Google

YouTube is relaxing some rules about ads on drug-related videos

From this month, Google is updating some of its YouTube ad guidelines about drug-related videos. In a support document spotted by Gizmodo, Google says it’s “expanding monetization on educational, documentary or news content that may include violent interactions with law enforcement, recreational drugs and drug-related content, or sensitive events.” The update means more drug-related videos… Read more

Microsoft shuts down Cortana on iOS and Android

Microsoft has shut down its Cortana app for iOS and Android. It’s the latest in a series of moves to end support for Cortana across multiple devices, including Microsoft’s own Surface Headphones. The Cortana app for iOS and Android is no longer supported, and Microsoft has removed it from both the App Store and Google’s… Read more

Amazon’s Alexa lets you control a Lamborghini’s air conditioning with just your voice

Amazon is taking a bigger step into cars today by integrating Alexa into Lamborghini’s Huracán EVO, and not just to ask questions or remotely control your home — it’s giving the assistant the ability to control settings inside the car, hands-free. The partnership was originally announced last year as part of Amazon’s push into cars,… Read more

Google plans to open its US offices to some employees in April

Google plans to open its US offices in a limited capacity in April for employees who want to work in person, the company tells The Verge. The announcement follows Microsoft, Facebook, and Uber’s plans to return to offices in the coming months. Offices will likely open in April, “based on specific criteria that include increases… Read more

Google ditches Mobile World Congress 2021, the world’s biggest phone show

Last year, the world’s largest phone show, Mobile World Congress, hung on to the idea of hosting an in-person event during the COVID-19 pandemic as long as it could, even as major exhibitors kept pulling out — and the dominoes may be falling on this year’s show as well. Google just announced that it will… Read more

Google cancels April Fools

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Google union wins dispute over discussing pay

Google is telling workers they are allowed to discuss pay and working conditions as part of a settlement agreement with the Alphabet Workers Union (AWU), Bloomberg reports. The move settles a labor dispute brought by AWU in February. The initial complaint alleged that managers at Adecco, a Google subcontracting firm, banned workers from talking about… Read more

Ring Video Doorbell Pro 2 review: Ring’s best doorbell yet

Ring’s new $249.99 Video Doorbell Pro 2 is the best video doorbell yet from a company that has nearly become a household name for video doorbells. It has an excellent field of view and video quality; plenty of customizable features for notifications and recording zones; and speedy performance, whether that’s sending alerts to your phone… Read more

Arm Unveils Armv9 Instruction Set Architecture

Home News (Image credit: Qualcomm) Arm this week announced Armv9, its latest instruction set architecture that will power a broad range of processors and system-on-chips that will be launched in the coming years. The new ISA promises to enable designers to build SoCs with multiple special-purpose accelerators for artificial intelligence (AI), machine leading, digital signal processing (DSP),… Read more

Fiat made a ‘Hey Google’ car

As vehicles are increasingly defined by their digital features, tech companies are seeking out ever-closer partnerships with carmakers. A new collaboration between Google and Fiat, though, is the most extreme we’ve seen yet. Three new special edition Fiat 500s — the Fiat 500, 500X crossover, and 500L MPV — have been branded with Google livery… Read more

A first look at Xbox running Discord and Google Stadia in its new Edge browser

Microsoft has started testing a new version of its Edge browser on Xbox consoles. The software giant provided access to the Chromium version of Edge to Xbox Insiders earlier this month, offering an early look at the improved browsing capabilities coming to the Xbox One and Xbox Series X / S. I’ve had a chance… Read more

Google Meet’s free ‘unlimited’ calls will continue until June

Google will not introduce a 60 minute call limit on free Google Meet users at the end of March, the company announced in a tweet. Instead, it will now be begin on June 30th. Until then, anyone using the service’s free version will be able to host calls up to 24 hours in length, which… Read more

YouTube has removed Steven Crowder from its Partner Program indefinitely

Two weeks ago, after YouTube revealed its definition of hate speech was so narrow that it couldn’t remove a wildly racist tirade for being wildly racist, we wondered out loud what it would take for YouTube to stop promoting conservative commentator Steven Crowder as an official YouTube Partner and allowing him to profit from those… Read more

The FTC is letting Qualcomm off the hook with a tortured statement

Four years after accusing Qualcomm of abusing monopoly power to charge phone makers additional licensing fees for its modems — and seven months after seemingly losing that battle in a federal circuit court — the Federal Trade Commission has decided to throw in the towel. It’s no longer planning to appeal to the Supreme Court,… Read more

Chromebook bug could reveal location history from Guest mode

A little-known behavior in Chrome OS could reveal a user’s movements through Wi-Fi logs. Leveraging Chrome OS’s Guest mode feature, the attack would require physical access to the device, but it can be executed without knowing the user’s password or having login access. The bug was flagged to The Verge by the Committee on Liberatory… Read more