People love talking to AI—some, a bit too much. And according to contract workers for Meta, who review people’s interactions with the company’s chatbots to improve their artificial intelligence, people are a bit too willing to share personal, private information, including their real names, phone numbers, and email addresses, with Meta’s AI.
Business Insider spoke with four contract workers who Meta hires through Alignerr and Scale AI-owned Outlier, two platforms that enlist human reviewers to help train AI, and the contractors said “unredacted personal data was more common for the Meta projects they worked on” compared to similar projects for other clients in Silicon Valley. And according to those contractors, many users on Meta’s various platforms like Facebook and Instagram were sharing highly personal details. Users would talk to Meta’s AI like they were speaking with friends, or even romantic partners, sending selfies and even “explicit photos.”
But Meta is a different story, particularly given its track record over the past decade when it comes to reliance on third-party contractors and the company’s lapses in data governance.
Meta’s checkered record on user privacy
In 2018, The New York Times and The Guardian reported on how Cambridge Analytica, a political consultancy group owned by Republican hedge-fund billionaire Howard Mercer, exploited Facebook to harvest data from tens of millions of users without their consent, and used that data to profile U.S. voters and target them with personalized political ads to help elect President Donald Trump in 2016. The breach stemmed from a personality quiz app that collected data—not just from participants, but also from their friends. It led to Facebook getting hit with a $5 billion fine from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), one of the largest privacy settlements in U.S. history.
The Cambridge Analytica scandal exposed broader issues with Facebook’s developer platform, which had allowed for vast data access, but had limited oversight. According to internal documents released by Frances Haugen, a whistleblower, in 2021, revealed Meta’s leadership often prioritized growth and engagement over privacy or safety concerns.
Meta has also faced scrutiny over its use of contractors: In 2019, Bloomberg reported how Facebook paid contractors to transcribe users’ audio chats without knowing how it was obtained in the first place. (Facebook, at the time, said the recordings only came from users who had opted into the transcription services, adding they had also “paused” that practice.)
Facebook has spent years trying to rehabilitate its image: It rebranded to Meta in October 2021, framing the name change as a forward-looking shift in focus to “the metaverse” rather than a response to controversies surrounding misinformation, privacy, and platform safety. But Meta’s legacy in handling data casts a long shadow. And while using human reviewers to improve large language models (LLMs) is common industry practice at this point, the latest report about Meta’s use of contractors, and the information contractors say they’re able to see, does raise fresh questions around how data is handled by the parent company of the world’s most popular social networks.
In a statement to Fortune, a Meta spokesperson said the company has “strict policies that govern personal data access for all employees and contractors.”
“While we work with contractors to help improve training data quality, we intentionally limit what personal information they see, and we have processes and guardrails in place instructing them how to handle any such information they may encounter,” the spokesperson said.
“For projects focused on AI personalization … contractors are permitted in the course of their work to access certain personal information in accordance with our publicly available privacy policies and AI terms. Regardless of the project, any unauthorized sharing or misuse of personal information is a violation of our data policies and we will take appropriate action,” they added.
Mark Zuckerberg, chief executive officer of Meta Platforms Inc., during the Acquired LIVE event at the Chase Center in San Francisco, California, US, on Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024.
On Tuesday's earnings call for Hinge and Tinder parent Match Group, CEO Spencer Rascoff said that Hinge is an example of what can be achieved with a motivated team and a great product.
"Simply put, Hinge is crushing it," Rascoff said. "Hinge's success should put to rest any doubts about whether the online dating category is out of favor among users."
Match's chief financial officer, Steven Bailey, said that Hinge generated $168 million in revenue in the second quarter, a 25% increase from the same time last year.
The dating app's paying users grew by 18% year over year to 1.7 million, and revenue per paying user grew 6% to nearly $32.
Rascoff added that the company is following Hinge's formula in its turnaround plans for Tinder. The company did not disclose as many numbers for Tinder as it did for Hinge, but said the app's revenue was down 4%, to $461 million.
"Hinge's success gives me pride in Hinge, but also confidence in Tinder," the CEO said. "At Hinge, everything ladders up to one north star: getting users on more great dates."
Rascoff said that Hinge was successful because it keeps "intentionality" at the core of a user's dating experience and was using AI to craft "thoughtful high-quality responses, helping spark better first impressions."
'Numbers game'
In a memo in March, Rascoff, who joined Match as CEO in February, said that Tinder and Hinge users feel that the company is too driven by metrics.
"Too often, our apps have felt like a numbers game rather than a place to build real connections," Rascoff wrote, adding that this needs to change.
"I've heard incredible stories of love," Rascoff said. "But I've also heard frustration from users searching for real, meaningful matches and expecting more from the experience."
Rascoff's overhaul of the platforms follows a broader sentiment shift away from online dating. Swiping fatigue and the rising costs of going on dates are leading many users to ditch apps for outlets that allow in-person connections.
Between May 2023 and the end of 2024, more than half a million users left Tinder, according to a report from the UK-based online behavior research group Ofcom.
That's showing up in dating apps' bottom lines.
Revenue for rival app Bumble decreased 6.5% to $201.8 million in the first quarter of the year. Bumble reports its second-quarter earnings on Wednesday, August 6.
On Tuesday, Match reported $864 million in second-quarter revenue, unchanged from the same time last year. It reported a 5% drop in operating profit to $194 million.
Match's stock rose close to 7% after hours on Tuesday. The company is down 5.5% over the last year.
"It may be a mistake to ask which occupations are most safe from being taken by AI," Paul Graham, the founder of Y Combinator, wrote on X on Tuesday.
Y Combinator
Y Combinator founder Paul Graham says AI is not coming for every job, just the boring ones.
AI is "good at scutwork," and low-level programming jobs are "already disappearing," Graham said.
Graham said the best way to save your job is to do it better than AI can.
Paul Graham, the founder of startup incubator Y Combinator, said identifying and leaning into your passions will be the best way to secure your job in the age of AI.
"It may be a mistake to ask which occupations are most safe from being taken by AI," Graham wrote in an X post on Tuesday.
"What AI (in its current form) is good at is not so much certain jobs, but a certain way of working. It's good at scutwork. So that's the thing to avoid," he continued.
Graham said programming jobs "at the bottom end" are not safe from AI, adding that "those jobs are already disappearing." Top programmers "who are good enough to start their own companies," on the other hand, can still command top salaries, he wrote.
"So I think the best general advice for protecting oneself from AI is to do something so well that you're operating way above the level of scutwork," Graham said.
Representatives for Graham at Y Combinator did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
Graham said that to become a superstar in your chosen field, you've got to have passion.
"It's hard to do something really well if you're not deeply interested in it," he added.
Graham isn't the only one who has acknowledged AI's disruptive potential on the job market. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg told podcaster Joe Rogan in a January interview that he expects AI to be able to write code like a midlevel engineer within this year.
Then, in May, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei told Axios in an interview that AI could wipe out 50% of entry-level office jobs in the next five years.
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York published a labor market report in February that said computer science graduates faced an unemployment rate of 6.1%. That was higher than other majors, such as history at 4.6% and biology at 3%.
Other business leaders like "Shark Tank" star Mark Cuban and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang have criticized Amodei's prediction.
Cuban voiced his disagreement with Amodei in a post on Bluesky, arguing that "new companies with new jobs will come from AI and increase TOTAL employment."
Huang told reporters at the VivaTech 2025 conference in Paris in June that AI could also create new opportunities, while some jobs could disappear.
"Do I think AI will change jobs? It will change everyone's. It's changed mine," Huang said.
Palantir CEO Alex Karp has said, "If you work at Palantir, everyone knows you're good." Business Insider talked to tech recruiters to see if they agree.
Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
"If you come to Palantir, your career is set," Palantir CEO Alex Karp said on Monday's earnings call.
Dozens of Palantir alums have become startup founders, raising over $30 billion from investors.
Some tech recruiters told us they're more interested in what candidates have built than whether they worked at Palantir.
Karp has boasted on several occasions that Palantirians, as the company refers to employees, are the crème de la crème of tech workers.
"If you come to Palantir, your career is set," Karp said on Monday's earnings call. He's previously said that "no credible institution in commercial life can really be built without Palantir or an ex-Palantirian."
Former Palantir alums have raised over $30 billion total at an average valuation of almost $800 million per company, according to AI predictive intelligence firm CB Insights. That figure is somewhat skewed by defense tech darling Anduril, which recently raised at a $30.5 billion post-money valuation in June.
Three Anduril cofounders — Trae Stephens, Matt Grimm, and Brian Schimpf — all worked at Palantir before starting Anduril alongside Palmer Luckey in 2017, according to their LinkedIn profiles.
Over 6% of founders who previously worked at Palantir started companies now worth over $1 billion, according to CB Insights.
Palantir, which reported just under 4,000 full-time employees as of December 2024, grew its revenue to $1 billion in the second quarter of 2025, a first for the company. Karp called the earnings "bombastic," and in his letter to shareholders Monday, said Palantir's skeptics have been "defanged and bent into a kind of submission." The stock is up over 600% in the last year.
So do the people hiring from the tech talent pool buy Karp's glowing view of Palantirians?
Business Insider spoke to more than half a dozen tech recruiting professionals to find out if having Palantir on your résumé is as powerful as Karp has made it sound.
The Goldman Sachs of tech
Deepali Vyas, a senior partner and global head of data, AI, and fintech at global consulting firm Korn Ferry, told BI she can "absolutely say that he's right," and she considers Palantir the Goldman Sachs of the tech industry.
"I've pulled people from Palantir," Vyas said. "They are a home run every single time."
Vyas said Palantir employees tend to work long hours, and the company has a "very hands-on culture" that allows even junior employees to work alongside the firm's "brightest minds." Having that proximity helps create a certain level of training, she added.
Vyas said another factor that makes Palantir stand out is its ability to recruit people who are passionate about their work.
"There's something in the sauce there," Vyas said. "They want to work on the complex problems because that's what excites them."
Janelle Bieler, the head of US tech talent at global tech talent and engineering company Akkodis, told Business Insider that Palantir is known for hiring elite talent and candidates that tackle complex issues. While candidates still need to be individually evaluated on what they worked on at the company, she said working at Palantir signals "intellectual horsepower."
"When a recruiter sees it on a résumé, it usually signals that this person went through a tough interview process and likely that they can hold their own in a pretty rigorous and fast-paced environment," she said.
Bieler added that Palantir's branding also stands out to recruiters. She said Palantir is neither regarded as Big Tech nor a typical startup, and the name has a level of mystique. Given the company's niche work environment, though, recruiters want to know that candidates can thrive in a variety of workplace settings.
Jason Saltzman, head of insights at CB Insights, previously told Business Insider while working at a company that tracks employment changes, that "Palantir seems to be the stop on people's career journey that accelerates them the most." Almost a quarter of former product managers at Palantir have since become founders, he said.
Ex-Palantir employees also tend to end up at a Big Tech company or "one of the hottest startups," Saltzman said. Google and Meta, as well as Anduril and OpenAI, employ many former Palantir workers, he said.
"Not only is Palantir a rubber stamp on someone's résumé that allows them to go onto whatever they do next, but also many of them want to go solve the world's biggest problems that are shaping the future as we know it, either by joining a company or starting their own," Saltzman said.
"That Palantir stamp gives the founder credibility, which makes hiring early employees easier," said Alex Klein, founding partner at Nucleus Talent. Klein's company hires partner-level venture investors and early leadership for startups. He hasn't done any work for Palantir.
"A founder or CEO who worked at Palantir for three years — even if they're 27 years old — will win the recruiting battle against the 35-year-old founder who worked at a tier two tech company," Klein added. "Palantir is absolutely a gold star on a résumé."
Some say Karp could be overstating things
Aaron Sines, director of technical recruiting at global cloud consulting firm Edison & Black, told Business Insider that while there's some truth to Karp's statement, overall he's seeing a "results revolution" among companies, where outcomes are placed above academic credentials and company names.
"My team tells me all the time results are almost always coming over academic credentials," Sines said.
Natan Fisher, the cofounder and co-CEO of tech and legal recruiting firm SingleSprout, similarly said that "execution matters more than brand," adding that "companies that want six plus days in the office are going to optimize for someone who is hungry and scrappy above all else."
"No doubt, Palantir is a strong hiring signal, but the idea of a golden ticket in tech is outdated," Fisher said. "The real hiring market doesn't reward brand names alone, it rewards execution and adaptability — who built what and scaled systems at speed."
Fisher said that tech companies often seek to hire from "multiple high-caliber" talent pools such as Ramp, Stripe, Linear, and Notion, adding that they aren't clients of his.
Sines said that Palantir has a reputation for seeking out top talent and having a "rigorous" and "results-oriented" hiring strategy. However, he said that while it carries a "badge of honor," for some clients, it may signal too much intensity for others. It depends on how companies perceive culture, Sines said.
Farah Sharghi, a job search coach and former recruiter at tech companies including Google, Lyft, Uber, and TikTok, said that while Palantir's hiring process is "very stringent," a good employee at Palantir may not be a good employee everywhere else because "there might be some nuances to some companies versus others in terms of cultural fit."
"It's really subjective relative to what the company does, what their needs are, and so on," she said.
