5 – Breaking News & Latest Updates 2026
Skip to main content

Apps

The best apps download superpowers to your smartphone. The Verge covers the new and noteworthy Android apps, iPhone apps, and games, highlighting great design, impressive utility, and novel features. If it belongs on your phone, you’ll find it on The Verge.

WEB WAR III

The browser is back. A new generation of upstarts hope so, anyway, because it might help them change how we use the web.

David Pierce
Jay Peters
Jay Peters
A bunch of GM cars can’t access their in-vehicle app store anymore.

The change affects some 2017 through 2020 vehicles, GMAuthority reports. Apps that affected owners have downloaded won’t receive support, and if they delete an app or do a factory reset, they’ll lose access to that app.

Andrew Liszewski
Andrew Liszewski
Nintendo’s Music app made it easier to relive your pandemic obsession.

Open one of the the Rainy, Sunny, or Snowy Day themed playlists for the Animal Crossing: New Horizons soundtrack on the Nintendo Music app and you’ll now find a new “Play hourly tracks” button. Pressing it will automatically play the hourly track that correlates to your current time of day.

A screenshot of a new button added to the Nintendo Music app.
Screenshot: Nintendo Music
Richard Lawler
Richard Lawler
Google’s restricting its Wear OS Clock app to Pixel watches.

Just as it did with its Weather app for wearables in September, Google has announced that new Wear OS devices from other manufacturers will have to rely on something else. If you have a non-Pixel watch with the Clock app already, it will keep working, but without new updates.

With your favorite watch brands offering their own default clock apps on Wear OS, Google’s Clock app (alarm, timer, and stopwatch) is no longer available for download on Wear OS smartwatches – except for pre-installed on the Pixel Watch.

Emma Roth
Emma Roth
Airbnb’s anti-party tech is in effect for Halloween.

The company will use the length of a reservation, property type, distance from a guest’s location, and timing to block “higher risk booking attempts” — similar to what it did on New Year’s Eve.

Airbnb says its anti-party system prevented 38,000 people in the US and 6,300 people in Canada from booking entire homes during Halloween last year.

Emma Roth
Emma Roth
OpenAI is acquiring the creators of Apple’s Shortcuts app.

The team behind Software Applications Incorporated sold its Workflow app to Apple in 2017, which later became Shortcuts. Now the startup, along with its AI interface for the Mac called Sky, is joining OpenAI.

OpenAI says it plans to “bring Sky’s deep macOS integration and product craft into ChatGPT.”

Stevie Bonifield
Stevie Bonifield
Apple removes Tea from App Store for “failing to meet the company’s terms of use.”

The app that suffered multiple data breaches earlier this year and a replica for men called TeaOnHer were removed for “failing to meet the company’s terms of use around content moderation and user privacy,” according to 404 Media.

Apple also cited “an excessive number of complaints,” including reports of posts including minors’ data.

Terrence O'Brien
Terrence O'Brien
Pebble is officially back in the App Store and on Google Play.

Earlier this month, the Pebble app returned to iOS and Android with support not just for the new generation of Pebble smartwatches, but also the original wearables. That means those out there still clinging to their old Pebble 2 from 2016 will no longer have to rely on Rebble.

If you buy something from a Verge link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.

Jess Weatherbed
Jess Weatherbed
VSCO is giving iOS users AI editing tools.

The photo editing app’s first “AI Lab” feature can automatically remove objects or people by matching the surrounding area, similar to removal tools in Photoshop and Google Photos.

An image upscaler is also “launching soon” that enhances resolution and details “while preserving color accuracy and composition,” according to VSCO.

Three screenshots demonstrating the new AI remove tool on VSCO’s iOS image editing app.
The tool will be familar to anyone who’s used similar object removal features: just draw over what you want to delete, and tap “remove.”
Image: VSCO
Emma Roth
Emma Roth
Google Photos overhauled its collage-making process.

You can now add or remove photos to a collage, as well as change your layout without losing your progress. Google has also rolled out new templates that you can browse before you decide which photos to put in them.

Jay Peters
Jay Peters
ICEBlock creator Joshua Aaron says Tim Cook has “broken” trust in Apple.

Now, interestingly, ICEBlock users are the same users who build, support, and buy Apple’s products. And these same people rely on and trust Apple every single day. And I’ll tell you, if I was speaking directly to Tim Cook, I’d say, “Tim, you’ve broken that trust, and now it’s up to you to fix it.”

Apple removed ICEBlock from the App Store last week.

Dominic Preston
Dominic Preston
Apps, but make them AI.

Generative AI is going to remake the world, but first, it’s giving us apps.

chespirito:

Genius, who ever would have thought of apps

Get the day’s best comment and more in my free newsletter, The Verge Daily.

Jay Peters
Jay Peters
Duolingo is introducing its own mobile ads platform.

The company says the ads will be “playful and infused with the signature charm of Duolingo’s cast of characters.” Early companies on board include Adobe, Intrepid Travel, and Universal Pictures.

The best lists to keep — and the best ways to keep them

Plus, in this week’s Installer: Amazon’s smart new stuff, OpenAI’s social network, and much more.

David Pierce