As Figma went public this week to much fanfare—and an almost instantaneous 250% stock pop—quite a few folks from Silicon Valley made money.

But the biggest winner in terms of immediate IPO proceeds is not any of the marquee Silicon Valley venture capital firms such as Index Ventures, Greylock, and Kleiner Perkins, who sold only small slivers of their stakes in the offering. Nor is it any of the Figma management team, including CEO Dylan Field, who have most of their equity locked in the company.

Instead, a Novato, Calif.-based charity took home the biggest payout. The Marin Community Foundation, located an hour north of San Francisco and focused on grantmaking around issues like education, health, economic opportunity, and environmental concerns, sold more than 13.4 million shares in the offering, making it the largest selling shareholder (Figma itself only sold 12.5 million shares). 

As Figma initially priced its shares at $33 a pop, the Marin Community Foundation sold off its stake to the tune of more than $440 million. (If it had waited, of course, that stake would now be worth well over $1 billion.) 

The charity received its shares in Figma over the summer from Evan Wallace, the company’s elusive cofounder, a source familiar with the matter told Fortune. This isn’t necessarily a common practice right before a company goes public, another source told Fortune, but is one that does crop up from time to time—a founder with a connection to a charity giving shares with upside. There are adjacent examples from the past, including Mark Zuckerberg in 2013 donating $1 billion in Facebook shares to the Silicon Valley Community Foundation (though Zuck’s gift happened after Facebook’s 2012 IPO.)

A spokesperson for MCF described the foundation as “one of the largest community foundations in the U.S.,” adding “that a community foundation is a public charity that manages the philanthropy of individuals, families and institutions.” The spokesperson declined to comment on anything specific about the Figma gift, citing its privacy policy regarding individual donors or nonprofits.

Why Wallace made the gift to the foundation, and whether he has any personal connection to it, is not clear. Figma declined to provide a comment on behalf of Wallace, and Fortune was unable to reach him directly. Wallace and Figma CEO Dylan Field cofounded the company in 2012 after meeting as students at Brown University. Wallace stepped away from Figma in 2021 and has tended to stay out of the public eye.

The part of the charity that Wallace gave the shares to—the MCF Gift Fund—suggests that the Figma cofounder’s grant may involve a so-called donor advised fund, a tax efficient structure whereby a wealthy individual puts money into a non-profit and is then able to direct the funds to various causes. The Marin Community Foundation’s spokesperson said that the MCF Gift Fund “facilitates the acceptance of complex gifts that can be turned into philanthropic capital to enable donors to fulfill their philanthropic ambitions.”

But the Figma founder’s philanthropical move has a historical wrinkle that makes it even more interesting…

Before AI money there was oil money

Interestingly, the Marin County Foundation, which had about $2.8 billion in total assets at the end of 2024, is itself the product of a previous generation of big business—and of a bitter, years-long legal fight for control of the money.

The foundation’s history traces back to Beryl and Leonard Buck, whose wealth was linked to an investment in Belridge Oil. When Beryl Buck died in 1975 she gave the money to the San Francisco Foundation, with the wish that it be used for causes in Marin County, where she had lived in the tony town of Ross. But when oil giant Shell purchased the rights to Belridge Oil four years later for more than $3.6 billion, the value of the $7.6 million Buck Trust was suddenly worth $240 million ($1 billion in today’s dollars), and the SF Foundation became the 11th largest foundation in the U.S., according to a history on its website. 

The problem, as the SF Foundation explains it, was that “we found ourselves in the uncomfortable position of granting tens of millions of dollars each year (far more than we granted to all other counties combined) to the wealthiest county in the Bay Area.”

Or as a story in the LA Times noted back then, one of the country’s most well-resourced charities was stuck looking for ways to spend all the money in the ‘hot-tub capital of America.’

Doug Pensinger/Getty Images

When the Foundation went to court to seek permission to spend some of the money in other, needier parts of the Bay Area, a public firestorm ensued. The move was “characterized as a threat to the sanctity of wills and the health of philanthropy, and as an offense against capitalism, the American way of life, and God,” Yale Law School professor John G. Simon wrote of the affair. “Foundation personnel were said to be corrupt and dishonest and, in the language of a Marin County supervisor, ‘grave-robbing bastards.’”

In the end, the San Francisco Foundation lost its court battle, and a new organization—The Marin Community Foundation—was created in 1986 to administer the Buck Trust. 

Now, 39 years later, the Marin County Foundation is getting another massive windfall. Whether Wallace is aware of the contentious and famous story behind the foundation he picked is a mystery. But, wittingly or not, the reclusive Figma cofounder has managed to put the foundation back in the headlines at the cusp of another historical moment in business history and wealth creation.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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Figma, the design software company led by CEO and cofounder Dylan Field, saw its stock price more than triple in a stunning debut on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday.

Shares of Figma were trading as high as $107 within minutes after it began trading under the ticker FIG. The company and its early shareholders raised $1.2 billion in its IPO on Wednesday, with shares priced at $33. The stock began trading Thursday at $85 a share, and took off like a rocket from there.

