Autodesk said today it plans to cut approximately 1,000 jobs, or roughly 7% of its workforce, as part of what the company described as the final phase of a global restructuring effort aimed at strengthening its sales and marketing operations.
The maker of AutoCAD and other digital design software said a significant portion of the cuts will fall within customer-facing sales functions.
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It’s time to say goodbye to the cord clutter at your workstation.
The post Anker Goes Full Liquidation on Docking Stations, Its 14-Port 160W Dock Crashes to an All-Time Low appeared first on Kotaku.
Google believes AI is the future of search, and it’s not shy about saying it. After adding account-level personalization to Gemini earlier this month, it’s now updating AI Mode with so-called “Personal Intelligence.” According to Google, this makes the bot’s answers more useful because they are tailored to your personal context.
Starting today, the feature is rolling out to all users who subscribe to Google AI Pro or AI Ultra. However, it will be a Labs feature that needs to be explicitly enabled (subscribers will be prompted to do this). Google tends to expand access to new AI features to free accounts later on, so free users will most likely get access to Personal Intelligence in the future. Whenever this option does land on your account, it’s entirely optional and can be disabled at any time.
If you decide to integrate your data with AI Mode, the search bot will be able to scan your Gmail and Google Photos. That’s less extensive than the Gemini app version, which supports Gmail, Photos, Search, and YouTube history. Gmail will probably be the biggest contributor to AI Mode—a great many life events involve confirmation emails. Traditional search results when you are logged in are adjusted based on your usage history, but this goes a step further.
The nominees for the 2026 Academy Awards were just announced and Ryan Coogler’s vampire-adjacent period drama Sinners received a record-breaking 16 nominations. That’s the highest number of Oscar nominations for a single film in the history of the awards, followed by Titanic, La La Land and All About Eve with 14 noms each.
Sinners grabbed a nomination in nearly every major category, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay. The same goes for the performances, as Michael B. Jordan captured the nomination for Best Actor. Even Delroy Lindo got nominated for Best Supporting Actor, which is his very first Oscar nomination after 50 years in the business.
Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another walked away with 13 nominations and Yorgos Lanthimos’ Bugonia scored four. Apple’s F1 actually got nominated for Best Picture, which is unusual for a popcorn-style blockbuster. Netflix scored Best Picture noms for both Frankenstein and Train Dreams.
Netflix also got its flowers for the international animated sensation KPop Demon Hunters. It got nominated for Best Animated Feature and, of course, Best Original Song.
The 98th annual Academy Awards will take place on March 15, with Conan O’Brien returning to host. It’ll be broadcast live on ABC. The awards ceremony will be moving to YouTube in 2029.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/netflix-scores-oscar-nominations-for-frankenstein-and-kpop-demon-hunters-163521141.html?src=rss
Another wave of malicious browser extensions capable of tracking user activity and compromising privacy have been found across Chrome, Firefox, and Edge, some of which may have been active for up to five years.
The campaign, known as GhostPoster, was identified by Koi Security in December and included 17 Firefox add-ons designed to monitor users’ browsing activity. Threat actors planted malicious JavaScript code in the extension’s PNG logo, which served as a malware loader to retrieve the main payload from a remote server. Researchers at LayerX have found an additional 17 malicious extensions across multiple browsers that have collectively been installed more than 840,000 times.
According to the report from LayerX, GhostPoster initially targeted Microsoft Edge and then expanded to Chrome and Firefox. The malicious add-ons may have been active as early as 2020 and include the following:
Google Translate in Right Click
Translate Selected Text with Google
Ads Block Ultimate
Floating Player – PiP Mode
Convert Everything
Youtube Download
One Key Translate
AdBlocker
Save Image to Pinterest on Right Click
Instagram Downloader
RSS Feed
Cool Cursor
Full Page Screenshot
Amazon Price History
Color Enhancer
Translate Selected Text with Right Click
Page Screenshot Clipper
“Google Translate in Right Click” alone had 522,398 installs. The next most popular add-on was “Translate Selected Text with Google” with 159,645 installs. Researchers also found a more sophisticated variant of the campaign in “Instagram Downloader,” which had 3,822 installs.
