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Why Xbox Series S costs less than Series X: spec breakdown explained

The Xbox Series S is cheaper than the Series X mainly because it lacks a disc drive, offers less storage, and uses significantly weaker hardware. The Series S has 512GB of base storage versus 1TB on the Series X, only 4 teraflops of processing power compared to 12, and caps out at 1440p resolution versus 4K on the Series X. Both consoles share similar CPU and GPU architecture but differ in clock speed, compute units, and RAM bandwidth, with the Series X outperforming across the board.

Developer ports Super Mario 64 to run natively on Microsoft's Zune HD

A developer using the handle rsheldiii built a native port of Super Mario 64 for the discontinued Microsoft Zune HD, running through the unofficial OpenZDK homebrew kit without modifying the device's firmware. The project, based on the decompiled sm64ex PC port, plays mostly at full speed with sound, touch controls and save support, though users must supply their own ROM dump from a cartridge.

ArtCraft developer launches open-source Office alternatives GridCraft, DeckCraft, WordCraft

Brandon Thomas, the engineer behind the free ArtCraft suite that mimics Adobe's creative apps, has released three new open-source tools built with Claude: GridCraft, DeckCraft, and WordCraft, designed to replace Excel, PowerPoint, and Word. Thomas, previously known by the Reddit handle u/ai_art_is_art, has defended his use of AI coding tools after facing criticism that his software was 'vibecoded' or AI-generated slop.

Satya Nadella calls for 'emergency brake' controls on AI models

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella posted on X that AI's 'trust architecture' needs rethinking, proposing that models be separated from the systems that orchestrate their actions. He called for tamper-proof logs of every significant model action and for a mechanism allowing an authorized person to pause or shut down a model at any point mid-task.

Nadella urges AI systems be built with human 'emergency brake' controls

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella posted on X calling for advanced AI models to include containment measures, independent human controls, and an 'emergency brake' allowing authorized people to pause or shut down a model mid-task. He said frontier AI models, whether closed or open weight, should be treated like insider risks and surrounded with deterministic system design and industry standards. Nadella listed principles including model diversity, observability, continuous testing, auditability and incident disclosure.

Satya Nadella calls for treating AI models as potentially compromised by default

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella posted on X that AI systems should no longer be treated as opaque 'black boxes' whose outputs are simply trusted or rejected. He called for containment mechanisms, including an 'emergency brake' that lets an authorized person pause or shut down a model mid-task, plus incident disclosure, independent audits and verifiable data. Nadella said more advanced models will need standardized, more advanced containment technologies.

Microsoft sets 2027 certificate expiration deadlines for Windows Update access

Microsoft has told IT administrators that security certificates used by Windows Update services will expire on preset dates, and devices that don't install specific updates beforehand will lose access to future updates. Windows 11 24H2 and Windows Server 2025 certificates expire June 19, 2027, requiring the September 2025 update or later; other supported Windows 11, Windows 10, and Windows Server 2022 versions share that expiration but need the July 2026 update. LTSB/LTSC releases of Windows 10 Enterprise 2019 and Windows Server 2016/2019 face an earlier May 17, 2027 cutoff.

Microsoft launches Decision-1 model for fast structured decision tasks

Microsoft has released Microsoft-Decision-1, a model built specifically for decision-scoring tasks like routing, classification, prioritization, verification, and workflow control. It is available now through Microsoft Foundry, with OpenRouter access coming soon. Microsoft reports the model topped a 36-benchmark comparison covering nearly 150,000 questions, running 4.5 times faster than the runner-up, Quyet-1.0-Large, and 35 times faster than GPT-6 Sol.

Amazon to drop NDAs in data center negotiations with local governments

Amazon announced it will stop requiring non-disclosure agreements when negotiating data center deals with local governments, following Microsoft's similar policy change earlier this year. The move comes amid growing community opposition to AI infrastructure projects, which has produced hundreds of proposed or enacted moratoriums in places ranging from New York to San Francisco.

Microsoft, Adobe and six outsourcing firms suspended from US Perm visa program

The Trump administration temporarily barred Microsoft, Adobe, and outsourcing firms Cognizant, Infosys, Tata, Wipro, HCL and Capgemini from using the Perm program to sponsor foreign workers for permanent US residency. Vice-president JD Vance accused Microsoft of abusing the H-1B visa system more than any other company, saying it replaced American workers with foreign labour, while the Labor Department's inspector-general said subpoenas had been issued and investigations were under way.

Microsoft pitches Windows 11 as foundation for 'agentic' AI operating system

At a Windows and Surface event, Microsoft outlined plans to bring AI agents and 'hybrid intelligence' to Windows 11, letting the OS run free local AI models alongside cloud-based ones. CEO Satya Nadella described a shift in the 'frontier ecosystem,' while Windows chief Pavan Davuluri demoed local AI coding tools, new local model support, and agents including OpenClaw, Hermes and Perplexity integrated with Copilot.

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