The surge gave Figma a market cap of roughly $46 billion, eclipsing the $20 billion price that Adobe had planned to acquire the company for before the merger was abandoned in 2023 due to regulatory pushback. Adobe, with a market cap of around $152 billion, will now be Figma’s key public markets competitor as the upstart chases market share. Praveer Melwani, Figma’s CFO, told Fortune on Thursday morning that it will be business as usual for Figma moving forward, with possible acquisitions in the pipeline.

“Candidly, the way we’re running this—or the way the offering shaped up—it’s a majority secondary transaction with a small portion of primary that facilitates to pay the tax that’s owed on the RSU [restricted stock unit] settlement,” said Melwani, who became Figma’s first business operations head in 2017. “So, we’re net neutral from a cash impact on technology. The story stays the same. We have been acquisitive in the past—primarily small teams and talent.”

Figma’s securities filing for its public debut showed a growing, profitable business, with revenue up in Q1 2025, 46% year-over-year to $228.2 million and a net income for the quarter at $44.8 million.

Figma’s opening pop reflects not only optimism about Figma, but optimism about the venture-backed IPO landscape overall. Muted in recent years, tech IPOs have been in the midst of a slow but decisive recovery. Recently, VC-backed darlings like Circle, Chime, Hinge Health, and CoreWeave have all gone public, with varying degrees of success.

Figma itself is backed by a number of Silicon Valley stalwarts, including Index Ventures, Kleiner Perkins, Greylock, and Sequoia Capital, all of whom hold stakes worth north of $1 billion in the company. For Figma moving forward, the biggest question is how the company will adapt to and capitalize on AI. Greylock venture partner John Lilly told Fortune that Figma and Field are well-positioned.

“The way we’re going to be interacting with more systems and technology over time means interfaces have to be designed right,” said Lilly. “Figma is the way organizations design together, it’s sort of the operating system… As long as we keep investing and keep making sure that we’re on top of AI—integrating the best tools and creating some of them—then AI looks like a huge opportunity to me.”

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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Ebay turns 30 this September and the company is showing some signs that it’s starting to turn back the clock.

The auction giant’s stock surged more than 19% on Thursday to an all-time high of $92 a share on the back of revenue growth and earnings that both surpassed analyst expectations, and an outlook that was far less gloomy than it could have been.

That’s the top-line good news.

The reality check, though, is that Ebay still accounts for less than 4% of the overall e-commerce market in the U.S., compared to around 40% for Amazon, 6% for Walmart, and pressure from a collection of discount or product-specific apps and marketplaces from Temu to Whatnot, a live-streaming commerce startup valued at $5 billion.

So what gives? Where is the eBay optimism coming from and is this current moment an aberration and blip or, as the internet analyst Mark Mahaney wrote in a research note on Thursday, “something of an inflection point”?

As Mahaney wrote, eBay’s gross volume and revenue growth rates, excluding the impact of foreign exchange rate changes, both rose 4% year-over-year in the past quarter. Those numbers sound meager because they are, but it’s the fastest that the commerce marketplace has grown in two years—which is…something.

The one-time e-commerce darling has been trying to lean into its historic strengths or “focus areas”—product categories where it can win—and that seems to be paying off. Those categories grew 10% in the quarter compared to about 1% for everything else.

“Collectibles was once again the largest contributor to growth as year-over-year growth in trading cards GMV accelerated for the 10th straight quarter on the back of continued momentum in both collectible card games and sports trading cards,” CEO Jamie Iannone told analysts on the earnings call.

Collectible categories have been booming across the board since the onset of the pandemic, as nostalgia coupled with new shopping experiences and sales tactics drive renewed interest in trading cards like Pokemon as well as sports cards. Startups like Whatnot, Fanatics, and Courtyard, which is selling $50 million in cards and comics a month, are playing a role. But eBay is still the biggest online player in the space and also capitalizing on the consumer interest.

To that end, the company is pushing aggressively into live-streaming commerce, with eBay Live, where Fanatics and Whatnot are finding success, and the early signs are encouraging, according to Iannone.

“We have already seen significant evidence that live commerce can deepen engagement among eBay enthusiasts and unlock even greater velocity in our strongest verticals, which validates our continued investment in this experience,” he told analysts.

(For what it’s worth, top live-streaming card seller Rene Nezhoda, of Storage Wars fame, had this to say about eBay Live when I interviewed him about his business on Whatnot, where he sells $15 million to $18 million a year in sports cards. “I wouldn’t be surprised if eBay Live might become the market leader because they just have such a big user database,” he told Fortune in June.)

Ebay’s Iannone said his company is also seeing both top-line and bottom-line benefits from integrating the Klarna Buy Now Pay Later payment method into the shopping site, by expanding its on-site advertising business, and by integrating generative and agentic AI experiences into the shopping marketplace for both buyers or sellers, though it’s too early to tell how much the latter will boost the business long term.

