Technology

China-developed DeepSeek AI has raised plenty of privacy and security concerns since its launch, with some governments no longer offering the service at all or launching investigations into its data-handling practices. In terms of privacy, however, the Chinese chatbot may not be the worst offender.

As per recent data from Surfshark, one of the best VPN providers on the market, Google Gemini takes the gold medal for the most data-hungry AI chatbot app. DeepSeek comes, in fact, only fifth out of the 10 most popular applications for aggressive data collection.

Surfshark researchers also found a worrying 30% of the analyzed chatbots share user data, such as contact details, location, and search and browsing history, with third parties, including data brokers.

The real cost of using AI chatbots

As Tomas Stamulis, Chief Security Officer at Surfshark, explains, the apps we use every day regularly collect our personal information. While some of this data is necessary for the applications' functionality, others are linked to our identities. He said: "AI chatbot apps can go even further by processing and storing conversations."

To determine the real privacy price tag affixed to AI chatbots, Surfshark researchers looked at the privacy details of the 10 most popular apps on the Apple App Store. They then compared how many types of data each app collects, whether it collects any data linked to its users, and whether the app includes third-party advertisers.

The analysis uncovered an average of 11 different types of data out of the 35 possible. As mentioned earlier, Google Gemini stands out as the most data-hungry service, collecting 22 of these data types, including highly sensitive data like precise location, user content, the device's contacts list, browsing history, and more.

Among the analyzed applications, only Google Gemini, Copilot, and Perplexity were found to collect precise location data. The controversial DeepSeek chatbot stands right in the middle, collecting 11 unique types of data, such as user input like chat history. The main issue here – and what attracted privacy complaints under GDPR rules – is that the provider's privacy policy claims to retain this data for as long as it's necessary on servers located in China.

Its rival, ChatGPT, is hot on Gemini's heels, with 10 types of data collected. These include contact information, user content, identifiers, usage data, and diagnostics. It's also worth noting that, while ChatGPT also collects chat history, you can opt to use temporary chats instead to ensure this info gets deleted after 30 days – or ask for the removal of personal data from its training sets.

Apps' data collection is only one side of the privacy problem, though.

This is because, Stamulis explains: "This data could be used within the company or shared across third-party networks, potentially reaching hundreds of partners, and leading to highly targeted ads or an increase in spam calls."

Researchers also found that 30% of these chatbot apps track user data, too. This means that the user or device data collected from the app is linked with third-party data for targeted advertising or advertising measurement purposes.

Copilot, Poe, and Jasper are the three apps that collect data used to track you. Essentially, this data "could be sold to data brokers or used to display targeted advertisements in your app," Surfshark experts noted. Copilot and Poe only collect device IDs for this purpose, while Jasper gathers device IDs, product interaction data, advertising data, and other usage data, which refers to "any other data about user activity in the app".

"As a rule, the more information is shared, the greater the risk of data leaks," said Stamulis, adding that cybercriminals are known to exploit these incidents to create personalized phishing attacks that could lead to massive financial losses.

Stamulis recommends being mindful of the information you provide to chatbots, reviewing your sharing settings, and disabling chat history whenever possible.

• The Samsung Galaxy A26, A36, and A56 are due to launch with One UI 7
• Users of the Galaxy S24 and older are still waiting for their update
• One UI 7 gets its stable release in April this year

Samsung revealed three new mid-range A-series phones, the Galaxy A26, Galaxy A36, and Galaxy A56, at the end of February, and we now know that every model will ship with One UI 7 (aka the latest version of Samsung's mobile operating system) out of the box.

One UI 7, which is based on Android 15, was first made available with the release of the Samsung Galaxy S25, Galaxy S25 Plus, and Galaxy S25 Ultra in February – though in its current state, the software is still technically a pre-release build.

Samsung's new, One UI 7-compatible A-series models will be available on March 19 in the UK, with the Galaxy A26 and Galaxy A36 available from March 28 in the US (the Galaxy A56 will launch in the US at an as-yet unspecified date later this year). However, as Samsung recently confirmed, older Galaxy smartphones – even former flagships – won’t be getting One UI 7 until April.

That’s got to sting for customers that shelled out up to $1,649 / $1,549 / AU$2,799 for the Galaxy S24 Ultra as recently as February this year. With that kind of price tag, I’m sure many users would expect Samsung to prioritize updating their previous flagship devices over issuing the new software to more budget-conscious users.

