Tech ado Labs

Millions lost internet service after three cables in the Red Sea were damaged. Houthi rebels deny targeting the cables, but their missile attack on a cargo ship, left adrift for months, is likely to blame. https://www.wired.com/story/houthi-internet-cables-ship-anchor-path/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Save your memories before you grab a new iPhone or update to the latest version of iOS. https://www.wired.com/story/how-to-backup-your-iphone/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Backups are boring, but they’ll save your bacon. Here’s how to make sure your data lives on, even when your PC doesn’t. https://www.wired.com/story/how-to-back-up-your-digital-life/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The cerebellum is responsible for far more than coordinating movement. New techniques reveal that it is, in fact, a hub of sensory and emotional processing in the brain. https://www.wired.com/story/cerebellum-brain-movement-feelings/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Plus: Microsoft patches over 60 vulnerabilities, Mozilla fixes two Firefox zero-day bugs, Google patches 40 issues in Android, and more. https://www.wired.com/story/apple-ios-google-chrome-critical-update-march/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Voice Engine is a new text-to-speech AI model for creating synthetic voices. OpenAI has said a wide release would be too risky. https://www.wired.com/story/openai-voice-engine-artificial-intelligence-release/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Follow these tips to produce stronger writing that stands out on the web even in the age of AI and ChatGPT. https://www.wired.com/story/how-to-resist-ai-temptation-writing/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

These kitchen ideas for compact homes will make you the master of your domain, even if your domain is not much bigger than a butcher block. https://www.wired.com/story/best-gear-for-small-kitchens/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Two climate journalists decided to decarbonize their home. Here's what happened. https://www.wired.com/story/home-decarbonization-solar-energy-electrification/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

This wireless gaming headset is an improvement in every way over Sony’s previous attempt, plus it comes with a charging hanger. https://www.wired.com/review/sony-playstation-pulse-elite/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

These services deliver freshly roasted, delicious coffee picks right to your door—each with its own twist. https://www.wired.com/gallery/best-coffee-subscriptions/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Two new books offer radically different approaches to how people should think about smartphones and social media. https://www.wired.com/story/pete-etchells-jonathan-haidt-smartphones/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

New heat pumps easily fit over window sills, meaning they could replace clunky apartment air-conditioning units. https://www.wired.com/story/the-next-heat-pump-frontier-nyc-apartment-windows/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Amazon listings for low-cost tech products can send shoppers down a rabbit hole of weird brand names, duplicate listings, and suspect reviews. Data from Fakespot shows bug zappers are ascendant. https://www.wired.com/story/bug-zappers-are-swarming-on-amazon/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Nicole Shanahan, RFK Jr.'s VP pick, seems to have already embraced her running mate's conspiratorial thinking. https://www.wired.com/story/rfk-jr-has-assembled-his-anti-vax-conspiracy-squad/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Rumors abound about the Switch’s successor, but that shouldn’t deter you from jumping into the wonderful library of exclusive games on Nintendo’s platform. https://www.wired.com/story/is-a-nintendo-switch-worth-buying-right-now/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Vice President Kamala Harris says new rules for government AI deployments, including a requirement that algorithms are checked for bias, will “put the public interest first.” https://www.wired.com/story/white-house-new-guardrails-government-use-of-ai/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Afshin Mehin has helped design some of the most futuristic neurotech devices. https://www.wired.com/story/designer-behind-neuralinks-surgical-robot-afshin-mehin/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The popular farming game’s major update includes a new farm type, new events, and a massive multiplayer option. https://www.wired.com/story/stardew-valley-march-2024-update-biggest-changes/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Here’s Elie Hassenfeld, your high school EA crush. As effective altruism spirals into self-doubt, the idealist quant is still at it, helping Silicon Valley richies give away hundreds of millions each year. https://www.wired.com/story/elie-hassenfeld-givewell-ea/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Sam Bankman-Fried is finally facing punishment. Let’s also put his ruinous philosophy on trial. https://www.wired.com/story/deaths-of-effective-altruism/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Erasing key information during training allows machine learning models to learn new languages faster and more easily. https://www.wired.com/story/how-selective-forgetting-can-help-ai-learn-better/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The game’s ending prompts heated discussion online about whether it does justice to its most iconic moment. https://www.wired.com/story/does-aerith-die-final-fantasy-vii-rebirth/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Influencers on TikTok and Reddit earn a cut of the counterfeit goods trade by promoting high-quality “replicas” sourced from ecommerce sites in China. https://www.wired.com/story/influencers-paid-promote-designer-knockoffs-from-china/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Plus: An ex-Google engineer gets arrested for allegedly stealing trade secrets, hackers breach the top US cybersecurity agency, and X’s new feature exposes sensitive user data. https://www.wired.com/story/russia-hackers-microsoft-source-code/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Social robots for older adults might not be new, but now they're recording, listening—and talking back. https://www.wired.com/story/ai-dolls-for-older-adults/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Sex differences explain some of the gaping health inequalities between men and women—but a lot of the time, it’s sexism. https://www.wired.com/story/stop-misunderstanding-the-gender-health-gap/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

