Aura is your personal AI stylist, designed to take the stress out of choosing what to wear. Whether you're getting ready for a wedding, a job interview, or just a night out, Aura gives you outfit suggestions that match your body shape, skin tone, and style preferences—so you always feel confident and look your best. No more second-guessing or outfit changes that leave you running late.
It works by asking a few simple questions about you and the occasion, then instantly recommends clothing combinations, color palettes, and styling tips tailored to your unique look. Aura isn’t just another fashion app—it’s built to make fashion feel personal, inclusive, and effortless.
Production & Availability of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 & the rest of the RTX 50 series remain normal amid false reports. NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 GPUs Are Not Being Discontinued or EOL'd, Entire RTX 50 Lineup Available The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 is the fastest gaming graphics card, period. It's got over 21K cores, 32 GB of blistering-fast GDDR7 memory, and features the latest Blackwell architecture with DLSS MFG support and a range of AI technologies. The card has also been a hot item for the AI segment, as certain workstation builders prefer the 5090 over the RTX PRO […]
“Agents are very exciting, and you can actually build them,” affirmed Malte Ubl, CTO of Vercel, encapsulating the company’s practical philosophy toward the burgeoning AI engineering movement. This statement, delivered during a recent interview with Swyx, editor of Latent Space, following Vercel’s Ship AI event, underscored Vercel’s commitment to delivering tangible, production-ready AI infrastructure rather […]
“Agents are very exciting, and you can actually build them,” declared Malte Ubl, CTO of Vercel, encapsulating the company’s ethos in the rapidly evolving AI engineering landscape. This statement, delivered during his conversation with Swyx, Editor of Latent Space, following Vercel’s Ship AI 2025 event, underscores a foundational shift from abstract hype to tangible, deployable […]
Ahead of the expected May 2026 launch of Grand Theft Auto VI, Rockstar Games has laid off between 30 and 40 employees across its Canada and UK offices. This sparked immediate tension between the Independent Workers Union of Great Britain and the game studio, with the IWGB Game Workers account on X posting that "This is the most ruthless act of union busting in the history of the UK games industry. Yesterday, @RockstarGames fired over 30 employees for union activity." According to reporting by Bloomberg, the affected workers were all either part of a workers union or in the process of becoming part of a union. The IWGB has vowed to "fight for every member to be reinstated."
Take Two, the parent company of Rockstar, for its part, defended the firings, citing "gross misconduct" on the part of the employees. Take Two's spokesperson, speaking to Bloomberg, also says that "we fully support Rockstar's ambitions and approach." There is speculation that these firings were part of a crackdown on leakers inside the company, which was also a justification for the company's recent return to office mandate. Previously, Rockstar also went after a hacker who managed to steal data from Rockstar and leak clips online, resulting in a life sentence in hospital. It remains to see how this most recent case plays out, though, and its unclear how many of the affected employees are from the Canada office, where the UK workers union would likely not be able to intervene.
Small keyboards, like the Epomaker TH40 we reviewed previously, might seem more like a novelty than anything else, but they do a good job of offering the same satisfying mechanical keyboard experience in half the space, making them, if nothing else, a worthwhile alternative to low-profile travel keyboards. CannonKeys's latest release, the Minimi40, takes the idea of stuffing as much as possible into the smallest possible keyboard and runs with it. The Minimi40, as the name suggests, is a 40% mechanical keyboard that is available in both a conventional staggered layout or an ortholinear layout, with both wired and wireless options, and a host of fun colors available. The Minimi40's design is inspired by a lunchbox, of all things, but the lid that sits atop the keys serves as much a functional purpose as it does a visual one. For starters, it serves as a way to protect the keyboard's switches and keycaps when it's being carried around in a backpack, but it is also designed to pull double duty as a wrist rest or stationary tray once you've set up shop to get some work done.
The Minimi40 is made from injection-molded ABS and PBT plastic, and it is available as an ortholinear or conventional staggered kit from CannonKeys, with the ortholinear, with the wireless version of the keyboard coming in at $125, while the wired version comes in at $110. Note that this does not include switches, stabilizers, or keycaps, so those will need to be purchased separately. The Minimi40 is also a group buy, with the shipping date estimated for Q2 2026. There are a handful of layout options, including a 6 u spacebar and a two-split space bar that utilizes 2.25 u and 2.75 u space bars, with the bigger key optionally on the left or right side. The wireless PCB uses ZMK firmware, which has been shown by other CannonKeys keyboards to provide excellent efficiency and battery life—especially with the Minimi40's 1,000 mAh battery—and solid customization options via ZMK studio. Meanwhile, the wired version of the Minimi40 uses QMK firmware, the powerful open-source firmware that can be configured in the QMK Configurator web app.
Trails makes it simple for anyone to build a step-by-step guide. No copying and pasting screenshots - just record your process and out comes a beautiful guide.
Every SOC leader knows the feeling: drowning in alerts, blind to the real threat, stuck playing defense in a war waged at the speed of AI.
Now CrowdStrike and NVIDIA are flipping the script. Armed with autonomous agents powered by Charlotte AI and NVIDIA Nemotron models, security teams aren't just reacting; they're striking back at attackers before their next move. Welcome to cybersecurity's new arms race. Combining open source's many strengths with agentic AI will shift the balance of power against adversarial AI.
"This collaboration redefines security operations by enabling analysts to build and deploy specialized AI agents at scale, leveraging trusted, enterprise-grade security with Nemotron models," writes Bryan Catanzaro, vice president, Applied Deep Learning Research at NVIDIA.
The partnership is designed to enable autonomous agents to learn quickly, reducing risks, threats, and false positives. Achieving that takes a heavy load off SOC leaders and their teams, who fight data fatigue nearly every day due to inaccurate data.
The announcement at GTC Washington, D.C., signals the arrival of machine-speed defense that can finally match machine-speed attacks.
Transforming elite analyst expertise into datasets at machine scale
"What we're able to do is take the intelligence, take the data, take the experience of our Falcon Complete analysts, and turn these experts into datasets. Turn the datasets into AI models, and then be able to create agents based on, really, the whole composition and experience that we've built up within the company so that our customers can benefit at scale from these agents always," said Daniel Bernard, CrowdStrike's Chief Business Officer, during a recent briefing.
Capitalizing on the strengths of the NVIDIA Nemotron open models, organizations will be able to have their autonomous agents continually learn by training on the datasets from Falcon Complete, the world's largest MDR service handling millions of triage decisions monthly.
CrowdStrike has previous experience in AI detection triage to the point of launching a service that scales this capability across its customer base. Charlotte AI Detection Triage, designed to integrate into existing security workflows and continuously adapt to evolving threats, automates alert assessment with over 98% accuracy and cuts manual triage by more than 40 hours per week.
Elia Zaitsev, CrowdStrike's chief technology officer, in explaining how Charlotte AI Detection Triage is able to deliver that level of performance, told VentureBeat: "We wouldn't have achieved this without the support of our Falcon Complete team. They perform triage within their workflow, manually addressing millions of detections. The high-quality, human-annotated dataset they provide is what enabled us to reach an accuracy of over 98%."
Lessons learned with Charlotte AI Detection Triage directly apply to the NVIDIA partnership, further increasing the value it has the potential to deliver to SOCs who need help dealing with the deluge of alerts.
Open source is table stakes for this partnership to work
NVIDIA's Nemotron open models address what many security leaders identify as the most critical barrier to AI adoption in regulated environments, which is the lack of clarity regarding how the model works, what its weights are, and how secure it is.
Justin Boitano, Vice President, Enterprise and Edge Computing at NVIDIA, speaking for NVIDIA during a recent press briefing, explained: "Open models are where people start in trying to build their own specialized domain knowledge. You want to own the IP ultimately. Not everybody wants to export their data, and then sort of import or pay for the intelligence that they consume. A lot of sovereign countries, many enterprises in regulated industries want to maintain all that data privacy and security."
John Morello, CTO and co-founder of Gutsy (now Minimus), told VentureBeat that "the open-source nature of Google's BERT open-source language model allows Gutsy to customize and train their model for specific security use cases while maintaining privacy and efficiency." Morello emphasized that practitioners cite "more transparency and better assurances of data privacy, along with great availability of expertise and more integration options across their architectures, as key reasons for going with open source."
Keeping adversarial AI's balance of power in check
Cisco's DJ Sampath, senior vice president of Cisco's AI software and platform group, articulated the industry-wide imperative for open-source security models during a recent interview with VentureBeat: "The reality is that attackers have access to open-source models too. The goal is to empower as many defenders as possible with robust models to strengthen security."
Sampath explained that when Cisco released Foundation-Sec-8B, their open-source security model, at RSAC 2025, it was driven by a sense of responsibility: "Funding for open-source projects has stalled, and there is a growing need for sustainable funding sources within the community. It is a corporate responsibility to provide these models while enabling communities to engage with AI from a defensive standpoint."
The commitment to transparency extends to the most sensitive aspects of AI development. When concerns emerged about DeepSeek R1's training data and potential compromise, NVIDIA responded decisively.
As Boitano explained to VentureBeat, "Government agencies were super concerned. They wanted the reasoning capabilities of DeepSeek, but they were a little concerned with, obviously, what might be trained into the DeepSeek model, which is what actually inspired us to completely open source everything in Nemotron models, including reasoning datasets."
For practitioners managing open-source security at scale, this transparency is core to their companies. Itamar Sher, CEO of Seal Security, emphasized to VentureBeat that "open-source models offer transparency," though he noted that "managing their cycles and compliance remains a significant concern." Sher's company uses generative AI to automate vulnerability remediation in open-source software, and as a recognized CVE Naming Authority (CNA), Seal can identify, document, and assign vulnerabilities, enhancing security across the ecosystem.
A key partnership goal: bringing intelligence to the Edge
"Bringing the intelligence closer to where data is and decisions are made is just going to be a big advancement for security operations teams around the industry," Boitano emphasized. This edge deployment capability is especially critical for government agencies with fragmented and often legacy IT environments.
VentureBeat asked Boitano how the initial discussions went with government agencies briefed on the partnership and its design goals before work began. "The feeling across agencies that we've talked to is they always feel like, unfortunately, they're behind the curve on these technology adoption," Boitano explained. "The response was, anything you guys can do to help us secure the endpoints. It was a tedious and long process to get open models onto these, you know, higher side networks."
NVIDIA and CrowdStrike have done the foundational work, including STIG hardening, FIPS encryption, air-gap compatibility, and removing the barriers that delayed open-model adoption on higher-side networks. The NVIDIA AI Factory for Government reference design provides comprehensive guidance for deploying AI agents in federal and high-assurance organizations while meeting the strictest security requirements.
As Boitano explained, the urgency is existential: "Having AI defense that's running in your estate that can search for and detect these anomalies, and then alert and respond much faster, is just the natural consequence. It's the only way to protect against the speed of AI at this point."
As AI amplifies cyber threats, robust Salesforce AI security demands proactive admin strategies, including MFA, least privilege, and leveraging AI-powered defense tools.
“Wall Street is starting to pick its AI winners,” declared MacKenzie Sigalos of CNBC Business News, setting the stage for a stark commentary on the latest earnings reports from the tech giants. In a segment on CNBC’s “Closing Bell Overtime,” Sigalos, speaking with anchor John, dissected why some hyperscalers are being rewarded for their AI […]
The current wave of Artificial Intelligence investment, while seemingly boundless, is entering a new phase of scrutiny, according to Gene Munster, Managing Partner at Deepwater Asset Management. His recent analysis, presented on CNBC’s ‘Fast Money,’ underscored that while the AI capital expenditure cycle still has “a few years left,” investors are increasingly disinclined to “write […]
The current surge in AI spending, while indicative of technological advancement, is increasingly resembling a “speculative mania” driven by abundant central bank liquidity rather than organic demand from the real economy. This provocative insight comes from Bob Elliott, CEO and CIO of Unlimited, who recently joined CNBC’s “Closing Bell Overtime” to discuss the roaring tech […]
The proliferation of artificial intelligence, particularly large language models, introduces a profound challenge to the very notion of verifiable truth, a concern eloquently articulated by Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales. He contends that current AI models frequently “hallucinate, don’t cite their work and act as if that’s not a problem,” a fundamental flaw that undermines their […]
The insatiable demand for Artificial Intelligence is reshaping the global technological landscape, and Asia’s data centers find themselves at the epicenter of this transformative shift. At the Bloomberg Business Summit at ASEAN in Kuala Lumpur, Bloomberg’s Ram Anand moderated a panel featuring Prashant Murthy, Managing Director, Capital & Strategy, AirTrunk; Rebecca Ng, Deputy Group Chief […]
Aaron Levine, sports director at FOX 13 in Seattle, during his appearance on “Jeopardy!” this week. (Sony Pictures Television Photo)
In the midst of the Seattle Mariners’ win streak back in September, sports anchor Aaron Levine was going on a little run of his own, as a contestant on “Jeopardy!”
The episodes aired this week, and Levine, sports director for FOX 13 in Seattle, managed three wins in a row before bowing out in Thursday night’s episode of the popular game show.
Levine taped all four of his games over about four hours, with 15-minute breaks between them to switch outfits in the “champion’s changing room.”
“It’s a little jarring to win a game and then go back to change, and all of a sudden you’re pretending it’s a brand new day,” Levine told GeekWire on Friday. “No question there’s a mental fatigue aspect to it. I have a brand-new respect for anybody who can win multiple games in a day, let alone survive an entire day and then move on to the next tape day.”
A self-professed trivia geek, Levine majored in history at Stanford University and considers that category his strongest. It’s why he’s kicking himself for not getting Thursday’s Final Jeopardy question correct (about Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello) in the category “historic homes.”
Aaron Levine’s contestant card, used by Ken Jennings and signed by the “Jeopardy!” host. (Photo courtesy of Aaron Levine)
Elsewhere in the game Thursday, Levine found what appeared to be a couple of softball Seattle clues, especially one about the Seahawks that he got right. But he failed to buzz in on a clue about billionaires and their kids’ inheritance — who is Bill Gates?!
Earlier in the week he did get a Daily Double question correct about Stanford, and he was especially pleased to be able to shout out his alma mater with a “Go Cardinal” fist pump.
And along the way this week, he made a fun nod to a classic “Key & Peele” sketch with the way he etched his name — “AA ron” — on his podium screen.
Growing up in Los Angeles, Levine watched “Jeopardy!” every night with his family and always wanted to be on the show’s teen tournament. He scored an appearance on “The Price is Right” at age 18, but when he went off to college, trivia wasn’t a part of his life.
Levine landed on TV again in 2004 when he was the national runner-up on the ESPN reality show “Dream Job,” which was a search for a new “SportsCenter” anchor.
It wasn’t until he was living in Gig Harbor, Wash., that he started going to trivia nights, winning free food at restaurants, and watching “Jeopardy!” again. And he started making his note cards in 2019.
The numerous boxes of index cards look like something out of a library’s filing system, and they serve as flash cards for Levine to test his knowledge on a range of subjects — literature, music, art, geography, religion, etc.
A couple Seattle guys: “Jeopardy!” host Ken Jennings, left, and Aaron Levine. (Sony Pictures Television Photo)
In the decades that “Jeopardy!” has been on the air, plenty of Seattleites have made appearances. Good Thinking Games CEO David Erb is a notable past champion, and Amazon employee Stephanie Hubley got a shout-out from Jeff Bezos for her appearance back in 2016.
Levine enjoyed getting to meet host Ken Jennings, who lives in Seattle, during limited time in which Jennings interacts with contestants during commercial breaks.
“You don’t get a lot of time to talk to him, but I did feel a sort of familiarity and kinship with him, knowing that not only is he from Seattle, but he’s a big Seattle sports fan, and that he’s a huge Mariners fan,” Levine said. “It was also cool because he was familiar with my work being on TV here in Seattle.”
Levine’s three wins are a long way from what Jennings achieved (winning 74 games), but his goal going into the experience was to win just one game, and he came away with a “lifetime of memories.”
“To be able to walk away from that stage and say, ‘Hey, I’m a ‘Jeopardy!’ champion’ and to have done that three times and qualify for a postseason tournament is more than I could have ever dreamed of,” Levine said. “I hope I didn’t embarrass myself too much on the stage.”
There’s nothing embarrassing about the money he walked away with — nearly $50,000 — and his plans for what he’ll do with it.
“It’s going into a college fund for my son,” Levine said of his 8-year-old. “It’s so relieving to me to just have a sum of money that can hopefully grow for the next 10 years.”
Following the strong launch of Arc Raiders, the new battle royale from Embark Studios, the developer behind The Finals, the studio has announced its 2025 content roadmap for Arc Raiders. Despite there only being little more than two months left in the year, it looks like Embark has a lot planned. According to the blog post revealing the roadmap, aside from the usual "bug fixes, balance tweaks, and QOL features," there will be two major updates, one in November and another in December. These updates are called North Line and Cold Snap, respectively, and both updates will introduce new quests, but that's about where the similarities end.
Where North Line adds a new map, two new Arc enemies, new in-game items (presumably weapons and other utilities), and a community unlock event, Cold Snap will introduce the "snowfall" map condition—just in time for winter—as well as the Flickering Flames event, a new raider deck (read: battle pass) and start the expedition departure window. Based on a previous blog post by Embark, it seems as though the December update will land right around December 14, since that's the expected end of the first expedition project. The roadmap also mentions new cosmetics, feats, and trials as ongoing work for an upcoming update, so there appears to be a wealth of content planned, perhaps in an attempt to forestall the player desertion that seems to plague all but a few multiplayer shooters.
The future of the Intel Arc B770 GPU was already being called into question earlier this year, even before Intel and NVIDIA partnered up for what Intel called "complementary" GPU options. After all, reports as early as March 2025 claimed that the high-end Battlemage GPU project had been cancelled in 2024 already. More recently, however, rumors have surfaced about a potential late 2025 release for Intel's Arc B770 GPU. Now, a recent discovery in an Intel engineering graphics driver (shared by @GOKForFree on X) seems to substantiate the theory that Intel might have one more Arc Battlemage GPU in the chamber.
Specifically, the driver makes mention of the BMG-G31 GPU die—which is the silicon associated with the high-end Intel Arc B770 GPU—and four potential configurations of the high-end Xe2 die. If the leak is accurate, it would indicate that there are three "Pro" GPU configurations and a single consumer GPU—rumors suggested 32 Xe2 cores with 16 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus—spawn from the BMG-G31 die. While it makes sense that there would be multiple professional configurations—perhaps with slightly different NPU, processor, and memory configurations—it makes sense that the remaining consumer GPU would be the rumored Arc B770. Whether the mention of the new GPU indicates that B770 will eventually launch, or if Intel had simply included it in the driver from the start of development, is unclear, but it does suggest that there is significant progress toward an Arc B770.
An Alaska Airlines plane at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. (GeekWire File Photo / Kurt Schlosser)
Alaska Airlines said Friday it has hired global consulting firm Accenture to conduct a full audit of its technology systems, part of a broader push to improve reliability after two major IT outages in recent months. The review will include a top-to-bottom examination of the airline’s systems, standards, and processes.
The move follows a major outage last week that grounded flights for eight hours. The Seattle-based company said more than 49,000 passengers had their travel plans disrupted and more than 400 flights were canceled across Alaska Airlines and its subsidiary Horizon Air. The outage was severe enough to postpone the company’s scheduled quarterly earnings call.
Alaska said the outage was due to a failure at its primary data center and was not related to a cybersecurity incident.
In a new regulatory filing, the airline said it does not plan on rescheduling its third quarter call and will provide updated guidance for its fourth quarter in early December, “once the full financial impact of the recent IT disruptions is understood.”
A separate July outage, caused by a failure of a “critical piece of hardware” at Alaska’s data centers, was expected to reduce earnings by about $0.10 per share, or roughly $12 million.
Alaska said it has boosted IT infrastructure spending by nearly 80% since 2019, investing in redundant data centers and migrating more guest-facing systems to the cloud.
The airline operates a hybrid infrastructure, blending its own data centers with third-party cloud platforms, according to an interview last year with Vikram Baskaran, Alaska’s vice president of IT.
Alaska began migrating workloads to Microsoft Azure around 2015 and continues to maintain its own data centers for critical workloads, according to the interview.
Earlier this week, Alaska had another IT disruption, but this time blamed Microsoft Azure, which itself had an outage that temporarily disrupted operations for customers worldwide. The disruption impacted Alaska’s subsidiary Hawaiian Airlines.
YouTube censorship has become so widespread that it now has its own Wikipedia page. Yet the recent removal of a few tech-focused videos may be the most unusual cases to date. When asked for clarification, YouTube offered a confusing explanation that shed little light on the situation.
Samsung is expanding the reach of its internet browser by launching a desktop PC beta, initially targeting users in the US and South Korea. This represents a notable step for a browser long associated with Samsung's mobile devices, as the company seeks to integrate browsing experiences across multiple platforms.
Release0 lets you build chatbots and interactive flows using a drag-and-drop editor. You don’t need to code—just set up the conversation logic and connect it to your site or share it with a link or QR.
It works with AI models like OpenAI and Claude, so you can handle complex questions or automate tasks. You get real-time stats, can customize the look and feel (even remove our branding), and connect it to tools like WhatsApp or Google Analytics.
Whether you’re answering support questions, collecting leads, or guiding users through a product, Release0 helps you do it faster and without technical setup. There’s a free plan so you can try it right away.
The Military Police of the State of São Paulo (PMESP) chose Android Enterprise to easily and quickly deploy and protect data for its 10,000 police vehicles. By adopting …
OpenAI has announced the launch of an "agentic security researcher" that's powered by its GPT-5 large language model (LLM) and is programmed to emulate a human expert capable of scanning, understanding, and patching code.
Called Aardvark, the artificial intelligence (AI) company said the autonomous agent is designed to help developers and security teams flag and fix security vulnerabilities at
Your digital life is more exposed than you think. A new study from security firm Surfshark has quantified the astonishing scale of data breaches since 2004, revealing that tens of billions of personal data points, from passwords to physical addresses, are now in the wild.
Early Black Friday sales are live from Best Buy, Amazon, and more, and I'm rounding up all the best deals worth buying on TVs, appliances, Apple devices, and more.
Amazon has a huge Halloween sale, and I'm rounding up today's 31 best deals, including Black Friday favorites from brands like Apple, Ninja, LG, Keurig, and more.
Proton, the company behind Proton VPN, has launched a new tool to track data breaches by monitoring the dark web. The Data Breach Observatory aims to provide a more accurate and timelier picture of cybercrime than official corporate disclosures.
As users "dislike" posts, the system will learn what sort of content they want to see less of. This will help to inform more than just how content is ranked in feeds, but also reply rankings.
An AI browser prompt injection flaw in Opera Neon allowed attackers to extract sensitive user data through hidden HTML, exposing a critical security challenge for agentic browsers.
The ancient human yearning for immortality is rapidly colliding with the cutting edge of artificial intelligence, redefining not just what it means to live, but what it means to be dead. In a recent WIRED “Incognito Mode” segment, host Andrew Couts delved into the burgeoning “death tech” industry, exploring the fantastical promises of cryogenics alongside […]
Amazon’s strategic, multi-billion dollar investment in artificial intelligence, particularly in its underlying compute infrastructure, is demonstrably paying dividends, propelling a significant re-acceleration in AWS revenue growth and fostering innovation across its vast retail empire. This was the central theme articulated by Ronald Josey, Citi’s Senior Internet Analyst, in a recent interview on CNBC’s ‘The Exchange’ […]
“If someone came to you and said, ‘Hey, let’s play a game, you give me a dollar and I’ll give you three dollars back,’ when would you stop playing that game?” This potent analogy, offered by MNTN CEO Mark Douglas, encapsulates the fundamental shift driving the current digital advertising boom: artificial intelligence is making ad […]
AI is transforming team wellness, offering small and medium-sized businesses a strategic advantage in boosting productivity and retaining top talent through personalized care.
In the high-stakes arena of artificial intelligence, where colossal capital expenditure is the new norm, Amazon has successfully distinguished its strategic vision, earning a significant vote of confidence from investors. While the broader market grapples with the sheer scale of investment required for AI infrastructure, Amazon’s approach has been met with enthusiasm, validating its long-term […]
“Significant AI investments despite unknown revenue mirrors the ’21, ’22 Metaverse spending.” This stark observation, highlighted by Jason Helfstein, Oppenheimer’s Head of Internet Research, encapsulates the core concern driving his firm’s recent downgrade of Meta Platforms. The market, it seems, is experiencing a sense of déjà vu, wary of another massive capital expenditure cycle with […]
Effective AI scale testing is crucial for deploying high-quality, secure AI applications, requiring a disciplined approach from hotspot identification to realistic workload modeling and data analysis.