Samsung's new A-series phones, including the Galaxy A56 (pictured), are due to launch in March (Image credit: Future)

The Samsung Galaxy A26 starts at $300, with the Galaxy A36 starting at $400 and the Galaxy A56 starting at $500. This year marks the first time a Galaxy A5-series phone has landed in the US, which is a big deal as the Galaxy A55 currently features on our list of the best UK cheap phones.

These new mid-range phones are likely to be decently powerful devices for their respective price brackets, and as PhoneArena notes, Samsung’s diverse portfolio begets a wider range of hardware specifications that need to be accounted for and tested with any new software.

Still, I reckon users of the best Samsung phones from years past will feel somewhat left out with the release of these new A-series handsets.

The wait for One UI 7 continues

The wait for One UI 7 is starting to feel rather long indeed. Even compared to Apple’s half-baked launch of Apple Intelligence and iOS 18 late last year, Samsung is making a hash of this rollout.

Though Samsung’s latest Android wrapper is admittedly excellent, with a stylish new look and a very smooth user experience, it doesn’t excuse taking almost an entire update cycle to release it – indeed, Android 16 is likely to be out shortly after One UI 7 makes it to stable release.

You don’t have to look far online to find discontent within the Samsung fan community, either – Reddit user Healthinfoman theorizes that the update has been “intentionally delayed to promote the [Galaxy] S25 as the only device with One UI 7." Other forums and posts are full of frustrated comments.

There is, however, an end in sight. As mentioned, One UI 7 is due to launch in April – but I fear this staggering rollout may have already overshadowed its eventual release. Let us know what you think about the One UI 7 rollout in the comments below.

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• Demand has reportedly been weak for the OLED iPad Pro
• This means there are some expected changes to Apple's OLED roadmap
• This year's iPad Pro upgrade is set to be a minor one

Our iPad Pro 13-inch (2024) review will tell you that we love the most recent version of the tablet – the first to sport an OLED screen – but it doesn't come cheap, and its price is reportedly leading to weak demand for the Apple slate.

This comes from the industry analysts at Meritz Securities (via @Jukanlosreve), with around 5.7 million units apparently shipping last year. If accurate, that figure is some way down on the nine million units Apple was originally hoping to shift.

What's more, the same report says there won't be many changes in the OLED iPad Pro rumored to launch later this year. While it is predicted to get an upgrade to an M5 chip, it sounds as though everything else will be more or less the same.

Given that the device isn't exactly flying off the shelves right now, and won't get a big upgrade this year, Apple is said to be revising its OLED tech plans – with some products coming forward and some getting pushed back.

What's coming next

▶ Apple’s OLED Transition Roadmap Update – Meritz Securities• The OLED iPad Pro model, first launched last year, incorporated several new technologies such as tandem displays and a hybrid OLED structure. Although it…March 10, 2025

Under the new schedule, the OLED iPad mini will make an appearance in 2026, while the OLED iPad Air is going to jump forward from 2028 to 2027 – that's if Meritz Securities and its sources have got their information correct.

An upgrade to the OLED tech in the iPad Pro – incorporating something called Capsule OLED Encapsulation, for improved performance and durability – has apparently been pushed back from 2027 to 2028.

While the starting price of $999 / £999 / AU$1,699 might be putting potential buyers off the 2024 iPad Pro, it seems Apple will continue to use the most expensive OLED displays for it. The iPad mini and iPad Air are thought to be getting cheaper OLED tech.

We most recently saw a new 7th-gen iPad Air and a refreshed entry-level iPad from Apple – neither of which come with an OLED display. If you're wondering which one is the right pick for you, check out our guide to the best iPads.

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• DOJ says Google should sell off Chrome to address search monopoly
• Its AI investments are safe and Android discussions quieten down
• Google worries about the impacts on national security

Although the US Department of Justice (DOJ) has dropped its AI divestiture proposal for Google, which could’ve seen the tech giant forced to sell off its AI investments (including a multibillion-dollar stake in Anthropic), the company still faces an uncertain future over its Chrome browser.

The DOJ continues to seek a court order for Google to sell off its popular browser as part of a broader effort to address its alleged search market monopoly.

