News

I love my Echo Dot – here are 4 unexpected ways my Amazon smart speaker has been a game changer

ChatGPT to Estimate User Age and Switch to Teen‑Safe Mode

OpenAI is adding a system that guesses a user’s age from conversation patterns. If the model suspects a user is under 18, it automatically moves the chat to a restricted, teen‑focused experience that limits certain topics. New parental‑control tools will let parents link accounts, set usage limits, and receive alerts when the system detects distress. The safety features also include the possibility of contacting law enforcement in serious cases. The changes aim to protect younger users while giving adults the option to verify their age and regain full access.

Anthropic’s Surveillance Restrictions Spark Tension with White House

White House officials have expressed frustration with Anthropic’s policy that bars the use of its Claude models for domestic surveillance. The restriction is creating roadblocks for federal contractors working with agencies such as the FBI and Secret Service. Anthropic’s models are among the few AI systems cleared for top‑secret environments through Amazon Web Services’ GovCloud, and the company has a nominal‑fee agreement to provide services to federal customers. The dispute comes as the government also signs a blanket agreement with OpenAI, Google and Anthropic to supply AI tools to federal workers.

Meta and Oakley Unveil Vanguard Smart Glasses for Athletes

Meta and Oakley have introduced the Vanguard smart glasses, a performance‑focused wearable that blends Oakley's wrap‑around frames with Meta's AI‑powered features. The glasses place a 12‑megapixel, 122‑degree camera at the center of the frames, add adjustable video stabilization, and include dedicated slow‑motion and hyperlapse modes. Battery life now reaches six hours of continuous music playback and nine hours of mixed use, with a charging case that adds 36 more hours. Open‑ear speakers are louder, and the device carries an IP67 water‑resistance rating. New button layouts let users trigger custom actions, and integrations with Strava and Garmin enable real‑time fitness data.

Meta Launches Second‑Generation Ray‑Ban Smart Glasses at Connect

Meta unveiled its second‑generation Ray‑Ban smart glasses at the Connect conference. The new “Gen 2” model, priced at $379, adds a longer battery life of up to eight hours, a charging case that provides an additional 48 hours of power, and faster charging to 50 percent in 20 minutes. It features a 12‑megapixel camera capable of 3K Ultra HD video at up to 60 fps with HDR, 32 GB of storage, and an IPX‑4 water‑resistance rating. Available in the same three frame styles—Wayfarer, Skyler and Headliner—the glasses also support polarized, transition and prescription lenses. Meta highlighted new software features such as “conversation focus,” which improves voice clarity in noisy environments.

Congressional Democrats Probe Trump Crypto Advisor David Sacks Over Potential SGE Rule Violation

Senators Elizabeth Warren and Representative Melanie Stansbury are leading a group of congressional Democrats in a probe of White House Special Advisor David Sacks. The inquiry centers on whether Sacks, a former PayPal executive and venture‑capitalist at Craft Ventures who was appointed by President Donald Trump as the administration’s AI and crypto czar, has exceeded the 130‑day limit for Special Government Employees. The lawmakers have asked Sacks to detail his work schedule and communications, citing possible ethics concerns and conflicts of interest given his ties to the crypto industry and prominent Trump allies.

Tesla Plans Redesign of Electric Door Handles Amid NHTSA Probe

Tesla is considering a redesign of its electric door handles after the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened an investigation into the handles' safety. Design chief Franz von Holzhausen told Bloomberg that the company is exploring a combined electronic‑manual release button. The move follows earlier NHTSA scrutiny of Tesla’s crash‑reporting for its Autopilot and Full Self‑Driving systems. While Tesla has not detailed the redesign timeline, the discussion signals a response to regulatory concerns about potential passenger entrapment in emergencies.

Meta Unveils $799 Ray‑Ban Display AR Glasses with Integrated HUD

Meta announced its first pair of AR glasses, the Meta Ray‑Ban Display, priced at $799. The device combines a translucent heads‑up display, camera, audio and gesture‑based controls, and ships with a dedicated EMG wristband called the Meta Neural Band. Available initially at select U.S. retailers—including Best Buy, LensCrafters, Ray‑Ban and Verizon—on September 30, the glasses will later roll out to Canada, France, Italy and the United Kingdom. At the Connect 2025 event, Meta demonstrated music playback, photo capture, real‑time subtitles and AI‑driven interactions, while noting a missed phone‑call demo. The glasses feature 42 pixels per degree, up to 30 hours total battery life, and auto‑adjusting Transitions lenses.

Zoom Unveils Cross‑App AI Companion, Custom Notes, and Photorealistic Avatars at Zoomtopia

Zoom announced a suite of new AI‑driven features at its Zoomtopia event, including an upgraded AI Companion that works across meeting platforms, a custom note‑taking tool that lets users add their own notes and have AI expand them, AI‑powered scheduling that finds optimal meeting times, and photorealistic avatars that mimic user actions. The updates also add cross‑platform search, proactive meeting recommendations, and a new web interface that highlights AI capabilities. These enhancements aim to keep Zoom competitive with specialized meeting‑productivity startups and broader productivity suites.

Top Laptop Deals Across Major Brands Offer Performance and Value

A roundup of current laptop promotions highlights strong options from Apple, Microsoft, ASUS, Lenovo, Razer, and HP. Consumers can find devices ranging from the M1‑chip MacBook Air to ARM‑based Surface laptops, high‑refresh‑rate gaming machines, and innovative dual‑screen models. Prices vary, with discounts on popular configurations that balance performance, battery life, and unique features such as OLED displays or multi‑screen versatility. The deals cater to a wide audience, from students seeking reliable daily tools to gamers and creators needing powerful graphics and high‑resolution screens.

Americans Prefer AI to Stay Out of Their Personal Lives

A recent study shows that a majority of U.S. adults are uneasy about artificial intelligence influencing their personal decisions. While people are comfortable with AI handling large‑scale data tasks like weather forecasting and medical research, they overwhelmingly reject its role in dating, matchmaking, religious guidance, and other intimate areas. Concerns center on AI’s potential to erode creativity, relationships, and the spread of misinformation, with many respondents feeling they have little control over its use.

American Sweatshop Examines the Human Cost of Content Moderation

Director Uta Briesewitz’s new film American Sweatshop follows seasoned moderator Daisy Moriarty as she confronts the psychological toll of reviewing graphic online content. The drama, inspired by the documentary The Cleaners, highlights how exposure to disturbing material can lead to depression, PTSD, and other mental‑health challenges. Briesewitz emphasizes that the film focuses on the human impact rather than the graphic footage itself, using visual techniques such as reflections in Daisy’s eyes. The movie underscores the limits of AI in moderation and aims to spark uncomfortable conversations about the suffering required to keep the internet functional.