Zwift version 1.98 begins its phased rollout today. This is a minor update that brings emoji support to in-game chat and rider names, along with a few other tweaks. Read on for details…
In-Game Emoji Support
Emojis have always worked when reading messages in the Companion app, but they didn’t show up in game. That changes with this week’s update, which will show emojis in messages and Zwifter’s names. How many emojis can you put in a message? A lot.
But only up to two emojis will be displayed in your surname (the first two you use).
Ride leader’s names are displaying emojis correctly yet, but we assume this will get fixed soon:
Leaderboard
After completing a timed segment, your leaderboard ranking is now shown in the center HUD.
This is particularly helpful if you have swapped out the leaderboard on the side HUD for the ride stats panel that was added in July.
Release Notes
Zwift provided notes on additional tweaks and bug fixes in this update:
Fixed an issue where Zwift Companion and Zwift Game could potentially show different streak week numbers.
Fixed an issue that could cause workout arch lighting to appear on the roadway without a corresponding workout arch.
Fixed an issue where TT bikes could potentially automatically steer toward draft in free rides (where drafting provides no benefit); TT bikes now only seek draft in TTT events.
Discuss this update in Zwift’s forum > (link coming soon)
Questions or Comments?
If you spotted any other changes or bugs in the update, please comment below!
The Open Source Security Foundation
(OpenSSF) has put together a joint statement from many of the public
package repositories for various languages about the need for assistance in
maintaining these commons. Services such as PyPI for Python, crates.io for Rust, and many others are
working together to try to find ways to sustain these services in the face
of challenges from “automated CI systems, large-scale dependency
scanners, and ephemeral container builds” all downloading enormous
amounts of package data, coupled with the rise of generative and agentic AI
“driving a further explosion of machine-driven, often wasteful automated
usage, compounding the existing challenges“. It is not a crisis, yet,
they say, but it is headed in that direction.
Despite serving billions (perhaps even trillions) of downloads each month (largely driven by commercial-scale consumption), many of these services are funded by a small group of benefactors. Sometimes they are supported by commercial vendors, such as Sonatype (Maven Central), GitHub (npm) or Microsoft (NuGet). At other times, they are supported by nonprofit foundations that rely on grants, donations, and sponsorships to cover their maintenance, operation, and staffing.
Regardless of the operating model, the pattern remains the same: a small number of organizations absorb the majority of infrastructure costs, while the overwhelming majority of large-scale users, including commercial entities that generate demand and extract economic value, consume these services without contributing to their sustainability.
The era of Google’s Play’s unrivaled dominance may be coming to an end in the wake of the company’s antitrust loss, but Google’s app store isn’t going anywhere. In fact, the Play Store experience is getting a massive update with more personalization, content, and yes, AI. This is Google, after all.
The revamped Google Play Games is a key part of this update. Gamer profiles will now have a public face, allowing you to interact with other players if you choose. Play Games will track your activity for daily streaks, which will be shown on your profile and unlock new Play Points rewards. Your profile will also display your in-game achievements.
Your gaming exploits can also span multiple platforms. Google Play Games for PC is officially leaving beta. Google says there are now 200,000 games that work across mobile and PC, and even more PC-friendly titles, like Deep Rock Galactic Survivor, are on the way. Your stats and streaks will apply across both mobile and PC as long as the title comes from the Play Store.
If you continue to doubt China’s prominence in EV tech, look no further than the Yangwang U9 Xtreme, which has claimed the title of the world’s fastest production car by knocking out a verified top speed of 308.4 mph (496.22 kmh).
In the hands of driver Marc Basseng, the record-breaking run was conducted at the Automotive Testing Papenburg
mrspoonsi writes: The US Secret Service says it has dismantled a network of more than 300 SIM servers and 100,000 SIM cards in the New York area that were capable of crippling telecom systems.
The devices were “concentrated within 35 miles of the global meeting of the UN General Assembly now under way in New York City” and an investigation has been launched, it adds in a press statement.
