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GenAI is revolutionizing how developers create new apps and services. It’s making app development more efficient, providing developers with the tools to make it easier to spin up applications, tweak pre-built models, and create something functional in record time. However, this means applications can be developed without support from IT and may be bypassing the security and governance frameworks in place, making the battle against Shadow IT more difficult.

On the one hand GenAI is revolutionizing how business apps are built and utilized, accelerating time to market and potential profitability. On the other hand, organizations are faced with an increased attack surface created by programs that often bypass traditional IT oversight. In this new era, shadow IT isn’t just a nuisance—it’s a potential security crisis waiting to happen.

When Shadow IT Meets AI-Enhanced Cyberattacks

Eighty-three percent of leaders in a recent Kong report say AI investments are fueling new products and services. It’s easy to see why. Need to automate a workflow or create a chatbot? A few keystrokes, and it’s done. The barriers to building have all but disappeared, unleashing a wave of innovation that’s impossible to ignore.

But here’s the catch: this creative boom has a dark side. Some of these new tools rely on shadow APIs—untracked, unmanaged gateways operating in the wild west of IT infrastructure. And cybercriminals? They’re more than happy to exploit these blind spots, turning innovation into a security nightmare.

As AI evolves, so do the tools attackers use to exploit it. The rise of AI tools has only made it easier for bad actors to automate attacks, uncover hidden APIs, and launch targeted breaches. While developers build with GenAI, hackers use the same technology to scale their attacks.

Kong’s research paints a stark picture: 74% of IT leaders are deeply concerned about AI-enhanced attacks. But it’s not just bad actors misusing AI. Even well-intentioned usage can lead to data exposure. Take Samsung, for instance—when employees fed sensitive source code into ChatGPT, it became publicly accessible, creating a security and compliance nightmare.

The Trouble with Shadow IT and APIs

Governing shadow IT has always been tricky, but the rise of GenAI takes it to another level. With employees and teams creating applications faster than ever, keeping track of what’s being built, and how it connects to your systems, can feel like an impossible task. Shadow APIs, in particular, are a major blind spot. They’re often spun up without proper security measures, leaving them wide open to exploitation.

The compliance risks are just as serious. Regulatory frameworks and federal laws demand strict data protection and transparency. Shadow APIs can slip under the radar, exposing sensitive data without organizations even realizing it. This not only puts businesses at risk of breaches, but also hefty fines for non-compliance.

Millions of APIs exist out in the wild which makes them an attractive target to cybercriminals. Over half of the organizations surveyed experienced an API security incident last year, and 20% faced remediation costs exceeding $500,000. In fact, Gartner estimates that API breaches leak ten times more data than your average cyberattack.

For organizations trying to stay ahead, visibility is everything. Without tools to discover and govern shadow IT, businesses risk falling out of step with compliance requirements and leaving themselves vulnerable to attacks.

Quieting the Chaos: Why Infrastructure Matters

So, how do you manage the perfect storm of GenAI, APIs and Shadow IT without stifling innovation? It all starts with a solid infrastructure. Organizations need tools that shine a light on every API—whether it’s part of an official project or something a team developed on the side.

That’s where solutions like AI Gateways come into play. Think of an AI Gateway as the control tower for your API ecosystem. It’s a centralized hub that not only monitors and manages all your APIs but also keeps tabs on the traffic generated by AI-powered tools. With built-in AI smarts, these platforms can flag suspicious activity, uncover rogue APIs, and stop threats in their tracks.

Even better, AI Gateways help businesses scale without introducing unnecessary risk. They make it easy to integrate AI-driven apps securely, ensuring that innovation doesn’t come at the cost of security.

Turning Risks into Opportunities

Generative AI isn’t going anywhere—it’s already reshaping how we work, create, and collaborate. But to harness its potential, businesses need to tackle the challenges head-on. Here’s how to strike the right balance:

1. Spot Shadow APIs: Use advanced network monitoring tools to identify hidden APIs and understand their impact on your ecosystem.

2. Build Smarter Policies: Develop AI-specific security measures, like auditing large language models (LLMs) and training employees to use AI responsibly.

3. Invest in Resilience: Adopt infrastructure solutions like AI gateways to manage API sprawl and boost security.

As our report points out, 84% of IT leaders believe AI and LLMs will make API security even more complex in the next few years. Getting ahead of these challenges now is critical to staying competitive—and secure.

The Bottom Line

GenAI is a game-changer, but it’s also rewriting the rules of Shadow IT. With every new app or API, comes a new potential vulnerability. The good news? By combining innovative AI tools with a strong governance strategy, businesses can transform these risks into opportunities.

The key is finding the right balance: embrace the creativity GenAI enables, but don’t lose sight of the security and scalability needed to keep it all under control. After all, innovation is only as powerful as the foundation it’s built on.

We've compiled a list of the best firewall software.

This article was produced as part of TechRadarPro's Expert Insights channel where we feature the best and brightest minds in the technology industry today. The views expressed here are those of the author and are not necessarily those of TechRadarPro or Future plc. If you are interested in contributing find out more here: https://www.techradar.com/news/submit-your-story-to-techradar-pro

• StudyFetch's new Tutor Me is an interactive AI that can converse with students as it teaches
• Tutor Me builds its lessons from textbooks, notes, and assignments uploaded by the student
• The AI personalizes lectures and quizzes to the students and can track their progress

AI can impart a lot of knowledge but isn't usually a very good teacher. Sometimes, it's more like glorified search engines than a study partner. Educational tech developer StudyFetch has a new tool that might change that opinion. Tutor Me is an AI platform focused specifically on teaching students. The idea is something like a ChatGPT that is specially trained to perform as a teacher on specific subjects without needing to constantly tailor your prompts for that purpose.

The biggest difference from just asking ChatGPT to teach you something is that Tutor Me is built to work with a student’s actual course materials, so its explanations, quizzes, and lesson plans are always based on what they’re actually studying. You can upload lesson texts, assigned readings, notes from online lessons, or even photos of whiteboards that Tutor Me will analyze to develop a unique study guide and curriculum.

Tutor Me acts like an online conference with a teacher. The AI responds in real-time, just like a human tutor would. But unlike a human tutor, it never runs out of patience or time. You can ask it to test your knowledge by requesting a quiz, ask it to speed up or slow down its explanations and speaking speed, and even bring up a topic by referencing a textbook page number. If you find flashcards dry and detached, StudyFetch's AI might be ideal for helping you stay interested in any given subject. Plus, it can track your progress and help you keep up on your lessons and assignments.

Learn AI

Considering more than a quarter of teens already use ChatGPT to help with homework, something like Tutor Me probably has a lot of potential interest. OpenAI isn't the only alternative as an educational AI provider, though.

