The U.S. Department of Justice settled its lawsuit against TikTok, ByteDance and affiliated companies for $400 million over repeated violations of the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act. The suit, filed in 2024, alleged TikTok let children under 13 create standard accounts outside its restricted Kids Mode, collected their data without parental consent, and failed to delete accounts when parents requested it. TikTok will pay $300 million immediately, with an additional $100 million due if a court vacates an earlier 2019 consent decree tied to its predecessor app, Musical.ly.
YouTube appears to be rolling out an Android UI update that shows a red indicator on the scrub bar whenever users double-tap to skip forward or backward in a video, revealing exactly how much time was skipped. The manual scrubbing experience remains the same, still displaying elapsed skip time as users drag the bar. The change has been spotted on the stable app version 21.33 on devices like the Pixel 11 Pro, Pixel 10 Pro, and Galaxy Z Fold 7, though it hasn't reached all devices yet.
A Weibo leaker known as Fixed Focus Digital claims Apple is adapting the glass-assembly process used for the iPhone Air to build next year's iPhone Pro models, which are expected to feature an all-glass, quad-curved bezel-free design for the device's 20th anniversary. The leaker says Apple has made progress improving heat dissipation while trying to keep the device slim, though it's unclear how thin the final design will be.
Business Insider reports that Hugging Face has fielded acquisition interest valuing the AI model-sharing platform at $13 billion or more, nearly triple its $4.5 billion valuation from a 2023 Salesforce Ventures-led round. No buyer has been named and no deal is finalized, but the startup is reportedly consulting banks to weigh potential bids.
US-based Berry Street has combined with Khosla Ventures-backed Indian startup Healthify, forming a single company that will operate as Berry Street in the US and Healthify elsewhere, including India. Terms were not disclosed. Founders Noah Kotlove and Tushar Vashisht will serve as co-CEOs, uniting Berry Street's insurance-covered GLP-1 clinic network with Healthify's AI-driven coaching platform.
Scientists at Southern Illinois University Carbondale used CRISPR-modified yeast to convert PET plastic and agricultural waste into proteins, fats, and flavor compounds, which were then 3D-printed into cookie shapes called 'µBites.' The team presented the work at the American Chemical Society meeting in Chicago, though the cookies haven't been tasted yet pending university approval.
Taiwanese prosecutors have charged nine individuals connected to a scheme accused of illegally routing AI servers containing Nvidia chips to China, circumventing U.S. export restrictions. The case highlights ongoing efforts by Chinese buyers to obtain restricted American semiconductor technology through indirect channels.
An Entrepreneur contributor argues the AI industry is shifting from a race to deploy tools quickly toward a tougher demand: proving the systems actually deliver reliable business outcomes. The piece points to 2026 IPO activity in AI-linked companies, where some newly public firms have faced investor scrutiny over valuations and capital needs despite strong initial interest.
With homeownership feeling increasingly out of reach, many Gen Z adults are redirecting money toward retirement accounts instead of down payments. Pew Research found 89% of adults under 40 believe buying a home is harder for their generation than for their parents, while Fidelity data shows Gen Z retirement contributions rising 65% year-over-year, more than double millennials' growth rate. Young savers like 26-year-old Kana Cummings say they started investing early after pandemic-driven financial anxiety pushed them to build multiple savings buckets for the future.
Digital car keys, which rely on UWB or NFC to confirm phone proximity, avoid the relay attacks that plague traditional key fobs. However, they introduce new vulnerabilities: a stolen or dead phone could theoretically lock owners out or grant access to thieves, though automakers build in safeguards like remote lockdown features and reserve battery power for NFC access lasting up to five hours after a phone dies.
Google is reportedly working to bring back the notification feature for its Now Playing music-recognition app on Pixel devices, according to code found in the latest Android System Intelligence app for Pixel 11 devices. The feature was removed earlier this year when Google gave Now Playing its own dedicated app, breaking workflows that relied on notifications to log tracks into services like Last.fm. Code strings also hint at upcoming support for multiple user profiles, each with its own track history.
Amazon has dropped the price of Apple's AirTag 2 four-pack to $79.99, working out to about $20 per tracker and beating last week's anniversary sale pricing. Single units remain at $24, matching earlier lows, while the four-pack discount is now the cheapest ever recorded for the device.
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