Tech Boys

Pitches for AI assistants that can help you send emails or craft pitch decks may be feeling stale, but what about one designed to help new immigrants navigate the U.S.? How about a digital helper that can connect someone to pressing social services or just help them feel supported in a foreign environment? That's what ALMA, a new virtual assistant designed by the nonprofit International Rescue Committee (IRC), is designed to do. ALMA , which stands for "AI for Life Mapping Assistance," was built in-house by multiple IRC teams and their clients, modeled after a digital learning tool known as aprendIA . It pulls from a vast library of IRC resources — standard client materials, staff training resources, and information offered by trusted external organizations — to provide specialized assistance to refugees, special immigrant visa holders, and others. SEE ALSO: Can AI help nonprofits do more with less? Most notably, ALMA is based on WhatsApp , one of the leading com...

Toy Story 's valiant crew of toys has faced formidable villains in their first four films. Sid and his penchant for mutilating toys got Toy Story antagonists off to a strong start, while Toy Story 3 's Lots-o'-Huggin' Bear cemented himself as one of Pixar 's most evil characters thanks to his daycare reign of terror. SEE ALSO: 'Hoppers' teaser: Pixar puts a human brain in a beaver body But in the upcoming Toy Story 5 , directed by Andrew Stanton and co-directed by Kenna Harris, the toys may just face their biggest threat yet: technology. The Toy Story 5 teaser reveals that a new gift has arrived for young Bonnie Anderson. It's a Lilypad, a frog-themed smart tablet that strikes fear into the hearts of Woody (voiced by Tom Hanks), Buzz Lightyear (voiced by Tim Allen), and every other toy who lays eyes on it. And who can blame them? Their beloved child is about to become an iPad kid, and where will that leave the non-high-tech toys? Lilypad is vo...

Why make The Running Man a comedy? Stephen King's novel was a furious political thrill ride about a man out of options, forced to fight for his life (and family) against a corrupt government, exploitative media, and cruel capitalist system that turned impoverished people into prey for a ravenous TV show that makes their murders entertainment. Yet when Edgar Wright, who's previously blended horror and comedy with Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, and The World's End , read this book, he apparently thought what was missing from The Running Man was slapstick and an endless supply of jokes, peppered by peculiar product placement.  That's not to say a dystopian movie can't be a successful comedy. Look to Zombieland, Sorry to Bother You , The Lobster , or Tank Girl (but not Electric State ). Yet the very premise of The Running Man novel, from which this movie pulls heavily, is so dark and furious that casting a hunky movie star, Glen Powell, to play silly and sexy while...

Next year will see the end arrive for two of Facebook's external social plugins. The platform's Like button and Share button for third-party websites will be discontinued on February 10, 2026. The blog post from Meta explains that site admins shouldn't have to take any additional steps as a result of the change, although they can choose to remove the plugins before the discontinue date. Any remaining plugins will "gracefully degrade," which sounds much more dramatic than what will actually happen, which is that they'll render as a 0x0 invisible element.  Ending support for these features marks the end of an era for Meta and Facebook. External Like and Share buttons were introduced in 2013. The tools were promoted as ways for sites to generate more traffic through the social network, which was a major way that people shared and saw articles at that time. The company's official line is that the plugins "reflect an earlier era of web development, and ...

This summer, TV audiences went wild for The Summer I Turned Pretty . The third and final season of the popular teen drama had everyone asking, "Are you Team Conrad or Team Jeremiah?" But once Belly (Lola Tung) made her final decision between the two Fisher brothers (Christopher Briney and Gavin Casalegno), the main question on every fan's minds switched to "What in the world do we watch now?" (Besides the upcoming movie , of course.) SEE ALSO: Why Conrad from 'The Summer I Turned Pretty' is the internet’s ultimate summer crush The answer, it seems, is another Prime Video teen drama: the German-language series Maxton Hall — The World Between Us . The first three episodes of Maxton Hall Season 2 dropped Nov. 7. Since then, the show has topped Prime Video's streaming charts, unseating The Summer I Turned Pretty as the streamer's current-trending teen romance. As of writing this, it's the #2 title on Prime Video, behind Tyler Perry...

YouTube TV has notified subscribers that a $20 credit is heading their way in light of its ongoing standoff with Disney, which has resulted in numerous channels going dark on the platform, including ESPN, ABC News and Disney Channel. In an email to subscribers, the YouTube TV Team said subscribers should expect to see an email in the coming days about the credit, which will be applied to their next bill after it's redeemed.  "We know it’s been disappointing to lose Disney content, and we want you to know we deeply appreciate your patience," the email said. YouTube TV and Disney had a deadline of October 30 to reach a new agreement about Disney's content moving forward, but that date passed with no deal. Negotiations are ongoing, according to the company. "We've been working in good faith to negotiate a deal with Disney that pays them fairly for their content and returns their programming to YouTube TV," the team said in the email. If that $20 still isn...

Blue Origin has postponed the second flight of its New Glenn rocket, which was slated to send a pair of NASA spacecraft on the first step of their journey to Mars on Sunday afternoon. The heavy-lift launch vehicle was scheduled to take off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 2:45PM ET., but multiple holds were issued during the under-two-hour launch window due to inclement weather. Blue Origin called off the launch attempt around 4:13PM. The next launch opportunity is as yet unclear. Blue Origin was previously given a backup opportunity set for Monday afternoon, but the FAA has since issued an emergency order restricting commercial launches for the time being due to the government shutdown. As of November 10, commercial space launches can only take place between 10:00PM and 6:00AM. Blue Origin said on Sunday that it’s reviewing opportunities based on the weather, and did not mention the FAA’s order. New Glenn's development has faced significant delays over the...

Apple's latest iterative update for iPhones brings a welcome change for those who aren't a fan of its Liquid Glass design overhaul. After user complaints that the Liquid Glass' translucent design was hard to read, Apple introduced a compromise in iOS 26's fourth beta that allowed for a more frosted look as well as a Reduce Transparency option buried in the Accessibility settings. Now, Apple is making this Liquid Glass toggle available for all iPhone users with iOS 26.1. What is Liquid Glass? Apple debuted Liquid Glass at WWDC 2025 as its major visual redesign, which prompted a lot of comparisons to Windows Vista . Everything from switches and sliders to sidebars and panels would imitate glass, so that users can see the underlying colors and content. While some iPhone users liked the fluidity and freshness, others said the transparent look often created legibility issues, caused lag from the animations and led to eye strain over extended periods of time. How to red...

YouTube TV customers will get a $20 apology credit for the ongoing blackout of Disney networks — which includes ESPN and ABC channels — if a new pricing deal isn't reached today (Nov. 9). The platform has become a popular source for live sports fans. The company's On-Demand streaming platform has been blocked from such channels since Oct. 30, after Disney and YouTube parent company Google failed to reach an agreement on a new contract before the existing deal had expired. Disney has been negotiating higher contract fees and new pricing models with hundreds of distributors over the last year. SEE ALSO: What's new to streaming this week? (Nov. 7, 2025) Subscribers have been understandably frustrated by the block, with many saying they will cancel their memberships  and move to competitor platforms, such as Disney-owned Hulu + Live TV, unless the two companies come to terms soon. In response, YouTube told customers that they would offer a discount if a deal wasn't...