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Smorgasbord of the rings / Smart rings are continuing to emerge as a viable alternative to watches and glasses.

Smart rings are looking like my kind of AI gadgetSmart rings are looking like my kind of AI gadget

While everyone tries to make smart glasses, pins, and everything else happen, the most subtle device might be the best device.

David Pierce
Less is more with the Oura Ring 5

This is a smart ring for new users. Everyone else should wait until their current ring dies.

Victoria Song
The best smart rings for tracking sleep and health

For folks who want something other than a smartwatch.

Victoria Song
With smart rings, the right size matters

The Samsung Galaxy Ring will purportedly follow standard US sizing, but smart ring fitting is a bit more complicated than smartwatches.

Victoria Song

Open AI is the new OpenAI / Open-weight AI models are shaking up the industry.

Why China is giving away its best AI modelsWhy China is giving away its best AI models

Chinese labs like Moonshot are forcing OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic to rethink what they lock away.

Robert Hart
China delivers a one-two punch to America’s AI dominance 

Moonshot and Alibaba unveiled frontier models they claim rival OpenAI and Anthropic.

Robert Hart
Nvidia, Microsoft launch open AI security alliance — without OpenAI, Google, or Anthropic

It comes after Hugging Face used a Chinese open-weight AI to defend itself against rogue OpenAI agents.

Robert Hart
America needs to stop getting shocked by Chinese AI

Kimi K3 and Qwen3.8 should come as no surprise.

Robert Hart

Staff picks / Our favorite stories you don’t want to miss.

This is my new favorite laptop, but thanks to RAMageddon the price already went up by $800This is my new favorite laptop, but thanks to RAMageddon the price already went up by $800

8

Verge Score

The Framework Laptop 13 Pro has it all. But RAMageddon spiked its price.

Antonio G. Di Benedetto
The vertical video takeover is here

How TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube copied their way to victory.

David Pierce
The US government can’t enforce its own drone ban

Brendan Carr’s FCC keeps approving the very drones it was supposed to ban. How did it go so wrong?

Sean Hollister
You don’t need to splurge on an expensive handheld fan to beat the heat

This cheap and basic fan from JisuLife has helped my family endure the hottest days of summer.

Andrew Liszewski

Meta's impaired vision / The company is facing tough questions as it launches new smart glasses.

Meta is royally screwing up its smart glasses rollout Meta is royally screwing up its smart glasses rollout 

Its recent attempts to shore up privacy don’t seem to be convincing skeptics.

Victoria Song
Meta just created a moderation nightmare for its smart glasses

Meta says it’s banning some content filmed with the company’s smart glasses from Instagram. Moderation gets messy very quickly.

Mia Sato
After backlash, Meta pauses plan to ‘rate limit’ its smart glasses

A paywall is still coming, though.

Sean Hollister
I spy

The AI wearable surveillance state hinges on good intentions masking legitimate privacy concerns.

Victoria Song
Jay Peters
Jay Peters
The US Space Force has awarded SpaceX $1.6 billion for rocket launches.

The orders will cover 18 Falcon 9 missions that are expected to be finished by the end of next year. SpaceX has already gotten more than $7 billion in Pentagon contracts in 2026, according to Reuters.

Richard Lawler
Richard Lawler
Has Substack’s subscription model really “maxed out?”

Scott Carney and Taylor Lorenz posted on Substack about downward subscriber trends they’re seeing. Carney pins it on subscription fatigue and feeling like “The only way to grow is to pillage the paid subscribers from other creators.” Lorenz questions Substack’s direction, saying “more and more like this app is becoming another social media feed.”

When we recently wrote about writers who are leaving Substack, they mentioned control, pricing, and the social feature creep among their reasons for choosing competitors like Ghost and Behiiv.

Elizabeth Lopatto
Elizabeth Lopatto
Comedian Josh Johnson has some thoughts about Elon Musk.

In the process of getting through his thoughts, he does a pretty good riff about the people who say they “make” stuff with AI. As for Musk’s version of The Odyssey, Johnson says, “I’m excited for the Cyclops to have two eyes.”

Jay Peters
Jay Peters
Waymo is “gradually resuming” freeway driving.

After suspending freeway routes in May because of safety concerns in construction zones, Waymo announced that freeway routes coming back in Phoenix and “soon” in Los Angeles, Miami, and San Francisco.

In a statement to TechCrunch, Waymo said it had implemented “designed to improve performance around freeway construction zones.”

Sean Hollister
Sean Hollister
Valve just added HDR and AV1 Remote Play streaming for Steam Deck.

