A Georgia college student named Darian DeCruise has sued OpenAI, alleging that a recently deprecated version of ChatGPT “convinced him that he was an oracle” and “pushed him into psychosis.”

This case, which was first reported by ALM, marks the 11th such known lawsuit to be filed against OpenAI that involves mental health breakdowns allegedly caused by the chatbot. Other incidents have ranged from highly questionable medical and health advice to a man who took his own life, apparently after similarly sycophantic conversations with ChatGPT.

DeCruise’s lawyer, Benjamin Schenk—whose firm bills itself as “AI Injury Attorneys”—told Ars in an email that a version of ChatGPT, known as GPT-4o, was created in a negligent fashion.

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The IRS’s IT division has reportedly lost 40% of its staff and nearly 80% of its tech leadership amid a federal “efficiency” overhaul, the agency’s CIO revealed yesterday. The Register reports: Kaschit Pandya detailed the extent of the tech reorganization during a panel at the Association of Government Accountants yesterday, describing it as the biggest in two decades. … The IRS lost a quarter of its workforce overall in 2025. But the tech team was clearly affected more deeply. At the start of the year, the team encompassed around 8,500 employees.

As reported by Federal News Network (FNN), Pandya said: “Last year, we lost approximately 40 percent of the IT staff and nearly 80 percent of the execs.” “So clearly there was an opportunity, and I thought the opportunity that we needed to really execute was reorganizing.” That included breaking up silos within the organization, he said. “Everyone was operating in their own department or area.”

It is not entirely clear where all those staff have gone. According to a report by the US Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, the IT department had 8,504 workers as of October 2024. As of October 2025, it had 7,135. However, reports say that as part of the reorganization, 1,000 techies were detailed to work on delivering frontline services during the US tax season. According to FNN, those employees have questioned the wisdom of this move and its implementation.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

I use Google Maps to get from point A to point B, but I also use it for research. It’s an essential tool for finding new restaurants to try, or for identifying well-reviewed hotels in a new area. While many use it with their Google account, others might like to keep some of their data out of Google’s hands. Using Google Maps while signed out is a good way to do that: You can find new locations of interest without having Google know you’re interested in those spots. However, if you like using Google Maps without an account, be warned: The experience is now much more limited.

As reported by 9to5Google, Google is now limiting the amount of data visible when accessing Google Maps without an account. This change includes things like images, reviews, restaurants, businesses, hotels, parks—really, most labels on the map. From what I can tell, essential labels like city names and highway identifiers are left intact, but even some street names appear to be omitted when logged out.

If you can find restaurants in limited view, you’ll see some of the data points that you’d normally find, but you’ll also notice a number missing as well. That could include labels noting whether the restaurants supports takeout or delivery, user reviews, popular times, photos and videos submitted by users, menus, as well as related locations. I tested it myself in an incognito window, scrolled randomly over Richmond, VA, and clicked the first (of few) restaurants to appear: Laura Lee’s. While I could see the total star rating (4.6), I couldn’t actually click through to any reviews. I could also only see the primary image of the restaurant. There’s enough here to decide whether or not to call, but it’s missing a ton of the data points you’d usually rely on to consider a spot for lunch or dinner.

Credit: Jake Peterson

Google doesn’t necessarily pin the limited view on you being logged out, however. If you check the “Help” pop-up that appears here, titled “Seeing a limited view of Google Maps,” the company explains that there are a few reasons you might be seeing this view. That could include issues with Google Maps itself, unusual traffic from your computer or network, or browser extensions that might be interfering with Google Maps. Only after it lists these reasons does Google suggest that signing in to Google Maps “might help you avoid seeing this limited experience again.”