Google Gemini has its own Learn About feature, and Khan Academy’s Khanmigo has an AI-driven tutor for students looking to supplement class time. Educational institutes are taking notes as well. Arizona State University (ASU) is working with OpenAI to incorporate ChatGPT, and London’s David Game College is running an AI-taught class as part of its new Sabrewing program.

Still, the direct integration with course materials will likely aid Tutor Me in standing out. It solves the complaint about AI being too general and offering answers that don’t quite match what you want to learn about. Pulling from actual lesson plans and assignments reduces Tutor Me's chances of going off-topic a lot.

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• Perplexity’s iOS app has updated with a revamped voice mode
• The upgrade adds six new voices and real-time search integration
• Perplexity also included new personalization features and a fresh design to the iOS app

AI conversational search engine Perplexity is speaking up in its latest iOS update. The AI chatbot's voice mode brings a new look and more natural-sounding voices to the app, along with some new interactive features. The upgrade sets up Perplexity's app to better challenge rivals with their own voice options like ChatGPT or Google Gemini.

Before this update, Perplexity’s voice feature was somewhat limited. It could read answers aloud but without much emotion and with a walkie-talkie sort of interface that slowed things down. Perplexity has now added six different voices. While it’s still a text-to-speech system, meaning it won't have the emotional nuance of ChatGPT's advanced voice mode, the improvement is noticeable. You can finally pick a voice that doesn’t sound like an audiobook narrator from 2005.

So, how does Perplexity’s voice mode stack up against the competition? From an unscientific comparison, I'd say ChatGPT's advanced voice mode wins in sheer realism, with an expressive sound, conversational tone, and surprisingly natural-feeling laughter and outright interruptions. Google Gemini is a little less fluid, but still very natural overall. And while Google Gemini's voice is very good, it's a little less fluid than ChatGPT. Perplexity's offering is very clear and easy to understand, but its voices linger in the more neutral tone that sounds a little more artificial. It's not a negative though, just a different approach. Instead of focusing on making AI sound human, it’s doubling down on utility and making sure that when you ask a question, you not only get an answer but also the sources to back it up.

Perplexity's voice mode is embedded in the AI's other features too. That means the real-time search tool links to the voice mode. When you ask a question, you don’t just get a spoken response, you also see live search results, with links to the sources. It's an ability that's crucial since so much of Perplexity's appeal is in how it melds AI with search capabilities.

A post shared by Perplexity AI (@perplexity.ai)

A photo posted by on

Perplexity resolved

The way you start voice mode and the look of the app when using the feature have also been changed. The microphone icon you tap to start talking has been replaced by a sphere of shifting dots that respond to your voice and touch, scattering and reforming at your touch. It's an unnecessary but fun touch to the app. You can also now personalize the app with widgets like stock tickers or sports score updates. It adds another layer of customization that makes Perplexity feel a little more like your assistant rather than just a generic chatbot. Those kinds of options will likely be necessary for Perplexity to keep up with and perhaps beat other AI chatbots.

That ambition is also evident in the other major upgrade to the app. Perplexity has also added the new Claude 3.7 Sonnet model to its lineup. Anthropic's new model is aimed at enhancing Perplexity's ability to respond capably to complex or multi-step questions. Claude 3.7 is still very new, and reviews haven't been unanimous, but it could exceed or at least match the models employed by ChatGPT and Google Gemini for reasoning and conversational engagement.

Perplexity's voice mode revamp suggests Perplexity isn’t looking to beat ChatGPT and Gemini at where they are strongest, but to augment its own strengths with features that make the whole interaction feel (and sound) smoother, more immersive, and more natural.

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• Apple's bolstering its parental controls and child account experience
• Later in 2025, global age ratings will be expanded, and you can convert any standard account to a child account
• There is also a new API designed to help customize the in-app experience by age

Apple has long offered parental controls on devices and child accounts but is now making some changes to bolster its offering and make it a safer experience for all parties involved. Some of these adjustments are on the end user's side, such as creating a child account and App Store adjustments, but several are on the developer's side, in the form of API changes.

The new features and functionality were shared in a new whitepaper titled “Helping Protect Kids Online,” which you can read in full here. The changes begin with streamlining the process of creating a child account. As seen in the latest betas for iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4, Apple now allows you to select an age range when creating an account; once selected, this information informs the presets for parental controls.

Of course, creating the account adds your child as a user and allows for family sharing of iCloud services and purchases within the App Store. However, to streamline the process, you can still give the child access to the new device with more limited functionality if you want to complete the rest of the account setup later.

(Image credit: Future)

Likely even more important, and good news for some, is that later in 2025, Apple will let you update the age on an Apple Account. This way, if you input the wrong date of birth, you can adjust it. Apple requires that kids under 13 have a Child Account associated with a parental Apple ID in the United States. Those under 18 can choose to be set up this way for these advanced protections, and some presets.

The App Store experience currently offers four age ratings worldwide, two of them being 12+ and 17+. Apple aims to create a more curated, safe experience and will expand the global age ratings later this year. This will bring Apple's age ratings closer to those of Google and its Play Store, which already offer age-based ratings in several categories depending on region.

Apple's expansion is a bit more focused and standard across all regions, with four new categories targeting specific age groups.

• 4+, which means no objectionable content is in the app.
• 9+, meaning the app might have content unsuitable for children under nine. It’s described in the paper as “infrequent or mild cartoon or fantasy violence, profanity or crude humor, or mature, suggestive, or horror- or fear-themed content.”
• 13+, which is described as potentially featuring: “infrequent or mild medical or treatment-focused content, references to alcohol, tobacco, or drug use, sexual content or nudity, realistic violence, or simulated gambling; or frequent or intense contests, profanity or crude humor, horror or fear-themed content, or cartoon or fantasy violence.
• 16+, described as “including through unrestricted web access, frequent or intense mature or suggestive content, or medical or treatment-focused content.”
• 19+, “including through instances of gambling, frequent or intense simulated gambling, references to alcohol, tobacco, or drug use, sexual content or nudity, or realistic violence.”

These will be the minimum age recommended for the app. This should allow developers to more accurately determine the age rating for the experience they are creating, and parents might find it easier to decide if it's safe to download. If a parent has turned on parental controls for app downloads, the App Store will only serve up age-appropriate apps when this arrives later in 2025.

It comes at a time when, in the United States, on both a state and federal level, there is debate about who should be in charge of age verification for using apps, either the store – i.e. Apple's App Store – or the developers themselves. It's packaged within larger conversations around child protection laws pertaining to digital experiences and connected devices.

Apple believes a per-app level is better for age verification and reducing data sharing overall. That's where the forthcoming Declared Age Range API will come into play. Rather than asking a user to input a date of birth, the developer can opt into the API. If approved via a pop-up in the app, the app will pull the age range from the user's Apple Account.