No, eBay isn’t immune to the U.S.-China tariff war, though it shouldn’t be crippled by it. No, it’s not a threat to giants like Amazon and Walmart that specialize in everyday, new goods. But riding hot, historically strong product categories, while keeping up with new industry tablestakes like Gen AI integrations for sellers and buyers, and popular payment types like Klarna, has the 30-year-old company’s future looking brighter than it has in a long while. And that’s not nothing.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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LinkedIn co-founder and major Democratic donor Reid Hoffman delivered candid criticism of his own party on Joe Lonsdale’s “American Optimist” podcast this week, saying Democrats “really did alienate a section of Silicon Valley” during the last election cycle.

Hoffman, long recognized as a political power broker and tech visionary, did not mince words as he lamented the shifting relationship between Silicon Valley and the Democratic Party. “I regret this and wish it didn’t happen, but I think the Democratic Party really did alienate a section of Silicon Valley and the tech people, whether it was attacks on crypto, whether it was, you know, kind of just attacks on big tech, all these things,” he said, reflecting on a schism he regards as increasingly dangerous for the party and the U.S. technology sector.

A representative for Hoffman declined to comment further.

The criticism was perhaps surprising from Hoffman, who is among the most influential—and generous—donors to the Democratic Party in recent U.S. political history. Over the past decade, he has contributed tens of millions of dollars to Democratic candidates, state parties, super PACs, and advocacy groups across the country.

He told Lonsdale “attacks on crypto” and unspecified attacks on Big Tech were particularly harmful. “One of the things that I think Silicon Valley shares is this deep view that the way you make massive progress for humanity is creating scale technologies,” Hoffman said. “And the principal way of creating scale technologies is companies, and so if you’re attacking that and limiting it, then you have all kinds of problems.”

And yes, he said, at times this conflict has even led them to abandon traditional Democratic alliances. Lonsdale, a longtime right-of-center entrepreneur and investor, pressed Hoffman on the tension between supporting pro-innovation policy and traditional Democratic priorities such as labor protections and union power. Both Hoffman and Lonsdale decried the pessimism and tribalism they see infecting public discourse, agreeing that America requires leaders willing to collaborate across ideological lines for the sake of national progress. They cautioned that if regulatory and political obstacles continue to drive innovation out of traditional tech hubs, the country risks ceding its technological advantage.

Innovation and growth

Cited his own experience as an investor in Aurora—an autonomous-trucking company that is headquartered in California, but launching its first test drives in Texas due to the “modern regulatory environment”—Hoffman described how red states are rapidly becoming new laboratories of tech innovation.

He also acknowledged the recent political shift of several former allies away from the Democratic camp, including fellow member of the “PayPal Mafia,” Elon Musk. Marc Andreessen has also emerged as a right-friendly figure, and even OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has broken with Democrats as well, saying in early July that he was “politically homeless.”

The podcast conversation ranged widely—from Hoffman’s new book “Superagency” and the PayPal Mafia’s distinctive culture, to AI optimism and the new regulatory battles shaping the technology industry. Even as he championed the promise of AI and entrepreneurship, Hoffman repeatedly returned to his core critique: Innovation has to be a core value for both left and right in America.

For this story, Fortune used generative AI to help with an initial draft. An editor verified the accuracy of the information before publishing. 

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

© Jason Alden/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Of all the new iOS 26 features that Apple previewed at WWDC in June, AirPods updates were only briefly mentioned. Studio-quality audio recording and improved call clarity got top billing, while the addition of a camera remote control was also quickly discussed. However, when the beta software arrived last week, it turned out there were actually more features than described at the event, making this a meatier update for Apple’s recent AirPods than initially indicated. I’ve spent some time testing all of the new tools, so here’s what you can expect when you decide to use them.

How to get the latest AirPods features

All of these updates are available for AirPods that have the H2 chip. Those include AirPods 4, AirPods 4 with ANC and AirPods Pro 2. You’ll have to download the public betas of both iOS 26 and the latest AirPods firmware to use these features. If you’re not feeling adventurous, all of these items will arrive this fall when the final versions of Apple’s OS updates roll out. That’s likely to happen for iOS and AirPods in early September, around the time the new crop of iPhones debuts.

Studio-quality audio recording

Apple may have framed the voice quality improvements on its AirPods as a boost for creators, but I’d argue the upgrade will be a welcome change for all. Sure, people who create content will benefit considerably from what Apple calls “studio-quality audio recording,” but the improved performance in noisy environments is something anyone will appreciate.

The company hasn’t offered much detail on exactly what it did to produce higher-quality audio, only describing the change in an initial press release as the result of a mix of the AirPods’ H2 chip, beamforming microphones and computational audio. That last update is likely doing the heavy lifting here, assisted by Apple’s audio chip, of course. I asked Apple for more specifics, but have yet to hear back.

Improved audio recording is available across iPhones, iPads and Macs, working in apps like Camera, Voice Memos, Messages (for dictation), Webex and more. Apple also says there’s upgraded vocal sound quality for calls, offering “more natural vocal texture and clarity” for Phone, FaceTime and other CallKit-enabled apps. As the voice upgrades are the most notable new features, I was eager to test them, and have spent the last several weeks doing just that (via the developer beta).

