical or square size (up to 2,160 x 2,160) that looks ideal for social media — especially with film simulations applied. Also exuding nostalgic vibes is the “Date Stamp” function that lets you imprint dates in the bottom right of images, just like on old-school Kodak-style film camera.
On top of the main rear 2.40inch LCD 3:4 monitor, the X Half has an optical rather than an electronic viewfinder, adding another analog touch (and the accompanying parallax distortion errors). The camera itself is small enough to slide into a pocket and weighs just 210 grams (7.4 ounces). Other features include a built-in flash, massive 880 frame battery life and SD UHS-I card slot.
The X Half looks like it could be coveted by social media users or anyone looking for a fun party or vacation camera. However, it’s expensive considering that you can just get an Instax (or regular film camera and a lot of film) for a lot less. Fujifilm has definitely captured the photography zeitgeist before with models like the X100 VI, though, so I wouldn’t be surprised if it becomes a hit. The X Half is now on preorder for $850 (in black, charcoal silver and silver) with shipping set to start on June 12.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cameras/fujifilms-x-half-is-an-850-digital-camera-with-an-analog-film-aesthetic-120013873.html?src=rss
Irsay, the owner of the Indianapolis Colts, died at the age of 65 in May 2025. While a cause of death was not disclosed, he experienced health setbacks in the past.
Irsay, the owner of the Indianapolis Colts, died at the age of 65 in May 2025. While a cause of death was not disclosed, he experienced health setbacks in the past.
Rodriguez was identified as the suspect behind the Washington D.C. shooting, which killed two staff members.
Rodriguez was identified as the suspect behind the Washington D.C. shooting, which killed two staff members.
Out of 18 castaways, only one could be the sole survivor. Find out who took home the grand prize on season 48 of the CBS reality TV series.
Out of 18 castaways, only one could be the sole survivor. Find out who took home the grand prize on season 48 of the CBS reality TV series.
It’s been almost ten years since Dyson first unveiled its Supersonic hair dryer, which put its signature bladeless fan technology into a styling product. For a company that was known primarily for its vacuums at the time, this was a surprising move. Since then, Dyson has released several beauty tools like its Airwrap curling iron that have spawned countless imitations. The company also expanded into other categories like audio with its OnTrac headphones and the controversial Zone headphones-with-built-in-purifying-mask while continuing to make some of our favorite cordless vacuums.
Today, Dyson is going full circle by announcing the PencilVac, which it says is the “world’s slimmest vacuum cleaner.” The twist? It achieves that thinness by using a motor that’s basically the same as the one in the Supersonic hair dryer.
What makes the PencilVac different from existing vacuum cleaners is the fact that it’s basically all shaft, with some attachment options for the head. That means there is no bulge unless you use the included conical brush bar cleaner head. All the parts that would normally take up space on a conventional vacuum (like a bin, filter and motor) all fit inside the long cylinder. At the very bottom, you can attach a variety of heads designed specifically for the PencilVac, including the main one that Dyson is calling a “Fluffycones” cleaner head.
The company said it has four cones in two brush bars that rotate in opposite directions, and they were designed to “strip and eject even long hair, preventing hair tangling around the brush bar.” The laser-like lights at both ends of this head also help illuminate where dust particles might be so you can better see what spots you missed.
Altogether, the PencilVac weighs about 3.96 pounds (1.8kg) and is meant to be easy to use in all kinds of hard-to-reach areas. Since it’s got the same roughly 1.5-inch (38mm) diameter throughout, you can grip it fairly easily along its body, wherever you choose to place your hands. This should make it easier to pick up for overhead cleaning.
To get the entire PencilVac to look like, well, a pencil, Dyson had to redesign quite a lot of components. This includes the new Hyperdymium 140k motor, which the company says is its “smallest (at 28mm) and fastest vacuum motor. ” There’s also a new dust compressing system to “maximize the bin capacity.” Speaking of, the bin fits inside the cylinder itself, and it has a transparent window that allows you to not only see how full it is but also watch as debris gets sucked up. In fact, at a recent demo, I watched with a mixture of satisfaction and sadness as bits of crushed up Lotus Biscoff cookies flew to the top of the bin.
Despite its small size, the Hypderdymium 140k motor seemed plenty powerful in my brief time with it, as it sucked up Cheerios, cookies and other detritus with ease. I also found the entire device mostly easy to maneuver — it didn’t feel too heavy and coasted over the bumpy food waste with ease. I was slightly confused by the locking system as I had to make sure to hold it precisely straight up (and wait for a click) after I was done to make sure the stick didn’t just fall to the ground.
