Author: Frank Salvato

Disney+ has begun rolling out a new TikTok-style feature called “Verts,” a vertical short-form video feed designed to help users discover content from the platform’s vast catalog through quick, swipeable clips optimized for mobile viewing. The feature presents short highlights and scenes from movies and television series—including titles from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, and Star Wars—and allows users to swipe through previews, add shows to their watchlist, or jump directly into full episodes and films. The initiative reflects a broader shift in the streaming industry toward short-form, mobile-first content consumption, mirroring the influence of platforms like TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube…

Tesla has taken a significant step toward transforming itself from a technology and automotive manufacturer into a full-fledged electricity provider after receiving regulatory approval to supply power directly to homes and businesses across Great Britain, positioning the company to compete with established energy suppliers such as Octopus Energy and others. Through a subsidiary called Tesla Energy Ventures, the company plans to leverage its solar installations, Powerwall battery storage systems, and virtual power plant model to sell electricity and potentially allow customers to store and resell energy back to the grid. The move signals Tesla’s broader strategy of integrating electric vehicles,…

Amazon has introduced a new adults-only personality setting for its generative-AI powered assistant Alexa+, allowing the device to use casual profanity and respond in a more irreverent tone while still maintaining guardrails against explicit or unsafe material. The optional mode is designed for adult users who want a less sanitized interaction with the assistant, but the system still refuses requests involving explicit sexual content, hate speech, illegal activities, or personal attacks. The update reflects a broader push by technology companies to make AI assistants feel more human and customizable while preserving strict safety limits. Amazon has steadily expanded Alexa+ with…

An international coalition of law-enforcement agencies has dismantled a sprawling cybercrime infrastructure known as the “SocksEscort” botnet, a malicious network composed of hundreds of thousands of compromised home routers and internet-connected devices that criminals used to mask their identities online and conduct fraud across the globe. Investigators say the network enabled cybercriminals to route malicious traffic through infected residential devices, effectively disguising their location while committing crimes such as credential stuffing, ad fraud, and account takeovers. Authorities coordinated the takedown through a court-authorized effort that seized dozens of domains and servers while also confiscating millions in cryptocurrency linked to the…

A journalist has filed a class-action lawsuit against Grammarly and its parent company, Superhuman, accusing the firm of using the names and identities of real writers to power an artificial-intelligence editing feature without their consent. The lawsuit centers on Grammarly’s now-disabled “Expert Review” tool, which generated writing suggestions presented as if they were coming from prominent journalists, authors, and academics—even though those individuals had no involvement in the process. The complaint argues that the company effectively appropriated the reputations and professional credibility of real writers to lend authority to AI-generated advice, potentially violating privacy and publicity rights under state law.…

Peacock, the streaming service owned by NBCUniversal, is accelerating its shift toward artificial intelligence and mobile-centric entertainment in an effort to compete in an increasingly crowded streaming marketplace, rolling out AI-powered personalized video feeds, vertically optimized live sports streams designed for smartphones, and interactive mobile games integrated directly into the app. The strategy reflects a broader attempt to reshape streaming platforms from passive viewing experiences into immersive digital ecosystems that combine entertainment, gaming, and social-style content feeds similar to popular mobile apps. Among the most notable features is an AI-driven personalized video experience that can generate billions of customized clip…

Substack has launched a built-in recording studio designed to let writers and creators produce and publish video content directly within the platform, a move that underscores the company’s aggressive expansion beyond its roots as a newsletter service and into the broader creator-economy media landscape. The new desktop-based tool allows creators to record solo videos or conversations with up to two guests, then publish them directly to their Substack publication without relying on outside recording or editing platforms. The feature also automatically generates clips and thumbnails, simplifying production and distribution for independent publishers seeking to build multimedia offerings alongside traditional written…

Spotify is rolling out a new feature that allows users to directly view and edit their “Taste Profile,” the algorithmic model that powers personalized music recommendations across the platform, marking a shift toward greater transparency and user control over digital media algorithms. Announced during the SXSW conference, the feature—initially launching in beta for Premium subscribers in New Zealand—lets listeners inspect how the platform interprets their listening habits and modify it by requesting more or less of specific genres, artists, or moods. Because the Taste Profile influences everything from daily recommendations and personalized playlists to the annual listening recap, the change…

Federal investigators have launched an inquiry into a cybercriminal campaign that used seemingly legitimate video games on the popular Steam marketplace to spread malware, raising fresh concerns about the security of one of the world’s largest digital gaming platforms. Authorities believe the attacker uploaded multiple indie-style games between 2024 and early 2026 that secretly installed malicious software when users launched them, potentially allowing hackers to steal personal data, hijack accounts, or drain financial information. Several titles—including BlockBlasters, Chemia, Dashverse/DashFPS, Lampy, Lunara, PirateFi, and Tokenova—have been identified as vehicles for the attack and were removed from the store after discovery. The…

The once-iconic social news platform Digg has laid off a significant portion of its workforce and shut down its mobile application as leadership attempts to regroup after its much-publicized comeback faltered under the weight of widespread automated bot activity and a challenging digital marketplace. The company confirmed that the move is part of a broader “reset” strategy rather than a permanent closure, with executives acknowledging that the platform’s systems were quickly overwhelmed by sophisticated bot networks that manipulated voting and engagement mechanisms essential to Digg’s community-driven model. Despite efforts to ban tens of thousands of suspicious accounts and deploy external…