"They're not looking for breadth of experience," she said. "They're looking for technical depth of experience."
Calling Palantir the best credential in tech, as Karp did, "flattens the reality," she added.
"Tech is broad. What makes someone a great hire at Palantir doesn't always translate to, for example, a legacy company trying to modernize systems," she said. "That takes a different skill set. There's no universal best, only fit for the problem at hand."
Linda Yaccarino stepped down as the CEO of X in July, after two years in the role.
In August, she took a job as CEO of eMed Population Health, a telehealth company.
Yaccarino has had a long career in advertising, from her early days as an intern at NBCU.
Linda Yaccarino made waves when she announced she was stepping down as the CEO of X on July 9, 2025, but her career didn't start in the tech space.
From decades at Turner Broadcasting, to climbing the ladder at NBCUniversal, to becoming chief executive of X, to leading a telehealth company, Yaccarino has climbed the advertising ladder.
Here's a quick breakdown on her path to — and now away from — X.
Yaccarino is a graduate of Pennsylvania State University.
The Pennsylvania State University campus
Gene J. Puskar/AP
According to her LinkedIn, Yaccarino was a liberal arts student who studied telecommunications between 1981 and 1985.
She had an early internship at NBCU, where she eventually worked decades later.
Linda Yaccarino was hired as Twitter CEO by Musk earlier this year
Isaac Brekken/Variety/Penske Media via Getty Images
Yaccarino told Salesforce in an interview that she arrived on her first day as a "bright cheery new intern," but soon learned that the company didn't have a record of her in its system and she ended up on the media planning team.
"That's where the love affair was born," Yaccarino said of her interest in working in the media industry.
Yaccarino spent nearly 20 years at Turner Broadcasting System.
Linda Yaccarino landed a new CEO job, just a month after leaving X.
Jerod Harris
She spent nearly 20 years at Turner, formerly known as Turner Broadcasting System, eventually rising up to the role of executive vice president/chief operating officer of advertising sales, marketing and acquisitions.
Yaccarino worked there until late 2011.
Yaccarino worked at NBCU for 11 years.
Yaccarino spent 11 years at NBCU.
Getty Images
An NBCU "boomerang" return hire, Yaccarino once again worked at NBCU after leaving Turner.
She began her second chapter at the company as its president of cable entertainment and digital advertising sales.
She eventually became the company's advertising chief.
She rose through the advertising ranks.
: Ben Gabbe/Esquire/NBCU Photo Bank
Throughout her time at NBCU, Yaccarino rose to become the company's chairperson of global advertising and partnerships. She oversaw around 2,000 employees who produced more than $100 billion in ad sales, according to her old company profile page.
At NBCU, Yaccarino was key to the company's push into digital streaming.
Yaccarino was instrumental in pushing NBCU into the streaming world.
She also worked to keep NBCU competitive with Big Tech companies like Meta and Google.
In May 2023, Yaccarino announced that she had resigned from NBCU "effective immediately."
She left NBCU in May, 2023.
Patrick T. Fallon / AFP
In a statement at the time, Yaccarino said that "it has been an absolute honor to be part of Comcast NBCUniversal and lead the most incredible team."
Elon Musk announced Yaccarino's role at Twitter the same day she announced her resignation.
X CEO Linda Yaccarino and X owner and chief technology officer Elon Musk
Santiago Felipe and Kirsty Wigglesworth via Getty Images
Musk made the announcement on what was still Twitter at the time: "@LindaYacc will focus primarily on business operations, while I focus on product design & new technology."
He called her "smart, fair and reasonable" in a separate post after some conservatives on Twitter had criticized her ties to the World Economic Forum, an annual event for executives and influential figures in Davos, Switzerland.
Yaccarino also worked with President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden's administrations.
President Donald Trump at the White House.
Kevin Lamarque/REUTERS
She served on a sports fitness and nutrition council for two years after Trump appointed her to the role in 2018.
In 2021, she worked with the Biden administration on an educational COVID-19 ad campaign.
She was CEO of X during a chaotic two years.
Yaccarino led X during a tumultuous two years.
Alex Wong/Getty Images
Musk renamed Twitter to X one month into Yaccarino's tenure, and she led the company during a tumultuous time.
She oversaw the platform during an advertiser exodus, working to convince advertisers to return. Advertisers began to return under her leadership, but Musk's changes to X — including loosening content moderation — continue to pose potential challenges.
Yaccarino announced she's stepping down as CEO of X on July 9, 2025.
After two incredible years, I’ve decided to step down as CEO of 𝕏.
When @elonmusk and I first spoke of his vision for X, I knew it would be the opportunity of a lifetime to carry out the extraordinary mission of this company. I’m immensely grateful to him for entrusting me…
Yaccarino made the announcement in a post on X: "I'm incredibly proud of the X team - the historic business turn around we have accomplished together has been nothing short of remarkable."
She has a new job in the weight-loss industry.
Yaccarino is becoming the CEO of a telehealth company.
Chesnot/Getty Images
Yaccarino said on August 5 that she's becoming the CEO of eMed Population Health, a telehealth company that focuses on weight-loss drugs called GLP-1s. A press release from the Miami-based company called Yaccarino's hiring a "game changing moment" and said that she "turned around one of the most complex digital platforms in the world."
Yaccarino announced the news on her X account, too, saying that she is "energized by the opportunity to help lead what could become the most impactful health initiative of our time."
Billionaire Gabe Newell bought Oceanco, the Dutch superyacht builder behind Jeff Bezos' Koru.
Newell, the cofounder of video game developer Valve, owns at least one Oceanco superyacht.
The shipyard is known for building fully customized yachts that cost well into the nine figures.
Some gamers spend weekends on the couch. Others spend them luxuriating in the most expensive assets money can buy.
Gabe Newell, the cofounder of video game developer Valve Corporation, has purchased Oceanco, the Dutch builder behind some of the world's most prominent superyachts.
The amount that Newell, who Forbes reports is worth $9.5 billion, paid for the shipbuilder has not been disclosed. The previous owner, Mohammed Al Barwani, purchased Oceanco in 2010.
Neither Newell nor Oceanco responded to requests for comment from Business Insider.
Newell's Valve is behind some of the most beloved video games, including the "Half-Life" and "Portal" series. It also created Steam, the biggest PC gaming platform, and the handheld PC gaming device Steam Deck.
With Oceanco, he's moving into sun decks and main decks.
The shipyard has built some of the most renowned superyachts and only delivers a couple of fully customized vessels, which cost well into the nine figures, each year.
The Koru build had its controversial moments. Oceanco initially requested that a historic bridge be dismantled to deliver the yacht, but then rescinded the request. Separately, the company was fined for failing to properly trace the teak used to craft some of Koru's furniture and interiors.
Alfa Nero, which was seized by the U.S. government, is one of Oceanco's most famous builds.
Oceanco is also behind Alfa Nero, the 82-meter yacht seized from a Russian oligarch in 2023, and Bravo Eugenia, the 109-meter yacht owned by billionaire Jerry Jones.
Newell owns at least one Oceanco design: Draak, a 91.5-meter-long yacht with a helipad, spa, gym, and swimming pool. He is also rumored to be the future owner of Oceanco Y722, a 111-meter project expected to be delivered later this year.
While the prices of Oceanco's new deliveries are largely kept under wraps, the six yachts for sale from the builder range in price from $5.8 million for a 49-meter vessel built in 1995 to $341 million for a 105-meter superyacht built in 2000.
Newell will take a hands-off approach and plans to "leave the team alone,"according to a press release from August 1 announcing the acquisition. There is hope, however, that his tech background will influence production.
"What happens when you let yachtbuilders talk to worldbuilders? When craftsmen get access to tech usually reserved for game devs and mad scientists?" the press release says. "You get innovation that doesn't just look good. It feels good."
AT&T CEO John Stankey is overseeing a moment of change at the legacy company.
Harry How/Getty Images
CEO John Stankey is reshaping AT&T to be leaner and more nimble like Verizon and T-Mobile.
The 140-year-old telecom company's transition shows signs of paying off, with its stock outpacing rivals so far this year.
To accomplish this, Stankey has shown himself willing to make big bets. So far, Wall Street seems to approve.
AT&T is facing a once-in-a-century challenge, and CEO John Stankey is pushing the company to "disrupt itself" and go hardcore to meet the moment.
The telecom's sprawling network of copper wires is no longer suited to 21st-century demands for speed and mobility, demands that increasingly require new infrastructure of fiber optic networks and wireless spectrum.
Stankey, who took the helm as CEO in July 2020, knows this. He's shown himself willing to do something about it — even if that means a sharp departure from the legacy company's past to prepare for the future.
As the company moves to sunset most of its copper network in the US by the end of 2029, Stankey has also instituted a broad cultural shift internally. He's moved away from prioritizing 20th-century corporate values like loyalty and tenure in favor of a tech-style, "more market-based culture," the AT&T CEO wrote in a sweeping memo last week that was first reported by Business Insider.
It's a strategy that is showing signs of paying off, with many Wall Street analysts recently boosting their price targets for the stock. AT&T shares are up 22% this year compared to 8.25% for T-Mobile and 6.7% for Verizon.
"They refocused on fundamentals, and the fundamentals are just getting better," BNP Paribas telecom analyst Sam McHugh told Business Insider. "Investors really like that simple strategy. It gives a very clear message — it's delivering financially."
It's a transition that Stankey says is vital to the company's future — and will take time to accomplish.
"We are midstream on a multi-year journey to build the company we want, not simply optimize the one we have," the CEO wrote in his memo.
"I tried to pick my brain for an example of another 100+ year old company that didn't have to disrupt itself to secure sustainable relevance. I am still searching for the first example," he added. "I suspect our willingness to disrupt ourselves is the under-pinning of why this company approaches 150 years of relevance."
AT&T's bid for continued relevance has meant the building of large and growing wireless and fiber optic networks as it looks to fend off increasing competition from Verizon, T-Mobile, and a host of smaller operators.
The company has managed to keep pace with its top competitors in terms of mobile phone accounts as it ramps up an aggressive fiber optic expansion that Stankey says will lead to further mobile signups from customers looking to bundle services.
AT&T beat expectations for its second quarter earnings, released in July, on the back of strong wireless and fiber subscriber growth and a multi-year estimated tax benefit of up to $8 billion from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
It could face a more challenging second half of the year.
The company said that some of the second quarter's lift came from new customers pulling orders forward to avoid tariff-related price hikes, and that it was cautiously anticipating higher rates of customer churn in the latter half of the year.
"We are assuming that we're going to continue to have a competitive environment," AT&T CFO Pascal Desroches told analysts.
Another area that Stankey is reshaping is AT&T's workforce.
Without such a massive legacy copper network to support, most of AT&T's competitors have managed to grow with a comparatively smaller head count.
AT&T now has roughly 141,000 employees, and the company has taken several rounds of reductions in recent years to align its workforce more with its peers. Verizon has 99,000 and T-Mobile has 70,000, and Verizon also gave buyouts last year to some 4,800 workers.
The increasingly strict return-to-office mandate that AT&T has rolled out in phases over the past year has also resulted in further reductions, multiple employees have told Business Insider, and Stankey signaled in his memo that he's fine with more people leaving if they're not on board with the company's new direction.
"If a self-directed, virtual, or hybrid work schedule is essential for you to manage your career aspirations and life challenges, you will have a difficult time aligning your priorities with those of the company and the culture we aim to establish," he said in the memo.
He was the company's chief operating officer who drove the acquisition of Warner Media and reportedly led the division with a high-handedness that ruffled the entertainment executives. The move was part of a larger trend of network services providers seeking to own content producers, and Stankey (as CEO) shrugged off setbacks as he pursued a vision of expanding HBO to rival Netflix and Amazon Prime.
AT&T jettisoned Warner Media in 2022 at a loss of over $40 billion, and finalized its exit from the media business earlier this year when it sold its remaining stake in DirecTV to private equity firm TPG at a steep discount.
While Stankey's apparent appetite for taking big bets seems unchanged, the circumstances around this chapter in the company's history are potentially more favorable.
"I'm sure there's a book to be written one day of how you can turn around your profile among investors," said McHugh, the BNP Paribas telecom analyst, who said many long-term investors previously dismissed the company for its poor execution and misallocation of capital into non-core assets, like the media deals Stankey led.
"I covered European telcos for a long time. Basically, the stocks that do best in the sector are the ones who have a simple story and just focus on their core competencies," he added. "By luck or by good judgment, I think they're now on the right track."
In his memo, Stankey said the workplace and technological shifts were essential for AT&T to succeed in the market, citing US Army General Eric Shinseki as saying, "If you dislike change, you're going to dislike irrelevance even more."
Illustration by Pavlo Gonchar/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
Andreessen Horowitz, a top VC firm, has left Delaware and urged others to consider doing the same.
The entities it moved to Nevada aren't corporations, so the move is more about sending a signal.
One lawyer said a16z's move could advance its founder-friendly reputation.
Andreessen Horowitz wants startup founders to reconsider their relationship with Delaware — but the venture firm's own breakup with the state is more complicated than it seems.