I’ve heard Steam Remote Play is finally reaching parity with Moonlight when streaming games to your Steam Deck. Now, Steam Remote Play is getting AV1 for theoretically even better compression, and HDR for the Steam Deck OLED’s screen. I like streaming, but I’d also like more devs to embrace Dynamic Cloud Sync

Microsoft confirms Copilot ‘super app’ coming this yearMicrosoft confirms Copilot ‘super app’ coming this year

The app will merge Copilot’s chat, coding, and agentic features.

Emma Roth
Mark Zuckerberg is planning a big push into personal AI agentsMark Zuckerberg is planning a big push into personal AI agents

Meta will have more to share ‘soon.’

Jay Peters
Qualcomm is raising phone chip prices starting September 1stQualcomm is raising phone chip prices starting September 1st

Qualcomm reported its lowest quarterly handset revenue since 2021.

Stevie Bonifield
Emma Roth
Emma Roth
Even SiriusXM has a sports plan now.

The satellite radio company is rolling out a $5 / month (or $49 / year) Sports Pass that offers access to “every live game and event SiriusXM carries,” including all home and away NFL, MLB, NBA, and NHL broadcasts. It will also include 24 local sports talk stations when the plan launches on September 1st.

xAI’s last-minute scramble to stop Minnesota’s anti-nudification app lawxAI’s last-minute scramble to stop Minnesota’s anti-nudification app law

Grok, is this statute constitutional?

Sarah Jeong
Cyberpunk 2077 packs a lot of fun into its discounted $20 priceCyberpunk 2077 packs a lot of fun into its discounted $20 price

It’s well worth the $20 price of admission to check out Night City’s updated world and story.

Brad Bourque
David Pierce
David Pierce
Today’s Vergecast: The Z Fold 8 is the new foldable to beat.

The wide foldable is here, and it’s glorious. The Verge’s Dominic Preston has been reviewing Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 8, and joins the show to explain what this shorter, wider device gets right, what it’s still missing, and why this looks like the right kind of foldable for most people. (Once the price comes down, anyway.) With a similar foldable iPhone likely coming soon, it’s shaping up to be a fun year of foldables.

Xbox revenue drops 10 percent as Microsoft’s cloud and AI business surgesXbox revenue drops 10 percent as Microsoft’s cloud and AI business surges

Cloud revenue soared to $59 billion, while Xbox services and hardware sales took a hit.

Emma Roth
Sean Hollister
Sean Hollister
Giveaway five is live.

The fifth Today I’m Toying With giveaway, that is. Technically, I set them live each Wednesday at 9AM ET. I recently heard back from the second winner, who says he loves the mystery gadgets he received — if you want to join him, you can enter every week!

Some of the actual items in the giveaway.
Some of the actual items in the giveaway.
Photo by Sean Hollister / The Verge
Stevie Bonifield
Stevie Bonifield
Firefox’s new tab page now has a daily puzzle game.

After adding widgets to the browser’s new tab page last month, Mozilla updated mine to add a mini crossword puzzle widget. There’s one puzzle per day.

A screenshot of an unfinished crossword puzzle on the Firefox new tab page
A screenshot of a completed daily crossword puzzle from the Firefox home page
1/2
Here’s a mostly blank puzzle. If you want to see the solution, click the arrow.
Image: Mozilla
What’s the catch with the Apple Upgrade program?What’s the catch with the Apple Upgrade program?

We did the math on Apple’s new device leasing program so you don’t have to.

Emma Roth
Stevie Bonifield
Stevie Bonifield
The latest trailer for Jumanji: Open World brings its avatars into the real world.

This time around, Jumanji’s avatars, played by Dwayne Johnson, Karen Gillan, Kevin Hart, and Jack Black, escape the game in “demo mode,” before a family jumps into their bodies to fix things. The trilogy’s final film is set to release in theaters on December 25th.

Richard Lawler
Richard Lawler
Meta’s latest AI content deal is with Newsmax.

In addition to Reuters, WSJ, CNN, Fox News, and USA Today, Meta now has an AI content partnership to “…draw upon Newsmax’s significant current reporting as well as archived content across its platforms to support AI queries across Meta’s apps and devices.”

If access via Truth Plus just wasn’t enough, I guess.

OpenAI president says it’s ‘building a family of devices’ for its AI chatbotsOpenAI president says it’s ‘building a family of devices’ for its AI chatbots

Greg Brockman says he thinks we’ll start talking to our computers, rather than typing, for the ‘vast majority’ of tasks.

Stevie Bonifield
Richard Lawler
Richard Lawler
French DJ and musician Kavinsky has died at age 50.

Kavinsky, aka Vincent Belorgey, was found in his home in Paris on Tuesday, according to the Paris prosecutor’s office. He was most well known for the song Nightcall, which was produced with Daft Punk’s Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, and featured in the movie Drive as well as the Grand Theft Auto V soundtrack.

In 2024, the BBC reports it broke the record for the most Shazamed track ever when he performed it with Belgian singer Angèle during the closing ceremony for the 2024 Olympic Games.

