An anonymous reader quotes a report from Bloomberg: MediaTek is launching a mobile processor more capable of handling agentic AI tasks on devices, positioning to better compete with Qualcomm. The new Dimensity 9500 will provide users with better summaries of calls and meetings, improved output from AI models and superior 4K photos, the Taiwanese company said in a statement. The chip is made using an advanced 3-nanometer process by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., according to MediaTek, and handsets carrying the new chip will become available in the fourth quarter.
Xiaomi is set to launch its latest handset range powered by Qualcomm’s newest Snapdragon processor later this week, and the Chinese smartphone maker is aiming to benchmark its upcoming devices against Apple Inc.’s iPhone 17. MediaTek’s processor, meanwhile, is expected to give Xiaomi’s rivals including Vivo a boost in the premium segment. […] Separately, the Taiwanese company is preparing to place chip orders for automotive and more sensitive applications with TSMC’s Arizona plant as some US customers have security concerns, according to the executives.
Palworld is getting as spinoff that looks both cozy and terrifying — oh, and filled with characters that look exactly like Pokémon. In Palworld: Palfarm, you move to the Palpagos Islands and create a farm alongside Pals. These creatures help with farm work, cook and can even become friends.
According to an announcement on Steam, “Through daily conversations, working together, or giving gifts from time to time, you can gradually deepen your relationships with both the Pals and the people of the island.” Pocketpair, the developer behind both games, adds that they might even play matchmaker — a brand new trailer shows Pals officiating at a human wedding. Notably, the game also supports multiplayer.
However, the game certainly seems to have an air of darkness. For starters, there’s this note in the description: “…Is one of your Pals slacking off? Time to teach them the joy of working.” Ominous, to say the least. Then there’s “nasty Pals,” who will try to raid your farm and must be beaten in combat.
Darkest of all is a black market that sells guns, among other suspicious items. What you would need a gun for in this game is something you can choose to find out, but it certainly seems like the Palpagos Islands are a mixed bag of a place.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/palworld-palfarm-might-be-the-creepiest-farming-game-ever-123049220.html?src=rss
Samsung has made a habit of releasing a handful of phones in its Galaxy S line each year, but the Galaxy S25 Edge is something different. Announced alongside the S25, S25+, and Ultra in January, the Edge is thinnest Galaxy S phone yet. Right now, the 256GB model is marked down to $699.99 on Amazon (its lowest price ever, according to price trackers), which makes it the most affordable entry in Samsung’s flagship lineup.
At just 0.23 inches thick, it feels noticeably slimmer in the hand without sacrificing stability. The titanium frame, paired with Gorilla Ceramic 2 on the front and Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on the back, keeps it durable, while the IP68 rating means it will survive dust and water exposure.
What makes the Edge appealing is that it matches the rest of the series in performance, despite its slimmer build and smaller 3,900mAh battery. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chip and 12GB of RAM ensure smooth multitasking, whether that’s gaming at 60fps or editing 8K video. Even with the smallest battery of the family, the Edge outlasts its siblings, lasting over 16 hours in PCMag’s video streaming tests—longer than the S25, S25+, and Ultra. Plus, the 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED display is bright and sharp at 3,120 by 1,440 pixels, with a 120Hz refresh rate that makes scrolling and gaming feel fluid.
To round it all off, Samsung’s Galaxy AI features and One UI 7 on top of Android 15 add extra polish, and the seven years of promised updates also mean the phone will stay relevant for a long time. Still, the Edge doesn’t check every box. Unlike the S25+ or Ultra, it skips a telephoto camera, limiting zoom to 2x optical-quality and 10x digital. The stereo speakers sound thin, and charging tops out at 25W wired—half the speed of its siblings. If those details matter, the S25+ at $899.99 or the Ultra at $1,075 are stronger fits. But if you want a slim, premium Android phone that balances power, battery life, and future-proof software, the Galaxy S25 Edge makes a strong case, especially at this price.
The Steam Deck is already one of the best bangs for buck in the PC gaming handheld space and the value proposition just got even better with Valve’s steep discount in play. For a limited time, the base Steam Deck is is 20% off for a low $319.20. The question is, should you bite now that the handheld gaming space is much more crowded than when
DJI might be an innovative company, but it has been playing catch-up to rival Insta360 in the action cam world. A perfect example of that is its latest product, the Osmo Nano ($299). It follows a path Insta360 paved with its tiny Go Ultra and Go 3S, which let you separate the cam from the display to shoot with the least weight possible. Like those, the Nano’s tiny camera can be detached from the screen and easily worn to record activities ranging from extreme watersports to cat cam videos.
