Today, the same day that Meta announced that it will soon use your AI chats to personalize the ads it shows you, Instagram head Adam Mosseri made a “myth busting” video attempting to set the record straight on a persistent rumor about Meta: “I swear, we do not listen to your microphone,” he says.Meta’s ad targeting systems can be eerily precise, sometimes showing you things that you feel like you’ve only discussed in a verbal conversation and would only be possible for Meta to know about if it was listening through a device’s microphone. It’s a perception that Meta has been trying to push back on for years:In 2016, the company, then known as Facebook, said that it “does not use your phone’s microphone to inform ads or to change what you see in News Feed.”In a 2018 Senate hearing, CEO Mark Zuckerberg responded to the question on the topic with a direct “no.”In a support document titled “are Facebook and Instagram listening to your conversations without your knowledge?”, Meta says, “No. We do not use your microphone unless you’ve given us permission, and even then, we only use it when you’re actively using a feature that requires the microphone.”In Wednesday’s video, Mosseri says he’s had “a lot” of passionate conversations about the topic, including “at least a few” with his wife. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Adam Mosseri (@mosseri)“We do not listen to you,” according to Mosseri. “We do not use the phone’s microphone to eavesdrop on you.” Listening to you through your phone’s microphone “would be a gross violation of privacy” and would drain your phone’s battery, he says.Mosseri also offers a few possible explanations of why you “might see an ad for something that you recently talked to somebody about,” which I’ve block-quoted below:One, maybe you actually tapped on something that was related or even searched for that product online on a website, maybe before you had that conversation. We actually do work with advertisers who share information with us about who is on their website to try to target those people with ads. So if you were looking at a product on a website, then that advertiser might have paid us to reach you with an ad.Two, we show people ads that we think that they’re interested in, or products we think they’re interested in, in part based on what their friends are interested in and what similar people with similar interests are interested in. So it could be that you were talking to someone about a product, and they, before, had to actually looked for or searched for that product, or that, in general, people with similar interests were doing the exact same thing.Three, you might have actually seen that ad before you had a conversation and not realized it. We scroll quickly, we scroll by ads quickly, and sometimes you internalize some of that, and that actually affects what you talk about later.Four, random chance, coincidence, it happens.Still, despite his video, Mosseri seemingly expects this rumor to persist. “I know some of you are just not going to believe me, no matter how much I try to explain it,” he says. And many comments on the video are skeptical of the explanation: “That is exactly what I would say if I was listening to people’s conversations,” according to one of the most-liked comments.

Photo editing can get messy fast, it certainly does for me. I reach for one app for cropping, another for filters, another for retouching, and before I know it, my work is scattered across my desktop. Not to mention file storage — I have image duplicates and editing iterations in almost every folder. I thought that hoarding photo editing apps would give me more and better options, but it only ended up complicating things. Something had to give.

In windswept, remote Thacker Pass in the far northern reaches of Nevada, a massive lithium mine has drawn impassioned protest from local Indigenous peoples, ranchers, and environmentalists. | Photo: Getty Images Donald Trump’s administration is taking a 5 percent equity ownership of mining company Lithium Americas, on top of another 5 percent stake in the company’s joint mining project with GM in Nevada, the Department of Energy announced yesterday. The mine at Thacker Pass is expected to become the largest producer of lithium in the Western Hemisphere once it opens in 2028. Lithium is a crucial component in batteries used for electric vehicles, wind and solar energy storage, and rechargeable devices of all kinds. Both the Biden and Trump administrations have sought to wean the US off foreign imports of lithium. This announcement is the latest step President Trump has taken to assert more control over domestic supply chains for key materials.The latest step President Trump has taken to assert more control over domestic supply chains for key materialsThe Thacker Pass mine is supposed to produce around 40,000 metric tons of lithium carbonate annually for batteries once it’s fully operational. US production of lithium is currently under 5,000 metric tons. For comparison, China — the third-biggest lithium producer after Australia and Chile — already produces 40,000 metric tons annually. The mine has been under construction since 2023, following fierce opposition from nearby Native American tribes. Human Rights Watch and the American Civil Liberties Union found that the federal government’s permitting of the mine violated Indigenous peoples’ rights in a February 2025 report, alleging it failed to obtain “free, prior, and informed consent” from affected tribes. Ranchers and environmental groups concerned about the mine’s impact on local water sources and endangered species have also opposed the project.  Lithium Americas secured a $2.26 billion loan agreement with the Biden administration in October 2024. In restructuring the loan, the Department of Energy says the revised agreement includes more than $100 million of new equity. Energy Secretary Chris Wright told Bloomberg Television that the US needed to take an equity stake to ensure the mine’s viability as lithium prices drop worldwide.The Trump administration has taken similar moves with other companies lately. It took a 10 percent stake in Intel, the company announced in August. And in July, MP Materials, the only producer of rare earth minerals in the US, announced that the US Department of Defense would become its largest shareholder with a 15 percent stake in the company.