Billy Steele for Engadget

If you’re recording in a quiet room, you’ll notice that enhanced texture and clarity Apple promised. In my samples captured in Voice Memos, there’s not a huge difference between new and old firmware, but there is a noticeable one. The bigger improvement came when I moved to a noisy spot. Here, Apple dialed back its noise suppression in favor of voice clarity. While you’ll hear the slight roar of background noise in my audio clip, I actually sound better overall. That’s a trade I’ll bet many users will gladly make over the highly processed, digital-sounding results AirPods used to give us in less-than-ideal surroundings.

I also noticed that both of my samples with the new software were captured with a 48kHz sample rate. This isn’t new for AirPods audio recording/quality per se, but before this update some of my clips were still 24kHz — like my noisy sample with the old firmware. It seems like Apple is now defaulting to 48kHz as part of the overall sound boost, but that’s currently unclear and is something else I’ve asked the company for more info about.

Camera remote

The less exciting, but equally handy update for AirPods that Apple announced at WWDC is the addition of a camera remote control. Since newer AirPods have either force sensors or touch controls on their stems, the company saw fit to let you use those to take a photo or start and stop video recording. All of these tasks are done with either one press or a press and hold (you select which one you prefer when you enable the camera remote function).

For photos, you get a three-second countdown before your device snaps the picture. This gives you ample time to put your hand down after pressing the AirPods stem so you don’t ruin the selfie. For video, there’s no countdown, but there is a second or two delay before the recording starts. So, if you’re quick about it, you can get your hand away from your ear before showtime. However, you’ll still have to reach for an AirPod or your phone when the time comes to stop recording, so there will be some editing to do there. This all works well, but just remember you have to enable the camera remote feature as it’s not activated by default after the firmware update.

Sleep pausing and CarPlay switching

Billy Steele/Engadget

Most AirPods users have probably fallen asleep with one or both of the earbuds in their ears. Apple’s update will add automatic pausing when you’ve dozed off to help you not miss much of your TV show or podcast you were watching or listening to. However, it’s unclear how this works. All we know is it’s a simple on-or-off switch, and it’s disabled by default. Some have speculated that it uses sleep data from the Apple Watch, but that hasn’t been confirmed. Since AirPods have accelerometers, it’s possible the feature may rely on detecting movement, but I’ve asked for a firm answer on what’s going on here.

Another item on the list of AirPods updates is automatic switching for CarPlay. This is supposed to seamlessly transfer the audio to your car’s infotainment system from the earbuds when your phone connects to your vehicle. Again, there hasn’t been much discussion of this, and my attempts to trigger it were unsuccessful. That may be due to the fact that it requires wireless CarPlay, but I’m not seeing specific options for this in my AirPods settings. I’m waiting for more info from Apple on this feature too, and hopefully I’ll have more details to add to my observations soon.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/headphones/ios-26-updates-for-airpods-preview-enhanced-audio-recording-camera-remote-and-more-173036046.html?src=rss

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© Billy Steele for Engadget

• Apple could lose up to $12.5 billion in revenue if the DOJ forces Google to change how it pays for default search placement, according to JPMorgan. The DOJ is weighing remedies in an antitrust case against Google’s search business, and a decision is expected in August. While Apple isn’t directly involved in the case, its lucrative deal with Google is at stake. J.P.Morgan expects moderate remedies, but estimates Google’s worst-case exposure could reach $18 billion.

Apple could lose up to $12.5 billion in annual revenue if a federal judge forces Google to change the way it pays for its search engine agreements, according to a new note from JPMorgan.

The Department of Justice is demanding that corrective measures be imposed after its antitrust case against Google found the tech giant to be a monopolist in general search. The DOJ’s landmark case, which concluded in 2023, accused Google of maintaining that illegal monopoly by paying billions to device makers and browser developers, including Apple, to be their default search engine. Judge Amit Mehta found Google liable for anticompetitive conduct in general search but is still weighing appropriate remedies.

Both Apple and Google have submitted potential remedies for the case, and Judge Amit Mehta is expected to announce his judgment on them in early August. While Apple is not directly part of the DOJ’s antitrust suit against Google, the company could be deeply affected by the results due to its lucrative Traffic Acquisition Cost (TAC) agreement with Google.

Google reportedly pays Apple between $15 billion and $20 billion per year to ensure its search engine is the default on Apple devices.

The note calculates that the end of the agreement could cost Apple $12.5 billion annually, about 15% of Apple’s earnings per share, as a worst-case scenario. Analysts also suggested that a middle ground, namely that Google loses exclusivity to make deals with Apple but Apple finds alternative monetization or compensation from competitors, could be possible. The best-case scenario is that the judge only demands minor adjustments to Google’s practices, and TAC payments remain largely intact.

JPMorgan said in the note that the middle-ground scenario looked to be the most likely outcome of the case. They see a more moderate remedy as the most plausible path forward, which could include changes such as increased user choice screens (where users pick a search engine rather than defaulting to Google) or partial restrictions on Google’s default status across Apple devices.