On July 22, the VC giant executed the plan it teased in a blog post earlier in the month, registering three new entities in Nevada: a16z Capital Management LLC, a16z Holdings LLC, and a16z Development LLC. The move wasn't just administrative — it was meant as a signal, part of the firm's effort to convince founders that Delaware shouldn't be the default choice for forming their companies.
Andreessen Horowitz, often called a16z, cited several reasons for moving to Nevada: stronger legal protection for corporate directors, tighter limits on shareholder lawsuits, and a business-friendly court system. It said this sets Nevada apart from Delaware, where an outsize share of America's business lawsuits are filed.
Some critics say a16z's beef with Delaware's corporate laws don't make much sense because it's not a corporation; all the entities that it moved to Nevada are LLCs, or limited liability companies.
"They're either being accidentally imprecise or intentionally disingenuous," said Samantha Prince, a law professor at Penn State University. "Andreessen is criticizing Delaware and its statutory corporate framework, but that doesn't apply to LLCs."
Not all businesses are corporations
Laypeople don't often draw distinctions between corporations, limited liability companies, partnerships, and other legal entities. Even lawyers and judges sometimes can't keep it straight; a 2023 paper Prince co-authored found over 9,000 references to "limited liability corporations," which don't exist, in court documents.
But the differences matter. Corporations are bound by corporate law that sets baselines for what directors must do and the rights of shareholders. Delaware's corporate laws — and judges' decisions interpreting those laws — are what have some so angry.
By contrast, limited liability companies are "largely creatures of contract," said Ben Edwards, a corporate law professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, which means they generally write their own rules in their operating agreements and other agreements among their members.
While states also have laws that outline how LLCs work, they can often be overridden by agreement, said Prince.
Founders rule
Delaware's body of corporate law has attracted big businesses for more than a century. Lawyers see the law as responsive and reliable because of the large number of cases interpreting it, and they generally praise the smarts and sophistication of the state's judges.
Recently, some have said Delaware court rulings could upset its business-friendly reputation. In 2024, two rulings challenged pro-CEO actions at Tesla and Moelis & Co., and another hit the brakes on Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Elon Musk responded by convincing investors to reincorporate Tesla in Texas.
In its blog post, Andreessen alluded to its interests in other companies. "For founders considering a similar move, there is often a reluctance to leave Delaware, based in part on concerns for how investors will react," said the post, written by in-house lawyers Jai Ramaswamy and Andy Hill and government affairs partner Kevin McKinley.
"As the largest VC firm in the country, we hope that our decision signals to our portfolio companies, as well as to prospective portfolio companies, that such concerns may be overblown," they continued.
Just because Andreessen Horowitz isn't itself a corporation, it still needs to care about changes in corporate law, said Edwards, the UNLV professor.
The firm "makes lots of investments in corporations, and so I think the criticisms that are saying, 'They're not giving their real reasons because they're not a corporation themselves' are really misplaced," Edwards said. "I think they have a strong and vibrant interest in the content of corporate law."
Microsoft is considering a stricter policy on office attendance, and the software giant could implement this as soon as January for some employees, according to people with knowledge of the plans.
Implementation dates could vary across Microsoft's offices, but the company is considering requiring employees at its Redmond, Washington, headquarters to work from the office more often starting in January, the people told Business Insider.
The company is still finalizing the details and had been planning to make an announcement as soon as September, the people added. They asked not to be identified discussing private matters.
Microsoft has had a flexible work policy since late 2020, letting most employees work remotely for as much as 50% of the time without approval. In practice, this policy has been much more flexible, allowing most employees to work remotely most of the time.
Now, the company is considering a new policy that requires most employees to work in the office at least three days a week, the people with knowledge of the plans told BI.
Microsoft spokesperson Frank Shaw confirmed the company is considering updating its flexible work guidelines. He said no decisions have been finalized.
Getting in line on RTO
Such a move would bring Microsoft more in line with other Big Tech companies, which have been rolling out tougher RTO policies this year.
Amazon, Microsoft's crosstown rival, mandated a rigid RTO policy earlier this year that required employees to work in-person five days a week. AT&T introduced a similar policy late last year and CEO John Stankey recently told staff to get on board or get out.
The policy Microsoft is considering would be similar to those at Meta and Google, which generally require most employees to work from offices three days a week. Some Microsoft teams, such as the Corporate, External, and Legal Affairs (CELA) group, already work in the office more than three days a week.
More pressure on employees
Cracking down on remote work is part of a broader trend in the tech industry that includes increased employee-performance pressure at Microsoft and other companies.
Microsoft's cloud and AI boss Scott Guthrie told employees in an internal meeting last September that the company would not consider changing its flexible work policy unless there was a noticeable drop in productivity.
It's unclear whether that's happened, but what is clear is that Microsoft's approach to employee performance has changed since then. The company fired thousands of employees deemed low performers this year and introduced a new performance improvement plan meant to exit low performers more quickly.
Microsoft's top finance executive Amy Hood last week told employees in an internal memo that the upcoming year will require "intensity," building on an earlier memo from CEO Satya Nadella asking employees for "dedication, drive, and hard work."
Fox wants people who don't pay for cable but do like shows like "Fox & Friends" to pay for its new Fox One streaming service.
John Lamparski/Getty Images
Fox and ESPN, the two biggest holdouts in the streaming wars, will finally launch their own services in August.
But compared to previous streaming launches, these are pretty low-key affairs.
There's a reason for that: Fox and Disney want the streamers to be successful — but not too successful.
Fox stayed out of the streaming wars for years. Now it's jumping in with Fox One, its $20-a-month service that launches August 21.
But if you're going to wait until years after everyone else to start streaming, you probably have pretty big ambitions. Right, Lachlan Murdoch?
Nope!
"Our aspirations for Fox One subscribers are modest," the Fox CEO told investors on Tuesday, adding that the company will be making a "measured investment" in the service.
Disney holds its quarterly earnings call Wednesday morning, so we'll have to wait until then to officially compare hype levels. But my educated hunch is that CEO Bob Iger will also go out of his way not to over-promise the prospects for that service: When ESPN unveiled its years-in-the-making launch plans in May, it was at a very low-key event, devoid of almost all glitz.
The difference between these launches and the ones we saw at the beginning of the streaming wars, six or seven years ago, is quite striking. Back then, big media companies rolled out new services with a galaxy of high-wattage stars, and tripped all over themselves to explain how much they were spending to catch up with Netflix. New subscribers would pour in by the tens of millions a year, they promised. And yes, they'd lose a bunch of money along the way.
But if you've been paying attention to the streaming business over this time, the change is quite understandable.
Back in the early days of streaming, media companies thought Wall Street would reward them if they copied Netflix's "grow like crazy, figure out profits later" strategy. Instead, investors decided they didn't want growth at all costs, and pushed streamers to run their businesses like … businesses.
Which is partly why Murdoch reminded investors Tuesday that Fox One will be very cheap to launch, since there's nothing on the service that isn't already on existing Fox-owned channels.
But the other part of the messaging reflects the other reality at Disney and Fox: They would both like people to buy streaming services from them — but only if it doesn't cut into their old business of selling cable TV subscriptions.
That's why both ESPN and Fox officials take great pains to explain that they don't think the services they're selling will convince a cable TV subscriber to cut the cord. Instead, they argue, this is for people who don't already have pay TV.
This isn't subtext. It's right out in public.
"We do not want to lose a traditional cable subscriber to FOX One, and we're doing everything we can to make sure, as much as humanly possible, that that's the way we market, and that's the way we plan the business," Murdoch told investors three months ago.
You can also see the needle-threading in the pricing for these services: In the past, new streamers launched at $10 a month or less, hoping to grab lots of market share. Now, Fox and Disney are coming in at double and triple that, at least in part so that they don't undercut the pricing of much bigger bundles sold through traditional cable.
So who might actually buy this stuff? We'll see. ESPN's service might appeal to college football fans, since the service has deals to show lots of games from marquee teams and leagues. NFL fans may be a little more frustrated, since ESPN will only have a slice of the season's games.
And as for Fox One: In theory, you might have people signing up to get Fox's weekly lineup of NFL games. But it seems most likely that the service is meant primarily to appeal to "people who like Fox News but either don't get cable or want to ditch cable and just get Fox News."
If it's the former group, Murdoch will be happy. But if it's from the second …
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said the average ChatGPT query uses about one fifteenth of a teaspoon of water.
Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman announced GPT-oss, his company's return to releasing an AI language model with open weights.
The company launched two new "open" models, gpt-oss-120b and gpt-oss-20b, on Tuesday.
Altman had previously said OpenAI would release a "very powerful open-source model."
OpenAI's AI models are getting more open. At least, someof them are.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman announced GPT-oss on Tuesday, an "open" family of language models with "open weights" that the CEO said can operate locally on a "high-end laptop" and smartphones.
An AI model with "open weights" is one whose fully trained parameter weights are made publicly downloadable, so anyone can run, inspect, or fine-tune the AI model locally.
"We believe this is the best and most usable open model in the world," OpenAI CEO Sam Altman wrote on X.
There are two different models: gpt-oss-120b and gpt-oss-20b. The smaller model is designed to run on "most desktops and laptops, " while the larger model is geared toward higher-end equipment.
Altman said GPT-oss has "strong real-world performance comparable to o4-mini."
Just before OpenAI's announcement, rival Anthropic revealed the Claude Opus 4.1.
Tuesday's announcement was not the long-rumored ChatGPT-5, which could arrive as soon as this week. Instead, the new model is OpenAI's first open-weight language model since the release of GPT-2 in 2019.
"As part of this, we are quite hopeful that this release will enable new kinds of research and the creation of new kinds of products," Altman wrote. "We expect a meaningful uptick in the rate of innovation in our field, and for many more people to do important work than were able to before."
Altman had previously signaled that OpenAI would return to releasing at least some open model, saying that, "We're going to do a very powerful open source model" that was "better than any current open source model out there."
Meta has long published the open weights of its LLAMA AI models.
Google’s August Pixel update includes a fix for Android’s three-button navigation and gesture navigation systems becoming unresponsive.
The issues appear to have started popping up shortly after the official release of Android 16 in June. Ever since that update, the user said that navigation has been “a complete mess” and that they ran into issues with buttons being “completely unresponsive” or delays of “over 30 seconds” on their Pixel 8 Pro. Another user said they had to occasionally press the back button “a few times” on their Pixel 9 to get the phone to register it. The swipe gesture to navigate back also occasionally stopped working, as noticed by Android Police’s Artem Russakovskii.
Google’s patch notes only vaguely say that the issues would happen under “certain conditions.” In addition to general stability improvements, the update also fixes an issue where a scheduled dark theme wouldn’t work. It also includes a security fix for a high severity remote code execution vulnerability.
The update is rolling out now for Pixel 6 devices and newer.
Robot vacuums that can both mop and sweep your floors have improved significantly in recent years. While they are still not as effective as good ol’ manual labor, if you run them regularly, they will help keep your floors cleaner with much less effort on your part.
The difference is that newer “combo” robot vacuum and mop models are designed to actually scrub your floors. The first robot vacuums that could also “mop” simply slapped a thin, flat microfiber pad on the bot that kind of Swiffer-ed your floor. Basically, all this was good for was getting up fine dirt that the vacuum left behind.
A robot vacuum with a real mopping system will make your life easier
Newer models now come with vibrating or oscillating mop pads, and some even have roller mops. Most models have onboard water tanks to keep the mops wet while in use, and many can wash and dry their mops in their charging docks, which also automatically empty and refill their water tanks, meaning less work for you.
While most robot vacuums today come with some sort of mopping feature, this guide focuses on those that excel at mopping. If you’re more interested in the best vacuum, check out my guide to floor sweeping bots.
The downside to these combo bots with serious mopping chops is that they tend to be bigger and heavier and need more frequent intervention than regular vacuum bots. Water equals gunk, and cleaning their giant multifunction docks, even the self-cleaning ones, can be an icky job. You also have to empty and refill their tanks about once a week.
Mopping bots also need to return to their docks more frequently than robot vacuums in order to refill their onboard water tanks. This means they’ll take longer to clean your floors than a dedicated vacuuming model, but they are doing two jobs at once. Robot mops with roller mops will self-clean as they work, negating this issue, but these models are also the largest and bulkiest, as they carry a bigger water tank on board.
Combo bots can mop and vacuum simultaneously, but for especially dirty floors, it’s best to have the option to vacuum first and then mop. A mop-only mode is also good, as you can send the bot to clean up a wet spill without it sucking up water — something they’re not designed to do, yet.
If you have a lot of hardwood or tile floors and constantly struggle with muddy paw prints or the general dirtiness of life with multiple pets, people, and kids, a good robot vacuum and mop combo will definitely make your life easier.
Featured in this article
Best overall: Deebot X8 Pro Omni
The Deebot X8 Pro Omni is an excellent roller mopping bot that extends to clean along backboards and furniture. It’s also a powerful vacuum with great obstacle avoidance, a small dock, and a convenient self-cleaning brush system.
Roborock’s S8 robot vacuum / mop offers a host of high-end features at an affordable price, including 6,000Pa of suction, AI-powered obstacle detection, and dual rubber roller brushes that perform well on carpet.