The UK government is reportedly once again demanding that Apple provide it with backdoor access to encrypted iCloud user data, following claims that the effort had been abandoned in August. The Financial Times reports that a new technical capability notice (TCN) was issued by the UK Home Office in early September, this time specifically targeting access to British citizens’ iCloud backups.This follows the UK issuing a broader secret order in January, demanding that Apple create a backdoor for security officials to access global encrypted user files. While it’s a criminal offense to reveal the existence of these secret TCN orders, Apple responded by filing an appeal and removing a feature, Advanced Data Protection, its end-to-end encrypted iCloud storage, from the UK. After facing pressure from the US regarding potential violations of the Cloud Act, it was announced by US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard that Britain had rescinded the order.“The UK has agreed to drop its mandate for Apple to provide a ‘back door’ that would have enabled access to the protected encrypted data of American citizens and encroached on our civil liberties,” Gabbard posted to X on August 19th. While US officials raised concerns about the order during President Trump’s state visit to the UK last month, according to The Financial Times, the publication reports that two senior British government figures said the UK was no longer facing US pressure to drop its demands.We have reached out to Apple for comment. The UK Home Office declined to comment on the situation.The UK’s revived attempt to bypass Apple’s data encryption has sparked concerns that security and privacy may still be impacted for users worldwide. “If Apple breaks end-to-end encryption for the UK, it breaks it for everyone,” said Privacy International, a non-profit privacy watchdog. “The resulting vulnerability can be exploited by hostile states, criminals and other bad actors the world over.”

On Monday, I watched OpenAI CEO Sam Altman drink from a gigantic mango-flavored juice box and remark aloud about how the box was half his size. The catch: It wasn't really Altman. The juice box wasn't real. He wasn't really talking. It was a deepfake generated by AI. The most concerning part: I couldn't tell whether or not it was real. OpenAI announced Sora 2, its new AI video- and audio-generation system, on Tuesday, and in a briefing with reporters on Monday, employees called it the potential "ChatGPT moment for video generation." Just like ChatGPT, Sora 2 is being released as a way for consumers to play around with a new AI tool - one …Read the full story at The Verge.

The ceramic rings will cost $499 and come in all available sizes. Oura isn’t launching a fifth-gen smart ring this year. Instead, it’s zhuzhing up its lineup with colorful ceramic versions of its Oura Ring 4.The ceramic rings start at $499, and will come in four colors: midnight (teal), petal (pink), tide (mint green), and cloud (white). The rings utilize zirconia ceramic, which Oura says it chose for its durability. Supposedly, Oura says that the ceramic is so hard, that it can cause some metals to scuff. On the plus side, the color is isn’t a coating unlike some of the metal finishes, meaning there’s no fading over time. This was a problem I had with the rose gold Oura Ring Gen 3, which started to look notably less rosy over the course of a few months.The ceramic rings are thicker at 3.51mm compared to the regular 2.88mm fourth-gen ring. They’re slightly heavier, too, ranging from 5.1 to 8.1g compared to 3.3 to 5.2g. Otherwise, the width, the inner side of the ring, as well as the sensors are identical to the Oura Ring 4. They’ll be available in all sizes, ranging from size 4 to size 15. Oura’s clearly appealing to people with a more playful sense of fashion — as well as planting the idea that some folks may want to own multiple rings to fit various occasions. To that end, Oura is introducing multi-ring device support, meaning you’ll be able to switch between two rings more easily within the app. This is similar to what Apple does with its Apple Watches, where you can swap between multiple models if you happen to own more than one. Oura is also introducing a device recycling program, where you can send in older rings once you upgrade.Perhaps more exciting is the fact that Oura is finally introducing a $99 charging case as an add-on accessory. Each case is specific to your ring size, but will hold up to 5 full charges and can juice a ring from zero to 100 percent in about 90 minutes. (The case itself also takes about 90 minutes to fully charge.) The case is made from aluminum, has a charging indicator light, and charges via USB-C. Lastly, Oura is adding a new feature called Health Panels. From the app, users will be able to schedule a blood test with a local Quest Diagnostics location. Once the results are in, they can view roughly 50 biomarkers from the app relating to cardiovascular and metabolic health. Users can consult with Oura Advisor, the company’s AI chatbot, about their results within the app — though the bot isn’t allowed to give any diagnostic or medical advice. It’s more like the bot can tell you whether your results appear to be within normal ranges, and tips how to improve certain markers. Tests cost $99, are FSA/HSA eligible, and are reviewed by a licensed healthcare provider. Health Panels is only launching in the US for now, though state-level and regulatory restrictions mean it’ll be unavailable to users in Arizona, Hawaii, New Jersey, New York, and Rhode Island.Whoop announced a similar feature earlier this summer, which also aims to help users get blood tests that are then reviewed by a clinician. That feature has yet to launch. However, it’s notable that both Whoop and Oura — both companies known for emphasizing recovery and using science in their marketing — are leaning into this aspect of health tracking.