While analysts note that the unlikely scenario of a full loss of TAC revenue would be painful, Apple has significant resources to absorb the impact or negotiate alternative deals. The company could also look to boost its own advertising and search monetization efforts if exclusivity is curtailed.

If Google loses its exclusivity with Apple, it could also leave the tech giant to strike up potential deals with competitors such as Microsoft or DuckDuckGo.

In a separate note addressing the potential impact of corrective remedies on Alphabet, analysts noted that “the ultimate impact to Google will also depend on how Apple—not technically a party to the suit—proceeds in search on Safari once the Google-DOJ case is resolved.”

While they estimated that the worst-case scenario could put Google at a potential revenue risk of $18 billion, analysts reiterated they expected the judge to impose moderate remedies rather than a full ban on default agreements, which would help Google maintain significant traffic.

Representatives for Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fortune.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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OpenAI launches ChatGPT Study Mode, transforming AI from an answer engine into a Socratic tutor that guides students through problems step-by-step rather than providing direct solutions.Read More

Zuckerberg's vision for AI centers on personal empowerment, with smart devices that understand users’ contexts and help them throughout the day.

Plus, FoodStream Network’s human-centered tech mission to end food insecurity.

Last week, social network Tea experienced a data breach that exposed personal information for its users. The dating safety app for women said at the time that "there is no evidence to suggest that current or additional user data was affected." However, 404 Media reports that the problem is bigger than originally stated. The site credits independent security researcher Kasra Rahjerdi, who found that content from the platform as recent as last week has been exposed.

Additionally, this source claims that the compromised information could allow hackers to view messages between Tea users. DMs might include other sensitive information, such as personal phone numbers, discussions of cheating and experience obtaining abortions. 

"As part of our ongoing investigation into the cybersecurity incident involving the Tea App, we have recently learned that some direct messages (DMs) were accessed as part of the initial incident," a spokesperson for the company told Engadget. "Out of an abundance of caution, we have taken the affected system offline. At this time, we have found no evidence of access to other parts of our environment." In addition, Tea said it will offer them free identity protection to users whose personal information was involved in the breach.

Tea's security issues come during a surge in popularity. The app allows women to anonymously share personal stories about their dating experience, with the intended goal of letting others know if the men they are meeting might be a risk to their personal safety, were engaged in catfishing, or were already in a relationship.

Update, July 29, 2025, 1:08PM ET: Added statement from Tea.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/data-breach-at-tea-reportedly-contains-images-and-dms-from-last-week-224823984.html?src=rss

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© Apple App Store

Earlier this year, Google rolled out AI Mode to Search users in the US. Now, the notoriously inaccurate "tool" is coming to the UK. While Google's AI overviews have been available in the UK since last summer, AI Mode provides more conversational responses and fewer links to other pages. 

Google touts AI Mode as a more intuitive method for asking multi-part questions or follow-ups. It uses Google's Gemini 2.5 model to detail how-tos, compare products or plan a trip. Instead of searching for something under the "All" tab, users activate it by clicking "AI Mode" and issuing a prompt with text, voice or a photo. 

AI Mode uses something called a "query fan-out" technique, meaning it does "multiple related searches concurrently across subtopics and multiple data sources and then brings those results together." However, there's two issues: The possibility of hallucinations — which Google admits to — and a reduction in click through rates. Both have occurred with AI Overviews on Google Search.

A new Pew Research Center report found that users who receive an AI summary after their search click on a traditional result almost 50 percent less (8 percent of the time, compared to 15 percent). On top of that, only one percent of users clicked on the link provided within the AI summary. This pattern can cause problems both for website traffic and for ensuring that AI-generation information is accurate. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/google-searchs-ai-mode-is-rolling-out-in-the-uk-110011893.html?src=rss

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© Google

The United Kingdom's Online Safety Act took effect on July 25th. Among other provisions, the new law makes websites responsible for protecting UK children from content deemed harmful, like pornography or the promotion of eating disorders. This has resulted in many of the most-used websites, including Pornhub, X and Reddit, either putting up or planning to put up age verification barriers to restrict access by minors.

Age-restricting laws put broadly popular websites in a difficult position. Sites like Reddit that rely on user-generated content have no good way of making sure nobody under 18 ever sees restricted material anywhere on the platform, so it's usually simpler to just ban minors altogether. But this creates a knock-on problem: underage users relying on unvetted free virtual private networks (VPNs) to get back on their favorite platforms.

UK residents are using VPNs to change their apparent locations to other countries and circumvent the Online Safety Act. In the few days since the law went into force, five of the 10 most-downloaded free apps in the UK have been VPNs. We like two of the five, Proton VPN and NordVPN, but NordVPN does not have a free plan — just a seven-day free trial, after which you have to pay. The other three are unvetted, untested and suspiciously generic (VPN Super Unlimited Proxy, FreeVPN.org and Unlimited VPN Proxy).

