Ira Glass and Ariel Shapiro on stage at Hot Pod Summit. | Alexa Hoyer This is Hot Pod, The Verge’s newsletter about podcasting and the audio industry. Sign up here for more.Hello! I have almost recovered from Hot Pod Summit. Thank you so much to everyone who came out this year. People from across the industry showed up ready to talk business, and we had a lot of lively and challenging discussions about advertising and business models. Did we solve all of the podcasting’s troubles? Hardly, but I know I am feeling more optimistic about the future of the industry. Below, I have some key takeaways from the events of the day.I also made my first appearance at On Air Fest interviewing Freakonomics Radio host Stephen Dubner. It was a lot of fun to talk craft (plus business, obviously) and get his perspective... Continue reading…

Mini PCs are interesting devices, particularly because they're so much more versatile than a conventional full ATX or even micro ATX PC. They're easy to transport, often consume less power, and typically have inconspicuous designs. While the Ayaneo Retro Mini PC AM02 doesn't quite have such a muted design as some other mini PCs, it makes for a great mini PC. Even better, it makes for a great console, and as the company also points out, it can even work well as a NAS.

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge A federal grand jury has indicted a Google engineer, Linwei Ding, aka Leon Ding, for allegedly stealing trade secrets around Google’s AI chip software and hardware on March 5th, before he was arrested Wednesday morning in Newark, California. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said in a statement that Ding “stole from Google over 500 confidential files containing AI trade secrets while covertly working for China-based companies seeking an edge in the AI technology race.” Much of the stolen data allegedly revolves around Google’s tensor processing unit (TPU) chips. Google’s TPU chips power many of its AI workloads and, in conjunction with Nvidia GPUs, can train and run AI models like Gemini. The company has also offered access to the... Continue reading…

If you dive deep enough into the world of hobbyist tinkering, you'll find a ton of Raspberry Pi projects that you never considered possible before. Just when you thought that Raspberry Pi hobbyists have managed to peak, someone finds a way to use the tech for even more incredible things. Such is the case of someone who figured out a way to wire up a kalimba through a Raspberry Pi Pico, turning the instrument into a cool MIDI piano.

When buying a new laptop, you might notice a specific "Intel Evo" badge or brand somewhere on the PC or on the product page. As the Intel name suggests, it's a platform that's tied in with the processor (CPU), first introduced in 2020 with Intel's 11th Gen chips and extending through to the latest Core Ultra mobile CPUs.

While Generative AI (GenAI) is a particularly impressive and useful technology in the right hands, it can be used for malicious purposes by bad actors. Companies that develop GenAI tools typically build guardrails around their products to prevent malicious actors from misusing the technology, but even those are circumvented sometimes. This means that firms and services that can potentially be negatively impacted by AI software also need to have protection against this kind of use. Now, Google has announced some ways it will combat AI-generated spam and low-quality content in search results.

Target is launching Target Circle 360, a $99 annual subscription that will offer free, unlimited delivery and rush shipping on online orders. First announced during Target’s earnings call on Tuesday, the new plan will rival similar offerings by Walmart and Amazon that axe shipping costs for an annual fee. Target Circle 360 members will receive free two-day shipping and free same-day delivery on orders $35 and up. The plan will debut on Aprill 7, and will be priced at $49 until May 18 as a launch promotion. This isn’t Target’s first entry into paid subscriptions. In fact, Target Circle 360 doesn’t appear to be a new plan as much as a rebranding and upgrade of its current delivery offerings. Shipt, which is owned by Target, already offers... Continue reading…

Logitech's MX lineup has been a reliable option for home and office users for a while, including useful peripherals like keyboards and mice. But there hasn't been a webcam in the MX lineup until today, when Logitech announced the MX Brio 4K. It's a spiritual successor to the Logitech Brio, which is the 4K webcam the company introduced back in 2017. Now firmly part of the MX lineup, the new MX Brio 4K has the build quality and premium feature set to match other MX products. That includes an aluminum build, a versatile mounting clip, and a larger camera sensor size.

It can be annoying when an AI generates a prompt that's almost there. Perhaps a specific section seems a bit off, or it goes on for a little too long. Fortunately, Google has updated its Gemini AI to allow you to re-generate any part of a prompt that you're unsure about.

Cath Virginia / The Verge The European Union is attempting to loosen the grip that companies like Apple, Microsoft, and Google have over the digital economy. Tech giants targeted by the Digital Markets Act (DMA) — a law passed in 2022 aiming to make the tech industry less monopolistic — are required to remove unfair competitive advantages that have let them dominate their respective markets by March 6th. But some experts believe the status quo is unlikely to shift. Many of these companies have announced compliance plans in response to the DMA, and for the most part, these changes — as one might expect from a plan crafted by the company itself — are unlikely to result in a loss of power. And then there’s Apple, which appears to be engaging in outright malicious... Continue reading…

I’m the most shocked that I enjoyed the app. | Image: Headspace, Meta I am not a chill person, but I would like to be. It’s why I keep trying various meditation tech, breathing in and out as abstract graphics or disembodied voices guide me to a higher state of being. Or that’s what would happen if most meditation tech worked for me. So trust me when I say I expected nothing from Headspace XR.When the pandemic struck, meditation and mindfulness apps like Headspace were everywhere. Totally makes sense. Yet meditating in VR? It sounds ridiculous. Why would I breathe in a headset when I could just... not. But you never know! Things could surprise you! That’s why I, the meditation skeptic, agreed to try a demo of Headspace XR. Walking into Meta’s New York office, I thought I’d stick on the headset and nod... Continue reading…

Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images Just one day after Meta’s network went offline for a while, LinkedIn was inaccessible around the world, cutting off job listings, resumes, and even influencers. DownDetector started noting reports of problems after 3:45PM ET.Both the apps and website went offline temporarily, while LinkedIn’s status page confirmed the issues with a message posted at 4:04PM ET saying, “Some members may be experiencing issues on LinkedIn. We’re actively working on this and will provide updates as we have them. Thanks for your patience!” As of 5:05PM ET, the most recent message says, “This has now been resolved and we’re back up and running. Apologies for any inconvenience caused and thanks for your patience!”Sorry about the interruption. We're back up... Continue reading…