The end of the dinosaurs was clearly linked to an asteroid impact that brought the Cretaceous period to a close. But the details of their end have remained a matter of debate since the impact crater was discovered. There is a lot of evidence that the impact alone should have been enough to do them in. But the asteroid arrived amid major volcanic eruptions associated with previous mass extinctions. And fossils dating to just before the impact have suggested that dinosaur-dominated ecosystems had become less diverse, making them more prone to collapse.

Now, a new study has revealed that fossils we already know about originated within the last few hundred thousand years before the impact that killed off all dinosaurs except birds. The results indicate that species richness wasn’t likely to be a problem—at least in the neighborhood of the impact itself.

Wyoming vs. New Mexico

Most of what we know about the last days of the non-avian dinosaurs comes from the Hell Creek Formation, rich fossil beds in present-day Wyoming. These not only date from within a few hundred thousand years prior to the impact, but there may be deposits that capture the immediate aftermath of the impact. Beyond this area, which reflects the ecosystem of the northern Great Plains, we have little else. It hasn’t been clear whether the diversity of species present at Hell Creek reflects what was present more globally, or if there were regional differences in ecosystems

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Strava’s big attack on Garmin didn’t last long. On Tuesday, the former filed paperwork to dismiss its patent infringement lawsuit against the latter, according to DC Rainmaker. The battle, which included a “Setting the record straight” Reddit post from Strava’s chief product officer, lasted all of 21 days.

The lawsuit accused Garmin of infringing on patents related to heat maps and segments. Strava asked the court to halt all sales of infringing Garmin products, which, according to its characterization, would have been, well, most of them.

Strava Chief Product Officer Matt Salazar escalated the fight with an October 2 Reddit post. He said his company’s legal maneuver was in response to Garmin API guidelines that “required the Garmin logo to be present on every single activity post, screen, graph, image, sharing card, etc.” Salazar wrote that Garmin “wants to use Strava and every other partner as an advertising platform — they told us they care more about their marketing than your user experience.”

Those are fighting words, and Strava appeared to be digging in for a righteous and bitter battle against its partner. But now, it’s essentially, “Eh, never mind.”

Why the quick reversal? We reached out to Strava for comment, and we’ll update this post if we hear back. But closed-door discussions between the companies, possibly including threats from Garmin to counter-sue, seem likely. Garmin has a stacked patent library and a strong record defending them in court. Besides, DC Rainmaker says Strava’s case (especially the parts related to heat map patents) didn’t appear to hold much water in the first place.

Strava’s initial move was all the more bizarre, considering how much its business model depends on activity data from Garmin devices. The two companies have a longstanding relationship, which you can imagine isn’t so healthy at the moment. Losing access to Garmin’s legion of devices could have been catastrophic to the San Francisco-based Strava, which plans to file an IPO next year.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/wearables/strava-pulls-the-plug-on-its-garmin-lawsuit-after-just-21-days-204255109.html?src=rss

Samsung and SK Hynix have raised DRAM and NAND flash prices by up to 30% for the fourth quarter, Korean publications report. The two Korean memory giants passed the new rates on to customers as analysts predict the AI-driven memory supercycle will be longer and stronger than past boom periods.

Several leading international electronics and server companies are stockpiling memory and negotiating long-term supply deals spanning two to three years. U.S. and Chinese electronics firms and data center operators are exploring mid-to-long-term contracts. Companies typically sign DRAM contracts on a quarterly or annual basis.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

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When Mark Zuckerberg described Meta’s Horizon Worlds back in 2019, he seemed to think the virtual community hub would be a place for cool, tech-forward young adults to socialize and network. Six years later, it’s essentially a virtual daycare center; everywhere in virtual space is filled with kids. I don’t mean 16-year-olds or tweens, either—I’m talking young kids, so prevalent they’ve earned the nickname “squeakers” for their high-pitched voices and twitchy energy.  So what’s a grown-ass adult who likes virtual reality but wants to avoid children to do? Here are some tips and strategies for finding VR places to game and/or socialize that are free of children. Sometimes. 