The Osmo Nano isn’t quite a copy-paste of its rival, though. Rather than inserting the camera into the flip up screen housing like the Go Ultra, the Nano’s screen magnetically clips to the bottom of the camera so you can point it forward to capture action or backward for vlogging. While it still lags behind its rival in some areas, DJI’s Osmo Nano is a solid first attempt at a mini-sized camera thanks to its excellent video quality.
A small size designed for daily activities
With its lightweight detachable camera that can be clipped to your head or worn on your body like a pendant, the Nano can be used in everyday activities like hiking or swimming — with the latter possible thanks to its 33 foot (10 meter) underwater rating. It’s also small enough to be attached to kids and pets to create a visual journal of their activities. At the same time, when attached to the Vision Dock that houses the screen, the Nano functions like a normal action camera.
With that in mind, size is key. The Osmo Nano camera is built from lightweight translucent plastic and weighs just 1.83 ounces (52 grams) by itself. That’s about the same as the Insta360 Go Ultra but a touch heavier than the Go 3S. Its capsule-like shape is similar to the Go 3S (but a bit bigger), while the Go Ultra is more rounded. All of that is to say that the Nano is incredibly small and light compared to a GoPro Hero 13 or DJI’s Action 5 Pro — I barely felt it when using the new headband accessory
They attach together in two ways, with the screen facing either forward or backward, using DJI’s magnetic mount that it’s used for a few years now. Together they weigh 4.37 ounces, still less than a regular action camera. The Vision Dock can wirelessly control the camera without being connected, to a distance of 33 feet. The mount also allows the Nano to connect to DJI’s family of accessories, including a new hat clip and lanyard.
Steve Dent for Engadget
During my testing, the camera and module were easy to connect in either direction thanks to the magnets and latches. To switch from vlogging to the front view, though, you need to detach and reconnect the Vision Dock. Insta360’s system is better, as it just takes a flip of the X5’s screen to change modes.
The difference in camera module sizes can be explained by the sensors. Where the Go 3S has a small 1/2.3-inch sensor, both the Nano and Go Ultra have larger 1/1.3-inch sensors that take up more space but work better in low light. As for optics, the Nano uses an ultra wide angle lens with a 143-degree field of view, giving you the ability to switch between ultra wide and dewarped (square) video. The Go Ultra is slightly wider at 156 degrees, while the Go 3S’s FOV is 125 degrees. I found the Nano’s field of view to be an ideal compromise between the two.
Controls and features
The only physical control on the Nano is the record/power button, with the Vision Dock holding everything else. DJI’s typical screen swiping and tapping actions are used to select things like voice control and screen brightness, along with video resolution, frame rate, RockSteady stabilization and D-LogM capture. Once you get used to swiping and tapping on such a small display, these menus are responsive and let you change settings quickly. However, the navigation isn’t particularly intuitive so settings require some time to learn.
As with other recent DJI products, the Osmo Nano has generous built-in memory, with 64GB (transfers at 400 MB/s) and 128GB (at 600 MB/s) options. Note that those speeds don’t affect video quality; they’re only the rates at which you can transfer footage to your PC. This internal memory is convenient as it means you don’t need to dig around for a microSD card and it makes offloading faster. That said, it’s nice to have a microsSD slot as well — the Go Ultra only has a microSD storage option, and the Go 3S only has internal memory.
Each module has its own non-removable battery with 530mAh and 1,300mAh capacities for the camera and Vision Dock respectively. Those allow operating times of up to 90 minutes for the camera alone, or 200 minutes when paired with the screen module, according to DJI. In comparison, Insta360’s Go Ultra camera can run for 70 minutes or a maximum of 200 minutes when docked to the display.
Steve Dent for Engadget
Note that those specs only apply when recording in 1080p at 24p. When shooting with the Nano at a more typical setting of 4K 60p, I found that battery life was less than half that, around 35 minutes for the camera alone. However, that rose to 49 minutes when using DJI’s endurance mode, with RockSteady stabilization enabled but Wi-Fi turned off. I also noticed that when I shot in 4K at 50p or higher with the camera alone, it shut down after 20 minutes of continuous recording due to overheating.