Multifunction Dock: Yes, auto empty (3L) and drain/refill (4L dirty, 4L clean) / Mop style: Roller/ Mop washing: Yes, hot water and hot air drying / Mop pressure: 4,000Pa at 200 RPM / Mop lift: Yes, 10mm / Edge cleaning: Yes, mop extension / Mapping: Yes, lidar / AI-powered obstacle detection: Yes / Suction power: 18,000Pa / Vacuum brush style: Single rubber/bristle / Works with: Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Siri Shortcuts, Matter support promised
Ecovacs’ Deebot X8 Pro Omni is a welcome return to form for Ecovacs’ flagship line. Its new tower-less lidar navigation system did a much better job of mapping and navigating than the previous flagship, the Deebot X2 Omni, which was constantly getting lost in my tests. However, the most notable thing about the X8 is the Ozmo Roller Mop.
This is the best roller mopping bot I’ve tested, thanks mostly to the Ozmo’s ability to extend outwards to clean along baseboards and furniture. This is a unique feature on a roller mop (for now) that makes up for the mop’s relatively short length (both the Eufy S1 and Switchbot S10 have longer roller mops). At $1,299, the X8 is also one of the less expensive flagship models (though the new X9 Pro Omni retails for $1599.99).
The X8 did an excellent job on my milk, OJ, and dried ketchup tests, absorbing the small spills with one or two passes. It covered the floors evenly, without leaving any streaks or gaps, something that I’ve seen happen with spinning mop pads. When it comes across an edge — be it a baseboard, furniture like a chair or table leg, or any obstacle — it extends out its mop to the right to clean as close as possible. It did an excellent job getting the grime up from the stools around my kitchen counter, something most other bots struggle to do.
This is the best roller mopping bot I’ve tested
The self-cleaning brush system kept the bot from smearing any spills it encountered. As it’s cleaning, a scraper squeegees off the dirty water and 16 nozzles spray it with fresh water and solution, if you use it. As with most high-end mopping bots, the dock has the option of auto-dispensing cleaning solution.
The X8 was the best vacuuming robot among the serious combo bots I tested, outperforming my Cheerio and oatmeal tests and doing a good job on rugs (when it could reach them). However, its vacuum has a relatively small, single rubber roller brush, which is less effective than Roborock’s and Roomba’s dual roller brush models (which include the S8 MaxV Ultra and the 10 Max).
The X8 uses lidar and a 3D camera for mapping; the latter also facilitates its obstacle detection, which is very good — it easily navigated fake dog turds and cables while sucking up oatmeal and Cheerios. It’s much better at navigating than the X2, but it did occasionally get itself trapped, including when it went under a chair that was too low for it to get out from. The top of the robot was fairly scratched up after just one week of use. (Worth noting, Ecovacs suffered a hack last year in which bad actors could access the camera and microphone on the X2)
The X8’s multifunction dock is much smaller than the X2’s and has some nice rose gold accents. Its water tanks are integrated into the dock and supereasy to remove to empty and refill — there’s no lid to mess with, you just lift up and go. The X8 doesn’t self-clean its washboard, however, and while it’s removable to make it easier to clean, I still had to get on my knees and scrub its base station after just a week of use.
It easily navigated fake dog turds and cables while sucking up oatmeal and Cheerios
The downside of roller mop bots is that they are big and heavy: the X8 weighs a whopping 12 pounds. Despite an ability to lift itself up to clear thresholds, the X8 isn’t as agile as smaller, lighter robot vacs. It struggled with the combo challenge of a large, tasseled, high-pile rug and spindly chair leg. Very few robot vacs tackle that one well, but it got stuck on the chair leg and sucked up the rug tassels. I ended up setting a keep-out zone so it could complete its job.
The integrated nature of the roller mop means the bot can’t remove it when it goes to vacuum carpet, as some mopping bots with pads can. It can lift it, but only 10mm, which isn’t going to work for the fluffiest rugs. The X8 does have carpet sensors, and you can choose to avoid them automatically, pass over them, or vacuum only. But its best carpet feature is the option to have it vacuum the carpets first, then mop everywhere else.
Overall, the Deebot X8 is a stellar vacuum mop combo for anyone seeking a robot that will thoroughly scrub and sweep their floors. With high-end features at a decent price, the X8’s roller mop, slick navigation, and excellent obstacle avoidance will get the job done.
Multifunction Dock: No – just auto empty / Mop style: Vibrating pad / Mop washing: No / Mop pressure: 6N pressure, vibrates 3000 times a minute / Mop lift: Yes, 5mm / Edge cleaning: No / Mapping: Yes, lidar / AI-powered obstacle detection: Yes / Suction power: 6,000Pa / Vacuum brush style: Dual rubber / Works with: Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Siri Shortcuts
The Roborock S8 is a great vacuum featuring AI-powered obstacle detection, dual rubber roller brushes, and 6,000Pa of suction. These are all features you won’t find on most budget bots, and combined, they mean the S8 does a good job vacuuming hard floors and carpets. Then, its flat mop, which vibrates 3,000 times a second, is very effective at scrubbing hard floors.
Unlike most robot vacuums in this guide, the S8 won’t automatically fill its water tank or wash its mop; you will have to do that work manually. However, it does have an extra-large onboard water tank, again a feature you won’t find on cheaper mopping bots, which means the mop gets sufficiently wet to be effective.
The S8 wasn’t designed as a budget bot; in fact, it was Roborock’s flagship model in 2023, but buying an older model like this can save you a lot of money while still doing a good job. Once $750 for the robot alone, now you can often find it for well under $500, and that’s with its auto-empty dock.
One of my favorite features of the S8 is that it can be set to mop only, and it does an excellent job, moving in a tighter “Z” pattern and going over the floors twice. It also has a slow option for a more thorough cleaning. I liked to send it out to vacuum everywhere first, then recharge and go out again to mop, which resulted in sparklingly clean floors. It does take a long time, though, and it doesn’t have any edge cleaning options, so it won’t mop as well along baseboards or under low furniture as the more expensive models.
Another great feature at this price is carpet sensing — the S8 can raise its mops a few millimeters to avoid dampening your carpets. Most other budget mopping bots require you to remove the mop pads when vacuuming carpet or set keep-out zones around your rugs. However, the mop-raising feature can only clear low-pile rugs, so I had to set no-mopping zones around my plush floor coverings.
The S8 requires a fair amount of hands-on time since you have to refill its reservoir manually and wash the mopping pads (you can throw them in the washing machine). But if you’re good with a little more manual labor in exchange for cleaner floors, the S8 is a great option.
Multifunction Dock: Yes, auto empty (2.5L) and drain/refill (2.7L dirty, 3L clean) / Mop style: Dual spinning pads / Mop washing: Yes, hot air drying / Mop pressure: 2.2 lbs at 180 RPM / Mop lift: Yes, 12 mm / Edge cleaning: Yes, swinging motion / Mapping: Yes, lidar / AI-powered obstacle detection: Yes / Suction power: 8,000Pa / Vacuum brush style: Single rubber bristle hybrid / Works with: Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Siri Shortcuts
The Eufy X10 Pro Omni is an excellent mop vacuum hybrid with a full multifunction dock. Unlike the Roborock S8, it can wash its mop, drain, and refill its water tank. It’s also the cheapest model to offer dual spinning mop pads, and it has very good obstacle detection for this price range.
However, the X10 has just 8,000Pa suction, no hot water washing, and smaller water tanks. While it has most of the same functions as the top-of-the-line mopping bots, it’s not quite as effective at any of them. Which is sort of the definition of “midrange.”
An edge-hugging mode makes the robot swing its behind into the baseboards to help mop edges, but this is less effective than mop extension found on the more expensive models. With its squarish shape, it gets into corners better than most of the round bots, but its 12mm mop pad lift over carpet wasn’t effective, resulting in its pads getting hung up in a few places.
The Eufy performed very well in my mopping tests, eradicating dried stains with its 2.2 pounds of downward pressure. Thanks to an onboard water reservoir, it didn’t have to head home to fill up as frequently as some bots do. It also has heated mop drying to help prevent the base from getting stinky — a first in this price range.
The X10 has great object recognition, allowing it to suck up Cheerios and piles of oatmeal while deftly navigating fake dog turds and cables. However, its navigation sometimes got screwy; it would go into a corner and stay there for a while, trying to figure itself out.
Multifunction Dock: Yes, auto empty (3L) and drain/refill (4L dirty, 4.5L clean) / Mop style: Dual spinning pads / Mop washing: Yes, hot water and hot air drying / Mop pressure: Unknown / Mop lift: Yes, 10.5 mm / Edge cleaning: Yes, mop extension Mapping: Yes, lidar / AI-powered obstacle detection: Yes / Suction power: 12,000Pa / Vacuum brush style: Single, rubber / Works with: Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Siri Shortcuts
If you have a lot of fluffy rugs or carpets as well as hard floors, the Dreame X40 Ultra is the best robot vacuum for you. It’s not quite as effective as a mop or vacuum as the Ecovacs Deebot X8, but it’s better suited for high-pile carpet and rugs because it can automatically drop and reattach its mopping pads during vacuuming, eliminating the risk of getting your rugs wet or stained. The Ecovacs X8 can only raise its mop 10mm, not remove it, so it struggles on high-pile carpets.
Along with dropping its pads, the X40 can also extend and swing them to get under your cabinets and consoles. The X8 can extend to an edge, but won’t get under those low cabinets or furniture. I watched the X40 spread its mops wide apart and swing behind my TV console, allowing it to access the dust wedged a good inch under it.
However, because the X40 features dual spinning mop pads rather than a self-cleaning roller mop, it requires more frequent returns to clean the mops, which means it takes longer to clean your home. The X40’s spinning pads are effective at scrubbing your floors, but I found the X8’s roller mop to be better overall and more consistent.
The X40 can clean its washboard and features AI-powered smart dirt detection, which uses its cameras to identify spills, such as milk, or particularly dirty areas. When it spots something, it slows down and performs a more thorough cleaning. It also has an option to just mop. These are features the Ecovacs X8 doesn’t offer.
Dreame recently released the X50 Ultra, which adds 20,000Pa suction power and the ability to climb over higher thresholds. I’m currently testing this model.
Multifunction Dock: Yes, auto empty (2.5L) and drain/refill (2L dirty, 3L clean) / Mop style: Roller / Mop washing: Yes, warm water and hot air drying / Mop pressure: 10N, 170 RPM / Mop lift: Yes, 12mm / Edge cleaning: No Mapping: Yes, lidar / AI-powered obstacle detection: Yes / Suction power: 8,000Pa / Vacuum brush style: Rubber / Works with: Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Siri Shortcuts
If you have mostly hardwood floors, the Eufy Omni S1 Pro is an excellent option. With its sleek, high-tech design and a long 11.4-inch roller mop, this product did an excellent job of keeping the hardwood floors of my main living area spotless.
I found the Eufy’s longer roller mop to be slightly more effective than the Deebot X8’s, mopping evenly and getting up more dirt on its first pass. While there is no mop extension of edge mopping, its square shape does help it get into corners, and its dual spinning side brushes help pull in debris.
However, its vacuuming prowess is middling; this really is a dedicated mopping robot. With just 8,000Pa suction power and a small rubber brush, it did a decent job of getting up debris, but left several flakes of oatmeal, thanks to its side brushes spinning the debris out beyond the bot’s reach. Its obstacle avoidance is also fairly average; it dodged larger items but struggled with cables.
The S1’s omni station is quite eye-catching, with a tall, futuristic design, and clear water tanks with glowing lights inside — although it might be considered an eyesore, depending on your style. Usefully, everything you need to interact with is located at the top, so there’s no need to bend down: a touchscreen display provides controls and the clean and dirty water tanks are easy to remove.
If you have tile or scraped wood floors, a bot with oscillating mop pads will be better at getting into the crevices
While it has a mop lift of 12mm (which is higher than the X8’s), it really struggled on my high-pile carpets, to the point where I had to set keep-out zones around them.
Like the X8, the S1 self-cleans the mop with water jets as it’s working, and you can set how frequently it returns to the base station for a thorough clean with warm water before continuing to mop. It will also dry the mop with hot air, which is effective, if noisy.
Neither the X8 nor the S1 have self-cleaning washboards, something Dreame offers. This is where the dock automatically washes the mopping tray in the dock – Dreame’s uses little wipers that go back and forth. It still needs to be cleaned eventually, but it does help keep the ick at bay for longer.
The S1 station’s debris filter got grungy fast and required manual cleaning, although this is fairly straightforward. After a month of use, I also had to disassemble the scraper and filter inside the bot, as well as remove the roller mop. This is something you’ll need to do for all mopping bots, but the Eufy’s was the most involved process, requiring me to disassemble multiple parts.
In my testing, I found that roller mops are great for most hardwood floors, but if you have lots of tile or scraped wood floors with grooves and nooks and crannies, a bot with oscillating mop pads will be better, as these do a better job of getting into crevices such as grout lines.