Needham senior internet and media analyst Laura Martin delivered a pointed critique of Apple’s generative AI strategy during a recent appearance on CNBC’s ‘Money Movers’. While acknowledging that Apple has finally articulated an AI narrative, Martin contends the company is “four quarters late” to the party, and its approach lacks the expansive, economy-retooling vision demonstrated […]
Hyperdrives has developed a manufacturable direct-conductor technology to solve critical cooling challenges in electric vehicle motors, aiming to boost performance.
AMD made some waves recently when it announced that it would be relegating its RDNA 1 and 2 based Radeon RX 5000 and 6000 Series GPUs to a security-update focused branch of its Radeon GPU driver software. In follow-up comments made to Tom's Hardware, however, AMD has since clarified that this does not mean the GPUs will no longer be supported
If you pay attention to gaming news at all, you've almost assuredly heard by now that Epic Games won its case against Google last year. Google still wants to take the case to the Supreme Court, but for now, it has to abide by the US District Court and Judge James Donato's judgment, where they decided that Google had engaged in unlawful anti-competitive
A new threat in is the wild affecting sites that run WordPress, a popular content management system. Wordfence, a company that focuses on security research in the WordPress ecosystem, is reporting that a vulnerability is affecting the Anti-Malware Security and Brute-Force Firewall plugin that’s currently deployed on over 100,000 websites.
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In this best-of rundown, we're going to outline the top 10 best gaming processors available in 2025. The CPUs featured here should offer some of the best gaming performance per-dollar in their respective price ranges. In fact, many of the cheaper options are still powerful contenders in modern gaming workloads, thanks to the advancements made
Over the summer months LunarG announced KosmicKrisp as a new Vulkan-on-Metal implementation for Apple devices and built around Mesa. That alternative to MoltenVK was upstreamed for next quarter's Mesa 26.0 release and now it's also celebrating being an officially Vulkan 1.3 conformant implementation...
Redragon has announced its latest wireless TKL keyboard, the Otiim K729 Pro. Instead of opting for fancy Hall effect switches, like the upcoming Wooting 60HE v2, the K729 Pro instead uses traditional 5-pin mechanical switches, with a handful of visual and functional features to set itself apart from the wealth of TKL mechanical keyboards out there. The K729 Pro is a wireless mechanical keyboard with a traditional TKL layout, a plastic case stuffed with sound damping materials, and a rotary knob mounted in an unorthodox position horizontally along the top edge of the keyboard's case. It is available in a white and grey colorway with rounded OEM-like double-shot PBT keycaps or "Black Gradient" with OEM profile double-shot PBT keycaps with a side-printed legend. The case also features two-stage flip-out feet, although Redragon hasn't provided any exact typing angles. The Otiim K729 Pro wireless mechanical keyboard is available from Redragon for $64.99.
The Redragon Otiim K729 Pro is also Redragon's first mechanical keyboard to feature custom silent switches. The switches in question are simply called Silent Peach switches, but they seem to be Outemu Silent Peach V3 linear switches, judging from the colors and the construction. The switches feature a box stem, 3.3 mm of total travel, and a 40 gf actuation force. The actuation distance is a pretty standard 2.0 mm, but the overall travel is reduced from the usual 4 mm found in mechanical switches due to the internal silicone stops that silence the switch. In combination with the keyboard's gasket mount, those silent switches should provide a fairly soft and virtually silent typing experience, which Redragon says is a consideration for office users. If you're not a fan of the switches, the Otiim K729 Pro is compatible with regular 3- and 5-pin mechanical switches, so you can swap them out.
Wooting previously revealed a bunch of details about the upcoming 60HE v2 Hall effect gaming keyboard and announced the November 6 pre-order date for the updated 60HE v2, but pricing and exact shipping dates have remained a mystery until now. In a new blog post, Wooting has revealed that the orders for the aluminium Wooting 60HE v2 will start shipping as early as December 2025, while the ABS plastic case will only start shipping in April 2026. The Wooting 60HE V2 will be available as both a pre-built keyboard, with either the plastic case or an aluminium case, and as a standalone PCB module, which is compatible with the original 60HE case—for those who want to supply their own switches, keycaps, and case. It might also be reassuring to keyboard enthusiasts to know that there appears to be no price difference between the split space and traditional space bar versions of the 60HE v2. New details about the plastic case were also revealed, including the addition of an aluminium reinforcement plate in the bottom of the case, which should help structural rigidity and help dampen the keyboard's sound somewhat.
Wooting also revealed a new add-on for the plastic case to replace the somewhat divisive strap. Owners of the plastic 60HE v2 case will also get a swappable translucent silicone wing to replace the strap mount, for a bit of visual flair. Both versions of the 60HE v2 will be available in black, with an additional "Shiny Silver" colorway in the case of the aluminium case, and both come with OEM profile shine-through PBT keycaps and the new Wooting Lekker Tikken switches by default. Aside from the aluminium case and the new switches, the 60HE v2 steps up the 60HE's design by swapping out the plate for a white FR4 plate, which should improve the sound characteristics over the original steel plate. The 60HE v2 also separates the PCB and plate assembly from the case with a friction fit gasket mount, removing any direct contact between the plate and case to reduce reverberation.
Microsoft has done it again! The latest bug now hides in the least possible place—the one and only Task Manager. According to multiple user reports, the Windows 11 update KB5067036 is causing the Task Manager to remain open even after being closed, creating a new instance each time a user opens and closes it. Each instance uses around 20-95 MB of RAM, so if you open and close it 100 times, you could end up with 2 GB of RAM tied up by these persistent Task Manager instances. Additionally, these background instances can consume CPU resources. Despite being a minimally invasive application, each tskmgr.exe instance uses about 0.9% of CPU resources, so 10 instances could reduce your CPU's capacity by almost 10% without you even noticing.
We managed to replicate the bug, and found multiple instances running in the background, without any way to normally close it. A simple fix for this issue is clicking the "End Task" button instead of the classical "X" to exit application. However, if you opened multiple instances to play with how many times the process can be repeated, you will have a hard and boring time solving it manually. Instead, use the "taskkill /im taskmgr.exe /f" command in the command line as administrator to remove all existing Task Manager processes. As always, be cautious when running any command in the CMD as an administrator—but trust us on this one.
AMD surprised its customers yesterday by announcing that its Radeon RX 5000 and RX 6000 series GPUs will be partially retired from the regular monthly game optimization cycle. These RDNA 1 and RDNA 2 GPUs will still receive essential patches for security vulnerabilities and critical issues. However, with the release of Software Adrenalin Edition 25.10.2, the company is reallocating its development resources to focus on newer hardware. This decision is particularly surprising given that the Radeon RX 6000 series is less than four years old, making gamers who bought these GPUs at inflated prices (during the crypto mining boom), extremely disappointed at their sand cubes.
As the company shifts these GPUs into maintenance mode, we don't know what to expect in the coming months. However, an AMD spokesperson has clarified to Tom's Hardware: "New features, bug fixes and game optimizations will continue to be delivered as required by market needs in the maintenance mode branch." AMD plans to shift focus on the upcoming Adrenalin Edition releases for performance enhancements and game-specific improvements. This will happen exclusively on RDNA 3 and RDNA 4 architectures. Nonetheless, we don't know what is AMD's definition of what the "market needs," so we have to follow and wait for future driver updates before we can rule out these GPUs completely.
Socionext Inc., a global leader in System-on-Chip (SoC) design and advanced semiconductor solutions, introduces "Flexlets", a new class of configurable chiplets designed to advance heterogenous integration. As traditional monolithic SoC designs face physical and economic limits—reticle size constraints, yield challenges, and thermal bottlenecks- the industry is turning toward chiplet-based design, where designers can integrate their core features and interface functionalities, provided as chiplets, into a packaged device to improve performance, cost, and accelerate time-to-market.
While chiplet technology opens exciting possibilities for modular designs and scalability, many current solutions are derived from fixed-function ASSPs, limiting flexibility and customization. Socionext's Flexlets overcome this by offering a configurable library of chiplet designs at the RTL level. Unlike traditional approaches, Flexlets empower customers to tailor performance to their unique application needs - whether in high-performance computing, advanced networking, or next-generation automotive systems.
AMD clarifies RDNA/RDNA 2 “Maintenance mode” meaning, confirms that some optimisations will be delivered AMD has issued a new statement to clarify its support plans for RDNA and RDNA 2-based graphics cards, confirming that they are part of AMD’s “maintenance mode branch”. This follows a backlash against AMD over the idea that RDNA 2 GPUs […]
The airstrike and artillery strike in Battlefield 6 REDSEC can be significantly more powerful than you know. Here's the pro strategy to maximize their use and get the win.
Want to keep track of the largest startup funding deals in 2025 with our curated list of $100 million-plus venture deals to U.S.-based companies? Check out The Crunchbase Megadeals Board.
This is a weekly feature that runs down the week’s top 10 announced funding rounds in the U.S. Check out last week’s biggest funding rounds here.
The week’s largest funding rounds confirmed that we’re still very much in the AI era. This included the biggest deal, a $350 million Series C for AI hiring startup Mercor, along with good-sized financings for legal tech unicorn Harvey, shopping platform Whatnot, and email security provider Sublime Security.
1. Mercor, $350M, AI hiring: San Francisco-based Mercor, a provider of AI-enabled tools for hiring, secured $350 million in Series C funding at a $10 billion valuation. Felicis1 led the financing, which included participation by Robinhood Ventures, General Catalyst and Benchmark.
2. (tied) SavvyMoney, $225M, fintech: SavvyMoney, which offers tools for financial services providers to embed features like credit scores and personalized offers into their consumer offerings, announced a $225 million investment co-led by PSG Equity and Canapi Ventures. Founded in 2009, the Dublin, California, company currently works with more than 1,500 financial institution customers.
2. (tied) Whatnot, $225M, e-commerce: Whatnot, a live shopping platform and marketplace, has closed a $225 million Series F round, more than doubling its valuation to $11.5 billion in less than 10 months. DST Global and CapitalG co-led the financing, which brings the Los Angeles-based company’s total raised to about $968 million since its 2019 inception.
4. (tied) Sublime Security, $150M, cybersecurity: Sublime Security, a developer of agentic AI tools for email security, raised $150 million in a Series C round led by Georgian. The financing brings total funding to date for the 6-year-old Washington, D.C.-based company to around $240 million, per Crunchbase data.
4. (tied) Harvey, $150M, legal tech: Harvey, developer of an AI-enabled platform for legal professionals, closed on a fresh $150 million, bringing total reported funding to date to $1 billion. Andreessen Horowitz led the latest round, which reportedly set an $8 billion valuation for the 3-year-old, San Francisco-based company.
6. (tied) Human Interest, $100M, finance: Human Interest, a San Francisco-based startup that helps small businesses offer 401(k) plans to their employees, raised more than $100 million at a $3 billion valuation, Axios reports. That valuation is up from the $1.3 billion the company was last valued at in 2024. Previous investors Baillie Gifford, BlackRock, Marshall Wace, Morgan Stanley and TPG again backed the company.
6. (tied) Substrate, $100M, semiconductors: Substrate, a San Francisco-based startup seeking to build semiconductor factories with new laser-based technology, raised $100 million from Founders Fund, General Catalyst, IQT and others.
8. Zag Bio, $80M, biotech: Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Zag Bio, a developer of thymus-targeted medicines, announced its public launch with $80 million in financing, including a recently closed Series A round. Polaris Partners founded and incubated the startup and co-led the Series A financing with the JDRF T1D Fund.
9. ConductorOne, $79M, identity security: ConductorOne, an identity security startup building an AI platform geared for human, non-human and AI identities, landed $79 million in a Series B financing led by Greycroft. The 4-year-old Portland, Oregon-based company says it saw 400% revenue growth last year.
10. Blueprint, $60M, personal care: Blueprint, a Los Angeles-based brand that markets supplements, skin and hair care products, and foods geared to promote well-being and longevity, raised $60 million from a long list of venture and celebrity investors including Paris Hilton, Cameron Winklevoss, Tyler Winklevoss and Logan Paul.
Methodology
We tracked the largest announced rounds in the Crunchbase database that were raised by U.S.-based companies for the period of Oct. 25-31. Although most announced rounds are represented in the database, there could be a small time lag as some rounds are reported late in the week.
The International Criminal Court (ICC), based in The Hague, is shifting from Microsoft Office to a European alternative. The organization confirmed it will adopt the OpenDesk platform to manage its software and collaboration needs moving forward.
Two of the nation's most populous states have enacted new rules requiring businesses and government agencies to disclose when they use artificial intelligence. Utah and California now mandate AI disclosure across a range of interactions, while other states are weighing similar measures aimed at boosting transparency amid the technology's rapid...
Speaking to Wall Street investors, Cook described Apple's product portfolio as "truly remarkable," highlighting the iPhone 17 lineup as the "biggest leap ever for iPhone" in both hardware performance and software capabilities.
What do you play when you crave an adrenaline rush? We can think of dozens of games that fit this description, but we narrowed it down to 14 pulse-spikers (plus a few shout-outs) that are scary, gory, or frustratingly hard, in a good way.
NASA's experimental X-59 supersonic jet recently completed its first test flight after years of development and delays. Aeronautical engineers at Lockheed Martin designed the aircraft to produce quiet sonic booms, potentially allowing supersonic flight over land and cutting travel times in half.
Microsoft and Meta have expanded their mixed-reality partnership with the full release of Windows 11's remote desktop for the Meta Quest 3 and Quest 3S headsets. The update introduces multi-monitor streaming, an ultrawide immersive mode, and new workspace customization tools. The integration allows users to mirror high-resolution desktop displays inside...
Intel once had some big plans for its Battlemage GPU family with bigger dies, 3D stacked cache solutions & more, yet those were cancelled due to unfortunate circumstances surrounding the financial position of the blue team, and changes in the leadership. Intel's Canned "Battlemage" GPU Plans Reveal Bigger Dies With Up To 40 Xe2 Cores, 3D Stacked "Adamantine" Cache & Halo SoCs Intel's first generation of Arc GPUs, codenamed Alchemist, didn't kick off the way the blue team wanted, but the graphics division made a huge comeback through solid driver support, which set the stage for its next-gen Arc lineup, […]
Intel is reportedly eyeing a major acquisition under its new leadership, with a potential takeover of the AI startup SambaNova, which could prove massive for the firm's AI ambitions. Intel's Potential SambaNova Acquisition Would Equip the Firm With an Independent End-to-End AI Ecosystem Well, for those unaware, Intel is in talks to acquire the AI firm SambaNova, and it has contacted bankers to arrange the financial means for the transaction, according to a report by Bloomberg. The selection of SambaNova here tells us a lot about what to expect from Intel and AI moving forward. However, it has been revealed […]
Embark Studios just released its second major title, ARC Raiders, which launched yesterday and made quite the splash, achieving over 250K concurrent players on Steam, making it the biggest launch for an extraction shooter on the platform, and it also surpassed Embark's other major title, The Finals, for its concurrent launch numbers on Steam. Keeping up with the pace of modern-day live service games, Embark Studios has no intention of slowing down and followed up yesterday's stellar launch with the reveal of the game's roadmap for the remainder of 2025. There are no specific release dates around when the next […]
Epic Games has introduced a new category of cosmetics called Fortnite Sidekicks. They're essentially pets that follow the player around in various modes, including Battle Royale, LEGO Fortnite, Save the World, Fortnite Festival (though they'll remain backstage), and even user-made experiences (though only if the creator has enabled them). They won't provide any gameplay advantages, so their only real perk is looking cute. They do, however, react to the surrounding world, and players can interact with them through special Sidekick Emotes. The first one to be introduced to the game is Peels, a 'banana dog', which will be available to […]
This isn't something we expected, but AMD is back with a new statement, claiming that it won't be ending the game/features support for the RX 5000 and RX 6000 GPUs. AMD Rolls Back its Decision to End the New Features and Game Optimizations Support for RDNA 1/2; Also, Refutes The RX 7900 XTX USB-C PD Reports AMD's exclusion of the RX 5000 and RX 6000 series GPUs from its latest game optimization and features support resulted in a backlash. It's obvious since anybody who owns these GPUs, particularly those who bought them in the last 2-3 years, wouldn't want to […]
It's Halloween at the time of this writing, which means it's the perfect day to turn off the lights and play a horror game, whether that's something new like Cronos: The New Dawn and Silent Hill f, or a classic like Amnesia: The Dark Descent, Dead Space, and Alien: Isolation. Developer Broken Mirror Games and publisher Skybound Games' upcoming isometric 80s-themed horror adventure was unfortunately never going to be an option this Halloween, as it was due to come out on November 7, 2025, but now it won't even be coming out this year. A new story trailer released today […]
Grand Theft Auto 4 with RTX Remix Path Tracing looks like the remaster we'll likely never get, introducing significant visual improvements that enhance the game's visuals considerably. How much the mod developed by Xoxor4D enhances the visuals of the fourth entry in the series by Rockstar Games is shown in a new comparison video put together by MxBenchmarkPC. The video showcases the vanilla version of the game running side by side with the path-traced version at 4K and 1440p resolutions, utilizing NVIDIA DLSS and Frame Generation. As expected, the mod is highly demanding, and even high-end modern hardware has trouble […]
NVIDIA's CEO Jensen Huang has made an interesting statement about their market share in China, claiming that it fell drastically during the Biden adminstration. NVIDIA's CEO Is Optimistic About Getting Back Into China's AI Market, But So Far, There Is No Progress Well, NVIDIA's China AI market has been under uncertainity for quite some time now, considering the restrictions the firm has faced under both the Biden era and the current administration. With the Ampere and Hopper lineups in particular, Team Green didn't face many issues with China, as the A100 and H100 AI chips were being supplied to Beijing […]
As AI GPUs continue to dominate the technology conversation, we decided to sit down with Kristof Beets, Vice President of Product Management at Imagination Technologies. Imagination Technologies is one of the oldest GPU intellectual property firms in the world and has been known for previously supplying Apple GPUs for the iPhone and iPad. With GPUs being quite close to AI processing needs as well, our discussion with Kristof surrounded how Imagination Technologies' products are suitable for AI computing. He also compared them with NVIDIA's GPUs, and the conversation started off with Kristof giving us a presentation of Imagination's latest E-Series […]
Panic Stations is a new game developer formed by former Mediatonic developers who worked on the popular competitive multiplayer title, Fall Guys. The studio announced itself with a post on its official X (formerly Twitter) account in a video filled with cartoon pigeons. Joe Walsh, a game designer at Panic Stations, provides the voice over for the first pigeon you see, beginning the video by saying, "Games should be funnier and they should be stupider. Here at Panic Stations, we're going to fix that." The team is currently working on its debut game, which it says is "not about pigeons" […]
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AI adoption is accelerating, but results often lag expectations. And enterprise leaders are under pressure to prove measurable ROI from the AI solutions — especially as the use of autonomous agents rises and global tariffs disrupt supply chains.
The issue isn’t the AI itself, says Alex Rinke, co-founder and co-CEO of Celonis, a global leader in process intelligence. “To succeed, enterprise AI needs to understand the context of a business’s processes — and how to improve them,” he explains. Without this business context, AI risks becoming, as Rinke puts it, “just an internal social experiment.”
Next week’s Celosphere 2025 will tackle the AI ROI challenge head-on. The three-day event brings together customer strategies, hands-on workshops, and live demonstrations, highlighting enhancements to the Celonis Process Intelligence (PI) Platform that help enterprises harness ‘enterprise AI,’ powered by PI, to continuously improve operations, creating measurable business value at scale.
Focus on measurable ROI
The event’s focus on achieving AI ROI reflects three challenges facing technology and business leaders moving from pilot to production: obsolete systems, break-neck industry change, and agentic AI. According to Gartner, 64% of board members now view AI as a top-three priority — yet only 10% of organizations report meaningful financial returns.
Celonis customers are bucking that trend. A Forrester Total Economic Impact study found organizations using its platform achieved 383% ROI over three years, with payback in just six months. One company improved sales order automation from 33% to 86%, saving $24.5 million. The study estimated $44.1 million in total benefits over three years, driven by faster automation, reduced inefficiencies, and higher process visibility. These numbers underscore a broader pattern — companies that modernize outdated systems and align AI with process optimization see faster payback and sustained gains.
Real companies, real results
Celosphere will spotlight how global enterprises are building “future-fit” operations. Mercedes-Benz Group AG and Vinmar Group will showcase AI-driven, composable solutions, powered by PI, and attendees will see demonstrations of PI enabling agents in live production environments.
Among the notable success stories:
AstraZeneca, the pharmaceutical company, reduced excess inventory while keeping critical medicines flowing by using Celonis as a foundation for its OpenAI partnership.
The State of Oklahoma can answer procurement status questions at scale, unlocking over $10 million in value.
Cosentino clears blocked sales orders up to 5x faster using an AI-powered credit management assistant.
Raising the stakes for agentic AI
Numerous sessions will focus on orchestrating AI agents. The shift from AI-as-advisor to AI-as-actor, changes everything, says Rinke.
“The agent needs to understand not just what to do, but how your specific business actually works,” he explains. “Process intelligence provides those rails."
This leap from recommendation to autonomous action raises the stakes exponentially. When agents can independently trigger purchase orders, reroute shipments, or approve exceptions, bad context can mean catastrophically bad outcomes at scale.
Celosphere attendees will get to see first-hand how companies are using the Celonis Orchestration Engine to coordinate AI agents alongside people and systems. Effective orchestration is a crucial protection against the chaos of agents working at cross-purposes, duplicating actions, or letting crucial steps fall through the cracks.
Navigating tariffs and supply chain shocks
Global trade volatility isn't just a headline — it's an operational nightmare reshaping how companies deploy AI, Rinke says.
New tariffs trigger cascading effects across procurement, logistics, and compliance. Each policy shift can cascade across thousands of SKUs — forcing new supplier contracts, rerouted shipments, and rebalanced inventories. For AI systems trained on static conditions, that volatility is almost impossible to predict. Traditional AI systems struggle with such variability — but process intelligence gives organizations real-time visibility into how changes ripple through operations.
Celosphere case studies will show how companies turn disruption into advantage. Smurfit Westrock uses PI to optimize inventory and reduce costs amid tariff uncertainty, while ASOS leverages PI to optimize its supply chain operations, enhancing efficiency, reducing costs, and continuing to deliver an outstanding customer experience.
Platform over point solutions
Rinke argues that Celonis’ edge lies in treating process intelligence not as an add-on, but as the foundation of the enterprise stack. Unlike bolt-on optimization tools, the Celonis platform creates a living digital twin of business operations — a continuously updated model enriched by context that lets AI operate effectively from analysis to execution.
“What sets Celonis apart is visibility across systems and offline tasks, which is critical for true intelligent automation,” Rinke says. “The platform offers comprehensive capabilities spanning process analysis, design, and orchestration rather than a point solution.”
“Free the Process” and the future of AI
Celonis continues to champion openness through its “Free the Process” movement, promoting fair competition and freeing enterprises from legacy lock-in. By giving organizations full access to their own process data, open APIs, and a growing partner network that includes The Hackett Group, ClearOps, and Lobster, Celonis is building the connective tissue for a new era of interoperable automation.
For Rinke, this open foundation is what turns AI from a set of experiments into an enterprise engine. “Process intelligence creates a flywheel,” he says. “Better understanding leads to better optimization, which enables better AI — and that, in turn, drives even greater understanding. There is no AI without PI."
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Want your business to show up in Google’s AI-driven results? The same principles that help you rank in Google Search still matter – but AI introduces new dimensions of context, reputation, and reasoning, according to Robby Stein, VP of Product, Google Search.
PR for AI. In an interview with Marina Mogilko of Silicon Valley Girl, Stein said AI “thinks a lot like a person would,” and agreed with her assessment that you’re investing in PR not for people to see it, but for AI. Stein said:
“If you’re a business and you’re mentioned in top business lists or from a public article that lots of people end up finding, those kinds of things become useful for the AI to find.”
AI Mode is “literally using Google Search as a tool, like doing Googling under the hood and then finding relevant information and it can both obviously do a standard Google search and understand the web results, but also tap into the knowledge bases and real-time info systems at Google.”
SEO overlap. Stein talked a bit about how AI optimization strategies differ from traditional SEO:
“And so in the same way that you would optimize your website and think about how do I make helpful, clear information for people. So people search for a certain topic, my website’s really helpful for that. Think of an AI doing that search now. And then knowing, for that query, here are the best websites given that question. [That now] will come into the context window of the model. And so when it renders a response and provides all of these links for you to go deeper, that website’s more likely to show up. And so it’s a lot of that standard best practices around building great content really do apply in the AI age for sure.”
