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‘Selling coffee beans to Starbucks’ – how the AI boom could leave AI’s biggest companies behind

How much do foundation models matter? It might seem like a silly question, but it’s come up a lot in my conversations with AI startups, which are increasingly comfortable with businesses that used to be dismissed as “GPT wrappers,” or companies that build interfaces on top of existing AI models like ChatGPT. These days, startup teams are focused on customizing AI models for specific tasks and interface work, and see the foundation model as a commodity that can be swapped in and out as necessary

Lee Pace Reveals the Secrets of His ‘Foundation’ Bod

Foundation season three has ended (we’re still reeling) and we are more than thrilled that a fourth season is on the way. Though Apple TV+’s Asimov adaptation has a lot of things to recommend about it—complex characters, dynamic worldbuilding, a plot that celebrates the wonders of math—you also can’t count out the Lee Pace factor. The charismatic, cult-beloved actor has been a pivotal part of all three seasons. Though Foundation takes place across hundreds of years, the galaxy it’s set in is ru

Lee Pace Has Big Hopes for the Fourth Season of ‘Foundation’

In the world of prestige sci-fi, Foundation reigns as the biggest sleeper hit. Mention the Apple TV+ adaptation of Isaac Asimov’s classic series in a group of friends and you’ll suddenly find everyone has been secretly watching it. Something of a flawed masterpiece, the show, which wraps its third season Friday, has been averaging about 1.5 million hours watched per week in the US over the last month, according to Luminate. Not Wednesday numbers, but in the same ballpark as other genre fare like

The 6 Biggest Moments in the Shocking ‘Foundation’ Season 3 Finale

Foundation season three has come to an end, but it still feels like there’s so much story left to tell. Thank goodness Apple TV+ confirmed just yesterday that season four is on the way! But before we ponder what’s next, we must discuss the season finale. “The Darkness” was… well, a lot sure did happen, didn’t it? Here are the six most important takeaways from the Foundation season three finale. The first two are admittedly not too outrageous, but buckle up for the rest. The Foundation Finally

Apple TV+ acclaimed sci-fi series is coming back for a new season

The Foundation series on Apple TV+ has increasingly been hailed as one of the streamer’s best shows. And despite a lot of uncertainty surrounding the show’s fate, Apple has just announced good news: Foundation will return for season 4. Foundation officially renewed for season 4 on Apple TV+ Foundation is about to air its season 3 finale, wrapping up what’s been called “one of the best shows of the year and a must-watch show for all sci-fi fans.” And until today, there were a lot of questions

‘Foundation’ Will Return for Season 4

As sci-fi nerds, we here at io9 love Foundation, even if the show hasn’t gotten the mainstream buzz of certain other Apple TV+ series. It’s hardly a Severance-level blockbuster. But as the current third season of the Asimov adaptation prepares to air its finale, there’s an excellent bit of news from the streamer: Foundation will return for a fourth season. We can only assume that means cliffhangers galore in tomorrow’s finale, as is Foundation tradition—but we’re so happy with the announcement,

‘Foundation’ Just Lowered the Boom

Season three of Foundation is nearly at its end, and the galaxy is in deep trouble. We’ve long known the fall of Empire would usher in a long period of darkness, something the Foundation was set up hundreds of years ago to try and mitigate. But while the end seems certain, exactly how it’ll come about has not yet been clear. The villainous Mule is certainly helping nudge things along… but might another doom-bringing element also emerge? “The Paths That Choose Us,” the ninth and penultimate epis

Wikipedia survives while the rest of the internet breaks

WhenWhen armies invade, hurricanes form, or governments fall, a Wikipedia editor will typically update the relevant articles seconds after the news breaks. So quick are editors to change “is” to “was” in cases of notable deaths that they are said to have the fastest past tense in the West. So it was unusual, according to one longtime editor who was watching the page, that on the afternoon of January 20th, 2025, hours after Elon Musk made a gesture resembling a Nazi salute at a rally following Pr

How Wikipedia survives while the rest of the internet breaks

WhenWhen armies invade, hurricanes form, or governments fall, a Wikipedia editor will typically update the relevant articles seconds after the news breaks. So quick are editors to change “is” to “was” in cases of notable deaths that they are said to have the fastest past tense in the West. So it was unusual, according to one longtime editor who was watching the page, that on the afternoon of January 20th, 2025, hours after Elon Musk made a gesture resembling a Nazi salute at a rally following Pr

Henrik Fisker quietly wound down his nonprofit after his EV startup went bankrupt

Henrik Fisker, the founder of failed EV startup Fisker Inc., and his wife Geeta quietly wound down a private charitable foundation established in late 2021 that was supposed to “incubate innovation in healthcare, education, sustainability, mobility, and all causes that help support the planet and improve and further the lives of people and animals.” A tax filing submitted to the Internal Revenue Service in December 2024 — six months after Fisker Inc. went bankrupt — was marked as the foundation