Google hasn’t come out completely unscathed from the AI saga, either, with the company now being required to notify the government of future AI investments.

Google might still have to sell off Chrome

The DOJ has the backing of 38 state attorneys general in its bid to split up Google from its popular Chrome browser, which accounts for two-thirds (66.3%) of all browser sessions globally (via Statcounter).

An extract from the executive summary of the plaintiffs’ revised proposed final judgement (via Reuters) reads: “Google’s conduct presents genuine danger to freedom in the marketplace and to robust competition in our economy.”

A Google spokesperson previously shared with TechRadar Pro: “We routinely meet with regulators, including with the DOJ to discuss this case. As we’ve publicly said, we’re concerned the current proposals would harm the American economy and national security.”

We’ve asked Google for a comment on the latest developments, but have not yet received a response.

Google has sought to reach an agreement that would see it loosen its exclusivity and default search engine deals with the likes of Apple. It is unclear how successful that argument was in the eyes of the court.

Moreover, the DOJ has loosened its stance on Google’s ownership of Android, the mobile operating system that accounts for nearly three-quarters (72%) of the global smartphone market (via separate Statcounter figures).

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• On-board DSP, custom amp and adjustable low pass filter
• Three models: 8-inch, 10-inch and 12-inch
• From $899 / £599 / €749 / about AU$1,224

If you're planning some epic movie nights to catch up with all the Oscar winners and nominees, Q Acoustics' new subwoofers promise to make the movies even more enjoyable. That's because extra bass is always extra entertaining, whether it's putting the sub into The Substance, making Conclave more compelling, or making Emelia Pérez... well, still terrible, but louder.

Rather than launch a single sub, Q Acoustics is launching a fleet of them: the 8-inch Q SUB80, the 10-inch Q SUB100 and the 12-inch Q SUB120. All three are designed to match Q Acoustics' own speakers, of course, but they're also for any existing 7.2, 5.1 or 2.1 system.

(Image credit: Q Acoustics) Q Acoustics Q SUB subwoofers: key specifications and pricing

These are active subwoofers with adjustable low pass filtering and digital signal processing. The DSP is designed to make placement much more flexible, working with fine delay adjustments and phase inversion switching to adjust the timing of sound arriving. Q Acoustics says that means easy installation without having to get a pro installer round.

The low pass filter offers frequency adjustment from 40Hz to 250Hz, enabling them to play nicely with the low end of any speakers they're being partnered with. And the source detection can detect whether incoming signals are stereo or mono and adjust the signal gain too.

The power amp is a custom-designed model comprising DSP, power amp and power supply. There are four digital power amp stages in a parallel bridge-tied load configuration, which reduces output impedance and delivers more efficient heat dissipation, and it can deliver up to 300W of continuous power and 600W of peak. That's in the largest 12-inch model; the 8-inch is 200W/400W and the 10-inch is 250W/500W. Harmonic distortion is very low: less than 0.1% THD up to 300W.

All three models are available now, and the prices are:

• Q Acoustics SUB80 (8-inch): £599 / €749 / $899 / about AU$1,224
• Q Acoustics SUB100 (10-inch): £699 / €875 / $1,049 / about AU$1,428
• Q Acoustics SUB120 (12-inch): £799 / €999 / $1,199 / about AU$1,630

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Social media is filled to the brim with protein content, but you should still make sure not to neglect other key nutrients.

• Ray-Ban and Meta have created a new smart glasses design with Coperni
• It features a translucent black frame and mirrored lenses
• It's limited to 3,600 units and costs $549 / £519 / AU$859

Following last week’s teaser, the new limited-edition Ray-Ban Meta glasses design just dropped – and I’m more than a little disappointed with the result. Though at least that means you shouldn’t be too upset if you miss out on nabbing one of the only 3,600 pairs being sold.

We had predicted the new shape might draw inspiration from A$AP Rocky – Ray-Ban’s new creative director – but instead Ray-Ban and Meta have collabed with Coperni to create a reskin of its Wayfarers which debuted last night (Sunday, March 9) at Coperni’s Paris Fashion Week show.

Much like Meta and Ray-Ban’s previous limited-edition smart specs, these glasses boast a translucent frame – though they opt for a translucent black rather than the completely clear frame we saw previously. They also come with grey mirrored lenses and feature the Coperni logo on the end of each arm.