This is one of those laptops that's absolutely massive, but also packs all the power you need to play the best games out right now. It features a large 18-inch screen with a 240Hz refresh rate, an AMD Ryzen 9 9955HX processor, 32GB of DDR5 RAM, 2TB of SSD storage, and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 Ti graphics card. So when we say that this thing can handle anything you throw at it, we really mean it. Naturally, it carries an eye-watering $2,700 price tag, but for a very limited time, you can save $700 off.

For any serious writer, finding the perfect writing environment is always a constant struggle. We are often left with choosing an expensive subscription, dealing with bloated word processors, or settling for something simple but lacking in features. This is precisely where Manuskript shines.

The Q16 HE 8K is visually unassuming but its all-ceramic build will be noticeable when handled. The latest product from China-based mechanical keyboard specialist Keychron is a functional ceramic artpiece you can type on. The Q16 HE 8K is the “first-to-market full-ceramic build keyboard,” according to Keychron’s press release, pairing custom analog magnetic switches with niche kiln-fired materials to provide a “distinct tactile and auditory profile unlike metal or plastic.”Keychron is launching the Q16 HE 8K via a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign — which is pretty typical for specialist keyboard hardware — starting at $229.99 for early backers. It comes in a 65 percent layout and is available in blue or minty white color options. The estimated delivery for Kickstarter orders is currently set for November 2025. There are already companies like Cerakey that provide ceramic keycaps, but Keychron’s Q16 HE 8K goes a step further by having both a full ceramic body and keycaps. The ceramic material is described as durable, scratch-resistant, and suitable for day-to-day reliability. It’s probably not ideal for users who need something portable, and that durability likely won’t extend to surviving being dropped, but it may appeal to careful keyboard enthusiasts looking for something a little unique.The Q16 HE 8K features an 8,000Hz polling rate and adjustable actuation sensitivity up to 0.01mm for setting personalized controls. The keyboard also includes Keychron’s custom Ultra-Fast Lime switches built with Tunneling Magnetoresistance (TMR) technology, a type of Hall effect switch that uses magnetic induction to improve accuracy and power efficiency. Keychron says this TMR tech enables faster and more precise inputs compared to traditional Hall effect switches.“Great keyboards should feel fast, sound great, and look like objects worth keeping,” said Keychron’s operations head, Paul Tan. “With Q16 HE 8K, we explored ceramic for everyday use, then matched it with magnetic sensing and 8K performance so users get both a new material experience and elite speed.”