The Nano’s camera has no USB-C input so it must be connected to the docking station for charging. However, the docking station alone can fast charge the Nano camera to an 80 percent battery in 20 minutes. It takes about 20 minutes to charge both devices together to 80 percent, and 60 minutes for a full charge — 20 minutes more than the Go Ultra.
Other key features include voice and gesture control (tapping or nodding) to start recording, timelapse and Pre-Rec to save footage taken just before the record button is pressed. Insta360’s Go 3S does have a couple of features not found on the Nano, namely Find Me for iPhone if it’s lost and Dolby Vision HDR support.
The Nano can also be controlled using the DJI Mimo smartphone app, though the Vision Dock’s remote control makes that unnecessary most of the time. That app also lets you edit video, but Insta360’s Studio app is superior for that thanks to its more complete editing toolkit and Shot Lab AI module that lets you do some neat effects with little-to-no work required. DJI is definitely well behind its rival in this area.
Video and image quality
A big selling point of the DJI Nano is that it produces high-quality video with faster frame rates than rival cameras. You can capture 4K at up to 60 fps, or 120 fps in slow motion mode, compared to just 4K 30 fps for the Go 3s. It also supports full sensor 4:3 4K video at up to 50 fps. The Go Ultra maxes out at 60 fps at 16:9 4K and 30 fps at 4:3 4K.
Thanks to the big 1/1.3-inch sensor, video is bright and sharp straight out of the camera when shooting in daylight. DJI has improved the color performance compared to its older products, with hues that are more natural. Where sharpening was overly aggressive on models like the Action 5 (which makes video look artificial) DJI has toned that down on the Osmo Nano. And if you don’t like the default application, you can change it in the settings.
Like the Action 5 Pro, the Nano can shoot video with 10-bits of color in both D-LogM and regular modes. The latter gives users extra dynamic range without having to mess with tricky log settings. My preference is still to shoot D-LogM then apply DJI’s LUT in post. That yields more natural colors and gives you up to 13.5 stops of dynamic range in challenging lighting conditions, like tree-lined trails on a sunny day.
The larger sensor also makes the Osmo Nano superior to the Go 3S and about equal to the Insta360’s Go Ultra in low light. When I shot nighttime cityscapes and in indoor bars, it delivered clean video with relatively low noise. For even lower light situations, both the Nano and Go Ultra have night shooting modes called SuperNight and PureVideo, respectively. Both work well if you don’t move the camera too fast, due to the fact that they combine multiple frames into one. If I moved the camera too rapidly, it caused motion blur and other issues. The Insta360 Go Ultra is slightly better in this regard.
DJI’s RockSteady 3.0 reduces camera shake in normal daylight shooting conditions, though it’s not quite up to GoPro’s canny smoothing algorithms. When I tested it while walking, stabilization fell apart a bit in night shooting due to the lower shutter speeds, with noticeable blur and pixelization over sharp jolts and bumps. To avoid that, it’s best to boost the ISO level and shutter speed manually. The company’s HorizonBalancing, meanwhile, reliably corrects tilting up to 30 degrees to keep video level.
As with DJI’s other recent action cams, the Osmo Nano connects to the company’s Mic 2, Mic 3 and Mic Mini via its proprietary OsmoAudio direct connection. That offers higher quality and a more reliable connection than Bluetooth, while allowing you to use two mics at the same time for interviews or multiperson action scenarios. The Nano also has dual built-in microphones for stereo recording, but in my testing, the tinny audio was only good enough for ambient sounds and not voices.
Wrap-up
Steve Dent for Engadget
It’s interesting to watch DJI try to catch up to another company for a change. With the Nano, it leaned on its camera experience and mostly matches or beats its main rival in terms of video quality. However, the company is still lagging behind in a few areas, particularly its editing app — something that’s important for many creators.
DJI seems to be aware of that and priced the Nano much cheaper than rivals. The Nano costs $299 (€279 and £239 in Europe) for the 64GB combo and $329 for the 128GB combo (€309/£259), both of which include the Vision Dock, magnetic hat clip, magnetic lanyard, protective case, high-speed charging cable and dual-direction magnetic ball-joint adapter mount. That compares to €429 for the Insta360 Go Ultra, which has no built-in memory and includes fewer accessories, and €400 for the Go 3S with 128GB of internal storage.