Multifunction Dock: Yes, auto, empty (2.5L) and drain/refill (4.1L dirty, 4.5L clean) / Mop style: Dual triangular spinning pads / Mop washing: Yes, hot air drying / Mop Pressure: 2.6lbs at 180 RPM / Mop lift: Yes, 12mm / Edge cleaning: Yes, robot swing and fluffer / Mapping: Yes, lidar / AI-powered obstacle detection: Yes / Suction power: 12,000Pa / Vacuum brush style: Single, conical rubber bristle hybrid / Works with: Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Siri Shortcut
Narwal’s latest flagship mopping bot, the Freo Z Ultra, combines everything I loved about the Freo X Ultra, and adds better vacuuming, better object avoidance, an auto-empty dock (a first for Narwal), and a fluffy side brush to polish your baseboards. It also now comes in gray (white robot vacuums are not a good idea, unless you like cleaning your robot vacuum).
With its dual, triangular spinning mop pads (the unique shape helps avoid missing spots), the Freo Z is a great choice for homes with lots of hard floors, and especially tile. The oscillating mop pads are slightly better than roller mops at getting into grout lines and other crevices found on natural surfaces. The Freo Z’s downward pressure of 2.6 lbs meant it did a great job of scrubbing up dried-on debris, excelling in my dried ketchup test, even getting the red gunk up from tile grout.
Like the Deebot X8, the Freo Z can recognize various floor materials, including tile, hardwood, and marble, and clean in the direction of the flooring, such as along the wood grain. Unlike the X8, it automatically adjusts pressure and “mopping humidity” based on the floor type, using higher humidity on tile floors than on wood floors, which can be impacted by excessive moisture. The Freo Z also self-cleans its station and has a removable tray, making maintenance easier.
The Freo Z is remarkably quiet, making it a great option for running in a bedroom
Vacuuming is much better than the Freo X, with the Z boasting 12,000Pa. While that’s not as high as the X8, the Freo Z is remarkably quiet, making it a great option for running in a primary bedroom suite where you may have a tile bathroom combined with carpet.
As with the X8, the Narwal doesn’t deal well with high-pile rugs, as there’s still only a 12 mm mop lift and no automatic mop removal. However, you can set it to perform one of four actions when it encounters a carpet: sidestep, cross it without cleaning, power boost to clean the carpet more effectively, or regular cleaning.
The obstacle detection is vastly improved and very good. A dual camera system allows the bot to not only see objects but uses AI to identify what they are and “decide” how to clean them. The best use of this I saw in testing is when there was a large puddle of water and it automatically switched to mop-only so as not to suck up liquid.
Similarly, Narwal’s dirt detect feature is very good. The bot goes back and forth over a stain or dirty area to ensure it’s clean.
My two biggest gripes with the Freo Z are that it uses a lot of water; it doesn’t have an onboard water tank, so it has to return frequently to refill — and could only clean my 800 square foot area once before I needed to refill the main tank in the dock. By comparison, the X8’s tank only needed refilling after three runs.
Additionally, its app can be frustrating. It’s not easy to navigate, gets hung up between screens, and frequently disconnects from the robot. However, unlike the X8, the Narwal has controls on top of the station to start a clean, and once I had programmed a schedule, I didn’t find myself needing to use the app much at all.
The fluffy sidebrush feels more of a novelty than a necessity and doesn’t really seem to do much. Also, at this price, it would be nice if the Narwal offered a self-cleaning washboard. However, its washboard is removable, which makes it easier to clean manually.
Multifunction Dock: Yes, auto, empty (4L) and drain/refill (two separate devices) / Mop style: Roller / Mop washing: Yes (during use), hot air drying / Mop Pressure: 2.2lbs at 300 RPM / Mop lift: Yes, 7mm / Edge cleaning: No / Mapping: Yes, lidar / AI-powered obstacle detection: Yes / Suction power: 6,500Pa / Vacuum brush style: Single rubber bristle hybrid / Works with: Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Siri Shortcut, Matter
The SwitchBot S10 is a multitasking robot that hooks into your plumbing for a virtually hands-free sweeping and mopping experience. It’s one of the best robot mops I’ve tested, thanks to its self-cleaning roller mop and the fact that I never had to empty or fill its water tanks. These two features meant I could set it and forget it and have clean floors for weeks.
My other favorite feature of the S10 is its dual docking system. Its main dock is a charging / auto-empty dock, and there’s a separate battery-powered dock water station that you can put in a different room. This battery-powered dock is what makes the S10 the best plumbing hookup option, as it gives you much more flexibility with placement. Roborock, Dreame, and Narwal also have plumbing hookup docks, but they require power (I’ve not tested either of those yet).
While the SwitchBot is a decent vacuum, it’s not the best. Its relatively paltry 6,500Pa of suction power is low compared to the competition, but the bot’s weight did help the rubber roller brush dig into the carpet and get up most of the cat hair.
S10 frequently got stuck on clothes left on my floor and bath mats — which are the bane of most mopping bots
Other downsides include the AI obstacle avoidance, which isn’t great. The S10 frequently got stuck on clothes left on my floor and bath mats, its battery life is short, and it lacks high-end features like dirt detection. There is also no edge cleaning function, meaning it didn’t do a great job along baseboards and around furniture.
SwitchBot recently announced the SwitchBot S20 Pro, slated to launch this summer. The upgrade addresses some of my issues with the S10, including adding an extendable roller mop and side brush to add edge cleaning, as well as 15,000Pa. It also comes with the option of two all-in-one auto-empty base stations: one with a regular water tank you manually refill, or one that can hook into your plumbing. But it will also work with the battery-powered water station. I plan on testing this soon.
As mentioned before, Ecovacs recently released a successor to the Deebot X8 Pro Omni, aptly called the X9 Pro Omni ($1,299.99). It sports a roller mop like the X8 Pro, but the big difference is that the new model is designed to optimize airflow from intake to exhaust rather than relying solely on suction power. The upgrade could lead to better deep-cleaning, though we haven’t put it through its paces yet.
Roborock’s Saros 10 ($1,599.99) and Saros 10R ($1,599.99) are upgrades to my pick for the best overall robot vacuum, the S8 MaxV Ultra. Both can automatically remove their mop pads when not needed, which is a new option for Roborock. One uses dual spinning mops, the other a flat vibrating pad.
Roborock also recently released the Saros Z70 ($1,999$2,599), the first mass-produced robovac to feature a robotic arm that can pick up light objects — including socks, tissues, and sandals. The arm isn’t the most reliable, and the vacuum occasionally struggles with correctly identifying items, but it’s otherwise an excellent model with 22,000Pa of suction power and dual spinning mop pads that it can remove on its own. Read our review.
Roborock’s cheaper Qrevo Curv ($1,399.99$1,599.99) also has dual spinning mop pads (which you have to remove) and can raise itself to clear thresholds up to 40mm. The company’s Qrevo Slim ($899.99$1,399.99) offers similar functions but features a new navigation system and lacks a lidar tower, allowing it to fit under low furniture.
iRobot’s new Roomba lineup features two models with dual spinning mopping pads and auto-wash docks. The new Roomba Plus 505 Combo Robot Plus AutoWash Dock ($849.99$999.99) also offers heated mop drying, a feature the higher-end Roomba Combo 10 Max lacks.
iRobot also recently introduced an upgraded version of the Roomba Max 705, the Roomba Max 705 Combo, which will be available for preorder in North America “later this year” for around $1,272 (€1099). Like the Max 705, it features dual rubber roller brushes that are resistant to tangling, along with AI-powered obstacle detection. It also comes with a unique roller mop cover that automatically deploys as it cleans, as well as a design that allows the mop to extend into corners and clean along wall edges.
Priced at $999.99, Eufy’s new Robot Vacuum Omni E28 is a self-emptying, self-refilling, and self-washing robot vacuum with a rolling mop that can go over tough stains a second time if needed. The charging dock also includes a built-in deep cleaner that sprays water to tackle stains before sucking the mess into a separate wastewater tank.
The Narwal Flow — which is set to launch at an undisclosed price on August 7th — features the company’s first roller mop, which can also extend. We haven’t spent any time with it yet, but Narwal claims it can easily tackle thick, fluffy carpets thanks to its deep carpet boost mode.
Eureka’s J20 ($899.99$1,099.99 ) features a very wide roller mop but only 8,000Pa suction. The forthcoming J15 Max Ultra ($1,299) can accurately spot liquids and automatically rotate its body to tackle wet spills with its dual spinning mopping pads. It’s an upgrade to the J15 Pro Ultra ($779.98$999.99), which can identify colored liquids but not clear or white ones.
The Dreame X50 Ultra ($1,199.99$1,699.99) features a “motorized swing arm” that functions like a leg, enabling the robovac to climb over transitions up to 6cm tall. Otherwise, it’s a lot like the X40 Ultra in this guide, only with higher suction power and a retractable lidar tower.
The Switchbot S20 ($799.99), which resembles the Pro model announced at CES earlier this year, is now available. It’s essentially the successor to our previous pick for the best mopping vacuum, the Switchbot S10, with an extendable roller mop / side brush and 15,000Pa of suction power.
SharkNinja’s PowerDetect NeverTouch Pro 2-in-1 robot vacuum mop ($699.99$999.99) can lift itself up as high as 20mm to get over rugs and transitions. Its automatic empty /wash / dry cleaning station doesn’t require bags, either.
Photography by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge
Update, August 5th: Adjusted pricing / availability and added a mention of the Roomba Max 705 Combo. Sheena Vasani also contributed to this post.
Apple’s latest iPad Mini features some nice internal upgrades and support for Apple Intelligence.
If you know where to look, it’s surprisingly easy to save on an iPad — even outside of major sales events like Amazon Prime Day and Black Friday. Here’s an insider tip: Skip the Apple Store, where discounts are almost nonexistent. Instead, your best bet is to check third-party retailers like Amazon, Walmart, and Best Buy, which frequently offer deals on everything from the entry-level iPad to the powerhouse iPad Pro, making it possible to snag a bargain any time of the year.
Apple’s tablet lineup now includes six different iPads, which makes tracking deals across each configuration a full-time job. Fortunately, that’s exactly what we’re here for. Below, you’ll find the best discounts on every current model. Want something for basic web browsing? The entry-level iPad is currently down to $299 ($50 off). Looking for more power to play games and edit videos? The iPad Pro with M4 chip is going for $899 ($100 off). No matter which one you choose, rest assured that every model below is set to receive iPadOS 26 in the fall, which is the most significant update the iPad has seen in 15 years.
The 11th-generation iPad remains the most affordable tablet in Apple’s lineup. While the newest model isn’t drastically different from its 10th-gen predecessor, it does offer a few key differences. One notable change is the increase to 128GB of base storage, up from 64GB. Additionally, the new model features Apple’s A16 Bionic chip, providing better overall performance when browsing the web, opening apps, and watching videos. That being said, the base iPad still doesn’t support Apple Intelligence despite the faster chip, meaning you can’t take advantage of features like the ability to generate images and text. It will, however, support iPadOS 26’s windowed multitasking feature when the update arrives later this year.
Currently, the 11th-gen iPad starts at $349 with Wi-Fi and 128GB of storage. Upgrading to 256GB or 512GB of storage will run you an extra $100 or $200, respectively, while the LTE model starts at $499. The base model recently dropped to $279 ($70 off) during Amazon’s most recent Prime Day event, proving that, if you’re patient, it’s possible to save a good chunk on the MSRP. That said, there are great deals to be had throughout the year. For example, the aforementioned base configuration is currently down to $299 ($50 off) — its second-best price to date — at Amazon, Walmart, and Best Buy. Alternatively, the 256GB model is $399 ($50 off) at Amazon, Walmart, and Best Buy, while the 512GB variant is available for around $598 ($51 off) at Amazon, Walmart, and Best Buy.
While the seventh-gen iPad Mini looks nearly identical to its predecessor, it offers a few notable upgrades, including compatibility with the Apple Pencil Pro. The Pencil Pro brings features like squeeze controls for quick tool switching and a so-called “barrel roll” function, which lets you change the orientation of your stroke by rotating the stylus. The Mini also includes a newer A17 Pro processor with 8GB of RAM to support Apple Intelligence, and the base storage has increased to 128GB, up from 64GB. Otherwise, it retains many of the hallmarks found on its last-gen predecessor, including an 8.3-inch Liquid Retina display, a Touch ID sensor, and an estimated 10 hours of battery life when browsing on Wi-Fi.
The 2024 iPad Mini starts at $499 with 128GB of storage — the same price as the previous generation’s 64GB model. If you need more room for all your photos and apps, the 256GB and 512GB versions will set you back $599 and $799, respectively. Want to add cellular? That starts at $649. These are hefty price tags for such a small device, which might have you eyeing the larger iPad Air if you’re after more screen for your buck. But if you’re loyal to the compact form factor for tasks like reading, the iPad Mini is still the one to beat.
The iPad Mini dropped to just $379, an all-time low, during Prime Day; however, the current discounts aren’t nearly as dramatic, with the 128GB base model going for $474 ($25 off) at Amazon. You can also pick up the 256GB variant at Amazon and Walmart starting around $569 ($30 off), or the 512GB model at Amazon and B&H Photo for $779 ($20 off).
The seventh-gen iPad Air sits between the entry-level iPad and the more powerful iPad Pro. It’s available in 11-inch and 13-inch configurations, both of which are powered by Apple’s speedy M3 chip and compatible with the latest Apple Intelligence features. The Air also works with the updated Magic Keyboard, which now includes a full row of function keys for controlling volume and screen brightness. There’s not a ton that’s new with the latest Air compared to the prior model, but the bump in power should allow it to last longer.