Dyson also designed a new filtration system that the company said “effectively separates dust and debris from the airflow without causing filters to clog or cleaning performance to decline.” It also made a new “two-stage linear dust separation system, which captures 99.99 percent of particles down to 0.3 microns so only cleaner air is expelled back into the home.”
More interestingly, the PencilVac has an “air-compressing bin design” that allows the bin to contain “five times more dust and debris than its 0.08L capacity.” In the few rounds of cleaning that I witnessed, the PencilVac certainly appeared to be packing in the garbage quite tightly, though whether it can actually hold 0.4L of stuff is something I didn’t get to measure.
When it comes time to empty the container, you can use what Dyson calls its “new hygienic syringe bin ejection system” to empty it. I didn’t try this out myself, but it basically involves removing the cleaner head, aiming the bottom of the PencilVac at your trash receptacle and sort of shucking the transparent housing up and down to get the debris out. I watched a Dyson engineer do this and the process seemed straightforward, though it did look like parts of the housing trapped some crumbs. The good news is, you can detach the shell and filters to more thoroughly clean them.
The PencilVac also has a swappable battery pack that can last up to 60 minutes of suction, and you can charge the machine on its magnetic charging dock. This is also Dyson’s first connected cordless vacuum, meaning it works with the MyDyson app so you can see battery levels, access more settings and get maintenance alerts (like when and how to clean the filter). There’s also an LCD screen at the top of the handle that shows the selected power mode as well as remaining run time (while you’re cleaning). You’ll largely interact with the controls via the two physical buttons here, too.
Dyson hasn’t shared pricing details on the PencilVac, but there’s plenty of time for the company to figure that out, since it’s only going to be available in the US next year. That’s 2026. Meanwhile, the device will retail in other regions.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/the-dyson-pencilvac-is-the-most-stick-like-stick-vacuum-ever-020109491.html?src=rss
Encrypted messaging platform Signal is rolling out a feature called Screen Security to its Windows app. It’s broadly a way to prevent a computer from logging screenshots of your messages when the app is open, but in a blog post, the company directly called out the Recall feature in Windows 11 as the reason for this new capability.
Signal explained that what it essentially did was to flag its application as protected by Digital Rights Management (DRM), because content under that umbrella will not be recorded in a screenshot on a Windows device. It’s the same reason that a movie streaming from Netflix will appear in screenshots as a black box. Screen Security will be on by default, but this setting can be easily disabled for cases where a user does need to be able to access the application, such as when using a screen reader.
“We hope that the AI teams building systems like Recall will think through these implications more carefully in the future,” the company said. “Apps like Signal shouldn’t have to implement ‘one weird trick’ in order to maintain the privacy and integrity of their services without proper developer tools.”
The Recall feature in Windows 11 has had a difficult and well-delayed development process. While the AI-powered tool to record everything on a PC’s screen has some potential benefits for user productivity, it’s also raised a lot of concerns about privacy and security. Although Microsoft has started rolling out Recall to Copilot+ PCs, not everyone is convinced that it’s ready for prime time.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/signal-will-block-microsoft-recall-from-snooping-on-your-texts-225853193.html?src=rss
A group of GeoGuessr map creators have pulled their contributions from the game to protest its participation in the Esports World Cup 2025, calling the tournament “a sportswashing tool used by the government of Saudi Arabia to distract from and conceal its horrific human rights record.” The protestors say the blackout will hold until the game’s publisher, GeoGuessr AB, cancels its planned Last Chance Wildcard tournament at the EWC in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from July 21 to 27.
GeoGuessr is a browser game where players try to pinpoint locations using only Google Street View images, and it relies on community mapmakers to stay relevant. The blackout, which began on May 21, includes “dozens of creators and their maps, including a supermajority of the most popular competitively relevant world maps,” according to a statement the group shared on Reddit. The removed maps have been played tens of millions of times.
One of the largest GeoGuessr communities, Plonk It, has also removed its Map Directory and shared the mapping community’s open letter. That statement reads in full as follows:
We, the creators of a considerable share of GeoGuessr’s most popular maps, have decided to make our maps unplayable in protest of GeoGuessr AB’s decision to host a World Championship wildcard tourney at the Esports World Cup (EWC) in Riyadh.