The Secret Service says the dangers posed included “disabling cell phone towers, enabling denial of services attacks, and facilitating anonymous, encrypted communication between potential threat actors and criminal enterprises.”
Hideo Kojima’s production company and Niantic Spatial released a new teaser showing off a concept for an AR game that the studios see as a “significant moment for both companies.”
The teaser, seen below, follows a player wearing a futuristic pair of augmented reality glasses, and traversing a very Death Stranding-inspired landscape.
“A new dawn. In the near future. Move beyond the screen,” a tagline reads. “The future starts today,” the teaser continues, revealing what could be ally, or fellow competitor on the horizon.
Speaking to IGN, Kojima isn’t revealing much at this point, although it’s clearly a geolocated, multiplayer AR game he’s after.
“I can’t really speak about details yet but, if you’re climbing a mountain… there’s still entertainment there,” Kojima tells IGN. “It’s like the real Death Stranding in the real world, and you can connect with people, or you can connect with the actual environment there in your city. Previously it was like virtual reality, but this time I’m thinking about connecting with the real environment.”
Niantic Spatial CEO John Hanke, a principal creator behind the company’s smash hit mobile game Pokémon Go, sees the project as a way of getting people to play together socially.
“I hope that it creates [an environment] that brings people together to play,” Hanke says. “If there’s one thing need we have in our society right now, it’s something that unifies us and doesn’t pull us apart. And I think that storytelling… has always been humanity’s way of coming together. And technology can support that. It can divide it too, but with an inspiring creator it can be an important force in the world.”
Niantic Spatial further says the partnership is a “significant moment for both companies and a shared vision to push the boundaries of what’s possible in interactive storytelling.”
There’s no release date yet—or target platform for that matter, simply because no such consumer AR device exists at this point. Devices like Meta’s Orion prototype (or something based on it) and Snap’s next-gen Spectacles aren’t out yet, making the trailer more of a concept showcase at this point.
Hideo Kojima wearing Apple Vision Pro | generative extend based on an image courtesy Hideo Kojima
Still, Niantic Spatial has been working specifically in AR since the parent company sold its gaming division responsible for Pokémon Go to Scopely for $3.85 billion in March.
A few months later, the company released XR pet sim Hello, Dot for Quest 3, a mixed reality offshoot of Peridot Beyond for Snap Spectacles, Pause with Peridot and Snap-a-Dot for Web AR.
What’s more, the company says it also aims to build “spatial intelligence that helps people better understand, navigate, and engage with the physical world,” noting it hopes to leverage its geospatial AI and AR tech in enterprise applications.
A bug in a recent release of systemd’s network manager caused
headaches for people managing systems that have a virtual LAN (VLAN)
interface on a bridge; something one might want to do, for example,
when configuring network interfaces for virtual machines. The bug
affected several Debian users when upgrading the systemd package
from v257.7-1 to v257.8-1. The updated package is part of the Debian 13.1
release, and the bug has snared enough users to cause a minor
stir—due in no small part to the maintainer’s response as much
as the bug itself.
WhatsApp is now rolling out message translations on its iOS and Android apps. Starting today, Android users will be able to translate messages between six languages: English, Spanish, Hindi, Portuguese, Russian and Arabic. On iPhone, there’s support for translation between the following languages (i.e. all of the ones supported by Apple’s Translate app):
Arabic
Dutch
English
French
German
Hindi
Indonesian
Italian
Japanese
Korean
Mandarin Chinese
Polish
Portuguese (Brazil)
Russian
Spanish
Thai
Turkish
Ukrainian
Vietnamese
To convert a message into a different language, long press on it, select Translate, then the language you’d like to translate the message to or from. Android users will get an extra-handy bonus feature with the ability to switch on automatic translation for an entire chat.
Translations are handled on your device to help protect your privacy — WhatsApp still won’t be able to see your encrypted chats. Your device will download relevant language packs for future translations. WhatsApp says translation works in one-on-one chats, groups and Channel updates. The platform will also add support for more languages down the line.