Avoiding kids in Horizon Worlds

Meta’s rules for Horizon Worlds say kids as young as 10 can log in, and that’s mostly who does, but there are worlds designated as 13+ and 18+, too. This is mainly enforced through Meta’s own age-check systems and community moderation in the form of adults reporting kids if they see ‘em. There are also “tests” like this one: 

Credit: Stephen Johnson

If your reach is too small: sorry, kid. Some worlds even have voice testing to bar anyone with a voice higher than Michael Jackson’s. None of this is foolproof of course—kids will find a loophole—but 18+ worlds are reasonably kid-free, and are your best bet for finding fellow adults in Meta’s social hub. Adult-friendly worlds tend to revolve around things like poker, trivia, or stand-up comedy, and popular 18+ worlds like The Soapstone have active moderators, both of which keep the little ones away. 

Ironically, you can hijack Quest’s parental controls and use them to protect yourself from children by blocking kid-heavy zones and saving adult-heavy ones. Speaking of blocking, Meta has made it easy to instantly ignore and report people you don’t want to be around. You just hover your pointer over the person’s avatar to open their profile, select “options,” then choose “block” and “confirm.” In Horizon Worlds, blocked users appear as a gray, featureless avatar and you will not be able to hear each other. 

Avoiding kids in VRChat

If Horizon Worlds is the safe, corporate-approved virtual chat option, VRChat is the Wild West. It’s where the stranger corners of the metaverse collide, but if you stick to verified 18+ rooms or private invite-only instances, you can usually avoid excessive Roblox energy. VRChat weeds kids out with a mix of user moderation, reporting, and sheer chaos.

The app doesn’t actually check ID to confirm users are 18. It relies on self-reported ages and community moderation, and some creators use extra barriers like requiring membership in a verified Discord server or having a certain “trust rank” (earned by spending time in-game and being a generally non-terrible person) before you can join their worlds. It’s not airtight, but it’s enough friction to keep out most of the literal children.

Play games kids don’t care about

If you want to avoid kids, avoid games with subjects that appeal to kids. Don’t play Gorilla Tag, Rec Room, or Super Rumble; and definitely steer clear of the public parts of Minecraft and Roblox.

Instead, play games that kids would call “boring” or “lame.” What self-respecting child is going to download Racket Club to play virtual pickle ball? But Racket Club is an excellent game.

Here’s a list of games to check out with adult energy: 

• Walkabout Mini Golf: The low-stakes competition and camaraderie of virtual miniature golf is kryptonite for kiddos. 

• Eleven Table Tennis: Like Racket Club, few kids are going to want to play this, but it’s one of the best competitive online VR games. out there

• Demeo: Tabletop role-playing games take too much patience for most children.

• Breachers : This is a tactical shooter with grown-up teamwork energy. You might think that parents would keep their little darlings out of more violent, teen-rated games like this (and Population One or Ghosts of Tabor) but it’s hit or miss. Luckily, kids are usually bad at these games, so you can use ‘em to boost your K/D ratio.

Play games you have to pay for

While the above more adult-focused VR games are all over the map in terms of genre and vibe, they share something important: You can’t play them for free, unlike Gorilla Tag and Roblox. Money is a great barrier to kid entry.

Build your network of adults

When you do find some you like playing with, add them to your friend list so you can find them again next time. When you have enough pals, many games will let you set up private lobbies that require invite codes, so no one can just wander in and invade your child-free zone.

Mute everyone else’s mics

If you don’t care about the social aspect of gaming, there’s nothing stopping you from just muting everyone else’s microphones. Although many children find ways to be annoying without speaking, especially if it’s a team game and you’re on the same side.  

When all else fails, embrace the chaos

The Metaverse may be crawling with kids, but with patience, mutes, and private lobbies, you can still find a tribe of tired adults trying escape reality in peace. But we’re badly outnumbered. There are so many children in VR that you are going to run across them, no matter what you do. Sometimes the best way to handle it is to lean into the chaos. Obviously report kids in restricted spaces, but kids in “not-technically 18+” virtual spaces are a hallmark of the hobby. And they are the future after all, so, if you have the energy, try to provide positive role-modeling and patience. You’re in their world, after all. 