Motor traffic in Long Beach, California, as the sun sets behind a reddish veil of smog on Wednesday, September 20th, 2023. | Photo: Getty Images Americans will pay more at the pump if Donald Trump succeeds in tossing out tailpipe pollution regulations, a new analysis shows. That’s on top of job and GDP losses that could result from stifling innovation in cleaner transportation. The Trump administration wants to do away with the Environmental Protection Agency’s ability to regulate greenhouse gas emissions, policies that have encouraged carmakers to manufacture more fuel-efficient cars and electric vehicles over time. Trump has misleadingly cast the climate pollution standards as an “EV mandate” that would force consumers to buy more costly electric cars. But Americans could wind up paying up to $310 billion extra over the next 25 years without those rules, mostly in higher gasoline prices, according to a report published today by nonpartisan climate policy think tank Energy Innovation. Broken down by household, each household is likely to pay an average of $83 extra each year in energy costs over that time period.It’s all pretty simple, really. Rolling back pollution standards stops people from adopting cleaner, more fuel efficient technologies. Burn more fuel, pay for more gas, live in a less healthy environment. “This will have an adverse impact not just on the US economy, but at the household level, at the kitchen-table level.”“When you are putting fewer efficient electric vehicles on the road, you’re also driving up demand for gasoline and diesel. And as a result of that, households are going to be paying more to drive,” says Sara Baldwin, senior director of electrification at Energy Innovation. “This will have an adverse impact not just on the US economy, but at the household level, at the kitchen-table level.”Following evidence that planet-heating pollution endangers public health, the Environmental Protection Agency has regulated greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act. Automakers might meet those requirements by developing more efficient chassis, cleaner-burning engines, or designing and selling more electric vehicles. Then in July, the Trump administration proposed rescinding the scientifically backed endangerment finding, which would ultimately repeal greenhouse gas emission limits for vehicles. Today also marks the end of the Biden-era EV tax credit that Republicans voted to sunset early this year.Energy Innovation modeled the potential impact of finalizing that proposal to get rid of greenhouse gas standards for cars and trucks (you can see how its open-source model works here). They take into account factors including rising electricity costs in the US and higher upfront costs for electric vehicles, neither of which are enough to wipe out the economic benefits that come with a cleaner transportation sector. Pushing companies to design more efficient vehicles winds up pumping more money into the economy, perhaps going toward hiring more scientists or designing new chassis using new materials. “That money gets passed around the economy and that results in more jobs, both from the automotive sector [and] also in steel manufacturing and aluminum manufacturing,” says Dan O’Brien, a senior modeling analyst at Energy Innovation. There’s less of that when automakers keep selling the same old gas-guzzlers rather than designing more efficient vehicles. Eliminating the greenhouse gas tailpipe standards could lead to cumulative losses in GDP of $710 billion by 2050, the report says. The labor force could also see 110,000 fewer jobs annually over the next 25 years compared to a future that keeps those standards in place. Then there are the health costs that come with pollution. While electric vehicles still create particle pollution from the wear and tear of roads and tires, getting rid of tailpipe emissions cuts carbon dioxide plus soot and smog-forming pollutants. Repealing the greenhouse gas standards could lead to as many as 700 pollution-related premature deaths per year, the analysis finds.The report says that zero-emission vehicles would make up a smaller percentage of new car sales in 2035 if the greenhouse gas tailpipe standards are repealed; 55 percent of new light-duty vehicle sales by 2035 compared to 70 percent if the standards stay in place. With higher demand for oil inflating prices at the pump, Energy Innovation estimates a 6-cent-per-gallon increase in the price of gas by 2030, rising to 36 cents per gallon in 2040, and 31 cents per gallon in 2050. It all adds up over time; an average household could spend as much as $400 more on gasoline by 2043, according to Energy Innovation’s analysis.The Trump administration has its own contested estimates of the economic impact of eliminating the endangerment finding based on limited data. The EPA analysis claims that repealing all greenhouse gas regulations — for vehicles, power plants, and everything else — would save $54 billion annually. But that doesn’t include costs incurred by the consequences of climate change. It also assumes lower gas prices and only takes into account two and a half years of fuel savings, Baldwin points out. Consumers are considering a longer timeline for fuel costs when buying a car, she says, and gas prices are subject to global market pressures beyond US control. “To assume that we’re going to see lower gas prices in the future … when you’re increasing demand for that product, that just runs counter to what basic economics tells us,” Baldwin says.

Home Assistant follows a monthly release cadence, typically where the first Wednesday of every month brings a new update, and the last Wednesday of every month is the beta for that release. October's update is now here and rolling out to every user.

Apple has hit back at Elon Musk over his claims its partnership with OpenAI to build ChatGPT directly into the iPhone is stunting AI industry competition. In court documents filed on Tuesday and seen by Bloomberg, Apple’s lawyers asked a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit filed by Musk’s companies xAI and X Corp, decrying claims they have been harmed as “speculation on top of speculation.” In August, Musk’s companies filed a lawsuit accusing Apple of rigging App Store rankings against chatbots and apps competing with OpenAI, including Grok and X. Apple’s lawyers said Musk’s AI and social media companies had done nothing to “plausibly” stand up their allegations, explaining that the agreement with OpenAI is “expressly not exclusive.” In any instance, Apple’s lawyers said it is also “widely known that Apple intends to partner with other generative AI chatbots,” adding that competition law does not require it to simultaneously partner “with every other generative AI chatbot” on the market, regardless of quality.