It's very much in line with how other apps request to use things like the camera or microphone and even to enroll you in notifications for the app. Apple's stance here is to reduce a user potentially oversharing while still ensuring a safe experience; seemingly, the per-app level approach is a better way to do this.

The company also says in the paper that it's similar to purchasing alcohol at a store in a mall, "After all, we ask merchants who sell alcohol in a mall to verify a buyer’s age by checking IDs – we don’t ask everyone to turn their date of birth over to the mall if they just want to go to the food court."

Apple's approach is at odds with other companies and even legislators, who think the enforcement and verification should be handled by where you get the app. The information is there because Apple does ask for the age range for creating an Apple Account, and one is required for a user under 13. From a privacy perspective, Apple isn't just handing that information over but wants to use it securely through this API.

Apple’s approach to age verification is arguably better from a privacy perspective for all, but requires active parental involvement.

Avi Greengart, Techsponental

Avi Greengart, founder of Techsponental, wrote in a statement to TechRadar, "Apple is trying to thread the needle between forcing everyone to share data that proves their age and giving parents the ability to protect their children from content that’s inappropriate for them. Apple’s approach to age verification is arguably better from a privacy perspective for all, but requires active parental involvement. It also doesn’t – and perhaps can’t – address the responsibility of social media apps to police their algorithms to prevent harm to minors."

The approach here with the Declared Age Range API likely ties back to Apple's further bolstering of Child Accounts, making them easier to create and control and linking them up to make using devices like iPads and iPhones and the services on them safer.

We're already seeing some of these changes, like the new Age Range selection for creating a child account. However, the updated age ratings for apps, the ability to adjust an account's age, and the new API will all arrive before the end of 2025.

Ultimately, time will tell who is responsible for age verification. Still, it's excellent to see Apple making it easier to create child accounts that offer a bit more protection and safeguards. The full paper released by Apple can be viewed here.

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• Nvidia CEO confirms Blackwell Ultra and Vera Rubin names
• Both set to be revealed at GTC 2025 in March 2025
• Nvidia sees overall revenues grow 114% year-on-year as AI demand booms

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has teased that the company's next flagship chip will be shown off within the next few weeks - as well as apparently officially confirming its name.

Speaking to analysts on the company's fiscal Q4 2025 earnings call, Huang revealed the new hardware will bear the moniker of Blackwell Ultra, and will be unveiled at its Nvidia GTC 2025 event in March 2025.

“Come to GTC and I’ll talk to you about Blackwell Ultra, Vera Rubin, and then show you the one click after that,” Huang declared.

Nvidia Blackwell Ultra...and more

Huang went on to add Blackwell Ultra will be officially launched in the second half of 2025, and offer upgrades in processors, networking, and memory - but will be built on the same system architecture as Blackwell.

Both Blackwell Ultra and Vera Rubin were teased on a company roadmap document at Computex 2024, but Huang has now seemingly confirmed the naming of both.

Nvidia unveiled Blackwell at GTC 2024, promising a major step forward in terms of AI power and efficiency.

It has since seen a number of releases, including the first Blackwell "superchip", the GB200, which has the ability to scale up from a single rack all the way to an entire data center, as Nvidia looks to push on with its leadership in the AI race.

Blackwell contains 208 billion transistors (up from 80 billion in Hopper) across its two GPU dies, which are connected by 10 TB/second chip-to-chip link into a single, unified GPU, making it up to 30x faster than Hopper when it comes to AI inference tasks, offering up to 20 petaflops of FP4 power, far ahead of anything else on the market today.

Despite this, Nvidia says Blackwell can reduce cost and energy consumption by up to 25x, giving the example of training a 1.8 trillion parameter model - which would previously have taken 8,000 Hopper GPUs and 15 megawatts of power - but can now be done by just 2,000 Blackwell GPUs consuming just four megawatts.

Vera Rubin is the *next* step forward for Nvidia after Blackwell Ultra, with an expected release in 2026, with CPU and GPU products anticpated, including a Vera Rubin board combining the GPU and CPU into a "superchip".

Huang's tease came as Nvidia revealed its most recent set of financial results, with the company once again seeing record returns as it benefits from the huge surge in AI demand.

Overall Nvidia revenues more than doubled year-on-year, reaching $130.5 billion for the financial year, a 114% rise, largely helped by record data center revenues of $35.6 billion, up 16% from the previous quarter, and up 93% from a year ago.

“Demand for Blackwell is amazing as reasoning AI adds another scaling law — increasing compute for training makes models smarter and increasing compute for long thinking makes the answer smarter,” Huang said of the results.

“We’ve successfully ramped up the massive-scale production of Blackwell AI supercomputers, achieving billions of dollars in sales in its first quarter. AI is advancing at light speed as agentic AI and physical AI set the stage for the next wave of AI to revolutionize the largest industries.”

Via The Verge

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• Lookalike products on Temu spark authenticity concerns
• Temu’s review system faces scrutiny amid signs of manipulation
• Price alone won’t dethrone Amazon - Temu must earn consumer trust

Chinese ecommerce giant Temu has emerged as a strong competitor to Amazon by offering significantly lower prices on a wide range of products in recent months

A new Omnisend report has claimed Temu’s prices are, on average, 40% lower for items closely matching Amazon listings. The site relies heavily on discounts to attract shoppers, with around 65% of its listings featuring markdowns, compared to 47% on Amazon, with some items seeing price cuts as high as 98%.

Temu has gained traction in budget-friendly categories such as clothing, shoes, jewelry, and beauty products, where it offers cheaper alternatives to Amazon. The overlap in these categories is high, with a 94% match rate for items listed on both platforms. However, despite its aggressive discounting, it has yet to surpass Amazon in consumer trust and product transparency, which may limit its ability to shift customer loyalty.

Pricing strategies and consumer perception

Amazon remains dominant in trust-sensitive segments like automotive products, where it consistently offers lower prices - being about 12% cheaper than Temu. Shoppers also favor Amazon for food and beverages, where Temu’s match rate is the lowest.

Amazon also holds an edge in electronics and home appliances, where factors like warranties, reliable reviews, and trusted customer support play a significant role in purchasing decisions.

It also maintains an advantage in consumer trust, partly due to its robust review system. The average Amazon product has around 50,000 reviews, while Temu listings typically have only 1,500.

Researchers have found signs of possible review manipulation on Temu, such as disappearing negative reviews and low-rated products being reuploaded under new listings. While Amazon also faces issues with fake reviews, its enforcement measures are more transparent.

Meanwhile, many Temu listings closely resemble well-known brands but feature altered packaging or blurred logos, raising doubts about authenticity.

Ultimately, Temu’s ability to compete with Amazon depends not just on lower prices but also on building credibility. While deep discounts attract budget-conscious shoppers, trust and reliability remain crucial for long-term consumer preference.