So is it (GEO, AEO, or whatever we end up calling AI search optimization) basically the same as SEO? Stein said:
“There’s a lot of overlap. I think maybe one added nuance is that the kinds of questions people ask AI are increasingly complicated and they tend to be in different spaces.
“And so if you think about what people use AI for, a lot of it is how-to for complicated things or for purchase decisions or for advice about life things. So people who are creating content in those areas like if I were them, I would be a student of understanding the use cases of AI and where what are growing in those use cases. I think there’s been some studies that have done around what how people use these products and AI. It was really interesting to understand.”
Tools still matter. Stein pointed to Google Trends, Ads, and Search Console as underused resources for understanding new types of search behavior.
“Google Trends is a really useful thing. I actually think people really underutilize that.”
Why we care. Google Search is continuing to evolve. So, too, is SEO. Even Stein seemed to acknowledge that it’s not “just SEO” that matters in the era of AI Overviews and AI Mode, despite there being a lot of overlap. Because you are no longer just optimizing to be ranked – you’re optimizing to be recommended.
AI may be reshaping search, but ads aren’t going away, according to Google VP of Product, Search Robbie Stein.
What he’s saying. Asked by Marina Mogilko of Silicon Valley Girl whether Google Ads will go away in the future, Stein replied: “Don’t see them going away.” He added that user behavior is “really expanding” with AI, not shifting away from search. Google is already experimenting with ads inside AI experiences:
“And so we started some experiments on ads within AI Mode and within Google AI experiences.”
“We’ve been really focused on building great consumer products first and foremost… but I think users are starting to see some ads experiments there, too.”
Organic first. AI recommendations aren’t driven by ads inputs, Stein said:
“It doesn’t use ads information. This is done entirely with what’s on the web and what’s within Google’s information system.”
What’s next. Expect “new and novel ad formats,” but it’s still “early days” and Google is figuring out “how ads might appear in these systems,” Stein said:
“We don’t think that there should be any barrier to people finding information. So, if there’s information out there, it should be found. But I think what you’ll find is that there could be new and novel ad formats that if you’re, let’s say, shopping or … doing a house remodel. There’s all kinds of interesting services that could be helpful for you that if we had more information and you could articulate more what you needed.
“Hey, I have this kind of wood. These are the kind of contractors I have. This is my constraints. These are the price range. You could give even more fine-tuned recommendations or potential other services that you could consider, or deals that could be more useful to you. Those are all things we’re thinking about. I’d say it’s early days and finalizing kind of how ads might appear in these systems.”
Why we care. I doubt most people think Google Ads is going away anytime soon. But it is interesting to know that “new and novel ad formats” are coming – so this will be an area of extreme interest for brands that want to be visible in conversational or multimodal queries.
A suspected nation-state threat actor has been linked to the distribution of a new malware called Airstalk as part of a likely supply chain attack.
Palo Alto Networks Unit 42 said it's tracking the cluster under the moniker CL-STA-1009, where "CL" stands for cluster and "STA" refers to state-backed motivation.
"Airstalk misuses the AirWatch API for mobile device management (MDM), which is now
A China-affiliated threat actor known as UNC6384 has been linked to a fresh set of attacks exploiting an unpatched Windows shortcut vulnerability to target European diplomatic and government entities between September and October 2025.
The activity targeted diplomatic organizations in Hungary, Belgium, Italy, and the Netherlands, as well as government agencies in Serbia, Arctic Wolf said in a
The exploitation of a recently disclosed critical security flaw in Motex Lanscope Endpoint Manager has been attributed to a cyber espionage group known as Tick.
The vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2025-61932 (CVSS score: 9.3), allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary commands with SYSTEM privileges on on-premise versions of the program. JPCERT/CC, in an alert issued this month, said that it
During a discussion at an event for Global Encryption Day 2025, a former investigator joined technologists and activists in the call to protect encryption.
A new era in 3D printing is fast approaching and the latest Core One L refines CoreXY Kinematics to offer a larger print area in box only marginally larger than the original. However, it's the security features and future adaptation for the forthcoming Multi filament adaptation that makes this printer quite so interesting.
Ribbon, which provides software and technology to phone and internet giants, said nation-state hackers were in its systems since at least December 2024.
Perplexity’s agreement with Getty appears to legitimize some of the startup’s previous use of Getty’s stock photos. Perplexity came under fire last year for a series of plagiarism accusations from several news organizations.
Apple CEO Tim Cook noted in the company's Q4 2025 earnings call that Apple was preparing to announce more AI partnerships like the one it has with OpenAI to integrate ChatGPT into Siri and Apple Intelligence.
After generating over 10 million social media impressions with the launch of its text-to-3D model app, Adam has raised a $4.1 million seed round to power its next steps.
— Julie Van Ullen is now president and chief revenue officer for iSpot, a Bellevue, Wash., company that measures the impact of advertising campaigns on TV and video streaming. Van Ullen serves on the board of directors for the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), a trade group. She joins iSpot from Rakuten Rewards, a leading e-commerce loyalty company.
“Julie is a dynamic leader with a proven track record of building high-growth teams and fostering trusted relationships with customers across the media and advertising ecosystem,” iSpot founder and CEO Sean Muller said in a statement.
iSpot ranks No. 6 on the GeekWire 200, our list of the top privately held startups in the Pacific Northwest.
Ashley Fidler. (LinkedIn Photo)
— MoxiWorks named Ashley Fidler as chief product officer of the Seattle-based real estate platform. Fidler joins the company from Pure Property Management and was a Microsoft program manager earlier in her career.
“Ashley brings an incredible depth of experience in building category-defining platforms that marry cutting-edge AI with real-world business impact,” said Michael Messig, MoxiWorks’ CTO, in a statement.
MoxiWorks last month appointed a new chief marketer, and in May sold its back-office accounting product in order to focus on sales and marketing.
Ro Vega. (LinkedIn Photo)
— Seattle Sounders FC and Seattle Reign FC hired Ro Vegaas chief marketing officer for the two soccer clubs. Vega has worked in brand management for nearly two decades, including positions with Beats by Dr. Dre and Nike, where he focused on soccer products in North America. He joins the Seattle teams from The Trade Desk, a digital advertising company.
— F5 CEO and President François Locoh-Donou is taking the additional role of chair of the board of directors in March 2026. The company shared the news in an SEC filing. Locoh-Donou is succeeding Alan Higginson, who disclosed in August that he is retiring after nearly 30 years as an F5 board member and 20 years as board chair.
— Trupanion, the longtime Seattle-based pet insurance provider, named Bradley Powell as a member of its board of directors. Powell was previously chief financial officer of the global logistics company Expeditors International of Washington. He was also CFO of Eden Bioscience, a publicly traded biotech company.
— Gurobi Optimization, a Beaverton, Ore.-based company offering mathematical problem solving technology, named Oliver Bastert as chief technology officer. Bastert, who will work remotely from Munich, Germany, joins the company from the analytics and credit-scoring company FICO where he was vice president of product management.
—Bill Platt, former leader of Amazon Web Services’ agentic AI division, joined San Francisco-based Alchemy as chief operating officer. Platt’s mandate is “to weave AI agents deeply into blockchain infrastructure,” according to the company. Platt was with AWS for nearly 12 years over two stints, most recently based in the Boston area.
— Seattle Metro Chamber named Mara Samudrala as director of communications and marketing for the region’s leading business association. Samudrala comes to the role from the Greater Phoenix Chamber.
— Halley Kniggehas done a Seattle co-op swap. The former communications and inclusion lead for REI Co-op is now VP of communications at BECU, a financial cooperative. Her past experience includes a media leadership role at Alaska Airlines.
— Casium, a Seattle-based immigration tech startup, named Kaustubh (Kaust) Yadav as product designer. Yadav has experience in creative direction, copywriting and product design, working on campaigns for companies and brands including Amazon, AmEx, BMW, Citi and Pepsi.
Amazon is doubling down on AI investments under CEO Andy Jassy, who says recent job cuts were about reducing bureaucracy, not cutting costs. (GeekWire File Photo / Todd Bishop)
Amazon’s cash tax bill has dropped sharply this year under a new U.S. tax law that lets companies immediately deduct the cost of equipment and research — a policy designed to encourage spending on technology development and other investments.
The decrease is detailed in the company’s third-quarter 10-Q filing, released Friday morning following its blockbuster earnings report. Amazon’s shares rose more than 10% in early trading after beating expectations and reassuring investors about long-term AI demand.
In the filing, Amazon cites the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025” as a key factor in the tax deduction. The situation illustrates how tax changes championed by President Trump and the Republican-led Congress are rewarding U.S. investment and reshaping corporate finances.
But it’s not as simple as a basic tax break: while the law accelerates short-term deductions for domestic investment, it also changes the tax treatment on foreign profits — boosting long-term tax liabilities overall.
According to its quarterly filing, Amazon paid $1.1 billion in cash for income taxes in the third quarter, a 45% decrease from the $2 billion it paid in the same period last year — even as quarterly profits rose 38% to $21.2 billion. For the first nine months of 2025, cash tax payments fell to $6.8 billion, down from $8.2 billion in 2024.
The new law changed two key rules that impact companies making big capital investments.
First, it reinstated 100% “bonus depreciation,” allowing companies to deduct the full cost of new equipment — such as servers for AWS and AI or warehouse robotics — in the year it’s purchased rather than spreading the deduction over many years.
Second, it restored the immediate expensing of domestic R&D costs, reversing a recent rule that required this spending to be amortized over several years.
Boosting capital spending and cutting jobs
For a company like Amazon, these changes create a significant and immediate reduction in taxable income. The tech giant spent $35.1 billion on property and equipment in the third quarter, up 55% from a year earlier, driven by massive investments in AI infrastructure.
Backers of the U.S. tax changes said they would spur investment and job creation in the United States, but Amazon’s situation shows that the reality is more complicated. The company is reaping the benefits of the new tax incentives while eliminating about 14,000 corporate jobs.
Speaking on Amazon’s earnings call, CEO Andy Jassy attributed the layoffs not to cost-cutting but to efforts to simplify operations and reduce bureaucracy after years of growth. Amazon took a $1.8 billion pre-tax charge in the quarter for severance and other costs related to the layoffs.
Amazon isn’t alone in spending big on AI infrastructure or benefitting from the tax changes.
Although they didn’t go into as much detail as Amazon did, Microsoft and Google both referenced the 2025 U.S. tax law in their latest quarterly reports, noting the reinstatement of immediate R&D expensing and accelerated depreciation. Both companies are realizing similar near-term tax benefits as they expand their AI and cloud infrastructure investments.
Long-term tax provision still intact
For Amazon, the changes in U.S. tax law mark a new chapter in a long-running national debate. The company, which faced criticism in years past for paying little or no federal income tax despite strong profits, has long maintained that it pays what it owes under U.S. law.
However, the immediate reduction is only part of the picture.
While Amazon’s cash payments declined, the tax expense reported on its income statement — a figure based on accounting rules rather than cash paid — nearly doubled. The company’s income-tax provision for the first nine months of 2025 was $14.1 billion, up from $6.9 billion in the same period last year.
Amazon’s filing says this increase was also driven by the new tax act, which reduced other benefits, such as the deduction for profits made overseas.
This $7.3 billion gap between its accounting provision ($14.1 billion) and its cash tax bill ($6.8 billion) shows how the new law shifts the timing of tax payments rather than eliminating them. In effect, the deductions reduce the company’s cash outlay for taxes in the short term but will ultimately be paid in future years as those assets are depreciated on the company’s books.
A U.S. startup is developing a compact particle-accelerator-based X-ray lithography system that could surpass ASML's EUV scanners in resolution and cut wafer costs tenfold by the end of the decade, but its plan to build its own fabs rather than sell tools means it must reinvent the entire semiconductor production supply chain from the ground up.
AMD has backtracked on putting RDNA 1 and 2 into a maintenance mode that wouldn't include game optimizations, telling Tom's Hardware new features will be included based on "market needs."
Under the newly announced trade ceasefire, China will delay its sweeping new export controls on rare earth elements, while the U.S. holds off on fresh tariffs. But Blackwell's exclusion from talks highlights the deepening rift between the two nations.
The prevailing narrative surrounding AI interaction, particularly the emphasis on intricate prompt engineering, is fundamentally misguided and rapidly approaching obsolescence, according to Matthew Berman. Speaking on a recent Forward Future Live broadcast, Berman, the founder of Forward Future, articulated a compelling vision for human-AI collaboration that pivots from keyword crafting to a more intuitive, intent-driven […]
South Korea is making an unprecedented national investment in its AI infrastructure, deploying over a quarter-million NVIDIA GPUs to build a comprehensive AI ecosystem.
Joseph Briggs, a senior global economist at Goldman Sachs, recently shared insights on the macroeconomic implications of generative AI, projecting a significant uplift in U.S. labor productivity. Speaking with CNBC’s ‘Squawk on the Street’, Briggs elaborated on the potential of AI to transform the economy. Briggs spoke with CNBC’s ‘Squawk on the Street’ about macro […]
The global surge of artificial intelligence presents both unprecedented opportunities and profound challenges for the diverse nations of ASEAN. At the recent Bloomberg Business Summit at ASEAN in Kuala Lumpur, a panel featuring Khairul Anwar, Founder & CEO of Pandai; Ilaria Chan, Chairperson of Tech For Good Institute and Group Advisor for Tech & Social […]
The popular perception of artificial intelligence, often limited to the immediate utility of tools like ChatGPT for tasks such as drafting emails or summarizing articles, barely scratches the surface of its true potential. This was the opening observation by Bloomberg’s Mark Dawson during his interview with Sam Majid, CEO of the National AI Office of […]
The tectonic plates of technology shift every couple of decades, fundamentally altering how humanity interacts with data and systems. Dato’ Fadzli Shah, Co-Founder of Zetrix, addressed attendees at the Bloomberg Business Summit at ASEAN in Kuala Lumpur, outlining his vision for how the region can strengthen its digital economy and competitiveness through the advancement of […]
Aon CFO Edmund Reese, in an interview with CNBC’s Contessa Brewer, illuminated the intricate landscape where the burgeoning demands of artificial intelligence intersect with escalating climate risks, creating both immense opportunities and complex challenges for global enterprises. Reese’s commentary, following Aon’s robust Q3 2025 earnings, painted a clear picture of how the firm is strategically […]
The funding signals a major bet on AI's potential to automate the legal industry's most grueling work and turn data overload into a strategic advantage for lawyers.
The current discourse surrounding artificial intelligence often fixates on its limitations, questioning its capacity for true invention or creative genius. However, as Marc Andreessen provocatively posited during a recent a16z Runtime conference, perhaps the more salient question is: “My answer to both of those is, well, can people do those things? And… I’ve only met […]
Forty-five years ago, Pac-Man made his U.S. debut in October—and today for Halloween, Google is collaborating with Namco Bandai to present a playable Pac-Man Doodle with eight levels and four brand-new haunted house-themed maze layouts. It's a timely twist to an all-time classic game.
When one considers the core gameplay loop of Pac-Man,
Retailers keep getting earlier starts on the Black Friday sales bonanza every year, and we're seeing that once again with Best Buy kicking off a weekend of "amazing holiday Doorbusters" on a wide variety of products, including deep discounts on gaming PCs. The best bargains on the site are listed as Black Friday deals, even though the actual
Thanks to a freshly-found benchmark listing, the curtain has been pulled back on Samsung's Galaxy Book6 Pro with a next-generation Intel chip inside. While this may look like a routine hardware update, Samsung's ultra-portable laptop provides a closer look into future AI PCs spearheaded by Intel’s Panther Lake architecture. In today's bit
If you've been on the fence about whether to buy a mini PC now or wait until Black Friday sales roll into view, you may want to consider taking the plunge. Why is that? Minisforum, one of the most active participants in the mini PC space, posted a notice on X saying it will be issuing a "slight price adjustment" on its mini PC models that
For the time being, millions of YouTube TV subscribers are no longer able to access Disney-owned channels, including ESPN, ESPN2, ABC, National Geographic, FX, and a whole bunch more. The timing couldn't be worse, either, with various professional and college sports seasons now in full swing. This effectively means that YouTube TV subscribers
Yesterday Canonical announced architecture variants for Ubuntu Linux with Ubuntu 25.10 seeing the introduction of "amd64v3" packages that are built for the x86_64-v3 micro-architecture feature level to assume AVX/AVX2 and other newer CPU ISA features found since Intel Haswell and AMD Excavator processors. Eager to run some initial tests, here is a first look at the Ubuntu 25.10 amd64v3 performance for desktop workloads.
Atari and PLAION REPLAI are proud to announce that the Atari 2600+ PAC-MAN Edition, a brand-new version of the legendary console inspired by one of gaming's most recognizable icons, is out now. Launching on Friday 31st October 2025, this special edition brings together two giants of video game history just in time for Halloween, the perfect night to celebrate PAC-MAN's never-ending pursuit of ghosts.
The return of a classic
The Atari 2600+ PAC-MAN Edition is a lovingly reimagined take on the console that defined home gaming for a generation. Now finished in signature PAC-MAN yellow and featuring illuminated character icons across the front panel, this collector's edition combines authentic retro design with modern features including HDMI output, USB-C power, and multiple display modes (4:3/16:9).
Gaming is no longer just a contest of reflexes and performance. It has evolved into a fusion of technology, vision, and design. Embodying this philosophy, ATTACK SHARK, a gaming peripheral brand specializing in affordable, high-performance mechanical keyboards, gaming mice, and accessories, has recently introduced the R11 ULTRA, its latest flagship carbon fiber gaming mouse. This launch marks a major leap forward in combining advanced material science with top-tier engineering, setting a new benchmark for precision, durability, and responsiveness in professional gaming gear.
The R11 ULTRA's most striking innovation lies in its material: forged dry carbon fiber. Inspired by the full-carbon body of Formula 1 race cars, this material offers an exceptional balance of lightness and strength. With a tensile strength exceeding 3,500 MPa--several times that of steel--dry carbon fiber allows the R11 ULTRA to achieve extreme lightweight construction without compromising structural rigidity. Crafted through a complex multi-stage process that demands artisan-level precision, each shell of the mouse embodies engineering mastery and material artistry.
SK hynix showcased its full-stack AI memory portfolio for enhancing AI and data center infrastructure at the 2025 OCP Global Summit in San Jose, California from October 13-16. The OCP Global Summit is a conference hosted by the Open Compute Project (OCP), the world's largest open data center technology collaboration community. Held under the theme "Leading the Future of AI", this year's event welcomed experts from leading global companies and developers to share the latest trends in data center and AI infrastructure and discuss developing industry solutions.
Under the slogan "MEMORY, Powering AI and Tomorrow," SK hynix presented a range of innovative technologies which improve the performance and efficiency of AI infrastructure. The company's interactive booth was organized into four sections - HBM, AiM, DRAM, and eSSDs - and featured product-based character designs, 3D models of key technologies, and live demonstrations. The centerpiece of SK hynix's booth was its groundbreaking 12-layer HBM4. In September 2025, the company became the first in the world to complete development of HBM4 and establish the product's mass production system. Featuring 2,048 input/output (I/O) channels, twice that of the previous generation, HBM4 offers increased bandwidth and over 40% greater power efficiency. These specifications make it optimized for ultra-high-performance AI computing systems.
In the quest for peak productivity and immersive creation, we often forget that our body is the primary interface. Traditional keyboards confine our hands, leading to strain and stifled creativity. Enter the era of ergonomic split keyboards. The EPOMAKER Split70, alongside the capable Split65, is designed to break these physical constraints. Combining tri-mode connectivity, hot-swappable customization, and a liberating split design, they promise not just to type, but to transform your interaction with your digital world, offering unparalleled comfort for office warriors, gamers, and DIY enthusiasts alike.
Ergonomics That Set Your Creativity Free
The core of the Split70 is its philosophy: "When a keyboard learns to stretch, creation finds a freer posture." It's not just a tool; it's an extension of your body.
Natural Posture: The 70% layout is split into two halves, allowing you to position them at a natural shoulder-width distance. This lets your arms and wrists relax, turning every typing session from a cramped effort into a natural, flowing embrace.
Form Follows Function: You can use the halves together or independently. The left section can even connect solo for lightweight, mobile setups, offering incredible flexibility that adapts to your moment's need.
Beyond the Basics: While the Split65 offers a solid ergonomic foundation in a 65% form factor, the Split70 introduces a new white color option and independent side light bars, catering to both minimalist and vibrant desk aesthetics.
AMD corrects mistake in its driver release notes – USB-C power remains active on Radeon RX 7900 series GPUs AMD has corrected an error in its AMD Software 25.10.2 release notes, which stated that USB-C power delivery would be disabled on AMD’s Radeon RX 7900 XT and RX 7900 XTX graphics cards. They confirmed that […]
Thermal Grizzly’s new WireView Pro II is now available to pre-order – Safer 12V-2×6 power! Thermal Grizzly has just opened pre-orders for their new WireView Pro II 12V-2×6/12VHPWR monitoring tool. This tool provides data analytics for users of 16-pin 12VHPWR and 12V-2×6 power connectors. Additionally, it adds new safety features that should prevent “cable melting” […]
Will the Surface's success cause fans to pass on the Lumias 950 and 950 XL during the critical launch of a new OS? Time and how these devices sell will tell.
Yes, Xbox competes with TikTok and other forms of social media. But the reason TikTok is winning is because Microsoft refuses to be more social and culturally open — It's no surprise Roblox and Steam are eating Xbox's lunch. Microsoft is VERY uncool.
Intel has partnered with BOE Group to develop some new, promising technology advancements for portable PCs. The collaboration is finally bearing fruit, as the companies announced that their "AI-based" solution will debut in laptops built on the Intel platform in 2026.
In a post labeled "a tale of three acts" on X, Altman posted several screenshots documenting his Roadster saga. The first was a confirmation of his $45,000 reservation for the car in July 2018. The next was an email to Tesla he sent yesterday asking for a $50,000 refund. The...
The forthcoming version of Siri will mark Apple's most significant update to its digital assistant in years. Originally unveiled during the company's Worldwide Developers Conference in June 2024, the rollout of the new features was later postponed in March due to technical challenges and integration delays.
Nothing recently began testing lock screen ads in the Nothing OS 4.0 open beta. Although the company claims that it needs the revenue to survive as a small player in the highly competitive smartphone market, it is easy to see the change as the start of a slippery slope.
It was reported earlier this week that Amazon was to lay off up to 30,000 corporate staff. According to Reuters and The Wall Street Journal, the decision was designed to counter the massive overhiring spree Amazon undertook during the pandemic years.
A new report from The Game Business, backed by GSD data shows that for last week's EU video game sales (October 19-26), Battlefield 6 has taken back the top spot after Pokémon Legends Z-A had it for its launch week. Legends Z-A drops to third, with EA Sports FC 26 keeping its top-three spot on both the units sold and revenue earned sales charts. After Pokémon Legends Z-A took the top spot for its launch week, with Battlefield 6 in second and EA Sports FC 26 in third, Battlefield 6 is back on top with EA Sports FC 26 in […]
Apple’s iron grip on its supply chain means that sourcing parts necessary for the company’s newest iPhones will be next to impossible. However, for models like the iPhone 13, that journey is still a possibility, though the roads are filled with potholes. One brave Redditor found out the hard way, but he still managed to assemble an entire unit using components that were purchased from AliExpress. Still, he misses out on two non-crucial features, not to mention that a whole lot of luck was required to source one particular piece of the puzzle. Using non-genuine parts to assemble any iPhone, […]
There have been lots of rumors and leaks around the flagship Battlemage discrete GPU, and this one, too, indicates that Intel has prepared one. Engineering Graphics Driver INF File Reveals BMG-G31 to be Utilized in Three Pro and One Consumer GPU Variant, Hinting at Arc B770 There's no doubt that Intel has prepared the Xe2, Battlemage-based BMG-G31 chip, which has been spotted multiple times online. Last month, we saw the BMG-G31 in a Linux boot log, which revealed that the GPU will boast 16 GB of VRAM, and was likely about the Arc B770. Another leak today confirms the same, […]
The solution to improved cooling performance over time for AIOs is finally here, and it just requires a flux filter to ensure no residue goes inside the CPU block. Valkyrie Introduces Flux Filter on Radiator, Reducing Clogging of Microfins in CPU Cold Plate for Excellent Cooling Performance for Longer Duration AIOs have a problem of performance degradation, and in a few years, you will see almost all AIOs struggling to retain the same cooling performance. This is due to the manufacturing flux residue, which starts to break off and travel through the loop, eventually finding its way to the microfins […]
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The fantasy action/adventure game Echoes of the End launched in August to mixed reviews. Our own David Carcasole rated it 5.7 out of 10 in Wccftech's official review: Echoes of the End has more bad than good to it, and the jank of its technical issues running throughout all aspects of the game bring down even its best elements, like its strong visual presentation, character-driven storytelling, and some fun platforming and puzzle challenges. The combat both overall fails to innovate and pass the standard bar for interesting, and as a whole package it's likely not worth your time when you […]
Yellow paint to indicate the way to players is among the controversial features of modern video games, but no matter how heated the debate gets, some developers, like Final Fantasy VII Rebirth director Naoki Hamaguchi, feel there's definitely a need for it. Speaking with GamesRadar+, Hamaguchi-san acknowledged the debate among players while also saying that there's definitely a need for yellow paint in games in many ways. The difference, however, is in how it is implemented. "The need to guide players around from a gameplay perspective and show them what can be done, what they need to do, there are […]
EasyBlog is a modern, minimalist blog CMS designed for Next.js applications. It offers instant setup, static site generation, distraction-free editing, and powerful SEO metadata tools—plus now access to integrated LLM‑based content generation. From rough topic prompts, EasyBlog can generate first‑draft blog posts complete with optimized headings, metadata, keywords, and tone. This AI assistance accelerates publishing while ensuring content is designed for both readers and search engines. Manage posts, tags, categories, and AI-generated drafts via a clean, centralized dashboard—no endless Markdown tweaking or manual optimization needed
Vivek Ladsariya plating bread pudding with cardamom ice cream at a pop-up restaurant he ran with a friend when he lived in San Francisco. (Photo courtesy of Vivek Ladsariya)
Out of Office is a new GeekWire series spotlighting the passions and hobbies that members of the Seattle-area tech community pursue outside of work.