GhostPoster malware has built-in safeguards to prevent detection—for example, activation is delayed by 48 hours, and it only communicates with remote attack servers under certain conditions. Once installed, though, extensions that are part of GhostPoster have the ability to hijack affiliate traffic (and redirect commissions to attackers), strip and inject HTTP headers to weaken security, bypass CAPTCHA, and inject iframes and scripts for click fraud and user tracking. The only sort-of good news is that the malware doesn’t harvest credentials or engage in phishing.
While the malicious extensions are no longer available to add in Chrome, Edge, and Firefox, users who have them installed should remove them immediately, as they remain active until explicitly deleted.
Waymo’s fully autonomous robotaxis are now accepting passengers in Miami. The city was one of five named in expansion plans last year, and joins the likes of Phoenix, Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area on Waymo’s existing network.
Waymo says that nearly 10,000 Miami residents have signed up so far, and that it will send out invites to new riders on a rolling basis” in the weeks and months to come. The autonomous ride-hailing service will initially cover a 60-square-mile area that includes neighborhoods like the Design District and Wynwood, with Waymo planning to expand to Miami International Airport soon.
Waymo started testing robotaxi rides in Miami in November, without passengers initially, which allows it to spot local potential issues and local quirks, and adjust the driving algorithm so things go smoothly once humans are involved. The company insists that autonomous vehicles are safe and reliable, claiming a “ten-fold reduction” in serious injuries caused by crashes compared to human drivers in its current areas of operation.
Waymo’s Florida expansion will move to Orlando next, with the Texas cities of San Antonio, Houston and Dallas also on the agenda for 2026.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/waymo-is-now-available-in-miami-162515070.html?src=rss
Skip has dropped paid subscriptions and open-sourced its mobile development stack for native iOS and Android apps.
When I reviewed the Switch 2 back in June, I noted that the lack of any sort of extended grip on the extremely thin Joy-Con 2 controllers made them relatively awkward to hold, both when connected to the system and when cradled in separate hands. At the time, I said that “my Switch 2 will probably need something like the Nyxi Hyperion Pro, which I’ve come to rely on to make portable play on the original Switch much more comfortable.”
Over half a year later, Nyxi is once again addressing my Switch controller-related comfort concerns with the Hyperion 3, which was made available for preorder earlier this week ahead of planned March 1 shipments. Unfortunately, it looks like players will have to pay a relatively high price for a potentially more ergonomic Switch 2 experience.
While there are plenty of third-party controllers for the Switch 2, none of the current options mimic the official Joy-Cons’ ability to connect magnetically to the console tablet itself (controllers designed to slide into the grooves on the original Switch tablet also can’t hook to the successor console). The Hyperion 3 is the first Switch 2 controller to offer this magnetic connection, making it uniquely suited for handheld play on the system.
Xbox is set to hold the fourth installment of its now-annual Developer Direct showcase on January 22. You’ll be able to watch the 2026 edition at 1PM ET on YouTube (including versions with audio descriptions and ASL), Twitch, Facebook and Steam. Xbox will stream the Developer Direct on its regional channels simultaneously, and it’ll be available on Bilibili on Friday.
The YouTube stream might be the way to go, since that one will be available in 4K and 60 fps. Because we’re so nice, we’ve embedded that stream above, so all you have to do is click the play button when the time is right.
Microsoft has confirmed that it will feature three titles at the Developer Showcase: Fable and Forza Horizon 6 from Playground Games, and Beast of Reincarnation from Game Freak, which is best known for its work on Pokémon games. We should get developer interviews, gameplay footage and (for at least one of those) a release date.
There is a chance that there will be some surprises, of course. The three previous editions of Developer Direct all featured five games — the first one showcased Hi-Fi Rush, which was released on the same day.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/xbox/xbox-developer-direct-2026-how-to-watch-and-what-we-expect-to-see-from-fable-forza-horizon-6-and-beast-of-reincarnation-161000242.html?src=rss
How would Sony ceding control of its TV hardware business change the industry? The Verge has an optimistic take: […] As of today, Sony already relies on different manufacturing partners to create its TV lineup. While display panel manufacturers never reveal who they sell panels to, Sony is likely already using panels for its LCD TVs from TCL China Star Optoelectronics Technology (CSOT), in addition to OLED panels from LG Display and Samsung Display. With this deal, a relationship between Sony and TCL CSOT LCD panels is guaranteed (although I doubt this would affect CSOT selling panels to other manufacturers). And with TCL CSOT building a new OLED facility, there’s a potential future in which Sony OLEDs will also get panels from TCL. Although I should point out that we’re not sure yet if the new facility will have the ability to make TV-sized OLED panels, at least to start.
