Apple has updated its bug bounty program, doubling the top reward to $2 million, plus bonuses that could take payouts over $5 million, for “exploit chains that can achieve similar goals as sophisticated mercenary spyware attacks.” Apple says that’s “the largest payout offered by any bounty program” it’s aware of.
Remember when Mark Zuckerberg got really obsessed with the Metaverse and decided we were all going to live in VR, right up until AI became the future instead? Well, good news, Meta hasn’t given up on the Metaverse yet!
gen_Eric:
I honestly thought the “metaverse” was long dead. I had no idea it still existed and was still being worked on. Figured once the VR hype died and the AI hype started, they were basically done with the “metaverse.”
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It only took nine months, but the Competition and Markets Authority has designated Google Search with “strategic market status,” meaning it’s eligible for extra UK regulation. AI Mode has been factored in, but not AI assistants like Gemini. Similar decisions on Android and iOS are due this month.
Former UK leader Rishi Sunak has taken on a “senior adviser” role at Microsoft and Anthropic, where he’ll deliver “high-level strategic perspectives on macro-economic and geopolitical trends.” It sounds a little less involved than former deputy PM Nick Clegg’s role at Meta, but one more of these and we’ve got a trend.
Vivo is teasing OriginOS 6, its latest take on Android, and I can’t help but notice that it’s looking very... wet. And glassy. Funny that. It arrives along with the X300 phones next week, and for the first time it’s rolling out globally, killing off Vivo’s cursed international offering, Funtouch OS.
The company shared this teaser video to Weibo ahead of the Find X9’s October 16th launch. Tellingly, it looks incredibly similar to the OnePlus 15, with only small differences in the camera island — not least the inclusion of a Hasselblad logo.
The company has... let’s just say a rep for killing its products off. So I’m going to celebrate the fourth Pixel Watch turning out to be the best Android smartwatch around, and hope Google learns that there are upsides to seeing something through.
Ollieollieollie:
Amazing what happens when you actually stick with a product, isn’t it?
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The new Pixel foldable is thicker than rivals, but don’t hold that against it.
After tightening restrictions during the tariff tit-for-tat in April, China has further amped up controls on the minerals, which are essential for the tech and auto industries. It’s the latest move in a rare earth cold war, but in the longterm it might backfire, accelerating US efforts to become self-sufficient.
[washingtonpost.com]
The EU’s chat control bill could upend encryption if it passes, and one Danish man is doing his best to prevent that. His site helps regular people — apparently in their millions — to email representatives and complain. Unlike Politico, I wouldn’t call that spam, just democracy working as intended.