Day job: General partner and managing director at Seattle’s Pioneer Square Labs, where he helps create and invest in startups as a venture capital investor.
Out-of-office passion: Cooking.
Growing up in India, food was a big part of the culture and something that Vivek Ladsariya was immersed in at home.
His family had a flour mill and would buy wheat grain to grind it into flour. He watched his mother and grandmother cook, and he ate and enjoyed their food.
“When I moved to the U.S., I missed it tremendously, and there was no real way to get some of that home food except to learn how to cook it,” Ladsariya said. “That’s when I started to really learn how to cook all of those things, because I needed that food to consume. So, it was very much born out of necessity.”
His taste and skill goes beyond making the dishes he loved as a boy. He makes pastas and Taiwanese food. He likes to slow cook meat or use his fancy pizza oven. During a recent potluck lunch he made scallion pancakes.
Ladsariya and his wife cook every meal at home, and with a 7-week-old daughter, he finds himself “wearing” her around the kitchen while he’s cooking, encouraging her to taste what he’s making.
During the pandemic while living in San Francisco, Ladsariya got the chance to work in two restaurants — Merchant Roots and Sushi Hakko — to stay busy while his wife was working her healthcare job.
“I think that’s when my cooking game really elevated,” he said. “Up until then I enjoyed cooking, but I’d create a mess. Then I got really organized in the kitchen. I became really efficient.”
With a friend, Ladsariya also put together a pop-up restaurant in which they spent two months researching and prepping a menu and cooking for guests over three days. The proceeds went to charity, and Ladsariya called it one of the favorite times of his life. It’s a process he plans to repeat in Seattle.
But Ladsariya, who enjoys hosting smaller dinners for startup founders, has no plans to leave his day job for a life in the kitchen.
“You’re standing on your feet the entire day and you are unbelievably exhausted,” he said. “I think it’d get old really quickly, and I’d lose the love for this.”
Vivek Ladsariya over a pan of seafood paella. “The joy of cooking is feeding other people,” he says. (Photo courtesy of Vivek Ladsariya)
Most rewarding aspect of this pursuit: Ladsariya said that his day job is so high level and “in the brain” that it can sometimes can be abstract and lacking in the real-time feedback that he gets from working with his hands.
“I just fell in love with that aspect of cooking,” he said. “Everything you do is right there, you get the evidence of whether you did it well or not right away. The effort, the reward — that loop is just so instant and real and gratifying to work with your hands.”
And it’s not about feeding himself. For Ladsariya, the joy of cooking comes from feeding others.
“It’s the bringing people together, the community and all of that that food enables,” he said. “I’m able to provide a great meal and bring together people with something that scratches my creative desires.”
The lessons he brings back to work: Ladsariya finds a connection between how he thinks about cooking and how he thinks about startups.
“Cooking is really about high quality ingredients and not messing it up,” he said. “More often than not, bad food comes from bad ingredients. And I think the same is true for startups. As long as you have a good group of people, they can do something good. People are the ingredients of startup building.”
Furthermore, whether it’s a dish he’s never made or a startup idea that’s especially daunting, it’s best not to overthink things and just do it.
“It’s easy to be intimidated and say, ‘Oh, I have no idea how to do that or where to even start,'” Ladsariya said. “But with a little bit of research and work and just committing to it, you can do pretty incredible things.”
Do you have an out-of-office hobby or interesting side hustle that you’re passionate about that would make for a fun profile on GeekWire? Drop us a line: tips@geekwire.com.
The update effectively rendered the tactic useless for marketers who once relied on it to expand their SERP real estate.
Google also clarified that FAQPage markup should never be used for advertising or promotional purposes. It belongs only on genuine FAQ pages created to answer user questions.
For years, many SEOs – including myself – added structured FAQ data to marketing pages as a best practice. It’s time to rethink that habit.
Google’s shifting guidance isn’t new. Once-popular tactics, such as directory submissions, were also encouraged but later abandoned.
FAQ schema is simply the latest reminder that even trusted SEO strategies can turn obsolete overnight.
Finding your stride in the AI-driven FAQ era
SEO often feels like running a race where the course keeps changing.
Just as marketers adapted to the loss of FAQ rich results, AI is reshaping how questions and answers surface in search.
The “add FAQs everywhere” era is over, but the Q&A format still matters – especially as AI-driven search begins to rely on structured, factual answers.
Large language models rely on clear, structured information to generate responses.
If your site isn’t providing direct, factual answers to user questions, you risk being invisible in AI-powered search results.
The challenge is knowing where FAQ content still fits – and how to structure it for both people and machines.
Keep marketing FAQs on the page for users, not for markup
Add Q&A content to product, service, or category pages to:
Address buyer objections.
Explain features.
Handle “what if” scenarios.
Don’t apply FAQPage schema unless the page exists primarily to answer questions.
This keeps you compliant with Google’s rules while ensuring your content remains structured and readable for LLMs.
Build genuine FAQ hubs
If you want to use FAQPage schema, create dedicated FAQ pages built around a single topic or high-intent theme.
Each page should present a complete list of questions and answers in full text.
This format helps LLMs map questions to authoritative responses and improves your chances of being cited in AI-driven search results.
Craft responses that are concise, factual, and written in natural language. Avoid filler or purely promotional copy.
AI models perform best with content that reflects genuine expertise – direct, clear, and rich with relevant entities, facts, and relationships that reinforce topical authority.
Avoid promotional or advertising language in answers
Google explicitly warns against using FAQ markup for advertising. Even without schema, avoid turning answers into sales pitches.
Focus on user value first, and let internal links or calls to action guide readers toward conversion naturally.
Follow the ‘single answer per question’ rule
Only apply FAQPage markup when one definitive, non-user-generated answer exists.
If multiple perspectives are valid, use a QAPage or a long-form article with subheadings instead.
Monitor performance across both search and AI surfaces
Validate your markup with Google’s Rich Results Test, track visibility in Search Console, and monitor how your FAQs appear in AI search tools like Gemini, Bing Copilot, and ChatGPT.
Even if FAQ schema no longer drives rich snippets, well-structured Q&A content remains key to helping AI systems retrieve your brand’s answers in response to user queries.
Need a clear view of where FAQs belong, how they should be marked up, and when to leave the schema out entirely?
The right placement ensures your content complies with Google’s rules while also optimizing it for visibility in both traditional search and AI-driven results.
This framework outlines when to apply a schema, when to omit it, and how to strike a balance between user experience and technical accuracy.
They present those answers in a clear, accessible format that search engines can easily interpret.
Below are examples of pages that use FAQPage schema correctly to enhance visibility – and others that could benefit from adding it in a compliant way.
Best-in-class FAQ pages with effective schema
These examples follow Google’s guidelines by ensuring that FAQs are user-facing, non-promotional, and structured around genuine questions and answers.
Vashon-Maury.com FAQ: Locally oriented FAQs with clear, visible answers and a dedicated page structure.
Doctors Without Borders FAQ: Organized around the organization’s mission and operations, providing factual, non-promotional answers about humanitarian work, donations, and field logistics.
Apple Podcasts FAQ NYC: Niche but focused, serving a specific audience with concise answers and clear navigation to related content.
GitHub FAQ: Developed in 2020 from “People Also Ask” queries, this page addresses real user questions in plain language, improving both UX and search intent alignment. (Disclosure: I previously worked for GitHub.)
These examples demonstrate that a strong FAQ page is not solely about markup. It’s about building a genuine information resource.
Schema should enhance an already solid foundation, not compensate for content that exists primarily to promote a product or service.
FAQ pages missing out on the benefits of schema
Many FAQ pages already meet Google’s guidelines and provide genuine user value but miss out on additional visibility because they don’t use structured data.
The following examples show how adding FAQPage schema – where eligible – can enhance both search visibility and AI performance.
Eligible for rich results; could increase visibility for Medicaid-related queries and improve AI answer sourcing.
From markup to meaning: The real SEO value of FAQs
The SEO strategies that worked yesterday may be restricted or retired tomorrow – and FAQ schema is only the latest example.
The goal now is to adapt with intention: know when to apply structure, when to simplify, and when to shift your approach entirely.
By creating FAQ content that serves users first, aligns with Google’s guidelines, and remains structured enough for both traditional search and AI-driven systems, you’ll stay visible no matter how the landscape evolves.
Remember to:
Treat FAQ markup as a targeted tool, not a blanket tactic.
Use FAQPage schema only on genuine FAQ pages that meet Google’s eligibility criteria.
Keep marketing-page FAQs for user value and AI visibility, but without schema.
Write concise, factual answers that serve both people and LLMs.
Monitor results in Search Console and AI platforms, and adjust as needed.
SEO success comes from timing, precision, and adaptability – knowing when to build momentum, when to pause, and when to change direction entirely.
Your website is live – now it’s time to measure what matters.
To sustain traffic growth, you need to track performance, collect meaningful data, and make informed, data-driven decisions that shape your site’s success.
Here are the key areas to monitor and the tools that can automate much of the work.
How to monitor your website for SEO performance
Website performance and uptime alerts
When a page loads slowly, conversions drop, engagement falls, and the user experience suffers.
Visitors expect pages to respond instantly, whether they’re comparing products or just beginning their research journey on your blog.
Monitor site speed with PageSpeed Insights, but that only scratches the surface of what you should be tracking.
To keep your site running smoothly, focus on a few other key areas:
Uptime: Sites that go offline lose money, and downtime impacts crawl and index rates. Rankings can also drop temporarily.
Errors: Server or client errors, such as 5xx or 4xx errors, must be monitored and rectified.
Redirects: Broken links and redirects.
Internal links: Monitor existing and broken links.
Website performance covers a wide range of technical SEO best practices, and manual checks rarely make the best use of your time.
Automate site audits and set up alerts to catch issues, such as server errors or extended downtime, before they affect users or rankings.
A key goal of SEO is to enhance visibility through improved keyword rankings.
If your site – or a client’s – isn’t appearing on Google, Bing, ChatGPT, or other platforms, you’re missing out on valuable traffic and potential revenue.
Manual tracking isn’t realistic, so rely on industry tools to monitor:
Current keyword positions.
Ranking changes.
Location.
Traffic potential.
To understand whether your efforts are helping or hurting, go beyond surface-level rankings and dig into deeper insights, such as:
Average positions.
Ranking distributions.
Volatility.
Trends over time.
Keyword difficulty.
Search intent type.
Click-through rate.
Keyword data helps you maintain focus on optimization efforts that have a return on investment. To monitor this data, use tools to search for the keywords that you’re trying to optimize for.
On enterprise sites or those managed by multiple teams, this creates plenty of room for error.
While many of these changes overlap with performance monitoring, it’s better to track more than risk missing something important.
Use monitoring tools to track:
Web accessibility compliance.
Site speed.
Content changes.
Before and after comparisons.
On-page content changes to content, headings, meta tags, etc.
URL changes and redirects.
Proactive monitoring makes it easier to connect cause and effect. When rankings shift, you’ll have data showing what changed and when. For example, a content refresh on a service page might coincide with a keyword’s jump from position 23 to 1 – a clear signal of what worked.
As a site scales and more stakeholders contribute, automation becomes essential. Smaller teams may still manage manual tracking, but for most, monitoring tools are indispensable.
Tools that make life easier:
Semrush.
Screaming Frog.
VisualPing.
Botify.
Lumar.
Lead monitoring
Website, blog, and SEO channels now deliver the strongest ROI for B2B brands, according to HubSpot’s State of Marketing Report.
Clients want to justify their marketing budgets and see that SEO efforts are producing a return on investment.
Use lead tracking tools to identify B2B website visitors and pinpoint:
Opportunities in the pipeline.
Lead sources.
Conversion potential.
Lead tracking shouldn’t stop when visitors arrive. Monitoring behavior shows which pages they visit, where they exit, and what happens during form submissions.
For example, analyzing form data can uncover broken fields or incomplete submissions that cost potential leads.
Knowing where prospects come from, how they convert, and what happens when they don’t provides insights that manual tracking can’t deliver.
Tools that make this possible include:
LeadForensics.
Formstory.io.
Traffic and analytics
Monitoring your website’s traffic and analytics is the heartbeat of your marketing performance. You need to know:
Total sessions: The number of overall visits to your site.
Unique visitors: Number of unique visitors.
Pageviews: Total site pages viewed.
Pages per session: Average number of pages visited by users.
Average session duration: Length of time visitors remain on your site.
Bounce rate: The percentage of visitors who leave your site without interacting with it.
Traffic sources: Where visitors are originating from.
Impressions: How often your site appears in the search results.
Clicks: The number of clicks from the search results.
Click-through rate: Ratio of clicks to impressions.
Analytics can also segment audiences, track behavior metrics, and set conversion goals.
Tools like Google Analytics can display revenue per visitor and surface crawl errors or other site issues.
SEOs need to understand how visitors find a site, which content or keywords drive traffic, and how those efforts connect to measurable results.
Backlinks have long been tied to rankings and remain one of the strongest signals a site can earn. Track key factors such as:
Total links.
Referring domains.
Follow versus no-follow.
Anchor text and diversity.
New and lost links.
Top linking pages.
Brand mentions have become even more significant with the rise of generative engine optimization (GEO), helping LLMs associate content and context with your brand.
Mentions across communities, social platforms, and online content all play a role.
Monitoring should also cover:
Linked and unlinked mentions.
Topic relevance.
Sentiment.
Volume.
Both backlinks and brand mentions play a role in building authority and driving visibility – and, in some cases, referral traffic.
To sustain growth, consistently track both.
Tools that make life easier:
Semrush.
Google Alerts.
Mention.
SSL/Domain expiration
Domain and SSL certificate expiration directly affect a site’s trust and uptime. Monitor the following:
SSL status.
Expiration date.
Mixed content errors.
HTTP to HTTPS redirects.
Though easy to overlook, these expirations can disrupt sales, erode trust, and take your site offline.
Use monitoring tools to send alerts and protect both your uptime and the credibility you’ve built with visitors.
Tools that make life easier:
Red Sift Certificates (formerly Hardenize).
UptimeRobot.
Datadog SSL Monitoring.
TrackSSL.
Host-Tracker.
HeyOnCall.
Building a monitoring system for lasting SEO growth
Tracking and monitoring your site’s metrics after launch provides the long-term data needed to make meaningful improvements.
Use the tools and guides above to build a system that keeps your website healthy, competitive, and growing – catching issues early, improving performance, and driving sustainable SEO results.
[Editor’s Note: This guest post is by Marcelo Calbucci, a longtime Seattle tech and startup community leader.]
This month, I ran a survey with early-stage founders from Seattle-based Foundations about their use of AI tools and agents. There were some surprises in the data — and not in the direction you’d expect — and trends that are worth talking about.
The sample size represents 22 startups with one-to-five software engineers each, for a total of 42 people. What makes this cohort valuable to understand is that they are AI-native startups, started during a time that AI can code. This gives us a glimpse into the future of tech companies.
The first question I asked on the survey was about the percentage of production code being written by AI. I wrote this question explicitly to exclude unit tests, scripts, documents, and other artifacts that are not related to the core value proposition of a business. If you know one thing about AI coding, it is that it generates large volumes of unit tests, readme files, and scripts. None of that relates to the code that delivers the value to the customer.
Here’s the surprising fact: out of the 22, four startups (18%) said AI is writing 100% of their code. That’s mind-blowing! It doesn’t mean these folks are not reviewing and re-prompting the AI to refine the code. However, it means they aren’t typing code in an IDE. There are 11 startups (50%) where AI is writing 80-99% of the code. Adding the four where AI writes everything, 68% of startups have AI write over 80% of the production code. On the other side of the spectrum, three startups (13.6%) said that AI is writing less than 50% of their code.
Choose your weapons
From the news that Cursor gets in the press, you’d think usage for this cohort is close to 100%. In our sample, out of 42 programmers from 22 unique startups, “only” 23 of them (54.7%) use Cursor. On average, Cursor programmers spent $113.63/person in September. The most popular tool, though, is Claude Code, with 64.3% of programmers using it and spending $167.41/person in September. Claude is the preferred tool for startups, with 16 of the 22 (72.7%) using it.
After Claude and Cursor, there is a big cliff, with OpenAI Codex coming in a distant third place with seven of the startups using it, representing 12 of the 42 programmers. On average, expenses with OpenAI Codex came in at $48.49/person in September. The fourth and fifth places were GitHub Copilot and Gemini CLI by Google. They had 9.52% and 4.76% of programmers using it, respectively.
On average, each software engineer spent $182.55 in the top five AI tools mentioned above, with some startups spending over $400/person.
Founders also mentioned they use a variety of tools to create production code, including Lovable, Devplan, Mentat, Factory.ai, Jetbrains Junie, Warp, and Figma.
Roadblocks
When asked about what’s preventing more use of AI for coding, the number one complaint was the quality of the code. Another hindrance to faster adoption is the learning curve to get the agent to do what you want.
In terms of frustration, this group raises three key issues. First, the quality of the output, requiring considerable rework. Second, a mismatch between expectation and reality based on what everyone is hearing. Lastly, the most common frustration — and I definitely empathize with this one — is managing the context and dealing with large code bases.
What’s next?
In the survey, I asked about their intention to continue using AI tools and agents to assist with product development. The survey asked the founders if they intended to add, remove, increase, or decrease usage of each tool. The biggest winner, by far, was Codex, with nine startups (40.9%) saying they aren’t using it yet, but plan to use it in Q4. Once I normalize the data to account for what the expectations are for Q4, Claude will maintain its leadership, but Codex will match in the number of startups. Cursor and GitHub Copilot will trend slightly lower, each with one startup saying they will stop using it. Finally, the Gemini CLI might see a small increase in adoption, with three startups claiming to give it a try in Q4.
Contrary to the many other aspects of software engineering like choosing a cloud provider, a language, or database, AI tools and agents are not a zero-sum market. On this survey, 68.2% of startups used more than one AI tool to assist in production code development. Based on their stated intention, that number will grow to 86.4% in Q4.
MSPs are facing rising client expectations for strong cybersecurity and compliance outcomes, while threats grow more complex and regulatory demands evolve. Meanwhile, clients are increasingly seeking comprehensive protection without taking on the burden of managing security themselves.
This shift represents a major growth opportunity. By delivering advanced cybersecurity and compliance
I've searched through the early Black Friday sale at Best Buy and hand-picked all the top deals on TVs, appliances, laptops, vacuums, headphones, and more that are worth buying now.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is visiting South Korea to strengthen partnerships with Samsung, Hyundai, SK, and Naver, unveiling plans for AI-powered networks and next-generation intelligent systems.
The fallout of the Nexperia ownership scuffle between the Dutch government and Chinese business interests is spilling overseas, with German automotive parts suppliers slowly reducing production due to semiconductor shortages. Meanwhile, Nexperia's Dutch facilities have now blocked exports to its Chinese facilities.
The HighPoint RocketAIC 7608AW is a boundary-pusher when configured with 8x8TB Samsung 9100 Pro SSDs. It’s super fast, but the consumer application is limited.
AMD ended mainstream driver support for its RDNA 1 and 2 GPUs in a new update that sought to focus on the RX 7000 and 9000 series for day-one optimizations for new releases. This could mean trouble for handhelds that rely on tuning to achieve their full potential on Windows, and without AMD's driver to back them up, they might be left high and dry.
Bolt Graphics sent its Graphics Engineering Director to the Ubuntu Summit 25.10 to speak on the software behind its promising Zeus GPU lineup. Set to come in 2026, the Zeus GPU will be a RISC-V powered path-tracing giant, perfect for animators and VFX artists.
The year 2025 has already proven to be a pivotal period for artificial intelligence, marked by significant leaps and profound discussions on its implications. In the “No Priors” episode titled “The Best of 2025 (So Far),” hosts Sarah Guo and Elad Gil curate a series of illuminating excerpts from their conversations with leading founders and […]
The current fervor around artificial intelligence has led to unprecedented market concentration, particularly within the “Magnificent 7” tech giants. Yet, as Daniel Kim, Portfolio Manager of the Saturna International Fund, recently articulated on CNBC’s Worldwide Exchange, the most compelling opportunities in AI may lie precisely where fewer eyes are looking. Kim, speaking with interviewer Frank […]
Over the past day there have been many reports of AMD planning to no longer provide game optimizations for the Radeon RX 5000 and RX 6000 series graphics cards for their Microsoft Windows driver. Surprisingly many in the Linux community still seem to think it will impact the Linux drivers, but long story short, there is no real concern for Linux users/gamers...
Last week there was a fix for a "serious performance regression" in the Linux kernel's power management code that affected some Intel-powered Chromebooks. This week the power management fixes ahead of Linux 6.18-rc4 is addressing another performance regression...
AerynOS 2025.10 ISOs were released today for closing out the month of October. AerynOS as a reminder is the Linux distribution that was started by Ikey Doherty and originally known as Serpent OS that has since evolved into an open-source team effort...
The KDE/Qt-aligned Krita digital painting application is the latest creative app now supporting high dynamic range (HDR) on Linux when using Wayland...
Just one week after Vulkan 1.4.330 brought five new extensions, Vulkan 1.4.331 is now available with another two new extensions for this high performance graphics and compute API...
ASUS Republic of Gamers (ROG) today announced the ROG GR70, the first ROG gaming mini PC to feature the AMD Ryzen 9 CPU for desktop-class performance in a compact footprint.
The GR70 Mini PC boasts the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 or 5060 Laptop GPU for exceptional visuals, and an advanced triple-fan cooling system that keeps temperatures and acoustics low. Plus, built-in Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4 allow gamers to engage in fast-paced gameplay without bottlenecks.
Yesterday, we reported that the latest AMD Software Adrenalin 25.10.2 WHQL drivers disable USB-C power delivery on reference Radeon RX 7900 XTX and RX 7900 XT. However, it appears that this was a mistake, and AMD has contacted TechPowerUp to clarify the situation. To make sure that the functionality is back, we tested USB-C power delivery on our own reference card. Readers might remember that the Made by AMD (MBA) reference Radeon RX 7900 XTX and RX 7900 XT graphics cards include USB Type-C ports. These ports support DisplayPort 2.1 passthrough and provide USB power delivery up to the PD 3.0 standard of 30 W.
While the port does not support USB data transfer, it is wired for DisplayPort and power delivery. This theoretically allows you to connect certain monitors that use a single USB-C connection for both display input and power. We tested the feature to make sure it is supplying the port with sufficient power. Using a USB-C power meter, we recorded 27 W of power output from the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX. Impressively, the card can supply full power to the port even without a driver installed, as demonstrated in our test. Installing the latest driver doesn't alter this behavior, indicating that the original driver changelog was just incorrect. To confirm that the 27 W charging is consistent, we charged a laptop with a completely empty battery to full capacity. While charging, we loaded Furmark test, and the load was maintained, proving that the feature works as intended.
AMD confirms that its older RDNA 1 and RDNA 2 GPUs are now in “maintenance mode” In a new statement to PC Games Hardware, AMD has confirmed that its older RX 6000 and RX 5000 series GPUs will no longer be receiving “game optimisations”. AMD’s RDNA and RDNA 2 graphics cards are now in “maintenance […]
Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection's latest trailer reveals more of its story, the game's deluxe edition and pre-order bonus, and the return of one of the most frightening monsters in the entire franchise.
