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Scale AI lays off 14% of staff, largely in data-labeling business

In Brief Data-labeling startup Scale AI is laying off 200 employees, roughly 14% of its staff, and cutting ties with 500 of its global contractors, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday. The cuts come just a month after Meta hired Scale AI’s CEO in a $14.3 billion deal. In a memo obtained by Bloomberg, interim CEO Jason Droege told staff that Scale AI had too quickly scaled its core data-labeling business — in which the startup supplied AI labs with labeled, structured data to train AI models. Droeg

Pixel 10 Will Likely Star at the Next Made by Google Event on Aug. 20

The next Made by Google event is coming on Aug. 20, where it's highly likely that the company will reveal its Pixel 10 series of phones. The announcement arrived from Google Wednesday, with a press release and invites for an event in New York. The event, like previous Made By Google briefings that have taken place in the late summer or fall, is likely to focus on Google's Pixel phones, watches, earbuds and potentially more. It's uncertain what other devices Google might show off during the even

This Robot Vacuum Blew Me Away With Its Ingenious Navigation Capability, and Now It's 20% Off

Deal alert: The Dreame X50 robot vacuum is available for $1,360. That's a 20% discount on a robot vacuum that usually lists for $1,700. If you're looking for top-tier performance, this robot vac is better at climbing obstacles than any robot vacuum we've tested. CNET's key takeaways No robot vacuum has truly solved the challenge of multi-level cleaning without requiring you to physically move it between floors. This robo-vac can do it, for the high-end price of $1,700 (on sale right now for $

Can US Measles Outbreaks Be Stopped?

The US is experiencing its worst year for measles in over three decades, with more than 1,300 cases in 40 states as of July 16. Cases were almost as high in 2019, putting the country’s measles elimination status at risk. Six years ago, health officials were able to stop the spread. But amid growing public backlash against vaccines, many of the tactics used then may not work now. Measles elimination means there has been no continuous transmission in a country for longer than 12 months. That almo

Google rolls out AI-powered business-calling feature, brings Gemini 2.5 Pro to AI Mode

Google is rolling out an agentic AI-powered business-calling feature to all users in the United States, the company announced on Wednesday. The tech giant is also enhancing Google Search’s AI Mode by bringing its Gemini 2.5 Pro model to the search experience and introducing deep research capabilities. The new business-calling feature uses AI to call local businesses on your behalf to collect information about availability and pricing. The idea behind the feature is to help you access informatio

Google finally confirms Pixel 10 launch event — here’s everything to expect

Rita El Khoury / Android Authority TL;DR Google has set an August 20 date for its next Made by Google event. The company intends to “share the latest on our Pixel phones, watches, buds, and more.” In addition to the Pixel 10 series, we could see the Pixel Watch 4 and Pixel Buds 2a make their debut. Every year’s new Pixel lineup is an exciting one for devoted Android fans, but 2025 is really shaping up to be something special. With the TSMC-made Tensor G5 chip, the Pixel 10 series promises to

With 81 total Emmy nominations, how did each Apple TV+ title do?

Yesterday, Apple broke its own record and received 81 Primetime Emmy Awards nominations across multiple categories. Below is a full title-by-title breakdown, listing every nominated Apple TV+ series and film, along with every category they’re up for. Severance (27 nominations) Severance didn’t just top Apple TV+’s list of nominees. It also earned more Emmy nominations than any other show this year. Outstanding Drama Series Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series: Adam Scott Outstanding Lea

Reddit is back online after a brief outage

If you were having trouble viewing Reddit today, you weren't alone. Downdetector showed a spike in outages and problems at the site. Reddit acknowledged the problem on Wednesday. At 12:38PM ET, it said the situation had been resolved. Reddit told Engadget that an update was the culprit. "An update we made caused some instability," a company spokesperson said. "We reverted and are seeing Reddit ramp back up." As to what that update was, we don't yet know, but it was probably a standard tweak to

The next Made By Google event (better known as the Pixel launch) is set for August 20

Google will host its next Made by Google event on August 20, the company announced today. In a media invite, it promised the event would feature new Pixel phones, watches, buds "and more." It's hard to imagine what other product types might be covered by those last two words, but for those who watch the industry closely, this event is likely to see the launch of the Pixel 10 flagship phones, along with a Pixel Watch 4 and new Pixel Buds. It's easy to make that deduction, especially going by pre

6 ways to protect your passport and other travel docs from cybercriminals - before it's too late

Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET You may think that your physical passport, boarding passes, and ID cards are protected from theft as long as you keep them safe and secure. But that's not necessarily the case. If those documents are scanned or stored in the cloud, they're just as vulnerable as other types of files. Also: I never travel without these 5 security gadgets and accessories. Here's why A new report from NordVPN describes how your travel documents can be accessed and exploited and what y

Mark Your Calendar: New Google Pixel Phones Are Coming on August 20

Buckle up! Google is throwing a party next month. Samsung announced its new Galaxy Z Fold 7 (check out my review here), the Z Flip 7, and the Galaxy Watch 8 and 8 Classic last week, and Google is going next before Apple will likely do its annual iPhone and Apple Watch event in September. Google has just announced an event for August 20, where it will “introduce the latest addition to our Pixel portfolio of devices.” Whatever could Google be hinting at? I’m sure it couldn’t be the Pixel 10, Pixe

Topics: 10 ai google pixel pro

IPhone 16E vs. iPhone 15 Pro: Affordable Alternatives to the iPhone 16

The iPhone 16 is an excellent handset for Apple aficionados, but $799 can be pretty pricey for a lot of people. But there are a couple of good options that are both cheaper and have Apple Intelligence: the iPhone 16E and the iPhone 15 Pro. Both have 6.1-inch displays, but the Pro has a few more perks. The 16E starts at $599, but Apple no longer sells the 15 Pro. However, you can snag a used version of the 15 Pro for anywhere between $538 and $684 or get a refurbished one from Apple for $759. On

Topics: 15 16e apple iphone pro

Scale AI lays off 200 employees: ‘We ramped up our GenAI capacity too quickly’

is The Verge’s senior AI reporter. An AI beat reporter for more than five years, her work has also appeared in CNBC, MIT Technology Review, Wired UK, and other outlets. Scale AI, the AI industry’s chief data dealer, will lay off 14 percent of its workforce, or about 200 employees, just one month after Meta took a multibillion-dollar stake in the company and hired its CEO and other staff. The layoffs include 500 of its global contractors, Scale spokesperson Joe Osborne told The Verge, adding th

Google AI Mode adds 2.5 Pro & Deep Search for subscribers, agentic AI calling for all

Following the announcement at I/O 2025 in May, Google is rolling out Deep Search to AI Mode, as well as letting subscribers access 2.5 Pro. Free users will get access to AI calling in Google Search. Google AI Pro and AI Ultra members in the US can now access Gemini 2.5 Pro in AI Mode for more complex “Reasoning, math & code” queries. There will be a new model picker to switch between the “Default” model, which is a custom version in the Gemini 2 family that’s meant for “fast, all-around assista

The next Pixel event is on August 20

Google will host its next Made by Google event on August 20, the company announced today. In a media invite the search giant shared with Engadget, it promised the event would feature new Pixel phones, watches, buds "and more." At its annual hardware event last year, Google announced the Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro, Pixel 9 Pro XL, Pixel 9 Pro Fold, Pixel Watch 3 and Pixel Buds Pro 2. Between the company's invite and what came out of last year's event, expect a refresh of nearly the entire Pixel line.

Reddit is back online after outage

If you were having trouble viewing Reddit today, you weren't alone. Downdetector showed a spike in outages and problems at the site. Reddit acknowledged the problem on Wednesday. At 12:38PM ET, it said the situation had been resolved. Reddit told Engadget that an update was the culprit. "An update we made caused some instability," a company spokesperson said. "We reverted and are seeing Reddit ramp back up." If you tried to visit Reddit this morning, you likely saw a message reading, "Server e

Tired of restless nights? These sleep earbuds helped me doze off

Soundcore Sleep A20 ZDNET's key takeaways The Sleep A20 are Soundcore's earbuds designed for sleep, retailing for $180 The specially designed sleep earbuds are comfortable enough to wear the whole night through and are perfect for listening to ambient noise before falling asleep The noise masking isn't strong for dampening environmental sounds, so I wouldn't recommend these for people looking to silence bedroom noise. View now at Best Buy Trouble sleeping? Some people get themselves to bed by

How to turn off Gemini in your Gmail, Docs, Photos, and more - it's easy to opt out

Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET Are you frustrated by Google's insistence on injecting Gemini into everything? There's a way out. Also: Your Gmail inbox now includes Gemini summaries by default - how to stop them While some users enjoy Google's AI features that seem to roll out every week, others would rather have things the way they were before Gemini. Google somewhat sneakily buries Gemini under a setting called "Smart features," but if you know where to look, there's an option to completely t