[…] There’s some concern from fans that this could lead to a Sharp, Toshiba, or Pioneer situation where the names are licensed and the TVs produced are a shell of what the brands used to represent. I don’t see this happening with Sony. While the electronics side of the business hasn’t been as strong as in the past, Sony — and Bravia — is still a storied brand. It would take a lot for Sony to completely step aside and allow another company to slap its name on an inferior product. And based on TCL’s growth and technological improvements over the past few years, and the shrinking gap between premium and midrange TVs, I don’t expect Sony TVs will suffer from a partnership with TCL.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
This mini PC is available at a 14% direct discount, plus you’ll save an additional 5% at checkout.
The post Amazon Is Blowing Out Mac Mini Killer Ryzen 5 Mini PCs, KAMRUI Essenx E3 (2025) Hits Its Lowest Price Yet appeared first on Kotaku.
Affectionately nicknamed either the “Eye of Sauron” or “Eye of God,” the Helix Nebula, located 650 light-years away, has been an astronomer favorite for ages. However,
A casual esports tournament has sparked a wild amount of online drama
The post Casual $40,000 <i>Marvel Rivals</i> Creator Tournament Sparks A Ton Of Online Drama appeared first on Kotaku.
After adding Personal Intelligence to Gemini as an opt-in experience, Google has announced that it’s also integrating the feature into AI Mode in Search. What Personal Intelligence does is pull information from your Google apps to tailor its responses based on your history and interests. For Search, in particular, you can allow Personal Intelligence to look for information in your Gmail accounts and Google Photos libraries.
If you use AI Mode to shop for clothes with the new feature enabled, for instance, Google could recommend items or models from a brand you previously purchased from. If it sees plane tickets or other reservations in Gmail, Google could also recommend specific items based on your destination and the season if you’re clothes shopping for that trip.
Personal Intelligence is powered by Google’s Gemini 3 AI model. The company says it doesn’t train its models using information from your Gmail inbox or Google Photos library, but it does use your prompts and AI Mode’s responses. Google also warned that sometimes, the feature’s recommendations could feel inaccurate because it could not fully comprehend the context or could make incorrect connections between separate topics.
At the moment, Personal Intelligence is an experimental feature that’s rolling out in Labs starting today. Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers in the US, who use the service in English, will automatically have access to it and be able to connect AI Mode to Gmail and Google Photos. It will only be available to personal Google accounts, however, and not for Workspace accounts just yet.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/ai-mode-in-google-search-can-now-pull-context-from-your-other-apps-160000103.html?src=rss
On Tuesday, eBay updated its User Agreement to explicitly ban third-party “buy for me” agents and AI chatbots from interacting with its platform without permission, first spotted by Value Added Resource. On its face, a one-line terms of service update doesn’t seem like major news, but what it implies is more significant: The change reflects the rapid emergence of what some are calling “agentic commerce,” a new category of AI tools designed to browse, compare, and purchase products on behalf of users.
eBay’s updated terms, which go into effect on February 20, 2026, specifically prohibit users from employing “buy-for-me agents, LLM-driven bots, or any end-to-end flow that attempts to place orders without human review” to access eBay’s services without the site’s permission. The previous version of the agreement contained a general prohibition on robots, spiders, scrapers, and automated data gathering tools but did not mention AI agents or LLMs by name.
At first glance, the phrase “agentic commerce” may sound like aspirational marketing jargon, but the tools are already here, and people are apparently using them. While fitting loosely under one label, these tools come in many forms.
The most accessible member of Samsung’s smartphone fleet is priced to move and you can bring it to any provider you choose.
The post Samsung Galaxy S26 Is Coming, and the S25 FE Gets Cleared Out at a Record Low Even Though It’s Still a New Smartphone appeared first on Kotaku.
With video features like RAW now the norm on midrange mirrorless cameras, Canon decided not to mess around with its latest model, the 33-megapixel EOS R6 III. It’s a veritable cinematic beast, allowing up to 7K RAW video capture internally with fast and reliable autofocus and rock solid stabilization.
At the same time, it’s a solid photo camera with high burst speeds and warm, accurate image quality. The R6 III has stiff competition with Sony’s 33MP A7 V, though, as the latter delivers higher dynamic range. The price could also be an issue for buyers, as the R6 III costs $300 more than its predecessor. Whether it’s worth that extra money depends on what you’re planning to do with it.