On the subject of trust - Temu and similar marketplaces have attracted millions in the last year, but, in September 2024, Temu denied a data breach relating a database containing 87 million users' personal information.

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• Solidigm 122.88TB SSD provided the storage for a test involving Nvidia's Nano Super
• The system was used to run DeepSeek and although it worked, it wasn’t fast
• The Gen 4 PCIe SSD’s speed was restricted by the Nano Super’s Gen 3 connection

At the end of 2024, Solidigm added a 122.88TB QLC SSD to its product line. The D5-P5336 will be available in U.2 15mm to start and then in E1.L later in 2025, meaning it won’t fit in a typical consumer PC. Its price is expected to exceed $10,000 anyway, so you’d need deep pockets if you want to buy one.

If you’re wondering how such a giant-capacity SSD might perform, we have the answer - sort of - but it doesn’t come in the form of a traditional review.

StorageReview tested the Jetson Orin Nano Super - Nvidia’s compact AI single-board computer for edge computing - to see how it performed on AI development tasks, specifically LLM inference. The Nano Super comes with a 6-core Arm CPU, a 1024-core Ampere GPU, and 8GB of LPDDR5 memory. At $249, it is an affordable choice for AI developers, but its limited VRAM presents a challenge for running LLMs.

Not smooth sailing

“We recognized that onboard memory limitations challenge running models with billions of parameters, so we implemented an innovative approach to bypass these constraints,” the site explained. “Typically, the Nano Super’s 8GB of graphics memory restricts its capability to smaller models, but we aimed to run a model 45 times larger than what would traditionally fit.”

Doing this involved upgrading the Nano Super’s storage with Solidigm’s new U.2 drive, which has a Gen 4 PCIe x4 interface and promises sequential read/write speeds of up to 7.1 GB/s (read) and 3.3 GB/s (write), along with random performance of up to 1,269,000 IOPS.

The Nano Super has two M.2 NVMe bays, both of which offer a PCIe Gen3 connection. The team connected the SSD to an 80mm slot supporting a full four PCIe lanes using a breakout cable to get the most bandwidth and used an ATX power supply to deliver 12V and 3.3V to the SSD.

While the full potential of the drive was limited by the Jetson’s interface, it still managed up to 2.5GB/s of read speeds. Using AirLLM, which loads model layers dynamically rather than all at once, the site managed to run DeepSeek R1 70B Distilled, an AI model 45 times larger than what would traditionally fit on such a device.

Processing speed turned out to be a major bottleneck for the experiment. Running smaller models worked well, but generating a single token from the 70B model took 4.5 minutes. While not practical for real-time AI tasks, the test demonstrated how massive storage solutions, like the D5-P5336, can enable larger models in constrained environments.

You can see how the test was achieved, and the problems that were encountered and overcome along the way, in this YouTube video.

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• The fully recovered source code for Command & Conquer is getting a public release
• Steam Workshop support for several Command & Conquer games has also been added
• A 'C&C Modding Support' pack for all games is also available for modding

EA has announced that it's releasing the fully recovered source code for Command & Conquer.

Luke "CCHyper" Feenan, a veteran of the Command & Conquer community, modder, and Admin of CnCNet, shared the details on behalf of the studio in a new Reddit post, confirming that the source code for Command & Conquer, aka Tiberian Dawn, C&C Red Alert, C&C Renegade, and C&C Generals + Zero Hour will be released to the public under the GPL license.

In addition, Steam Workshop support will also be introduced for several Command & Conquer titles allowing users to upload their custom maps. These games include C&C Renegade, Generals and Zero Hour, C&C 3 Tiberium Wars and Kane’s Wrath, Red Alert 3 and Uprising, and C&C 4 Tiberian Twilight.

All Mission Editor and World Builder tools have also been updated, which means players can easily publish edited maps directly to the Steam Workshop.

A 'C&C Modding Support' pack containing the source Xml, Schema, Script, Shader, and Map files for all the games using the SAGE engine will also be released for modders to access.

"This has been another wish from the community for almost 15 years now so we’re excited to finally make this happen, and we hope this helps you all in continuing to make amazing content and mods for the years to come

These new initiatives were initially ideas proposed by Feenan, who was also a part of the development of the Command & Conquer Remastered Collection, following its release in 2020.

"I know this will empower those in the community who continue to create content for these classic entries in the franchise, and I hope it will aid communities like CnCNet to continue to support these games and keep them playable for future generations to come," Feenan added.

To celebrate the release of the source code, Command & Conquer Remastered Collection producer Jim Vassella shared that the team was able to discover and digitize some rare gameplay footage from the early development of C&C Renegade and C&C Generals. This footage is also now available in a compilation format for fans of the series to watch and enjoy.

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• A Google Chrome Canary beta build has revealed a new split-screen feature
• It's been updated twice and renamed since it was first discovered
• It's not available to the public yet, but is expected to release soon

The latest beta build of Google Chrome features brand-new split-screen functionality. This feature lets you use two windows in a single tab and even dynamically change the size of the windows for enhanced productivity.

Uncovered by X user Leopeva64, the new Google Chrome split-screen feature appears to be now known as "Show side-by-side". However, it was first available in the drop-down menu as "Split tab with active tab".

Naming conventions aside, the functionality is identical between the two beta updates; you can merge two windows in the browser under one larger tab, and then you're able to resize the two sides, which means you won't have to manually drag two windows snapped together or swap tabs out.

While confirmed to not be fully functional yet, plans are in place for the handle (space between the tabs) to be resizable as well. With a larger dividing gap, you can better separate the two tabs or minimize the gap completely for a seamless encompassing window.

The functionality is not live yet for regular users in Google Chrome, as it's currently only available in a Chrome Canary test build. Considering it's already been updated twice since it was discovered earlier in the month, there's no telling how it will perform when it's eventually rolled out in an update for everyone.

A time-saving productivity tool for one of the best web browsers

Despite how demanding Google Chrome can be on your RAM and CPU, there's no debating that it's one of the best web browsers you can use in 2025. This new split-screen tool is a smaller update than what we've traditionally seen rolled out, but it is something that could be a productivity powerhouse for those studying and working and needing web access.

It sounds particularly good for laptop users or people working with a smaller computer monitor, as there will be no need to awkwardly try to snap multiple windows together in a cramped space. Similarly, with adjustable scaling to each tab, all under one umbrella. If you're someone doing research and you need the source larger than where you're writing, that can be easily done, and vice versa. It's another step in improving the speed and customization of Chrome as a web browser at a time when more users are demanding more functionality or going elsewhere.

Google Chrome Canary is a beta build of the web browser aimed at developers that is updated every single night. While it can be unstable, it provides insights into new features and improvements long before they arrive to the rest of the users (if they show up at all). Things are tested automatically, and usually not too extensively, so it's a chance to play around with things that may or may not always work.

