X says you can block Grok from editing your photos
X says you can block Grok from editing your photos Pay attention to that small print about tagging @Grok, this new toggle has disappointing limitations. | Image by The Verge / xAI X has introduced a new feature that makes it slightly harder for other users to manipulate your uploaded images with the Grok chatbot. […]
DHS reportedly detained a Columbia University student and content creator
DHS reportedly detained a Columbia University student and content creator Students are seen on the campus of Columbia University on April 14, 2025, in New York City. An immigration judge ruled on April 11 that Mahmoud Khalil, a pro-Palestinian student protester from Columbia University and a US permanent resident detained by the Trump administration, can […]
If Big Tech cared about fighting AI slop, it wouldn’t be drowning us in it
If Big Tech cared about fighting AI slop, it wouldn't be drowning us in it Progress towards reliable deepfake labelling tech is sluggish, despite all the “help” from AI providers. | Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge, Getty Images As 2025 drew to a close, Instagram head Adam Mosseri ended the year by doom-posting about […]
Smart glasses in court are a privacy nightmare
Smart glasses in court are a privacy nightmare When Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg arrived at a Los Angeles courthouse on Wednesday, he did so with a team that appeared to be wearing Meta’s camera-equipped Ray-Ban smart glasses. Judge Carolyn Kuhl was concerned. According to CNBC, Kuhl warned anyone recording with the glasses, “If you have […]
Prop bet
Prop bet Pondering my orb. | Cath Virginia Substack has updated its partnership with betting platform Polymarket, “introducing native tools that make it easier to share, discuss, and debate prediction market data directly on Substack.” Additionally, Polymarket will effectively pay “a cohort of creators,” including Matt Yglesias, to use its data though the newsletter platform’s […]
The executive that helped build Meta’s ad machine is trying to expose it
The executive that helped build Meta's ad machine is trying to expose it Brian Boland spent more than a decade figuring out how to build a system that would make Meta money. On Thursday, he told a California jury it incentivized drawing more and more users, including teens, onto Facebook and Instagram – despite the […]
Mastodon is testing easier ways to get you started in the fediverse
Mastodon is testing easier ways to get you started in the fediverse New users on the decentralized social network Mastodon could soon have an easier time getting started. Mastodon is running “onboarding experiments” to test ways to improve the new user experience, starting with default server recommendations. Now when new users join Mastodon from the […]
It’s MAGA v Broligarch in the battle over prediction markets
It's MAGA v Broligarch in the battle over prediction markets The Polymarket website hosts trading on whether Houthi militias would strike Israeli territory arranged on a laptop computer in Forest Hills neighborhood in the Queens borough of New York, US, on Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026. | Bloomberg via Getty Images. Hello and welcome to Regulator, […]
Mark Zuckerberg and his Ray-Ban entourage have their day in court
Mark Zuckerberg and his Ray-Ban entourage have their day in court Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg entered a downtown Los Angeles courthouse in largely the same way as all the attorneys, reporters, and advocates who’d come to watch his landmark trial testimony, but with one notable difference: he was flanked by an entourage that appeared to […]
Social media on trial: tech giants face lawsuits over addiction, safety, and mental health
Social media on trial: tech giants face lawsuits over addiction, safety, and mental health A set of bellwether cases alleging that social media platforms harmed teens’ safety and mental health is going to trial this year, putting executives like Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg on the stand to answer questions about what they’ve done or not […]