Mac graphics settings for Cyberpunk 2077 aim for console-like simplicity

CD Projekt Red’s Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition is coming to the Mac this week, a few months after the port was announced as part of Apple’s M4 MacBook Pro introduction last fall. The good news for Mac gamers is that Cyberpunk will run on just about anything with Apple Silicon in it, going all the way back to the original M1 (though owners of the last few fading Intel Macs won’t be able to play it at all). One hard-and-fast requirement for playability is at least 16GB of unified RAM. The 8GB

Google’s AI can now make phone calls for you

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. Google will now let everyone in the US call local businesses using AI. The feature, which is now available in Search, allows you to use AI for pricing or availability information without having to talk on the phone. Google first started testing this feature in January, and it’s still only available for certain kinds of businesses, like pet groomers

Google announces Pixel 10 launch event

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. Google officially has a date for its Pixel launch event: August 20th, 2025. In an invite sent on Wednesday, Google says the event will take place in New York City at 1PM ET, where the company will show off “the latest on our Pixel phones, watches, buds, and more.” During the event, Google is expected to take the wraps off its new Pixel smartphone l

Topics: 10 event google pixel pro

Google rolls out AI-powered business calling feature, brings Gemini 2.5 Pro to AI Mode

Google is rolling out an agentic AI-powered business calling feature to all users in the United States, the company announced on Wednesday. The tech giant is also enhancing Google Search’s AI Mode by bringing its Gemini 2.5 Pro model to the search experience and introducing deep research capabilities. The new business calling feature uses AI to call local businesses on your behalf to collect information about availability and pricing. The idea behind the feature is to help you access informatio

Will your car get CarPlay Ultra? Here’s what we know

Earlier this year, Apple officially announced CarPlay Ultra, the next-generation version of CarPlay that it first teased way back at WWDC 2022. CarPlay Ultra began rolling out in May to Aston Martin owners in the United States and Canada. What about other automakers? Here’s what we know. Next-gen CarPlay brands In December 2023, Apple said that Porsche and Aston Martin would be the first automakers to support next-generation CarPlay starting in 2024. That deadline came and went, and Apple con

Deals: AirPods 4 $90, Apple Pencil Pro $83, M4 MacBook Air $185 off, leather Apple Watch bands 45% off, more

While much of the Prime Day deals have come and gone on Apple’s latest, this morning Amazon decided to bring the AirPods 4 deals back. Both models are now within $1 of the Prime Day all-time lows to give folks another shot at some of the best prices they have ever been offered for. We are also tracking even lower prices on select 15-inch M4 MacBook Air models at up to $185 off as well Apple Pencil Pro from $83 and deep 45% price drops on Burton Goods leather Apple Watch bands. All of that and mo

5 entry-level tech jobs AI is already augmenting, according to Amazon

Amazon / Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET Amazon today published a blog post by Michelle Vaz, managing director, AWS Training and Certification, that contains some fascinating insights about how AI is changing the landscape for people early in their careers. To understand this dynamic, Amazon partnered with Draup, a "data intelligence firm specializing in workforce planning and talent analytics." Together, the two companies conducted a study entitled, "The Evolution of Early-Career Technical Roles

The Samsung tablet I recommend most isn't the newest (but it is on sale)

ZDNET's key takeaways Samsung's 2023 Galaxy tablets come in two screen sizes and two hard drive capacities. If you want a powerful tablet for entertainment and multitasking on the go but don't want to break the bank, the Tab S9 FE+ is a solid choice. You may experience the usual Android tablet quirks, such as outstretched apps and the occasional slowdown. $405.03 at Amazon $299.99 at Best Buy more buying choices The Samsung's Galaxy Tab S9 FE is on sale at Walmart. The 128GB tablet has droppe

Topics: fe s9 samsung tab tablet

The Italian towns selling houses for €1

If you could move anywhere, where would it be? This used to be a question I’d ask myself or others at dinner parties, but two years ago, as new parents facing the unsustainable costs of Bay Area life and the looming threat of middle-age atrophy, my husband, Ben, and I took to the internet in earnest with the notion of reinventing our lives somewhere new. We were, of course, part of a widespread trend: seeking adventure and greener pastures elsewhere in the era of globalisation. Even so, the not