31 – Breaking News & Latest Updates 2026
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Richard Lawler

Richard Lawler

Senior News Editor

Senior News Editor

    More From Richard Lawler

    Richard Lawler
    Richard Lawler
    Digital Foundry: Nintendo’s free Switch 2 game updates are more like remasters.

    The folks at Digital Foundry have done more pixel counting, this time looking into the first-party Switch 1 games with upgrades we also found impressive.

    While Switch 2 Edition upgrades for games like Breath of the Wild cost extra, they found that these updates to games like Splatoon 3, Super Mario Odyssey, and The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening make the games’ artwork better, thanks to running at higher framerates and with higher resolution. Is that exactly good enough for the new system?

    Richard Lawler
    Richard Lawler
    Amazon MGM has found its first James Bond director: Denis Villeneuve.

    Amazon announced that the Blade Runner 2049 and Dune director is going to take on another high-profile franchise with the next James Bond flick. It will be the first one produced after Amazon reportedly paid $1 billion to obtain full creative control over James Bond.

    Villeneuve:

    I grew up watching James Bond films with my father, ever since Dr. No with Sean Connery. I’m a die-hard Bond fan. To me, he’s sacred territory. I intend to honor the tradition and open the path for many new missions to come. This is a massive responsibility, but also, incredibly exciting for me and a huge honor. Amy, David, and I are absolutely thrilled to bring him back to the screen.

    Richard Lawler
    Richard Lawler
    Tech billionaire’s sunken superyacht raised from the sea.

    The AP, CNN, and Reuters report that Italian authorities are continuing to investigate last year’s sinking of Autonomy founder Mike Lynch’s superyacht, Bayesian, during a storm last year that killed seven people, including Lynch. A salvage operation lifted the 184-foot vessel from the seafloor this weekend, after first removing its 236-foot mast.

    Hewlett-Packard is still suing Lynch’s estate over fraud claims linked to its $11 billion acquisition of Autonomy in 2011.

    The wreckage of the luxury yacht “Bayesian,” which sank during a storm in August last year off the coast of Porticello, Sicily, killing seven people including British businessman Mike Lynch, is transported to the port of Termini Imerese by floating crane named “Hebo Lift 10′ in Sicily, Italy, on June 22, 2025
    Photo by Alberto Lo Bianco/Anadolu via Getty Images
    Richard Lawler
    Richard Lawler
    About that “16 billion passwords” data breach.

    The original source of the report, Cybernews, says that since the start of the year, its researchers have “discovered 30 exposed datasets containing from tens of millions to over 3.5 billion records each. In total, the researchers uncovered an unimaginable 16 billion records.”

    This isn’t a breach of one company or another’s systems, but compiled records, with some believed to be from “infostealer” malware, as well as previous leaks. As Bleeping Computer points out, what you should be doing hasn’t changed -- using unique passwords with a password manager, enabling two-factor authentication, and adding other forms of security like passkeys and security keys that can replace passwords altogether.

    Richard Lawler
    Richard Lawler
    Cringe or canny?

    Apple has released The Parent Presentation, an 81-page slide deck available in Google Slides, PowerPoint, or Keynote format, and a (now set to private) promo video hosted by “nepo baby” / Please Don’t Destroy comedian Martin Herlihy, aimed at getting students a Mac for school next year.

    I can’t decide if it’s a solid pitch (who hasn’t held a family meeting to get approval for a high-priced tech purchase?) or if it will miss its target audience because it’s 8 minutes long and not in a vertical video format. Either way, we also have some advice on which laptop is the best option.

    (Update: -- The YouTube video is no longer available, but the presentation slides are still there.)

    The Parent Presentation opening slide
    Image: Apple
    Richard Lawler
    Richard Lawler
    Two words: tariff engineering.

    This CNBC article describes some of the workarounds you might see with companies navigating higher taxes on imports, as the difference between a raincoat and a windbreaker, for example, can add up.

    However, it quotes supply chain strategist Andrew Wilson saying that “consumer good and garments, apparel and footwear sectors” are easier targets for these changes than cars and electronics, because “even minor changes may require extensive validation and approval” that add months of waiting to get certified.

    Richard Lawler
    Richard Lawler
    Mario Kart World gets its first update since the Switch 2 launch.

    The Switch 2’s flagship title just got its second patch tonight, following a day-one update for Mario Kart World that enabled the camera and online play.

    This new 1.1.1 patch is a smaller update to address glitches that could disable items or controls, or cause the game to shut down suddenly.

    How to Update Mario Kart World | Nintendo Support

    [en-americas-support.nintendo.com]

    Richard Lawler
    Richard Lawler
    Chevy’s electrified ZR1X is the quickest Corvette ever.

    We’re barely recovered from meeting the 2025 Corvette ZR1, and now Chevrolet has announced a regenerative hybrid variant (no plugging in here), dubbed the ZR1X. This 2026 Corvette model takes the E-Ray’s EV modes and all wheel drive setup, turns up the horsepower, and puts it in a package with the ZR1’s LT7 V8, along with some other tweaks for maximizing performance on the road or the track.

    This ‘true American hypercar’ with 1,250 horsepower will go from zero to 60 mph in under two seconds, GM estimates. No price announced yet.

    Richard Lawler
    Richard Lawler
    An original 1977 print of Star Wars was screened recently, and it looked “terrible.”

    That’s according to The Telegraph film critic Robbie Collin, who also said, “It felt less like watching a blockbuster in the modern sense than the greatest game of dressing up in the desert anyone ever played.”

    The Hollywood Reporter points out that George Lucas has been tweaking the flick going back to its rerelease in theaters in 1981, along with this YouTube report from Cinema Savvy detailing “so many little things” that are different. If you want a better blend of the updates without CG fluff and “Greedo shot first,” you may have to wait for Harmy to get back from his honeymoon.