Technology

Mark Zuckerberg posted a staunch defense of his company in a note to Facebook staffers, saying that recent claims by an ex-employee about the social network’s negative effects on society “don’t make any sense.” On Tuesday, a former Facebook product manager named Frances Haugen testified before Congress about a trove of internal documents she gave to The Wall Street Journal. The focus of the hearing was on Facebook’s internal research that showed Instagram can have a negative effect on young people, but Haugen took the opportunity to also attack the company’s business model and News Feed algorithm. One of her main arguments was that Facebook’s business of selling ads based on engagement leads it to keep users on the service at all costs, even when it knows that the content they’re engaging ...

T-Mobile has announced that it’s cutting the price of its 5G-powered home internet service by $10, bringing it back to the $50 price that it charged during its pilot program. That $50 a month gets you internet with no data cap, speeds that T-Mobile estimates will be anywhere from 35 to 115 Mbps, and a router capable of turning 5G and LTE into Wi-Fi (which you’ll have to return if you ever cancel the contract-free plan). T-Mobile is adamant that your bill won’t be higher than $50 — in its press release it says there’s no installation fees, activation fees, or equipment rental fees. It seems to view this as a kind of apology for all the fees traditional ISPs like Xfinity and Charter have charged. It’s pretty self-congratulatory, but it’s hard to argue that the service seems like a bad ...

Facebook has given users some insight into yesterday’s global outage. Around 12:00 p.m. ET on October 4, Facebook, as well as Instagram and WhatsApp, temporarily shuttered around the world, marking the platform’s biggest outage since 2008. It wasn’t until around 6:00 p.m. ET that some users reported being able to once again use Instagram. Now, Facebook has shared a bit more information about the shutdown in a post on its engineering blog. “Our engineering teams have learned that configuration changes on the backbone routers that coordinate network traffic between our data centers caused issues that interrupted this communication,” the post read. “This disruption to network traffic had a cascading effect on the way our data centers communicate, bringing our services to a halt.” Essentially,...

Apple has garnered more profits from video games than Sony, Nintendo, Activision Blizzard and Microsoft combined, according to a recent analysis conducted by The Wall Street Journal. The publication compared figures from the companies’ for the 2019 fiscal year, in which it found that Apple’s profits from games came out to $8.5 billion USD. The news may come as a surprise to some since the technology company doesn’t actually make its own games. Rather, the profits were reported to stem from its App Store, where Apple takes a 30% cut of sales from developers. Epic Games’ “Fortnite” to Tencent’s “Honor of Kings” were named as some of the games that contributed to Apple’s alleged lead over competitors. Following trends of years past, 2019’s profits were likely amassed by a relatively...

Scroll’s ad-free subscription web service is shutting down as an independent entity in “approximately” 30 days, the company announced in an email to subscribers. The service — which was purchased by Twitter earlier this year — will instead be rolled into the burgeoning Twitter Blue premium subscription as “Ad-Free Articles.” In its current form, Scroll is a $5-per-month service that offers ad-free browsing to hundreds of websites, including The Atlantic, BuzzFeed News, G/O Media, USA Today, and Vox Media — which, full disclosure, includes The Verge. It works by using a combination of third-party cookies and browser extensions to stop websites from showing ads to paid subscribers. Aw man, Twitter is shutting down Scroll. It was a great little service that let me read The Verge, The Atlantic...

EA is making Battlefield 2042 a little bit more accessible across generations. The company announced Tuesday that the digital Standard Edition of Battlefield 2042 on PS5 and Xbox Series X / S now includes the Cross-Gen Bundle, which gives you access to both the PS4 and the PS5 or Xbox One and Xbox Series X / S versions of the game. Previously, the Cross-Gen Bundle was only available with the more expensive digital Gold and Ultimate editions of Battlefield 2042. It’s important to note that this cross-gen benefit has only been added to the digital Standard Editions for next-gen consoles. If you buy the digital Standard Edition on PS4 or Xbox One, where it is $10 cheaper than it is on the PS5 and Xbox Series X / S, you won’t get the Cross-Gen Bundle. The Cross-Gen Bundle is also not an option...

