Tech Boys

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People reach for all kinds of metaphors to describe their relationship to AI. For some, AI is like a mostly reliable intern. For others, it’s a virtual assistant. Increasingly, chatbots like ChatGPT are moving into the role of companion, therapist, even romantic partner. As a college writing professor, I’ve come to think of AI as a collaborator: an archive of knowledge that talks back. But as a sober alcoholic myself, I also can’t help but imagine it as a high-functioning drunk: It can sometimes sound brilliant even when it has no idea what it’s talking about. I can tell you stories about the ways AI has come through when I needed it, saving me hours of time by doing mundane tasks, proofreading my writing, or conversing about my latest research obsessions. But then there are those other times when it lies with a cheery tone, when it seems to not understand a word I’m saying but just keeps talking rather than admit it’s wrong or that it doesn’t have an answer. Like a few weeks ago, wh...

Opera is filing an antitrust complaint against Microsoft in Brazil, alleging it creates an unfair environment for alternate browsers to compete with Edge. The Norway-based company claims Microsoft's deals to make Edge the exclusive pre-installed browser on Windows machines creates an unfair environment for alternate browsers to compete. Opera also argued that Microsoft uses design tactics and dark patterns to further discourage people from downloading and using rival products. It is asking Brazil's Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE) to pursue remedies against Microsoft. "Microsoft thwarts browser competition on Windows at every turn. First, browsers like Opera are locked out of important pre-installation opportunities," Aaron McParlan, general counsel for Opera, said in a statement. "And then Microsoft frustrates users' ability to download and use alternative browsers." This isn't the first time these two companies have clashed. O...

There's a new AI agent on the block for people who spend their waking hours inside spreadsheets. Navigate to Shortcut AI's website , and you'll find a page that looks almost exactly like an empty Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. The main difference is a sidebar chatbot that can be tasked with taking on the tedious legwork of building, say, complex financial models or competitive analyses. Because Shortcut is agentic , meaning it can handle multi-step tasks on the user's behalf, the tool can do more than just generate Excel formulas or analyze spreadsheet data. In a demo on X, Nico Christie, founder and CEO of the Shortcut AI agent, showed how the tool swapped out the data from a Microsoft distributed cash flow analysis (DCF) for Google data by looking up Google's SEC filings and populating the data in the same template. This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed. Shortcut launched on Monday with a rather ominous tagline: "Try...

Just days after thousands of user images and locations were leaked in an apparent hack of archived app data , women-only safety app Tea is weathering data exposure at an even larger scale than first reported. In addition to exposing thousands of user verification images and personal IDs, which were later abused by users on platforms like 4Chan, the app's recently discovered security flaws make it possible for hackers to access private messages between users. An independent security researcher, verified by 404Media, was able to pull conversations from a second database that were sent as recently as last week, which included sensitive information like shared phone numbers, conversations about intimate relationships, and discussions of abortion. SEE ALSO: Grindr bans 'no zionists' in bios, but still allows racist and fatphobic language The researcher, Kasra Rahjerdi, also obtained access to back-end app features like the ability to send mass push notifications to user...

Whistle, a subsidiary of Mars that makes pet trackers, has announced that it's being acquired by Tractive. As part of the acquisition, Whistle trackers will stop working, but Tractive is offering to replace those trackers for free for a limited time. The official shutdown date for Whistle's pet trackers is August 31, 2025. Users will be able to request a replacement tracker until September 30, 2025 by providing their tracker's serial number and then choosing a new Tractive tracker. Tractive will also credit pre-paid Whistle subscriptions to new Tractive accounts, and give anyone with a Whistle tracker without an active subscription two months of a Tractive subscription for free. Whistle's devices, like the Whistle Go Explore or Whistle Fit , focused on using GPS, Wi-Fi, and AT&T's network to keep tabs on the whereabouts of your dogs and cats. Tractive goes further by offering similar tracking features alongside wearable-style health monitoring. If you pay ...

Anthropic has introduced new weekly rate limits on its Claude Code tool for AI assistance with coding tasks. The move comes shortly after the AI company quietly began implementing rate limits on the Claude Code service, which is an agentic side of the AI chatbot that is capable of reading code, editing files, performing tests and pushing GitHub commits. According to a series of posts from Anthropic on X, these changes are in response to some users who have been running Claude Code "continuously in the background, 24/7." Not only does that add up to a hefty environmental toll , the instances of non-stop use are also financially expensive for Anthropic. The company additionally questioned whether some users were violating terms of service by sharing or reselling accounts. Claude Code is only available on Anthropic's Pro and Max plans, the most expensive of which is $200 a month . Those subscriptions which will start seeing the weekly rate limits beginning in August. ...

Oh hey there! If you're here, it must be time for Wordle . As always, we're serving up our daily hints and tips to help you figure out today's answer. If you just want to be told today's word, you can jump to the bottom of this article for today's Wordle solution revealed. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you. SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable SEE ALSO: NYT Connections today: Hints and answers for July 27 Where did Wordle come from? Originally created by engineer Josh Wardle as a gift for his partner, Wordle rapidly spread to become an international phenomenon, with thousands of people around the globe playing every day. Alternate Wordle versions created by fans also sprang up, including battle royale Squabble , music identification game Heardle , and variations like Dordle and Quordle that make you guess multiple words at once .  Word...

The streets of Tromaville, New Jersey are calling once again as the video game adaptation of the off-the-wall cartoon series Toxic Crusaders gets a release date. Seen in an official trailer from Retroware that was shown off during San Diego Comic-Con and shared online by IGN, the Toxic Crusaders game is releasing on December 4 on PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch and Steam. As a true callback to the quirky cartoon from the '90s, the video game is designed as a side-scrolling beat 'em up, all packaged in a fitting pixel art style. In Toxic Crusaders , you can select up to seven characters from the series, each with their own unique movesets and abilities, and join together for up to four players in local co-op. For Toxic Crusaders fans wanting more after the original series ended without a second season, this adaptation picks up where things left off. You'll still run into some familiar faces, like the story's main villain, Dr. Killemoff and his two bumbling hench...

The second round of deferred resignations for NASA staff closed on Friday, and the agency says roughly 3,000 employees applied to leave, according to Bloomberg . The Trump administration first offered the deferred resignation program as a buyout to government workers in January as it gutted the federal workforce under the guidance of DOGE — then led by Elon Musk — asking employees to resign while still receiving benefits and pay for a period of time. In the earlier round, 870 NASA employees reportedly opted to leave. The space agency opened a second round in June, with a July 25 deadline. The latest batch of applications brings the total to nearly 4,000 employees, or roughly 20 percent of NASA's workforce, according to a statement provided to Bloomberg . It comes after Politico reported earlier this month that over 2,000 senior NASA staff members have agreed to leave . NASA is grappling with proposed budget cuts that could crush the agency's science programs and result ...