The Guardian
Whistleblower Arturo Béjar compares Meta's settlement to allowing two hours of daily smoking - it doesn't make the cigarettes safer, just limits the dose.
TechCrunch
Meta drops $18B to settle child-safety suit, but the real challenge is age verification tech that can't tell a 12-year-old from a 40-year-old. Good luck with that.
TechCrunch
Instagram's new 'First Draft' feature auto-edits your Reels in under 10 seconds, because apparently manual editing is for suckers - announced on the same day Meta faces a child addiction trial.
ZDNet
Meta's new Pocket app lets you vibe-code your own games and gizmos - and it's surprisingly fun, even for a coding novice.
The Guardian
Mark Zuckerberg adds a 440-acre Irish castle to his property portfolio, because everyone needs a summer home with a four-and-a-half-minute commute from kitchen to dining room.
The Guardian Europe
Meta's day in court begins as 29 states seek $200bn over addicting teens - because what better way to follow big tobacco's playbook than with dopamine instead of nicotine?
The Guardian Europe
Meta's smartglasses are earning creators dirty looks and 'pervert glasses' labels, proving that even a flat white can't escape the surveillance backlash.
The Verge
OpenAI pauses its Astra model, worried it's too good at hacking. The company is implementing stricter controls, because apparently we can't have nice things.
The Guardian Europe
Tennessee's opening statements accuse Meta of ignoring its own research on teen harm to maximize ad revenue; Meta says it's doing its part and 'it takes a village.'
The Verge
Apple's smart glasses won't be creepy, promise - they're just taking three years to ensure they don't accidentally become a surveillance tool.
The Verge
Vertical video has conquered the internet, from Snapchat Stories to TikTok to Reels, and it's not letting go - unless a cultural revolution is brewing.
TechCrunch
Meta parts ways with RE100 renewable energy initiative after a decade, doubling down on natural gas to power AI data centers while still claiming to be '100% clean and renewable' through creative accounting.
The Verge
Meta escapes a trial over teen addiction claims after plaintiff drops case, but seven more bellwether trials and a federal lawsuit loom.
ZDNet
After six weeks with Meta's $499 prescription Ray-Bans, our reviewer finds them stylish but not worth the premium - especially when the nearly identical Wayfarers are $100 less.
The Atlantic
Silicon Valley discovers that building AI data centers is less like coding and more like running a steel mill, complete with Caterpillar engines and a desperate need for plumbers.
The Guardian Europe
Meta's AI glasses are a privacy nightmare, and Kylie Jenner is here to make them trendy. Because nothing says 'safety' like a flashing LED that nobody sees.
TechCrunch
Reflection AI spends another billion on compute, because nothing says 'open source' like buying up all the GPUs.
TechCrunch
Meta quietly drops Pocket, an AI app for vibe-coding mini-games, because apparently the world needed another way to generate stuff without lifting a finger.
BBC Business
Trump's 2025 financial disclosure is a 927-page epic featuring $1bn in crypto, a Bible side hustle, and a cameo-worthy pension from 'Home Alone 2.'
The Verge
Meta, the company that never had an original idea it couldn't copy, is now betting on prediction markets. Because your Facebook feed wasn't already enough of a gamble.
The Good Times
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