The EOS R6 III is quintessentially Canon in terms of design. It strongly resembles the R6 II and EOS R5 II, with the same button and dial layout at the rear. In terms of functionality, this is a good thing as everything falls perfectly to hand, letting you control it by feel once you’re used to it. However, the R6 III’s design is a bit bland, so if you’re looking for a stylish camera a la Fujifilm, this is not the one.
Holding the R6 III is also a pleasure thanks to the grippy, soft rubber exterior, though at 1.5 pounds it’s a bit heavier than the A7 V. It’s comfortable to hold and use all day, unlike Sony’s A7 V which felt uncomfortable after prolonged usage because of the harder material and sharp crease around the fingertip area.
The R6 III’s 3.69-million dot, 120 fps electronic viewfinder (EVF) worked fine for me to check color and focus, but falls short of the one on the much cheaper Nikon Z6 III. The flip-out 3-inch 1.65-million-dot rear touch display is on par for this category and does the job well. For storage, the R6 III supports CFexpress Type B cards for capturing RAW video, along with SD UHS II for MP4 video and photos.
Other key features include headphone and microphone ports, a full-sized HDMI input (instead of microHDMI as before, thankfully) and a USB-C port for charging and transfers. Battery life is decent for this category with a maximum 510 shots per charge or 620 shots if you engage the power saving mode or about 90 minutes of continuous 4K capture. However, you can roughly double those figures with Canon’s optional $150 BG-R20 battery grip.
The R6 III offers a boost in shooting speeds over its predecessor thanks to an all-new 33MP sensor. It has a faster readout speed than the R6 II as well, allowing for faster bursts and lower rolling shutter skew. In comparison, Sony’s A7 V also has a 33MP sensor but it’s partially stacked, so it delivers less distortion when shooting fast-moving subjects.
With that new sensor and a 34 percent faster Digic X processor, the R6 III can shoot bursts at up to 40 fps in electronic and 12 fps in mechanical shutter modes (with continuous AF and AE enabled). That’s second only to the Panasonic S1 II (70 fps) in this price range. You can fill the buffer in about 3.7 seconds at that speed (150 RAW frames), which is a decent amount for a midrange camera.
You usually want to avoid the electronic shutter with fast-moving action due to rolling shutter distortion, but the R6 III’s faster sensor can handle objects that are moving reasonably quickly. I also caught a few photos of babies, bikes and dogs I might have otherwise missed by using the new pre-capture mode that records up to 15 photos before fully declencing the shutter.
The new sensor and processor also make the R6 III’s autofocus system faster and more accurate than before. When shooting bursts for fast moving action like dogs running or biking, less than five percent of my shots were out of focus. And the EOS R6 III can now track animals, birds and vehicles, on top of the faces, eyes and bodies of people.
This camera also has a couple of new autofocus tricks, including one called Register People Priority. That lets you save up to 10 individuals on camera that it can identify and automatically switch to. I found it handy in a large gathering, helping me focus on my niece enjoying her second Christmas. However, the R6 III lacks a few autofocus features found on the R5 II like “action priority” for sports, eye control AF and AI upscaling.
In-body stabilization is also excellent, keeping the sensor rock-steady for handheld shooting with 8.5 stops of shake reduction. With that enabled, I was able to nicely blur action on the streets while keeping the background sharply in focus at shutter speeds down to a full second.
With a 33MP sensor instead of a 24MP sensor, the R6 III offers quite a bit more sharpness and a touch more dynamic range than its predecessor. When shooting RAW, I was able to coax a lot of detail out of high contrast shots on sunny days with dark shadows. However, Sony’s A7 V soundly beats the R6 III in terms of dynamic range, thanks to its innovative new sensor.
The R6 III’s high ISO performance isn’t too bad for a higher-resolution camera either, with noise staying under control up to ISO 12,800. As is typical with Canon models, skin tones are warmer and more flattering than on Sony and Nikon cameras, due to the slightly more yellow-biased pink tones. Those pleasing colors were consistent, even at high ISOs, when I shot kids and adults at a couple of indoor gatherings. If you don’t want the hassle of RAW, JPEG rendering is excellent straight out of the camera, with well balanced sharpening and noise reduction.