When you use a VPN, all your web traffic goes through one of the VPN's servers before moving on to its ultimate destination. Every time you connect, you're trusting the VPN not to abuse its access to your information, and some VPNs unfortunately abuse that trust. A free VPN is generally safe if it's supported by paid subscriptions, like Proton is. If there is no paid tier, or the free tier comes with no restrictions, you have to ask yourself where the money is coming from. 

The saying that "if the product is free, then the real product is you" holds true here. For example, Hola VPN admits in its terms of service that its sister company Bright Data can sell free users' residential IPs as proxy servers, and Hotspot Shield was the subject of an FTC complaint in 2017 that charged it with providing personally identifiable information to advertisers. And one of the services on the UK's top 10 list, FreeVPN.org, has no address on its website and a frighteningly sparse privacy policy.

Malware is the other significant risk. A 2016 study analyzed 283 Android apps with VPN capability, and found malware in 38% of them. Nor has the threat diminished in the 10 years since — just this year, threat analysts at CYFIRMA reported on a free VPN shared on GitHub being used as a malware vector. 

In the end, a fully free VPN has no real reason to protect you or your rights, and every incentive to milk you for profit. Whatever you choose to do with a VPN, make sure you're picking one that will keep you save without exploiting you. Green flags include a clear pricing structure, audits from independent firms in the last three years, a specific physical location on the VPN's website and a thorough privacy policy. Some trustworthy free VPNs include the aforementioned Proton VPN, plus hide.me, TunnelBear and Windscribe.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/vpn/vpns-are-booming-in-the-uk-after-age-restriction-laws-but-free-options-carry-big-risks-060036636.html?src=rss

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© Steve Dent for Engadget

Microsoft is implementing an age verification system on Xbox accounts to comply with the UK's Online Safety Act, and in a new blog post announcing the move, the company suggests it'll come to other countries, too. 

Players in the UK who indicate on their account that they're 18 years or older will now "begin seeing notifications encouraging them to verify their age," Microsoft says. The process is optional for now, and players will be able to enjoy playing Xbox games until "early 2026," when verification will become mandatory to "retain full access to social features on Xbox, such as voice or text communication and game invites." If you don't verify, you'll still be able to make purchases, play games and earn achievements, but social features will be limited to your friends.

Microsoft says its hopes to learn from its UK program, and "roll out age verification processes to more regions in the future." The company cautions that the version it introduces in other regions might look different than the "proof of government-issued ID, age estimation, mobile provider check and credit card check" options it's offering in the UK, but age verification will be the norm.

The UK's Online Safety Act was signed in to law in 2023 to ban nonconsensual deepfake porn and create rules preventing children from being exposed to adult content. As regulators have defined ways companies can comply with the law, implementing an age verification system has become the solution most platforms that host adult content have settled on. That's why Microsoft, Bluesky, Reddit, Discord and others have announced age-verification programs in the last few months.

The problem is, no age verification system is foolproof, and in some cases all they take is a photo to circumvent. The Verge reports you can fool Reddit's age gate with the photo mode in Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, for example. Using a VPN has also proven to be a way to get around age verification tools. If companies take Microsoft's approach and introduce age verification in more regions, it might get harder to avoid, but widespread adoption has privacy and security implications of its own.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/microsoft-plans-to-bring-xbox-age-verification-to-countries-outside-of-the-uk-201953614.html?src=rss

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© Microsoft

Google just announced a neat little feature for its Chrome web browser. It'll now show AI-generated reviews of online stores, to make buying stuff "safer and more efficient."

The feature is available by clicking an icon just to the left of the web address in the browser. This creates a pop-up that spills the tea about the store's overall reputation, with information on stuff like product quality, pricing, customer service and return policy. The AI creates these pop-ups by scanning user reviews from various partners, including Reputation.com, Reseller Ratings, ScamAdviser, Trustpilot and several others.

Google

It's only for US shoppers at the moment, with English being the only language available. It's also currently tied to the desktop browser. We've reached out to Google to ask if and when the feature will come to mobile. The company didn't confirm anything when asked a similar question by TechCrunch.

This could help Google compete with Amazon, which already uses AI to summarize product ratings and the like. This is just the latest move the company has made to cram AI into the shopping experience. Google recently introduced the ability to virtually try on clothing and makeup and it has been developing tools to provide personalized product recommendations and improved price tracking.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/chrome-will-now-display-ai-reviews-of-online-stores-190032205.html?src=rss

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Tesla Inc. engineering executive Lars Moravy said the company is in a “big swing moment” with its forthcoming products as he gave a wide ranging talk at a San Francisco Bay area gathering of customers and retail investors Saturday. 

Moravy, Tesla’s vice president of vehicle engineering, said he’s personally most excited about Semi truck — built at the company’s factory near Reno, Nevada — and called it key to the company’s mission. He spoke at the “X Takeover,” a day-long event in San Mateo. 

“We take big swings, and sometimes that risk can come with a lot of downside,” said Moravy, who has been with Tesla for over 15 years. “We’re in a big swing moment right now with autonomy, Robotaxis, with Optimus and with Semi.”

Optimus is the company’s humanoid robot.