Of course, logging in brings all this data back as you’d expect, and if you always use Google Maps with your Google account, you’ll never notice the difference. But it’s an interesting line in the sand for Google to draw. How many people who use Google Maps without an account will know this is the reason why their experience just got worse? Perhaps they’ll flock to another option, though there aren’t many. Apple users have Apple Maps, and there’s always Waze—but, surprise, it’s owned by Google too.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Wall Street Journal: Meta Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg faced a barrage of questions about his social-media company’s efforts to secure ever more of its users’ time and attention at a landmark trial in Los Angeles on Wednesday. In sworn testimony, Zuckerberg said Meta’s growth targets reflect an aim to give users something useful, not addict them, and that the company doesn’t seek to attract children as users. […] Mark Lanier, a lawyer for the plaintiff, repeatedly asked Zuckerberg about internal company communications discussing targets for how much time users spend with Meta’s products. Lanier showed an email from 2015 in which the CEO stated his goal for 2016 was to increase users’ time spent by 12%. “We used to give teams goals on time spent and we don’t do that anymore because I don’t think that’s the best way to do it,” Zuckerberg said on the witness stand in sworn testimony.

Lanier also asked Zuckerberg about documents showing Meta employees were aware of children under 13 using Meta’s apps. Zuckerberg said the company’s policy was that children under 13 aren’t allowed on the platform and that they are removed when identified. Lanier showed an internal Meta email from 2015 that estimated 4 million children under 13 were using Instagram. He estimated that figure would represent approximately 30% of all kids aged 10 to 12 in the U.S. In response to a question about his ownership stake in Meta, which amounts to roughly more than $200 billion, Zuckerberg said he has pledged to donate most of his money to charity. “The better that Meta does, the more money I will be able to invest in science research,” he said.

[…] On the stand, Zuckerberg was also asked about his decision to continue to allow beauty filters on the apps after 18 experts said they were harmful to teenage girls. The company temporarily banned the filters on Instagram in 2019 and commissioned a panel of experts to review the feature. All 18 said they were damaging. Meta later lifted the ban but said it didn’t create any filters of its own or recommend the filters to users on Instagram after that. “We shouldn’t create that content ourselves and we shouldn’t recommend it to people,” Zuckerberg said. But at the same time, he continued, “I think oftentimes telling people that they can’t express themselves like that is overbearing.” He also argued that other experts had thought such bans were a suppression of free speech. By focusing on the design of Meta’s apps rather than the content posted in them, the case seeks to get around longstanding legal doctrine that largely shields social-media companies from litigation. At times, the case has veered into questions of content, prompting Meta’s lawyers to object.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

While Android has automated, built-in backups for plenty of data, including photos, apps, and settings, local files have been excluded. In order to ensure you don’t lose PDFs, documents, and other files stored on your device, you have to manually upload or copy them to the cloud or another location. But that’s changing, at least in part: the February Google Play Services update comes with a new feature that will copy and upload your Downloads folder to Google Drive.

This is a meaningful update to Android’s backup system, but it has some limitations. Here’s what to know before enabling it.

How Android will back up your files after the update

As Android Authority describes, the local file backup feature applies only to items in your Downloads folder. It will not cover your device’s entire internal storage. The backup will go to Google Drive as a static copy, meaning that files will not be continuously synced, and if you make changes in one location, they won’t be reflected in the other. Backups will likely take place occasionally, such as when your phone is idle, charging, and connected to wifi.

Android handles videos and photos similarly with backups to Google Photos. Other device data, like your call and text history and system settings, are backed up to Google Drive.

How to check your Android backup settings

While automatic backups of local files are useful for anyone who doesn’t already have a comprehensive backup plan (and if you don’t, you should), they could potentially take up a significant amount of space in your Google Drive storage. If you keep lots of invoices, tickets, documents, or installers in your Downloads folder, you may want to be more selective about what you back up and where—especially if you already pay for extra Drive capacity and need it for other purposes.

Thankfully, file backups are disabled by default. To turn them on, go to Settings > Google Backup and select Downloads. You can also change your backup preferences for photos and videos and “other device data” from this menu. Note that this feature is expected to be rolled out gradually and may not be available on your device immediately.

NASA on Thursday announced it has formally classified the 2024 crewed flight of the Starliner spacecraft as a “Type A” mishap, an acknowledgement that the test flight was a serious failure.

As part of the announcement, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman sent an agency-wide letter that recognized the shortcomings of both Starliner’s developer, Boeing, as well as the space agency itself. Starliner flew under the auspices of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, in which the agency procures astronaut transportation services to the International Space Station.

“We are taking ownership of our shortcomings,” Isaacman said.

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There’s something special about the gadget that “just works.” Technology can open opportunities for those devices but also complicate and weigh down products that have done just fine without things like sensors and software.