Recent Chrome updates have included long-term security features for ChromeOS, and stability updates for desktops, iOS, and Android. Previously, in October 2024, Google released performance controls for the web browser so you could make it run faster or more efficiently. In the same month, the company made its plans known to crack down on ad blockers and other unauthorized extensions on its web store.

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• Valve's new headset is reported to cost $1,200 in a bundle
• The company is allegedly selling the headsets at a loss
• Sources claim you'll be able to play Steam Deck games on it

The upcoming Valve VR headset, codenamed 'Deckard', is rumored to launch towards the the end of 2025 and is alleged to cost $1,200, according to fresh claims from a well-known content creator.

According to Gabe Follower, a content creator with over 200,000 followers on X, the new Valve Deckard VR headset will be available as a full bundle for $1,200, which allegedly includes some games, as well as the two "Roy" controllers. Despite the high price tag, it is claimed that it will be "sold at a loss" by Valve.

As well as playing virtual reality games, it is believed the headset will also be able to play "flat games" akin to the Steam Deck with no requirements of using an external monitor or TV. Gabe Follower claims that "Valve want to give the user the best possible experience without cutting any costs."

Additionally, it's been said that the models for the "Roy" controllers were visible in a SteamVR update. Allegedly, the new VR headset will support a modified version of SteamOS as seen in the Steam Deck, but tailored for a virtual reality experience. The controllers appear to do away with the traditional ring design of the company's previous model, the Valve Index, in favor of something more akin to the Meta Quest 3S.

As a standalone device that can also be plugged into a PC, it's currently unknown what kind of hardware Valve's new VR headset will feature, with some concerns that it could struggle to achieve its rumored 120Hz refresh rate with a claimed resolution of 1440p across two screens. Similarly, there has been no mention of the expected battery life at this time.

Previously, in September 2023, Valve certified an unannounced hardware device in South Korea, and the company hinted towards the next generation of its VR headsets. Product Designer Greg Coomer said, "I can definitely say that we are continuing to develop VR headsets recently. Valve has a lot of expertise in VR devices and has faith in the medium and VR games."

The next generation is going to be expensive

While the PC-tethered Valve Index launched at $999 back in June 2019, the upcoming Deckard standalone VR headset looks to be pricier at $1,200 for the "full bundle". As an all-in-one device, its main competition will not be from high-end PC VR options such as the HTC Vive Pro 2 and the Pimax Crystal but the likes of the Pico 4 and (most crucially) the Meta Quest 3, as well as the cheaper Meta Quest 3S.

Most standalone headsets come in significantly cheaper than the alleged price of the Valve Deckard. For instance, the Meta Quest 3 retails for $499.99 for the 512GB model, with the Meta Quest 3S costing even less, starting from $299.99 for the 128GB version. Additionally, the Pico 4 Ultra, a mid-range all-in-one headset, retails for the equivalent of $670, although it's currently not yet available in the US.

That puts Valve's upcoming VR standalone headset into a tough market where it's a high-end headset aimed primarily at PC gamers that also costs anywhere from double (or triple) the bulk of its competition. While its functionality (essentially doubling as a wearable Steam Deck) does sound intriguing, that's an incredibly high asking price given the current state of the market, eclipsing all of the mainstream options available right now.

We won't know if the Valve Deckard is worthwhile until we see it in action or test it ourselves, so it's too early to judge its qualities based on just the rumored pricing. However, factoring in it costs more than the Index by $200 (and far more now since sales) and many of its competitors, it seems like a niche product for a smaller subset of PC gamers who also want to play a premium for wearable Steam Deck use, when they likely already have the handheld in their homes to begin with.

With that said, it could be a smash-hit success as an encompassing solution for replacing monitors and TVs if you're someone who lives in a cramped space. As we saw with the Steam Deck's meteoric rise in popularity over the last three years, with the competition now incredibly fierce, the Deckard could be doing something that catches on and ends up being imitated and innovated upon by others. If this is to happen, though, it'll need to offer a far lower MSRP than what's alleged here.

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• The Lenovo Legion Go 2 is still a prototype, but a new YouTube video showcases its potential performance stats
• There is currently no release date for the handheld gaming PC
• Based on the Legion Go S' starting price, the Legion Go 2 is expected to cost between $900 and $1,000

We're likely still months away from Lenovo's full reveal and launch of its Legion Go successor, purported to be powered by AMD's Ryzen Z2 Extreme chip. While a prototype model was present at CES 2025, performance stats were kept under wraps considering its incomplete nature - now, (assuming the specs remain the same) we may have just seen what the Lenovo Legion Go 2 will have to offer.

On this occasion, the stats come from Fps Vn (reliable for handheld gaming PC benchmarks and comparisons) on YouTube, where we can see the Lenovo Legion Go Z1 Extreme compared to what is supposedly the Lenovo Legion Go 2 Z2 Extreme. In multiple games, the Z2 Extreme handheld leads mostly by 10 or 11 frames per second (on average) while using frame generation at 30W - this is evident in Cyberpunk 2077 (video below), with a 15% performance difference.

It's important to note that this is while using frame generation, and hence doesn't provide raw performance impressions - there also isn't any full clarity on whether the Legion Go 2 in the video is indeed the real Legion Go 2, despite the description stating a 'private lab' test.

Another possibility is that the performance stats here are from a device that also utilizes AMD's Radeon RX 890M integrated GPU (which is present in the Z2 Extreme APU), so it's best to wait until the Legion Go 2 is finalized and more benchmarks are available. But if these performance stats are accurate, they may not leave a great impression - at least when looking at the cost of the handheld.

A 10 or 11 fps difference is great don't get me wrong, but not at a potential $1,000 price

Once again, the Lenovo Legion Go 2 is currently a prototype, so there is no confirmation of any price point - however, if these supposed performance results for a highly anticipated successor are accurate, I'll be a little disappointed.

Based on the Legion Go S with its $729.99 / £600 / AU$1,299.00 starting price, it would make very little sense for Lenovo to price its superior product (with an OLED screen, too) in the same region. This means we'll likely see a price range between $900 and $1,000, neither of which is justifiable for this sort of meager performance gains, in my opinion.

I hold the same sentiment towards the MSI Claw 8 AI+, despite it seemingly being the king of this generation's handheld gaming PCs based on what I've seen - its $899 / £899 (around AU$1,440) price tag is a big ask, and nearing the sort of budget I'd suggest if you wanted to build a mid-range gaming PC.

When the Legion Go 2 actually gets officially unveiled, if Lenovo can provide a strong price point that is reasonable then I'll gladly walk back my statements on this matter - however, the addition of 32GB of RAM and an OLED screen suggests that my price estimate could be right on the money.