Update September 23, 2025 at 8:50AM ET: The review has been updated to reflect US availability.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cameras/dji-osmo-nano-review-high-quality-video-in-a-truly-tiny-action-cam-120040319.html?src=rss
After the proclamation of a TikTok ban, which fizzled out, during President Trump’s first term, the idea of a TikTok lockout across the US was back on the table when he returned for a second presidency.
Now, after too much will-they-won’t-they, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said a TikTok deal is expected to be signed “in the coming days.” This follows President Donald Trump posting an update on Friday that did little to clarify what the deal actually is.
Trump said both that the two had “made progress” on “approval of the TikTok Deal” and that he “appreciate[s] the TikTok approval.” Trump also told reporters in the Oval Office “he approved the TikTok deal,” according to Reuters.
During an appearance on Fox News’ “Saturday in America” the following day, Leavitt added the deal would mean that “TikTok will be majority owned by Americans in the United States.” She added: “Now that deal just needs to be signed, and the president’s team is working with their Chinese counterparts to do just that.”
The proposed terms reportedly include a brand new app for TikTok’s US users, which will continue to use ByteDance’s technology for its algorithm, US investor control and a multibillion-dollar payday for the Trump administration. But several days later, nothing is yet official.
With a straightforward process to replace batteries.
The new iPhone Air got a provisional 7 out of 10 in iFixit’s teardown critique. As seen in the repair company’s teardown, the iPhone Air’s battery can be easily swapped, has a modular USB-C port and works with day-one repair guides. Apple kept the same battery design introduced with the iPhone 16 lineup, which switched to an electrically released battery adhesive for easier, more clinical removal. Oh, another fun find: iFixit discovered the iPhone Air’s battery is the same cell found in the accompanying MagSafe Battery accessory. iFixit likened it to a “spare tire.”
The Mandalorian and Grogu follows on from the events of Disney+ series The Mandalorian — a show that director Jon Favreau created — and the fall of the Empire in Return of the Jedi. It’s set to hit theaters on May 22, 2026. The trailer does make it seem like the movie will retain the playfulness of The Mandalorian. During the short teaser, Grogu uses the Force to try to steal a snack from Sigourney Weaver’s character, only to be denied. Poor Grogu.
It might be due to the eye-catching edges of the camera unit.
iFixit
Careful, there may be a potentially scratch-prone iPhone 17 models. According to a Bloomberg report, those demoing the latest iPhone in-store noticed the iPhone 17 Pro in Deep Blue and the iPhone Air in Space Black models already had very noticeable scratches and scuffs. In a video by JerryRigEverything, the YouTuber puts the iPhone 17 models to the test with razor blades, coins and keys. The video highlights the edges of the iPhone 17 Pro’s back camera housing as particularly prone to scuffing since the colored aluminum oxide layer from the anodization process tends not to stick to sharp corners.
Bang & Olufsen has launched a new pair of earbuds that could cost more than your phone or your laptop. The Beo Grace, as the model is called, will set you back $1,500, £1000 or €1200, depending on where you are. It has a silver aluminum casing with a pearl finish, which you can protect with a bespoke leather pouch, though the accessory will cost you an additional $400. The company says Beo Grace was “inspired by the elegance of fine jewelry,” with aluminum stems reimagined from its iconic A8 earphones. Bang & Olufsen’s A8 had stems made of metal, as well, but they transition into ear hooks that enable a more and secure and snug fit.
The earphones, the audio manufacturer explains, were “inspired by the acoustic principles” of the $2,200 Beoplay H100 headphones. Beo Grace has Spatial Audio and is optimized for Dolby Atmos, with an Adaptive Active Noise Cancellation technology that’s “four times more effective” than the manufacturer’s previous best earbuds. Specifically, its ANC tech is powered by six studio-grade microphones and can adjust itself in real time, based on the ambient noise. The model comes with tactile controls, so that every press to pause, play or skip is “crisp, deliberate and satisfying,” but you will be able to adjust the volume by simple tapping. When it comes to battery life, the Beo Grace can last up to 4.5 hours of listening with ANC, and up to 17 hours with the charging case.