There’s no word as yet on if or when WhatsApp will support message translations on the web or in its Windows app. “Translating messages on WhatsApp is only available on certain devices and may not be available to you yet,” a note on a support page reads. “In the meantime, we recommend keeping WhatsApp updated on your device so you can get the feature as soon as it’s available.”
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/whatsapp-starts-rolling-out-message-translations-on-ios-and-android-150132823.html?src=rss
Climate change could leave 74% of the world’s drought-prone regions at high risk of severe and prolonged droughts by the end of the century, new research suggests.
Last Friday, SRAM announced it is taking legal action against the UCI, in a dispute over the cycling governing body’s proposed maximum gearing protocol.
The protocol’s objective is to limit speeds achieved by riders and hence improve rider safety, following a number of high-profile fatalities when descending at speed in races, most notably those of Gino Mäder and Muriel Furrer, both last year.
The UCI refers to the new protocol as a “test” at a single race, the Tour of Guangxi, taking place in China in mid-October, although it says additional events may follow.
The UCI will test gearing restrictions at the 2025 Tour Of Guangxi. Dario Belingheri / Getty Images
The number for the maximum gearing is 10.46 metres of forward motion per pedal revolution. It’s a figure that’s dependent on the bike’s gearing, but also the tyre width (and hence its circumference).
In real terms, this means the maximum gear a cyclist could use in a race would be a 54×11-tooth, when paired with a 28mm-wide tyre.
And therein lies the problem. SRAM (and Campagnolo with the launch of its Super Record 13 groupset) produces cassettes that start at 10 teeth, and SRAM’s pro riders often opt for a crankset with a 54-tooth outer chainring. Under the new rules, this combination would be banned.
The UCI’s solution? Make pro teams block off the 10-tooth sprocket, so they can’t use it, reducing their 12-speed groupsets to 11-speed.
So why is SRAM taking legal action against the UCI?
SRAM says the regulations “hinder innovation, limit rider choice, and unfairly disadvantage SRAM riders and SRAM”. Russell Burton / Our Media
SRAM has filed a complaint with the Belgian Competition Authority (BCA), which has in turn launched anti-trust proceedings against the UCI.
The basis of SRAM’s complaint is that it is the only major manufacturer whose current pro team gearing will be blocked by the new regulation. Shimano cassettes still have an 11-tooth smallest sprocket and are paired with a 54/40t crankset. Campagnolo currently only supplies Team Cofidis and its Super Record 13 groupset offers cassettes with 11-tooth smallest sprockets as well as 10-tooth ones.
So, according to SRAM, the regulations “hinder innovation, limit rider choice, and unfairly disadvantage SRAM riders and SRAM”. It reckons it would take years to engineer a drivetrain that conformed to the UCI’s regulation.
“Lack of transparency and collaboration”
SRAM says the UCI leadership has refused to engage with it, over multiple attempts, and that “the lack of transparency and collaboration left legal action as the only remaining path forward”.
It claims that its gearing “has been publicly labeled as non-compliant, creating reputational damage, market confusion, team and athlete anxiety, and potential legal exposure”.
It further claims that the new ruling was made without any consultation, transparency, supporting evidence or safety justification and distorts competition.
An open letter from SRAM’s CEO
SRAM’s CEO, Ken Lousberg, published an open letter explaining why the company filed a formal complaint with the BCA.
In the letter, Lousberg wrote: “The UCI’s new Maximum Gearing Protocol is set to restrict the equipment many of you rely on to ride and race at your best. It limits choice, stifles innovation, and unfairly targets SRAM riders – and SRAM itself.”
“We’ve tried to engage the UCI, cycling’s governing body, in good faith, but our concerns went unheard. That’s why we’ve taken legal action – not just to protect SRAM, but to protect the right to compete on equal footing.”
