49 – Breaking News & Latest Updates 2026
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Thomas Ricker

Thomas Ricker

Deputy Editor

Deputy Editor

    More From Thomas Ricker

    Thomas Ricker
    Thomas Ricker
    Samsung’s Galaxy AI is amazing, but.

    The marketing whiplash in this press release announcing the availability of the Galaxy Book4 Edge is really something.

    It starts by praising the magic of AI (14 times), saying Samsung’s “next-gen AI PC will change the way users work, create and play through the power of AI.” It ends with this teeny tiny footnote for its “popular Galaxy AI:”

    Samsung does not make any promises, assurances or guarantees as to the accuracy, completeness or reliability of the output provided by AI features.

    To be fair, Samsung didn’t say the change was good.

    Samsung Releases the Galaxy Book4 Edge, Its First Copilot+ PC, in Global Markets

    [SamsungNewsroom]

    Thomas Ricker
    Thomas Ricker
    ‘Autonomous’ like a paperweight?

    Tesla says it “deployed two Optimus bots performing tasks in the factory autonomously.” It’s just a single bullet in a very long post on X that Elon made somebody write to justify voting for his $56 billion payday.

    That autonomy could mean anything, of course, but this video from May includes a possible scenario.

    Thomas Ricker
    Thomas Ricker
    Finally, offline maps with turn-by-turn guidance.

    I’m a trail runner that switched from Garmin to an Apple Watch Ultra. I like to leave my heavy phone at home which meant installing (and paying for) WorkOutDoors and Footpath to fill that massive off-line mapping void. A native watchOS solution should make things much, much easier.

    Here, let DC Rainmaker explain the new custom routes feature.

    Thomas Ricker
    Thomas Ricker
    Samsung doesn’t fall far from the Apple stem.

    Evan Blass of Evleaks fame has leaked the upcoming design for the new Galaxy Buds 3 Pro headphones, which abandon the bulbous blob look of Samsung’s previous pro buds. We’ll know for sure in one month if rumors are true.

    Thomas Ricker
    Thomas Ricker
    Apple made the obvious joke, real.

    Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman ahead of Monday’s WWDC event:

    The company’s new AI system will be called Apple Intelligence, and it will come to new versions of the iPhone, iPad and Mac operating systems.

    GROAAAN.

    Apple WWDC 2024 What to Expect: AI, iPadOS 18, macOS 15, Siri Updates, More

    [Bloomberg]

    Thomas Ricker
    Thomas Ricker
    Four Apple App Store alternatives are now live in Europe.

    The EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) came into force in March, resulting in the launch of the following new third-party iOS app marketplaces:

    • AltStore Pal (hands-on)

    • SetApp Mobile (hands-on)

    • Aptoide game store (hands-on)

    • Mobivention (hands-on)

    Each has its own pros and cons but none has been able to upset the balance of power in Europe.

    Thomas Ricker
    Thomas Ricker
    It wasn’t just you.

    Take comfort in your shared misery because ChatGPT has been up and down since about 3AM ET, according to our own testing and OpenAI’s dashboard. A fix has been implemented as of 7:19AM ET and marked resolved shortly thereafter.

    OpenAI’s ChatGPT dashboard status.
    OpenAI’s ChatGPT dashboard status.
    Thomas Ricker
    Thomas Ricker
    Sam Altman, billionaire.

    The 39-year-old has no stake in OpenAI and earns a yearly salary of $65,000. But Altman was already rich as a result of his early investments in startups, and now he’s super rich after backing more companies that do business with the ChatGPT maker.

    His holdings are now worth at least $2.8 billion.

    The Opaque Investment Empire Making OpenAI’s Sam Altman Rich

    [WSJ]

    Thomas Ricker
    Thomas Ricker
    Progress.

    What happens when remote villages get Starlink and all the good and bad that comes with unfettered internet access? The New York Times traveled deep into the Amazon rainforest to find out:

    Modern society has dealt with these issues over decades as the internet continued its relentless march. The Marubo and other Indigenous tribes, who have resisted modernity for generations, are now confronting the internet’s potential and peril all at once, while debating what it will mean for their identity and culture.

    The contrast and familiarity of the NYT’s photography is striking, seeing people hunched over their brightly lit rectangles hoping for just one more hit of dopamine.

    Thomas Ricker
    Thomas Ricker
    Who’s winning foldables?

    Samsung, unsurprisingly, but:

    Samsung, a trailblazer in the foldable phone market, commanded over 80 percent of the market share in 2022. However, with increasing competition from various brands in 2023–2024, Samsung’s share dropped from 60 percent and it now struggles to maintain 50 percent.

    The tech analysts at TrendForce say foldable phones will only represent about 1.5 percent of the global smartphone market by the end of 2024, but grow to 5 percent by 2028 after Apple enters the race.

    Samsung is losing marketshare in the segment it more or less invented.
    Samsung is losing marketshare in the segment it more or less invented.
    Image: TrendForce

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