Defense

The Senate just advanced the beef between SpaceX and Blue Origin

A controversial amendment pushed by Jeff Bezos’ space firm Blue Origin passed the Senate Wednesday night, inching closer to becoming law. Crammed inside a mammoth science and technology bill designed primarily to counter competition from China, the amendment would allow NASA to spend up to $10 billion on its embattled Moon lander program. Aside from… Read more

Google confirms diversity exec no longer in role after problematic post

One of Google’s top executives in diversity strategy and research has left his post after a 2007 blog post slamming the state of Israel resurfaced on June 1st. In the post, Kamau Bobb used antisemitic language, insinuating Jews have an “insatiable appetite for war and killing.” The post was quickly picked up by the New… Read more

The government’s been worried about DJI drones — the Pentagon now says they’re safe

After months of government bans on DJI drones, with lawmakers questioning whether the company was sending information to the Chinese government, the Pentagon has now admitted that the drones being used might actually be safe (via The Hill), releasing a report saying that two “Government Edition” DJI drones are “recommended for use by government entities.”… Read more

US soldiers reportedly leaked nuclear info online accidentally, by using flashcard apps

US soldiers stationed in Europe may have accidentally exposed information about the United States’ nuclear weapons stockpile when they used flashcard apps to help them remember details about the information, according to a report from open-source intelligence outlet Bellingcat. Foeke Postma, a researcher with Bellingcat, wrote that the soldiers used study apps such as Chegg,… Read more

Hundreds of Amazon employees call for Jeff Bezos and Andy Jassy to support Palestine

More than 500 Amazon employees have signed an internal letter to Jeff Bezos and Andy Jassy calling for the company to acknowledge the plight of the Palestinian people. The move comes after Israeli airstrikes devastated Palestinians in Gaza, leaving 248 people dead. Hamas and Israel have since agreed to a ceasefire. “We ask Amazon leadership… Read more

Knockout City’s virtual dodgeball is even more chaotic than the real thing

Knockout City took me back to childhood games of dodgeball with a single sound: “whumphf!” That one noise, which you’ll hear a lot as dodgeballs bounce every which way, represents just how well the game’s virtual version of dodgeball mimics the real thing — including all of the chaos you might remember from games on… Read more

Joe Biden opens up California coast to offshore wind

Offshore wind is headed west. The Biden administration announced today that it will open up parts of the Pacific coast to commercial-scale offshore renewable energy development for the first time. The geography of the West Coast poses huge technical challenges for wind energy. But rising to meet those challenges is a big opportunity for both… Read more

Tim Cook’s Fortnite trial testimony was unexpectedly revealing

The Epic v. Apple trial was bookended by Tims. Epic Games called its CEO Tim Sweeney as the first witness nearly three weeks ago. Yesterday, Apple called Tim Cook as the last to take the stand, before both sides make their final case to a judge on Monday. Cook was supposed to bring home Apple’s… Read more

Go read this feature on the 2011 RSA hack that redefined cybersecurity

Wired has published an in-depth feature on the 2011 hack of security company RSA, in which hackers stole the so-called “crown jewels of cybersecurity,” the secret keys forming a “crucial ingredient” of its SecurID two-factor authentication devices. It would go on to “redefine the cybersecurity landscape” with huge implications for not just RSA, but also… Read more

New SSDs Have Built-in Protection Against Ransomware, Data Theft

Home News (Image credit: Cigent) Phison and Cigent introduced a co-developed SSD platform that protects against ransomware and data theft with mechanisms built directly into the SSD’s firmware. The drives even automatically encrypt and hide data from prying eyes in the event of an attack. These ‘self-defending’ drives will be available to everyone this year…. Read more

Google employees call for company to support Palestinians and protect anti-Zionist speech

A group of Jewish Google employees is calling on the company to increase its support of Palestinians amid Israel’s deadly bombing campaign in Gaza. The conflict started with Israel’s attempt to evict Palestinians from their homes in East Jerusalem, and escalated when militants fired rockets toward Jerusalem and Israel responded with airstrikes. In an internal… Read more

U.S. Senators Close to Inking $52 Billion Semiconductor Funding Plan

Home News (Image credit: Intel) According to a Reuters report, a group of four U.S. senators might unveil their $52-billion microelectronics industry backing proposal on Friday or early next week. The chip industry support plan is set to include funding of R&D and production and the establishment of national programs. The $52 billion five-year plan… Read more

New Wi-Fi Flaws Revealed – Actually Quite Old

Home News (Image credit: Shutterstock) Widespread flaws affecting Wi-Fi have been disclosed to the public by security researcher Mathy Vanhoef nine months after he tipped the Wi-Fi Alliance off about the problem. The vulnerabilities, reported by Gizmondo from a site set up by Vanhoef exploit mistakes in the implementation of Wi-Fi standards, and can affect… Read more

Netflix will try to make Ultraman a global name with a new CG movie

Netflix announced that it’s partnering with Tsuburaya Productions to create a new CG Ultraman movie, in the hopes of bringing the popular Japanese character to an even larger global audience. Ultraman’s never been a household name outside of Japan despite leaving a huge impression on popular culture — the original Ultraman series popularized the “giant… Read more

Nearly Every Big Tech Company Joined the New Semiconductors in America Coalition

Home News (Image credit: Shutterstock) Apple, Microsoft, and many other big tech companies today announced the formation of the Semiconductors in America Coalition (SIAC) lobbying group, whose first order of business was lending its support to the CHIPS for America Act. The companies said in a press release that SIAC’s “mission is to advance federal… Read more