The EWC is a sportswashing tool used by the government of Saudi Arabia to distract from and conceal its horrific human rights record.
Groups targeted by the government include women, LGBTQ people, apostates and atheists, political dissenters, migrant workers in the Kafala system, religious minorities, and many others. The subjugation of these groups is extensive and pervasive. Members of these groups are routinely subjected to discrimination, imprisonment, torture, and even public executions. These severe human rights violations are well-documented and indisputable.
By participating in the EWC, GeoGuessr is contributing to that sportswashing agenda, which is designed to take attention away from Saudi Arabia’s human rights violations.
The GeoGuessr community is diverse and includes many members of groups that would be harshly persecuted were they to live in Saudi Arabia. In solidarity with those currently residing in Saudi Arabia while being subject to oppression, as well as members of the community who would feel and be unsafe attending the tournament in Riyadh, we have decided to black out our maps by replacing all their previous locations with random garbage locations, rendering them unplayable.
This blackout includes dozens of creators and their maps, including a supermajority of the most popular competitively relevant world maps. It will continue until we see action from GeoGuessr; specifically, we demand that GeoGuessr cancels its wildcard event in Saudi Arabia and commits to not hosting any events there as long as it continues its oppressive regime.
You don’t play games with human rights.
Thank you for reading.
The GeoGuessr mapping community
We’ve hit up GeoGuessr AB for a comment on the blackout and will update this story as we hear back.
The EWC is a huge, multi-game event owned and operated by the Saudi government and held in the country’s capital city. It’s an evolution of the Gamers8 tournament and this year marks the second EWC-branded competition; it’s due to take place in July and August with a total prize pool of $38 million, split among 24 games. Franchises participating in the 2025 event include Rocket League, Apex Legends, Call of Duty, League of Legends, Counter-Strike, Overwatch, Dota 2, Valorant, Street Fighter 6, EA Sports FC and PUBG.
It’s difficult to compete in esports without running into Savvy Games Group, the video game arm of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. Alongside hosting the EWC, Savvy has financial stakes in Nexon (10.2 percent ownership), Electronic Arts (9 percent), Embracer Group (8.3 percent), Nintendo (7.5 percent), Capcom (5 percent) and Take-Two Interactive (6.8 percent as of 2023). Savvy also runs ESL FACEIT Group, which contains the Electronic Sports League, a longstanding and significant esports event company. The New York Times reported last year that the Saudi government plans to invest $38 billion in the video game industry by 2030.
Human rights groups including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have long documented the abuses of the Saudi government. HRW describes Saudi Arabia’s human rights record as “abysmal,” and specifically calls out the PIF as a reputational whitewashing tool. Saudi authorities have been accused of sportswashing in traditional sports as well, specifically through the country’s ownership of LIV Golf and Newcastle United FC.
In February, Riot Games — the operator of League of Legends, Valorant and Teamfight Tactics, and arguably the largest name in esports — signed a three-year deal with the Esports World Cup Foundation for an undisclosed sum. Riot defended the partnership, arguing that the resulting financial boon for players and the esports industry outweighed other concerns.
“We know some of you may not feel great about our decision to partner with the EWC in this way, and we respect that,” Riot’s statement read.
Though corporate support for the EWC remains strong, the GeoGuessr mapping community isn’t alone in rejecting this year’s tournament. Street Fighter 6 player Christopher Hancock, who plays as ChrisCCH for FlyQuest, recently declined his spot at EWC 2025. In a social media statement, Hancock said, “I gave this decision a lot of thought and ultimately decided that, due to the nature in which the event is funded and managed, I do not feel comfortable participating in it.” He added that the partnership between the Capcom Pro Tour and the EWC effectively forced him to work with the Saudi-backed group.
“Choosing to not participate in any EWC qualifiers would effectively mean retirement from competing,” Hancock said. “I find it regrettable that this event has become so deeply embedded in the [fighting game community], but I have not yet made a decision on whether I will stop competing in events associated to it altogether.”
Alongside the GeoGuessr map blackout, the community protest added one new, short challenge to the game called How to Run A Dictatorship. It takes players through five locations around Riyadh, documenting the alleged government-sanctioned torture, kidnapping, imprisonment and oppression of women, LGBTQ people, religious minorities and political dissenters occurring in these places. The challenge takes just a few minutes, so feel free to experience it yourself.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/geoguessr-community-maps-go-dark-in-protest-of-ewc-ties-to-human-rights-abuses-221037118.html?src=rss