I know there are bigger fish to fry, but I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t draw your attention to this travesty of a commercial Verizon just released. It’s only 30 seconds long but may go down as one of the worst ads I’ve ever seen.  

What’s so offensive, you ask? Well, the carrier (and one-time parent company of Engadget) wants to promote the fact that it will give AT&T and T-Mobile customers a better deal on their wireless plan if they bring in their monthly cellular bill. That’s all well and good, but we need to talk about the cathode-ray tube TV that’s at the center of the commercial.   

The ad opens with a woman walking into a Best Buy-coded store and handing over a 27-inch CRT TV to a nearby sales associate. “Hi, I got this old thing and the bill from the store where I got it,” she tells the young salesperson while casually tossing the TV to him. “Figured you could beat it with a better deal on one of these big boys,” she adds, pointing to, let’s be honest, an objectively worse flat panel TV. 

Now, I need to know: did anyone who worked on this commercial try to lift a CRT? Look, I know it’s 2025, and even the newest sets are now close to two decades old, but even if you’ve never seen one in real-life, surely you’ve heard how heavy they are? If I had to guess, the TV we see in the commercial, which looks like an RCA 27R411T, weighs close to 75 pounds. There’s a reason so many Facebook Marketplace listings recommend you bring a friend with you when you come pick up the CRT they’re selling; most people can’t lift even a mid-sized set on their own. 

I hate to think how Verizon made this commercial. CRTs are a dead technology. No company is making new consumer sets anymore, and any working CRTs left out in the world are on borrowed time. If the company gutted a working set to make this commercial, it means there’s one less CRT in an ever-dwindling pool. Someone could have enjoyed that TV and stopped it from entering a landfill.

But as for the rest of the commercial, it’s equally as bad. No big box retailer is accepting trade-ins for a CRT TV, and even if they were, trying to get rid of one that way would be a rookie move. CRTs, both TVs and monitors, are highly sought after by retro gamers. Even a relatively unknown set like the 27R411T can catch a few hundred dollars, especially if it’s in pristine condition. In fact, a quick eBay search returns a seller looking for $350 for their 27R411T unit. 

But you know what our dear Verizon booster does? She just walks away without the CRT after the salesperson tells her the shop won’t give her a better deal on a new TV. “Guess you’re not as cool as Verizon” she says, uttering a thing no one in the history has ever said. Sorry, joke’s on you, lady. Not only is that TV impossibly light, it’s way cooler than anything Verizon has ever done.  

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/home-theater/verizons-latest-ad-defies-crt-physics-202441012.html?src=rss

The amount of energy required to supply the data centers powering AI is so vast that meeting that need may be more than a lifetime away, according to a senior executive at Apollo Global. From a report: “The gap between what AI is demanding and what we have everywhere in the world on the grid in terms of generation and transmission is huge and will not be closed in our lifetime,” Dave Stangis, who has led and developed Apollo’s sustainability strategy over the past four years, said in an interview.

That means sustainable energy investors need to accept that renewables alone aren’t enough to power the AI age, he said. The comments encapsulate a new approach across the finance industry, where the economics of the energy transition — a concept intended to represent the shift to a low-carbon future — are becoming merged with the economics of an unprecedented boost in supply. “So what is happening around the world, there’s no doubt about it, is what you might call energy addition,” Stangis said. “The world is scrambling to add every source of power.”

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Walk through any park these days and you might spot them: people sporting bulky weighted vests, adding 10, 20, even 30 pounds to their morning stroll. Scroll through social media and you’ll find countless influencers touting weighted vests as the secret to building unbreakable bones and sculpted muscles. Many videos have gained hundreds of thousands of views with claims that weighted vests will “transform your body“—a claim that, to be fair, is par for the course in any fitness trend. “Weighted vest walks” are popular enough to be parodied, and even if I find those videos a little mean-spirited, they do point to an important question: Does this trendy fitness accessory actually deliver on its promises?

Let’s dig into what science really says about weighted vests—and what they can (and can’t) do for your body.