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• New leaked 3D models seemingly give us a final look at the Nintendo Switch 2 dock
• The renders show off the Switch 2 dock from all angles and its ports
• The dock's features appear to align with previously leaked photos from before the Switch 2 reveal

A new look at the Nintendo Switch 2 has seemingly leaked, showing us what appears to be the final design for the dock.

Nintendo finally unveiled the first look at the Switch successor in January in the long-awaited announcement trailer, and though the console's dock was featured in the video, it appears that the final design is a little different from what was initially revealed.

As reported by wwftech, the same leaker who previously posted images of the system last year has now shared brand-new 3D models of the dock from the front, angled from the back, a top-down view, and the base.

The top-down view in particular offers a look at where the Switch 2 itself will slot into and connect, while the back shows a grid-like feature that could potentially be the cooling system. It also seems like the dock will have a built-in ethernet port, a HDMI slot, and a USB-C AC adapter.

These features seem to align with leaked models that were circulating online in January, before the console's official reveal, which showed the dock's input and output voltage. It also seems that the Switch 2 will ship with a 60W charger to use with the dock.

We can't say for certain what the final Switch 2 design will look like, but Nintendo has confirmed that a new Nintendo Direct showcase will be broadcast on April 2 which should hopefully provide us with an in-depth look at the hardware, as well as its software.

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• Oura Ring's readiness core is getting a big upgrade
• The algorithm now takes into account the biometric changes of the menstrual cycle
• It will ensure more accurate assessments of daily well-being

Oura, makers of some of the best smart rings you can buy, has today unveiled an update to its Readiness Score algorithm that the company says will ensure more accurate metrics for menstrual tracking.

Alongside a new pregnancy study and a new underrepresented menstruation study, the company has rolled out the algorithm improvement to its smart rings, including the Oura Ring 4.

As the company notes, previous research conducted using the Oura Ring "has revealed how cycle-related hormonal fluctuations can impact women’s physiology and daily lives." Now, the company is putting that data to good use by updating its Readiness Score to take into account "the biometric changes that each individual experiences during their cycle," a move the company says will ensure "a more accurate assessment of daily well-being."

Oura Ring's Readiness upgrade

According to Oura, "35 percent of cycling members will see no impact on their Readiness Score during their luteal phase." As the company notes "many women experience increased heart rate and temperature and decreased heart rate variability," which are all metrics that factor into a Readiness Score and might otherwise be a sign of increased stress and strain.

Oura says that any members who do see an impact should only see a lower Readiness Score on three percent of days, an 81 percent overall decrease in days that members see their cycle impact their score. Generally, this should mean that members see better scores overall during the menstrual cycle.

Holly Shelton, chief product officer at Oura, said that Oura was "dedicated to ensuring our app features accurately reflect the latest scientific understanding of the physiological changes women experience," and said the move would help empower "women to confidently navigate their unique cycles with the most accurate and personalized information possible.”

Oura has also announced a 10,000 participant study into pregnancy in partnership with The Scripps Research Digital Trials Center.

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• Check Point uncovers major hacking campaign, targeting hundreds of thousands of devices
• The campaign leveraged a vulnerable, but signed, Windows driver
• It allowed crooks to disable antivirus programs and take over endpoints

A huge cybercriminal campaign has been spotted utilizing outdated and vulnerable Windows drivers to deploy malware against victims. The campaign originated in China, and the majority of the victims are also located in China.

An in-depth article published by cybersecurity researchers Check Point said the attackers identified a vulnerability in the Truesight.sys driver, version 2.0.2. This is an older version, known to allow arbitrary process termination.

The crooks created more than 2,500 unique variants of the driver, to maintain its valid signature and thus avoid being picked up by antivirus programs.

Hundreds of thousands of victims

They then set up their C2 infrastructure using servers located in China, and hosted the vulnerable drivers. The victims would then be targeted through phishing and social engineering, being offered fake deals on luxury goods, and similar. Once they download the vulnerable driver and the initial piece of malware, their security programs would be remotely disabled, and additional payloads dropped, granting the attackers full control over infected machines.

Check Point did not say how many people were targeted, but suggested that the campaign was massive, potentially hitting hundreds of thousands of devices. While the majority of the victims (75%) are in China, the rest is spread across Asian regions such as Singapore, Taiwan, and similar.

The first steps (setting up the infrastructure) were made in September 2024, the researchers explained, hinting that the campaign is active for at least half a year. In mid-December last year, Microsoft updated its Vulnerable Driver Blocklist, preventing further exploitation of the flawed driver.

The threat actor behind this campaign is most likely a group called Silver Fox, a financially motivated group, and not a state-sponsored one.

Check Point says the execution chain, as well as tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTP) closely resemble a September 2024 campaign that was attributed to Silver Fox. What’s more, the group is known for using Chinese public cloud servers to host payloads and C2, as well as for targeting victims in the Asian region.

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Looking for a different day?

A new Quordle puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Thursday's puzzle instead then click here: Quordle hints and answers for Thursday, February 27 (game #1130).

Quordle was one of the original Wordle alternatives and is still going strong now more than 1,100 games later. It offers a genuine challenge, though, so read on if you need some Quordle hints today – or scroll down further for the answers.

Enjoy playing word games? You can also check out my NYT Connections today and NYT Strands today pages for hints and answers for those puzzles, while Marc's Wordle today column covers the original viral word game.

SPOILER WARNING: Information about Quordle today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

Quordle today (game #1131) - hint #1 - Vowels How many different vowels are in Quordle today?

• The number of different vowels in Quordle today is 3*.

* Note that by vowel we mean the five standard vowels (A, E, I, O, U), not Y (which is sometimes counted as a vowel too).

Quordle today (game #1131) - hint #2 - repeated letters Do any of today's Quordle answers contain repeated letters?

• The number of Quordle answers containing a repeated letter today is 2.

Quordle today (game #1131) - hint #3 - uncommon letters Do the letters Q, Z, X or J appear in Quordle today?

• Yes. One of Q, Z, X or J appears among today's Quordle answers.

Quordle today (game #1131) - hint #4 - starting letters (1) Do any of today's Quordle puzzles start with the same letter?

• The number of today's Quordle answers starting with the same letter is 2.

If you just want to know the answers at this stage, simply scroll down. If you're not ready yet then here's one more clue to make things a lot easier:

Quordle today (game #1131) - hint #5 - starting letters (2) What letters do today's Quordle answers start with?

• P

• R

• P

• D

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

Quordle today (game #1131) - the answers

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today's Quordle, game #1131, are…

• PASTA
• RAZOR
• PLUMB
• DROOL

I made hard work of today’s puzzle, guessing Pasty ahead of PASTA.

Meanwhile, I took forever before I got to RAZOR, despite having most of the word. It’s funny how some letters, Z among them, are almost invisible when you try to work out what you’re missing.

How did you do today? Let me know in the comments below.