The 11-inch iPad Air starts at $599, and the 13-inch version comes in at $799. While the starting prices are high, the tablet regularly goes on sale, with the 11-inch Air dipping to as low as $479 during events like Prime Day. Right now, for instance, the 11-inch Air with Wi-Fi and 128GB of storage is on sale at Amazon and Walmart starting at $547.27 (about $52 off). The 256GB version is on sale for $629 ($70 off) at Amazon and B&H Photo, while the 512GB model is down to $811.47 (about $88 off) at B&H Photo.
If you’re after the larger configuration, the 13-inch model with Wi-Fi and 128GB of storage is currently on sale at Amazon and Walmart for around $725 ($75 off). Meanwhile, Amazon and Walmart are offering the configuration with Wi-Fi and 256GB of storage for $815.73 (about $84 off), while the 512GB variant with Wi-Fi is down to $1,000.88 (about $100 off) at Amazon and Walmart.
The seventh-gen iPad Pro is the most impressive tablet in Apple’s lineup, one that features the company’s latest M4 chip and a crisp “Tandem OLED” display. It has dedicated hardware for Apple Intelligence processing, a four-speaker setup for richer sound, and a repositioned front-facing camera along the horizontal edge, so you can keep the device in landscape during video calls. The more advanced tech, however, comes at a high price. The 11-inch iPad Pro starts at $999 — the same price as the latest 13-inch MacBook Air — while the larger 13-inch model starts at $1,200.
The good news is that the iPad Pro regularly goes on sale. The 11-inch iPad Pro with 256GB of storage is currently down to $899 ($100 off) at Amazon and B&H Photo, while the 512GB model is down to $1,089.90 (about $109 off) at Amazon. Stepping up to the 1TB model — which will provide you with even more room for apps, photos, and videos — will run you $1,459 ($140 off) at Amazon and Walmart.
If you want more screen real estate, the 13-inch model with 256GB is around $1,179 ($120 off) at Amazon and Walmart. Meanwhile, the 512GB model is down to $1,359.86 (about $140 off) at Amazon and Walmart, while the 1TB model is available at Amazon and Walmart for $1,631 ($268 off). You can also grab the 2TB model for $2,084 ($215 off) at Amazon and Walmart.
Apple is suing the owner of the Apple Cinemas theater chain, Sand Media, over alleged trademark infringement, as reported by Reuters. In the lawsuit, Apple alleges that Apple Cinemas and Sand Media have made efforts to “capitalize on the highly-regarded Apple brand in connection with the aggressive nationwide expansion” and that they have “refused to engage with Apple’s repeated efforts to resolve the matter amicably.”
“Consumers should not go to an ‘Apple Cinemas’ theater thinking it is connected to the famous Apple brand, with all its goodwill and brand equity, when Apple Cinemas has no relation whatsoever to Apple,” Apple says.
Apple Cinemas didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment.
Apple Cinemas has operated “outside a few suburbs and city outskirts in New England,” Apple says. However, Apple Cinemas recently opened a theater in the San Francisco Bay Area within 50 miles of Apple’s Cupertino headquarters and plans to open another soon.
“Already, Defendants’ actions have confused customers and diluted Apple’s brand,” Apple says. The lawsuit includes screenshots of social media posts asking if Apple Cinemas is related to Apple. Apple also notes that “media coverage of the theater openings on both coasts found it necessary to explain that Apple Cinemas was not affiliated with Apple Inc.” and includes examples. Apple Cinemas is planning an “aggressive national expansion to 100 theaters,” according to the lawsuit.
Apple’s latest MacBook Air is one of the best laptops on sale. | Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge
If you want a great laptop, you’re going to have to fork over a ton of money, right? Not necessarily. There are dozens of good laptops on the market at various price points. However, it can feel overwhelming to find the right one for your needs (some are better suited for, say, college students, whereas others are ideal for gamers).
That’s why we’ve come up with this list of some of the best laptop deals available right now. In addition to the latest discounts, we’ll share each discounted model’s best features (and downsides) to give you more clarity during your shopping journey. And if you need to do more research, you can also check out our guides to the best laptops on the market and the top gaming laptops.
The 2020 MacBook Air has been discontinued but remains a great value. It comes outfitted with the company’s original M1 chip in one of three different colors (silver, space gray, and gold).
Apple itself no longer sells the 13-inch MacBook Air with M1 — and hasn’t for years — but you can still get this solid laptop for $599.99 ($50 off) at Walmart. The 2020 model is available in one configuration, with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, but it’s still capable at handling basic tasks like a champ, including streaming video, browsing, and dealing with documents. You can also use the M1 MacBook Air for creative work in Photoshop, Final Cut Pro, Logic, and Pixelmator, though you may experience slowdown due to its low 8GB of memory.
The laptop’s battery lasted between eight and ten hours when we originally reviewed it, and those figures should be mostly accurate, barring some differences likely caused by operating system updates. In addition to offering great performance for its price, the laptop also comes with other nice-to-have features, including a comfortable keyboard and an excellent trackpad. Just note its 720p webcam isn’t particularly good, so if a high-resolution webcam matters a lot to you, you may want to buy one separately. Also, be aware that, due to the limitations of the M1 chip, you can only use one external display at a time and port selection is also more limited than newer models.
The 2022 MacBook Air is a thin, lightweight device powered by Apple’s M2 chip. The M2 model touts an improved 1080p webcam and a better display than its predecessor while retaining features like long battery life and MagSafe charging.
Apple’s 13-inch MacBook Air with the M2 chip is a significant leap above the M1 model it succeeded, both in terms of design and performance. The old wedge-shaped look was replaced for a more squared-off design that’s still used by the current-generation MacBook Air. It has a 1080p webcam, which was a welcome improvement given the disappointing camera on the 2020 M1 model. It’s also much lighter and thus more portable as well, yet it retains features like MagSafe charging and Touch ID, as well as a nice display.
Despite its age, the M2 processor inside of this machine is still powerful enough to handle many tasks, from common ones such as browsing to more complex and creative projects. Compared to newer, pricier models, this one unsurprisingly struggles with gaming. That being said, it’s capable of runningCyberpunk 2077. The entry-level 13-inch MacBook Air with M2 launched with 8GB of RAM, but that configuration became unavailable last year when Apple made 16GB the new standard.
While a well-rounded laptop overall, there is one key area where Apple’s M1 model is better: storage. The base M2 MacBook Air with 256GB of storage is actually slower than its predecessor because it’s stored in a single NAND chip. This was corrected in subsequent MacBook Air models, so the slowdown is unique to M2 machines with 256GB of storage. Also, be aware as well that port selection isn’t great, and the included display notch — which is also found on both the 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pros — can make using the menu bar more challenging until you get used to it. If that doesn’t bother you, however, you can get a configuration with 16GB of RAM, 256GB of storage, an 8-core CPU and GPU for $699 ($100 off) at Best Buy.
The M4 MacBook Air has a speedy processor, and double the RAM of previous models. It has a thin and light design, all day battery life, and still starts with 256GB of storage.
The 13-inch MacBook Air with M4 is Apple’s latest thin and lightweight laptop, and it’s our top pick in The Verge’s guide to the best laptops right now. It’s not a MacBook Pro, but Apple’s M4 processor in the Air is still mighty capable. In our tests, it only throttled under heavy load from creative applications, which is understandable given its fanless design. The machine comes with 16GB of RAM as standard rather than an optional upgrade, but the base configuration still comes with just 256GB of storage, so be mindful of that limitation if you work with a lot of larger files.
Apple hasn’t increased the number of ports on a MacBook Air since reintroducing MagSafe to the M2 model in 2022, but this generation has Thunderbolt 4 ports rather than Thunderbolt 3 for faster file transfer speeds. Another notable addition is the 1080p Center Stage camera from the MacBook Pro, so you’ll stay in frame if you move around on a video call. Battery life should last all day, though your experience will vary depending on how hard you push this machine.
You can currently get a configuration of the 13-inch with M4 with 16GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, and a 10-core CPU and GPU for $799 ($200 off) at Amazon and Best Buy. If you need a larger screen, you can get the 15-inch MacBook Air with the same specs for $999 ($200 off) at Amazon and Best Buy.
The entry-level MacBook Pro with M4 starts with 16GB of RAM — double that of its predecessor — and a 512GB SSD for the same starting price of $1,599. It also gets a third USB-C / Thunderbolt 4 port and comes in a new space black option.
The 14-inch MacBook Pro with a 12-core / 16-core M4 Pro chip starts with 24GB of RAM — a 6GB increase over the prior generation. It also has a 512GB SSD, three Thunderbolt 5 USB-C ports, an optional nano-texture display, and a 12-megapixel webcam.
The 16-inch MacBook Pro with M4 Pro starts with 24GB of RAM and offers more computing cores (14 for the CPU and 20 for the GPU) compared to the 14-inch model. It also picks up Thunderbolt 5 ports and a new 12-megapixel Center Stage camera.
The M4 generation MacBook Pros are Apple’s fastest laptops yet. The 14-inch MacBook Pro with M4 starts with 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD, and comes equipped with three Thunderbolt 4 ports, an HDMI port, an SD card slot, and a MagSafe charging port. It can send video to two external displays simultaneously (the previous generation could only handle one) and has an improved 12-megapixel Center Stage camera with better video quality.
The M4 MacBook Pro and M4 MacBook Air run on the same chip, but the Pro’s cooling system is better, so it handles resource-intensive tasks (including games) without throttling as easily. The laptop’s 14.2-inch screen is bright (up to 1,600 nits when viewing HDR content), and supports the P3 color gamut, both of which are important to professionals who rely on color accuracy when editing photos and video. The display has a 120Hz refresh rate, so scrolling through webpages or moving windows around should appear smoother than 60Hz screens. In our stress test, which included editing 33-megapixel RAW images and working with a large photo library in Adobe Lightroom, the laptop ran for 12 hours without kicking up the fans or feeling hot to the touch.
If you want even more power, you can jump up to the 14-inch MacBook Pro with an M4 Pro processor. It comes with 24GB of RAM, a 512GB SSD, a 12-core CPU, and a 16-core GPU. The M4 Pro MacBook Pro has over twice the memory bandwidth of the base M4 MacBook Pro, so it should perform better across the board. That said, it might be tough to notice the benefits of its extra memory and processing power during casual use, but it will come in handy when you’re pushing the laptop to the limits while video editing or playing games. It has three Thunderbolt 5 ports, and you can use that extra bandwidth with an external SSD with fast transfer speeds, to name an example. You can also get the MacBook Pro with M4 Pro with a 16-inch screen if you’d like to work on a larger display.
Right now, the 14-inch M4 model with 16GB of RAM, a 512GB SSD and 10-core CPU and 10-core GPU is $1,299 ($300 off) at Best Buy and $200 off at B&H Photo. You can get a 14-inch M4 Pro model with 24GB of RAM, a 512GB SSD, 12-core CPU, and 16-core GPU for around $1,786 at Amazon, Best Buy, and B&H Photo. The 16-inch M4 Pro MacBook Pro with 24GB of RAM, a 512GB SSD, 14-core CPU, and 20-core GPU is currently on sale for around $2,234 at Amazon and B&H Photo.
We chose Microsoft’s 7th Edition Surface Laptop as one of the best laptops you can get because it’s the top Snapdragon Copilot Plus PC we’ve tried yet. The laptop runs on a power-efficient ARM processor that doesn’t skimp on performance. Its 13.8-inch 2,304 x 1,536 120Hz screen supports Dolby Vision HDR (High Dynamic Range) and looks very nice. It has a large, precision haptic trackpad that gives you plenty of room to tap and swipe, an offers satisfying feedback no matter where you press it.
The laptop has a pair of USB 4 ports, one USB-A 3.1 Gen 1 port, plus a headphone jack. One of the concerns of using an ARM-based Windows PC has been software compatibility, but this model proves that’s no longer something to be as worried about. It runs Photoshop, and apps compiled for X86 processors work thanks to Microsoft’s Prism emulator. Be sure to check the compatibility of the specific Windows app you rely, though, as there’s still a chance they won’t work as intended.
Even after our toughest tests, the battery lasted seven hours. That’s with 100 percent screen brightness, after downloading multiple Steam games, attending video calls, and running through multiple projects in Photoshop. Using the laptop with less power-hungry apps, including Slack, WhatsApp, Discord, and Chrome, the laptop used just 30 percent of its battery in seven hours. For the best battery life, you’ll want to stick to using native ARM apps when possible. If you want to make the switch to an ARM-based laptop to get some of the benefits MacBook users have had for years, the 7th Generation Surface Laptop is worth checking out.
You can get a 13.8-inch Microsoft Surface Laptop (7th Edition) with a Snapdragon X Plus processor, 16GB of RAM and 512GB SSD for $999 ($100 off) at Amazon. A model with the Snapdragon X Elite processor, 16GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD is on sale for $1,099.99 ($300 off) at Best Buy.
Acer’s Spin Chromebook is configured with Intel’s first generation of processor with an NPU. It also has Google Gemini baked right into the OS, and if you sign up for a new Google One AI premium plan, your first year of service is free.
