Scientists from Karlsruhe Institute of Technology and the University of Tsukuba built a solid-state cooling prototype that uses a shape-memory titanium-nickel film to convert heat directly into the mechanical motion needed to drive elastocaloric cooling, replacing the usual electric actuator. In tests, heating the actuator film to 86°C produced a 4.0 K temperature difference across the cooling device, and swapping in an external 130°C heat source still yielded a 2.2 K span, showing waste heat alone can power the cycle.
Almanac, a startup from Y Combinator's Summer 2026 batch, has launched an AI system designed to understand a company's internal operations, tools and communications rather than general web knowledge. In a demo, the assistant monitored a customer Slack channel, identified duplicate bug reports, and automatically filed GitHub issues with reproduction steps and linked conversation threads. The product positions itself as an operational AI layer that can act on a company's existing data and workflows rather than just answer questions about them.
Following an executive order from President Trump renaming Lake Ontario to 'Lake America' amid US-Canada trade tensions, Google Maps updated its US listings over the weekend to reflect the new name. This happened even though the official US Geographic Names Information System database, which Google says it follows, has not yet updated its base map to show the change.
Dell has dropped the price of its Alienware AW2726DM gaming monitor to $319.99, down $30 from its usual $349.99. The 27-inch display uses a QD-OLED panel with quantum dot technology, a 240Hz refresh rate, and AMD FreeSync Premium Plus support, marking the first discount on this particular model.
McDonald's launched a Dragonberry Energizer drink in partnership with Red Bull, and days later Taco Bell countered with three new energy refreshers, according to Restaurant Business. Both fast-food giants are pushing deeper into beverages as customer spending rises and drinks attract new visitors.
Google explains that using Find Hub to mark an Android device as lost will log it out of the owner's Google account and strip all cards from Google Wallet, with an option to show a contact message on the lock screen. If account access isn't possible, users can lock the phone remotely via android.com/lock by verifying their identity and phone number. Samsung devices with SmartThings Find offer a similar safeguard, automatically locking Samsung Wallet and pausing transactions until identity is confirmed.
Reports suggest Apple will unveil AirPods 5 at its September 9 event alongside new iPhones and Apple Watch models. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman says the lineup will include two variants—one with Active Noise Cancellation and one without—continuing the standard earbuds line last updated in 2024. Camera-equipped AirPods, previously rumored for this cycle, are now expected to wait until 2027.
NFL veteran Ndamukong Suh met Warren Buffett in 2009 while at the University of Nebraska, after Buffett requested an introduction ahead of a rivalry football game. A friend convinced Suh to seek a follow-up meeting, and he arrived at Buffett's office hours early out of respect. That single conversation stretched for hours and led Buffett to become Suh's informal mentor for the past 17 years.
Kalshi issued its first-ever lifetime ban against former Rep. George Santos and fined him $71,356 for insider trading and market manipulation. Santos had placed bets on whether he'd attend Trump's February 2026 State of the Union address, then posted misleading claims about attending to move contract prices before revealing he was actually at an airport. Kalshi froze his account and referred the case to the CFTC, which he settled with earlier this summer for $35,000.
Newegg is offering a four-item PC building bundle featuring AMD's Ryzen 7 9800X3D CPU, 32GB of Corsair DDR5-6000 memory, and a Gigabyte X870E Aorus Pro motherboard for $1,113.99, a $240 discount off the combined retail price. The deal also throws in a free Cooler Master Elite Liquid 240 AIO cooler worth $80 and an AMD game bundle.
Amazon is offering the Reolink 2K Plus 4G LTE Cellular Security Camera for $152.98, down from its $189.99 list price, marking a 19% discount and the first Amazon price cut the model has seen. The camera operates over cellular data rather than Wi-Fi, making it suited for off-grid locations like farms, cabins, RVs, and job sites.
Cryptography professor Matthew Green argued in a widely discussed post that AI's growing ability to find and patch software vulnerabilities could eliminate the security flaws that law enforcement and intelligence agencies rely on to hack devices. He noted this threatens an existing 'truce' in which governments buy spyware and exploits rather than demanding encryption backdoors, since encrypted apps like Signal and iMessage already stymie wiretapping.
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