Austin test uses blockchain to improve ID for the homeless

Many people take identification for granted, but it's a serious challenge if you're homeless. If you lose what's on your back, you might lose everything -- and recovering that ID is much harder when you have no fixed address or easy transportation to...

Google AI experiment has you talking to books

Google Research is giving us a (fun) glimpse of how far natural language processing in artificial intelligence has come. Mountain View's research division has rolled out a couple of what it calls Semantic Experiences, which are websites with interest...

Zillow surprises investors by buying up homes

Real estate platform Zillow changed up its business model this week, announcing that it plans to purchase and sell homes in Las Vegas and Phoenix. Zillow will be working with Berkshire Hathaway and Coldwell Banker to make offers on homes before it finds a buyer. Zillow will pay commissions and also “make necessary repairs and updates and […]

Ad king Sir Martin Sorrell steps down from WPP following misconduct investigation

There’s big news in the world of advertising. Sir Martin Sorrell has stepped down from WPP, the world’s largest ad business. Sorrell had been in the midst of an unspecified investigation about “personal misconduct and misuse of company assets.” He has denied the allegations. WPP provided us with the following statement. “Sir Martin Sorrell has stepped […]

NASA’s planet-hunting TESS telescope launches Monday aboard a SpaceX rocket

Some of the most exciting space news of the past few years has been about Earth-like exoplanets that could one day (or perhaps already do) support life. TESS, a space telescope set to launch Monday aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, will scan the sky for exoplanets faster and better than any existing platforms, expanding our knowledge of the universe and perhaps finding a friendly neighborhood to move to.

Android P might include iPhone X-style navigation gestures

It's well-established that Android P will support notched displays when it arrives later in the year. However, that might not be the only iPhone X-like feature in the finished release. The 9to5Google team has noticed that a Google developer blog po...

Apple will repair your swollen Watch Series 2 battery for free

If your Apple Watch Series 2 suddenly won't turn on, don't panic -- you might qualify for a free fix. MacRumors has learned that Apple has quietly institute a service policy that will repair 42mm Series 2 models for free when they either won't power...

'Gwent' revamp will help it take on card game rivals

You'd think that CD Projekt Red would have locked in Gwent's mechanics with an expected launch just months away, but not so -- if anything, it's ready to toss out what many are already taking for granted. The developer has unveiled a revamp (nicknam...

Low-latency JPEG XS format is optimized for live streaming and VR

You might only know JPEG as the default image compression standard, but the group behind it has now branched out into something new: JPEG XS. JPEG XS is described as a new low-energy format designed to stream live video and VR, even over WiFi and 5G...

How to save your privacy from the Internet’s clutches

Another week, another massive privacy scandal. When it’s not Facebook admitting it allowed data on as many as 87 million users to be sucked out by a developer on its platform who sold it to a political consultancy working for the Trump campaign, or dating app Grindr ‘fessing up to sharing its users’ HIV status with third […]

Austin is piloting blockchain to improve homeless services

While the vagaries of the cryptocurrency markets are keeping crypto traders glued to their CoinDesk graphs, the real potential of blockchain is its capability to solve real human challenges in a decentralized, private, and secure way. Government officials have increasingly investigated how blockchain might solve critical problems, but now one city intends to move forward […]

How quantum computing could wreak havoc on cryptocurrency

Quantum computing is promising to be one of the biggest technological revolutions of the modern era. By harnessing the power of quantum mechanics, machines will be able to achieve data processing of speed and complexity unattainable with current computers. Traditional computers are based on a binary model on a system of switches that can be either on or off, represented with a 1 or a 0. Quantum computers are different in that their switches can be in both the on and off positions at the same time, called ‘superpositions.’ This ability to be in two simultaneous states is what makes…

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Playground is betting big on robots

You find robotics in unexpected corners of Playground Global’s Palo Alto headquarters. They’re in the lobby and scattered amongst the cubicles. Inside the venture fund’s labs, an older Spot Mini stands next to RightHand Robotics’ pick and place mechanical arm. A recent video shoot in the space shows Boston Dynamics’ latest creation meeting Playground-funded bipedal […]

Amazon Studios stops taking amateur scripts on June 30th

For years, Amazon Studios has held an open call for concept and script submissions. You could send an idea to the company and not only make it publicly available, but (if you were lucky) see it developed as an honest-to-goodness Prime Video producti...

Recommended Reading: Facebook's influence on Instagram

Instagram looks like Facebook's best hope Sarah Frier, Bloomberg Businessweek With all the attention on Mark Zuckerberg's visit to DC this week, it can be easy to lose sight of an important detail: Facebook also owns Instagram. Of course, this mea...

Facebook’s Bookmarks menu gets a facelift that makes its settings easier to find

Facebook is rolling out a redesigned bookmarks section in its app that will make it easier to navigate and access various Facebook settings – including Account Settings, Privacy Shortcuts, News Feed Preferences, Activity Log, Payments Settings, access to Help & Support, and more. None of the options in the updated menu are new to Facebook. […]

Slidebean creates in minutes what would take hours on PowerPoint…and it’s over 90% off

If you’re just looking for professional quality slides completed in minutes rather than hours, you may want to give Slidebean a try. A lifetime subscription to Slidebean is on sale right now from TNW Deals for only $34.99, an over 90 percent savings off the regular price.

Russia Bans Telegram, China's Facial Recognition, and More Security News This Week

Russia bans popular encrypted chat app Telegram, China's facial recognition system flexes, and more security news this week.

Hollywood Should Make Movies That Grapple with Gamergate

'Ready Player One' isn't that movie.

LG V30S ThinQ review: A solid but pointless phone

It had its fair share of flaws, but last year's LG V30 might have been the finest phone the company had made to date. Rather than wait the usual year for an official sequel, though, LG decided to spice things up a bit by unveiling a tweaked version o...

We can’t ditch Facebook because of our friends — but there’s a fix

It’s more fashionable than ever to hate on Facebook. But it sure has been a long time coming — the proverbial excrement hit the fan only after the social media helped the Democrats lose the election, showed increasingly just how much they wanted to control information we see, and made their contempt for us, our privacy, and our control over our personal data all too plain. We’re the product. Facebook shouldn’t piss off the product. It’s time for the product to find greener pastures. Let’s #DeleteFacebook, we’re told. But how? We don’t want to abandon our friends. Let’s move, sure,…

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Space Photos of the Week: Morning Light Hits the Southern Lights

Unearthly celestial events, Martian craters, and Jovian storms.

Best Weekend Tech Deals: LG OLED, Kindle, Alienware, Megaboom

No matter if you're looking for a Kindle or an OLED TV, we've got what you're looking for this weekend.

At March for Science, Federal Researchers Weather Trump Storm

Many anti-Trump protesters have turned their attention toward recruiting scientists to run for office in local, state, and congressional offices.

Diamond and Silk Expose Facebook's Burden of Moderation

The social network's battle with a pair of conservative bloggers show that for the ultimate amplifier, moderation is a necessary game it can't win.

Smartphone Apps Know Too Much. We Need to Fix Permissions

The recent Facebook drama has shown that people need more explicit information before they give access to apps.