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates recently said the world is in the midst of an AI bubble, comparing it to the dot-com bubble, when several companies were overvalued due to hype and investor enthusiasm.
Despite our acclimatization to the forward march of technology, many of us remain vaguely creeped out by the concept of humanoid robots.
Sure, it’d be wonderful to have autonomous machines adept at cleaning the house, harvesting and preparing food, running warehouses and performing a host of generally thankless and burdensome jobs. But must they look like us too?
For many startups, the answer to this question is “no.”
While humanoid robots startups like Figure and Apptronik have drawn headlines in recent months for big funding deals and flashy prototypes, an array of companies working on less-anthropomorphic designs have also secured considerable investment. These include four-legged models, AI-enabled appendages and skilled swimmers.
The non-humanoid bot startups getting funded
To illustrate, we used Crunchbase data to assemble a sample list of 26 companies in the non-humanoid robot startup sector that have raised rounds in the past few quarters. It’s a varied lot, with focus areas ranging from farming to pool cleaning to massaging.
Bots around town
The list also features a mix of consumer-facing and industrial use cases, and we figured we’d start by highlighting the first category. It’s not that these bots are necessarily more useful, but rather that being out in public does make it a bit more fun to contemplate.
If recently funded startups have their way, some of the bots we see in action could be taking on more of the everyday drudgery currently shouldered by humans.
Cleaning is one of the big areas. China-based Narwal Robotics, which closed a $100 million Series E in April, makes robot vacuums and mops and touts its “AI adaptive hot water mop washing,” LiDAR navigation and embedded dirt sensor. San Francisco-based The Bot Co., meanwhile, has raised $300 million since last year to iterate its vision of robots for household chores but has not yet released a prototype.
Pool-cleaning, an area already long-dominated by autonomous machines, is also set for an AI era upgrade, with two China-based companies pulling in rounds of $140 million each this year. Xingmai Innovation, which closed its round in September, markets its $3,000 Beatbot model as the “world’s first AI-powered 5-in-1 robotic pool cleaner.” Rival Aiper charges $1,700 for its Scuba Max Pro, which features smart pool mapping and a dedicated app.
And for those who need some pampering after a long day of not cleaning the pool, massage bot startup Aescape offers another spending option. The New York-based company secured $83 million in March to expand its customizable, “fully autonomous, AI-driven massage” offering.
Bots behind the scenes
While we may enjoy gawking at the still-unusual sight of a bot in public making a latte or delivering a restaurant meal, the bulk of funded companies in the non-humanoid bot space are working on models that will do their work behind the scenes.
Surgical robots have long been one of the more heavily funded areas, and this holds true for recent investment as well. The largest fundraiser on our list, U.K.-based CMR Surgical, developer of a soft tissue surgical robot, has secured $1.1 billion in known funding to date, including a $200 million April financing. Israel-based ForSight Robotics, developer of a robotic platform for ophthalmic surgery, is also scaling up, closing a $125 million Series B in June.
On the industrial front, Swiss startup Anybotics has raised more than $150 million to develop a four-legged bot optimized for inspections, capable of climbing stairs and avoiding obstacles.
And Flexiv, which closed a $100 million Series C this summer, is working on appendage-like, AI-enabled robots that can be adapted for multiple industries.
Agtech also emerged as a favored area for investment. Ecorobotix, based in Switzerland, has raised a couple hundred million for precision crop spraying, while Seattle-based Carbon Robotix is working on technology to kill weeds with lasers.
Won’t mistake it for a human
Of all the above-mentioned startups, none appear to be working on anything that could be remotely confused for a human, even from a distance. This seems logical, considering that so many jobs people have historically done don’t seem ideally suited to our particular form.
If all goes well with these non-humanoid robot startups, perhaps it would leave us humans free to spend more time doing the activities that do seem optimally suited to our form. Sitting on the couch would be high on this author’s list, though I’m sure others could find many more productive pursuits.
Tesla's autonomous vehicle program is facing fresh scrutiny following a series of crashes involving the company's new Robotaxi fleet in Austin, Texas – an early test market for what Tesla hopes will become its driverless transportation network.
Companies love to pack AI into their devices these days, for better or for worse. Asus says that the ROG Rapture GT-BE19000AI is the first gaming router to include this functionality.
Last year's Silent Hill 2 remake is finally coming to Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S, as this new version of the game has been rated by the ESRB ahead of its official announcement. As the yet-to-be officially announced new version of the survival horror game developed by Bloober Team, which returned the series to the spotlight after years of absence, will be identical to the PC and PlayStation 5 releases, the Mature 17+ rating and its summary don't reveal anything that wasn't already known about the game. Still, it's great to know that more players will soon be […]
NVIDIA gimped the RTX 5070’s capabilities by equipping it with just 12GB of GDDR7 VRAM, but that does not make the GPU any less capable, especially when running games at 1080p or 1440p resolutions. When talking particularly about the MSI Shadow 2X, it is remarkable how the company managed to successfully shrink the graphics card’s physical size to make it compatible for smaller cases, and if your chassis is also space-constrained but you still want an excellent gaming experience, this is the best time for you to spend $499.99. The Shadow 2X RTX 5070 does not go light on cooling […]
Samsung's upcoming Galaxy Book6 Pro featuring the Intel Core Ultra Series 3 "Panther Lake" CPU has leaked out. Samsung Preps Next-Gen Galaxy Book6 Pro Laptops With Intel's Core Ultra Series 3 "Panther Lake" CPUs Laptop OEMs are now preparing their next-gen offerings based on Intel's upcoming Core Ultra Series 3 "Panther Lake" CPUs. These next-gen laptops will offer faster performance, advanced features, & higher efficiency. We will be looking at a range of new designs from laptop vendors, and Samsung is one of them, which is preparing its new Galaxy Book6 series. The Samsung Galaxy Book6 Pro laptop has leaked […]
According to leaker leaks_infinite, Halo: Campaign Evolved is just the beginning of a series of remakes already in the works. Allegedly, the campaigns of the second and third game are also being remade and will support optional sprint, just like the remake of the first installment. The reason for all these games to cut multiplayer from their respective remakes is that Halo Studios does not want to split the fan base across several multiplayer experiences. Because of this, Halo 7, which is also reportedly in development, will be the only one to offer multiplayer. The leaker wrote: Halo Studios wants […]
The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and National Security Agency (NSA), along with international partners from Australia and Canada, have released guidance to harden on-premise Microsoft Exchange Server instances from potential exploitation.
"By restricting administrative access, implementing multi-factor authentication, enforcing strict transport security
Eclipse Foundation, which maintains the open-source Open VSX project, said it has taken steps to revoke a small number of tokens that were leaked within Visual Studio Code (VS Code) extensions published in the marketplace.
The action comes following a report from cloud security company Wiz earlier this month, which found several extensions from both Microsoft's VS Code Marketplace and Open VSX
The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) on Thursday added a high-severity security flaw impacting Broadcom VMware Tools and VMware Aria Operations to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, following reports of active exploitation in the wild.
The vulnerability in question is CVE-2025-41244 (CVSS score: 7.8), which could be exploited by an attacker to attain
November is one of the best months for streaming that I've ever come across, and my watchlist simply isn't able to fit them all in – here's what i'll be watching this month.
The Lenovo Legion Go S (SteamOS) is a lighter, cheaper, and more portable version of the original Legion Go. Powered by the latest AMD Z2 Go, the handheld can play most games with buttery smooth framerates, albeit with some slight adjustments.
YouTuber tests AMD's flagship Ryzen AI Max 395+ APU in several games, and is astonished at the chip's gaming chops. Integrated 8060S iGPU delivers solid 60 FPS 1080p gaming performance in almost all titles tested.
It would also require vessels to have automatic identification systems and make the undersea infrastructure easier to find with published mapping data.
Already under intense scrutiny for alleged ties to China, TP-Link, a now-U.S.-based and operated company is on the verge of being banned. In a new proposal concocted by the Department of Commerce, and backed by the Department of Justice, Defense and Homeland Security, TP-Link routers might no longer be allowed to be sold in America.
NVIDIA today announced that it is working with SK Group to build an AI factory to advance semiconductor research, development and production, as well as cloud infrastructure to support digital twin and AI agent development. SK Group is building an AI factory featuring more than 50,000 NVIDIA GPUs, with the first phase planned for completion by late 2027. Once complete, the system is expected to be one of Korea's largest AI factories.
The new factory will serve SK subsidiaries - including SK hynix and SK Telecom (SKT) - as well as external organizations through a GPU-as-a-service model, accelerating digital transformation and industrial innovation for Korea's industries. Further expanding the NVIDIA and SK Group partnership, the companies are collaborating on the development of SK hynix high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and next-generation advanced memory solutions for NVIDIA GPUs, semiconductor manufacturing and telecommunications infrastructure.
NVIDIA today announced plans with Samsung Electronics to build a new AI factory, representing a new era where intelligent computing and chip manufacturing converge. The state-of-the-art AI factory will combine Samsung's semiconductor technologies with NVIDIA platforms to establish the foundation of next-generation, AI-driven production. Powered by more than 50,000 NVIDIA GPUs, Samsung's semiconductor AI factory will be a centerpiece of the company's digital transformation, integrating accelerated computing directly into full-fledged advanced chip manufacturing.
Through this collaboration, Samsung and NVIDIA are setting a global benchmark for AI-driven semiconductor manufacturing at scale, integrating data from physical equipment and production workflows to achieve predictive maintenance, process improvements and increased operational efficiency in autonomous fab environments.
Razer, the world's leading lifestyle brand for gamers, has teamed up with Valve to launch the Razer | Counter-Strike 2 Collection, bringing the legendary Dragon Lore skin from in-game prestige to real-world performance across Razer's top-ranked esports gear. A symbol of power, and rarity, Dragon Lore is one of the most recognizable skins in Counter-Strike history. Now, it steps beyond the game, featured on the same gear trusted by top esports pros. The collection fuses Counter-Strike's competitive legacy with Razer's tournament-grade hardware to deliver signature style and pro-level performance.
"Dragon Lore isn't just a skin - it's a symbol of Counter-Strike's legacy," said Addie Tan, Global Head of Lifestyle Division at Razer. "Counter-Strike has defined competitive FPS for over two decades. This collection now brings the iconic design of Dragon Lore into a physical representation of the game as a tribute to the game's history and community, and to the legends still to come. Designed on our award-winning esports gear, it's performance gear built for legends in the making."
The WireView Pro II, which was already presented at Computex 2025, is now available for pre-order exclusively in the Thermal Grizzly shop and offers new features for monitoring and data logging as well as new protection functions for graphics cards with a 12VHPWR power connector. The WireView Pro II is a device for measuring the power consumption of graphics cards and introduces precise per-pin monitoring of the 12V-2x6 connector for the first time, providing valuable insights into load distribution on modern high-end graphics cards along with advanced safety features.
A CNC-machined aluminium housing with semi-passive cooling and a high-contrast TFT-IPS display ensures reliable visualization of all critical measurements. Automatic data logging and an extended 2-year warranty for the GPU connector and graphics card provide additional peace of mind in demanding setups.
Seemingly as part of its ongoing lawsuit against Palworld's developer, Pocketpair, Nintendo applied for several patents to protect what it saw as intellectual property being ripped from Pokémon games. One of those early patent filings at the Japanese Patent Office (JPO) described effectively the creature capture mechanics you see in most Pokémon and similar games these days. The patent describes the game mechanic as throwing an object at a character, after which the computer determines whether the character in question is successfully captured. It also mentions throwing an object at a character in a game in order to limit the character's movement in the field. According to Games Fray, this patent application has now been denied, meaning Nintendo may have to find another linchpin in its ongoing lawsuit against Palworld's developer.
The denial of the patent comes after the patent office examined prior art that was submitted by an unnamed third party. As Games Fray goes on to explain, however, the decision to deny Nintendo's patent doesn't necessarily spell victory for Palworld and Pocketpair. Firstly, the patent denial is "non-final," which means Nintendo can contest the ruling and defend its position. Secondly, and this appears to be more important, while Japanese judges regularly do consult with the JPO and respect the decision of the Patent Office, the patent is non-binding, meaning the final decision is still up to the judge's discretion. For Nintendo's part, the patent in question forms a core part of a family of patents, so if it is eventually "finally" denied, Nintendo may lose additional resources to fight against its perceived threats, since that patent would weaken its claim to other patents in the patent family.
Independent studio Digital Confectioners has unveiled Triarchy, an upcoming open world co-op (up to three players) action RPG. Like most games in the genre, it will focus on boss fights, but it also supports sailing. That makes sense after learning that the setting is a 'drowned world'. Players will hunt deadly bosses across the Isles, and the developers promise that each boss fight will feature unique attack patterns, multiple phases, and arena hazards that require precise timing, positioning, and teamwork to overcome. Upon defeating a boss, you'll get rewards such as unique upgrade materials and boss-exclusive gear. Moreover, Triarchy not […]
Samsung has secured a crucial 'HBM4 supply' deal with NVIDIA, as both firms announce their collaboration on cutting-edge technologies to drive the AI hype. Samsung's HBM4 Modules Manage to Surpass JEDEC Processing Speed Standards, Leading to a Pivotal Adoption By NVIDIA The Korean giant has achieved a massive feat with its upcoming HBM4 technology, as the firm becomes one of the first manufacturers to secure a supply for NVIDIA. In an announcement around the recent Samsung-NVIDIA deal, it is revealed that HBM4 is going to be a crucial part of the partnership, and more importantly, the Korean giant has verified […]
Samsung and NVIDIA are now significantly enhancing their 25-year collaborative relationship by undertaking a project to build a full-fledged AI factory, equipped with over 50,000 NVIDIA GPUs. In addition, the two behemoths continue to collaborate with each other in diverse spheres, including HBM4, EDA tools, and AI-RAN. Samsung to deploy 50,000 NVIDIA GPUs within its AI Megafactory Samsung has partnered with NVIDIA to deploy 50,000 of NVIDIA's GPUs: "By deploying more than 50,000 NVIDIA GPU’s, AI will be embedded throughout Samsung's entire manufacturing flow, accelerating development and production of next-generation semiconductors, mobile devices and robotics." Samsung intends to use this […]
A design firm is editing a new campaign video on a MacBook Pro. The creative director opens a collaboration app that quietly requests microphone and camera permissions. MacOS is supposed to flag that, but in this case, the checks are loose. The app gets access anyway.
On another Mac in the same office, file sharing is enabled through an old protocol called SMB version one. It’s fast and
Thanks to everyone who made this year's San Francisco event what it was -- and to the 10,000 of you who filled the halls, made the connections, and left with more than you came with. Couldn't make it? These images tell part of the story.
The burgeoning demands of generative AI are fundamentally reshaping the competitive landscape of cloud computing, compelling even market leaders like Amazon to critically assess their strategic investments. CNBC’s MacKenzie Sigalos, reporting on Amazon’s third-quarter earnings, underscored that the company’s cloud momentum and substantial AI infrastructure spending are now under intense scrutiny, with investors eager to […]
It's no secret that Amazon Games had been working on some version of a Lord of the Rings MMO, although the game had already been cancelled once due to contract disputes, and the second version, which was being worked on in conjunction with Embracer, hasn't been seen or heard from in a while. The recent news of Amazon's mass layoffs shift towards casual games, and specifically away from MMOs and AAA games, raised questions about the future of the Lord of the Rings MMO, however Amazon had—and still hasn't—made an official proclamation regarding the game's demise.
Ashley Amrine, a software engineer affected by those Amazon Gaming layoffs has more or less confirmed, in a now-deleted LinkedIn post (via Rock Paper Shotgun), that the Lord of the Rings MMO has seemingly been cancelled. In her post addressing the fact that she had been laid off, Ashleigh Amrine, a former engineer at Amazon Games, wrote: "This morning I was part of the layoffs at Amazon Games, alongside my incredibly talented peers on New World and our fledgling Lord of the Rings game (y'all would have loved it)." Her revelation suggests that it would still have been a while before the new MMO launched, but it was previously described as "open-world MMO adventure in a persistent world set in Middle-earth, featuring the beloved stories of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings literary trilogy" when it was first announced. The team working on the game was the same one that had been responsible for New World, which, despite its hiccups, seemed to have largely been a success, managing to hold onto a fairly impressive ~35,000 daily players on Steam alone.
The Genode operating system framework continues innovating over a decade and a half later on this original open-source OS creation and with that Sculpt OS as its general purpose OS. Out today is Sculpt OS 25.10 to incorporate the latest enhancements to the platform...
Apple today announced financial results for its fiscal 2025 fourth quarter ended September 27, 2025. The Company posted quarterly revenue of $102.5 billion, up 8 percent year over year. Diluted earnings per share was $1.85, up 13 percent year over year on an adjusted basis.
"Today, Apple is very proud to report a September quarter revenue record of $102.5 billion, including a September quarter revenue record for iPhone and an all-time revenue record for Services," said Tim Cook, Apple's CEO. "In September, we were thrilled to launch our best iPhone lineup ever, including iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max, and iPhone Air. In addition, we launched the fantastic AirPods Pro 3 and the all-new Apple Watch lineup. When combined with the recently announced MacBook Pro and iPad Pro with the powerhouse M5 chip, we are excited to be sharing our most extraordinary lineup of products as we head into the holiday season."
Western Digital Corp. today reported fiscal first quarter 2026 financial results for the period ended October 3, 2025.
"Western Digital continues to execute well in a strong demand environment driven by growth of data storage in the cloud. In our fiscal first quarter, we achieved revenue and gross margin above the high end of our guidance range, while delivering strong free cash flow," said Irving Tan, CEO of Western Digital. "As AI accelerates data creation, Western Digital's continued innovation and operational discipline position us well to capture new opportunities and drive sustained shareholder value. Reflecting confidence in the company's strong business momentum, the Board of Directors has increased the quarterly cash dividend on the company's common stock by 25% to $0.125 per share."
PUBG and other top games are about to change? NVIDIA’s ACE technology aims to introduce human-like AI squadmates ready to play, listen, and adapt alongside you.
Designed to emulate how human experts identify and resolve software vulnerabilities, Aardvark offers a multi-stage, LLM-driven approach for continuous, 24/7/365 code analysis, exploit validation, and patch generation!
Positioned as a scalable defense tool for modern software development environments, Aardvark is being tested across internal and external codebases.
OpenAI reports high recall and real-world effectiveness in identifying known and synthetic vulnerabilities, with early deployments surfacing previously undetected security issues.
Aardvark operates as an agentic system that continuously analyzes source code repositories. Unlike conventional tools that rely on fuzzing or software composition analysis, Aardvark leverages LLM reasoning and tool-use capabilities to interpret code behavior and identify vulnerabilities.
It simulates a security researcher’s workflow by reading code, conducting semantic analysis, writing and executing test cases, and using diagnostic tools.
Its process follows a structured multi-stage pipeline:
Threat Modeling – Aardvark initiates its analysis by ingesting an entire code repository to generate a threat model. This model reflects the inferred security objectives and architectural design of the software.
Commit-Level Scanning – As code changes are committed, Aardvark compares diffs against the repository’s threat model to detect potential vulnerabilities. It also performs historical scans when a repository is first connected.
Validation Sandbox – Detected vulnerabilities are tested in an isolated environment to confirm exploitability. This reduces false positives and enhances report accuracy.
Automated Patching – The system integrates with OpenAI Codex to generate patches. These proposed fixes are then reviewed and submitted via pull requests for developer approval.
Aardvark integrates with GitHub, Codex, and common development pipelines to provide continuous, non-intrusive security scanning. All insights are intended to be human-auditable, with clear annotations and reproducibility.
Performance and Application
According to OpenAI, Aardvark has been operational for several months on internal codebases and with select alpha partners.
In benchmark testing on “golden” repositories—where known and synthetic vulnerabilities were seeded—Aardvark identified 92% of total issues.
OpenAI emphasizes that its accuracy and low false positive rate are key differentiators.
The agent has also been deployed on open-source projects. To date, it has discovered multiple critical issues, including ten vulnerabilities that were assigned CVE identifiers.
OpenAI states that all findings were responsibly disclosed under its recently updated coordinated disclosure policy, which favors collaboration over rigid timelines.
In practice, Aardvark has surfaced complex bugs beyond traditional security flaws, including logic errors, incomplete fixes, and privacy risks. This suggests broader utility beyond security-specific contexts.
Integration and Requirements
During the private beta, Aardvark is only available to organizations using GitHub Cloud (github.com). OpenAI invites beta testers to sign up here online by filling out a web form. Participation requirements include:
Integration with GitHub Cloud
Commitment to interact with Aardvark and provide qualitative feedback
Agreement to beta-specific terms and privacy policies
OpenAI confirmed that code submitted to Aardvark during the beta will not be used to train its models.
The company is also offering pro bono vulnerability scanning for selected non-commercial open-source repositories, citing its intent to contribute to the health of the software supply chain.
Strategic Context
The launch of Aardvark signals OpenAI’s broader movement into agentic AI systems with domain-specific capabilities.
While OpenAI is best known for its general-purpose models (e.g., GPT-4 and GPT-5), Aardvark is part of a growing trend of specialized AI agents designed to operate semi-autonomously within real-world environments. In fact, it joins two other active OpenAI agents now:
ChatGPT agent, unveiled back in July 2025, which controls a virtual computer and web browser and can create and edit common productivity files
Codex — previously the name of OpenAI's open source coding model, which it took and re-used as the name of its new GPT-5 variant-powered AI coding agent unveiled back in May 2025
But a security-focused agent makes a lot of sense, especially as demands on security teams grow.
In 2024 alone, over 40,000 Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs) were reported, and OpenAI’s internal data suggests that 1.2% of all code commits introduce bugs.
Aardvark’s positioning as a “defender-first” AI aligns with a market need for proactive security tools that integrate tightly with developer workflows rather than operate as post-hoc scanning layers.
OpenAI’s coordinated disclosure policy updates further reinforce its commitment to sustainable collaboration with developers and the open-source community, rather than emphasizing adversarial vulnerability reporting.
While yesterday's release of oss-safeguard uses chain-of-thought reasoning to apply safety policies during inference, Aardvark applies similar LLM reasoning to secure evolving codebases.
Together, these tools signal OpenAI’s shift from static tooling toward flexible, continuously adaptive systems — one focused on content moderation, the other on proactive vulnerability detection and automated patching within real-world software development environments.
What It Means For Enterprises and the CyberSec Market Going Forward
Aardvark represents OpenAI’s entry into automated security research through agentic AI. By combining GPT-5’s language understanding with Codex-driven patching and validation sandboxes, Aardvark offers an integrated solution for modern software teams facing increasing security complexity.
While currently in limited beta, the early performance indicators suggest potential for broader adoption. If proven effective at scale, Aardvark could contribute to a shift in how organizations embed security into continuous development environments.
For security leaders tasked with managing incident response, threat detection, and day-to-day protections—particularly those operating with limited team capacity—Aardvark may serve as a force multiplier. Its autonomous validation pipeline and human-auditable patch proposals could streamline triage and reduce alert fatigue, enabling smaller security teams to focus on strategic incidents rather than manual scanning and follow-up.
AI engineers responsible for integrating models into live products may benefit from Aardvark’s ability to surface bugs that arise from subtle logic flaws or incomplete fixes, particularly in fast-moving development cycles. Because Aardvark monitors commit-level changes and tracks them against threat models, it may help prevent vulnerabilities introduced during rapid iteration, without slowing delivery timelines.
For teams orchestrating AI across distributed environments, Aardvark’s sandbox validation and continuous feedback loops could align well with CI/CD-style pipelines for ML systems. Its ability to plug into GitHub workflows positions it as a compatible addition to modern AI operations stacks, especially those aiming to integrate robust security checks into automation pipelines without additional overhead.
And for data infrastructure teams maintaining critical pipelines and tooling, Aardvark’s LLM-driven inspection capabilities could offer an added layer of resilience. Vulnerabilities in data orchestration layers often go unnoticed until exploited; Aardvark’s ongoing code review process may surface issues earlier in the development lifecycle, helping data engineers maintain both system integrity and uptime.
In practice, Aardvark represents a shift in how security expertise might be operationalized—not just as a defensive perimeter, but as a persistent, context-aware participant in the software lifecycle. Its design suggests a model where defenders are no longer bottlenecked by scale, but augmented by intelligent agents working alongside them.
Researchers at Meta FAIR and the University of Edinburgh have developed a new technique that can predict the correctness of a large language model's (LLM) reasoning and even intervene to fix its mistakes. Called Circuit-based Reasoning Verification (CRV), the method looks inside an LLM to monitor its internal “reasoning circuits” and detect signs of computational errors as the model solves a problem.
