Senators ask FTC to investigate Tesla’s ‘Full Self-Driving’ promises

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

Senators Ed Markey (D-MA) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) have asked new Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan to investigate Tesla’s marketing of its advanced driver assistance system, Autopilot. The Senators are particularly concerned with how Tesla has been charging customers thousands of dollars for what it refers to as “Full Self-Driving capability,” despite the fact that buying that package does not make the company’s cars fully autonomous.

“Tesla’s marketing has repeatedly overstated the capabilities of its vehicles, and these statements increasingly pose a threat to motorists and other users of the road,” the senators wrote in a letter published Wednesday. “Accordingly, we urge you to open an investigation into potentially...

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The Taliban may have seized biometric data that can ID US allies in Afghanistan

Photo by John Moore/Getty Images

The US military created a vast database of biometric data — one report suggests it had a goal of 25 million entries — as part of its effort to track terrorists in Afghanistan. Now that the US has withdrawn from the country, reports from The Interceptand Reuters suggest the Taliban could potentially use it to target allies left behind.

As The Intercept notes, the collection of biometric data was primarily billed as a military project, but Afghan civilians who worked for US embassies and the broader coalition government were reportedly also included in the database. The biometric information that could be on file for those people varies: the Handheld Interagency Identity Detection Equipment (HIIDE) used by the military collects...

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Apple’s been playing it too MagSafe

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

It’s been almost a year since Apple first debuted the iPhone 12 lineup, and introduced its MagSafe accessory system. So where are all the MagSafe chargers?

Don’t get me wrong. There are plenty of accessory developers making cases, wallets, car mounts, desk stands, and even magnetic Qi chargers and battery packs that work with MagSafe — but almost no actual MagSafe accessories.

And that’s a big difference because of how Apple has designed the MagSafe standard. Anyone can wirelessly charge an iPhone 12 device using a Qi charger at Apple’s standard rate of 7.5W. Magnets, being a physical phenomenon, are even more universal, meaning that device manufacturers can easily stick an iPhone 12 and a Qi charger together. (Many already have.)

...

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How the minds behind Rez and Death Stranding turned virtual worlds into physical spaces

“Together the distance between (us)” by thatgamecompany and FIELD.IO. | Photo: Marina Bay Sands.

At Virtual Realms: Videogames Transformed, game designers tackle a new realm

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How to turn off unwanted ‘memories’ in Apple Photos, Google Photos, and Facebook

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

The memory machines that Apple, Facebook, and Google have built to remind us of our favorite moments can, like any algorithmic creation, serve up subpar output. Instead of evoking recollections of those times we felt like we were living our best lives, they can invoke the low points of our existence — a miserable job, a rotten commute, a bad breakup, or the death of a loved one.

Apple Photos, Facebook, and Google Photos provide tools to manage what their “memories” features can push out to you. But these settings to control what pictures and posts get algorithmically bubbled up to your screen aren’t always easy to find — even, in some situations, after these apps have presented a gut-punch of a reminder.

Here’s how to control, at least...

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Waymo is building a hub for its autonomous trucks in Texas

Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge

Waymo announced plans to build a hub for its autonomous semi-trailer trucks on a nine-acre site near Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas. The Alphabet-owned company also said it is partnering with rental truck company Ryder on fleet management as it looks to grow the delivery and logistics portion of its business.

The hub in South Dallas will be Waymo’s “primary operations center” in the state for its fleet of autonomous trucks. The hub will be built to accommodate “hundreds of trucks and personnel” as the company gets closer to launching a full-scale freight-hauling operation using its fully autonomous vehicles — though Waymo has yet to say exactly when that will be.

“primary operations center”

Currently, Waymo is testing the fifth generation of...

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Twelve Minutes is a strange interactive thriller that’s better with friends

I’m not sure I could’ve solved the intricate mystery of Twelve Minutes on my own. The interactive thriller — which boasts a star-studded cast including James McAvoy, Daisy Ridley, and Willem Dafoe — forces players to relive the same short span of time repeatedly. Over that time you’ll die repeatedly at the hands of Dafoe, but during each loop you’ll also pick up some tiny new breadcrumb of information to help explain what’s happening. It can be frustrating, with fiddly controls and an ending that goes completely off the rails. But as a group experience, it’s a lot of fun; even though it’s technically a single-player game, I found myself sharing ideas and theories with my partner, and it was helpful having an extra pair of eyes to spot...