Verge reviewer Antonio G. Di Benedetto chose Acer’s Chromebook Plus Spin 714 as one of the best laptops for students because it offers an excellent balance of power, battery life, specs, and value. It’s also made the cut in our guide to the best Chromebooks because it supports Google’s Gemini smart assistant, and comes with a one-year subscription to Google’s One AI premium service. The current-generation laptop is a solid choice a year after it was released thanks in part to its Intel Core Ultra 5 Series 1 processor, which allows you to run Linux apps instead of being limited to software solely available through Google’s Play Store.
On to the specs: The laptop has a 14-inch 1920 x 1200 resolution touchscreen display, which can be flipped 180 degrees, so you can use the laptop as a large tablet if you prefer. The Plus Spin 714 has two Thunderbolt 4 ports and an HDMI port, which is an acceptable array of ports for a Chromebook. However, it only has 8GB of RAM, which will likely be a performance bottleneck if you intend to keep dozens of tabs open.
If your needs are relatively light and you don’t mind working mostly in the cloud instead of with local files, this is a solid computer. You can grab the Chromebook Plus Spin 714 for $629 ($170 off) at Best Buy.
The Asus Zenbook S 16 features AMD’s Ryzen AI mobile processors. It’s one of the thinnest and lightest 16-inch laptops available and doesn’t cut corners on performance. It’s a mighty machine that can handle all sorts of heavy workloads with ease and grace.
We chose Asus’ Zenbook S 16 as another one of our top recommendations for students, but it’s a solid laptop for anyone who wants a large-screened Windows laptop. In our tests, the 16-inch 120Hz 3K (2,880 x 1,800) OLED display emits vivid colors and excellent contrast. The laptop was more than capable of handling common tasks, including video chats using its 1080p webcam, music streaming, but its graphics and gaming performance is what really sets it apart from laptops in its size and price classes.
This machine runs Cyberpunk 2077 at around 77 frames per second with the resolution set to 1080p with AMD’s FSR 2.1 upscaling software turned on. The laptop isn’t designed for gaming, but it’s good to know it’s up to the task if you’re willing to turn down some graphical settings. The Zenbook S 16’s battery lasted 11 hours during our testing. However, the percentage indicator in the Windows taskbar would often fluctuate, making it difficult to pin down exactly how much juice was left.
You can get a configuration of the laptop with 32GB of RAM, 1TB of storage, and an AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 processor for $1,299.99 ($500 off) from Asus if you sign up for a free Asus membership. We signed up for the membership, and it took about five minutes from start to finish.
Asus ROG Strix Scar 16 (2025, RTX 5080)
Asus ROG Strix Scar 16 (2025, RTX 5080)
Asus’ ROG Strix Scar 16 is a powerful gaming laptop configured with a 16-inch 2.5K 240Hz screen, Nvidia 5080 graphics card, Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX processor, 32GB of RAM, and 2TB of storage.
If you want to take a powerful gaming PC with you on the go, Asus’ ROG Strix Scar 16 is one of the best we recommend. It has a 16-inch 240Hz Mini LED display with a resolution of 2,560 x 1,600. The screen can’t quite match an OLED when it comes to rich contrast, but you get Dolby Vision HDR here, and its color accuracy impressed us in our tests. The laptop has larger keys instead of a number pad, which makes sense for a gaming-focused laptop. If you need a number pad, you can bring up a touch-sensitive one by clicking and holding the top part of the laptop’s large trackpad.
Under the hood, Asus fitted the ROG Strix Scar 16 with an Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX processor, 32GB of RAM, 2TB of storage, and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 graphics card with 16GB of dedicated video memory. The laptop’s display supports Nvidia’s G-Sync technology, so you shouldn’t see screen tearing or other graphical anomalies when playing games. The laptop has three USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 ports, an HDMI 2.1 port, an ethernet port, and two Thunderbolt 5 ports. You can use either the HDMI 2.1 port or Thunderbolt 5 ports to carry a 4K 120Hz video signal to a compatible TV or gaming monitor.
In case aesthetics matter to you, the ROG Strix Scar 16 has RGB lighting on its underside as well as a dot-matrix LED array that can display animations on its lid. These features aren’t new, but each can add some flair to your setup. Right now, you can get the Asus ROG Strix Scar 16 in its base configuration for around $2999.99 ($300 off) at Amazon, Best Buy, and Walmart.
Update, August 5th: Updated pricing and availability, and added new deals on Apple’s MacBook Air with M4, the MacBook Pro with M4 Pro, the Asus Zenbook S 16, the Asus ROG Strix Scar 16, Microsoft’s 7th Generation Surface Laptop, and Acer’s Chromebook Plus Spin 714.
So far, 2025 has been a great year for watching new, must-see TV shows and movies on subscription services. But if you, like many of us, have more concurrent subscriptions than you care to admit, you’ll agree that keeping up with the latest stuff every month can get expensive. They may not cost as much as most of the tech we cover, but it adds up.
If you’re trying to cut down on your expenses, you might be able to do so while holding onto your precious subscriptions. Attempting to cancel your service is a good way to see if you’ll be offered a cheaper monthly rate to stick around. Outside of that, several services offer promos at different times throughout the year, some of which are even available to new and returning subscribers alike. Below, we’ve curated some of the best deals going on right now, so you can enjoy streaming your favorite show or movie for less than it would typically cost you.
Note: keep an eye out for free trials and student discounts
Most streaming services offer free trials that typically last from a week to a month, whether you sign up for an annual membership or just a monthly subscription. However, you will likely have to provide your credit card information in advance, and you will be charged once your trial is over, so make a note in your calendar if you don’t want to be charged.
Some streaming platforms offer student discounts. These include Hulu, Paramount Plus, YouTube TV, Amazon Prime, and more. You’ll have to prove your student eligibility through a sign-up form and typically be enrolled in an accredited Title IV college or university to take advantage of these deals.
Peacock is NBCUniversal’s streaming service, one that offers next-day programming from NBC (and Bravo). The platform also provides access to live sports programming, including Sunday Night Football and WWE, as well as movies and shows like The Wild Robot, Conclave, Wicked, Oppenheimer, Yellowstone, Teacup, The Office, Saturday Night Live, Rian Johnson’s Poker Face, and the The Office spinoff, The Paper, which debuts on September 4th.
The platform currently offers two plans: an ad-supported Peacock Premium tier for $10.99 a month (or $109.99 a year) or the ad-free Peacock Premium Plus tier for $16.99 a month (or $169.99 a year). Only the latter lets you download content for offline viewing. These new prices went into effect in late July for new subscribers, and current subscribers will continue paying the previous rate until August 22nd.
In terms of deals, things are pretty dry right now. You can grab a complimentary subscription when you sign up for a year of Instacart Plus ($99 annually or $9.99 a month). You can also get free access if you’re an Xfinity Internet customer with gigabit speeds or a Diamond or Platinum Rewards member. If you’re a first responder or a medical professional (and are alright with your credentials being verified by SheerID), you can get Peacock’s monthly plan for $3.99 per month, which is a nice perk.
The best Disney Plus deals
Disney Plus, Hulu Bundle Basic
This bundle comes with ads and grants access to all of the shows and movies available in Hulu’s and Disney Plus’ library.
For just a dollar more, Disney offers an ad-supported, $10.99-a-month Duo Basic subscription that brings together Disney Plus and Hulu. To enjoy an ad-free experience across both services, the cost is $19.99 per month.
There’s also the $16.99-a-month Disney Bundle Trio Basic bundle, which includes the ad-supported Hulu and ESPN Plus (paying $26.99 a month nets you the ad-free version of Hulu and Disney Plus, though ESPN will still have ads). That’s cheaper than subscribing to all three streaming services individually, and is the wisest route to take if you want all three.
That being said, there are other ways to save, particularly with carrier promos.Those currently on one of Verizon’s Unlimited plans, for instance, can get Disney Plus Trio Basic with ads for $10 a month instead of $16.99. If you already subscribe to Verizon’s existing Legacy bundle, you can also continue to enjoy ad-free Disney Plus, as well as ad-supported ESPN Plus and Hulu, for $15 per month ($6 off).
The best Hulu deals
Hulu and Disney Plus (with ads)
Hulu grants access to originals like The Handmaid’s Tale, as well as non-Hulu content like Shogun, The Bear, Futurama, Say Nothing, and Alien: Romulus. T-Mobile also offering complementary access to the Hulu-ad supported plan when you maintain a qualifying Go5G Next line.
Hulu offers both ad-supported and ad-free plans. No matter which you buy, you’ll be able to access all of Hulu’s TV shows and movies on multiple devices, including originals like The Handmaid’s TaleandSand Land, as well as other content, like Shogun, The Bear, Futurama, and The Veil. It’s also where you’ll be able to watch the King of the Hill revival when it lands on August 4th. The service also allows two people to stream simultaneously, and you can have up to six user profiles. However, subscribing to the ad-free plan means you won’t have to deal with commercials; You’ll also be able to watch downloads offline.
The ad-supported plan currently costs $9.99 per month, while the ad-free plan costs $18.99 a month. Hulu also sells ad-free and ad-supported bundles that include Disney Plus and / or ESPN Plus, which are cheaper than subscribing to each service individually. With the Hulu with Live TV, Disney Plus, and ESPN Plus bundle, you’ll be able to access more than 90 live sports, news, and entertainment channels, as well as content from each of the streaming services. You’ll also be able to record live shows with unlimited DVR storage and take advantage of the same features the standard, ad-free, and ad-supported Hulu plans offer. The ad-supported Hulu with Live TV subscription is $82.99 a month, while the ad-free tier is $95.99 a month (though, it’s worth noting that, of the three services included, ESPN Plus will still have ads, even at this tier). Complicated, right?
However, if you just want Hulu and don’t need the live TV version, you can subscribe to the ad-supported Disney Bundle Duo Basic, which includes Disney Plus, for $10.99 a month. You can also add ESPN Plus for $16.99 per month, or get rid of ads and add live sports for $26.99 a month.
In terms of deals, students can subscribe to the ad-supported version for $1.99 a month or a bundle that combines Spotify Premium, Showtime, and ad-supported Hulu for $5.99 a month. Some wireless carriers are also offering customers discounts when they buy premium phone plans. As mentioned previously, those currently on one of Verizon’s Unlimited plans can get the Disney Plus Trio Basic with ads for $10 per month instead of $16.99. If you already subscribe to Verizon’s Legacy bundle, you can also continue to stream ad-free Disney Plus and ad-supported ESPN Plus / Hulu for $15 a month ($6 off). T-Mobile, meanwhile, offers complimentary access to Hulu’s ad-supported tier when you maintain a qualifying Go5G Next line.
The best Sling TV deals
Sling TV (one-month subscription)
Sling TV is a live TV streaming service featuring live and on-demand TV channels like CNN, Fox, NBC, Comedy Central, Cartoon Network, and more. It’s half off for your first month, if you aren’t already a subscriber.
Sling TV is a streaming service that functions as a more affordable alternative to YouTube TV and Hulu with Live TV. With it, you can watch a range of streaming services as well as live and on-demand channels — including ESPN, CNN, Fox, NBC, Comedy Central, and Cartoon Network — on multiple devices.
Sling offers an ad-supported free tier — Sling Freestream — which provides access to more than 500 live channels as well as more than 40,000 on-demand movies and TV shows. The platform also offers three paid plans, all of which come with 50 hours of DVR storage: Sling Blue ($50.99 a month); Sling Orange ($45.99 a month); and Sling Orange and Blue ($65.99 a month). Sling also lets you subscribe to HBO Max as a Blue-tier add-on for a discount (totaling $57.97 per month), or you can buy an ad-free subscription to HBO Max as a standalone service for $16.99 a month. For a limited time, Sling is including a one-month trial to AMC Plus with subscriptions — perfect if you’ve never seen Halt and Catch Fire.
If you’re into sports, you may want to opt for Sling Orange over Blue as it grants access to ESPN channels — but only on one device. Sling Blue, however, offers a number of channels Sling Orange lacks, including Fox News, MSNBC, E!, Discovery, Bravo, and local NBC or Fox affiliates. You can also subscribe to a bundle that includes both Sling Orange and Sling Blue, which offers all the channels featured in the first two plans.
Sling is currently offering new customers a 50 percent discount on their first month of Sling Orange, meaning you’ll pay $23 instead of $45.99. The promo also applies to Sling Blue, although it’s slightly more expensive at $25.50, down from $50.99. You can also get one month of Sling Orange and Sling Blue combined for $33 per month instead of $65.99. In addition to 50 percent off your first month, Sling is also offering free unlimited DVR during that period, along with a $5 discount on Paramount Plus with Showtime, AMC Plus, or Starz. After your first month of savings, you’ll be charged the regular amount for your selected plan.
The best Apple TV Plus deals
Apple TV Plus
Apple’s streaming service has a variety of original programming, including live MLB games and standouts like Severance, Ted Lasso, Silo, and Coda. A subscription normally runs $9.99 per month with a seven-day free trial.
