OpenAI turbocharges GPT-4 and makes it cheaper Illustration: The VergeOpenAI announced more improvements to its large language models, GPT-4 and GPT-3.5, including updated knowledge bases and a much longer context window. The company says it will also follow Google and Microsoft’s lead and begin protecting customers against copyright lawsuits. GPT-4 Turbo, currently available via an API pre…

Blizzard’s president on the studio’s ‘new era’ under Xbox Blizzard Entertainment president Mike Ybarra and Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer at BlizzCon 2023. | Photo by Robert Paul for Blizzard EntertainmentMike Ybarra is confident about the studio’s future. Continue reading…

Marvel’s new Spotlight branding will help you cut through the MCU’s noise The Marvel Spotlight logo. | Image: Marvel StudiosIn an effort to help viewers understand which of its spinoff projects will have significant connections to the larger Marvel Cinematic Universe and which are really meant to work as standalone stories, Marvel’s rolling out a new kind of branding just in time for its upcoming Echo series. Ahead of…

PlayStation is cutting off X sharing options Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The VergeSony is terminating its X (formerly Twitter) integrations for PS5 and PS4, meaning you soon won’t be able to post screenshots and clips to X from those consoles. “As of November 13, 2023, integration with X (formerly known as Twitter) will no longer function on PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4 consoles,” Sony said…

TikTok’s $1 billion creator fund is shutting down Illustration by Nick Barclay / The VergeTikTok’s $1 billion creator fund will come to an end on December 16th, 2023, the company told users today. Creators in the US, UK, Germany, and France will no longer be able to monetize their content through the original fund, TikTok spokesperson Maria Jung says. TikTokers in Italy and Spain aren’t affect…

The Finals beta was a hit, and I already miss the destructive chaos Image: EmbarkI’m a big first-person shooter fan, but I’m bored of the likes of Overwatch, Call of Duty, and Valorant. So when I saw The Finals, one of the hottest first-person shooters, blowing up on Steam and Twitch, I had to drop in and see what all of the hype was about. A week later, and I’m sad that the open beta has ended but glad that 7.5…

Instagram’s paid creator subscriptions are still a tiny business Illustration: Alex Castro / The VergeThere are now 1 million paid subscriptions to creators on Instagram, slowly transforming the platform into a space where creators can get paid directly by their fans. It’s a big milestone but a small number for Instagram: the service has around 2 billion monthly users. Patreon, meanwhile, is estimated to have…

Epic v. Google: a battle over Fortnite fees goes to court Photo illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photos by Philip Pacheco, Bloomberg, Getty ImagesIn a redux of a case against Apple and iOS, Epic aims to dismantle barriers that could spell higher fees for app makers — and, Google argues, keep Android safe and competitive. Continue reading…

Robotaxi companies have a serious trust issue Photo by Tayfun Coskun / Anadolu via Getty ImagesThe recent woes of robotaxi company Cruise bring to light many interesting problems currently plaguing the autonomous vehicle industry, most importantly issues around transparency and public trust. How are we supposed to trust these companies with our lives — and indeed, you are putting your life…

All the biggest news from Netflix Geeked Week 2023 Gordon Cormier as Aang in Avatar: The Last Airbender. | Image: NetflixAvatar: The Last Airbender, Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, Devil May Cry, Stranger Things, and 3 Body Problem are all showing out at Netflix’s Geeked 2023 showcase. Continue reading…

Fortnite’s new season shows just how much the game has changed Where are we dropping? | Image: Epic GamesThis weekend, I experienced something that I hadn’t in quite some time: a queue to play Fortnite. The long-running battle royale hit players with a dose of nostalgia in its latest season — called Fortnite OG — which brings back the game’s original map for the next month. Players have shown up in droves; …

Please make more USB-C cables like this Photo by Tom Warren / The VergeElgato hasn’t just made an excellent teleprompter, it’s also made a great USB-C cable that ships with it. Professional audio engineer Matt “Spike” McWilliams spotted that Elgato’s latest USB-C cable has the bandwidth and USB type imprinted on the connector, and now I wish all manufacturers did this. I recently spen…

Apple has no plans to make a 27-inch iMac with Apple Silicon The 2020 version of the 27-inch iMac is the last of its kind. | Photo by Dieter Bohn / The VergeApple will not be making an Apple Silicon version of the 27-inch iMac to replace the Intel-equipped model that it discontinued in 2022. The company is instead focusing the iMac line around the 24-inch model that was first released in early 2021 and ju…

Apple MacBook Pro 14 (2023) review: entry-level enigma The long-awaited replacement for the 13-inch MacBook Pro is here, and it’s exactly as expected. But the line between Air and Pro users is blurrier than ever. Continue reading…

Handheld gaming is the future — again Illustration by Samar Haddad / The VergeIn 1989, ancient history in the gaming era, Nintendo released a three-and-a-half-minute commercial for its new device. A kid shouts angrily because he has to stop playing games so the family can leave on vacation; the car sags, and its tire deflates when his dad shoves a giant CRT TV into the back seat. “T…

Revel bails on electric mopeds in favor of more cars Revel shifts focus to its charging stations and EV rideshare. | Image: RevelThere will be fewer electric scooters strewn about the streets of New York City and San Francisco soon. Electric moped sharing company Revel has decided to shut down its two-wheeler rentals to focus on its EV rideshare business, comprised of Tesla and Kia models. The 3,0…

Microsoft is bringing AI characters to Xbox Image: Inworld AIMicrosoft is partnering with Inworld AI to develop Xbox tools that will allow developers to create AI-powered characters, stories, and quests. The multiyear partnership will include an “AI design copilot” system that Xbox developers can use to create detailed scripts, dialogue trees, quest lines, and more. “At Xbox, we believe t…

Nintendo’s latest Switch OLED has Smash Bros.-themed controllers Image: NintendoNintendo is giving its OLED Switch a Smash Bros.-themed paint job. The latest version of the console comes as part of a new bundle with Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and includes gray Joy-Cons that feature the game’s logo. The makeover still isn’t as exciting as the Super Smash Bros.-inspired Switch that Nintendo launched when Ultima…

Bored Ape NFT event attendees report ‘severe eye burn’ Several event attendees saught medical attention after experiencing eye and skin injuries. | Image: @CryptoJune777 / Yuga LabsSeveral people have reported experiencing eye pain, vision problems, and sunburnt skin on Sunday after attending ApeFest, a Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT collection event in Hong Kong that ran from November 3rd-5th. Some ApeFe…

ChatGPT subscribers may get a ‘GPT builder’ option soon Illustration: The VergeJust as OpenAI is preparing for its first-ever developer conference, a significant ChatGPT update has leaked. According to The Decoder, leaked screenshots and videos show a custom chatbot creator with many of the same features already available in ChatGPT using GPT-4, like web browsing and data analysis. OpenAI will appare…