Hardware-wise they’re identical to Meta and Ray-Ban’s other smart specs, so you can rely on them as open-ear speakers for music, a first-person camera for photos and videos, and a wearable AI assistant which can help with tasks like live translation.

(Image credit: Ray-Ban / Meta / COperni)

I won’t pretend the limited edition smart glasses are anything but stylish, but they’re a lot more bland than I expected. There’s no new frame shape or interesting unique design detail that lives up to my expectations from Meta and Ray-Ban’s first-ever smart glasses collab with a third brand.

And this disappointment is compounded by the $549 / £519 / AU$859 cost which is not only much pricier than the standard Ray-Ban Wayfarer smart glasses (at $299 / £299 / AU$449) but also much more expensive than the $429 / £429 price of its previous limited-edition frames (they weren’t available in Australia).

Making matters worse, I’d argue those previous cheaper limited-edition specs were a better deal because they boasted transition lenses – which are ideal for smart glasses as you aren’t limited to wearing them in one weather condition unlike the reflective lenses the new pair use which are only practical in the sun.

If you completely disagree with me and love the new Coperni collab then you’ll probably want to act fast. With only 3,600 available across the US, Canada, UK, Ireland, Austria, Belgium, France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Finland, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, and Australia, they’re likely to sell out soonish.

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• Six Veterans Affairs hospitals were affected by an Oracle EHR outage
• DOD, US Coast Guard and NOAA also affected by the downtime
• VA plans to use Federal EHR in even more sites

Oracle’s Federal electronic health records (EHR) software recently suffered a nationwide outage, causing Veterans Affairs hospitals to revert to contingency procedures in order to continue treating patients as normal.

The outage started at 08:37 ET on March 4, causing software freezes and access issues, but the teams involved worked quickly on a remedy with systems finally being restored at 14:05 ET, with Oracle restarting the system.

A spokesperson for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) confirmed to CNBC: “Affected VA medical facilities followed standard contingency procedures during the outage to ensure continuity of care for Veterans.”

Oracle outage affects Veterans Affairs hospitals

The agency confirmed “all users” were affected, including Department of Defense, the US Coast Guard and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, as well as six VA medical facilities in Spokane, Washington; Walla Walla, Washington; Columbus, Ohio; Roseburg, Oregon; White City, Oregon; and North Chicago, Illinois.

The VA spokesperson added: “Affected VA medical facilities followed standard contingency procedures during the outage to ensure continuity of care for Veterans. Oracle Health is conducting a full root cause analysis to determine what triggered this outage.”

TechRadar Pro has asked Oracle for more context on the issue, but we have not received a response.

Looking ahead, the VA appears committed to Oracle’s EHR. The agency said just days after the outage it, “will complete deployment of the Federal Electronic Health Record system at nine additional medical facilities” in 2026, adding to its previous December announcement revealing a further four Michigan-based facilities with go-live dates in 2026.

VA Secretary Doug Collins commented: “America’s Veterans deserve a medical records system that’s integrated across all VA and DOD components, and that is exactly what we will deliver.”

Collins added the VA “can and will” move faster, but it’s committed to listening to doctors, nurses and partners to get it right from the get-go.

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• Apple is working on a smart home hub powered by Siri
• Now, the hub could be delayed for the foreseeable future
• That’s because it relies on Siri features that Apple recently postponed

Apple was reportedly looking to expand further into the smart home space in 2025 with a home hub device that would combine a speaker with a display, potentially making it one of the best smart speakers around. Unfortunately, there’s been some bad news for those looking forward to it, as Apple has reportedly delayed the device for the foreseeable future.

The news comes via Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman’s Power On newsletter. There, Gurman explains that Apple “had hoped to announce this product in March.” Yet with more than a third of the month already gone, that’s now looking highly unlikely – and it seems to delays could drag on due to Apple's problems with rolling out its AI-infused Siri.

Apple’s home hub will apparently rely heavily on some of the upgraded Siri capabilities that Apple teased last June at its WWDC 2024 conference. Those features include understanding your personal context and performing in-app tasks.

Yet news emerged last week that Apple would be postponing those features. In a statement to Apple blog Daring Fireball, Apple explained that “It’s going to take us longer than we thought to deliver on these features and we anticipate rolling them out in the coming year.”

