Monday’s top tech news: (Twitter) Blue Monday – The Verge

A ‘scientific breakthrough’ in nuclear fusion? How to watch the announcement

2022-12-13T12:48:47-05:00

Director of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Kim Budil speaks at a press conference to announce a major milestone in nuclear fusion research on December 13, 2022. | Photo by OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via Getty Images

On Tuesday, December 13th, scientists with the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory announced that they'd achieved "fusion ignition." The Verge has an updated post on the news here.

A "scientific breakthrough" in the development of fusion energy is expected tomorrow from the Biden administration. For more than half a century, people have poured billions of dollars into nuclear fusion research, hoping to create a source of abundant, clean energy.

The rough idea is this: if we develop technology that can replicate the way the sun generates energy in a controlled way, we could power the world with energy that's free of greenhouse gas emissi …

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Matter finally arrives on devices you can actually use

2022-12-13T09:40:00-05:00

The Eve Motion sensor is one of the first smart home devices that will work with Matter. | Photo by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge

Christmas has come a little early for the smart home: the first Matter-compatible devices are finally here. Starting today, December 12th, Eve Systems is beginning the roll-out of a firmware update to its Thread-enabled Eve Energy smart plug, Eve Door & Window contact sensor, and Eve Motion motion sensor to upgrade them to Matter.

Matter is a new smart home standard that will allow devices such as smart plugs, light bulbs, and door locks to work with any platform you choose. Up until now, Eve's devices have only been compatible with Apple Home. With this update, they'll work with the Samsung SmartThings ecosystem, as well as Google Home an …

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FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried arrested in the Bahamas

2022-12-13T02:32:44-05:00

Reports also claim that the US has filed criminal charges against. | Photo: Getty Images

Just over one month after the crypto exchange FTX filed for bankruptcy, Ryan Pinder, the Attorney General of the Bahamas, announced the arrest of its founder and former CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF).

According to a notice, the arrest came after the US government informed the Bahamas of criminal charges filed against Bankman-Fried and said it's likely to request his extradition from the nation where he was residing, and which had served as a base of operations for FTX. The US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Damian Williams, confirmed the arrest, saying in a statement that "We expect to move to unseal the indictment in the morn …

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Westworld is leaving HBO Max

2022-12-12T21:38:24-05:00

Is there going to be any HBO content left for the upcoming Max app? | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Just over a month after HBO canceled its once-hit original show Westworld, it's planning on yanking the back catalog from its streaming service, according to Variety, Deadline, IndieWire, and The Wrap.

It's currently not clear when Westworld will be removed from Warner Bros. Discovery's flagship streaming service, but it likely won't be alone. The reports indicate that HBO's Love Life and The Nevers will also have to find new homes.

When we checked on Monday evening, all three shows were still available on the service. IndieWire points out a tweet from Gordita Chronicles creator Claudia Forestieri indicating this past weekend would be the …

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Twitter Blue is back, letting you buy a blue checkmark again

2022-12-12T17:53:15-05:00

Would you pay for Twitter? | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Elon Musk's $8-per-month Twitter Blue subscription with verification is officially available, and you'll need a verified phone number to sign up.

In a thread on Twitter, the platform notes that Blue will cost $11 per month if you sign up on iOS and will grant you access to the ability to edit tweets, upload 1080p videos, reader mode, and, of course, the coveted blue checkmark. If you paid for the old $4.99 / $2.99 Blue package, then you'll need to subscribe again to keep its benefits, while anyone who signed up on Apple at the old $7.99 per month price will be automatically renewed at $11 per month unless they cancel.

we're baaaack! Twitte …

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Dril is selling the archives of his legendary tweets

2022-12-12T15:08:37-05:00

I wonder how many hours of entertainment I’ve gotten from Content forged on this Throne. | Image: dril

Dril, the account behind a frankly unbelievable number of viral tweets, is packaging his magnificent archive into a book and selling it for those of us who want to show off just how Online we are. According to Amazon, the Dril Archives paperback is around 240 pages and contains "10,000 of His finest Posts."

Like Taylor Swift, Dril is selling several "Flavors" of the archive - the "refined" edition lays out his posts in alphabetical order, "beloved" ranks them by the number of favorites they got, "eternal" sorts them in chronological order, and "chaotic," obviously, is completely random. While many of us here at The Verge are big fans of the …

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How Did This Get Made? renews deal with SiriusXM

2022-12-12T13:00:48-05:00

The hit comedy podcast How Did This Get Made? is sticking with Earwolf. Paul Scheer, June Diane Raphael, and Jason Mantzoukas, who host the show about terrible movies, have signed a multiyear deal to remain with the SiriusXM-owned podcast studio. SiriusXM spokesperson Ron Gaskill said the deal will keep most of the show's archive behind Stitcher Premium's paywall.

The critically beloved show, which dives into the world of terrible / amazing movies like Cats and Moonfall, has been under the Earwolf umbrella since it launched in 2010. "Twelve years ago, Earwolf believed in us before anyone even knew what a podcast was, and so we are thrilled …

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Bring back the Surface Book

2022-12-12T12:57:50-05:00

Yes, it was too expensive. Yes, it looked dated and clunky. Yes, there were weird things going on with the hinge. But the world needed it. Please, Microsoft, bring back the Surface Book.

I've been using a Surface Book 2 as my primary personal laptop since 2018. When I was shopping for a computer back then, I had a particular constellation of needs that I was finding it very difficult to fill. I wanted a convertible device to watch TV and read piano music. (You laugh, but balancing a full-sized laptop atop an electric piano is a task I would not advise anyone here to attempt. Ask me how I know.) I wanted something that wasn't too heavy becau …

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The Witcher 3’s next-gen update makes a beautiful game much smoother

2022-12-12T12:55:20-05:00

The Witcher 3 running on the PS5. | Image: CD Projekt Red

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt has always been a beautiful game. One of my favorite things to do when I played for the first time in 2015 was just wander around on horseback soaking in the incredible atmosphere, from the crumbling ancient ruins to the bustling towns. Seven years later and I found myself awed once again while playing it on the PlayStation 5.

A free next-gen patch for The Witcher 3 launches on December 14th, giving the aging open-world a boost if you're playing on a PS5, Xbox Series X/S, or high-end PC. I've managed to play through the first few hours of the new version - for those who've already played, I'm right in the thick of t …

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MrBeast is joining Fortnite with his own skins and a $1 million challenge

2022-12-12T12:00:00-05:00

MrBeast in Fortnite. | Image: Epic Games

MrBeast, who recently became the most-subscribed-to creator on YouTube, is the next person to join Fortnite's Icon Series. The creator made a brief appearance in a trailer for Fortnite's newest season, and Epic Games is now confirming that not only will MrBeast be getting his own Fortnite skins, but also a MrBeast-themed in-game competition with a $1 million prize.

If you've watched any of MrBeast's outrageous challenges on his YouTube channel (recent examples: "Last To Take Hand Off Jet, Keeps It!" or "Survive 100 Days In Circle, Win $500,000"), then you might not be surprised that the in-game event is called an "extreme survival challenge …

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