Author: News Room
Hello and welcome back to Regulator. It’s been a very long two weeks away from your inboxes, but luckily for us, Big Tech and Big Government did not stop fighting. In fact, it’s gotten even spicier. Let’s get into it.Last week, I was following up on several rumors that Donald Trump would sign an executive order that would fulfill a longstanding goal of the AI industry: legal preemption that would prevent states from passing their own AI laws. Mostly, I was calling sources trying to get a sense of how the Trump administration planned to approach it: Which agency would…
Let’s get this out of the way: The Samsung Frame is not a good TV. None of the displays that I’d classify as art TVs are — at least not in the ways that we usually think about TVs. They only get a fraction as bright as comparably priced TVs, picture quality is middling, black level performance is bad (even for an LCD TV), and color accuracy out of the box leaves a lot to be desired. But that’s not why people buy art TVs.Close friends of mine love The Frame on their living room wall and have asked me…
OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Microsoft’s Copilot are both leaving WhatsApp thanks to upcoming changes to the messaging app’s terms of service that will prohibit using it to distribute AI chatbots not made by Meta.OpenAI announced its planned departure a few weeks ago, with Microsoft following it this week. Both companies attributed the departures to Meta’s new terms of service for WhatsApp Business Solution, which come into effect on January 15th, 2026, and said the chatbots will remain accessible in WhatsApp until that date. ChatGPT users can link their accounts to WhatsApp to make sure their chat history carries over, though Copilot…
Hoto exists because someone got bored.CEO Lidan Liu, the company’s founder and a notable industrial designer, tells The Verge she was tired of advising from her consultancy Designaffairs China. I have to build something on my own, she thought. And back then, she was spending a lot of time in her workshop surrounded by the same old tools.“The tool industry, it never changes, the products are boring, very masculine and very much designed for professional users,” Liu thought. “We can start something new.” So she founded iMonkey Technology, which later became Hoto, short for “Home Tools.”She didn’t have to build…
Xiaomi spin-off brand Poco has partnered with Bose to help its new F8 phones stand out in an increasingly crowded market. Both the F8 Pro and F8 Ultra feature stereo speakers designed collaboratively with the audio company, and the Ultra goes one step further by including a subwoofer too.Both new F8 phones feature the same dual stereo speakers tuned by Bose, though you’ll have to buy the Ultra if you want the benefits of the subwoofer as well, which Poco says delivers “deeper, more impactful bass.” Additionally, there are two sound profiles tuned by Bose engineers: a Dynamic mode that…
When Qualcomm announced its high-end Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset in November, it mentioned that a non-Elite version was on the way, designed to power a more affordable tier of flagship phones. Now, that chip has finally arrived, with some drops in performance but the same core feature set.Qualcomm compares the 8 Gen 5 to 2023’s 8 Gen 3, boasting a 36 percent improvement in CPU performance and 11 percent improvement in GPU performance compared to that chip, along with efficiency improvements. But since the 8 Gen 3 is two years old, and Qualcomm has changed CPU architecture in…
Perplexity is ramping up its AI shopping experience going into the holiday season, just like OpenAI and Google, with a free AI-powered shopping feature that is available now to US users. Its AI assistant looks similar to what we’ve seen from ChatGPT’s shopping research, as users type in what they’re looking for and refine the results with follow-up questions. The recommended products show up as cards with specs and reviews, and users can buy products directly through Perplexity from merchants that support PayPal.If you ask for a jacket to wear on your commute by ferry across the Bay to San…
Campbell’s is insisting that its soups aren’t made with 3D-printed chicken, lab-grown chicken, or bioengineered meat. The food giant issued the explanation on its website after leaked audio allegedly captured Campbell’s vice president of information technology saying the company’s meat “came from a 3D printer.”“A recent video contained false comments about our ingredients,” Campbell’s writes. “The comments heard on the recording about our food are not only inaccurate, they are absurd. We do not use lab-grown chicken or any form of artificial or bioengineered meat in our soups.” It adds that the company only uses chicken from “reputable” suppliers in…
In case you missed it, Paramount Plus is raising prices by $1 a month starting on January 15th, 2026, taking the ad-supported Essential plan from $7.99 to $8.99 and the ad-free Premium plan from $12.99 to $13.99. Thankfully, Paramount’s Black Friday promo has arrived just in time to (somewhat) soften the blow. Now through December 2nd, both new and returning subscribers can sign up for a two-month subscription for just $2.99 a month, dropping the price of the Essential plan by $5 and the Premium plan by a whopping $10.No matter which plan you choose, Paramount Plus gives you access…
Warner Music Group has struck a licensing deal with the AI music creation platform Suno. Under the agreement, WMG will allow users to create AI-generated music on Suno using the voices, names, likenesses, images, and compositions of artists who opt in to the program.WMG, which owns record labels that have signed musicians like Ed Sheeran, Twenty One Pilots, Dua Lipa, and Charli XCX, says participating artists will have “full control” over how their likeness and music are used, though it doesn’t share how.“These will be new creation experiences from artists who do opt in, which will open up new revenue…
Wyze has announced an unorthodox approach to outdoor security cameras with its new Window Cam that monitors your yard and property from inside your home. This Rear Window approach to security means the camera doesn’t need batteries, Wi-Fi range extenders, access to an exterior power outlet, or weatherproofing. The company already offers window mounts for its indoor security cameras, but the Wyze Window Cam is purpose-built for the task with infrared and LED lighting completely removed to reduce glare and reflections. It’s available now from Wyze’s online store for $34.98.The Window Cam features a 1080P HD sensor paired with a…
The Switch 2 can be enjoyed right out of the box, but it’s even better with the right accessories. Some of these add-ons are more crucial than others, especially if you’re deciding what to buy early on. For example, a case and a screen protector can keep your console safe from scuffs, scratches, and drops, so both are what I’d consider to be essential. If you’re not a fan of how the Joy-Con 2 feel to use, a cheap but good wireless controller wouldn’t hurt, either.On the other hand, a microSD Express card lets you add even more digital games…