According to Gurman, Apple feels that the smart home hub is unviable without those missing features. That means we’ll have to wait for the upgraded Siri experience later in the year before the hub makes an appearance.

Apple vs Amazon

(Image credit: Shutterstock)

And it could get worse. In a report released last week, Gurman stated that some senior Apple execs are so concerned about the state of Siri’s promised features that the entire system might have to be scrapped and rebuilt from the ground up. If that happens, the features might not arrive until 2026.

That could potentially mean Apple losing significant ground against rivals like Amazon. The company recently announced the Alexa+ smart home assistant, which infuses Amazon’s home devices with artificial intelligence (AI) powers. That’s exactly the area Apple’s smart home hub is targeting, and Apple won’t want to lose too much of the initiative here.

That said, it sounds like the hardware of Apple’s home hub is closer to a finished state than its software. Gurman reported in his Power On newsletter that select Apple employees have been taking the hubs home for in-situ testing and evaluation. That suggests that the device itself isn’t too far from being ready, even if its Siri software is a long way off.

As for when we’ll see this product hit store shelves, that’s anyone’s guess. If Apple can perform a miracle and fix up Siri in the coming months, we might not have to wait too long. But judging by Gurman’s reporting, we may have a lengthy delay on our hands.

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Death Stranding 2: On the Beach has a new 10-minute long trailer that shows off even more of its world, premise, and characters - while locking in a more concrete release date.

The trailer was initially shown off at a SXSW panel for Death Stranding 2, hosted by game director Hideo Kojima, actors Norman Reedus and Troy Baker, as well as musician Woodkid who provided music for the trailer itself. While the trailer concludes by confirming the game's June 26, 2025 release date, plenty more was shown beforehand.

Following the events of the original game, Death Stranding 2: On the Beach shows that its post-apocalyptic world is shifting towards automation, with deliveries that were once carried out by humans now being almost entirely handled by machines. We also see that chiralium and the terrifying BTs are very much still a problem.

Death Stranding 2's cast also features a mixture of new and returning characters. Norman Reedus and Lea Seydoux naturally return as Sam Bridges and Fragile respectively. They are joined by Troy Baker (Higgs), Elle Fanning (Tomorrow), Shioli Kutsuna (Rainy), Alastair Duncan (The President), Alissa Jung (Lucy), Luca Marinelli (Neil), and Debra Wilson (Doctor).

Film directors Nicolas Winding Refn, Fatih Akin and George Miller also lend their likenesses for Heartman, Dollman and Tarman respectively. They are voiced by Darren Jacobs, Jonathan Roumie and Marty Rhone.

Of course, it wouldn't be a Hideo Kojima game without some rather unsubtle nods to the Metal Gear series. In the trailer, we see Neil don a Solid Snake-esque bandanna, while Heartman takes control of what appears to be a mech/BT hybrid that bears more than a passing resemblance to Metal Gear REX. Metal Gear artist Yoji Shinkawa is also returning for this sequel.

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• Microsoft's next major home console might be more like a PC
• It's claimed that it will be "a PC in essence, but with a TV-friendly shell"
• This would make it quite similar to a Steam Machine

Microsoft's next major console might have more in common with Valve's unsuccessful line of Steam Machine systems than the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S.

That's according to Window Central Executive Edition Jez Corden, who spoke in a recent episode of The Xbox Two Podcast. He shot down recent rumors that some Call of Duty developers have access to dev kits for "the next Xbox," instead stating "there is no Xbox dev kit" and that such ideas were "just not accurate"

According to Corden, the "whole idea of the next Xbox" is that "it's going to be a PC in essence, but with a TV-friendly shell [...] that also has a specific set of specs in mind." He states that development would likely be similar to PC development, but with exact specs that allowed for more effective optimization.

This would be quite a departure from the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S and would instead put the next Xbox system more in line with Steam Machines, compact gaming PCs developed by Valve and various manufacturers that were designed for a more TV-focused experience.

This could potentially grant players far greater freedom over their Xbox, especially if the rumored systems are running on Windows. Playing games from other storefronts like Steam or the Epic Games Store would theoretically be possible, which would definitely line up with Xbox's current multi-platform push.

