technology

Over five weeks, the FTX founder’s parents watched from the galleys — deluded, humiliated, and finally defeated. By Elizabeth Lopatto, a reporter who writes about tech, money, and human behavior. She joined The Verge in 2014 as science editor. Previously, she was a reporter at Bloomberg. Share this story The jury took a little over four hours to reach a verdict. When Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried, the defendant’s parents, came into the courtroom, they looked frightened. Bankman put his arm around Fried as they sat down on the wooden benches. Fried put her head in her hands. Sam Bankman-Fried stood to hear the jury’s verdict. After the first “guilty” was read aloud — for wire fraud — his father doubled over. His mother’s hands rose to cover much of her face, either to stifle tears o...

/ A jury was unconvinced by the ex-FTX CEO’s claims he didn’t know about billions in missing customer funds. a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Photo Illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge Former cryptocurrency kingpin Sam Bankman-Fried has been found guilty of fraud. A New York jury delivered the verdict on November 2nd, concluding a trial that has seen Bankman-Fried defend himself against claims that he criminally mismanaged his crypto exchange FTX and trading firm Alameda Research. After more than a month in trial, the jury took less than four hours to decide Bankman-Fried’s fa...

/ Xbox employees will still get Game Pass, but the vast majority of Microsoft’s employees will now have to pay for it. a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Microsoft is removing the free Xbox Game Pass Ultimate benefit for most of its 238,000 employees and some aren’t happy about it. Sources familiar with Microsoft’s plans tell The Verge that the company started informing employees this week that in January 2024 the free Xbox Game Pass Ultimate benefit for permanent Microsoft employees will no longer be available. I understand that Xbox employees...

/ The company is spinning out its game development studio and its energy drink. a]:text-gray-13″>If you buy something from a Verge link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.

/ The show may not come out until as early as 2025. a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Image: HBO We might be waiting a while for more of HBO’s The Last of Us. HBO announced in January that a second season of the excellent adaptation was in the works, and on Thursday, HBO and Max content chief Casey Bloys said that the season will enter production in early 2024, according to Variety. Bloys said that production was delayed because of the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes (the latter of which is still going on). The show also wasn’t on HBO’s slate for 2024, Variety says, meaning it might not c...

/ Meta announced a handful of creator tools, including the ability to test different versions of Reels to see which perform best. a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Illustration by Nick Barclay / The Verge Creators on Facebook are getting a handful of new tools on the platform — including the ability to test how different Reels perform against each other. The most notable new feature is a Reels A/B testing tool. A/B testing is a common marketing and publishing tactic where elements of a piece of content — say, a newsletter or article — are tweaked to see which drives more engagement....

Mistakes aren’t illegal, but fraud is — and Bankman-Fried’s lawyers never made his defense land. By Elizabeth Lopatto, a reporter who writes about tech, money, and human behavior. She joined The Verge in 2014 as science editor. Previously, she was a reporter at Bloomberg. Share this story a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Photo Illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photos by Michael M. Santiago, Bloomberg, Klmax, Whyframestudio, Yevgen Romanenko, Pixhook, Peter Dazeley, Jimkruger, Getty Images Let’s be honest: The facts are bad for Sam Bankman-Fried. The prosecution, in the cl...

/ An AI-generated version of Scarlett Johansson’s voice appeared in an online ad without her consent. a]:text-gray-13″>If you buy something from a Verge link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.

/ Disney’s paying more than $8 billion for Comcast’s stake in Hulu. a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Disney is buying up Comcast’s stake in Hulu. The entertainment giant announced Wednesday that it “expects it will pay” $8.61 billion to acquire Comcast’s 33 percent stake, giving Disney full ownership of Hulu. But Disney might end up paying more than that. Both Disney and Comcast agreed to an appraisal process that will evaluate Hulu’s equity fair value as of September 30th. If Comcast’s stake is determined “to be greater than the guaranteed f...

/ PC gamers can try out the official Starfield DLSS patch with support for Nvidia’s graphics upscaling tech by opting in to a beta program available via Steam. a]:text-gray-13″>If you buy something from a Verge link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.

/ You can no longer sign up for Apple Music’s $4.99 / month voice-only plan. a]:text-gray-13″>If you buy something from a Verge link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.

/ Three years after Joe Rogan signed with Spotify, he remains the biggest podcaster in the world. Will he renew his cushy licensing deal, find a new partner, or forge his own path? a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images This is Hot Pod, The Verge’s newsletter about podcasting and the audio industry. Sign up here for more. For all of the changes Spotify has gone through over the past year, there is still more to come. Those three-year podcast deals the company struck are coming up for renewal, and what Spotify decides to ...