Technology

A quickly assembled group of crypto enthusiasts who crowdfunded an astonishing $47 million in funds to bid for a rare copy of the US Constitution lost out to a bidder with deeper pockets. The group, ConstitutionDAO, said in an update on Discord that they did not win the auction at Sotheby’s tonight, which sold for a total of $43.2 million. The DAO’s organizers believed they would not have enough money to “insure, store, and transport the document” if they had made a higher bid. The group assembled over the past week, mostly, it seems, because it seemed like a bunch of randos on the internet buying an important historical document would be a funny thing to do. Somehow, they managed to get enough interest to raise a huge sum in Ether. The organizers say they will refund all contributors, min...

In what may be one of the better pieces of performance art this year, Australian Geoffrey Huntley has created a website that promises to let you torrent an entire blockchain’s worth of NFTs. It’s called, appropriately, The NFT Bay, and it’s an almost exact replica of the famous pirating site (with an added cheeky DMCA takedown link). As a site, it seems to do what it says on the tin, but as a statement it could spark an interesting discussion around what it means if you claim ownership over something on the internet. Pretty much every link on the site (except for the one that’s a Rick Roll) will eventually lead you to the description page, which would look right at home on the real Pirate Bay (according to my friend, who is definitely not me because I’ve never pirated anything). At the bot...

Today we heard Elizabeth Holmes speak in court — through recordings made for a Fortune article by Roger Parloff. In those recordings, Holmes claims that Theranos worked with the military, was currently working with pharmaceutical companies, that the company could do more than a thousand tests on its proprietary machines, and that the results were “at the highest level of quality.” None of this was true. Parloff has about 10 hours of taped conversations with Holmes Lying to reporters is not illegal, but it’s generally a bad idea since we tend to record our conversations. We’ve heard a lot about Parloff’s article in US v Elizabeth Holmes, because it was frequently sent to prospective investors as part of the materials Holmes supplied about the company. Parloff has about 10 hours of taped con...

Facebook parent company Meta said it is testing new ways for users to customize the content they see in their News Feeds. The company said in a blog post Thursday that the test, available to a “small percentage” of users to start, would allow people to adjust their preferences to increase or reduce the amount of content they see from specific friends, family, groups, and pages they’re connected with on the platform. Facebook has tweaked the way the News Feed presents content numerous times in the past several years and seems to keep rethinking what content should be prioritized and why. In 2015, it said it was changing News Feeds to favor content from close friends over that from brands and publishers. In 2016, Facebook said again it would adjust its algorithm so posts from friends would g...

A year into the computer chip shortage that’s heavily affecting vehicle production, Ford announced a collaboration with chipmaker GlobalFoundries Inc., as The Wall Street Journal first reported. Ford’s press release about the non-binding agreement is light on specifics but mentions plans “to advance semiconductor manufacturing and technology development within the United States.” Without committing to building any plants, the two companies say they will “explore expanded semiconductor manufacturing opportunities to support the automotive industry.” Speaking during an event later in the day, GM CEO Mark Reuss said his company is working to co-develop new chips with many semiconductor partners like Qualcomm, TSMC, and others. Ford’s VP of vehicle embedded software and controls, Chuck Gray, t...

ExxonMobil’s spending spree during yesterday’s lease sale in the Gulf of Mexico was significant, experts say, because the company might use the area for something other than oil and gas extraction. Experts outside the company speculate that ExxonMobil wants to use Gulf waters for a novel purpose: sequestering captured carbon dioxide. The Biden administration auctioned off vast tracts of the Gulf of Mexico to oil and gas companies yesterday in one of the largest federal lease sales in recent years. The sale drew sharp criticism from environmental groups, which say that allowing new oil and gas development is incompatible with America meeting its climate goals. But it’s possible that Exxon — the biggest bidder in yesterday’s sale — isn’t planning on extracting new fossil fuels at all. The co...

A group of state attorneys general has announced an investigation into “the techniques utilized by Meta to increase the frequency and duration of engagement” of children and teens on Instagram and the negative effects that may cause (via The Wall Street Journal). The group, which includes officials from California, Florida, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, Tennessee, and Vermont, accuses the company of doing this despite reports that its own research showed its platform could have a negative effect on young people. The research in question was exposed in a report from the Wall Street Journal, which said the company’s own documents show “Instagram Is Toxic for Teen Girls.” It was later discussed in a Senate hearing, where Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen said th...

Earlier this month, Nike filed a handful of new trademarks for the release of branded virtual sneakers and apparel which essentially confirmed that it would be expanding its initiatives into the metaverse. At the the time of writing, the Swoosh has just announced its details for NIKELAND — a fresh way for fans of the brand to connect, create and compete on Roblox. There are several components of this new feature, the first being that all of Nike’s actual headquarters and arenas have been transformed into digital form for users to put their skills to the test in a series of mini games such as tag, the floor is lava and dodgeball. Creators also have the opportunity to form their own mini-games from the interactive sports materials at their dispense. Other features of NIKELAND include the abi...

Microsoft is planning to add a new price tracker to its Edge browser, as well as a new feature that will let people easily change their passwords if they’ve been leaked online. The price tracking feature will be available soon and is designed to track products you’ve recently viewed and alert you of price changes. Microsoft has focused a lot on shopping improvements with its Edge browser and already has price comparison, price history, and built-in coupons in Edge. “This feature is coming soon and will be built into the browser, so you just need to browse as you normally would, and Microsoft Edge will let you know if any of the items you’ve recently looked at have changed in price,” explains Liat Ben-Zur, a Microsoft executive working on the company’s “Modern Life” initiative. It’s not cle...

In the past several days, a number of headers, profile pictures, and tweets have disappeared across the wide network of BTS fan Twitter accounts. The culprit, the account owners say, is a recent barrage of fake DMCA takedown notices. Outcry from fans resulted in #TwitterMaliciousDMCA trending worldwide on Wednesday night. The owner of a fan account with over 233,000 followers, which posts videos, photos, and memes related to the South Korean band, claims that their original header and profile picture, as well as multiple tweets including their own screenshots and memes, have been taken down by the trolls over the past few weeks. Per the owner’s screenshots, the attackers appear to have reposted the account’s header on a spoof website in a backdated post, then claimed to Twitter that the im...

Belkin has a pair of new wireless Apple Watch chargers it’s announcing today, which are notably the first third-party chargers to support the newly added fast charging on the Apple Watch Series 7. The larger of the two is the $149.95 BoostCharge Pro 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Pad with MagSafe, which follows in the footsteps of last year’s 3-in-1 Belkin charger. In addition to adding Series 7 fast charging, Belkin has ditched the odd sculptural design on the previous model in favor of a more normal-looking flat rectangular pad that will probably fit better on a nightstand. The BoostCharge Pro 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Pad with MagSafeImage: Belkin The new charger aims to hit the perfect trio of Apple charging: full-speed 15W MagSafe charging for an iPhone, Series 7 fast charging for an Apple W...

The Federal Communications Commission voted unanimously on Thursday to expand access to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by letting people text 988 starting next year. Text message providers have to support the three-digit code by July 16th, 2022, which is when the code will go into effect. On that same date, people will also be able to dial 988 to access Lifeline following a 2020 FCC ruling. People in need of help before calling or texting 988 is an option can call 1-800-273-8255 (TALK) or get connected to a counselor through an online chat. FCC chair Jessica Rosenworcel said in a tweet that nearly 6,000 Americans call the Lifeline on an average day. “As we know from 911, creating an easy-to-remember 3 digit number makes it easier for people to get help when they need it most,” sh...