On the other hand, it might hamper much of the appeal of a dedicated console. The Steam Machine was largely unsuccessful, with most consumers sticking with easier-to-use consoles or gravitating towards higher-spec fully-fledged gaming PCs instead.

With the Nintendo Switch 2 on the horizon and, looking further ahead, the rumored PS6 also in the works, the next generation of consoles is shaping up to be very interesting indeed.

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• A serious bug has hit some older Chromecast devices
• 2nd-gen Chromecasts and Chromecast Audio dongles are affected
• Google says it's now working on a fix for the problem

A strange bug has hit 2nd-gen Chromecast and Chromecast Audio devices, preventing these devices from casting normally – and users are getting increasingly angry as they wait for a fix to roll out to affected gadgets.

As reported by 9to5Google and Android Authority, the bug surfaced over the last few days, throwing up a couple of error messages. All users are able to do is dismiss these messages and nothing else, meaning the devices are virtually unusable.

One error message reads: "Untrusted device: [name] couldn't be verified. This could be caused by outdated device firmware." The other one says: "We couldn't authenticate your Chromecast." There are links to Chromecast support, but there's nothing on those support pages to help with this specific issue.

Over on Reddit, there's plenty of venting going on – venting about Chromecasts being buggy in general, and Google being slow to respond to the issue. However, it does now appear that an official fix is on the way.

Wait it out Chromecast not working. from r/googlehome

Considering that newer 3rd-gen Chromecast and Chromecast Ultra models haven't been affected so far, there had been some speculation that Google was quietly retiring older devices without any warning for the people using them.

However, that doesn't seem to be the case. Some investigation into the issues on Reddit pointed the blame at a server-side problem (so out of the control of users), and specifically a security certificate that hadn't been properly renewed.

The good news is that an official Google account on Reddit has posted to say that Google is aware of the issue, and that engineers are working on a fix. In the meantime, the advice is to just wait it out, and not to factory reset devices – which is the logical first step to try when something like this happens.

If you have already done a full reset on your Chromecast, Google says it will give you recovery instructions in due course. In the meantime, we'll be keeping our eyes and ears open for the promised fix.

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• Telco giant NTT confirms losing sensitive customer data in cyberattack
• The data belonged to almost 18,000 NTT corporate clients
• The identity of the attackers has not yet been disclosed

Japanese telecommunications giant NTT Communications has confirmed suffering a cyberattack which saw it lose data on roughly 18,000 client organizations.

In a press release published on the company’s website, the company said it first discovered the breach on February 5, and established a day later that some sensitive data had been exfiltrated.

“Following an internal investigation, we determined there was a possibility that some data stored within our internal Order Information Distribution System, which manages and distributes information related to service orders and changes for corporate customers, had been leaked,” the announcement reads. “No information related to services provided to individual customers was leaked.”

Key data missing

Further in the announcement, the company said 17,891 customers had their data leaked, with affected services includiong those provided to certain corporate customers. The data stolen includes contract numbers, the customer name shown on the contract, customer contact names, telephone numbers, e-mail addresses, postal addresses, and information related to the use of services.

Corporate cellphone and smartphone subscriptions with NTT DOCOMO were not affected, and so far, there is no evidence the data is being abused in the wild, the firm said.

Some key information is still missing, though - as we don’t know exactly how many people are affected by the breach, and who the threat actors actually are.

NTT has also not discussed if this was a simple smash-and-grab, or if it was a ransomware attack. Finally, we don’t know how the criminals compromised NTT’s infrastructure, if they used compromised credentials, or a software vulnerability.

To tackle the threat and make sure it doesn’t repeat, NTT said it is “enhancing all appropriate security measures and monitoring systems,” without elaborating further.

NTT Communications offers services such as cloud, network, and security solutions, and claims to have more than 10,000 enterprise clients around the world.

Via TechCrunch

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• Voice control of Spotify's AI DJ has been found in a beta of the iOS app
• Expected to launch in the US and Canada first
• AI DJ is only for Premium subscribers

If you're a Spotify user, it seems you'll soon be able to ask your Spotify AI DJ: "Got any Spandau Ballet?" Newly discovered code in the iOS beta of the Spotify app shows that voice control of the AI DJ is coming soon.

