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How robotic beehives use AI to protect bees from climate change

Bees are critical for ensuring an abundant food supply year-round, but the bee population is in big trouble. More than one-third of the crops we eat are pollinated by bees, but 40% of bee colonies are collapsing each year, California-based Beewise said. One reason is climate change – specifically, stronger hurricanes, more frequent fires and the use of more pesticides. The wooden beehive was invented around 1850 for commercial pollination, but these basic boxes are not very protective and not

Tesla's Robotaxis Have Already Gotten Into Numerous Accidents

Tesla has been caught hiding details of three separate robotaxi accidents that happened since the launch of the service. As Electrek reports, the Elon Musk-led company reported the three crashes, which occurred in the early days of its pilot robotaxi service in Austin, to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA.) At the time, the company's robotaxi fleet of modified Model Y vehicles only consisted of "ten to 20" vehicles, according to Musk, which even had safety drivers sitti

Here's Why You Really Taste Wine Before a Server Pours for the Table

Wine service can feel intimidating if you're not experienced with the ritual. The swirling, sniffing, and polite approval after that small initial pour might seem like theater or a simple taste test. However, that preliminary sample serves a specific purpose: verifying the wine's quality. The initial pour allows you to detect whether the wine has spoiled. Bottles can occasionally deteriorate due to poor storage conditions or defective corks, resulting in what's known as "corked" wine. This flaw

CNET Editors Tested Camping Gear All Summer: Here Are Our Favorite Gadgets

Why I like it: The Grayl GeoPress is among my best outdoor gear purchases. I feel confident drinking water from lakes, rivers and even the sketchiest of sources with this filtered water bottle -- and that's saying something, because I nearly bit the dust by acquiring three strains of E. Coli from contaminated water at one point (before I knew about Grayl). It efficiently removes waterborne pathogens, including 99.9999% of bacteria, viruses and protozoa, and filters particulates like silt, micro

Parents Of Kids Allegedly Killed and Harmed by AI Give Emotional Testimony on Capitol Hill, Urge Regulation

Parents who allege their children were abused, physically harmed, and even killed by AI chatbots gave emotional testimonies on Capitol Hill on Tuesday during a hearing about risks to young users posed by the tech — all while urging lawmakers to enforce regulation in a landscape that remains a digital Wild West. There were visible tears in the room as grieving parents recounted their painful stories. According to the lawmakers on the US Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism, the b

Robots Could Help Kids Become Better Readers, According to a New Study

Learning to read is difficult, and reading aloud is anxiety inducing for plenty of kids. From not being able to pronounce a word, to being mocked by their peers for stumbling while speaking, reading out loud can cause anxiety and make kids less likely to want to read. The University of Chicago, University of Illinois Chicago and University of Wisconsin-Madison have released a new study that shows there may be an unlikely ally that can help. Social robots may be the key in helping kids build conf

Amazon is creating more tools to fill its site with AI ads

is a news writer who covers the streaming wars, consumer tech, crypto, social media, and much more. Previously, she was a writer and editor at MUO. Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. Amazon is opening the door to even more AI ads by offering sellers access to a new chatbot that can generate promos with a simple text prompt. With the new tool, Amazon sellers can describe the type of ad they’d like to see, and the AI chatbot will draw from a s

Casio’s stress-relieving furry robot is coming to the US

is a senior reporter who’s been covering and reviewing the latest gadgets and tech since 2006, but has loved all things electronic since he was a kid. First announced nearly a year ago, Casio’s robotic pet Moflin has been selling so well in Japan, according to the Wall Street Journal, the company is now expanding its availability to other markets including the UK and the US. Preorders for the gold or silver version of Moflin are now available through Casio’s US website. The robot, which looks l

Sonair built its 3D ultrasonic sensor with robotic safety in mind

As robots increasingly enter human spaces, robotics companies will need to think about safety differently than they did when robots were largely siloed from their human counterparts. Sonair thinks its sensors can help robotics companies reach their safety goals — with a solution that is both better and cheaper than popular LIDAR technology. The Oslo, Norway-based company built an ADAR (acoustic detection and ranging) sensor for robots that uses high frequency sound. These sensors send out ultr

Costco Recalls Prosecco That Could Shatter, Even Without Being Touched

If you recently purchased a bottle of prosecco at Costco, check the brand immediately. The massive warehouse-club retail chain has issued a recall for certain bottles of its Kirkland Signature Prosecco Valdobbiadene, reporting that the bottles could shatter without even being touched. Costco sent a letter to customers who bought the product between April 25 and Aug. 25 this year in Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, Nebraska, Ohio, South Dakota and W

