The Brick device blocks distracting apps via an NFC chip that users tap to start and stop blocking sessions, but this functionality can be replicated using blank NFC tags costing about a dollar or printed QR codes. Free apps such as Foqos for iOS, built by developer Ali Waseem, let users configure app-blocking profiles tied to NFC tags, QR codes, barcodes, or daily schedules, and can prevent users from disabling the block by deleting the app.
Cloudflare fixed a vulnerability in its Containers and Sandboxes service that let Workers Paid customers recover leftover data from other customers' containers on the same physical host. The flaw stemmed from a shared storage pool that reused 64 KiB disk blocks without zeroing them, leaving up to 60 KiB of previous customer data readable when a new customer wrote only 4 KiB to that space. Security researcher Oren Yomtov of Accomplish reported the issue via HackerOne on September 4, and testing found recoverable data—including SQLite databases, .env files, and credential files—on 18 of 24 container placements checked.
Researchers at the University of Groningen, led by Maria Antonietta Loi with Koster and PhD student Tim Faber, found that tin-based perovskite solar cells keep 'hot electrons' energetic for nanoseconds instead of picoseconds, a thousandfold slowdown in heat loss. Computer simulations of the material's quantum behavior matched the lab results and revealed a double-action mechanism behind the effect, linked to the material's unusually low electron mass.
A Deloitte survey of 25,000 UK workers found 63 percent use generative AI at work, with one in six paying for AI tools themselves. Collectively, these self-funded subscriptions total more than $1.3 billion annually, even though many employees don't expense the cost. Nearly half rely on free tools while 34 percent use employer-provided AI.
Android Authority's Stephen Radochia has published a comparison review of Google's Pixel 11 Pro XL against the Pixel 8 Pro after a week of testing. He reports that the new phone feels lighter and more refined, with a matte black finish and color-matched aluminum frame, while gaming performance remains a weaker point. He now says it's harder to recommend holding onto the Pixel 8 Pro than in previous years.
Rehan Ahmed of Southall, west London, has been sentenced to three years and six months in prison for running an unlicensed vinyl-pressing operation since 2017 that generated nearly £2.7 million. City of London Police raided his 'Phoenix of Vinyl' business in 2024 after the British Phonographic Industry made a test purchase, seizing 2,791 fake records spanning 108 artists, four vintage presses, 3,000 metal stampers, and thousands of sleeves and labels.
A panel of tech executives discussing AI and data centers at Climate Week in New York was repeatedly interrupted by activists from Extinction Rebellion NYC, who took turns standing up to shout about the environmental harms of AI and fossil-fuel-powered infrastructure before being removed by security. Crusoe cofounder Cully Cavness, one of the panelists, later told the moderator he was still rattled by the disruption minutes afterward.
A developer has released Light Cloud, a cloud console that organizes deployments like a file system, combining static site hosting, containers, and managed Postgres databases in one project. The tool reads a connected repository to automatically deploy static sites to a CDN or containers to Cloud Run, provisions Postgres databases with configurable tier, region, and storage, and generates a unique preview URL for every branch and pull request that is removed once the branch is deleted.
Anthropic has opened a public Claude Marketplace consolidating plugins, connectors, agents and consulting services in one hub. The listing already includes more than 2,000 integrations from companies such as Atlassian, Google, Microsoft, Notion and Salesforce, plus Claude-powered products from partners like CrowdStrike, Cursor, Harvey, Legora, Lovable and Snowflake, alongside integration support from Accenture, Boston Consulting Group and Deloitte. Developers can build connectors using Model Context Protocol and Agent Skills, and companies can apply to list their Claude-based products.
In an opinion piece, Android Authority's Aamir Siddiqui writes that after being a longtime advocate for book-style foldable phones, he has grown disillusioned with the category. He argues that the multitasking benefits of a combined phone-tablet device rarely justify the added complexity, fragility, and cost of folding mechanisms, saying he only uses split-screen multitasking a few times a month.
A newly published paper outlines a method to bring Zcash-style shielded transaction privacy to Bitcoin without requiring a network fork. The proposal is presented as a technical design rather than a deployed system, aiming to let Bitcoin users hide transaction details while keeping compatibility with the existing protocol.
Employees at Guai Guai's Zhongli, Taiwan snack factory, operating since 1968, voted 94% in favor of a strike after the company announced it would relocate to Hsinchu. Workers can keep jobs by relocating or commuting and were offered a 5% raise, but the union says this merely matches Taiwan's mandated minimum wage increase, and they want a share of the NT$5.6 billion (US$176.1 million) the company received selling the Zhongli site to ASE for redevelopment.
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