Apple will reportedly launch AirPods with USB-C in September Photo by Chris Welch / The VergeApple is planning to launch a pair of “updated” AirPods with USB-C during its iPhone 15 event in September, according to a report from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. Rumors have been circulating for months about the possibility of Apple introducing AirPods with a USB-C-compatible charging case, but we haven’t heard any…

US Copyright Office wants to hear what people think about AI and copyright Illustration by Alex Castro / The VergeThe US Copyright Office is opening a public comment period around AI and copyright issues beginning August 30th as the agency figures out how to approach the subject. As announced in the Federal Register, the agency wants to answer three main questions: how AI models should use copyrighted data in training…

FBI brings down massive botnet that infected more than 700,000 computers Illustration by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The VergeThe US government just helped dismantle a massive network of computers infected with one of the world’s most notorious pieces of malware. According to the FBI, a multinational effort led by the US took down Qakbot, a malware that made its way into over 700,000 computers around the globe. Hackers …

Verizon’s myPlan lineup adds a pricier Unlimited Ultimate option Illustration by Alex Castro / The VergeVerizon will offer a new $90 monthly cellphone plan called Unlimited Ultimate, announced in an update to the May blog post that announced its myPlan lineup. It offers 60GB of mobile hotspot data (double what you get with the $80 Unlimited Plus plan), 10GB of unthrottled international data, and includes acce…

SiriusXM’s Adam Sachs on why podcasts are showing up on the radio The Team Coco Radio logo. | Image: Team CocoThis is Hot Pod, The Verge’s newsletter about podcasting and the audio industry. Sign up here for more. It’s only Tuesday, and it’s already been a packed week for podcast news. Shortly before hitting publish on this issue of Hot Pod, I got the news that just about every late-night talk show host in Am…

Meta’s avatar legs roll out to beta testers, but only in Quest Home Legs may soon come to the unwashed virtual masses. | Image: MetaMeta is adding legs to Quest Avatars in Quest Home — but not Horizon Worlds — in a new beta announced last week in the Meta Community forums (via UploadVR). Community manager Ryanality posted in the forums that the “Public Test Channel (PTC) for Quest v57 is starting to roll out for…

Panic’s first developer showcase had flies, football, and very messy food Panic / The VergeToday, Panic put on its very first game publisher showcase. The showcase was short but very sweet, featuring some of the most interesting and innovative indie games coming to PlayStation, Xbox, PC, and Switch. Here are all the highlights, including a surprise announcement from the makers of Untitled Goose Game. Arco Arco comes …

Biometrics? Bring it on: why Okta’s Jameeka Green Aaron wants passwords to go away Photo illustration by Alex Parkin / The VergeHow do you define what it means to be you in the all-digital 21st century — and how should systems protect that? Continue reading…

Samsung announces 85-inch version of its outdoor TV — with a giant price to match Image: SamsungYou can’t just stick any regular TV out on the back porch and expect it to survive; there’s a reason outdoor TVs usually sell for a hefty premium. They’re designed to withstand the elements over an extended time while offering enough brightness to overcome direct sunlight. Samsung has a special line of outdoor TVs called The Terrac…

Specialized’s Globe Haul LT is a long-tail cargo bike with big schlep appeal Image: SpecializedSpecialized announced the second e-bike from its resurrected Globe brand, the Haul LT, a long-tailed (the “LT” in the name) cargo bike with fat tires, a sturdy aluminum frame, and a $3,500 price tag. A quick recap: in 2022, Specialized announced it was bringing back its defunct Globe logo for a lineup of heavy-duty e-bikes that…

Steam’s Strategy Fest offers Civilization VI and other PC games on deep discount Image: Firaxis GamesIt seems like Steam has a new themed sale event every other week, and this week, it’s Strategy Fest. As part of the sale, which started officially yesterday and lasts until 1PM ET on September 4th, you can get deals on a slew of strategy games of all stripes. Of course, you can expect all the fan favorites to be deeply discou…

Apple announces the iPhone 15 launch event The iPhone 14 Pro Max and iPhone 14 Pro. | Image: Amelia Holowaty Krales / The VergeApple’s next big product launch is nearly here. The company just sent invitations for an event on September 12th at 1PM ET / 10AM PT, where the company is expected to announce the iPhone 15 lineup and new Apple Watches. In the invite sent by Apple, the company sa…

The new WhatsApp for Mac adds video and audio group calling The new WhatsApp native app for macOS. | Image: MetaWhatsApp has released a redesigned, native WhatsApp app for macOS that brings group calls to Apple’s desktop operating system. The app supports up to eight people in a group video session and as many as 32 in an audio call, both of which will have the same end-to-end encryption featured in its …

What to expect from Apple’s iPhone 15 event Illustration by Kristen Radtke / The VergeApple is holding its next big event in September to take the wraps off the iPhone 15, new Apple Watches, and more. Here, we’ll go over how and when you can watch the event, along with the new product announcements we’re expecting to see from Apple. When is the iPhone 15 showcase? The iPhone 15 event will…

iFixit wants Congress to let it hack McDonald’s ice cream machines Image: iFixit via YouTubeMcDonald’s ice cream machines are so notorious for breaking that it’s become a meme. But now we may have some glimmer of Shamrock Shake-flavored hope: not only has iFixit performed a teardown of McDonald’s machines, but it’s also petitioning the government to let it create the parts required for people to fix them. As sh…

Google made a watermark for AI images that you can’t edit out With SynthID, you should be able to edit a photo all you want without destroying the AI watermark. | Image: GoogleThe Google DeepMind team has believed for years that building great generative AI tools also requires building great tools to detect what has been created by AI. There are plenty of obvious, high-stakes reasons why, says Google DeepM…

The new Google Chat borrows from Slack, Teams, Discord, and even ChatGPT Google Chat now looks more like Slack. And Teams. And everything else. | Image: GoogleGoogle is making some big changes to Google Chat, its answer to Slack and Microsoft Teams. The messaging app — aka The Product Formerly Known As Hangouts — is getting a new design, some features that will feel distinctly familiar to Slack and Teams users, and a…

Google Meet’s new AI will be able to go to meetings for you Next time you zone out in a meeting, Meet can help you catch up on what you missed. | Image: GoogleIf Google Meet’s new AI tools are as good as advertised, you might never need to pay attention to another meeting again — or even show up at all. At its Cloud Next conference today, Google revealed a handful of new AI-powered features coming soon t…

How to set up multiple users on your Android device Illustration by Samar Haddad / The VergeIf you have an Android phone or tablet, your Google account is intrinsic to everything you do, from checking emails in Gmail to making payments with Google Wallet — which is why you’re prompted to log in to a Google account every time you set up a new Android device. However, Android doesn’t limit you to o…

Snapchat is jumping on the AI selfie train with ‘Dreams’ Snapchat users will soon able to create their own Dreams in the Memories section of the app. | Image: SnapAfter releasing its My AI chatbot earlier this year, Snapchat is now jumping on the AI selfie bandwagon with a new feature called Dreams. Located in the camera roll section of Snapchat called Memories, Dreams are the company’s own take on t…