Their findings show that CRV can detect reasoning errors in LLMs with high accuracy by building and observing a computational graph from the model's internal activations. In a key breakthrough, the researchers also demonstrated they can use this deep insight to apply targeted interventions that correct a model’s faulty reasoning on the fly.
The technique could help solve one of the great challenges of AI: Ensuring a model’s reasoning is faithful and correct. This could be a critical step toward building more trustworthy AI applications for the enterprise, where reliability is paramount.
Investigating chain-of-thought reasoning
Chain-of-thought (CoT) reasoning has been a powerful method for boosting the performance of LLMs on complex tasks and has been one of the key ingredients in the success of reasoning models such as the OpenAI o-series and DeepSeek-R1.
However, despite the success of CoT, it is not fully reliable. The reasoning process itself is often flawed, and severalstudies have shown that the CoT tokens an LLM generates is not always a faithful representation of its internal reasoning process.
Current remedies for verifying CoT fall into two main categories. “Black-box” approaches analyze the final generated token or the confidence scores of different token options. “Gray-box” approaches go a step further, looking at the model's internal state by using simple probes on its raw neural activations.
But while these methods can detect that a model’s internal state is correlated with an error, they can't explain why the underlying computation failed. For real-world applications where understanding the root cause of a failure is crucial, this is a significant gap.
A white-box approach to verification
CRV is based on the idea that models perform tasks using specialized subgraphs, or "circuits," of neurons that function like latent algorithms. So if the model’s reasoning fails, it is caused by a flaw in the execution of one of these algorithms. This means that by inspecting the underlying computational process, we can diagnose the cause of the flaw, similar to how developers examine execution traces to debug traditional software.
To make this possible, the researchers first make the target LLM interpretable. They replace the standard dense layers of the transformer blocks with trained "transcoders." A transcoder is a specialized deep learning component that forces the model to represent its intermediate computations not as a dense, unreadable vector of numbers, but as a sparse and meaningful set of features. Transcoders are similar to the sparse autoencoders (SAE) used in mechanistic interpretability research with the difference that they also preserve the functionality of the network they emulate. This modification effectively installs a diagnostic port into the model, allowing researchers to observe its internal workings.
With this interpretable model in place, the CRV process unfolds in a few steps. For each reasoning step the model takes, CRV constructs an "attribution graph" that maps the causal flow of information between the interpretable features of the transcoder and the tokens it is processing. From this graph, it extracts a "structural fingerprint" that contains a set of features describing the graph's properties. Finally, a “diagnostic classifier” model is trained on these fingerprints to predict whether the reasoning step is correct or not.
At inference time, the classifier monitors the activations of the model and provides feedback on whether the model’s reasoning trace is on the right track.
Finding and fixing errors
The researchers tested their method on a Llama 3.1 8B Instruct model modified with the transcoders, evaluating it on a mix of synthetic (Boolean and Arithmetic) and real-world (GSM8K math problems) datasets. They compared CRV against a comprehensive suite of black-box and gray-box baselines.
The results provide strong empirical support for the central hypothesis: the structural signatures in a reasoning step's computational trace contain a verifiable signal of its correctness. CRV consistently outperformed all baseline methods across every dataset and metric, demonstrating that a deep, structural view of the model's computation is more powerful than surface-level analysis.
Interestingly, the analysis revealed that the signatures of error are highly domain-specific. This means failures in different reasoning tasks (formal logic versus arithmetic calculation) manifest as distinct computational patterns. A classifier trained to detect errors in one domain does not transfer well to another, highlighting that different types of reasoning rely on different internal circuits. In practice, this means that you might need to train a separate classifier for each task (though the transcoder remains unchanged).
The most significant finding, however, is that these error signatures are not just correlational but causal. Because CRV provides a transparent view of the computation, a predicted failure can be traced back to a specific component. In one case study, the model made an order-of-operations error. CRV flagged the step and identified that a "multiplication" feature was firing prematurely. The researchers intervened by manually suppressing that single feature, and the model immediately corrected its path and solved the problem correctly.
This work represents a step toward a more rigorous science of AI interpretability and control. As the paper concludes, “these findings establish CRV as a proof-of-concept for mechanistic analysis, showing that shifting from opaque activations to interpretable computational structure enables a causal understanding of how and why LLMs fail to reason correctly.” To support further research, the team plans to release its datasets and trained transcoders to the public.
Why it’s important
While CRV is a research proof-of-concept, its results hint at a significant future for AI development. AI models learn internal algorithms, or "circuits," for different tasks. But because these models are opaque, we can't debug them like standard computer programs by tracing bugs to specific steps in the computation. Attribution graphs are the closest thing we have to an execution trace, showing how an output is derived from intermediate steps.
This research suggests that attribution graphs could be the foundation for a new class of AI model debuggers. Such tools would allow developers to understand the root cause of failures, whether it's insufficient training data or interference between competing tasks. This would enable precise mitigations, like targeted fine-tuning or even direct model editing, instead of costly full-scale retraining. They could also allow for more efficient intervention to correct model mistakes during inference.
The success of CRV in detecting and pinpointing reasoning errors is an encouraging sign that such debuggers could become a reality. This would pave the way for more robust LLMs and autonomous agents that can handle real-world unpredictability and, much like humans, correct course when they make reasoning mistakes.
Stripe, under the leadership of Emily Glassberg Sands, Head of Data & AI, is not merely adapting to the artificial intelligence revolution; it is actively constructing the financial infrastructure upon which this burgeoning agent economy will operate. In a recent Latent Space podcast interview with hosts Shawn Wang and Alessio Fanelli, Sands articulated Stripe’s ambitious […]
The accelerating integration of artificial intelligence into daily life and industrial infrastructure is no longer a distant vision but a tangible reality, as evidenced by the rapid-fire developments discussed in Matthew Berman’s latest Forward Future AI news briefing. From the nascent stages of consumer robotics to revolutionary computing paradigms, the AI landscape is undergoing a […]
In an era where artificial intelligence often conjures images of job displacement, XPO CEO Mario Harik offers a refreshingly pragmatic perspective: AI, for his logistics giant, is fundamentally about efficiency and optimization, not headcount reduction. This insight anchored a recent interview on CNBC’s Worldwide Exchange with anchor Frank Hollan, where Harik detailed XPO’s latest earnings […]
Amazon just opened Project Rainier, one of the world’s largest AI compute clusters, in partnership with Anthropic.
Amazon’s third-quarter profits rose 38% to $21.2 billion, but a big part of the jump had nothing to do with its core businesses of selling goods or cloud services.
The company reported a $9.5 billion pre-tax gain from its investment in the AI startup Anthropic, which was included in Amazon’s non-operating income for the quarter.
The windfall wasn’t the result of a sale or cash transaction, but rather accounting rules. After Anthropic raised new funding in September at a $183 billion valuation, Amazon was required to revalue its equity stake to reflect the higher market price, a process known as a “mark-to-market” adjustment.
To put the $9.5 billion paper gain in perspective, the Amazon Web Services cloud business — historically Amazon’s primary profit engine — generated $11.4 billion in quarterly operating profits.
At the same time, Amazon is spending big on its AI infrastructure buildout for Anthropic and others. The company just opened an $11 billion AI data center complex, dubbed Project Rainier, where Anthropic’s Claude models run on hundreds of thousands of Amazon’s Trainium 2 chips.
Amazon spent $35.1 billion on property and equipment in the third quarter, up 55% from a year earlier.
Andy Jassy, the Amazon CEO, sought to reassure Wall Street that the big outlay will be worth it.
“You’re going to see us continue to be very aggressive investing in capacity, because we see the demand,” Jassy said on the company’s conference call. “As fast as we’re adding capacity right now, we’re monetizing it. It’s still quite early, and represents an unusual opportunity for customers and AWS.”
The cash for new data centers doesn’t hit the bottom line immediately, but it comes into play as depreciation and amortization costs are recorded on the income statement over time.
And in that way, the spending is starting to impact on AWS results: sales rose 20% to $33 billion in the quarter, yet operating income increased only 9.6% to $11.4 billion. The gap indicates that Amazon’s heavy AI investments are compressing profit margins in the near term, even as the company bets on the infrastructure build-out to expand its business significantly over time.
Those investments are also weighing on cash generation: Amazon’s free cash flow dropped 69% over the past year to $14.8 billion, reflecting the massive outlays for data centers and infrastructure.
Corsair just announced its entrance into the leverless fightstick scene first popularized by Hit Box, the new Corsair Novablade Pro. Or to be more specific, the Corsair Novablade Pro Wireless Hall Effect Leverless Fight Controller—but we'll stick with Novablade Pro for now. The Novablade Pro is a direct competitor to the likes of Hit Box's
With Halo: Campaign Evolved, the remake of Combat Evolved having been confirmed to launch in 2026, replete with a PS5 launch, rumors have started circulating that the 2004 and 2007 Halo 2 and Halo 3 will also be getting a remake, supposedly also courtesy of Halo Studios. These leaks come courtesy of @leaks_infinite on X, a prolific leaker who previously tipped the upcoming Campaign Evolved game, so there's a solid chance they're legitimate. No release date has yet been revealed by the leaker's source, suggesting that the release date would still be a way out, although there are a handful of details that have been revealed.
As with the Combat Evolved, Halo 2 and 3 will be complete remakes of the games, but with the addition of sprinting and with the multiplayer game modes stripped out. Supposedly, multiplayer gameplay is reserved for Halo 7, the next modern release in the franchise, with the justification that having multiplayer in too many Halo games would result in the different games in the franchise simply competing against themselves, ultimately resulting in a diminished experience for all of the games involved. This means that all the focus for the remakes will also go into the campaigns and general single-player gameplay, which has many Halo fans excited about the prospect of the remakes.
Arc Raiders launched less than 24 hours ago, and it has already become a smash hit, beating out many of the top free-to-play games currently topping Steam charts, despite its $39.99 price tag on Steam. At the time of writing, around seven hours after Arc Raiders launched, the game had peaked at 264,673 players, putting it in fourth place in SteamDB's real-time concurrent player tracker and in the number-one spot in the trending games category. For comparison, The Finals, a free-to-play shooter from the same developer, Embark Studios, launched almost two years ago, and it similarly hit high player counts as early as day one, topping out at 242,619 concurrent players, according to SteamDB. Given that Arc Raiders launched on a Thursday and reached such heights already, it stands to reason that the weekend may see player counts rise even further.
Arc Raiders still has a way to go to catch up to some of its more popular peers in the shooter genre, though. Battlefield 6, which launched earlier this month, has recorded concurrent players counts as high as 747,440 players, while PUBG: Battlegrounds peaked at over 3 million players in January 2018. Arc Raiders's popularity comes with a rather impressive "Very Positive" (89% positive) rating on Steam, despite the developer's use of divisive generative AI tech in the game's development. As is the case with The Finals, Arc Raiders only offers a Windows installer package and uses Easy Anti-Cheat, but Embark Studios is not hostile towards Linux users, and many users on ProtonDB have reported that the game works on Linux with Valve's Proton compatibility layer, even without any tweaks, earning it a "Gold" rating on the database.
With the recent barrage of AMD-powered mini PCs coming to the market, it was only a matter of time before manufacturers started dipping into peculiar form factors and niche gimmicks in order to set themselves apart from the vaguely Mac Mini-shaped crowd. GTBox has apparently decided that its new take on the mini PC would take shape as a PC disguised as a navy blue Bluetooth speaker. Not coincidentally, the mini PC also includes two 5 W stereo speakers, which GTBox claims deliver "precise localization, a wide soundstage, and deep immersion," although it's more likely something akin to a sound bar, given how much of the PC's internals are taken up by the actual PC components.
Questions about the speaker quality aside, the internals boast some decent specifications, including an AMD Ryzen 7 8745HS, with its Radeon 780M, 32 GB of DDR5 RAM, and a 1 TB PCIe SSD. The port selection isn't bad either, with the T1 equipped with 3× USB 3.2 ports, 1× USB 2.0, 1× USB4, an RJ45 port for 2.5 Gbps Ethernet, a DisplayPort 2.0 port, and an HDMI 2.1 port. All of the ports are located on the rear, alongside the exhaust for the single fan, all in an attempt to maintain the clean design with its fabric cover. The mini PC also features a backlit GTBox logo and an LED ring on the top of the case, which can be adjusted to green, blue, or yellow. It also comes with Bluetooth 5.0 and Wi-Fi 6 on-board.
Intel's upcoming Panther Lake laptop CPU configurations previously leaked, revealing a line-up ranging from the modest Core Ultra 3 320U, with 2 P-Cores and 4 LPE-Cores to the notably higher-end Core Ultra X9 388H, featuring 4 P-Cores, 8 E-Cores, and 4 LPE-Cores. Now, performance figures for the more mid-range Intel Core Ultra X7 358H and Core Ultra 5 338H have both been leaked, thanks to Laptopreview Club. According to the site, the Core Ultra X7 in question managed a Cinebench R23 score of around 20,000, while the Core Ultra 5 338H came in at around 16,000 points or 20% slower than the X7 variant—the site doesn't provide exact scores, only rounded figures, but it's some idea of what to expect in terms of CPU performance for the next-gen Intel CPU platform.
As previously discussed, Panther Lake appears to be focusing more on iGPU performance, with leaked benchmarks revealing RTX 3050-tier performance from the 12-core Xe3 iGPU solution, but this is the first indication of CPU performance for the new CPU generation. The leaker claims that the 358H will be around 10% slower than the 255H at the same power consumption, in this case 60-65 W, with Cinebench R23 scores for the 255H ranging from the low 17,000s to upwards of 22,000. It appears, thus, that Panther Lake may sacrifice some CPU performance in order to improve iGPU performance, although these are still early rumors, and things are subject to change ahead of launch. The idea that Intel would launch a new CPU that underperforms its old platform by such a margin seems unlikely. It's possible that these tests were on the lower side of average or a worst-case scenario, either of which would actually make the performance of the new CPUs reasonably impressive.
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy at the GeekWire Summit in 2021. (GeekWire File Photo / Dan DeLong)
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy says the company’s latest big round of layoffs — about 14,000 corporate jobs — wasn’t triggered by financial strain or artificial intelligence replacing workers, but rather a push to stay nimble.
Speaking with analysts on Amazon’s quarterly earnings call Thursday, Jassy said the decision stemmed from a belief that the company had grown too big and too layered.
“The announcement that we made a few days ago was not really financially driven, and it’s not even really AI-driven — not right now, at least,” he said. “Really, it’s culture.”
Jassy’s comments are his first public explanation of the layoffs, which reportedly could ultimately total as many as 30,000 people — and would be the largest workforce reduction in Amazon’s history.
The news this week prompted speculation that the cuts were tied to automation or AI-related restructuring. Earlier this year, Jassy wrote in a memo to employees that he expected Amazon’s total corporate workforce to shrink over time due to efficiency gains from AI.
But his comments Thursday framed the layoffs as a cultural reset aimed at keeping the company fast-moving amid what he called “the technology transformation happening right now.”
Jassy, who succeeded founder Jeff Bezos as CEO in mid-2021, has pushed to reduce management layers and eliminate bureaucracy inside the company. Amazon’s corporate headcount tripled between 2017 and 2022, according to The Information, before the company adopted a more cautious hiring approach.
Bloomberg News reported this week that Jassy has told colleagues parts of the company remain “unwieldy” despite efforts to streamline operations — including significant layoffs in 2023 when Amazon cut 27,000 corporate workers in multiple stages.
On Thursday’s call, Jassy said Amazon’s rapid growth led to extra layers of management that slowed decision-making.
“When that happens, sometimes without realizing it, you can weaken the ownership of the people that you have who are doing the actual work and who own most of the two-way door decisions — the ones that should be made quickly and right at the front line,” Jassy said, using a phrase popularized by Bezos to help determine how much thought and planning to put into big and small decisions.
The layoffs, he said, are meant to restore the kind of ownership and agility that defined Amazon’s early years.
“We are committed to operating like the world’s largest startup,” Jassy said, repeating a line he’s used recently.
Given the “transformation” he described happening across the business world, Jassy said it’s more important than ever to be lean, flat, and fast-moving. “That’s what we’re going to do,” he said.
Jassy’s comments came as Amazon reported quarterly revenue of $180.2 billion, up 13% year-over-year, with AWS revenue growth accelerating to 20% — its fastest pace since 2022.
Amazon said it took a $1.8 billion severance-related charge in the quarter related to the layoffs.
Amazon joins other tech giants including Microsoft that have trimmed headcount this year while investing heavily in AI infrastructure.
A new study published by Surfshark VPN's research team offers a frightening insight into the true extent of data leaks and breaches since 2004. Are you doing enough to protect yourself?
NVIDIA's shares recently rose by more than 3%, causing its market capitalization to cross the coveted $5 trillion threshold due to an increase in demand for AI chips.
ARC Raiders has officially come out across Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, and PS5, and is off to a strong start with well over 250K concurrent Steam players and positive reviews from fans.
In The Outer Worlds 2, there's a powerful unique weapon hidden on The Incognito. Even better, there's a secret to accessing it right away, and we know the trick.
Windows 95 is 30 years old, and Microsoft veteran Raymond Chen continues sharing interesting tidbits about how the iconic operating system came together. Developing Windows 95 was a complex, time-pressured endeavor, but things got even trickier when Microsoft engineers began figuring out how to port the brand-new user interface to Windows NT.
Canva has launched a new unified Affinity application that combines the previously separate Designer, Photo, and Publisher tools into one platform. The app offers a complete suite of professional features for vector design, image editing, and desktop publishing, now available free of charge.
Google has partnered with NextEra Energy to revive Iowa's only nuclear power plant – the Duane Arnold Energy Center in Palo, near Cedar Rapids. The effort aims to provide reliable, carbon-free energy in the region to meet surging electricity demand driven by artificial intelligence. The companies plan to reopen the...
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Apple has deftly managed its geopolitical risk exposure by negotiating a broad-based import tariff exemption from the Trump Administration. Even so, the Cupertino giant has not been able to fully neutralize the impact of the US import tariffs, courtesy of its labyrinthine and sprawling global supply chain. Apple faced $1.1 billion in tariff-related costs in its fiscal Q4 2025 Apple adopted a 2-pronged strategy to deal with US import tariffs and trade war: Moreover, Apple is also planning to: As such, Apple has already started shipping its US-made servers to its datacenters, where they will help power features such as […]
Apple's iPhone product segment missed consensus expectations of analysts for the just-concluded fiscal fourth quarter of 2025, largely due to transitory weakness in iPhone 17 sales. Now, however, Apple has not only given a reasonable explanation behind this miss, but also offered surprising guidance for the ongoing December-ending quarter. Apple to experience its best ever December-ending quarter As we noted in our dedicated post on the topic, Apple's iPhone revenue missed expectations for its fiscal Q4 2025, which were pegged at $50.19 billion vs. the $49.03 billion haul that the Cupertino giant reported for the three-month period. During the earnings call, […]
Ever since Apple announced its AI strategy revamp under the Apple Intelligence banner, there has been a perception that the company is struggling to maintain a swift pace with its lofty ambitions. There are increasing signs, however, that Apple is making some much-needed headway in this sphere, as per the tidbits gleaned from Apple's Q3 2025 Earnings Call. Apple Intelligence: A winding road ahead Do note that Apple has been working to introduce a number of key Apple Intelligence features with its Spring 2026 iOS update (iOS 26.4 most likely). These include: Of course, Apple Mac users can already enjoy […]
Apple has just announced the earnings for its fiscal Q4 2025, reporting $102.47 billion in total revenue, which includes $49.03 billion from iPhones and $28.75 billion from services, and $27.47 billion in net profit. Apple Fiscal Q4 2025 Earnings: iPhones and services show growth Here are the key highlights from Apple's latest quarterly earnings release: For the full fiscal year 2025, Apple earned $416.16 billion in revenue, corresponding to a year-over-year increase of 6.42 percent relative to $391.04 billion that it earned in its last fiscal year. During the just-concluded fiscal year 2025, Apple earned $307 billion from its products […]
Maintaining its tradition for every Apple Silicon Mac that has launched so far, Amazon has introduced a discount for the 14-inch M5 MacBook Pro, shaving off $50 from the base and 1TB storage model, meaning that the new lineup starts from $1,549 instead of $1,599, with the price cut applied to both the Space Black and Silver colors. While the discount will slowly creep up as the months go by, you might want to keep the 14-inch M4 MacBook Pro a viable option because it is oozing tremendous value right now. For those looking to save money, the 14-inch M4 […]
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Zillow continues to be an overachiever, at least with its financial performance.
The home search giant’s revenue has consistently beat expectations for the past two years, and Q3 was no different: Revenue was $676 million for the third quarter, up 16% year-over-year and above the company’s previous guidance, driven by the strength of its rentals and mortgage divisions.
Rentals revenue was up 41% year-over-year to $174 million, while mortgage revenue increased 36% to $53 million, according to Zillow’s shareholder letter. The company’s main revenue stream, residential, rose 7% to $435 million.
Zillow also turned a profit, netting $10 million during the quarter and sustaining its run of profitability for a third consecutive quarter.
What Zillow had to say
While Zillow’s financials were strong, it was also mired in litigation during the quarter, something CEO Jeremy Wacksman touched on during the earnings call.
On lawsuits: Wacksman briefly addressed some of the company’s litigation issues, particularly the lawsuit brought by the Federal Trade Commission over Zillow’s rental agreement with Redfin.
The FTC alleges that Zillow and Redfin illegally conspired to eliminate competition in the rental listings market with a syndication agreement. Attorney generals from five states filed a similar lawsuit a day later.
Wacksman noted that they’ve had the agreement in place for about six months and have seen the benefits for both consumers and property managers.
“So to us it’s obviously pro-consumer and pro-property manager, which makes it pro-competitive,” Wacksman said. “We look forward to making that case as the process plays out.”
Wacksman said he doesn’t foresee any big impact to Zillow’s business.
“We do see maybe more noise around hidden listings and the potential to push more hidden listings onto sellers and to buyers and to harm consumers,” Wacksman said, adding that much of the industry is on board with Zillow’s private listing ban.
Consumers “don’t want to put the internet back in the box, and we expect that behavior to continue, because agents are trying to do right by their sellers and sell their homes,” Wacksman added.
Key numbers
Revenue: $676 million, up 16% year-over-year. Residential increased 7% to $435 million; mortgage revenue was up 36% to $53 million; and rentals revenue climbed 41% to $174 million.
Cash and investments: $1.4 billion at the end of September, up from $1.2 billion at the end of June.
Adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization): $165 million in Q3, up from $127 million a year earlier.
Net income/loss: A gain of $10 million in Q3, up from $2 million the previous quarter, an improvement over its $20 million loss a year ago.
Traffic and visits: Traffic across all Zillow Group websites and apps totaled 250 million average monthly unique users in Q3, up 7% year-over-year, the company said. Total visits were 2.5 billion in Q3, up 4% year-over-year.
Q4 outlook: For the fourth quarter, Zillow estimates revenue will be in the $645 million to $655 million range, which would represent high single-digit year-over-year growth.
Notable moves
Zillow was busy dealing with litigation during the third quarter:
The company also had positive news to share during the quarter, noting in September that more than 50 brokerages had adopted Zillow Showcase. Newly named partners include The Agency, LPT Realty and Century 21 Masters in California.
“At The Agency, we’re always looking for ways to give our agents every advantage in showcasing their listings,” said Mauricio Umansky, CEO and founder of The Agency, adding that the partnership “allows us to maximize exposure, put homes in the best light and reach more potential buyers.”
The company also hired a new chief economist in the third quarter. Mischa Fisher, who most recently taught data science at Northwestern University, has experience analyzing housing, labor and consumer spending data. She replaces former chief economist Skylar Olsen.
Editor’s note: Story updated with details from the company’s earnings call.
The rise of AI marks a critical shift away from decades defined by information-chasing and a push for more and more compute power.
Canva co-founder and CPO Cameron Adams refers to this dawning time as the “imagination era.” Meaning: Individuals and enterprises must be able to turn creativity into action with AI.
Canva hopes to position itself at the center of this shift with a sweeping new suite of tools. The company’s new Creative Operating System (COS) integrates AI across every layer of content creation, creating a single, comprehensive creativity platform rather than a simple, template-based design tool.
“We’re entering a new era where we need to rethink how we achieve our goals,” said Adams. “We’re enabling people’s imagination and giving them the tools they need to take action.”
An 'engine' for creativity
Adams describes Canva’s platform as a three-layer stack: The top Visual Suite layer containing designs, images and other content; a collaborative Canva AI plane at center; and a foundational proprietary model holding it all up.