Daily Sequence today (game #1131) - the answers

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today's Quordle Daily Sequence, game #1131, are…

• GUISE
• FLOAT
• GLYPH
• SHARP

Quordle answers: The past 20

• Quordle #1130, Thursday 27 February: THIEF, CHAIR, ETHER, GRIME
• Quordle #1129, Wednesday 26 February: LOVER, SPIED, VAPOR, METER
• Quordle #1128, Tuesday 25 February: TWIST, TWEAK, MEANT, CLEAR
• Quordle #1127, Monday 24 February: LEASH, LEVER, TOTEM, CREME
• Quordle #1126, Sunday 23 February: RABID, RELIC, SCRAM, BASIS
• Quordle #1125, Saturday 22 February: ETHER, SONIC, VAUNT, ROUSE
• Quordle #1124, Friday 21 February: STIFF, PRIZE, SCOWL, DONUT
• Quordle #1123, Thursday 20 February: HASTY, DRAPE, FICUS, CRAZE
• Quordle #1122, Wednesday 19 February: ABATE, TROVE, VENUE, DRAPE
• Quordle #1121, Tuesday 18 February: TAMER, SCRUB, BRICK, DRIFT
• Quordle #1120, Monday 17 February: SADLY, WAFER, LITHE, IDIOM
• Quordle #1119, Sunday 16 February: GHOUL, AFIRE, COVEN, FIERY
• Quordle #1118, Saturday 15 February: CREEP, CONDO, GRILL, FANCY
• Quordle #1117, Friday 14 February: MEDIA, ELUDE, THUMB, WIDOW
• Quordle #1116, Thursday 13 February: SCALP, DWELL, AMPLE, TRUNK
• Quordle #1115, Wednesday 12 February: SHOOK, GRADE, POLAR, SEEDY
• Quordle #1114, Tuesday 11 February: HEAVY, CIRCA, PESKY, SCION
• Quordle #1113, Monday 10 February: TWIXT, FRESH, GUISE, TABBY
• Quordle #1112, Sunday 9 February: TAPIR, SHAKE, TOKEN, SEVEN
• Quordle #1111, Saturday 8 February: AFOOT, ALIKE, HUMUS, TOWEL

Looking for a different day?

A new NYT Connections puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Thursday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Connections hints and answers for Thursday, February 27 (game #627).

Good morning! Let's play Connections, the NYT's clever word game that challenges you to group answers in various categories. It can be tough, so read on if you need Connections hints.

What should you do once you've finished? Why, play some more word games of course. I've also got daily Strands hints and answers and Quordle hints and answers articles if you need help for those too, while Marc's Wordle today page covers the original viral word game.

SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Connections today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

NYT Connections today (game #628) - today's words

(Image credit: New York Times)

Today's NYT Connections words are…

• PEACH
• YO-YO
• EGG
• MARBLES
• TOOTHPASTE
• WAFFLE
• DOLL
• MIND
• GENIE
• ANGEL
• SENSE
• HESITATE
• WAVER
• WITS
• BELL
• DEAR

NYT Connections today (game #628) - hint #1 - group hints

What are some clues for today's NYT Connections groups?

• YELLOW: Willy-nilly
• GREEN: Clarity
• BLUE: Names for your sweetheart
• PURPLE: Featured in sayings

Need more clues?

We're firmly in spoiler territory now, but read on if you want to know what the four theme answers are for today's NYT Connections puzzles…

NYT Connections today (game #628) - hint #2 - group answers

What are the answers for today's NYT Connections groups?

• YELLOW: BE INDECISIVE 
• GREEN: LUCIDITY 
• BLUE: LOVELY PERSON 
• PURPLE: COMPONENTS OF METAPHORS FOR THINGS THAT CAN'T BE
• UNDONE 

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

NYT Connections today (game #628) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Connections, game #628, are…

• YELLOW: CONTACT VIA TELEPHONE CALL, DIAL, PHONE, RING
• GREEN: PARTS OF A CAR BELT, HORN, MIRROR, WHEEL
• BLUE: LEVELS OF BIOLOGICAL ORGANIZATION ATOM, CELL, ORGAN, TISSUE
• PURPLE: ENDING WITH UNITS OF MEASURE BIGFOOT, COMPOUND, INSTAGRAM, THERMOMETER

• My rating: Moderate
• My score: 1 mistake

You can’t unring a BELL, put the GENIE back in the bottle, make an omelette without breaking an EGG, or put the TOOTHPASTE back in the tube, but if you could, maybe you could come up with a snappier category than COMPONENTS OF METAPHORS FOR THINGS THAT CAN'T BE UNDONE.

While it’s true that you can’t put toothpaste back in the tube, I do have a nice little winding device that means I can get every drop out of mine. I do this because I have very fancy and expensive taste in toothpaste. I can’t afford to waste a single pea-sized squeeze.

Anyway, sorry to WAFFLE on my DEAR.

How did you do today? Let me know in the comments below.

Yesterday's NYT Connections answers (Thursday, 27 February, game #627)

• YELLOW: CONTACT VIA TELEPHONE CALL, DIAL, PHONE, RING
• GREEN: PARTS OF A CAR BELT, HORN, MIRROR, WHEEL
• BLUE: LEVELS OF BIOLOGICAL ORGANIZATION ATOM, CELL, ORGAN, TISSUE
• PURPLE: ENDING WITH UNITS OF MEASURE BIGFOOT, COMPOUND, INSTAGRAM, THERMOMETER

What is NYT Connections?

NYT Connections is one of several increasingly popular word games made by the New York Times. It challenges you to find groups of four items that share something in common, and each group has a different difficulty level: green is easy, yellow a little harder, blue often quite tough and purple usually very difficult.

On the plus side, you don't technically need to solve the final one, as you'll be able to answer that one by a process of elimination. What's more, you can make up to four mistakes, which gives you a little bit of breathing room.

It's a little more involved than something like Wordle, however, and there are plenty of opportunities for the game to trip you up with tricks. For instance, watch out for homophones and other word games that could disguise the answers.

It's playable for free via the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.

Looking for a different day?

A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Thursday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Thursday, February 27 (game #361).

Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.

Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.

SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

NYT Strands today (game #362) - hint #1 - today's theme What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?

• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Nautical ink

NYT Strands today (game #362) - hint #2 - clue words

Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.

• MAID
• LOSER
• PART
• SOLD
• WEST
• CARP

NYT Strands today (game #362) - hint #3 - spangram What is a hint for today's spangram?

• Seafaring body art

NYT Strands today (game #362) - hint #4 - spangram position What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?

First side: left, 4th row

Last side: right, 6th row

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

NYT Strands today (game #362) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Strands, game #362, are…

• EAGLE
• SHIP
• SWALLOW
• ANCHOR
• MERMAID
• COMPASS
• SPANGRAM: SAILOR TATTOO

• My rating: Easy
• My score: Perfect

The SAILOR TATTOO made an appearance in Connections recently, so I was well-versed in what I was looking for here.