The claim: Weighted vests can build bone density or stop bone loss

I can see how this theory sounds legit. Bones respond to mechanical stress by becoming stronger—it’s why astronauts lose bone density in zero gravity, and why weight-bearing exercise is recommended for osteoporosis prevention. So logically, strapping on extra weight should signal your bones to bulk up, right? Not exactly.

According to Dr. Leah Verebes, a professor at the Touro School of Health Science’s DPT program, the reality is more nuanced. “Some research, particularly among elderly persons and postmenopausal women, suggests that the use of a weighted vest while exercising, or plain walking, can slow bone loss or improve bone density modestly—especially in the legs and hips,” she says.

However, the gains are far from dramatic. Verebes notes that “results are variable and gains are minimal.” Traditional resistance training like weightlifting and higher-impact activities like jogging or jumping produce significantly better results. A 2023 review found that while weighted vests may help maintain bone mineral density, the overall quality of evidence supporting this benefit remains low to moderate.

Weighted vests can help maintain bone strength, particularly for people who can’t tolerate high-impact exercise due to joint issues or other limitations. But they’re not a substitute for proper resistance training or impact activities.

The claim: Wearing a weighted vest builds muscle and increases strength.

Here’s where expectations need serious adjustment. Yes, adding weight to your body does increase the resistance during bodyweight exercises like squats, lunges, push-ups, and step-ups. And yes, this can contribute to improvements in muscular endurance and modest strength gains. But there’s a catch.

“Vest walking also increases caloric expenditure and activates muscles more than regular walking, but the weight is typically too low to induce significant muscle growth,” Verebes says. Most weighted vests are designed to be 5-15% of your body weight—enough to make your workout harder, but not enough to trigger substantial muscle building.

Think of it this way: If you weigh 150 pounds, a 10% weighted vest adds just 15 pounds. That’s less resistance than you’d use for a basic strength training exercise. “Significant muscle growth continues to require progressive resistance training with more substantial weights,” Verebes says.

So, weighted vests can intensify your workout and improve muscular endurance, but they won’t replace a proper strength training program if your goal is building significant muscle mass.

The risks nobody’s posting about

While social media showcases people effortlessly crushing workouts in weighted vests, the reality is that adding load to your body comes with real risks. Verebes says that “too much excess weight can cause strain on joints, especially the knees, hips, and lower back.” The increased load can also impair balance and increase fall risk, a particular concern for older adults who might be using vests specifically to improve bone health.

Perhaps most concerning is the risk of overuse injuries when people add weight too quickly. “Professionals recommend starting with a light vest—roughly 5–10% body weight—and adding to it gradually as strength and tolerance improve,” Verebes says.

What actually works for building strong bones and muscles

If you’re serious about improving your musculoskeletal health, Verebes offers evidence-based recommendations:

• Prioritize resistance training. Weightlifting or using resistance bands remain the most effective methods for keeping bones and muscles strong. Progressive overload—gradually increasing the weight you lift—is key to continued improvement.

• Include impact and weight-bearing exercise. Walking, hiking, stair climbing, and jumping all provide bone stimulation. Activities that involve impact force your bones to adapt and strengthen.

• Support exercise with proper nutrition. You can’t out-train a poor diet. Adequate protein, calcium, and vitamin D are essential for maintaining bone and muscle health. Without proper nutrition, even the best exercise program will fall short.

So, should you use a weighted vest?

Look, weighted vests aren’t worthless. They can add challenge to bodyweight exercises and walking routines, providing modest improvements in muscle endurance and bone maintenance, particularly for older adults or those unable to do high-impact activities.

But as Verebes says, “they are not a shortcut to get to stronger bones and bigger muscles overnight. For significant improvements, regular resistance training and impact exercise remain the gold standard.”

The bottom line? Weighted vests are a tool, not a miracle solution. If you do decide to try a weighted vest, start conservatively with 5-10% of your body weight, add load gradually, and pay attention to how your joints respond. And crucially: Always speak with your doctor first, especially if you have existing joint problems, balance issues, or bone density concerns.