Beo Grace is now available for pre-order from the Bang & Olufsen website and will be widely available on November 17. The model comes with a three-year warranty, so you at least know that the company will fix your $1,500 earbuds if they break in the near future.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/headphones/bang–olufsens-beo-grace-earbuds-will-cost-you-1500-103012904.html?src=rss
Longtime Slashdot reader hackingbear writes: The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) has demonstrated its ability to launch and recover aircraft from its first electromagnetic catapult-equipped aircraft carrier, the CNS Fujian. Official imagery released by the PLAN today confirms that the new J-35 naval stealth fighters, KJ-600 airborne early warning and control aircraft, and J-15T fighter jet are carrying out carrier trials. Ben Lewis, a co-founder of PLATracker, told USNI News that the test was a “significant milestone” for the Chinese military’s carrier program. “Once operational, the PLAN will have the capacity to field fifth-generation stealth carrier aircraft, supported by fixed-wing carrier-based airborne early warning and command aircraft, across the first island chain and Western Pacific Ocean,” Lewis said.
Electromagnetic catapults offer several advantages, not least the fact that they can be more finely tuned to very different aircraft types, including ones that are larger and slower (like the KJ-600), or which are smaller and lighter, such as smaller drones. In contrast to the U.S. Navy, which gathered decades of experience with steam-powered catapults, China opted for electromagnetic ones for its first catapult-equipped carrier. It’s worth noting that the U.S. Navy’s USS Gerald R. Ford was the first carrier ever to get an aircraft into the air using what is also referred to as an electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS). However, it has not launched an F-35C so far, making the J-35 the first stealth jet to achieve this feat. Based on earlier predictions, the F-35C may not do the same for some years.
This is a video of artist Blake McFarland carving three wooden skulls: one in five minutes, one in five hours, and one in five days. That five minute skull — even that one looks better than I could make in a lifetime. And while the uncensored five day skull is certainly impressive, if you’re paying for a skull by the hour I’d definitely opt for a five hour version for the best value.
The Supreme Court has temporarily allowed President Trump to fire Rebecca Slaughter, the last Democrat on the FTC. “The court’s action is technically temporary, since the justices said they will hear arguments in the case in December, but every indication is that the conservative court majority will use the case to reverse a major Supreme Court precedent that dates back almost a century,” reports NPR. From the report: Congress created the FTC and lots of other agencies to be multi-member, bipartisan regulatory agencies. And the Supreme Court in 1935 upheld those statutes ruling ruled against then-President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s claim that he could fire FTC commissioners at will. In a unanimous opinion at the time, the court said Congress acted within its powers in declaring that a commissioner could only be fired for misconduct — not for a policy disagreement. But now, prodded by President Trump, the court’s six-member conservative majority seems poised to remake the way independent agencies operate. And if the handwriting on the wall is as clear as it seems to be, the independent agencies won’t be independent. Their membership will be subject to the will of the president.
The court’s action Monday was hardly subtle. While the lower courts had ruled that the president could not fire Slaughter, under the court’s 1935 precedent, the conservative Supreme Court majority allowed the president to fire her. Indeed, her name isn’t even on the FTC website anymore. And the court so far has allowed Trump to fire other agency board members. In short, the justices are not playing hide-the-ball. And it’s a good bet that the court will reverse the 1935 precedent, which until now had been reaffirmed multiple times. The result will be that whereas in the past, these agencies had to be bipartisan, with a minority of opposition party members, now there will be no such requirement. In short, Trump can name all the agency members. And if his successor is a Democrat, he or she can fire all the Republicans.
This is a video highlighting the endangered Palm Cockatoo, the only non-cartoon bird known to make and play instruments, crafting drumsticks and using them to beat out a rhythm to attract a mate. Mates love good rhythm. Me? I have no rhythm. One time I tried to impress a date with my own drumming at Rock Band but by the time I’d finished my solo she was gone and raccoons were going through the garbage in my kitchen.
The Moon is rusting — and it’s Earth’s fault. Nature: Scientists have found that oxygen particles blown from Earth to the Moon can turn lunar minerals into hematite, also known as rust. The discovery adds to researchers’ growing understanding of the deep interconnection between Earth and the Moon — and shows how the Moon keeps a geological record of those interactions, says Ziliang Jin, a planetary scientist at Macau University of Science and Technology in China. He and his colleagues reported their findings earlier this month in Geophysical Research Letters.