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Apple’s attempt at podcast subscriptions is off to a messy start

Bugs and design flaws

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Water shortages loom over future semiconductor fabs in Arizona

In an aerial view. an empty water trough in the desert that has been recently visited by wild burros is seen on July 7, 2021 near Yucca, Arizona. Large portions of the West are now classified as being in exceptional drought, the most extreme drought category.  | Photo by David McNew/Getty Images

Major semiconductor manufacturers looking to expand in Arizona will likely be spared from water cuts induced by an unprecedented water shortage in the Southwest, at least for now.As part of the scramble to end a shortage of another kind — the global dearth in semiconductor chips — both Intel and TSMC plan to open new facilities in Arizona. But they’re setting up shop just as one of the worst droughts in decades grows worse across the Western US.

Federal authorities officially declared a shortage on the Colorado River for the first time ever this week, which will trigger water cuts in several states and Mexico starting January 1st, 2022. The shortage is at the Hoover Dam’s Lake Mead, the largest reservoir in the US and a huge source of...

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COVID-19 booster shots will be offered to Americans in September, Biden administration says

Photo by Steve Pfost/Newsday RM via Getty Images

Everyone in the United States who got a COVID-19 vaccine will need a booster shot to keep protection from fading, the Biden administration said today. Vaccinated Americans will be offered boosters eight months after their initial shots. Plans are that the first round will be offered in September and will go to nursing home residents, health care workers, and others vaccinated early.

The current proposal only includes the Pfizer / BioNTech and Moderna vaccines. Officials say they’re expecting additional data to guide decision making around boosters for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine in the coming weeks.

It’s a reversal from early July, when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA)...

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Pokémon Legends: Arceus’ latest trailer shows off big changes for battles

Nintendo

Nintendo announced a ton of new information for the hotly anticipated Pokémon Legends: Arceus during today’s _Pokémon_Presents showcase. In addition to covering a new battle system, new regional pokémon, and the new skills trainers will need to catch ‘em all, Nintendo also released a brand-new, beautiful trailer.

_Pokémon Legend: Arceus_takes place in the Hisui region — a natural paradise filled with different ecosystems and stuffed all kinds of regional pokémon. Your goal is to help the Galaxy Expedition Team study and catalog the pokémon of the region by compiling the very first Pokédex.

Nintendo offered a glimpse into Pokémon Legends: Arceus’battle system, which combines classic pokémon gameplay with a couple of new twists. One new...

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T-Mobile data breach exposed the personal info of more than 47 million people

Photo by John Lamparski/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

T-Mobile has released more information about its most recent data breach, and while the company’s findings fall short of the reported 100 million records, the numbers are staggering.

While saying its investigation is still ongoing, the company confirmed that records of over 40 million “former or prospective customers” who had previously applied for credit and 7.8 million postpaid customers (those who currently have a contract) were stolen. In its last earnings report (PDF), T-Mobile said it had over 104 million customers.

The data in the stolen files contained critical personal information included first and last names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, and driver’s license / ID numbers — the kind of information you could use to...

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Galaxy Watch 4 review: welcome to Samsung’s garden

It’s Google’s new smartwatch OS, but it’s Samsung’s watch

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Apple’s child-abuse scanner has serious flaw, researchers say

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Researchers have found a flaw in iOS’s built-in hash function, raising new concerns about the integrity of Apple’s CSAM-scanning system. The flaw affects the hashing system, called NeuralHash, which allows Apple to check for exact matches of known child-abuse imagery without possessing any of the images or gleaning any information about non-matching pictures.

On Tuesday, a GitHub user called Asuhariet Ygvar posted code for a reconstructed Python version of NeuralHash, which he claimed to have reverse-engineered from previous versions of iOS. The GitHub post also includes instructions on how to extract the NeuralMatch files from a current macOS or iOS build.

“Early tests show that it can tolerate image resizing and compression, but not...

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What to expect from Tesla’s AI day event

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Recruitment, robots, and really powerful supercomputers

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Pokémon Unite is coming to iOS and Android on September 22nd

Image: Nintendo

Pokémon Unite, the five-versus-five MOBA game that released in July for the Nintendo Switch, will debut on iOS and Android devices on September 22nd. The Pokémon Company shared today during a livestream that you can pre-register for the mobile game now on your respective devices (iOS, Android). You’ll be notified when it’s officially available to download.

Whether you play Pokémon Unite on mobile or a Nintendo Switch, the game will offer cross-platform play to broaden who you can play alongside or against. By linking your account on both the Switch version and the mobile game, you’ll be able to have cross-progression, which will allow you to play the game with your saved data and characters on whichever device is more convenient.

#...

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Asus’ special edition Zephyrus G14 comes with its own DJ deck

Can you spot the Alan Walker logo?

If there’s one company I trust to do a good job with utterly ridiculous computer ideas, it’s Asus. Last fall, the company worked with cyberpunky fashion designer Acronym to make possibly the weirdest-looking gaming laptop I’ve ever seen (the ZPHYRS G14 ACRNM). This year, it’s partnered with popular DJ Alan Walker to create a less avant-garde, more musical version of the same device. This is the Zephyrus G14 Alan Walker Edition, a laptop for gamers, DJs, and (ideally) gamer DJs.