‘Foundation’ Star Cherry Jones on Season 3’s Most Surprising Pairing

Ambassador Quent (The Handmaid’s Tale‘s Cherry Jones) is one of Foundation season three’s most intriguing new characters. As the Foundation’s ambassador on Trantor, she’s spent decades living alongside Empire—who are technically her enemy, but she’s grown quite close with the Cleons, especially Brother Dusk (Terrence Mann). In last week’s episode, “Foundation’s End,” Quent—her first name is Felice, we learn from Dusk—watched in horror as the Foundation’s home planet, New Terminus, fell to the v

‘Foundation’ Star Brandon P. Bell on Sci-Fi Spycraft and the Power of Asimov

Foundation season three is closing in on its finale, but there’s still a trio of action-packed episodes to go. io9 got a chance to talk to Brandon P. Bell, who plays Captain Han Pritcher; he’s a new character this season but has a name Foundation book readers will immediately recognize. On the Apple TV+ show based on the Isaac Asimov stories, Pritcher is entwined in multiple storylines. He’s the Foundation’s top intelligence officer, at least until he has a major falling-out with his boss. But

We Finally Know the Mule’s Backstory on ‘Foundation’—or Do We?

The Mule, as played by Pilou Asbæk, has brought both menace and mystery to Foundation‘s third season. He’s more than made good on the terrifying visions that prefaced his arrival—we know he’s destined for a vicious battle against Foundation heroine Gaal Dornick (Lou Llobell)—with his cruel, crafty plan to take over the galaxy. He uses his amplified psychic powers to manipulate people to commit horrors, all while claiming he merely desires to be loved. Such complexity has to come from somewhere,

Not One, but Two Wild Archie Comics Adaptations May Be on the Way

Jason Momoa’s next project may take him to the high seas. James Gunn teases that Peacemaker‘s return is more about the man behind the mask. Plus, get a look at what’s coming next on Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Foundation, and Alien: Earth. Spoilers away! Archie Comics Jeff Sneider’s InSneider Report has word that Paramount is purportedly preparing a film adaptation of the Archie Comics universe, with Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow and Mister Miracle writer Tom King tapped to pen the script, a

Rust in 2025: Targeting foundational software

Rust turns 10 this year. It’s a good time to take a look at where we are and where I think we need to be going. This post is the first in a series I’m calling “Rust in 2025”. This first post describes my general vision for how Rust fits into the computing landscape. The remaining posts will outline major focus areas that I think are needed to make this vision come to pass. Oh, and fair warning, I’m expecting some controversy along the way—at least I hope so, since otherwise I’m just repeating th

‘Foundation’ Just Smashed the Past Into the Present, and the Present Into the Future

You knew it wasn’t going to be a pleasant exchange when—at the very end of last week’s Foundation episode—Demerzel barged her way aboard Gaal’s spaceship. Gaal may be a psychic warrior who’s lived for over 300 years, but Demerzel is an ancient robot. They aren’t strangers, having met at the very beginning of season one. But times have changed since then, to put it mildly, and they really don’t know much about each other. That evolves in a big way in season three, episode six, “The Shape of Time.

Wikipedia loses UK Safety Act challenge, worries it will have to verify user IDs

Wikipedia's parent organization lost a challenge to the UK Online Safety Act but can bring another case if the government tries to force it to verify the identity of Wikipedia users. The High Court of Justice in London dismissed claims from the Wikimedia Foundation, which challenged the lawfulness of the categorization system used to determine which sites must comply with obligations. But Justice Jeremy Johnson stressed "that this does not give Ofcom and the Secretary of State a green light to

This Week’s ‘Foundation’ Took a Killer Spy-Fi Turn

Foundation is nearing the halfway point of season three. Episode five, “Where Tyrants Spend Eternity,” began to show us how Gaal Dornick (Lou Llobell) hopes to gain an advantage over the sinister Mule (Pilou Asbæk). Her plan tapped into a much-loved trope that Star Wars series Andor also made excellent use of: sci-fi spycraft. “Where Tyrants Spend Eternity” is also tense throughout and ends up involving a horrific, large-scale tragedy (another Andor similarity), building to a final scene that t

How Wikipedia is fighting AI slop content

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. With the rise of AI writing tools, Wikipedia editors have had to deal with an onslaught of AI-generated content filled with false information and phony citations. Already, the community of Wikipedia volunteers has mobilized to fight back against AI slop, somethi