Most of the time, both Earth and the Moon are bathed in a stream of charged particles emanating from the Sun. But for around five days each month, Earth passes between the Sun and the Moon, blocking most of the flood of solar particles. During that time, the Moon is exposed mainly to particles that had been part of Earth’s atmosphere before blowing into space — a phenomenon known as Earth wind. That wind contains ions of various elements, including hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen. When those charged particles hit the Moon, they can implant themselves into the upper layers of lunar soil and trigger chemical reactions.
Google is rolling out its Gemini AI assistant to Google TV, bringing conversational AI to over 300 million devices. Users will be able to ask Gemini for help with TV recommendations, show recaps, reviews, or even general tasks like homework help, vacation planning, or learning new skills. TechCrunch reports: The company stresses that Gemini’s addition doesn’t mean that you won’t be able to do the same things you used to be able to do through the (non-AI) Google Assistant integration. Those commands will still work, says Google. The Gemini rollout to Google TV begins on the TCL QM9K series starting today. Later in the year, Gemini will arrive on the Google TV Streamer, Walmart onn 4K Pro, 2025 Hisense U7, U8, and UX models, and 2025 TCL QM7K, QM8K, and X11K models. More functionality will be added over time.
SpaceX scored its 500th landing of a Falcon 9 first stage booster on an otherwise routine flight earlier this month, sending 28 Starlink communications satellites into orbit. Barring any unforeseen problems, SpaceX will mark the 500th re-flight of a Falcon first stage later this year.
A handful of other US companies, including Blue Origin, Rocket Lab, Relativity Space, and Stoke Space, are on the way to replicating or building on SpaceX’s achievements in recycling rocket parts. These launch providers are racing a medley of Chinese rocket builders to become the second company to land and reuse a first stage booster.
But it will be many years—perhaps a decade or longer—until anyone else matches the kinds of numbers SpaceX is racking up in the realm of reusable rockets. SpaceX’s dominance in this field is one of the most important advantages the United States has over China as competition between the two nations extends into space, US Space Force officials said Monday.
iFixit’s teardown of Apple’s iPhone Air reveals a device dominated by its battery, which occupies approximately two-thirds of the internal space while critical components including the logic board cluster at the top. The battery matches the component used in Apple’s iPhone Air MagSafe battery pack and can be swapped between devices.
The top-heavy component layout addresses the bendgate vulnerability that damaged logic boards in previous thin iPhone models when pressure was applied to the device’s middle section. Despite the iPhone Air’s thinner profile, iFixit awarded it a 7 out of 10 repairability score, citing reduced component layering that provides more direct access to the USB-C connector, battery, and other serviceable parts compared to standard iPhone models. The dual-entry system further contributes to the device’s serviceability.
Facebook Dating has added two new AI tools, because clearly a large language model is what the search for love and companionship has been missing all this time. The social media platform introduced a chatbot called dating assistant that can help find prospective dates based on a user’s interests. In the blog post announcing the features, the example Meta provided was “Find me a Brooklyn girl in tech.” The chatbot can also “provide dating ideas or help you level up your profile.” Dating assistant will start a gradual rollout to the Matches tab for users in the US and Canada. And surely everyone will use it in a mature, responsible, not-at-all-creepy fashion.
The other AI addition is Meet Cute, which uses a “personalized matching algorithm” to deliver a surprise candidate that it determines you might like. There’s no explanation in the blog post about how Meta’s algorithm will be assessing potential dates. If you don’t want to see who Meta’s AI thinks would be a compatible match each week, you can opt out of Meet Cute at any time. Both these features are aimed at combatting “swipe fatigue,” so if you’re 1) using Facebook, 2) using Facebook Dating, and 3) are really that tired of swiping, maybe this is the solution you need.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/facebook-adds-an-ai-assistant-to-its-dating-app-225754544.html?src=rss
In 2024, the US Supreme Court unanimously ruled to defend a pretty obvious idea about free speech: viz., that the government cannot punish people or companies simply for saying things that government officials dislike or disagree with. Being a media organization, this principle is of fundamental importance to Ars Technica.