Microsoft is launching Windows 11 virtually today, and the company is promising a “first-of-its-kind 6D streaming event,” featuring Allen Stone and Tate McRae. I’m not entirely sure what a “6D musical experience” is, but Microsoft’s website promises multiple camera views during its stream and even a free Windows 11 NFT. Microsoft describes its Windows 11 NFT as a “one-of-a-kind cryptographic token that lives in your digital wallet and unlocks valuable experiences and rewards.” Again, I’m not sure what valuable experiences and rewards this will unlock, but we’ll find out at 8PM ET / 5PM PT when the Windows 11 launch stream goes live. Windows launch events typically happen in New York City, but Microsoft hasn’t held any in-person events since the pandemic began. Instead, Microsoft is giving ...

Amazon might be working on its own smart fridge, according to a new report from Insider. “Project Pulse,” as the project is titled internally, is reportedly being developed by the same Amazon “physical-stores unit” that worked on the company’s high-tech Amazon Go stores. Project Pulse “is designed to track your inventory and purchase habits, predict what you want, and have it delivered,” Insider writes. The fridge could also track expiration dates, suggest recipes based on the products in your fridge, and offer an easy way to order more food from an Amazon Fresh or Whole Foods grocery store. Amazon already introduced a microwave — why not a fridge? Amazon’s foray into fridges has apparently been in the works for at least two years, Insider sa...

When I cook, I typically just Google a recipe or try one out on the fly. But in the future, it’s possible artificial intelligence might help me concoct a meal or assist a chef as they write their next cookbook or design a menu. In today’s Vergecast AI episode, we explore the world of AI product design — how far could AI go in helping humans design smells and tastes? For that discussion, we chat with Frederik Duerinck, the founder of ScentTronix, which is part software, part hardware and attempts to make customizable perfumes based on individual people. We also talk to Michael Spranger, COO at Sony AI, about how Sony is helping chefs design recipes and maximize flavor. Finally, we take it a step further and ask whether it’s even possible for a computer to eventually smell and taste. We all ...

Facebook is adding co-streaming to Facebook Gaming, a useful feature the Twitch competitor has lacked since it launched in 2018. Additionally, while Twitch’s version of a co-streaming feature — “Squad Stream” — requires you to be a Twitch Partner, Facebook is making co-streaming available to everyone. “With co-streaming, we aim to increase discoverability for creators, encourage collaboration between creators and elevate the overall viewing experience,” Facebook explains. In short, streaming the same game alongside someone else is mutually beneficial. Actually starting a stream involves tagging up to three other creators during stream setup or after you’re live. If the other creators tag you back, then your audience is launched into a “co-streaming viewer experience,” according to Facebook...

Weeks before Virginia’s gubernatorial election, the campaign for Democratic candidate Terry McAuliffe is reaching out to an unexpected constituency: Taylor Swift fans. On Tuesday, the McAulliffe campaign launched a series of Facebook, Instagram, and Google search ads highlighting his opponent Glenn Youngkin’s role in the controversial purchase of Taylor Swift’s master recordings in 2019. The buyout of Swift’s masters has been a point of bitter contention for the singer and her fans and could be an unexpected liability in the upcoming race. Last year, Youngkin — the Republican nominee for Virginia governor — retired as co-CEO of the private equity firm The Carlyle Group before launching his 2021 gubernatorial bid. At Carlyle, Youngkin worked with the media executive Scooter Braun to acquire...

Apple is commemorating its co-founder and former CEO Steve Jobs’ death with a new short film and a personal statement from the visionary tech executive’s family. Jobs passed away 10 years ago on October 5th, 2011, after a difficult battle with pancreatic cancer. The short film — which has currently taken over Apple’s landing page — commemorates Jobs’ life in photos, videos, and some of his most iconic quotes, from “the computer is a bicycle for the mind” to the introductions of the iMac, the iPod, and the iPhone. Apple also published a statement from Jobs’ family, shared below: For a decade now, mourning and healing have gone together. Our gratitude has become as great as our loss. Each of us has found his or her own path to consolation, but we have come together in a beautiful place of lo...