Note that switching to electronic shutter mode drops the sensor to a 12-bit readout, which helps burst speeds but hurts image quality. This is a pretty big downside compared to the A7 V, which maintains 14-bit quality even when shooting at the camera’s maximum rate at 30 fps. So while on paper the R6 III wins the speed race, the 10 extra fps won’t be worth the drop in quality for many photographers.
Canon has improved video on the R6 III in every way, putting it nearly on par with the more expensive R5 II. Though it can’t shoot 8K, it can handle 7K RAW video at up to 60 fps (on CFexpress only) and 4K at 120p, with less rolling shutter than the R6 II. It also supports 3:2 “open gate” video that uses the full sensor area so you can output high-res vertical video and other formats.
The R6 III supports 4K 10-bit MP4 shooting at high data rates too if you’d rather save storage space or shoot on SD cards. You also get CLog 2 on top of CLog 3 capability for improved dynamic range. Oddly though, Canon made it a bit of a pain to switch to log modes compared to past models, forcing you to slog through a bunch of menus to do so.
Video autofocus is excellent across all resolutions, with rapid subject acquisition and reliable tracking. Face and eye detection work very well, and I only occasionally noticed slight autofocus lag with fast-moving subjects, particularly when they were moving toward the camera.
As for stabilization, I could smoothly shoot handheld with no crop, provided I didn’t move the camera too aggressively. Digital stabilization allowed even more movement and the enhanced setting let me shoot smoothly while walking (7K doesn’t work in the digital stabilization modes, though). Panasonic’s S5 II is still the best in this regard with slightly smoother stabilization, but the R6 III isn’t far behind.
Video on the EOS R6 III is extremely sharp in RAW and the HQ modes, particularly with supersampled 4K HQ. Other 4K modes are subsampled, but nearly as sharp. Rolling shutter is better managed than before, but you’ll still want to avoid things like whip pans, sudden jolts or rapid subjects like propellers or golf swings.
In a variety of shooting scenarios in bright and dark conditions, Canon’s excellent color science delivered warm skin tones and accurate colors. Shooting RAW video allowed me to widely adjust shots in post, while the CLog 2 mode drastically improved dynamic range while I was shooting in contrasty conditions. For instance, I shot the famous Paris department store windows and was able to extract detail from the very bright and dark parts of the video.
Overheating has been an issue in the past on Canon’s R6 models, but the R6 III never shut down for me, even during a few tests of over 15 minutes. Overall, it reliably delivered outstanding video quality and I actually preferred it to the R5 II due to the smaller RAW file sizes.
Canon’s EOS R6 III is now the best midrange camera for creators thanks to the RAW video, rapid and accurate autofocus and excellent handling. At the same time, it’s a solid camera for photography with high burst speeds, extra resolution and, again, reliable AF. If it’s mainly photography you’re interested in, though, Sony’s $2,900 A7 V is a better choice. It matches the R6 III’s resolution, price and autofocus but offers superior dynamic range and lower rolling shutter distortion.
Other video-centric options may be more attractive for other reasons — including budget. Nikon’s 24MP Z6 III offers similar capabilities, has a partially stacked sensor and retails for $2,400, but can often be found on sale for less. Panasonic’s S1 II is also a good pick due to its RAW video and creator-centric features, though it costs more at $3,200.
Which one to buy, then, depends on your budget, usage (video or photography) and whether you already have lenses in one system or another. With that said, if it’s a Canon camera you’re after and you lean toward content creation, the EOS R6 III is your best choice.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cameras/canon-eos-r6-iii-review-a-video-powerhouse-thats-also-great-for-photography-153000494.html?src=rss
Around 800 artists, writers, actors, and musicians signed on to a new campaign against what they call “theft at a grand scale” by AI companies. From a report: The signatories of the campaign — called “Stealing Isn’t Innovation” — include authors George Saunders and Jodi Picoult, actors Cate Blanchett and Scarlett Johansson, and musicians like the band R.E.M., Billy Corgan, and The Roots.
“Driven by fierce competition for leadership in the new GenAI technology, profit-hungry technology companies, including those among the richest in the world as well as private equity-backed ventures, have copied a massive amount of creative content online without authorization or payment to those who created it,” a press release reads. “This illegal intellectual property grab fosters an information ecosystem dominated by misinformation, deepfakes, and a vapid artificial avalanche of low-quality materials [‘AI slop’], risking AI model collapse and directly threatening America’s AI superiority and international competitiveness.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.