Apple TV Plus is a service operated by Apple that offers original shows and movies in 4K HDR, including Ted Lasso, The Studio, The Morning Show, Silo,Severance, Finch, Coda, For All Mankind, and Napoleon. The platform is also the streaming home to Major League Soccer, and currently costs $9.99 a month. There are no ads whatsoever on Apple TV Plus, except some skippable pre-roll advertisements for other Apple TV Plus content.
There are a couple of promos to make note of when it comes to Apple TV Plus. The service currently offers a weeklong free trial for new subscribers, after which you’ll be charged $9.99 a month. You can also get a free three-month subscription when you buy an Apple device, though you’ll have to redeem the offer within 90 days of purchase.
Apple TV Plus is also included in the larger Apple One suite of apps. The all-in-one service lets you bundle four other Apple services for a single monthly subscription starting at $19.95 a month. New subscribers will get a free month of Apple TV Plus if they include it as part of their Apple One membership. In addition, eligible individuals who sign up for the student Apple Music subscription, which starts at $5.99 per month, can get Apple Music for 50 percent off with a free Apple TV Plus subscription.
As far as carrier deals go, T-Mobile offers discounts on Apple TV Plus, as well as other streaming services. For instance, the wireless carrier is currently offering customers in the US complimentary access to Apple TV Plus when they subscribe to a qualifying Go5G Next line. For Verizon Unlimited customers, the option exists to get Apple One (which includes Apple TV Plus) for $10 per month ($9.95 off) for an individual plan, or $20 for a family plan ($5.95 off).
The best HBO Max deals
Max (annual subscription)
HBO Max provides access to shows like Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, Dune: Prophecy, The Last of Us,The Penguin, — as well as films like Barbie and Dune — starting at $9.99 a month. AT&T offers complimentary access to the ad-free tier when you subscribe to a select AT&T Unlimited Choice or Plus plan, which starts at $60 per month.
The platform offers an ad-supported tier that costs $9.99 a month and two ad-free plans that start at $16.99 a month. Unlike the ad-supported plan, the standard ad-free tier also lets you download 30 shows or movies for offline viewing. HBO Max also offers a $20.99-a-month Premium plan, which allows you to stream in 4K and supports Dolby Atmos with select content. The latter plan also lets you stream on four devices simultaneously and download a maximum of 100 shows or movies to watch on the go.
HBO Max offers an annual subscription and various bundles, both of which are cheaper than subscribing on a monthly basis. The ad-supported plan normally costs $99.99 a year, saving you a modest $19 over the course of 12 months, while subscribing to the annual ad-free base plan for $169.99 saves you $33. You can also save about $41 by subscribing to the annual 4K Premium ad-free plan for $209.99. Lastly, you can opt for the ad-supported bundle — which includes HBO Max, Disney Plus, and Hulu — for $16.99 a month, or pay $13 extra to go ad-free. The total cost is cheaper than subscribing to each of the three individually, saving you money in the long run. A basic plan exists, with ads, for $9.99 per month.
Multiple wireless carriers are offering deals. You can, for instance, get a year of Netflix and HBO Max when you purchase a 5G Home Plus, LTE Home Plus, Fios 1 Gig, or the Fios 2 Gig Verizon Home Internet (VHI) plan. Alternatively, Verizon is offering those with an Unlimited plan the ability to get Netflix and HBO Max (with ads) for $10 a month (about $7 off).
The well-known streaming service offers individual subscriptions starting at $7.99 a month as well as more premium tiers that allow for 4K resolution and additional users. T-Mobile is offering the ad-supported plan for free those on qualifying Go5G Next, Go5G Plus, and Magenta Max lines. This deal is also available to those on two or more qualifying Go56 and Magenta lines.
A Netflix subscription grants you access to thousands of movies and TV shows, as well as a limited number of mobile games. Notable shows and movies include Squid Game, Dan Da Dan, Baby Reindeer, K-Pop Demon Hunters, The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep, Cobra Kai, Stranger Things, The Killer, and Arcane, among countless others.
The well-known streaming service currently offers three plans: Standard with ads ($7.99 per month), Standard without ads ($17.99 per month), and Premium ($24.99 per month). The premium tier allows for higher resolution, lets multiple users watch content on four devices at the same time as opposed to just two, and lets you download on six devices at a time as opposed to just two. It’s also the only plan that supports 4K HDR content, as well as spatial audio.
Netflix isn’t currently offering a discount, but T-Mobile is offering the ad-supported plan for free to those on qualifying Go5G Next and Go5G Plus lines. This deal is also available to those on qualifying Magenta Max lines, or for those who sign up to two or more Go56 and Magenta lines. As mentioned previously, you can also get a year of both Netflix and HBO Max when you purchase one of the following Verizon Home internet plans: a 5G Home Plus, LTE Home Plus, Fios 1 Gig, or the Fios 2 Gig Verizon Home Internet (VHI) plan. Alternatively, Verizon is offering those with an Unlimited plan the ability to get Netflix and HBO Max (with ads) for $10 per month ($6.98 off).
The best YouTube TV deals
YouTube TV (monthly)
YouTube TV offers access to more than 100 major channels covering live sports, news, entertainment, and more. It also includes unlimited recording for up to six accounts. Now through August 31st, new subscribers can pay $49.99 ($33 off) a month for the first three months when they sign up for the YouTube TV Base Plan.
YouTube TV grants subscribers access to live sports and a number of major news and entertainment channels, including PBS, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, NBC, ABC, Fox, CNN, and more. It also comes with unlimited recording for a maximum of six accounts, all for $82.99 per month. You can buy optional add-ons as well, which range between $2 and $65 a month and include access to services like HBO Max, Starz, and NBA League Pass. The service also offers a separate Spanish-only plan.
Now through August 31st, new subscribers can sign up for the YouTube TV Base Plan for $49.99 ($33 off) a month for the first three months. It’ll be free for 21 days as a trial.
The best Paramount Plus and Showtime deals
Paramount Plus Essential (monthly)
The ad-supported Paramount Plus Essential plan provides access to a wide variety of shows and films. Walmart Plus members can currently get it for free as a part of their plan.
Paramount Plus and Showtime provides access to live sports and 24/7 live news with CBS News. It also grants access to the entire Paramount Plus catalog, including shows like Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Yellowstone spinoff 1923, as well as films like Gladiator II and Top Gun: Maverick. You’ll also get access to Showtime’s library, which includes originals like Billions, Dexter: Resurrection, and Yellowjackets, as well as movies like Talk To Me and Past Lives.
If you want to subscribe to both Paramount Plus and Showtime, you can sign up for the ad-supported or ad-free Paramount Plus with Showtime package for $12.99 a month. Alternatively, if you’re willing to pay for a year upfront, you can save about $36 compared to paying monthly when you subscribe to the annual plan for $119.99.
Alternatively, you can subscribe to Paramount Plus as a standalone service when you pay for Paramount Plus’ ad-supported Essential plan, which costs $7.99 per month. The annual plan, meanwhile, costs $59.99 per year, saving you $36 over the course of 12 months if you’re willing to pay upfront. Just bear in mind this plan offers fewer live sporting events than the Paramount Plus with Showtime package, and won’t let you download content for offline viewing.
In terms of deals, Walmart Plus subscribers can currently get the Essential plan for free as part of their subscription. College students can also subscribe to the Essential plan for $5.99 ($2 off) a month, while seniors with an AARP membership can get a 10 percent discount on the Essential plan or Paramount Plus with Showtime plan. Lastly, military members can get a 50 percent discount on a year of the Essential or Paramount Plus with Showtime plans.
The best Starz deals
Starz (six months, ad-free)
With Starz, you can stream movies like Asteroid City and Jurassic Park, as well as original shows like Outlander. Currently, the platform only offers one ad-free plan, which typicallycosts $10.99 a month.
With Starz, you can stream a variety of shows and movies, including John Wick: Chapter 4, M3GAN, and Asteroid City, as well as originals like Outlander and Sweetpea. The platform offers a single ad-free plan for $10.99 per month, which allows you to stream on up to four devices simultaneously and download content for offline viewing. Right now, however, new subscribers can get three months of Starz for $4.99 per month. Alternatively, you can sign up for a one-year plan for $35.99, a savings of $35.
The best Amazon Prime Video deals
Amazon Prime Video (monthly, with ads)
Amazon Prime members can take advantage of faster delivery as well as an assortment of other benefits. This includes Amazon Prime Video, which encompasses a wide range of movies, some live content, and shows like The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. Customers of Metro By T-Mobile’s unlimited plan can get a free Amazon Prime membership, which provides access to Prime Video for free.
Amazon Prime Video is an on-demand streaming service owned by Amazon. Its library includes a range of movies, some live content, and shows like Fallout, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, The Boys, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and more. Through the service, you can watch certain titles in 4K and take advantage of deals on rentals and purchases not included in the subscription. There’s also an option to add extra channels with Prime Video channels, or go ad-free for an additional $2.99 a month.
Amazon Prime Video is included with an Amazon Prime membership, though you can sign up for the service without a membership for $8.99 a month with ads or $11.98 without. Right now, customers of Metro By T-Mobile’s unlimited plan can also get a free Amazon Prime membership, which provides access to Prime Video and other benefits, for free.
Update, August 5th: Adjusted relevant pricing details, most notably Peacock, which is $3 more for new subscribers to either its ad-supported or ad-free plans. The price hikes go into effect for current subscribers on August 22nd.
Google rolled out a new tool within its Gemini AI chatbot that lets you create an illustrated story by simply describing it. The feature, called “Storybook,” generates 10-page stories, each with a short paragraph of text that Gemini can read aloud and an illustration.
You can customize your story by asking Gemini to use specific art styles, such as ones inspired by claymation, anime, comics, and more. Google also lets you upload photos and other images for Gemini to reference, like uploading a child’s drawing and asking Gemini to create a story about it.
I just had to try out these features for myself, so I first asked Gemini to create a story about a catfish struggling to make friends in a new aquarium. As I flipped through the “pages,” I found that the plot it generated about the tank’s inhabitants trying to move a marble was pretty lame. But other than that, everything seemed pretty standard for an AI-generated children’s story — that is, until I came across one illustration that put a humanarm on one of the fish.
Another Gemini-generated story had a page involving spaghetti sauce that looked like a cartoon crime scene, while an AI image of a mother and son watching TV had the screen on the wrong side. My colleague Andrew Liszewski even spotted an AI-generated oddity in Google’s own video about the feature, which shows a woman building a spaceship and making “tap, tap, tap” noises while holding a wrench and some other tool I can’t make out.
Besides coming across some inconsistencies in character designs, I didn’t spot any other blatant AI weirdness in some of the other stories that I had Gemini create. However, the chatbot didn’t seem to share my artistic vision when I uploaded an image of a cartoon cat that I drew.
The Gemini Storybook feature is available globally on desktop and mobile, including in all the languages that Gemini currently supports.
With back-to-school season in full swing, it feels like we’re stumbling on great deals for students every day. From Kindles to MacBooks, many of our favorite gadgets are currently receiving a discount — including Sony’s latest noise-canceling headphones, the WH-1000XM6. Right now, you can pick them up at Amazon, Best Buy, and Target for around $428 ($20 off), which is a modest discount but also the best one we’ve seen outside of Amazon’s four-day Prime Day event in July.
The XM6 are some of the best noise-canceling headphones available. With upgraded drivers and a new chip, they deliver even better sound than the last-gen XM5, more powerful active noise cancellation, and clearer voice calls. You can also now (finally) charge the headphones while listening to them, though you’ll need to use two cables — one USB-C and a 3.5mm — since Sony still doesn’t support audio over USB-C. Sony has also resurrected the travel-friendly foldable design last seen on the XM4, while widening the headband to reduce pressure.
What’s more, Sony has included all the features we loved in previous models. The transparency mode sounds as natural as ever, and the battery life lasts an impressive 30 hours on a single charge with ANC enabled. You also get conveniences like multipoint Bluetooth support, making it easy for multitaskers to switch between devices.
Amazon, Best Buy, and Walmart are all selling the Hori Piranha Plant Camera for the Nintendo Switch 2 for $39.99 ($20 off), which is a record low price. Specifically designed for the Switch 2, the 640×480 camera captures video at 30fps and supports GameChat, so you can video chat with friends while gaming and access other in-game features, some of which require a Nintendo Switch Online membership. It also features a closing mouth that you can use as a privacy shutter, along with an adjustable neck.
Skylightis discounting a number of its smart calendars, starting with the 10-inch Skylight Calendar, which is on sale for $129.99 ($40 off) through August 11th. The connected calendar is a helpful tool for household organization, one that allows you to manage multiple schedules in one place. It syncs with popular cloud services like Google Calendar and iCloud, so you can quickly check your family’s availability with a quick glance. You can also use it to display chores, grocery lists, to-dos, and other notes. Read our Skylight Calendar Max review.
Best Buy is selling the latest Amazon Fire TV Cube for $89.99 ($50 off), which is its best price to date. The snappy streaming box supports Wi-Fi 6E as well as 4K streaming in HDR formats like Dolby Vision. It also features an HDMI input for cable boxes or gaming consoles and acts as a decent-sounding smart speaker, one that integrates well with Alexa for hands-free voice control. Read our review.
The removal of age restrictions is intended to provide younger students with access to the AI research tool, allowing them to better understand their class materials.
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