A New ‘Foundation’ Clip Digs Into Some Prickly Family Dynamics

When Foundation fans first met newlyweds Toran (Cody Fern) and Bayta (Synnøve Karlsen) Mallow, two things stood out: first, that last name, signifying Toran’s connection to season two hero Hober Mallow; second, the way their self-aware glamour made them very much resemble futuristic versions of the social media influencers we have today. But it was also apparent there was substance beneath the sparkle—and episode five, “Where Tyrants Spend Eternity,” explores that idea even more. io9 has an exc

Apple TV+ is about to have two huge, unique sci-fi shows airing

Apple TV+ has become a go-to streamer for sci-fi fans, and very soon, there will be two huge—but very different—sci-fi epics airing at the same time: Foundation and Invasion. Invasion season 3 will join Foundation in current Apple TV+ sci-fi offerings Apple recently started airing Foundation season 3, which has been called “one of the best shows of the year and a must-watch show for all sci-fi fans.” Foundation seems to be gaining strong viewership too, regularly sitting at or near the top of

How Python grew from a language to a community

When it first launched in 1991, Python “wasn’t lucrative,” remembers long-time Python community organizer Paul Everitt (now a Python and web developer advocate at JetBrains). “But we believed in it. The passion was there — we were doing good in the world.” Yet surprisingly, Python traveled a bumpy early road on its way to becoming the world’s #1 most popular programming language, safely ensconced in the nonprofit Python Software Foundation that would help it grow through the years. It’s a stor

‘Foundation’ Just Dropped a Huge, Terrifying Twist

Foundation is currently rolling out a third season stuffed full of dramatic resonance. We’ve always been fans of Demerzel, the ancient android played by the excellent Laura Birn, but season three has really elevated the character—even beyond that big season-two reveal that she’s been moving the chess pieces on behalf of the galaxy-ruling Empire for generations. That was a monumental bit of information. But this week’s episode, “The Stress of Her Regard,” dropped a bombshell that’s even more sta

Google's 'virtual satellite' AI model can provide a near real-time view of Earth

Google has introduced a new AI model called AlphaEarth Foundations that it says can function like a "virtual satellite." The model uses a system called "embedding," which works by taking big volumes of pubic information from various sources every day, such as optical satellites, radars and climate simulations, and then combining them all together. It then divides lands and coastal waters into 10x10 meter squares, which it then analyzes and tracks over time. As Wired explains, these squares are c

Google tool misused to scrub tech CEO’s shady past from search

Google is fond of saying its mission is to "organize the world's information," but who gets to decide what information is worthy of organization? A San Francisco tech CEO has spent the past several years attempting to remove unflattering information about himself from Google's search index, and the nonprofit Freedom of the Press Foundation says he's still at it. Most recently, an unknown bad actor used a bug in one of Google's search tools to scrub the offending articles. The saga began in 2023

Wikimedia Foundation Challenges UK Online Safety Act Regulations

17 July 2025 — Next week, on 22 and 23 July 2025, the High Court of Justice in London will hear the Wikimedia Foundation’s legal challenge to the Categorisation Regulations of the United Kingdom (UK)’s Online Safety Act (OSA). The Wikimedia Foundation, the non-profit that operates Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects, announced its legal challenge earlier this year, arguing that the regulations endanger Wikipedia and the global community of volunteer contributors who create the information on

Influencers Have Arrived on ‘Foundation,’ and Somehow You Can’t Hate Them

Foundation is generally a pretty serious show. Season three in particular is charting humanity’s march toward certain doom—unless those with the power to reshape the future can figure out an alternative path before it’s too late. But levity creeps into the Apple TV+ Isaac Asimov adaptation when you least expect it, with season three continuing the humorous legacy of a character we said good-bye to back in season two. That dearly departed character is Hober Mallow, of course—the heroic scoundrel

Foundation Season 3 kicks off with first episode now streaming on Apple TV+

The wait is over. Even before its official July 11 premiere date, the first episode of Foundation Season 3 is already streaming on Apple TV+. If you missed the trailer, you can watch it below. The Mule has arrived The new season picks up 152 years after the events of last season, with the Foundation thriving and the once-mighty Galactic Empire in slow decline. The season 3 premiere of #Foundation just dropped. pic.twitter.com/NiTOWDfvon — Apple TV (@AppleTV) July 11, 2025 According to Apple:

Even ‘Foundation’ Star Jared Harris Can’t Explain That Big Hari Seldon Mystery

Foundation returns to Apple TV+ this week, jumping ahead 152 years and plunging its characters into an end-of-the-world scenario. One of the key figures is Hari Seldon, played by Jared Harris. He created the Foundation in season one as a way to preserve civilization after his “psychohistory” predicted a coming age of darkness. In the wild drama that’s followed, we’ve seen Hari die and then resurrect as separate digital clones, one of which ended up getting a new human body in season two. It’s c