The insides of this laptop are nothing ROG fans haven’t seen before. There’s only one configuration, selling for $1,999.99, which includes an AMD Ryzen 5900HS processor and a low-end GeForce RTX 3050 Ti graphics card, as well as a QHD 120Hz screen, 16GB of RAM,...

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Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl look adorable in new trailer

At a Pokémon-focused livestream, Nintendo revealed a trailer showing off the absolutely adorable new look for Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and _Shining Pearl._The clip gave a good overview of the world itself, along with some of the enhanced elements, like what sounds like a nice orchestral mix for the score. You can also decorate pokéballs with stickers now, and — finally — actually change your outfit in-game.

Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl are remakes of the 2006 Nintendo DS titles Diamond and Pearl. The new versions feature a much-changed chibi art style, along with “some of the player-friendly features of modern Pokémon games,” according to Nintendo. That includes a fan-favorite feature where a pokémon can follow you as you explore...

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Samsung’s new Galaxy Buds 2 are already $25 off at Woot

Image: Samsung

Samsung announced the Galaxy Buds 2 wireless earbuds last week, so it’s a surprise that Woot is already offering a sizable discount on them. Normally priced at $150, you can snag a set in the graphite, white, lavender, or olive colorways for $125. In case you were worried there might be a catch — well, there is one. These don’t come with a Samsung warranty. Instead, you’ll get a 90-day warranty through Woot against hardware defects. If that’s not a deal-breaker for you, this could be a deal that’s worth jumping on.

My colleague Chris Welch recently reviewed them, and compared to the first-gen Galaxy Buds, these have added active noise cancellation. He says that the areas where Samsung made the biggest improvements, though, are with the...

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Pinterest is adding search filters for different hair textures

Pinterest’s new hair pattern search feature. | Image: Pinterest

Pinterest is launching a search tool to help people narrow their hair inspiration searches by hair pattern. When users search for hairstyles, new filter options — for coily, curly, wavy, and straight textures, as well as shaved / bald and protective styles — will appear under the search bar.

The filters should be particularly useful for people of color looking for styles tailored to their hair textures, and Pinterest says they were created with Black, brown, and Latinx people in mind. “Just the simple idea that I don’t have to work twice as hard to find a hairstyle because of my hair type is a game changer,” says Naeemah LaFond, an editorial hair stylist and global artistic director of the Amika hair care brand, who advised Pinterest...

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Microsoft is making it harder to switch default browsers in Windows 11

Microsoft’s upcoming release of Windows 11 will make it even harder to switch default browsers and ignores browser defaults in new areas of the operating system. While Microsoft is making many positive changes to the Windows 11 UI, the default apps experience is a step back and browser competitors like Mozilla, Opera, and Vivaldi are concerned.

In Windows 11, Microsoft has changed the way you set default apps. Like Windows 10, there’s a prompt that appears when you install a new browser and open a web link for the first time. It’s the only opportunity to easily switch browsers, though. Unless you tick “always use this app,” the default will never be changed. It’s incredibly easy to forget to toggle the “always use this app” option, or...

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Among Us devs aren’t happy with Fortnite’s blatant copying

Epic Games launched _Fortnite: Impostors_yesterday, a new mode that copies the Among Us game mechanics. While Among Us, the multiplayer game that soared in popularity at the start of the pandemic, was free on the Epic Games Store recently, Epic didn’t collaborate with Innersloth, the studio that created _Among Us,_for the new Fortnite mode. The developers behind Among Us are clearly surprised and unhappy that Epic has copied their game so blatantly, with social deduction gameplay and a very similar map.

“It would’ve been really, really cool to collab,” said Victoria Tran, Innersloth community director. “Like game mechanics, fine, those shouldn’t be gatekept, but at the very least even different themes or terminology makes things more...

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Ubisoft Singapore probed by national watchdog after toxic workplace allegations

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Ubisoft Singapore, the lead studio on Skull & Bones and co-developer of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, is being investigated by a national employment watchdog over allegations of misconduct at the studio. Singaporean newspaper The Straits Times reports that the country’s Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices (TAFEP) began its investigation after receiving anonymous feedback about conditions at the studio.

The probe follows a wide-ranging report from Kotakulast month based on conversations with over 20 current and former employees about the studio’s allegedly toxic workplace environment. Sources said female employees were sometimes subjected to unwanted physical contact, and that subsequent investigations from HR...

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Samsung confirms it’s removing ads from its stock apps later this year

The $1,199 Galaxy S21 Ultra, which showed ads in its default apps. | Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge

Samsung has confirmed that it will stop showing ads in default apps including Samsung Weather, Samsung Pay, and Samsung Theme. It follows comments made by its mobile chief TM Roh in an internal town hall meeting reported by Yonhap. “Samsung has made a decision to cease the advertisement on proprietary apps including Samsung Weather, Samsung Pay, and Samsung Theme,” the company said in a statement given to The Verge. “The update will be ready by later this year.”

