9 – Breaking News & Latest Updates 2026
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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.

Emma Roth
Emma Roth
Snapchat now lets you permanently save messages.

The app has introduced a new “infinite retention” feature, allowing you to save chats in individual conversations. Snap will notify everyone in the group when you enable the feature.

Previously, Snapchat only saved messages for 24 hours after everyone in the group viewed them, or 31 days after the message was sent, whichever is sooner.

The iPhone to get this yearThe iPhone to get this year
David Pierce
Richard Lawler
Richard Lawler
If you can’t clear your Slack unread count, try refreshing.

The app had an outage this morning, leaving many users staring at an unread count, even after reading all their messages. Slack reports it’s fixed, but if your app is still stuck, hitting CMD + Shift + R (Mac) or CTRL + Shift + R (Windows) to force refresh should clear things up.

Andrew Liszewski
Andrew Liszewski
The Nintendo Today app has added special features unlocked by inaudible sounds.

Nintendo Today was updated to version 2.0 today with a new Kirby theme and exclusive content for the Nintendo Live 2025 event in Tokyo. But it will only be accessible at the event using an inaudible sound broadcasted at the venue the app will listen for to verify attendance.

Emma Roth
Emma Roth
Bluesky adds bookmarks.

You can finally save posts for later using the new bookmark icon that’s now available on Bluesky’s mobile app and web. And, if you’ve been using the “pushpin” emoji to save posts, there’s a tool you can use to migrate them to the new bookmarks tab.

Jess Weatherbed
Jess Weatherbed
Live Photos are coming to WhatsApp.

Wabetainfo says the WhatsApp for iOS beta 25.24.10.72 update adds support for Live Photos in chats, groups, and channels, after rolling out similar support for motion photos on Android last month. Users can decide whether to send them as a still image or the original dynamic clip.

Three screenshots showing the Live Photo support rolling out in the WhatsApp beta for iOS  version 25.24.10.72.
The Live Photo support is available to some beta testers, and will be rolling out to more users “in the coming weeks,” according to Wabetainfo.
Image: Wabetainfo
Dominic Preston
Dominic Preston
Taking the ‘Eats’ out of ‘Uber Eats.’

Takeout on demand first expanded to groceries, and then to other retail, but the branding hasn’t always kept up. With Uber Eats now delivering from Best Buy, that opens the door to some pretty strange dinner orders,

jackcousteau:

Not confusing at all. I’m going to grubhub my next network appliance.

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

Terrence O'Brien
Terrence O'Brien
Ableton Live is adding stem separation and Splice integration.

Ableton Live 12.3 is now available as a public beta with a number of new features, including for the Push 3. But the headlining updates are stem separation courtesy of Music AI (makers of Moises) and Splice integration, which greatly streamlines workflows for producers that rely heavily on samples.

Emma Roth
Emma Roth
More tools to help T-Pain (and other creators) sort through Instagram DMs.

Now, users with 100,000 followers or more can narrow down DMs with the addition of new filters and the ability to create folders. Creators can also customize shortcuts to navigate to certain categories of messages, such as requests.

Maybe this will help solve T-Pain’s missing messages problem.

Emma Roth
Emma Roth
No, Gmail did not send out a mass security warning.

In a blog post, Google addresses several recent reports that incorrectly state it sent out a widespread security notification about Gmail, calling them “entirely false:”

Our teams invest heavily, innovate constantly, and communicate clearly about the risks and protections we have in place. It’s crucial that conversation in this space is accurate and factual.

Emma Roth
Emma Roth
WhatsApp’s list of AI features just keeps growing.

The Meta-owned app announced a new AI-powered writing tool that can help you compose messages. Like some of WhatsApp’s other AI features, the writing tool is also built on the platform’s Private Processing technology, which is supposed to shield your AI interactions from Meta and WhatsApp.

Image: WhatsApp
Emma Roth
Emma Roth
Google is upgrading the Gemini app’s AI image editor.

Google says the Gemini app is better at performing more advanced image editing requests, such as blending two photos, performing multiple edits on the same image, combining different designs, or giving you an outfit change while preserving your appearance.

GIF: Google
Spotify is adding DMsSpotify is adding DMs
Jess Weatherbed
Richard Lawler
Richard Lawler
Russia’s ‘national messenger’ app Max must be preinstalled on new devices soon.

The government is forcing the state-backed, Telegram-like messaging service Max onto new gadgets as of September 1st. There’s also a new iOS requirement for the RuStore app store (despite Apple exiting Russia in 2022), matching Android, and next year, all smart TVs will need the Lime HD TV app.

How the head of Obsidian went from superfan to CEO

Steph “kepano” Ango on why productivity tools need community more than they need AI.

Casey Newton
Emma Roth
Emma Roth
Bluesky’s new terms of service include a carveout for age assurance.

The platform has already rolled out age verification in the UK in response to local laws, and now its updated terms say:

In some locations, we may be required to restrict access to certain features or content unless you complete an age assurance process and demonstrate that you are an adult.

Bluesky has also updated its community guidelines, which go into effect on October 15th.

Emma Roth
Emma Roth
ICE does Signalgate 2.0.

404 Media reports how ICE officials added a random person to a “Mass Text” chat, where they discussed plans to find an individual “seemingly marked for deportation.” The messages exposed sensitive information about ICE’s target, including their criminal record, Social Security Number, and driver’s license number.

Emma Roth
Emma Roth
Russia has “partially” blocked calls on WhatsApp and Telegram.

The country’s communications regulator claims people use the messaging apps to “deceive and extort money,” as well as involve Russians in “terrorist activities,” the Associated Press reports. In June, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed off on the creation of a state-backed messaging app as part of efforts to exercise more control over the internet.

Emma Roth
Emma Roth
Google Photos is adding a new “Create” tab.

The new tab will house AI editing tools that let you remix your pictures or transform them into videos. You’ll also find options to create GIFs from your photos, add a 3D effect, create collages, and make highlight videos.

Image: Google
Jay Peters
Jay Peters
Discord now lets developers add chat and social features right into their games.

That’s possible thanks to the Discord Social SDK, which is launching now following a closed beta.

A screenshot from Halfbrick Sports: Football showing a Discord button.
Image: Discord