Previous “Tesla Takeover” events, sponsored by the Tesla Owners of Silicon Valley club, focused on the electric vehicle maker. This year’s gathering, which drew scores of longtime Elon Musk fans, expanded to encompass SpaceX and the other companies in Musk’s overlapping business empire. Musk also spoke via video conference late in the afternoon. 

Moravy’s appearance and remarks served as a rallying cry for fans of Tesla and Musk in the face of severe challenges across the core automotive business. Tesla is losing market share as sales of its aging lineup fall in key markets around the world. That includes California, its former home where sales have declined for the last seven quarters. 

President Donald Trump’s signature tax plan ends the $7,500 tax credit for EV buyers that have helped support the market for years. It also makes key regulatory changes that Tesla executives have acknowledged will hurt revenue and profit.

On Tesla’s earnings call Wednesday, executives said the company started producing a more affordable EV in June, but it won’t be widely available until later this year so Tesla can prioritize making and selling as many of its current cars before the tax credit expires at the end of September. 

The new model, which Musk said would resemble the Model Y, is seen as crucial to buoying sales. Tesla makes five consumer vehicles: the Model S, X, 3, Y and the Cybertruck.

Moravy oversees a team of nearly 6,000 engineers who are working on several programs. He joined the company from Honda Motor Co. in 2010, the year that Tesla went public. He’s since been deeply involved in engineering every Tesla vehicle, and works closely with chief designer Franz von Holzhausen. 

On display at the event was Tesla’s forthcoming “Cybercab,” a two-seat autonomous vehicle designed without a steering wheel, as well as Optimus.

Musk has made it clear that robotics, artificial intelligence and autonomous driving represent Tesla’s future. The company is offering limited rides in Austin with Model Y vehicles that are not fully self-driving, and is expected to expand to the Bay Area sometime this weekend. 

In California, Tesla has a permit to offer rides in a non-autonomous vehicle that has a driver. The company does not have permits to deploy autonomous vehicles in the state.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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Hackers gained access to personal data on the majority of the 1.4 million customers of Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America, the company confirmed Saturday.

Minneapolis-based Allianz Life, a subsidiary of Munich, Germany-based Allianz SE, said the data breach happened on July 16 when a “malicious threat actor” gained access to a third-party, cloud-based system used by the company.

“The threat actor was able to obtain personally identifiable data related to the majority of Allianz Life’s customers, financial professionals, and select Allianz Life employees, using a social engineering technique,” Allianz Life said in a statement. “We took immediate action to contain and mitigate the issue and notified the FBI.”

The company said its own systems were not accessed, just the third-party’s platform.

Allianz Life said its investigation is ongoing and that the company has begun reaching out to the impacted individuals. It said the incident involves only Allianz Life in the U.S., not other Allianz corporate entities.

In the case of data breaches, a “social engineering technique” usually involves using trickery to gain access. Spokesman Brett Weinberg said he couldn’t provide details because they are still investigating.

Allianz Life also reported the breach to multiple other authorities, including the Maine Attorney General’s Office. A filing on the agency’s website said the company discovered the breach the day after it happened, and that it will be offering those affected 24 months of identity theft protection and credit monitoring.

Allianz Life was known as North American Life and Casualty until it was acquired by German conglomerate Allianz SE in 1979 and changed its name to Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America. It has nearly 2,000 employees in U.S., with the majority working in Minnesota, according to its website.

It is one of five North American subsidiaries of the Munich-based global financial services group Allianz SE, which says it serves more than 125 million customers worldwide.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

© Allianz Life Insurance Company via AP

The US Senate has granted the Internet Archive federal depository status, making it officially part of an 1,100-library network that gives the public access to government documents, KQED reported. The designation was made official in a letter from California Senator Alex Padilla to the Government Publishing Office that oversees the network. "The Archive's digital-first approach makes it the perfect fit for a modern federal depository library, expanding access to federal government publications amid an increasingly digital landscape," he wrote. 

Established by Congress in 1813, the Federal Depository Library Program is designed to help the public access government records. Each congressional member can designate up to two libraries, which include government information like budgets, a code of federal regulations, presidential documents, economic reports and census data. 

With its new status, the Internet Archive will be gain improved access to government materials, founder Brewster Kahle said in a statement. "By being part of the program itself, it just gets us closer to the source of where the materials are coming from, so that it’s more reliably delivered to the Internet Archive, to then be made available to the patrons of the Internet Archive or partner libraries." The Archive could also help other libraries move toward digital preservation, given its experience in that area. 

It's some good news for the site which has faced legal battles of late. It was sued by major publishers over loans of digital books during the Coronavirus epidemic and was forced by a federal court in 2023 to remove more than half a million titles. And more recently, major music label filed lawsuits over its Great 78 Project that strove to preserve 78 RPM records. If it loses that case it could owe more than $700 million damages and possibly be forced to shut down. 

The new designation likely won't aid its legal problems, but it does affirm the site's importance to the public. "In October, the Internet Archive will hit a milestone of 1 trillion pages," Kahle wrote. "And that 1 trillion is not just a testament to what libraries are able to do, but actually the sharing that people and governments have to try and create an educated populace."