The subjects that made it to today’s puzzle are among the most popular, but there’s lots of traditional ones that didn’t make the cut – among them is the superstition that having a pig tattooed on your left foot and a chicken on the right would ward off being the victim of a shipwreck.

Over time, the meaning of some of these symbols has been lost or unappreciated by non-sailors. A single SWALLOW, for example, was inked on a seafarer after they had travelled 5,000 nautical miles from home, two were awarded after reaching 10,000.

Maybe tattooists could come up with some similar reward-based tattoos for us land lovers – a tattoo of a cardboard box after 2,000 Amazon deliveries? 100 editions of Strands without a Hint.

How did you do today? Let me know in the comments below.

Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Thursday, 27 February, game #361)

• FOOT
• BIRD
• BREAK
• SPENDER
• CHEESE
• LEAGUES
• PICTURE
• SPANGRAM: BIG STUFF

What is NYT Strands?

Strands is the NYT's new word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now out of beta so is a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable and can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.

I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.

• Pro-Ject's AC/DC deck may set you on the highway to hell
• It's limited edition, so are you ready?
• What (do you do for) money? Around $1,450 / £1,149 / AU$2,319

Rarely on this rock 'n' roll train we call life does a new hi-fi product make me consider whether I want to use it for music or hang it on a wall as art (although Samsung's Music Frame is one other notable example). But make no mistake, Pro-Ject's limited-edition AC/DC turntable is every inch designed for those about to rock.

The deck is the latest addition to Pro-Ject's Artist Collection and if you want one, well… money talks. As you'd expect, it's a big gun; the thunderbolt is of course back in black but there's a red LED-lit sub-platter to make a T.N.T-style visual statement, plus an all-new acrylic tonearm and a heavy glass platter for the full witch's spell effect.

Touch too much? Not for me – unlike the riff raff, I'd be willing to part with the full £1,149 for one when it arrives in the UK in March (which is around $1,450 or AU$2,319, give or take). No, it's not exactly cheap. But if you want blood…

That red tonearm also says 'SuperTed' to me – which only makes me want it more (Image credit: Pro-Ject (AC/DC) ) Who made who?

Pro-Ject started making turntables in 1991 and my beloved Sydney rock screamers formed in the early 1970s, so I think there's your answer to that one.

Back to the jack in hand though, and given Pro-Ject's enviable track record (see the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo for starters, which is still one of the best turntables we've ever tested) this is far from a shot in the dark. This is Pro-Ject, so the build quality will be hard as a rock and your vinyl will be safe (yes, even in New York City) under that pre-fitted Ortofon 2M Red cartridge.

I can't currently afford this big balls Pro-Ject proposition, although the company has recently started making cheaper turntable music systems, which are a whole lotta rosie and might just as readily shake you all night long. For now, I'll have to imagine inviting people over, casually saying "Have a drink on me" and setting Let There Be Rock down on the platter, as they whisper "Girl's got rhythm" among themselves…

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• The iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max have been tipped to get 12GB of RAM.
• That's more than the current models 8GB.
• This could be a big power boost for running AI tools on-device.

The rumored iPhone 17 Pro could get a RAM boost, and the next phone is tipped to sport 12GB of random access memory by GFHK Tech Research analyst Jeff Pu.

In an investors note seen by 9to5Mac, Pu corroborated rumors flagged last year by analyst and pseudo-Apple oracle Ming-Chi Kuo that the next-generation Pro iPhone models will get a decent upgrade from the 8GB of RAM the current iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max use.

“Meanwhile iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max are expected to migrate to LPDDR5 12GB, this transition alone will contribute to a 3.5% YoY increase in smartphone DRAM content across an estimated 100 million new iPhone units,” Pu said.

Now, in my time with the iPhone 16 Pro Max, with its current suite of 8GB RAM and the fast A18 Bionic chip, I hardly find it to be slow; apps load quickly and the whole iOS experience feels very slick and smooth.

However, more RAM is one way to future-proof next-gen Pro phones, as artificial intelligence features, Apple Intelligence here, tend to require a healthy pool of RAM, especially if they run AI tasks on-device rather than tap into the cloud.

9to5mac observed that such a boost in RAM for AI purposes was also part of Apple's Mac lineup update. Today's new Mac computers come with 16GB of RAM as a minimum. So, this note by Pu and Kuo’s original claim all make sense.

While upping the RAM of the future iPhone is promising to ensure they have a degree of longevity amid the yearly releases of flagship phones, my hope is Apple uses this extra power to also introduce some impressive and smart new AI features to the next Pro iPhones. Right now, Apple Intelligence has some solid features but none feel like groundbreaking, must-use tools.

Just spitballing, I’d love to see Apple Intelligence use both iPhone cameras and Apple Watch data to propose custom workouts for me to bust my gut and get in trimmer shape. Instead, Apple Intelligence has me stuck with being able to rework the tone of emails and messages, or squash two emojis together to create some new abomination… sigh.

Also, as we roundup the best AI phones, I feel Apple needs to bring something special to iPhone 17 fore to beat Google and its Pixel phones on the AI front.

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• Disa confirms hackers were present for over two months
• They siphoned sensitive data on hundreds of thousands of users
• The company didn't say how it got compromised

American employee screening company Disa has confirmed suffering a cyberattack in which it lost sensitive customer data.

In a breach notification letter sent to affected individuals, as well as in reports filed with Maine and Massachusetts attorney general offices, the company said it discovered a breach, impacting a “limited portion” of its network, on April 22, 2024.

The subsequent investigation determined that the threat actors, who were unnamed, accessed the company’s infrastructure on February 9, and lingered for almost three months, during which time the crooks managed to grab “some information” on Disa’s customers.

3.3 million affected

“Although our forensics investigation could not definitively conclude the specific data procured, DISA conducted a detailed and time-intensive review of the affected files to identify the personal information contained therein,” the letter reads.

The company added there is currently no evidence suggesting the data was misused in other attacks.

In the filing with the Maine Attorney General, Disa said the total number of affected people is 3,332,750. In the filing with the Massachusetts AG, it said that the data stolen included people’s Social Security numbers, financial account information (credit card numbers included), and government-issued identification documents - more than enough data to run phishing scams, identity theft, and even wire fraud.

We don’t know who the attackers were, or what their end goal is. We also don’t know how they managed to infiltrate Disa, and whether or not they tried to extort the company for the stolen information.

DISA Global Solutions is a prominent American company specializing in employee background screening, drug and alcohol testing, and compliance solutions. According to its website, DISA serves over 55,000 customers across various industries, including transportation, energy, manufacturing, and healthcare. Allegedly, approximately 30% of Fortune 500 companies utilize DISA's services.

Via TechCrunch

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