At the heart of Canva’s strategy is its Creative Operating System (COS) underlying. This “engine,” as Adams describes it, integrates documents, websites, presentations, sheets, whiteboards, videos, social content, hundreds of millions of photos, illustrations, a rich sound library, and numerous templates, charts, and branded elements.
The COS is getting a 2.0 upgrade, but the crucial advance is the “middle, crucial layer” that fully integrates AI and makes it accessible throughout various workflows, Adams explained. This gives creative and technical teams a single dashboard for generating, editing and launching all types of content.
The underlying model is trained to understand the “complexity of design” so the platform can build out various elements — such as photos, videos, textures, or 3D graphics — in real time, matching branding style without the need for manual adjustments. It also supports live collaboration, meaning teams across departments can co-create.
With a unified dashboard, a user working on a specific design, for instance, can create a new piece of content (say, a presentation) within the same workflow, without having to switch to another window or platform. Also, if they generate an image and aren’t pleased with it, they don’t have to go back and create from scratch; they can immediately begin editing, changing colors or tone.
Another new capability in COS, “Ask Canva,” provides direct design advice. Users can tag @Canva to get copy suggestions and smart edits; or, they can highlight an image and direct the AI assistant to modify it or generate variants.
“It’s a really unique interaction,” said Adams, noting that this AI design partner is always present. “It’s a real collaboration between people and AI, and we think it’s a revolutionary change.”
Other new features include a 2.0 video editor and interactive form and email design with drag-and-drop tools. Further, Canva is now incorporated with Affinity, its unified app for pro designers incorporating vector, pixel and layer workflows, and Affinity is “free forever.”
Automating intelligence, supporting marketing
Branding is critical for enterprise; Canva has introduced new tools to help organizations consistently showcase theirs across platforms. The new Canva Grow engine integrates business objectives into the creative process so teams can workshop, create, distribute and refine ads and other materials.
As Adams explained: “It automatically scans your website, figures out who your audience is, what assets you use to promote your products, the message it needs to send out, the formats you want to send it out in, makes a creative for you, and you can deploy it directly to the platform without having to leave Canva.”
Marketing teams can now design and launch ads across platforms like Meta, track insights as they happen and refine future content based on performance metrics. “Your brand system is now available inside the AI you’re working with,” Adams noted.
Success metrics and enterprise adoption
The impact of Canva’s COS is reflected in notable user metrics: More than 250 million people use Canva every month, just over 29 million of which are paid subscribers. Adams reports that 41 billion designs have been created on Canva since launch, which equates to 1 billion each month.
“If you break that down, it turns into the crazy number of 386 designs being created every single second,” said Adams. Whereas in the early days, it took roughly an hour for users to create a single design.
Canva customers include Walmart, Disney, Virgin Voyages, Pinterest, FedEx, Expedia and eXp Realty. DocuSign, for one, reported that it unlocked more than 500 hours of team capacity and saved $300,000-plus in design hours by fully integrating Canva into its content creation. Disney, meanwhile, uses translation capabilities for its internationalization work, Adams said.
Competitors in the design space
Canva plays in an evolving landscape of professional design tools including Adobe Express and Figma; AI-powered challengers led by Microsoft Designer; and direct consumer alternatives like Visme and Piktochart.
Adobe Express (starting at $9.99 a month for premium features) is known for its ease of use and integration with the broader Adobe Creative Cloud ecosystem. It features professional-grade templates and access to Adobe’s extensive stock library, and has incorporated Google's Gemini 2.5 Flash image model and other gen AI features so that designers can create graphics via natural language prompts. Users with some design experience say they prefer its interface, controls and technical advantages over Canva (such as the ability to import high-fidelity PDFs).
Figma (starting at $3 a month for professional plans) is touted for its real-time collaboration, advanced prototyping capabilities and deep integration with dev workflows; however, some say it has a steeper learning curve and higher-precision design tools, making it preferable for professional designers, developers and product teams working on more complex projects.
Microsoft Designer (free version available; although a Microsoft 365 subscription starting at $9.99 a month unlocks additional features) benefits from its integration with Microsoft’s AI capabilities, Copilot layout and text generation and Dall-E powered image generation. The platform’s “Inspire Me” and “New Ideas” buttons provide design variations, and users can also import data from Excel, add 3D models from PowerPoint and access images from OneDrive.
However, users report that its stock photos and template and image libraries are limited compared to Canva's extensive collection, and its visuals can come across as outdated.
Canva’s advantage seems to be in its extensive template library (more than 600,000 ready-to-use) and asset library (141 million-plus stock photos, videos, graphics, and audio elements). Its platform is also praised for its ease of use and interface friendly to non-designers, allowing them to begin quickly without training.
Canva has also expanded into a variety of content types — documents, websites, presentations, whiteboards, videos, and more — making its platform a comprehensive visual suite than just a graphics tool.
Canva has four pricing tiers: Canva Free for one user; Canva Pro for $120 a year for one person; Canva Teams for $100 a year for each team member; and the custom-priced Canva Enterprise.
Key takeaways: Be open, embrace human-AI collaboration
Canva’s COS is underpinned by Canva’s frontier model, an in-house, proprietary engine based on years of R&D and research partnerships, including the acquisition of visual AI company Leonardo. Adams notes that Canva works with top AI providers including OpenAI, Anthropic and Google.
For technology teams, Canva’s approach offers important lessons, including a commitment to openness. “There are so many models floating around,” Adams noted; it’s important for enterprises to recognize when they should work with top models and when they should develop their own proprietary ones, he advised.
For instance, OpenAI and Anthropic recently announced integrations with Canva as a visual layer because, as Adams explained, they realized they didn’t have the capability to create the same kinds of editable designs that Canva can. This creates a mutually-beneficial ecosystem.
Ultimately, Adams noted: “We have this underlying philosophy that the future is people and technology working together. It's not an either or. We want people to be at the center, to be the ones with the creative spark, and to use AI as a collaborator.”
Mixboard is an experimental, AI-powered concepting board designed to help you explore, expand and refine your ideas. You can bring your own images, or use AI to generate…
An Amazon Prime delivery van outside the company’s Seattle headquarters. (GeekWire File Photo / Kurt Schlosser)
Amazon beat estimates for its third-quarter earnings with $180.2 billion in revenue, up 13% year-over-year, and earnings per share of $1.95, up from $1.43 in the year-ago period.
Net income was $21.2 billion, up from $15.3 billion last year.
Wall Street expected $177.7 billion in revenue, and earnings per share of $1.56.
Amazon shares were up more than 11% in after-hours trading. Growth in the company’s stock has lagged behind rivals Microsoft and Google this year.
Investors were likely pleased with a re-acceleration in Amazon’s closely watched cloud computing unit, which reported $33 billion in sales, up 20% year-over-year and topping analyst estimates. In a press release, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said AWS is “growing at a pace we haven’t seen since 2022.”
“We continue to see strong demand in AI and core infrastructure, and we’ve been focused on accelerating capacity — adding more than 3.8 gigawatts in the past 12 months,” Jassy added.
The cloud growth should help Amazon counter the Wall Street narrative that its cloud business is falling behind Microsoft and Google in pursuing the AI opportunity.
Amazon and other cloud giants are pouring billions of dollars into capital expenditures to support AI initiatives. Amazon said earlier this year it expects to increase capital expenditures to more than $100 billion in 2025.
The company makes most of its operating profits from AWS — $11.4 billion in the third quarter, more than half Amazon’s total operating income.
AWS was hit with a major outage last week that took down several major sites and services. It blamed an internal issue within the cloud giant’s infrastructure.
Amazon’s overall operating income reached $17.4 billion in the third quarter — flat compared to a year ago. The company had forecast operating income of $15.5 billion to $20.5 billion.
The company said its Q3 operating income reflected two special charges:
A $2.5 billion charge related to a recent settlement with the Federal Trade Commission related to Prime memberships.
About $1.8 billion in estimated severance costs related to its massive 14,000 corporate layoff announced earlier this week.
The workforce reduction comes amid an efficiency push at Amazon. Jassy has cited a need to reduce bureaucracy and become more efficient in the new era of artificial intelligence.
Reuters reported this week that the number of layoffs could ultimately total as many as 30,000 people, which is still a possibility as the cutbacks continue into next year.
Jassy told employees in a company-wide memo earlier this year that Amazon’s corporate workforce will shrink in the coming years as generative AI takes hold.
Online store sales were $67.4 billion, up 10%.
The revenue includes sales from the company’s annual Prime Day sales event from July 8-11.
Analysts are watching for impact from tariffs on the company’s retail business, which still makes up the largest portion of its overall revenue.
In its Q1 earnings report in April, Amazon added “tariff and trade policies” to a list of factors that create uncertainty in its results, joining existing risks such as inflation, interest rates, and regional labor market constraints.
Here are more details from the second quarter earnings report:
Advertising: The company’s ad business brought in $17.7 billion in revenue in the quarter, up 24% from the year-ago period, topping estimates. Advertising, along with AWS, is a major profit engine.
Third-party seller services: Revenue from third-party seller services was up 12% to $42.5 billion.
Shipping costs: Amazon spent $25.4 billion on shipping in Q3, up 8%.
Physical stores: The category, which includes Whole Foods and other Amazon grocery stores, posted revenue of $5.6 billion, up 7%.
Headcount: Amazon employs 1.57 million people, up 2% year-over-year. That figure does not include seasonal and contract workers.
Prime: Subscription services revenue, which includes Prime memberships, came in at $12.6 billion, up 11%.
Guidance: The company forecasts Q4 sales between $206 billion and $213 billion. Operating income is expected to range between $21 billion and $26 billion, compared with $21.2 billion in the year-ago quarter.
Google on Thursday revealed that the scam defenses built into Android safeguard users around the world from more than 10 billion suspected malicious calls and messages every month.
The tech giant also said it has blocked over 100 million suspicious numbers from using Rich Communication Services (RCS), an evolution of the SMS protocol, thereby preventing scams before they could even be sent.
In
The open-source command-and-control (C2) framework known as AdaptixC2 is being used by a growing number of threat actors, some of whom are related to Russian ransomware gangs.
AdaptixC2 is an emerging extensible post-exploitation and adversarial emulation framework designed for penetration testing. While the server component is written in Golang, the GUI Client is written in C++ QT for
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The barrier between imagination and animated reality has just dissolved, fundamentally altering the landscape for content creators and AI developers alike. OpenAI’s latest announcement, “Sora Character Cameos,” showcased in a refreshingly unconventional promotional video, signals a profound shift in how digital characters can be conceived, generated, and deployed. This is not merely an incremental update; […]
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In a rather shocking move, AMD has given the Radeon RX 6000 series and RX 5000 series GPUs a partial retirement by removing it from the regular monthly game optimization cycle. While the monthly driver updates will continue to support them, the game optimizations included will only be meant for RX 7000 series and RX 9000 series. The monthly driver releases will address critical security vulnerabilities and fix bugs. What makes the move surprising is the fact that the Radeon RX 6000 series in particular is less than 4 years old, and gamers who purchased those cards did so at extremely inflated prices because RX 6000 series, along with NVIDIA's RTX 30-series, were released amid the cryptocurrency mining rush that saw miners soak up GPU inventory.
In a statement to PCGH, machine translated from German, AMD says:
RDNA 1 and RDNA 2 graphics cards will continue to receive driver updates for critical security and bug fixes. To focus on optimizing and delivering new and improved technologies for the latest GPUs, AMD Software Adrenalin Edition 25.10.2 is placing Radeon RX 5000 and RX 6000 series graphics cards (RDNA 1 and RDNA 2) into maintenance mode. Future driver updates with targeted game optimizations will focus on RDNA 3 and RDNA 4 GPUs.
SK hynix appears to be expanding its DDR5 lineup with several new chips rated for a native 7200 MT/s speed above the current JEDEC 6400 MT/s standard. Listings spotted by @unikoshardware on Chinese retailer JD.com show new SK hynix DDR5 modules using part numbers not yet seen in the market. According to the findings, SK hynix has prepared four new dies, all capable of 7200 MT/s (denoted by the "KB" suffix), with densities ranging from 2 GB to 4 GB. These include the company's first 2 GB B-die and a 4 GB M-die, marking the first time this process node has been offered at that capacity.
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Intel has partnered with Chinese display manufacturer BOE to deploy laptop displays that can operate at 1 Hz. Yes, that is a single Hz refresh rate, meaning that static content, like images, will be dynamically represented to reduce power usage and extend laptop's battery life by up to 65%. Up until now, displays with variable refresh rate have been used, but they were mostly limited in a range from 48 Hz to any top refresh rate limit that the panel can achieve. However, Intel and BOE have now developed a technology that will manage to make the panel refresh one time per second, delivering a massive battery booster to next-generation laptops. For example, displaying static content like an image will be displayed at 1 Hz, while the panel will be boosted to its original refresh rate during scrolling and dynamic content.
That is where Multi-Frequency Display (MFD) technology steps in. Through the use of Intel graphics drivers and operating system kernel, the MDF will automatically recognize the content displayed on the user's screen to increase the frequency when needed. This approach maximizes power efficiency and prolongs systems battery life. Additionally, Intel and BOE designed SmartPower HDR technology to address excessive energy consumption and inconsistent brightness in HDR mode. This works by dynamically adjusting display voltage based on on-screen content luminosity, optimizing energy efficiency. During HDR video playback, for instance, brightness adapts to match the footage. SmartPower HDR substantially reduces power usage during darker scenes while delivering exceptional visual quality in brighter moments.
Heart Machine revealed earlier this month that it was laying off a significant number of staff and "winding down" the development of its most recent early access game, Hyper Light Breaker. This was shortly after the studio announced its upcoming stylized side-scroller action horror game, Possessor(s). Now, however, it seems as though a number of developers and staff who worked on Possessor(s) are also getting the boot, less than two weeks before the game's November 11 launch. The layoffs weren't announced by the studio itself, but rather in a series of posts on Bluesky by the affected workers. One post read: "My time at Heart Machine has sadly come to a rather abrupt end," suggesting an immediate end to their six-year stint at the studio. This is the third round of layoffs at Heart Machine in the last year, with the first coming in November 2024, shortly ahead of the launch of Hyper Light Breaker.
At the time of writing, it's unclear just how many workers were laid off, but it appears as though the layoffs will affect multiple roles in different departments. One worker who worked on PR and community and management, commented in a video that "by the time Possessor(s) comes out on November 11, I don't know that anyone who worked on it will even be at the company anymore." She also mentions that the layoffs would be effective immediately, echoing the sentiments of other posts and suggesting that some staff members have been retained until the game launches. This was confirmed by a producer who was laid off, who says that her time a Heart Machine "will come to an end after Possessor(s) ships," adding that she is too busy "literally shipping the game to start actively looking for work."
A life sciences panel at the Cascadia Innovation Corridor conference Oct. 29, 2025 in Seattle. From left: Marc Cummings, Life Sciences Washington; Dr. Bonnie Nagel, Oregon Health Sciences University; Dr. Tom Lynch, Fred Hutch Cancer Center. (“PhotosbyKim” Photo)
Leaders in the Pacific Northwest are largely bullish on the region’s continued economic success — but one threat to the region’s fiscal progress worries them in particular.
“What always strikes me, whether I’m in City Hall in Vancouver or Seattle or Portland, is that everybody talks about the same thing — the high cost of housing,” said Microsoft President Brad Smith at this week’s Cascadia Innovation Corridor conference in Seattle.
“It’s become an enormous barrier, not just for attracting new talent, but for enabling teachers and police officers and nurses and firefighters to live in the communities in which they serve,” he added.
Dr. Tom Lynch, president and director of Seattle’s Fred Hutch Cancer Center, was more succinct.
“My people can’t find places to live,” Lynch said during a Tuesday panel at the same event.
Those concerns are bolstered by research in a new report on the economic viability of the corridor running from Vancouver, B.C., through Seattle to Portland.
Housing costs were cited as one of the top threats to the region’s success, noting that Vancouver’s housing-cost-to-income-ratio disparity is among the worst in the world, while in Seattle median home prices relative to wages have doubled in the past 15 years. Portland reports a net out-migration as workers move to more affordable areas.
Other concerns include rising business costs and regulations, declining numbers of skilled workers and new restrictions on foreign talent immigrating to the U.S., and clean energy shortages.
Microsoft President Brad Smith speaking at the Cascadia Innovation Corridor conference. (GeekWire Photo / Todd Bishop)
“We’ve got to find ways to be able to increase the density of our housing, come up with creative solutions for allowing more families to be able to live close to where the jobs are,” Lynch said.
Smith agreed, adding, “The only way to dig ourselves out of this is to harness the power of the market through public-private partnerships, to recognize that zoning and permitting needs to be put to work to accelerate investment.”
Area tech giants have been pursuing those partnerships to tackle the challenge.
In 2019, Microsoft pledged $750 million to boost the affordable housing inventory and has helped build or retain 12,000 units in the region. Amazon in recent years has committed $3.4 billion for housing across three hubs nationally where it has large operations. The company in September celebrated a milestone of building or preserving 10,000 units in the Seattle area.
Despite the efforts, Smith said the shortage keeps worsening and in 2025, new construction starts are expected to be the lowest since before the Great Recession.
The city of Seattle, for one, is looking to sweeten a property-tax exemption deal for developers that could encourage construction and it’s also applying AI to permitting process in an effort to speed up projects.
Smith also promoted the long-held vision of a high-speed rail line in the Pacific Northwest that would make commutes much faster between growing urban hubs. But a panel Wednesday cautioned that dream is still many years out.
Going forward, updates that appear in Windows Update will utilize a simplified naming scheme designed to make it clearer to end users what is actually being downloaded.
Shares of Navan closed at $20, down 20%, in first-day trading on Thursday, indicating lackluster investor demand for the long-awaited debut.
Navan, which operates an expense management platform with an emphasis on travel, had priced shares for its offering at $25 each late Wednesday. It was formerly called TripActions, with the company pivoting to a broader platform when revenue reached zero right after the COVID pandemic hit.
The offering raised $923.1 million for the company, whose shares are trading on the Nasdaq under the ticker NAVN. It set an initial valuation of around $6.2 billion.
The move to the public markets has been a long time coming for Palo Alto, California-based Navan, which reportedly first submitted confidential paperwork for a planned offering more than three years ago.
The company had raised $1.2 billion in debt financing and $1 billion in equity funding from venture investors and credit providers, per Crunchbase data. Major venture stakeholders include Andreessen Horowitz, Lightspeed Venture Partners and Zeev Ventures.
Growing revenue
Navan had revenue of $329 million in the first half of 2025, up 30% year over year. Growth comes as the company has been investing in developing its agentic AI offering, Navan Cognition, to automate more cumbersome tasks around travel planning and reporting.
Still, the company remains far from profitable. Navan’s net loss for the first half of this year came in just shy of $100 million — up about 7% from the year-earlier period. The loss comes amid higher spending on both R&D and sales and marketing — common for companies on the IPO track — looking to appeal to growth-hungry investors.
Per its IPO filing, Navan has incurred net losses in each year since its inception in 2015 and “may not achieve or, if achieved, sustain profitability in the future.”
Italian tech conglomerate Bending Spoons has completed an acquisition of AOL from Yahoo following a new $2.8 billion debt-financing round. The company did not disclose the purchase price, noting that part of the funding will support future operations. Still, AOL's new owner is positioning itself as the brand's final home.
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Amidst a massive layoff at Amazon, which cut 14,000+ employees and killed further development of New World: Aeternum, has also reportedly killed (for a second time) the Lord of the Rings MMO that was in production at Amazon Game Studios. Spotted by Rock Paper Shotgun, a now former Amazon Game Studios senior gameplay engineer, Ashleigh Amrine, confirmed in a post on her personal LinkedIn page that the "fledgling Lord of the Rings game" was part of the cuts at Amazon. "This morning I was part of layoffs at Amazon Games, alongside my incredibly talented peers on New World and our […]
iFixit has just published a nearly 6.5-minute video on YouTube detailing the repairability metrics for the new Apple M5 iPad Pro, concluding that the device remains one of the least repairable hardware products from Apple. However, the new self-service tools do manage to boost its overall repairability score. iFixit: "At just 5.1mm thickness, it's thinner than an iPhone Air, which means the screen is mounted flush against the internals" iFixit has noted the following about the new M5 iPad Pro: On the whole, iFixit has pegged a 5/10 provisional repairability score to the new M5 iPad Pro. The M5 iPad […]
NVIDIA's Jensen Huang is currently in South Korea for the APEC summit, and it seems he is having a pretty interesting day, spending time with his 'executive friends' at Samsung and Hyundai. Jensen Got a 'Little Too Comfortable' In His Visit to Korea, After Delivering the GTC 2025 Keynote This week has been a jam-packed one for NVIDIA's CEO, as Jensen delivered one of the most important keynotes of his career and then took a flight straight to South Korea for the APEC summit, where he met with Samsung's Chairman Lee Jae-yong and the President of Hyundai Motors, Chung Eui-sun. […]
ARC Raiders is out today on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S consoles, but more importantly for PC players, Embark Studios' latest arrives with support for NVIDIA DLSS 4 with Multi-Frame Generation and NVIDIA Reflex. Furthermore, if you have an RTX 50 Series graphics card in your PC, then you'll be able to multiply the frame rates you see in ARC Raiders by an average of 3.6X, even when playing at 4K. According to NVIDIA, when playing ARC Raiders on an RTX 50 Series card, with DLSS 4 and Multi-Frame Generation while also using DLSS Super Resolution, you can "multiply […]
Today, independent developer TaleWorlds Entertainment has confirmed the release date of War Sails, the upcoming expansion for Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord. War Sails was originally scheduled to launch in June, though it was ultimately delayed by TaleWorlds. The expansion is now set to go live on November 26 at 00:00 Pacific Time, 03:00 Eastern Time, 09:00 Central European Time. It will be a simultaneous release on PC and consoles (PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series S|X). Pricing has been confirmed to be $24.99. The announcement was paired with an extensive gameplay showcase that demonstrated the expansion's main features. Players learned […]
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Tylenol has been in the headlines for the last several weeks—though not for reasons any marketer would want. Despite a veritable mountain of clinical evidence to the contrary, on September […]
A severe vulnerability disclosed in Chromium's Blink rendering engine can be exploited to crash many Chromium-based browsers within a few seconds.
Security researcher Jose Pino, who disclosed details of the flaw, has codenamed it Brash.
"It allows any Chromium browser to collapse in 15-60 seconds by exploiting an architectural flaw in how certain DOM operations are managed," Pino said in a
Internet access has been severely restricted across Tanzania during a tense general election. The blackout, confirmed by watchdog groups, is part of a growing global trend of governments using internet shutdowns to control information.
Walmart's kicking off Black Friday early, and we've rounded up the 13 best Lego deals you can get at the retailer right now, including deep discounts on Star Wars, Botanical, and Creator sets.
Google is implementing a new age verification system on the Play Store to comply with new US state laws. This move has sparked a debate about the best way to protect minors online without compromising user privacy.
All the ways to watch FA Cup 2025/26 live streams online from anywhere for FREE, as football's oldest cup competition returns with giant-killings guaranteed.
I'm rounding up Amazon's 15 best-selling gift ideas with Black Friday prices, including air fryers, earbuds, Ring Doorbells, smart home gadgets, and more.
Currys has launched its Black Friday sale early, so I've looked through the offers and picked out 13 of the best deals worth buying that come with a price match guarantee.
This is one of the smallest and most powerful mini PCs on the market and features an AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 with integrated 890M GPU. Arriving barebones, you have the ability to easily tailor the machine to your needs. From use in the workplace, as a content creation or development hub or even if you're an AI enthusiast, the specifications wanting to see what's possible, the potential defies the small size.
While Threads already offers tools that let you limit replies to people you follow, your followers, or people you mention, the new feature allows you to keep your replies open to all without the negative consequences of having discussions derailed.
U.S. tech giants increasingly view India as the next big frontier — a place to gather diverse data, refine models, and test AI use cases that could later scale across other emerging markets.
Magdalena Balazinska, director of the UW Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering, opens the school’s annual research showcase Wednesday in Seattle. (GeekWire Photo / Todd Bishop)
The University of Washington’s Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering is reframing what it means for its research to change the world.
In unveiling six “Grand Challenges” at its annual Research Showcase and Open House in Seattle on Wednesday, the Allen School’s leaders described a blueprint for technology that protects privacy, supports mental health, broadens accessibility, earns public trust, and sustains people and the planet.
The idea is to “organize ourselves into some more specific grand challenges that we can tackle together to have an even greater impact,” said Magdalena Balazinska, director of the Allen School and a UW computer science professor, opening the school’s annual Research Showcase and Open House.
