The identity of the winning bidder hasn’t been identified, but they were among the 45 collectors who bid on one of the Nvidia CEO’s black Tom Ford leather jackets when it went up for auction. Originally valued between $40,000 to $60,000, it actually sold for $960,000 — roughly the same price as 480 GeForce RTX 5090 GPUs.
NASA administrator Jared Isaacman tells Reuters that the agency is “still very much planning” for a 2027 timeline, despite Blue Origin’s launchpad explosion in May. Blue Origin is supposed to launch a test version of its lunar lander for the mission later this year as it rebuilds its launchpad.
The company said it temporarily paused new subscriptions after high usage “pushed close to the limits of our current capacity.” New subscription spots will open in “batches.” Kimi K3 was one of two Chinese models that launched over the weekend claiming to rival leading US systems from OpenAI and Anthropic.
A hidden popover interface has been discovered in the macOS 27 Golden Gate beta that surfaces AI-powered contextual actions and writing tools when text is highlighted, including Rewrite, Proofread, and “Edit with Siri.” Beta users can try the unfinished feature by following the instructions provided by MacRumors.
The epic made $264.1 million worldwide this weekend — Nolan’s biggest global opening yet — with $124.5 million in the US alone. Not bad for an R-rated adaptation of a 3,000-year-old poem. Fittingly, it’s likely to run on and on too, with no big competition until Spider-Man arrives, and IMAX 70mm screenings sold out for weeks.
Pebble founder Eric Migicovsky says buyers should “trust the company” when buying his relaunched wearables with 30-day warranties. But it does make you wonder how much Pebble trusts its own products.
quimerinhaa:
I mean, offering a 30 day warranty makes it sound like the company itself doesn’t trust it’s product to last more than that either.
Get the day’s best comment and more in my free newsletter, The Verge Daily.
The country’s gambling regulator ordered local internet service providers to block access to the Polymarket website on Friday, citing noncompliance concerns with rules for gambling and gaming services. The regulator also said that some bets on the platform “appeared to be rigged.”
Two separate videos captured Spain’s Eric Garcia testing the gimbal-equipped phone in the aftermath of his team’s victory over Argentina. Preorders for the Robot Phone just opened in China, though it isn’t expected to launch in either Spain or the US, where the final was held.
Marketing materials for the Galaxy Watch 9 and Watch Ultra 2 have been shared online by leaker Evan Blass. The Galaxy Watch 9 reportedly features a Snapdragon Wear Elite chip, and is shown in three color options. The Watch Ultra 2 upgrades reportedly include a 800mAh battery and up to 5,000 nits of peak brightness.
The reputable Design Docs YouTube channel has a new documentary about Apple’s first graphic designer. Kare is responsible for the smiling Mac icon, that weird looped-square Command symbol still found on Apple keyboards, and many other “pictures that taught a generation of nervous, non-technical people that a computer could be approached without fear.”
The craft used Mars to get a gravity-assisted boost on the way to its namesake asteroid. The mission isn’t expected to intercept the asteroid until 2029, but in the meantime we’ve got this great view of Mars to enjoy.
AIM chimes. Teletype machines. Floppy drives. Dialup modems. Tamagotchis. The whole thing is a wonderful soundboard that instantly transports you to a bygone era. There’s not much to do here besides click a few icons and listen to the sounds, but it’s still a nice way to kill a few minutes.
[Museum Of Endangered Sounds]
1010Benja’s ‘Semiramis’ Dream’ shows AI can be more than a slop engine in the right hands.
On July 16th, 2024, a meteor deposited two pounds of space rock in a Hillsborough, New Jersey, man’s bedroom. Scientists have now analyzed it and found amino acids and salts left behind by the evaporation of water ice, offering further insight into how organic matter may have arrived on primitive Earth.
8
Verge Score
A modern take on vintage reed organs from Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker that makes writing rich chord progressions breezy.
The annual Solar Car Challenge for high school students celebrates its 30th year anniversary with a high-stakes trek across Texas.
According to Reuters, the DOJ has issued a memo stating that “employees of Executive Branch agencies may download TikTok onto their official devices, subject to the agency’s discretion,” now that the deal limiting ByteDance’s ownership is in place and US user data is secured in American data centers.
San Francisco city attorney David Chiu demanded that Apple and Google remove 13 apps that could generate non-consensual nude images. Adam Dema, a spokesperson for Apple confirmed their removal in a statement to The Verge:
“We have always strictly prohibited apps designed to generate, distribute, or consume pornography. ‘Nudification’ apps are against our App Review Guidelines and we have proactively rejected many of these apps and removed many others, including when users have flagged them via our reporting tools. We have removed three of the apps in question and are in the process of terminating their developer accounts from our program.”
Joel Feder at The Drive reported a frightening story about how Flock cameras, recently suspended by the LAPD, tracked him in Minnesota and sent police after him over “stolen plates.” (They were not.) Flock says its cameras worked “correctly” in the lead-up to a potentially deadly incident. But here we are in our new era of computer policing.
As reported by The Wrap, A24 says it won’t, after all, go after a creator for using a Backrooms-adjacent wallpaper. You know, the generically yellow one. Smart move. After a Reddit user reported getting a complaint on behalf of A24, Backrooms director Kane Parsons said it “should not be happening.” A24 then said in a statement it “makes no claim over ownership over the yellow wallpaper.”
There’s a Tascam Portastudio 424 MK III!
He’s also got a Telepathic Instruments Orchid (review here), a couple of Chase Bliss pedals (Lost & Found and Mood MKII), a Hologram Electronics Chroma Console, a Moog Sub37, and an Ableton Move. Proving, once again, that you don’t need piles of fancy gear to make music. Watch the full interview here.
The author of The Second Coming lives for French press and splurges on concert tickets.
I tested four locks that unlock with a look, and while hands-free with UWB is better, if you want a sci-fi experience for your front door, facial recognition is worth considering.
9
Verge Score
The Bravia 9 II is the best RGB LED TV available with game-changing features, but I’d still buy an OLED.