Unstoppable Martial Arts Robot Can Take a Direct Dropkick Without Falling Down

And It Gets Up Again "OK, should we start worrying?" A new viral video shows a kickboxing humanoid robot shrugging off a flying dropkick from a human being. "OK, should we start worrying?" one user asked on the r/singularity subreddit in response to the video. "It looks like it doesn't like falling," another user added. The research behind the stunt was conducted by scientists at the Active Intelligent Systems (ACT) Lab at the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) in Shenz

Best Robot Vacuums We've Tested (September 2025)

Each robot vacuum we consider for recommendation gets put through its paces in our test lab in Louisville, Kentucky. In addition to test floors where we run our controlled pickup tests, we monitor each robot vacuum in a special test room filled with mock furniture to gauge how well it navigates around common obstacles. Past that, we check each robot vacuum's ability to gobble up pet hair without getting clogged or leaving loose strands behind, we consider mopping capabilities, and we check to se

Millions turn to AI chatbots for spiritual guidance and confession

On Sunday, The New York Times reported that tens of millions of people are confessing secrets to AI chatbots trained on religious texts, with apps like Bible Chat reaching over 30 million downloads and Catholic app Hallow briefly topping Netflix, Instagram, and TikTok in Apple's App Store. In China, people are using DeepSeek to try to decode their fortunes. In her report, Lauren Jackson examined "faith tech" apps that cost users up to $70 annually, with some platforms claiming to channel divine

Your Valdobbiadene Is at Risk of Shattering!

Did you buy any Kirkland Signature Prosecco Valdobbiadene at Coscto in the past year? You might want to be careful with that bottle. It could shatter for absolutely no discernible reason. Costco has sent out a warning to consumers who’ve purchased the Prosecco Valdobbiadene, a sparkling white wine, because the company says, “there is a risk of unopened bottles shattering, even when not handled or in use.” Unlike many other food recalls, this one specifically states that consumers shouldn’t ret

OpenAI Reveals How (and Which) People Are Using ChatGPT

Large language models largely remain black boxes in terms of what is happening inside them to produce the outputs that they do. They have also been a bit of a black box in terms of who is using them and what they are doing with them. OpenAI, with some help from the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), set out to figure out what exactly its growing user base is getting up to with its chatbot. It found a surprising amount of personal use and a closing “gender gap” among its frequent users.

Zoom’s Eric Yuan and Emergence’s Santi Subotovsky on navigating the second act, at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025

You’ve built the hit product — now what? That’s the question Zoom CEO Eric Yuan and Emergence Capital general partner Santi Subotovsky will take on in their session, “What Comes After Breakout Success?” From expanding into new markets to launching the next product bets, this panel will explore how great companies avoid becoming one-hit wonders. Expect insights into the tough calls between focus and diversification, how to keep innovating at scale, and what investors look for in a second act. Th

When You Read the Fine Print, Humanoid Robots Are Going Absolutely Nowhere

We tend to get fixated on realizing certain contraptions from science fiction, no matter how impractical. Flying cars. Jet packs. And now, humanoid robots. It's only the latter, however, that's anticipated to one day be a multitrillion dollar market, with big firms like Tesla leading the charge. In March, Tesla CEO Elon Musk boasted that his automaker would build 5,000 Optimus robots by the end of this year. Responding to Musk's claim, so did the Shanghai-based startup Agibot. Norwegian robot m

Zoom’s Eric Yuan and Emergence’s Santi Subotovsky on navigating the second act at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025

You’ve built the hit product — now what? That’s the question Zoom CEO Eric Yuan and Emergence Capital general partner Santi Subotovsky will take on in their session, What Comes After Breakout Success?. From expanding into new markets to launching the next product bets, this panel will explore how great companies avoid becoming one-hit wonders. Expect insights into the tough calls between focus and diversification, how to keep innovating at scale, and what investors look for in a second act. The

Robots Could Help Kids Conquer Reading Anxiety, a New Study Suggests

For many children, reading aloud can be nerve-wracking. The fear of stumbling over the text, mispronouncing words and being judged for it in front of a group of peers can spike anxiety and dampen confidence. A new study by researchers from the University of Chicago, University of Illinois Chicago and University of Wisconsin–Madison suggests a surprising ally — robots — may ease that stress. As AI sparks concerns about whether it undermines learning and the effort required to think critically, t

OpenAI Ramps Up Robotics Work in Race Toward AGI

OpenAI appears to be ramping up its efforts in robotics, hiring researchers who work on humanoid systems as it explores new ways to advance artificial intelligence. The company has recently recruited a number of researchers with expertise in developing AI algorithms for controlling humanoid and other types of robots. Job listings show that the company is putting together a team capable of creating systems that can be trained through teleoperation and simulation. Sources with knowledge of the c

Is the humanoid robot industry ready for its ChatGPT moment?