Here are the six grand challenges:
Anticipate and address security, privacy, and safety issues as tech permeates society.
Make high-quality cognitive and mental health support available to all.
Design technology to be accessible at its inception — not as an add-on.
Design AI in a way that is transparent and equally beneficial to all.
Build systems that can be trusted to do exactly what we want them to do, every time.
Create technologies that sustain people and the planet.
Balazinska explained that the list draws on the strengths and interests of its faculty, who now number more than 90, including 74 on the tenure track.
With total enrollment of about 2,900 students, last year the Allen School graduated more than 600 undergrads, 150 master’s students, and 50 Ph.D. students.
The Allen School has grown so large that subfields like systems and NLP (natural language processing) risk becoming isolated “mini departments,” said Shwetak Patel, a University of Washington computer science professor. The Grand Challenges initiative emerged as a bottom-up effort to reconnect these groups around shared, human-centered problems.
Patel said the initiative also encourages collaborations on campus beyond the computer science school, citing examples like fetal heart rate monitoring with UW Medicine.
A serial entrepreneur and 2011 MacArthur Fellow, Patel recalled that when he joined UW 18 years ago, his applied and entrepreneurial focus was seen as unconventional. Now it’s central to the school’s direction. The grand challenges initiative is “music to my ears,” Patel said.
In tackling these challenges, the Allen School has a unique advantage against many other computer science schools. Eighteen faculty members currently hold what’s known as “concurrent engagements” — formally splitting time between the Allen School and companies and organizations such as Google, Meta, Microsoft, and the Allen Institute for AI (Ai2).
University of Washington computer science professor Shwetak Patel at the Paul G. Allen School’s annual research showcase and open house. (GeekWire Photo / Taylor Soper)
This is a “superpower” for the Allen School, said Patel, who has a concurrent engagement at Google. These arrangements, he explained, give faculty and students access to data, computing resources, and real-world challenges by working directly with companies developing the most advanced AI systems.
“A lot of the problems we’re trying to solve, you cannot solve them just at the university,” Patel said, pointing to examples such as open-source foundation models and AI for mental-health research that depend on large-scale resources unavailable in academia alone.
These roles can also stretch professors thin. “When somebody’s split, there’s only so much mental energy you can put into the university,” Patel said. Many of those faculty members teach just one or two courses a year, requiring the school to rely more on lecturers and teaching faculty.
Still, he said, the benefits outweigh the costs. “I’d rather have 50% of somebody than 0% of somebody, and we’ll make it work,” he said. “That’s been our strategy.”
The Madrona Prize, an annual award presented at the event by the Seattle-based venture capital firm, went to a project called “Enhancing Personalized Multi-Turn Dialogue with Curiosity Reward.” The system makes AI chatbots more personal by giving them a “curiosity reward,” motivating the AI to actively learn about a user’s traits during a conversation to create more personalized interactions.
On the subject of industry collaborations, the lead researcher on the prize-winning project, UW Ph.D. student Yanming Wan, conducted the research while working as an intern at Google DeepMind. (See full list of winners and runners-up below.)
At the evening poster session, graduate students filled the rooms to showcase their latest projects — including new advances in artificial intelligence for speech, language, and accessibility.
DopFone: Doppler-based fetal heart rate monitoring using commodity smartphones
Poojita Garg, a second-year PhD student.
DopFone transforms phones into fetal heart rate monitors. It uses the phone speaker to transmit a continuous sine wave and uses the microphone to record the reflections. It then processes the audio recordings to estimate fetal heart rate. It aims to be an alternative to doppler ultrasounds that require trained staff, which aren’t practical for frequent remote use.
“The major impact would be in the rural, remote and low-resource settings where access to such maternity care is less — also called maternity care deserts,” said Poojita Garg, a second-year PhD student.
CourseSLM: A Chatbot Tool for Supporting Instructors and Classroom Learning
Marquiese Garrett, a sophomore at the UW.
This custom-built chatbot is designed to help students stay focused and build real understanding rather than relying on quick shortcuts. The system uses built-in guardrails to keep learners on task and counter the distractions and over-dependence that can come with general large language models.
Running locally on school devices, the chatbot helps protect student data and ensures access even without Wi-Fi.
“We’re focused on making sure students have access to technology, and know how to use it properly and safely,” said Marquiese Garrett, a sophomore at the UW.
Efficient serving of SpeechLMs with VoxServe
Keisuke Kamahori, a third-year PhD student at the Allen School.
VoxServe makes speech-language models run more efficiently. It uses a standardized abstraction layer and interface that allows many different models to run through a single system. Its key innovation is a custom scheduling algorithm that optimizes performance depending on the use case.
The approach makes speech-based AI systems faster, cheaper, and easier to deploy, paving the way for real-time voice assistants and other next-gen speech applications.
“I thought it would be beneficial if we can provide this sort of open-source system that people can use,” said Keisuke Kamahori, third-year Ph.D. student at the Allen School.
ConvFill: Model collaboration for responsive conversational voice agents
Zachary Englhardt (left), a fourth-year PhD student, and Vidya Srinivas, a third-year PhD student.
ConvFill is a lightweight conversational model designed to reduce the delay in voice-based large language models. The system responds quickly with short, initial answers, then fills in more detailed information as larger models complete their processing.
By combining small and large models in this way, ConvFill delivers faster responses while conserving tokens and improving efficiency — an important step toward more natural, low-latency conversational AI.
“This is an exciting way to think about how we can combine systems together to get the best of both worlds,” said Zachary Englhardt, a third-year Ph.D. student. “It’s an exciting way to look at problems.”
ConsumerBench: Benchmarking generative AI on end-user devices
Yile Gu, a third-year PhD student at the Allen School.
Running generative AI locally — on laptops, phones, or other personal hardware — introduces new system-level challenges in fairness, efficiency, and scheduling.
ConsumerBench is a benchmarking framework that tests how well generative AI applications perform on consumer hardware when multiple AI models run at the same time. The open-source tool helps researchers identify bottlenecks and improve performance on consumer devices.
There are a number of benefits to running models locally: “There are privacy purposes — a user can ask for questions related to email or private content, and they can do it efficiently and accurately,” said Yile Gu, a third-year Ph.D. student at the Allen School.
Designing Chatbots for Sensitive Health Contexts: Lessons from Contraceptive Care in Kenyan Pharmacies
Lisa Orii, a fifth-year Ph.D. student at the Allen School.
A project aimed at improving contraceptive access and guidance for adolescent girls and young women in Kenya by integrating low-fidelity chatbots into healthcare settings. The goal is to understand how chatbots can support private, informed conversations and work effectively within pharmacies.
“The fuel behind this whole project is that my team is really interested in improving health outcomes for vulnerable populations,” said Lisa Orii, a fifth-year Ph.D. student.
See more about the research showcase here. Here’s the list of winning projects.
Runner up: “VAMOS: A Hierarchical Vision-Language-Action Model for Capability-Modulated and Steerable Navigation” Mateo Guaman Castro, Sidharth Rajagopal, Daniel Gorbatov, Matt Schmittle, Rohan Baijal, Octi Zhang, Rosario Scalise, Sidharth Talia, Emma Romig, Celso de Melo, Byron Boots, Abhishek Gupta
Runner up: “Dynamic 6DOF VR reconstruction from monocular videos” Baback Elmieh, Steve Seitz, Ira-Kemelmacher, Brian Curless
People’s Choice: “MolmoAct” Jason Lee, Jiafei Duan, Haoquan Fang, Yuquan Deng, Shuo Liu, Boyang Li, Bohan Fang, Jieyu Zhang, Yi Ru Wang, Sangho Lee, Winson Han, Wilbert Pumacay, Angelica Wu, Rose Hendrix, Karen Farley, Eli VanderBilt, Ali Farhadi, Dieter Fox, Ranjay Krishna
Editor’s Note: The University of Washington underwrites GeekWire’s coverage of artificial intelligence. Content is under the sole discretion of the GeekWire editorial team. Learn more about underwritten content on GeekWire.
Shenzhen authorities have dismantled a counterfeit chip operation that allegedly sold reclaimed and rebranded integrated circuits as premium imports from Infineon and others.
Perplexity Patents leverages advanced AI to transform complex patent research into a conversational, accessible experience, democratizing IP intelligence for innovators worldwide.
The market’s patience for capital expenditure, particularly in the burgeoning field of artificial intelligence, has become a defining factor in big tech’s recent earnings reactions. This sentiment was acutely underscored when Eric Sheridan, Goldman Sachs’ Co-Head of Tech, Media, and Telecom Research, joined CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street” team to dissect the third-quarter earnings of […]
The burgeoning demand for data center capacity, fueled by the insatiable appetite for artificial intelligence and cloud computing, is encountering a significant impediment: a critical shortage of skilled labor. CNBC’s Kate Rogers reported on this burgeoning issue, highlighting how the construction and operational needs of these vital infrastructure hubs are being hampered by a lack […]
The recent MIT “State of AI in Business 2025” report, widely circulated and often misinterpreted, claims a staggering 95% failure rate for enterprise AI projects. Far from signaling AI’s inherent flaws, this statistic, as dissected by Y Combinator partners Garry Tan, Harj Taggar, Diana Hu, and Jared Friedman on their Lightcone podcast, illuminates a profound […]
“I do not believe we’re in an AI bubble today,” declared Gavin Baker, Managing Partner and CIO of Atreides Management, setting a provocative tone for his discussion with David George, General Partner at a16z. This assertion, delivered at a16z’s Runtime event, anchored a sharp analysis of the current AI boom, differentiating it starkly from past […]
Google's new initiative in Brazil demonstrates how AI is becoming indispensable for scaling diverse carbon removal technologies, from methane capture to reforestation.
“AI is decimating entry-level jobs.” This stark declaration from Andrew Yang, founder and CEO of Noble Mobile, and former Democratic presidential candidate, cut through the morning bustle of CNBC’s ‘Squawk Box.’ Speaking with interviewers Andrew Ross Sorkin and Becky Quick, Yang offered a compelling commentary on the intertwined forces of technological disruption and political realignment, […]
Ten years into a dream to connect Vancouver, B.C., Seattle and Portland via a high-speed rail line, stakeholders and backers of the mega-project said Wednesday that they’re still very much onboard — and to prepare for a long trip.
With a lengthy and uncertain timeline ahead, former U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood, a speaker at the Cascadia Innovation Corridor conference in Seattle, cautioned many of those in attendance that they likely won’t live long enough to see high-speed rail in the Pacific Northwest.
“When you build big things, they cost big money,” LaHood said. “It took us 50 years to build the interstate system.”
LaHood said the key is to “get on board” now so that “our children and grandchildren” will reap the benefits.
Former U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood, left, discusses high-speed rail with Washington State Sen. Marko Liias onstage at the Cascadia Innovation Corridor annual conference in Seattle on Wednesday. (GeekWire Photo / Kurt Schlosser)
At Cascadia Innovation Corridor’s annual event this week, much of the focus was on how to strengthen the cross-border partnership between three growing cities and numerous locales in between. Leaders discussed ideas around innovation, housing affordability, sustainability, and economic development. They signed a Memorandum of Reaffirmation to solidify commitments.
And Wednesday was about the enhanced transportation connectivity that could help drive it all, and the work that lies ahead in building a coalition of public and political support across the region, securing funding, jumpstarting planning, and more. Even producing videos like the new one below is part of the massive outreach under way.
Former Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire, Cascadia Innovation Corridor’s chair, said that a decade ago, high-speed rail was just an idea. The next decade can be a defining one.
“You would have thought we were thinking of doing something in outer space by the reaction,” she said. “Today, it is much more than an idea, and we are actually moving forward. While we do have a long way to go, as you well know, we’re funding the first phase of planning built on one of the most unique coalitions in North America.”
Envisioning a mega-region akin to Silicon Valley, in which Vancouver, Seattle and Portland are each only an hour apart, Gregoire highlighted the possibilities that could come with high-speed mobility.
“A UW student can intern in Vancouver, a family in Puget Sound can explore a job in Portland, and a cancer researcher in Vancouver can get home for dinner after a shift in Seattle,” she said. “It’s a new way of living, working and connecting, one that expands what’s possible for everyone who calls Cascadia home.”
Former Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire, chair of the Cascadia Innovation Corridor, speaks at the group’s annual conference in Seattle on Wednesday. (GeekWire Photo / Kurt Schlosser)
The pace to make the dream a reality has been anything but high-speed.
In 2017, Microsoft — which has an office in downtown Vancouver — gave $50,000 to a $300,000 effort led by Washington state to study a high-speed train proposal. In 2021, officials from Washington, Oregon and British Columbia signed a memorandum of understanding to form a committee to coordinate the plan.
Last year, the Federal Railroad Administration awarded the Washington State Department of Transportation $49.7 million to develop a service development plan for Cascadia High-Speed Rail. A timeline on WSDOT’s website points to 2028 for estimated completion of that plan, and for 2029 and beyond it simply says, “future phases to be determined.”
Cascadia is not alone in its quest for high-speed rail.
LaHood, a Republican cabinet member in the Obama administration, recalled the former president’s commitment to rail transportation. He said the Trump administration “clawing back” $4 billion in funding for California’s high-speed rail project between San Francisco and Los Angeles should not be considered a “death knell,” despite challenges in that state.
LaHood pointed to Brightline train projects in Florida, connecting Orlando and Miami, and Las Vegas, with a plan to offer high-speed connectivity to Southern California. Another plan in Texas would connect Houston and Dallas. All are evidence, he said, that this mode of transportation is what Americans want in order to avoid clogged highways and airports.
“Once the politicians catch on to what the people want, boom, you get the kind of rail transportation that people are clamoring for,” LaHood said.
Here are highlights from other speakers at the conference on Wednesday:
Chelsea Levy, Cascadia High-Speed Rail project manager for the Washington State Department of Transportation, during the Cascadia Innovation Corridor conference. (GeekWire Photo / Kurt Schlosser)
WSDOT Secretary Julie Meredith pointed to big Seattle transportation infrastructure projects that transformed the city, including the removal of the Alaskan Way Viaduct and construction of the SR 99 waterfront tunnel, as well as the new SR 520 floating bridge. Even as work will continue for years connecting communities via Link light rail, Meredith said, “I so often describe this program as one I’m most excited about, because it’s an opportunity for us to so fundamentally transform our region up and down the I-5 corridor,” Meredith said.
Chelsea Levy, Cascadia High-Speed Rail project manager, said the region can expect a 25% increase in population, or about 3.4 million more people, by 2050. “This pace and magnitude of growth really requires us to act,” Levy said. Among other things, WSDOT will need to integrate with B.C. and Oregon transportation networks and, Levy stressed, the scale and complexity of the project will require a streamlining of permitting processes across the 345-mile mega-region.
Hana Doubrava, a Vancouver-based corporate affairs director at Microsoft, leads the Cascadia initiative for the tech giant. She said the company’s support is not just symbolic, and that Microsoft believes modern, efficient transit and transportation options are essential for improved quality of life. “Cascadia is all about partnerships and relationships — despite the current geopolitics or baseball scores,” she said in a nod to Canada’s team, the Toronto Blue Jays, denying the Seattle Mariners a trip to the World Series.
Could you use a new gaming laptop? If so, there's a great deal available on Dell's Alienware 16 Aurora kitted with the latest-generation CPU and GPU hardware from Intel and NVIDIA, respectively. Or you could wait for the inevitable Black Friday and Cyber Monday discounts to come into view, but why wait when you can score a bargain right now?
If
Astronomers from the International Centre of Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR), primarily based at Curtin University in Australia, have released the most detailed low-frequency radio image of the Milky Way's galactic plane ever assembled. Rather than the starry, luminous band we're more familiar with, the latest images show a vibrant tapestry
With streaming content being watched on bigger displays than ever before, Google wants to ensure that older, lower-resolution videos (think 480p and 720p) don't look janky on your fancy new 4K TV. YouTube is rolling out a suite of creator tools to address that and chief among them is the use of AI to breathe new life into its vast archive
If your router isn't using artificial intelligence in some capacity, is it really a router? The answer is yes, but be that as it may, ASUS Republic of Gamers (ROG) isn't leaving anything to chance with its new flagship Wi-Fi 7 model for gamers, the Rapture GT-BE19000AI. Billed as the "world's first AI gaming router," the device sports a built-in
NVIDIA can add to its long list of accomplishments becoming the first publicly traded company to reach and surpass a $5 trillion market cap as it rides the AI chip boom to new heights. Equally impressive, the sky high valuation comes just a few months after NVIDIA breached the $4 trillion mark, surpassing Apple's previous record of $3.915
The Linux Vendor Firmware Service (LVFS) that goes hand-in-hand with the Fwupd open-source firmware updating utility celebrated the milestone on Wednesday of crossing 135 million firmware updates...
AMD Linux engineers continue to be quite busy working on enabling next-generation Zen 6 processors that will begin shipping next year. The newest patch working its way to the Linux kernel is expanding the range of Zen 6 CPU models detected by the kernel...
More than 800 games and applications feature RTX technologies, and each week new games integrating NVIDIA DLSS, NVIDIA Reflex, and advanced ray-traced effects are released or announced, delivering the definitive PC experience for GeForce RTX players. Last week, The Outer Worlds 2, Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2, and Jurassic World Evolution 3 all launched with day-one support for DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation.
This week, even more DLSS 4 titles join the ever-expanding catalogue of games that run and play best on GeForce RTX, starting with ARC Raiders, which has just launched today with DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation, NVIDIA Reflex, and ray tracing. Later this week, Duet Night Abyss launches with DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation, and Battlefield 6's battle royale mode is available now, accelerated by DLSS 4. Looking to the future, AION 2, CINDER CITY and Directive 8020 are all launching in 2026 with DLSS 4, and we've got new trailers for each that you can check out below.
SAPPHIRE Technology is rolling out the EDGE AI Series, a new line of ultra-compact AI mini PCs designed to bring next-level performance and real-time intelligence to everything from content creation and office productivity to edge analytics and smart automation. Following a soft launch earlier this year, the SAPPHIRE EDGE AI Series is now preparing for full market availability.
At the heart of each system is the powerful AMD Ryzen AI 300 Series processor, combining a high-efficiency multicore CPU, AMD Radeon 800M graphics, and a built-in Neural Processing Unit (NPU) delivering up to 50 TOPS of AI acceleration-all in a sleek, highly compact footprint. From intelligent automation in offices and factories to local AI inference in healthcare and education, this platform is designed for professionals who need real-time AI performance with ultimate flexibility.
Get ready, raiders - the wait is over. ARC Raiders is dropping onto GeForce NOW and bringing the fight from orbit to the screen. To celebrate the launch, gamers can score ARC Raiders for free with the purchase of a 12-month Ultimate membership - a bundle packed with everything needed to jump into the resistance. This week also brings 10 games, including the next big adventure in The Outer Worlds 2, the mystical new "Visions of Eternity" expansion for Guild Wars 2 and Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective, a clever classic from Capcom. Sofia, Bulgaria, is the latest region to get GeForce RTX 5080-class power, with Amsterdam and Montreal coming up next. Stay tuned to GFN Thursday for updates as more regions upgrade to Blackwell RTX. Those who want to follow along can track latest progress on the server rollout page.
The Cloud Suits Up
In ARC Raiders, survival means banding together against overwhelming odds. Set in a retro‑futuristic world under siege, the game blends squad-based strategy with explosive firefights wrapped in a striking '80s-inspired sci-fi style. The story is simple but relentless: mysterious mechanical invaders, the ARC, rain down from orbit to strip Earth bare. Battling them takes teamwork, scavenged weapons and quick thinking across sprawling environments. Every encounter feels like a desperate stand where improvisation and cooperation turn the tide.
MicroProse and Not Knowing Corporation are thrilled to announce that Cleared Hot, the physics-fueled helicopter shooter with tactical flair (and a questionable regard for gravity), will launch into Steam Early Access on November 20, 2025.
Get ready to rain down chaos, sling debris, rescue (or accidentally drop) your squad, and pick up just about anything that isn't bolted to the ground. Cleared Hot brings classic chopper combat into the modern era with fully physics-based gameplay, upgradable helicopters, and the most versatile rope-and-magnet system ever installed on military hardware.
October is a busy month for Endorfy, packed with exciting new releases. After expanding its lineup with a microphone and headphones in the unique Alt Gray color, and just two days after unveiling the white Arx series case - the brand is launching the Zephyr 92 fan. Designed with smaller PC cases in mind, the Zephyr proves that effective cooling doesn't always come in large sizes - sometimes, it's all about smart design. The result is a perfect blend of solid craftsmanship and high performance, wrapped in a clean, minimalist form and offered at an accessible price.
Performance that fits in your hand
At first glance, the Zephyr 92 looks like a classic black fan in a compact size. But take a closer look, and you'll see that every detail, from the blades to the frame, is engineered for maximum efficiency. The result? Smooth airflow and effective cooling, even in small PC cases where every millimeter counts.
LG Display today reported unaudited earnings results based on consolidated K-IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) for the three-month period ending September 30, 2025.
Revenues in the third quarter of 2025 increased by 25% to KRW 6,957 billion from KRW 5,587 billion in the second quarter of 2025 and increased by 2% from KRW 6,821 billion in the third quarter of 2024.
Operating profit in the third quarter of 2025 stood at KRW 431 billion. This compares with the operating loss of KRW 116 billion in the second quarter of 2025 and with the operating loss of KRW 81 billion in the third quarter of 2024.
EBITDA in the third quarter of 2025 increased by 35% to KRW 1,424 billion from KRW 1,054 billion in the second quarter of 2025 and increased by 23% from KRW 1,162 billion in the third quarter of 2024.
Net profit in the third quarter of 2025 was KRW 1 billion, compared with the net profit of 891 billion in the second quarter of 2025 and with the net loss of KRW 338 billion in the third quarter of 2024.
Western Digital has confirmed it is investigating potential problems with some of its older SMR-based hard drives, following reports from multiple data recovery firms about unusually high failure rates. The affected models include 2 TB, 3 TB, 4 TB, and 6 TB WD Blue and Red drives (model numbers WD*0EZAZ, WD*0EDAZ, and WD*0EFAX) released around 2020, products that previously landed the company in a class-action lawsuit over undisclosed use of SMR (Shingled Magnetic Recording) technology. Tom's Hardware reports that Western Digital said in a statement to Heise Online that it takes the findings seriously and that its engineering teams have launched an internal review.
According to 030 Datenrettung Berlin GmbH, which first published the failure analysis, the issue could have its origins in design-level limitations of SMR technology in lower-capacity consumer drives. SMR increases areal density by overlapping data tracks allowing up to 25% more capacity per platter. However, rewriting data can require adjacent tracks to be rewritten as well, introducing latency and potential instability. These shortcomings have long made SMR unsuitable for certain workloads such as RAID or ZFS arrays. Western Digital's earlier decision not to disclose SMR use in these drives led to a $2.7 million lawsuit settlement in 2021. Now, data recovery labs warn that the same models could suffer physical damage and data loss over time. Users with WD Blue or Red drives in the 2-6 TB range from 2020 onward are advised to check their hardware, as early failure symptoms may include unusual clicking or grinding noises from the platters.
After more than a decade of focusing exclusively on mobile platforms, Samsung is finally bringing its Samsung Internet browser to Windows-based PCs. The company announced today that a beta version of the Chromium-based browser will be available for Windows 11 and Windows 10 systems running version 1809 or newer, starting October 30, 2025, in the United States and Korea. It is a significant decision for Samsung, which has maintained a mobile-first approach since the browser's inception, essentially leaving desktop users out in the cold while millions enjoyed the experience on their Galaxy devices. Additionally, it shows that Samsung may venture into more applications as the local AI integration takes off.
The desktop version is designed to create a unified browsing ecosystem across Samsung's product lineup, letting users carry their digital experience seamlessly between phones and computers. Users who log in with their Samsung Account will have their bookmarks, browsing history, and saved passwords synchronized through Samsung Pass, which should make authentication and form filling straightforward across devices. The browser also brings intelligent features powered by Galaxy AI, including Browsing Assist, which can summarize web pages and translate content on the fly. For those switching between their Galaxy phone and PC, the browser will prompt them to pick up where they left off, eliminating the hassle of hunting down tabs across different devices.
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Check out all of the photos captured on the latest Pixel series phones at the Mexico City celebration. 
The Military Police of the State of São Paulo (PMESP) chose Android Enterprise to easily and quickly deploy and protect data for its 10,000 police vehicles. By adopting … 
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Mixboard is an experimental, AI-powered concepting board designed to help you explore, expand and refine your ideas. You can bring your own images, or use AI to generate… 
We’re introducing a new logs and datasets feature in Google AI Studio. 
