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A developer's Open Headunit app, priced under $4 on Google Play or free via GitHub, lets an aging Android tablet impersonate an Android Auto head unit, giving cars without built-in support a large touchscreen for navigation, calls and media. Testing found the setup imperfect but functional as a way to repurpose tablets that can no longer run modern apps well.
President Trump used a Saturday Truth Social post to declare the creation of an 'AI Force,' comparing it to his Space Force initiative, and said he would soon name an AI 'czar.' He offered no details on the group's structure, mandate, or funding, and the White House did not clarify whether it would function as a military or civilian body.
A tech guide outlines several ways drivers can modernize aging car audio setups, from portable CarPlay/Android Auto touchscreen displays that mount on the dashboard to full aftermarket head unit replacements. It also warns that wireless CarPlay or Android Auto USB adapters only work if a car already supports the wired version, and that swapping the factory stereo can affect steering-wheel controls, cameras or amplifiers wired through it.
Researchers from Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (Guangzhou) and Hong Kong Polytechnic University unveiled InjectEave, a method that beams low-frequency electromagnetic signals at devices to trigger leaks through their nonlinear analog components, such as amplifiers and converters. In tests on 11 commercial products, including Sony, Apple and Philips headphones and a VoIP phone, the technique reconstructed intelligible audio from as far as 30 meters, even through walls, using off-the-shelf radio and antenna equipment.
A review of active noise cancellation (ANC) headphones outlines their benefits, including blocking steady background noise, improving audio clarity, protecting hearing by reducing the need for high volume, and aiding focus or sleep. It also highlights drawbacks: ANC struggles with sudden loud sounds, can sometimes degrade audio quality or cause ear discomfort, may reduce situational awareness in unsafe settings, and drains battery life faster than headphones without the feature.
Meta is expected to unveil a new pair of smart glasses at Connect 2026 that drop cameras entirely, relying instead on added microphones for voice interaction with its AI assistant. The frames are said to come in two styles and will be slimmer, resembling regular eyewear, according to reports ahead of the event.
Android 17 QPR1, rolling out to Pixel devices, reportedly changes how the OS exposes developer and USB debugging status to installed apps. This means apps can no longer easily detect that a device has developer options or debugging enabled, a check many banking and finance apps use to block access.
Researchers analyzing lithic tools from the oldest layers of the Obi-Rakhmat rock shelter in Uzbekistan identified 20 pieces that appear to be projectile weapon heads, including retouched points, bladelets, and previously overlooked unretouched triangular micropoints. Based on hunting-weapon design principles, the micropoints are argued to be too narrow for anything but arrow-like shafts, suggesting a sophisticated projectile technology roughly 80,000 years ago that resembles finds from a much later Sapiens site in France's Rhône Valley.
Cybersecurity teams from the FBI and U.S. Coast Guard boarded two U.S.-bound oil tankers in the Gulf of Mexico between August 21-24 after discovering their networks had been compromised, giving attackers apparent control over navigation, propulsion, and cargo systems. One vessel was identified as VL Prosperity, a massive oil tanker that reportedly lost communications for over a day and experienced interference with its speed and fuel systems while sailing from Egypt to the U.S. in early August.
Nothing's debut over-ear headphones, the Headphone 1, are now selling for $224.99 on Amazon, down from their $299 list price. The headphones use custom 40mm drivers co-tuned with KEF, support LDAC and wired USB-C/3.5mm audio, and offer adaptive ANC, spatial audio with head tracking, and multipoint Bluetooth. Battery life reaches up to 35 hours with noise cancellation on and 80 hours with it off.
Newly unsealed portions of a legal brief in The New York Times' copyright lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft show internal admissions from both companies' executives. Microsoft's director of Applied Science, Brent Hecht, reportedly called AI training data scraping 'the largest theft of labor in human history,' while OpenAI's Head of ChatGPT, Nick Turley, described the chatbot as an 'existential threat' to publishers. The filing also cites data showing Copilot slashed click-through traffic to the Times by up to 93% compared to Bing search.
Razer has released the Kraken V4 X Sensa HD Haptics Edition, a wired USB headset priced at $100 that brings its haptic feedback technology to a mainstream price point for the first time. The headset supports over 100 PC titles, including Battlefield 6, the Silent Hill 2 remake, Marvel Rivals, and 007 First Light, translating in-game sounds into physical sensations through two modes: scripted Dynamic Haptics and background Audio-to-Haptics processing.