All the news you need to keep up with the latest developments in the tech world, from product announcements and live events to tariffs, policies, and regulations. Tech touches every aspect of daily news, and our experts are here to keep you informed on what happens and how it all affects you.
With PlayStation Vue long gone, Sony added a new FAST package today for PlayStation 5 owners in the US and soon in Canada, available under the Media section.
You will need an adult PlayStation account and to set up a Sony Pictures Core account (according to Variety, the same package is coming to Bravia TVs) for channels like The Ringer, Hot Ones, NHL, Sony’s own Crunchyroll, and others with a mix of live and on-demand videos.
AB 1856 redefines an “operating system provider” to exclude open-source software from the state’s age-gating law, set to go into effect on January 1st, Tom’s Hardware reports. It follows a similar exemption added to Colorado’s age verification bill earlier this year.
The San Antonio Express-News reports that a request from Pflugerville, TX, resident Sam Aly found that hundreds of unauthorized agencies were searching the city’s Flock data, even though the company claims only two agencies were improperly included. The City Council canceled Flock’s contract last week and covered its cameras.
Aly:
Between February 16 and August 15, 2026, outside agencies searched Pflugerville’s camera data 1,597,918 times. 1.6 million searches in six months. 459 different agencies searched us. That works out to roughly 8,900 outside searches per day, every day. Our own police department ran 5,078 searches in the same period. So for every 1 search by Pflugerville PD, outside agencies ran 315.
It’s the top navigation app on Apple’s and Google’s app stores after it took a stance against renaming Lake Ontario to “Lake America.” Google Maps changed the name of the Great Lake over the weekend, while Apple Maps may make the switch following the company’s chat with President Trump, according to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum.
After the initial hype, the often-imitated OpenClaw is continuing to push new updates, releasing version 2.0 and promising a cleanup that touched every area of the bot’s framework with simplified installs, setup, and a rebuilt browser app.
Founder Peter Steinberger touted the use of shared cloud sessions to work on this update, with “Multiplayer coding + infinite compute” that kept everyone on the team up to date with others’ progress.
Kalshi says that in February, the former Republican congressman “placed a series of large trades in a market where the underlying contracts depended upon his own attendance” at the State of the Union. He’s now permanently banned and penalized $71,356.
In other news about everything being gambling now:
The Mate XT was the world’s first trifold smartphone when it launched last year but the sequel has debuted with a major change. Instead of the original’s Z-shaped arrangement of folding panels, the Huawei Mate XT 2’s side panels each fold inwards meaning you can only use its larger screen when the device is fully unfolded. Preorders are now open in China, but full pricing won’t be known until September 7th.
In a lawsuit filed on Friday, AT&T claims Charter misuses the word “fiber” in its “Spectrum Fiber Broadband Network” service to “hide the fact that its network mainly connects to customers’ homes using copper wire:”
Charter’s 100% fiber service is available only to “select residential consumers,” according to Charter’s website. It represents a small percentage of Charter’s network… The campaign deceives consumers, distorts competition, and appropriates the goodwill that AT&T’s 100% fiber network has earned.
The show will kick off on YouTube and Twitch at 9AM ET / 6AM PT, followed by a State of Play Japan livestream right after.
Google is pitching its AI tools as a way to streamline production and visual effects, but the effort faces pushback from union workers and creators concerned about copyright, job displacement, and artistic control.
Reddit and Roblox have been designated “Very Large Online Platforms” under the Digital Services Act (DSA), while ChatGPT has been named a “Very Large Online Search Engine.” Those designations bring strict obligations to protect user safety, ensure transparency, and curb illegal content in the bloc. The companies now have four months to get their houses in order.
[European Commission]
Google can have its “long-standing policy,” but MapQuest is having a laugh.
In a tirade on Truth Social, the president said that NBC News’ Kristen Welker should be “reported to the FCC for rebuke or punishment,” because she pointed out that the his prefered candidates had “mixed results” in their respective primaries.
During a recent episode of the Kinda Funny Gamescast, Andy Cortez said he asked the studio point-blank about the topics and was told there would be no in-game monetization and that there was absolutely “no AI” used in the game. So those are at least two huge controversial bullets the launch should dodge.
According to Mark Gurman, the company built a stubbier Apple Pencil that magnetically attached to the side of the phone for storage and charging. But it was awkward in certain positions and could leave marks on the delicate foldable screens. Ultimate Gurman says:
It seems unlikely that Apple will actually launch this accessory when it rolls out the foldable iPhone next month. Moreover, I would be surprised if the company abandons the position of Steve Jobs, who famously said, “Nobody wants a stylus” when he unveiled the original iPhone in 2007.
Amidst his trade tiff with Canada, President Trump issued an executive order renaming Lake Ontario to Lake America. As it did when the president tried to rename the Gulf of Mexico, Google has caved to his whims, swapping in Lake America on Maps. Users in Canada will continue to see Lake Ontario. In a blog post, Google said, “These updates follow our long-standing policy for bodies of water with names that vary from country to country.”
Update August 30th: Added link to Google’s blog post about the change.
The privacy-focused browser will now let users create decoy addresses to sign up for services. Brave will still forward messages from those services to your primary email, so you won’t miss out on important updates. But it adds a layer of protection, making it harder for big tech to track you.
In July, Gabriel Perez was accused of insider trading on Kalshi and became the target of a federal investigation for placing bets on what words would be mentioned in the president’s speeches. Now the invesitgation has come to a close. The CFTC issued a release on Friday saying:
Perez must disgorge the profits he made from his unlawful trading totaling $107,539.02 and pay a civil monetary penalty of $65,000 … Under the order, a three-year trading ban is imposed on Perez.
Player-mounted cameras aren’t entirely new to the world of football. According to ESPN, they’ve been widely used by colleges, and the Eagles were experimenting as early as 2016. But this year they’ve been adopted much more broadly in the NFL, with at least six teams having embraced the tech.
In some cases, it’s for the vision the camera provides, which helps coaches and players see each play from the quarterback’s vantage point. In others, the value is in giving coaches a peek into the communication taking place on the field, helping them get deeper insight into how QBs and other players -- such as the center making protection calls -- are communicating at the line and in the huddle. The cameras have even been experimented with on defense.
The company’s latest virtual synth is focused entirely on the low end. It’s purpose-built for EDM wubs, tuned 808 thumps, and even some heavy gabber kicks. It’s not a subtle instrument, that’s for sure. But it’s plenty of fun if you like rattling the walls.
As Phoronix reports, the project’s contributors said in a blog post that they recently enabled full webcam and microphone support in Linux running on M3 Macs, and are planning to share more about releasing M3 support “in the coming weeks.” They’re also working on getting Linux running on M4 and M5 Macs.
[Asahi Linux]