The director of a federal health institute that has arguably produced two of the most controversial government studies in recent years has accepted a new federal role to advance the goals of the Make America Healthy Again movement. Meanwhile, the person replacing him as director is a close friend of Vice President JD Vance and was installed in a process that experts describe as completely outside standard hiring practices.

The series of events—revealed in an email to staff last week from the National Institutes of Health Director Jay Bhattacharya—is only exacerbating the spiraling fears that science is being deeply corrupted by politics under the Trump administration.

Richard Woychik, a molecular geneticist, is the outgoing director of the NIH’s National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), which is located in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. He has been director since 2020 and was recently appointed to a second five-year term, according to Science magazine. Woychik was hired at the institute in 2010, when he joined as deputy director, and was appointed acting director in 2019.

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China’s new five-year plan — an overarching policy proposal for the next term of Chinese Communist Party leadership — is focused on making the nation technologically self-reliant and less vulnerable to foreign pressure, Bloomberg reports. The plan has yet to be officially adopted, but is being released ahead of a summit between President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping in South Korea.

The main focus of the proposal is to make China’s tech and science industries self-reliant and less dependent on products created by international companies. Bloomberg writes that the proposal is particularly interested in developing “fields such as semiconductors and artificial intelligence” which are currently driven in part by products from US companies like Nvidia and OpenAI. China also hopes to “bolster domestic consumption” and make the country less dependent on exporting, a business that’s been thrown into chaos by a fluctuating tariff regime set by the Trump administration. 

Per the AP, this new five-year plan mostly builds on the previous five-year plan China set during Trump’s first-term, which focused on investing in technology as part of the country’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. In particular, the new plan aims to continue the growth of China’s wind and solar industries and “accelerate the all-out green transformation of economic and social development.”

In the context of the US and China’s back and forth over international trade and access to resources, the new plan, as reported by Bloomberg and the AP, seems like a response to the growing tensions between the two countries. One that could make China less burdened by the US moving forward.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/chinas-latest-five-year-plan-aims-for-technological-self-reliance-194551489.html?src=rss

It’s about to get a whole lot harder for catfishers on Tinder. Starting today, new users in California will have to scan their faces while setting up their accounts to ensure that they’re both real and that they match their profile photos.

Called Face Check, the new mandatory feature is the first step in a new initiative from Tinder’s parent company Match Group, which says the goal is to help reduce “spam, scam attempts, or [bots] operating automated fake profiles.” When signing up, users will need to complete a “liveness check,” during which they’ll take a video selfie from various angles. After that, the app will compare the selfie to profile pictures also uploaded during setup, and if it determines that they match, the user will get a “Photo Verified badge” and they’ll be able to finish making their account. Tinder also says the system can determine if a picture has been used across multiple accounts to help prevent impersonation.

While Face Check is new to the United States, it’s already been launched abroad in Colombia, Canada, Australia, India, and “several countries across Southeast Asia.” According to Tinder, “when coupled with other recent safety initiatives,” Face Check has led to an over 60% decrease in users exposed to “bad actors,” and an over 40% decrease in reports of bad actors.

Face Check’s debut also coincides with the rise of AI image generators, and while the company’s announcement post doesn’t explicitly call out AI, it’s not hard to see how it could prove handy against bots using generated photos to pretend to be someone who doesn’t even exist. Traditional catfishing methods, such as using stock photos, can be detected with diligent reverse image searching, but AI’s ability to quickly create novel, believable, and specifically tailored results has made it harder than ever to know whether you’re speaking to a genuine human online.

At the same time, as other apps begin to collect personal information like government IDs, there is a privacy concern. Tinder says that Face Check only uses your video selfie to complete the verification process, and deletes it shortly after review, although it does generate a “non-reversible, encrypted face map” that is stored to “help verify new photos, detect fraud, and prevent duplicate accounts.”

As someone who met my husband on Twitter (RIP), I’ll leave it up to you whether that’s worth it. Have you tried just getting real good at posting instead?