“We’re not asking for much. We simply want our racers to compete on a level playing field, and for the industry to be recognized and included as a core stakeholder – working together to make our sport safer for athletes and more inspiring for fans,” the letter went on.
Focus on course design
Better course design will do more to improve rider safety, according to SRAM. Marco Bertorello / Getty Images
SRAM says it crunched the numbers for the 2025 Tour de France and found that crashes on descents were rare, and that there was no correlation between higher gearing and crash risk.
SRAM claims better course design will do more to improve rider safety – and it’s not alone in this belief.
Dan Bigham, head of engineering at Red Bull – Bora – Hansgrohe, presented his research into gearing restrictions at the Science and Cycling Conference in Lille earlier this year.
Bigham said the restrictions would have no impact on the speed of the peloton, so they would not improve safety.
Instead, Bigham proposed four pillars to focus on: course design, bike design, rider protection and medical response.
“We have the power to make changes. But restricting gear ratios simply distracts from making meaningful changes to rider safety,” said Bigham.
The UCI responds twice
On Saturday 20 September, a day after SRAM’s announcement, the UCI expressed concern over the BCA’s announcement that it had opened an investigation.
The UCI said in an official press release that it was “puzzled by the issuance of the Belgian Competition Authority’s press release before the UCI has even been served with the complaint and by the obvious inaccuracies contained in this statement”.
The UCI also issued a second statement in response to SRAM’s press release, where it defended its test at the Tour of Guangxi.
“The UCI reiterates that all its technical regulations, including the protocol for testing maximum gear ratios, are developed in the best interests of cycling, athlete safety, and fair sport. These rules are the result of a consultation process involving stakeholders in the sector, including teams, riders, and organisers,” the UCI said.
“[T]he UCI questions SRAM’s objectives in opposing a test designed to assess the relevance of a safety enhancement measure, thereby undermining the necessary unity among cycling stakeholders, which is essential for progress toward a safer sport,” the statement concluded.
The European Union has asked Apple, Google and Microsoft to explain how they police online financial scams, stepping up enforcement of the Digital Services Act (DSA), as first reported by the Financial Times. Formal information requests were also sent to Booking Holdings, the owner of Booking.com, regarding how the company handles fake accommodation listings. Likewise, regulators will be probing fake banking apps in Apple’s App Store and Google Play. Additionally, they will be taking a close look at fake search results in Google search and Microsoft’s Bing.
Speaking with the Financial Times,EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen said criminal activity is increasingly moving online and platforms must do more to detect and prevent illegal content. Virkkunen said that financial losses from online fraud exceed €4 billion a year (around $4.7 billion) across the EU, and that the rise of AI has made detecting these scams more difficult.
The four companies will be given the chance to respond to these information requests, but under the DSA companies can face penalties up to 6 percent of their global annual revenue for failing to adequately combat illegal content and disinformation.
Earlier this year Apple and Meta were fined around $570 million and $228 million, respectively, after the European Commission found them in violation of the Digital Markets Act (DMA), though both companies are appealing the fines. The DMA is a set of rules governing online platforms that was adopted alongside the DSA in 2022.
European fines on American companies, particularly a recent $3.5 billion fine levied on Google for antitrust violations, have drawn the attention and ire of President Donald Trump. The president has threatened a trade probe over what he views as “discriminatory actions” against American tech companies.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/the-eu-wants-apple-google-and-microsoft-to-clamp-down-on-online-scams-145333226.html?src=rss
40% of U.S. employees have received “workslop” — AI-generated content that appears polished but lacks substance — in the past month, according to research from BetterUp Labs and Stanford Social Media Lab. The survey of 1,150 full-time workers found recipients spend an average of one hour and 56 minutes addressing each incident of workslop, costing organizations an estimated $186 per employee monthly. For a 10,000-person company, lost productivity totals over $9 million annually.