The US government just banned RoombasThe US government just banned Roombas

It’s not just bots with legs.

Sean Hollister
Jay Peters
Jay Peters
Waymo’s new Ojai cars are getting Gemini AI.

Using the in-car screens, you can access Gemini for things like changing the temperature in your Waymo or getting a recommendation for a good coffee shop, Waymo says. The feature is in beta, and Gemini operates “independently from the Waymo Driver.”

The Ojai cars are also getting an “all-new screen interface.” The three screens in the vehicle will all be able to show different things, though you can also set a minimal “Calm Mode” if you’d prefer.

Jay Peters
Jay Peters
A new look at the Pixel 11 Pro.

Google is teasing its upcoming smartphone again ahead of the August 12th launch event. The company has already shown off the glowy orb in the camera bar that’s visible in this new ad, and while Google still hasn’t said what the light is for, it might be called Pixel Glow.

Full school day cellphone bans are more popular than everFull school day cellphone bans are more popular than ever

Most adults across age groups support an in-class ban.

Lauren Feiner
Jay Peters
Jay Peters
This week in the big AI data center buildout.

AI data center projects are continuing to pop up across the US, with frequent opposition from locals concerned about their impact. Here are a few recent articles about the projects:

Mia Sato
Mia Sato
X and advertisers settle.

Elon Musk’s X Corp and the World Federation of Advertisers are ending their long-running legal fight. In 2024, Musk accused the industry group of illegally boycotting X through its Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) initiative, which set standards to prevent ads from appearing next to harmful content. GARM has since been disbanded. A judge dismissed Musk’s lawsuit in March.

The Ferrari Luce has at least 500 fansThe Ferrari Luce has at least 500 fans

The EV, designed by Jony Ive, was reportedly particularly popular in China.

Stevie Bonifield
Remarkable’s refurbished bundle is an awesome deal that’s over $350 offRemarkable’s refurbished bundle is an awesome deal that’s over $350 off

Plus, Twelve South’s high-end Bluetooth adapter and Anker’s 7-in-1 charging station are each under $60.

Sheena Vasani
Emma Roth
Emma Roth
You can now control Gemini on Mac with your voice.

With the update, you can hold the Fn key in any window to interact with Gemini by talking aloud. You can also opt into a feature that allows Gemini to “see” what’s on your screen and perform tasks within your open windows. This update is rolling out in English to all Gemini app users on macOS.

Elizabeth Lopatto
Elizabeth Lopatto
OpenAI hack of Hugging Face was “expected.”

Former OpenAI board member Helen Toner has written for Fortune that OpenAI’s models exploiting Hugging Face is an “incident that has been expected for a long time.” We know this happened because of voluntary disclosure, Toner notes. “None of the current policies that aim to manage risks from frontier models would have mandated that the public — or even a government entity — be alerted.” She suggests changing our regulatory approach.

Meredith Haggerty
Meredith Haggerty
Thomas B. Crown.

The trailer for Michael B. Jordan’s The Thomas Crown Affair remake remake is out, and it looks to be as sexy, heisty, and suave as the 1999 Brosnan/Russo version. The Oscar winning actor directs as well as stars, with Adria Arjona and Kenneth Branagh along for the ride.

Charles Pulliam-Moore
Charles Pulliam-Moore
Ditto used Dive!

The new extended trailer for the first wave of Pokopia DLC gives us a much better look at all the water type monsters you’ll be able to befriend in Bubbly Basin beginning August 5th. It also looks like building underwater houses is about to get much easier.

Stevie Bonifield
Stevie Bonifield
Now you can have Gemini clear up comments in your Google Docs.

A new Google Workspace update lets Gemini summarize and respond to comments, like highlighting all the unresolved changes in a document, Android Authority reports. You can also ask Google’s AI to draft new comments and replies and add suggested edits based on comments.

A screenshot of Gemini suggesting edits in a Google Doc
Image: Google
DoorDash is going airborne with new drone delivery divisionDoorDash is going airborne with new drone delivery division

Your next takeout could arrive via drone, after DoorDash announced it was launching DoorDash Air.

Andrew J. Hawkins
Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 8 feels like the future

8

Verge Score

David Imel
David Imel
Peer-to-peer over peer-to-peer.

Bitchat, the peer-to-peer encrypted messaging app that sends messages over Bluetooth LE, can now itself be sent from one Android device to another — no internet or Google Play Store required. This is a big deal, considering India’s recent attempts to ban the app from Github. If this isn’t cypherpunk, I don’t know what is.

OpenAI’s rogue AI agent didn’t stop at hacking Hugging FaceOpenAI’s rogue AI agent didn’t stop at hacking Hugging Face

New details reveal OpenAI’s agent hacked several other companies, intensifying already heightened concerns over advanced AI safety.

Robert Hart
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