The code was reported by Aaron from MacRumors, who posted a screenshot on X clearly showing some of the scripted responses, including "You're talking with an AI. We'll be storing and analyzing your voice requests as we make improvements for our public launch."

You don't need to be Sherlock Holmes to deduce that voice control is coming, and it's apparently coming rather more quickly than, say, Spotify's hi-res audio option.

You will soon be able to talk to your AI DJ on Spotify, as per code in the Spotify beta for iOS. pic.twitter.com/NEttGpVJG3March 8, 2025

Spotify AI DJ: what you need to know

The Spotify AI DJ first appeared in early 2023 as a beta, with a promise to "deliver a curated lineup of music alongside commentary around the tracks and artists we think you’ll like in a stunningly realistic voice." It's a mix of data analysis from your listening history, generative AI to provide information about songs, and a dynamic AI voice.

The feature was initially restricted to US and Canadian users, but it expanded to the UK a few months later and rolled out worldwide in late 2023. A similar roll-out is likely for the voice feature, with US and Canadian customers once again being first on the list.

As with the standard AI DJ feature, this will be exclusive to Premium subscribers.

We don't yet know when the new feature will break cover; for now it's in beta testing. But its presence in the apps suggests a launch should happen fairly soon.

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• UNA Watch is a new type of sustainable, modular wearable
• It features GPS, health monitoring, and 10-day battery life
• All of its parts can be replaced, and you build the watch yourself like Lego

An Edinburgh-based smartwatch company has received a £300,000 funding injection from SFC Capital as it seeks to become a sustainable, modular alternative to the best Apple Watches and best Garmins in the wearable market.

The UNA Watch is "the world's first fully modular and repairable GPS sports watch," with shades of Garmin in its design, and a comprehensive spec list.

UNA Watch is the brainchild of Lewis Allison, former CTO of golf brand Shot Scope, which features regularly in our best golf watches guide. After years of frustration with wearables "engineered for disposability", and inspired by the likes of Fairphone and Framework laptops, the UNA Watch was born.

"UNA Watch enables users to swap out individual components, such as batteries, screens, and sensors, rather than replacing the entire device," the company told TechRadar. Not only does this make the UNA Watch more repairable and sustainable, it also paves the way for future modular upgrades including more advanced health tracking, cellular connectivity, and even a better display.

The UNA Watch is about to launch via Kickstarter, and the company says it has over 7,000 people who've registered interest, and over 1,000 deposits already put down on the UNA Watch.

UNA: Meet the modular GPS sports watch

(Image credit: UNA)

On the surface, the UNA looks like a lot like your average Garmin Forerunner, but under the hood, it's a very different story.

The UNA Watch features dual-frequency GPS, an altimeter, and an accelerometer, comprehensive health tracking, an advanced heart rate sensor, a 10-day battery life, an always-on 1.2-inch 240 x 240 MIP Display (reminiscent of the Garmin Instinct 2), and a smartwatch rarity: USB-C charging.

All of these features are powered by modular components that you can easily replace or upgrade at home. So, if you damage the display, you can simply order a new one and replace it yourself.

UNA says its health tools include high-precision optical sensors for continuous, accurate heart rate monitoring and real-time cardiovascular performance insights. The company also offers customizable heart rate zones and alerts, detailed post-workout data, and more.

The cost? The UNA Watch's MSRP is $335 (UK and AUS pricing and availability tbc), or you can score a $100 discount if you put down a $1 deposit ahead of launch.

(Image credit: UNA)

Thanks to the UNA app, the watch works with iOS and Android and is the hub for training data and insights, customizations, and integration with the best fitness apps, including Strava.

All of this makes for extremely enticing reading, and is a sustainability record that, at first glance, puts the Apple Watch to shame.

Apple was recently sued over claims its 'carbon neutral' Apple Watch marketing is misleading, and the company's best efforts aside, its wearables are largely un-repairable by design. The company offers battery life services, otherwise, any other damage usually incurs costs so high it's more effective to just buy a new model, and it's a similar story across the wearables market.

UNA is looking to overturn that, and the watch on paper looks promising. The spec sheet doesn't set the world alight, but it's a solid start for a watch that promises to last you a lot longer than your average wearable, and that could offer modular upgrades in the future.

The UNA Watch Kickstarter is launching April 2, and you can sign up to reserve one at the aforementioned VIP discount on UNA's website.