Professional services and technology sectors are disproportionately affected. Workers report that 15.4% of received content qualifies as workslop. The phenomenon occurs primarily between peers at 40%, though 18% flows from direct reports to managers and 16% moves down the hierarchy. Beyond financial costs, workslop damages workplace relationships — half of recipients view senders as less creative, capable, and reliable, while 42% see them as less trustworthy.
The Tokyo Game Show is taking place this week and Sony is getting in on the action with a PlayStation State of Play. The stream will start at 5PM ET on Wednesday, September 24 and run for over 35 minutes. You can watch it on YouTube (also with English subtitles or in Japanese) and Twitch. The stream will be available right here for your convenience, because we’re nice like that.
There will be a fresh look at Saros, the next game from Returnal studio Housemarque. We’ll get our first peek at gameplay from that project, which is set to hit PS5 next year. Sony also promises that the State of Play will include “new looks at anticipated third-party and indie titles, plus updates from some of our teams at PlayStation Studios.”
There have been some rumblings that Sony may be about to reveal more details about Marvel’s Wolverine(the next title from Insomniac, the developer of the Spider-Man games), so that seems like a decent bet. For what it’s worth, this Friday is The Last of Us Day, so there’s a chance we might hear something from Naughty Dog regarding that series.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/a-playstation-state-of-play-is-set-for-september-24-143526268.html?src=rss
Kojima Productions, the studio helmed by auteur and famed cardboard box enthusiast Hideo Kojima, has finally given us our first glimpse of gameplay for the horror game OD. Developed in collaboration with Get Out and Us director Jordan Peele, ODis being billed as a totally unique experience that Kojima expects to divide players. It’s also going to leverage Microsoft’s cloud gaming tech in ways we’re not yet aware of, with Xbox Game Studios publishing the game.
In the new just over three-minute trailer entitled “Knock”, we see first-person gameplay footage of the player character (played by a ludicrously photorealistic Sophia Lillis) anxiously lighting a series of candles, several of which have babies on them, because Kojima. In the background we hear a very ominous knocking sound, with the trailer ending as Lillis’ character is grabbed by someone (or something) who doesn’t appear to be especially friendly.
If you were fortunate enough to play P.T., the playable (and tragically no longer accessible) teaser for Kojima and Guillermo del Toro’s cancelled Silent Hill game, you’ll know that the Metal Gearcreator clearly understands how to craft terrifying horror experiences. From what we’ve seen so far, it looks like the spirit of P.T. at least lives on in OD.
It’s been a busy day for Kojima and his studio, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year and has so far exclusively released Death Stranding games. At Kojima Productions’ “Beyond the Strand” event it was also announced that the studio is partnering with Niantic Spatial to develop what appears to be some kind of AR experience that brings Kojima’s “iconic storytelling into the real world.” Whether that means you can one day expect to encounter a virtual Norman Reedus attempting to steady his wobbling backpack on your way to the grocery store remains unclear, but Kojima Productions says the collaboration represents a “bold expansion into new forms of media beyond traditional gaming.”
And if all of that wasn’t enough, Kojima Productions is also teaming up with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group on a new credit card. It seemingly functions like a regular old credit card that can also be added to your phone, but you can accumulate reward points that can be spent on Kojima Productions merch and other items. Don’t get too excited unless you live in Japan, though, as it doesn’t look like the Kojima-branded credit card will be making its way to our shores when it launches next year.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/hideo-kojimas-od-captures-the-spirit-of-pt-in-the-first-gameplay-trailer-142623143.html?src=rss
The EU is set to scrutinize if Apple, Google and Microsoft are failing to adequately police financial fraud online, as it steps up efforts to police how Big Tech operates online.
The EU’s tech chief Henna Virkkunen told the Financial Times that on Tuesday the bloc’s regulators would send formal requests for information to the three US Big Tech groups as well as global accommodation platform Booking Holdings, under powers granted under the Digital Services Act to tackle financial scams.
“We see that more and more criminal actions are taking place online,” Virkkunen said. “We have to make sure that online platforms really take all their efforts to detect and prevent that kind of illegal content.”