In this article TSLA Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNT Two humanoid robots are on display at the China Mobile booth at the Mobile World Conference in Shanghai on June 19, 2025. Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images Humanoid robots, which have made significant technological advances this year, may be at the precipice of a ChatGPT-like spike in investment and popularity — or at least, that's what many in the industry believe. So-called humanoid robots are artificial intelligence-power

Users turn to chatbots for spiritual guidance

In Brief AI-powered chatbots play a growing role in spiritual life, according to a New York Times story that examines the popularity of religious chatbots and apps. The Times notes that an app called Bible Chat has been downloaded more than 30 million times, while another app, Hallow, reached the number one spot in Apple’s App Store last year. For the most part, these apps are supposed to point people to religious doctrine and scripture to answer their questions, although at least one website

HomeKit Weekly: SwitchBot’s Evaporative Humidifier gets smarter with Matter 1.4 support

SwitchBot released its Evaporative Humidifier last year, and it’s now even better thanks to newly upgraded firmware that includes Matter 1.4 support. The update brings faster setup and better cross-platform compatibility for a device type that is typucally stuck as a “dumb appliance” in your house. Some of my favorite gear eufyCam 2C Upgrade your home security with wireless cameras that includes HomeKit compatibility. Unlike a lot of humidifiers, the SwitchBot Evaporative Humidifier uses cold

Preparing for your later-stage raise: Insider strategies from top investors at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025

TechCrunch Disrupt 2025 hits Moscone West in San Francisco on October 27–29, and if you’re aiming for big funding goals, then leaning in on this session on October 29 at the Builders Stage is essential. Three powerhouse voices in venture and AI-driven innovation will share what it really takes to close major rounds — long before you’re in the room with investors. Why this session matters Raising late-stage capital goes beyond hitting revenue targets. It’s about telling the right story, trackin

A new Astro Bot-themed PS5 controller is now available for preorder

is a commerce writer covering deals and buying guides. Previously, he was a freelance writer for Popular Mechanics, Men’s Health, and Esquire. Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. If you missed out on the limited edition Astro Bot DualSense wireless controller for PlayStation 5 last year, we have good news: Sony is launching a new “Joyful” version of the gamepad for $84.99 on October 30th, and preorders have just begun at the PlayStation store

We are entering a golden age of robotics startups — and not just because of AI

When Seth Winterroth left his job at GE Ventures to help launch Eclipse Ventures in 2015, robotics was on his mind. Or more specifically, the number of early-stage robotics startups that were struggling to launch due to lack of interest. “These are teams that had just finished their postdocs at Waterloo, or CMU, or MIT, and were starting robotics companies, and the refrain that I continually heard from the startups was, ‘hey, we’re having a really hard time raising institutional venture capital

AI 'friend' chatbots probed over child protection

AI 'friend' chatbots probed over child protection The seven companies - Alphabet, OpenAI, Character.ai, Snap, XAI, Meta and its subsidiary Instagram - have been approached for comment. The impacts of AI chatbots to children is a hot topic, with concerns that younger people are particularly vulnerable due to the AI being able to mimic human conversations and emotions, often presenting themselves as friends or companions. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is requesting information on how the c

FTC to AI Companies: Tell Us How You Protect Teens and Kids Who Use AI Companions

The Federal Trade Commission is launching an investigation into AI chatbots from seven companies, including Alphabet, Meta and OpenAI, over their use as companions. The inquiry involves finding how the companies test, monitor and measure the potential harm to children and teens. A Common Sense Media survey of 1,060 teens in April and May found that over 70% used AI companions and that more than 50% used them consistently -- a few times or more per month. Experts have been warning for some time

FTC launches inquiry into AI chatbot companions from Meta, OpenAI, and others

The FTC announced on Thursday that it is launching an inquiry into seven tech companies that make AI chatbot companion products for minors: Alphabet, CharacterAI, Instagram, Meta, OpenAI, Snap, and xAI. The federal regulator seeks to learn how these companies are evaluating the safety and monetization of chatbot companions, how they try to limit negative impacts on children and teens, and if parents are made aware of potential risks. This technology has proven controversial for its poor outcom

The FTC is investigating companies that make AI companion chatbots

The Federal Trade Commission is making a formal inquiry into companies that provide AI chatbots that can act as companions. The investigation isn't tied to any kind of regulatory action as of yet, but does aim to reveal how companies "measure, test, and monitor potentially negative impacts of this technology on children and teens." Seven companies are being asked to participate in the FTC's investigation: Google's parent company Alphabet, Character Technologies (the creator of Character.AI), Me