For now, though, you might have to wait a bit until Face Check actually makes its way to you. First, Tinder is not forcing existing accounts to use Face Check, which is why I assume it’s using a badge to indicate the accounts that have gone through Face Check, even though it’s mandatory during setup. Second, Face Check is rolling out slowly. Tinder says that it will come to additional states “in the coming months,” although the company did not provide an exact timeline.

As for other apps, Match Group (which also owns OKCupid, Hinge, and Plenty of Fish, among others) says it will extend Face Check to additional platforms in 2026.

President Donald Trump has pardoned the Founder of Binance, Changpeng Zhao, who pleaded guilty to anti-money-laundering violations and served prison time. The Associated Press reports: Zhao has deep ties to World Liberty Financial, a crypto venture that the Republican president and his sons Eric and Donald Jr. launched in September. Trump’s most recent financial disclosure report reveals he made more than $57 million last year from World Liberty Financial, which has launched USD1, a stablecoin pegged at a 1-to-1 ratio to the U.S. dollar. World Liberty Financial also recently announced that an investment fund in the United Arab Emirates would be using $2 billion worth of USD1 to purchase a stake in Binance. Zhao also has publicly said that he had asked Trump for a pardon that could nullify his conviction.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement Thursday that the Biden administration prosecuted Zhao out of a “desire to punish the cryptocurrency industry.” She said there were “no allegations of fraud or identifiable victims,” though Zhao had pleaded guilty in November to one count of failing to maintain an anti-money-laundering program.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

When you’re trying to keep Leica’s digital camera lineups straight, the M-System was always the one with optical rangefinder display (and high price tag). However. the company just upended that precedent with the M EV1, a 60MP mirrorless camera with a classic M design but an electronic viewfinder (EVF) in place of the rangefinder. 

It may upset purists, but it’s a move that makes sense from a sales point of view. Leica’s old-school film cameras used its M mount lens system and, in order to keep the bodies compact, didn’t have reflex mirrors like SLRs. Instead, they used an optical rangefinder, which provides a weird, offset and inaccurate view of the scene. Leica kept the rangefinders when it launched its digital M cameras, even though it could have switched to an EVF. 

Leica

In 2014, Leica launched a more modern mirrorless camera lineup with the new SL mount that did use electronic viewfinders. However, they have always lacked the cachet, compact size and gorgeous looks of the M-System, so don’t appeal as much to well-heeled buyers that want the full Leica experience. 

Enter the M EV1, which looks exactly like you want a Leica to look but boots the rangefinder in favor of an EVF. “Designed for both devoted Leica enthusiasts and those new to the M System, it makes capturing beautiful, intentional photographs easier than ever,” the company wrote. Leica probably noticed buyers who wanted a pretty camera were drawn to the M series, but then put off by the wonky rangefinders.

Handmade in Germany, the M EV1 is definitely beautiful, with the classic rounded rectangular M shape and a new diamond-patterned leatherette to give it a distinctive look compared to the rangefinder models. Leica also eliminated the dedicated ISO dial (the setting is now done via another control), which helped make it 1.62 ounces lighter than the M11-P. It has a new custom function lever that lets you activate focusing aids and digital zoom options while looking through the viewfinder.

Leica

That viewfinder is definitely a good one, with 5.76 million dots of resolution for a sharp view. The rear screen has a sharp 2.32-million-dot display, but is fixed in place and doesn’t tilt. 

Otherwise, the M EV1 has similar specs to the M11-P. It has a high resolution 60MP sensor with support for 14-bit RAW images processed using Leica’s excellent color science and burst speeds up to 4.5 fps. You can shoot with the mechanical shutter at up to 1/4000th and 1/16,000th in silent mode (flash sync is 1/180th). Focusing is strictly manual, with magnification and focus peaking assist functions. Naturally, it uses Leica’s famous and tremendously expensive compact M mount lenses. There’s no support for video.

Though some features are old school, the M EV1 lets you connect to Leica’s Fotos app via Bluetooth, Wi-Fi or a cable for quick sharing on social media and elsewhere. It also supports Leica’s Content Credentials system that enables the origin and history of an image to be clearly traced to avoid copyright theft or AI spoofing. Other features include 64GB of built-in storage along with UHS-II SD card support, and a meager 237 shots on a battery charge when using the EVF.