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• Windows 11 has a couple of new recommendations in testing now
• There’s a change to the Start menu that suggests apps that are often snapped together side-by-side
• Another addition is with File Explorer which recommends files that are commonly used (or recently downloaded)

Windows 11 has a couple of changes in testing showing how Microsoft is pushing ahead with getting the OS to make more recommendations – though fortunately, there’s not an advert to be seen here.

This work is on both File Explorer and the Start menu, two key pieces of the interface in Windows 11, and it’s happening in a new preview release in the Beta channel (build 22635.5025).

With the ‘Recommended’ panel in the Start menu, some testers will now see recommendations of two apps bundled together if these are often candidates to be snapped together (meaning run side-by-side in a pair of windows snapped to fill the screen).

In Microsoft’s example, there’s a recommendation to run both WhatsApp and File Explorer together – just click on the icon, and the two apps will be started alongside each other.

With the second introduction here, Microsoft is bringing in ‘Recommended’ files on the Home page of File Explorer, where testers will see a list of “relevant files” based on previous activity. These could be recently downloaded files or commonly used ones.

It should be noted that this change is not coming to Europe (the EEA or European Economic Area) for now, but it will apply to Windows 11 users signed in to a Microsoft account, or just a local account on the PC.

Microsoft’s blog post outlines another useful change here, which is the fix for a bug in File Explorer whereby when it’s closed using the ‘X’ button (top-right), it can be very slow to disappear.

(Image credit: Future / Jasmine Mannan) Analysis: Explorer woes are numerous still, but these are useful steps forward

It’s good to see one of the issues with File Explorer being tackled, but there are quite a number of performance-related hiccups that various Windows 11 users have reported in recent times, so Microsoft still has work to do here. Indeed, the February patch for Windows 11 brought forth a new gremlin in the works of File Explorer which caused it to partially, or even totally, malfunction, and is a truly worrying glitch – one that will hopefully be fixed quickly.

As for the recommendations popping up here, these sorts of suggestions aren’t what everyone wants, as some folks feel it’s just more clutter. But if Microsoft is going to have these panels, I feel that the snap suggestions are a potentially handy addition – indeed this is another positive piece of work for the Start menu, which is, refreshingly, moving in a better direction of late – and the recommended section in File Explorer could be useful in a pinch, too.

As already noted, the important thing here is at least these features are trying to make life easier for the average Windows 11 user, and not attempting to push Microsoft’s various services on unsuspecting folks (although make no mistake, the latter is happening elsewhere in the OS all too often for my liking).

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• Signal President Meredith Whittaker calls out dangers of AI agents
• Increased work task usage means "you’re not doing any of that yourself"
• The tools have already raised privacy and security concerns

The president of popular messaging app Signal has warned AI agents come with a significant risk to privacy and security, which is “haunting” the hype around agentic AI.

Speaking at SXSW, Meredith Whittaker argued AI agents are being marketed like a "magic genie bot” which thinks many steps ahead and completes tasks for users, so, “your brain can sit in a jar, and you’re not doing any of that yourself”.

But this comes at a cost, and although the use of AI agents is proving popular, Whittaker emphasized that there’s a “real danger” with these bots, because they require extensive access to user data.

Excessive access

Say you asked an AI agent to book a concert for you and your friends - this should be a fairly straightforward task, but it does mean the AI agent would need access to your browser, your credit card information, your calendar, and even your messages to let the friends know.

This all means that with just one task, the agent now has access to your financial details, your day to day plans, and your messages - which could be extremely damaging if the data fell into the wrong hands.

"It would need to be able to drive that across our entire system with something that looks like root permission, accessing every single one of those databases, probably in the clear because there's no model to do that encrypted," Whittaker explained.

Messaging apps like Signal which have end-to-end encryption (E2EE) would compromise the privacy of user messages if integrated with AI agents, even if this was just to text friends or summarize your incoming messages, she noted.

“That’s almost certainly being sent to a cloud server where it’s being processed and sent back,” Whittaker adds. “So there’s a profound issue with security and privacy that is haunting this hype around agents, and that is ultimately threatening to break the blood-brain barrier between the application layer and the OS layer by conjoining all of these separate services [and] muddying their data,”

Via TechCrunch

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