So when a product like the beloved Rubik’s Cube gets stuffed with wires, processors, and rechargeable batteries, there’s demand for it to be not just on par with the original—but markedly better.

The Cubios Rubik’s WOWCube successfully breathes fresh life into the classic puzzle, but it’s also an example of when too much technology can cannibalize a gadget’s main appeal.

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A bare-bones Chinese app called “Are You Dead?” — whose entire premise is that solo-living users tap daily to confirm they’re still alive, triggering an alert to an emergency contact after two missed check-ins — has rocketed to the top of China’s app store charts and gone viral globally without spending a dime on advertising.

The app wasn’t built for the elderly, as many assumed; its creators are Gen-Z developers who said they were inspired by the isolation of urban life in a country where one-person households are expected to hit 200 million by 2030. Its rise coincided with China’s birth rate plunging to a record low. Beijing quietly removed the app from Chinese stores last month, and the developers are now crowdsourcing a new name on social media after their first rebrand attempt, “Demumu,” failed to catch on.

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Slay the Spire 2 will launch in early access next month. This sequel to the hugely popular 2019 roguelike deckbuilder hits early access on Steam beginning March 5, 2026. Along with releasing the teaser trailer above, developer Mega Crit shared some details about its goals for this phase ahead of the game’s official release.

“Slay the Spire requires a lot of player feedback so we can balance content, add quality of life features, and make sure the game runs without issues,” the developers explained. “Early Access is also a chance for us to test experimental features, try exotic designs, identify niche problems, and helps us make sure the game is headed in the right direction.” Slay the Spire 2 is expected to be in early access for a year or two, or more generally “until the game feels great.”

Mega Crit has also revealed that it will be introducing a new co-op mode where up to four people can team up. This gameplay option will feature some unique cards just for multiplayer as well as some team-wide synergies. 

Some of the characters from Slay the Spire will be returning for the sequel alongside new ones. For anyone who hasn’t yet experienced the original game, Slay the Spire is available on iOS, including as part of Apple Arcade. It’s also on consoles and PC.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/slay-the-spire-2-will-enter-early-access-on-march-5-210338514.html?src=rss

This is a video from China of a group of young martial artists performing a choreographed routine with little humanoid robots. Admittedly, I did like the part where the robots were flipping off of the springboard. I did not like the part where they were waving swords, even if the swords were flimsy. We shouldn’t be giving them any ideas. And, if the questions my roommate asks ChatGPT are any indication, we’re giving them lots of bad ideas.

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When shopping for OLED TVs, brightness is a crucial factor, because it helps overcome ambient lighting and delivers better-looking HDR content. Samsung’s brightest OLED TV thus far, released in 2025, is the S95F, praised for its picture quality and surprisingly impressive sound. Right now, a 65-inch refurbished Samsung 65-Inch S95F OLED TV is just $1,899, which is over $1,000 off its list price.

Refurbished Samsung 65-Inch S95F OLED TV

$1,899.00
at Amazon

$2,997.99
Save $1,098.99

$1,899.00
at Amazon

$2,997.99
Save $1,098.99

This TV’s deep blacks, dramatic contrast, and “very bright OLED panel”, as PCMag describes it, are the standout features on this large-screen 4K TV. Beyond improved brightness that maxes out at a striking 2,386 nits, it also features fantastic color performance and a powerful, advanced 4.2.2-channel speaker system that reduces the need for an external speaker or soundbar. The TV has a nearly bezel-less design and a One Connect box to minimize cable clutter.

The S95F also has some of the best anti-glare tech, which is rare for an OLED. While the LG G5 is technically brighter, its anti-glare system doesn’t perform as well. The S95F’s matte anti-reflection coating drastically reduces glare and is designed specifically to perform well in bright rooms, which is a major perk if the room your TV is in gets a lot of daylight. It supports HDR10 and HDR10+ content at 120Hz, with up to 165Hz variable refresh rate  and AMD FreeSync Premium Pro.  Like other Samsung TVs, this one doesn’t support Dolby Vision.

The TV is covered by Woot’s 90-day limited warranty, and ships free for Amazon Prime users (otherwise, shipping is $6). Since it’s refurbished, it may have minimal signs of wear, but that won’t affect performance.