California DMV suspends Cruise’s robotaxi permit ‘effective immediately’ Image: GettyThe California Department of Motor Vehicles suspended Cruise’s robotaxi permit “effective immediately.” The General Motors-backed company had recently been involved in several safety incidents, most recently a hit-and-run by another driver that resulted in a pedestrian trapped under one of Cruise’s driverless vehicles. Among the rea…

How to customize your Samsung Galaxy phone with the Good Lock app The VergeIf you own a Galaxy smartphone and you haven’t already discovered the Samsung Good Lock app, I’d recommend getting it installed at your earliest opportunity. It’s packed with tweaks, tools, and options that build on top of what Samsung already puts into its One UI version of Android. Good Lock lets you take much more control over how y…

Nintendo’s premium Switch OLED console is at its lowest price of $289.99 again The Switch OLED has a bunch of small improvements beyond its screen, like a better kickstand and revised dock. | Photo by Cameron Faulkner / The VergeExpectations may be high for an often-rumored Nintendo Switch 2, but until Nintendo announces something new, the best option around remains the Switch OLED. Since it’s been such a big year for Nint…

YouTube Music now lets you make your own playlist art with AI Image: YouTubeYouTube Music is finally letting you change the cover art of your playlists. While you still won’t get to upload your own image, you can now make a custom image using generative AI. As shown in the below GIF, you can create AI-generated art by tapping the pen icon in the bottom right corner of your playlist’s cover art. You can the…

Chevy Bolt owners could receive $1,400 compensation from GM for nerfed batteries Photo by Andrew J. Hawkins / The VergeChevy Bolt owners might have the option to receive a $1,400 payout from GM as compensation for dealing with defective EV batteries in model year vehicles from 2020-2022. As reported by Engadget, the new offer from GM comes as the company deals with a class action lawsuit over the Bolts that required a softw…

Apple plans ‘Scary Fast’ product event just before Halloween Image: AppleApple is gearing up for another product launch event on October 30th at 8PM ET / 5PM PT. The company has started sending out invites for everyone to tune in to the event, called “Scary Fast” on Apple.com and YouTube Monday night, following rumors Apple is preparing to reveal updates for the Mac lineup. Apple’s page for the event show…

Dozens of states sue Meta over youth mental health crisis Illustration by Nick Barclay / The VergeDozens of states sued Meta on Tuesday, accusing the company of putting profit ahead of the safety of its young users. The lawsuit, filed in a California federal court, argues that Meta unlawfully misled the public about the harms its products, like Facebook and Instagram, could impose on children and teen…

Google Photos will soon give you more say in those AI-created video highlights Illustration: The VergeYou know that thing in Apple Photos and Google Photos where they’ll just randomly generate a generically titled video slideshow that sometimes includes just the worst pictures? Google says that, soon, you’ll be able to ask Google Photos to make them for you! The company will start rolling out an update that lets you choose…

Lego’s flapping Dune Ornithopter set comes with a big boi Baron minifig Look at that magnificent fella on the far left — every bit as imposing as the real deal. | Image: LegoIf you’re bummed about Dune: Part Two being delayed until March 15th, 2024, Lego’s latest Icons set might be the ideal fix to tide you over. The Dune Atreides Royal Ornithopter — a 1,369-piece replica of the Imperium’s favored flapping flying ma…

Amazon will now let you access Crunchyroll’s anime library right from Prime Video Image: CrunchyrollIf you’re a Prime Video subscriber, beginning today, you can start streaming Crunchyroll, the popular anime service, right from inside the Prime Video app. The companies have announced a global distribution agreement that allows Amazon to offer Crunchyroll as one of its Prime Video Channels. Prime Video Channels are optional ad…

Mario Wonder’s online mode is opening my mind to tricks and secrets Image: NintendoSuper Mario Bros. Wonder’s online multiplayer keeps making me think of Elden Ring. Nintendo’s latest Super Mario game has a clever online multiplayer mode. When you connect online, you’ll see near-invisible versions of other players throughout the game’s islands and levels as they also travel the Flower Kingdom. It’s a lot like ho…

Xreal’s Air 2 glasses put a big screen on your face and ship in the US next month The Air 2 glasses in their graphite and red models. | Image: XrealXreal is opening preorders for its latest generation of augmented reality glasses, the Xreal Air 2 and Air 2 Pro, for a November release in the US, UK, Germany, France, and Italy. The glasses are a follow-up to the first-generation Air glasses released last year under the company’…

Workers training AI demand protections from Congress Photo by Drew Angerer / Getty ImagesData workers urged lawmakers to protect their rights ahead of a Senate meeting with artificial intelligence leaders on Tuesday. In a letter addressed to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), workers and civil society groups demanded Congress guard against a “dystopian future” of surveillance and low wa…

Automattic is acquiring Texts and betting big on the future of messaging Texts is a messaging app… for all your messaging apps. | Image: TextsAutomattic, the company that runs WordPress.com, Tumblr, Pocket Casts, and a number of other popular web properties, just made a different kind of acquisition: it’s buying Texts, a universal messaging app, for $50 million. Texts is an app for all your messaging apps. You can…

Spotify profits from more subscribers and price hikes The number of people paying for Spotify Premium rose three percent to 226 million on a quarterly basis as the streaming service announced price increases across the US and several other global markets. Spotify’s monthly active users (MAUs) also rose to 574 million as of September 30th, a four percent increase from last quarter. Both rises were s…

Massive facial recognition search engine now blocks searches for children’s faces Illustration: Alex Castro / The VergePimEyes, a public search engine that uses facial recognition to match online photos of people, has banned searches of minors over concerns it endangers children, reports The New York Times. At least, it should. PimEyes’ new detection system, which uses age detection AI to identify whether the person is a chi…

Toyota made a Land Cruiser EV concept that probably won’t see the light of day Toyota’s Land Cruiser Se concept. | Image: ToyotaToyota is bringing the content for its 2023 Japan Mobility Show showcase that includes an all-electric Land Cruiser SUV concept that could either be a serious contender to duke it out with competing three-row EVs or just a premature look for things to come. The Toyota Land Cruiser “Se” has an angu…

Stellantis drops out of CES, blames UAW strike Here’s a Ram truck at CES 2018. | Image: Sean O’Kane / The VergeStellantis — the gigantic international automotive conglomerate that owns everything from Jeep to Ram to Alfa Romeo and Opel — has canceled its plans for CES 2024, we are told via a short press release. The company blames the current United Auto Workers (UAW) strikes, which today ex…

Final Fantasy XIV has a new class and a couple of new crossovers coming soon Image: Square EnixEarlier this year, Final Fantasy XIV fans were treated to a first look at the next expansion, Dawntrail. Over the weekend, during the London leg of the Final Fantasy XIV Fan Festival event, Square Enix shared a bit more detail about the expansion, including a new trailer revealing the newest class: Viper. Viper will be a melee…

Samsung TVs had Steam Link, but now the game streaming app is going away Illustration: The VergeIn a post earlier this month, Valve announced the Steam Link app will “no longer be available on Samsung TV after November 30th, 2023.” The service lets users wirelessly stream PC games from their Steam library to other devices, such as a TV or phone. It launched with the Steam Link dongle in 2015, which was discontinued i…