Google has launched Gmail Live, a conversational voice search feature for Gmail that lets AI plan subscribers ask natural-language questions to find information buried in emails, such as flight gate numbers or school updates. The company is also rolling out related tools, Docs Live and Keep Live, which use voice input to draft documents and organize notes respectively. All three features exit beta this week, having first been shown at Google I/O last month.
engadget.com
· 2026-10-16
Withings has changed its policy so that new accounts must subscribe to Withings Plus to automatically sync health metrics from its devices to Apple Health and Google Health Connect. Previously this third-party syncing was available without a subscription. The change has drawn criticism from users who object to a feature once free now being locked behind a paywall.
androidauthority.com
· 2026-10-16
Code found in the latest version of the Google Wallet app points to two upcoming features aimed at improving how users add passes and manage payments. The specific functionality has not been officially confirmed or launched by Google.
androidauthority.com
· 2026-10-16
At FOSSY 2026, Chromium developer Sharon Yang described her move from a six-year engineering role at Google to her current position at Igalia, an employee-owned cooperative. Her talk, titled 'From Corporate to Co-op,' compared how the two organizations approach Chromium development despite both contributing to the same open-source codebase and working with overlapping teams.
lwn.net
· 2026-10-16
Google has begun rolling out its Universal Cart feature in the US, letting shoppers track products from multiple retailers in one saved cart within Search and the Gemini app. The tool monitors over 60 billion listings for price drops and stock alerts, suggests promotions and optimal credit cards via Google Wallet, and lets users check out through the Universal Commerce Protocol using Google Pay or complete purchases on the merchant's site. The feature, previewed at Google I/O in May, launches just before Black Friday.
cnet.com
· 2026-10-15
Engadget's review describes the Alexa Tablet 12 Pro as a full Android tablet that defaults to Amazon's own apps—Kindle, Luna, Prime Video, Audible and Silk—while still allowing access to Google apps and the Play Store. The home screen includes an Alexa+ chat widget and a Google search widget, and the device reportedly handles video and Dolby Atmos audio well for its size.
engadget.com
· 2026-10-15
President Trump posted a before-and-after photo on Truth Social showing a White House column touted as freshly restored, but Google's SynthID Detector flagged the 'after' image as created or edited with OpenAI tools. Reddit users noted the two photos share near-identical angles, window reflections and cardboard placement, but have mismatched and uneven numbers of steps. Other photos Trump posted of the White House facade and heliport did not trigger the AI watermark detection.
theverge.com
· 2026-10-15
Withings will require a Withings Plus subscription for automatic syncing of health data to third-party apps like Apple Health or Google Health, starting with accounts created on or after October 13, 2026. The subscription costs $9.95 monthly or $99.50 annually, though new devices include a one-month free trial with syncing included. Existing account holders created before that date keep free access to the syncing feature indefinitely, even if they register new Withings hardware later.
theverge.com
· 2026-10-15
Google is rolling out AI-based scam defenses on Android, including cloud-based Gemini analysis of suspicious conversations in Google Messages and on-device Gemini Nano checks on unfamiliar links. The company says its existing detection already flags over 5 million suspected scam calls and texts monthly, and the new cloud protections are opt-in, while on-device chat notification detection expands beyond Pixel to more Android partners later this year.
bleepingcomputer.com
· 2026-10-15
Google has launched Universal Cart, a feature first shown at Google I/O in May, for US users. It lets shoppers save products found through Search or the Gemini app into one cart across multiple retailers, with alerts for price drops and restocks, and payment suggestions based on card perks and promo codes. Checkout runs through Google's Universal Commerce Protocol, an open standard it introduced earlier this year for linking AI agents with retailers.
techcrunch.com
· 2026-10-15
Google has rolled out new shopping tools, including Universal Cart, which lets users save products from multiple retailers in one place via AI Mode in Search or the Gemini app, and a When to Buy Guide that advises on discount timing. The cart draws on over 60 billion listings from Google's Shopping Graph to track price drops and restocks, and integrates with Google Wallet and Google Pay to surface card perks and promo codes.
zdnet.com
· 2026-10-15
Citizen Lab researchers identified a new spyware strain, called AdFection, that can infect phones and computers simply by displaying an ad, without any click required. The tool was built by Israeli firm Discover-Tech and used to target journalists and staff at Al Jazeera, NATO, the European Commission, NVIDIA and Arm, according to the report. Google has since suspended Discover-Tech from its ad platforms after a joint investigation with Citizen Lab and Confiant.
engadget.com
· 2026-10-15
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