Unfortunately, nearly one year on, the government is routinely trying to censor voices it doesn’t like. The recent blow-up surrounding late-night comedian Jimmy Kimmel is just one of the most obvious examples of the new censorship regime. But the case also shows that, even where courts do not act, the public can still successfully push for change.
Disfavored speech
Here’s how Justice Sonia Sotomayor put the basic free speech principle last year:
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Fortune: The dramatic rise in unemployment among Americans under 25 — especially recent graduates — has become one of the most troubling economic headlines of 2025. Recent insights from economists, central bankers, and labor market analysts signal that this appears to be a uniquely American challenge, underpinned by a “no hire, no fire” economy rather than solely by the rapid ascent of artificial intelligence.
For many Gen Z workers, the struggle to land a job can feel isolating and fuel self-doubt. But that frustration recently got some high-level validation: Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell echoed economists’ concerns about the cooling labor market, telling reporters at his regular press conference following the Federal Open Market Committee that it’s an “interesting labor market” right now, adding that “kids coming out of college and younger people, minorities, are having a hard time finding jobs.” Noting a low job finding rate, along with a low redundancy rate, he said, “you’ve got a low firing, low hiring environment.” and noting that it’s harder than ever for young jobseekers to break in.
While recent months have been dubbed by Deutsche Bank “the summer AI turned ugly,” and some major studies find AI adoption disrupting some entry-level roles, Powell was less sure. AI “may be part of the story,” but he insisted the main drivers are a broadly slowed economy and hiring restraint. Top economists at Goldman Sachs and UBS tackled the subject soon after and found Powell to be mostly on the money. This isn’t an AI story, at least not yet. “The U.S. labor market experience is peculiar,” said Paul Donovan, UBS Chief Economist. “Young Euro area workers have a record low unemployment rate. In the UK, the young persons’ unemployment rate has fallen steadily. Employment participation by young Japanese workers is near all-time highs. It seems highly implausible that AI uniquely hurts the employment prospects of younger US workers.”
“It might be tempting to blame technology… Machines, robots, or computers replacing humans is an ever-popular dystopian scenario.” Donovan concludes that the U.S. pattern “more convincingly fits a broader hiring freeze narrative, affecting new entrants to the workforce.”
Goldman Sachs economist Pierfrancesco Mei said last Thursday that “finding a job takes longer in a low-turnover labor market.” He argued that “job reallocation,” or the pace at which new jobs are created and existing ones destroyed, has been on the decline since the late 1990s… “almost all the variation in turnover since the Great Recession mostly falls on younger workers” and is taking place as “churn.” Goldman found that in 2019, it took a young unemployed worker about 10 weeks to find a new job in a low-churn state; now that’s 12 weeks on average.
NASA has named its new group of astronaut candidates, including the first person to have orbited Earth before joining the agency’s corps.
The space agency on Monday introduced the four men and six women who comprise its 2025 trainee class during a ceremony held at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. Following two years of basic training, the new candidates will be eligible for mission assignments in low-Earth orbit and on the Moon, as NASA’s Artemis program works toward sending the first humans to Mars.
“We picked the best and the brightest, the most skilled, the best looking, the best personalities to take these 10 spots,” said Sean Duffy, acting NASA administrator and secretary of transportation. “You are America’s best and brightest, and we’re going to need America’s best and brightest because we have a bold exploration plans for the future.”
Steam’s seasonal sales are usually the peak moments to add new software to your library, but right now, Valve is offering a notable hardware discount. The Steam Deck starter model is currently on sale for 20 percent off its usual $399 price tag. That means you can snag yourself the gaming handheld with an LCD screen and 256GB of storage for $319. Steam hasn’t set an end date for this offer, so it might be worth acting quickly if you want to get in on this particular sale.
The Steam Deck is still the go-to for most PC gamers who want a handheld. Its balance of power, portability and price have kept it one of our top recommendations, even three years after the product’s debut. But keep in mind before you add this to your cart that this iteration does have a few limitations compared to the higher end Steam Decks. The LCD screen doesn’t have the true blacks of the OLED option, and serious players may run up against the storage limits of this model pretty quickly. But if you’ve been curious about a Steam Deck and aren’t looking to have a full library of big AAA downloads available all at once, this is a good time to pick up one of your own. Besides, with the $80 you’ll save, you can also grab a copy of current indie darlings Hollow Knight: Silksong and Hades II and still have money leftover.
