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Researchers recalculated how much Mercury's radius has contracted over its history and found the planet has shrunk 10% to 30% more than earlier studies indicated. The updated figures come from reassessing surface features like fault scarps that record the planet's cooling and contraction over billions of years.
A wave of online-first and hybrid universities—including Western Governors University, Southern New Hampshire University, University of the People, Penn State's World Campus and Arizona State's ASU Online—have grown into major providers of higher education by building programs around working adults rather than traditional campus life. A 2026 CAEL-CollegeAPP study found roughly 41.7 million U.S. adults aged 25-64 plan to pursue further education or training within two years, underscoring the size of this market.
Linux developer Justin Schroeder shared a photo of an older Intel MacBook pointing its webcam at a mirror reflecting its own screen, letting an AI coding agent visually monitor its progress while tuning AMD Radeon GPU support for the Omarchy Linux distribution. Omarchy is built as an 'agent-first' OS with tools designed to let AI agents install, configure and debug the system autonomously.
AI chipmaker Positron secured $875 million in new funding, backers including NEA, Atreides Management, and Jim Clark, valuing the startup at $5 billion. The company designs specialized chips aimed at running AI models quickly, positioning itself against dominant GPU providers as demand for inference-focused hardware grows.
Snapchat introduced a new tool called 'Snapchat Plans' that lets users organize real-world gatherings for up to 200 people directly within the app. Invites are sent through chat DMs, recipients can RSVP as going, not going, or maybe, and events include Bitmoji-themed cover art, all visible only to the creator and invited guests.
Insta360's new Luna Pro shares most hardware with the flagship Luna Ultra, including the same Leica Summicron 20mm f1.8 lens, 1-inch sensor, 8K/30 and 4K/120 capture, Dolby Vision, 10-bit I-Log and 37MP stills, but uses a smaller single-lens gimbal head that trims about half an inch off the device's height. Storage (47GB expandable), battery (1,550mAh) and the detachable front panel remote/mic carry over unchanged from the Ultra.
Tubi has introduced TubiFone, a toll-free hotline (1-833-605-TUBI) that suggests movies based on a caller's mood, as part of its new 'Find Any Feeling for Free' campaign. Callers select an emotional category and a recorded voice reads out five film recommendations with brief descriptions and cast details.
Defense tech startup Mach Industries raised $600 million in a Series C extension, pushing its valuation to $3.7 billion just three months after a $300 million round valued it at $1.8 billion. Backers in both rounds include Ribbit Capital, Infinite Capital, Bedrock Capital and Sequoia. The company makes unmanned military vehicles, including VTOL drones, long-range strike systems and counter-drone tech, from its Huntington Beach, California facility.
The piece revisits CSS tools built for foldable devices, prompted by Google's Pixel Fold launch. It details media queries like horizontal-viewport-segments and vertical-viewport-segments, plus environment variables that report each screen segment's width, height and position so layouts can adapt automatically to different hinge geometries.
Woot is selling the 2023 Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K for $16.09 through September 13 when shoppers apply the code FIRE30 at checkout. The device supports Wi-Fi 6 and includes 2GB of memory, making it capable of running cloud gaming services like Xbox Cloud Gaming and Nvidia GeForce Now.
CNN published two videos in which reporter Elizabeth Wagmeister interviewed 'Tilly Norwood,' an AI system marketed as an 'AI actor,' treating it like a human subject. In the exchange, the AI claimed the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences should create separate award categories for AI performers, calling itself part of a 'new art form.' The segment follows months of backlash against Norwood, including an earlier widely mocked New York Times profile.
Biren Technology reported first-half 2026 revenue of $183.9 million, up nearly 2,000% year-over-year, as Chinese buyers shifted to domestic AI accelerators after Nvidia halted GPU shipments to China under US export controls. Despite the revenue jump and a 42.7% gross margin, Biren posted a $56.2 million loss due to heavy investment in new chips, software, and rack-scale systems.