OpenAI named Sam Altman, its fired-then-rehired CEO, to its board of directors Friday. It also added three women with executive experience at Sony, Meta, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. https://www.wired.com/story/sam-altman-is-reinstated-to-openais-board/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Senator Maggie Hassan wrote to Meta and other platforms asking what they're doing to protect girls after The New York Times found some parents posting suggestive images of their daughters online. https://www.wired.com/story/senator-asks-meta-tiktok-parents-girls-influencer-accounts/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

This machine delivers the same sleek design and portability, with a mightier M3 processor. But is it worth the upgrade? https://www.wired.com/review/apple-macbook-air-13-inch-2024/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

An architect of the EU's tough new Digital Markets Acts says Apple would be a logical first candidate for investigation under the law, which aims to “break open” tech platforms. https://www.wired.com/story/apple-target-dma-europe-tough-new-law/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The Rivian R2, a new smaller EV, will cost “around” $45,000 and will be available in 2026, the troubled automaker said at an event in California today. Two crossovers, the R3 and R3X, will follow. https://www.wired.com/story/rivian-r2-r3-r3x-announced/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

In Doppelgängers³, three look-alikes, including director Nelly Ben Hayoun-Stépanian, go to a cave in Spain to figure out ways Earthlings could avoid repeating history’s mistakes on other planets. https://www.wired.com/story/doppelgangers-3-documentary-space-colonization/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Jalon Hall was featured on Google’s corporate social media accounts “for making #LifeAtGoogle more inclusive!” She says the company discriminated against her on the basis of her disability and race. https://www.wired.com/story/google-black-deaf-worker-diversity-suing-discrimination/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Tech giants have to comply with a new EU law that is set to change the internet. It aims to force open the biggest platforms to encourage competition and give users more choice in their digital lives. https://www.wired.com/story/europe-dma-breaking-open-big-tech/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Here’s how to stream the best sci-movies of all time, from Dune: Part Two to The Matrix. https://www.wired.com/story/best-sci-fi-movies-of-all-time-streaming/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

De-extinction startup Colossal Biosciences claims it has found a way to reprogram elephant cells, a technical breakthrough that could lead to the return of the long-lost mammals. https://www.wired.com/story/colossal-biosciences-mammoth/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The 96th Academy Awards ceremony celebrating major movies, like Oppenheimer, will air on ABC this Sunday and be hosted by Jimmy Kimmel. https://www.wired.com/story/how-to-watch-oscars-2024/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Open source tools allow anyone to make AI art. They have also been used to produce nonconsensual deepfake porn. https://www.wired.com/story/dark-side-open-source-ai-image-generators/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

On Tuesday, Google announced changes to combat AI spam in search. An SEO expert says these new rules could “change everything.” https://www.wired.com/story/google-search-artificial-intelligence-clickbait-spam-crackdown/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

People around the world reported that Meta’s social platforms Facebook, Instagram, and Threads suffered outages for about two hours this morning. https://www.wired.com/story/facebook-instagram-whatsapp-and-threads-back-online-outage/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Thanks, millennials. https://www.wired.com/story/tiktok-milennials-2000s-aging/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

I had zero problems covering a major mobile trade show with this $350 Android smartphone from Nothing. https://www.wired.com/review/nothing-phone-2a/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

WIRED reviewed a letter showing hundreds of Google workers demanding the company drop its sponsorship of MindTheTech, a conference in New York this week that promotes Israeli tech companies. https://www.wired.com/story/google-workers-letter-cut-ties-israeli-tech-conference/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

Music streaming service Spotify has long complained that Apple’s App Store rules put unfair restrictions on its business. Today the European Commission agreed, fining Apple $2 billion. https://www.wired.com/story/apple-spotify-2-billion-fine-eu/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

A hefty bump in performance and a doubling of Wi-Fi download speeds are more than welcome. Another boon is support for two external displays, but there's a catch. https://www.wired.com/story/apple-new-13-and-15-inch-macbook-air-m3-chip/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

White spruce are spreading in the high north, thanks to extra snow. That “Arctic greening” has serious climate implications. https://www.wired.com/story/arctic-trees-sea-ice-snow-warming/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

The RFK Jr. campaign’s chatbot had previously affirmed Kennedy’s promotion of conspiracy theories, and appeared to circumvent OpenAI’s ban on political use. https://www.wired.com/story/robert-f-kennedy-jr-chatbot-microsoft-openai-disappeared/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

TK https://www.wired.com/2022/03/geeks-guide-business-owners/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger

When your mind is wandering, your brain’s “default mode” network is active. Its discovery 20 years ago inspired a raft of research into networks of brain regions and how they interact with each other. https://www.wired.com/story/what-your-brain-is-doing-when-youre-not-doing-anything/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=blogger