“Our priority is to deliver innovative mobile experiences for our consumers based on their needs and wants,” the company said. “We value feedback from our users and continue our commitment to provide them with the best possible experience from our Galaxy products and services.”

“...

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Asus updates its overkill gaming phones with Qualcomm’s new overkill processor

The ROG Phone 5S Pro has a small display on its rear. | Image: Asus

When you’re selling high-spec gaming-focused phones, it makes sense to have the most powerful processor possible. At least, that’s the only explanation I can come up with for why Asus would announce its new Snapdragon 888 Plus-powered ROG Phone 5S lineup, just months after releasing the original ROG Phone 5.

There are two new S-branded phones, the ROG Phone 5S and the ROG Phone 5S Pro. Aside from its 888 Plus processor, more responsive 360Hz touch-sampling rate, and increased maximums of 18GB RAM and 512GB of storage, the 5S appears to be a very similar device to the ROG Phone 5. That means it’s also got a 6.78-inch 144Hz display, 6,000 mAh battery, and triple rear cameras with a 64-megapixel main sensor.

Both feature more responsive...

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Google’s Fuchsia OS is rolling out to every first-gen Nest Hub

Photo by Dan Seifert / The Verge

Google has started to push out the silent upgrade to its new Fuchsia operating system on first-gen Nest Hub devices (known as the Google Home Hub on release), meaning the secretive project will be broadly used by consumers after years of opaque development. The OS, which unlike Android isn’t based on Linux and uses a microkernel called Zircon, was previously made available to some devices enrolled in a preview program back in May.

Now, Google has confirmed to 9to5Google that a new firmware update for non-preview Nest Hub devices includes the Fuchsia upgrade, meaning that all first-gen devices should be running Fuschia already or very soon. I just checked the one on my desk — which Google explains how to do here — and sure enough, turns...

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Say goodbye to Intel’s RealSense tech by remembering its incredible demos

Intel’s RealSense computer vision tech will soon be going away, as the company is “winding down” the business, according to CRN. If you don’t remember the tech from January of this year, where Intel pitched it as a way to create facial recognition systems, you may remember it from some incredible tech demos (or possibly a few devices, if you were really paying attention).

Now that the tech is on its way out, perhaps it’s a good time to look back at some of the cool ways we’ve seen it shown off to remember the good times.

• CES 2013 — Intel talks about, and demos, what it calls “perceptual computing.” The company pitches its tech as a way to interact with your computer by moving and talking, and the next year...
• CES 2014 — Intel announces...

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The Spectrum TV app is back in Roku’s channel store after being yanked

Roku users who’ve been unable to get Charter’s Spectrum TV app through the platform’s channels store can once again do so after months of being unable to download it.

Roku announced on its blog today that new and existing users can access Spectrum TV on its devices by signing into the app using their Charter broadband credentials or by signing up for an account through Roku. The agreement resolves an ongoing carriage dispute that resulted in Roku pulling the Spectrum TV app from its store in December. The companies issued a joint statement on Tuesday that both had come to “a mutually beneficial agreement to renew distribution of the Spectrum TV App.”

“As a result of the renewal, the Spectrum TV App is now available for download from the...

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You can now queue to purchase a PS5

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Sony began releasing a fresh batch of PlayStation 5 consoles through its online storefront today at 5:15PM ET / 2:15PM PT. Both the $499.99 version of the PS5 that can accept discs and the discless version that costs $100 less are currently available for order, however, there’s no guarantee you’ll be able to purchase one if you make it through the public queue, which can take an upwards of an hour.

If you’re unfamiliar with Sony’s ordering process, it uses a slightly better queuing system that automatically places you in line if you’re on its site when the sale goes live. Consoles still tend to sell out quickly, as they have done since the console launched late last year.

If you’re looking for tips on securing a PS5, be attentive, listen...

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There’s still a place for the Note in Samsung’s Galaxy

Photo by Dieter Bohn / The Verge

For the first time in many years, August will come and go without the introduction of a new Galaxy Note smartphone from Samsung. Instead, with their lower prices and improved durability, the company is giving its latest foldables — the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3 — a firm push into the mainstream phone market. With the Z Flip selling for a penny under $1,000, it’s certain to stand out from the iPhone and Samsung’s own Galaxy S21 devices that cost a similar amount (or more).

But for repeat buyers of Notes past and present, it does feel like there’s something missing. We’re talking about the brand that established Samsung as the leading manufacturer of huge phones. Yet the company has completely skipped producing a new Note this...

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