Seeing the price is always a fun experience with a new Leica camera, and the M EV1 doesn’t disappoint. It’s now on pre-order for $8,995 (black, body only) with shipping set for later this year. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cameras/leicas-latest-m-camera-drops-the-rangefinder-in-favor-of-an-electronic-viewfinder-190547479.html?src=rss

Memes can be fun. But when a big corporation decides to get in on the action, the fun usually dies.

As spotted by Android Authority, Google is currently working on a new feature for Google Photos called “Me Meme,” though Android Authority thinks it could be called “Meme Me” upon release. The feature is simple: Through the power of AI (sigh), you can turn pictures of yourself or a family member into “your favorite memes.” Cool.

Here’s how it’s supposed to work: You choose a “meme template,” along with a sample photo of yourself, a friend, or a family member. That photo reportedly needs to be backed up to Google Photos before you can use it here. And while not a requirement, the feature recommends you use a selfie with a clear view of your face. That makes sense: If the AI is going to insert your likeness into a meme, it needs an accurate view of what you look like. Otherwise, you’ll just end up generating a meme with some stranger’s face.

At the moment, the only meme Me Meme currently advertises producing is “This Is Fine,” the meme taken from KC Green’s comic of a dog sitting in a burning room. Android Authority wasn’t able to get the feature working, but saw promotional images of the feature in action, which shows a sample selfie, and the end result. Importantly, the “Me Meme” menu option also features a graphic of a person dabbing. Again—and I cannot emphasize this enough—cool.

Even through Google’s “official” meme generation here, I’m not sure I’d be able to tell that the AI image is supposed to be based on the reference selfie. Unless the AI really captures the person’s likeness, Me Meme loses whatever appeal it might have otherwise had. Why would anyone want to send a custom AI version of a meme with some random person as its subject? Though, building off that point, one might ask why anyone would want to send an AI-generated meme of themself at all?

Maybe this will be Google’s Bitmoji moment. Maybe this feature will never actually come to pass. Either way, the AI era is certainly interesting, if not all that cool.

Microsoft said earlier this month that it wanted to add better voice controls to Copilot, Windows 11’s built-in chatbot-slash-virtual assistant. As described, this new version of Copilot sounds an awful lot like another stab at Cortana, the voice assistant that Microsoft tried (and failed) to get people to use in Windows 10 in the mid-to-late 2010s.

Turns out that the company isn’t done trying to reformulate and revive ideas it has already tried before. As part of a push toward what it calls “human-centered AI,” Microsoft is now putting a face on Copilot. Literally, a face: “Mico” is an “expressive, customizable, and warm” blob with a face that dynamically “listens, reacts, and even changes colors to reflect your interactions” as you interact with Copilot. (Another important adjective for Mico: “optional.”)

Mico (rhymes with “pico”) recalls old digital assistants like Clippy, Microsoft Bob, and Rover, ideas that Microsoft tried in the ’90s and early 2000s before mostly abandoning them.

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Apple will owe money to UK users after losing an App Store antitrust lawsuit there on Thursday, according to Financial Times. The Competition Appeal Tribunal ruled that the iPhone maker abused its dominant market position to inflate developer fees.

The tribunal found that the company has “near absolute market power” for iOS app distribution and in-app payments. The decision declared that Apple has been “abusing its dominant position by charging excessive and unfair prices.” FT reports that Apple will appeal the decision.

The class action claimants said damages of about £1.5bn would be split between 36 million consumers. A subsequent hearing to determine the process for “resolving any questions relating to the calculation” of damages could come as soon as next month.

Apple has an increasingly strained relationship with the tighter regulations across the Atlantic. Earlier this week, the company stepped up its attacks on the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), a law designed to protect consumers from Big Tech dominance. And on Wednesday, the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) confirmed that Apple has “strategic market status” in the country’s equivalent of the DMA. That gives the CMA authority to “ensure that mobile platforms are open to effective competition.”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/apple-loses-uk-antitrust-lawsuit-over-app-store-fees-184515613.html?src=rss