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/internet-archive-is-now-an-official-us-government-document-library-123036065.html?src=rss

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Intel provided more detail about the scope of its planned job cuts and other business changes while sharing its second-quarter earnings results. Reports in April suggested that Intel could eliminate around 20 percent of its staff in a restructuring plan. Today, the chipmaker said it anticipates having a core workforce of 75,000 employees by the end of 2025, down from 99,500 at the start of the year.

The numbers are even more dramatic when considering the company's downsizing efforts as a whole. This time last year, the chipmaker employed 116,500 across the globe, not including workers at its subsidiaries, and that number has fallen precipitously since. As of June 28, the company had 96,400 workers, meaning it's planning a reduction of more than 20,000 employees over the second half of the year.

These cuts are part of the company's current goal to bring its non-GAAP operating expenses down to $17 billion this year, then to $16 billion at the end of 2026. The effort to rein in spending is also leading Intel to abandon some previously announced expansions. The business will no longer embark on new projects in Germany and Poland, and it said it will consolidate its Costa Rican testing and assembly operations into existing efforts in Vietnam and Malaysia. Finally, it will also "slow the pace" of its stateside growth at a construction site in Ohio.

"Our operating performance demonstrates the initial progress we are making to improve our execution and drive greater efficiency," said Lip-Bu Tan, who has been forthright about his plans to downsize since assuming the CEO title in March. Tan was brought in to replace Pat Gelsinger in an effort to turn around Intel's business following a long, slow slide into financial trouble.

Update, July 25, 3:30PM ET: This story has been updated multiple times since publish to provide more context around the layoffs. The employment numbers were also simplified by removing some mentions of employees at Intel subsidiaries.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/intel-confirms-it-will-cut-a-third-of-its-workforce-by-the-end-of-2025-215014365.html?src=rss

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Google's latest AI adventure is a new option for search. Web Guide is a new way that Google will organize search results based on analysis by a dedicated version of its Gemini artificial intelligence tool. The claim in the announcement is that AI can help surface the most relevant content, but it could also be a new way for Google to control what websites get prime billing in results. 

In the graphic shared alongside the blog post announcing this Search Labs experiment, the company showed clusters of results to the query "how to solo travel in Japan." Web Guide displayed a few hits each under different headers, such as "Comprehensive Guides for Solo Travel in Japan," "Personal Experiences and Tips from Solo Travelers" and "Safety and Destination Recommendations," with an option to reveal more for each grouping. It does seem to provide some AI-generated summaries at the top of each heading, but at least with this example, there are fewer instances of copy/pasting another publication's words wholesale.

Web Guide has some similarities to Google's AI Mode, which looped artificial intelligence more tightly into the search experience. The presence of AI Mode for all US users has already prompted outcry from publishers; News/Media Alliance called it "theft." Pew Research Center recently issued a report confirming that the presence of an AI summary at the top of a search led to fewer people clicking through to read published content from a source. The group's survey of 900 adults who shared their browsing history revealed that for users who did not see an AI summary, 15 percent of them clicked on a link from search results and 16 percent ended their browsing session. In contract, only 8 percent of users who saw an AI summary clicked a link in the search results, and 26 percent ended their browsing session. And while Google has been working to improve their accuracy, let us never forget that those AI-penned summaries once gave us glue pizza.

It's too early to know if Web Guide will encourage more people to actually visit and support sites other than Google. For now, it's only available for opted-in users in the Web tab for search, but it will appear elsewhere down the line. Given that Google is already in the legal dog house for anticompetitive behavior with its search business, it should be interesting to see how this latest AI rollout goes.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/google-will-use-ai-to-organize-search-results-with-web-guide-191135024.html?src=rss

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2024 was an awful year for Sonos. Its long-awaited entry into a crowded headphones market was eclipsed by a bungled app launch which had a knock-on effect that impacted everything the company had planned to do for the rest of the year. Plus, those Ace headphones were missing a major feature.

One year later, that TrueCinema spatial audio enhancement is finally ready. And with that update, Sonos added a few more improvements to the Ace, including two-person TV Audio Swap, adaptive noise cancellation and better calls. I spent some time testing every aspect of the update that arrived in June to determine if Sonos’ headphones really are better after the tweaks.

TrueCinema is finally here

The first time I tried the Ace at a press event last spring, TrueCinema was one of the main parts of the demo. From the jump, Sonos was clear this wouldn’t arrive when the headphones first went on sale, but I also didn’t expect the company to take a full year to have it ready.

As a refresher, TrueCinema is a feature for the Ace that takes into account the acoustics of the room where one of its soundbars is located. It then creates spatial audio for the headphones based on that info when TV Audio Swap is active. According to Sonos, it supposedly “understands the dynamics of your space, acoustically treats it and makes it sound like you have a beautifully tuned 3D audio system right in your headphones.” It’s similar to the company’s TruePlay tuning that calibrates its soundbars to your living room or home theater space.

Sonos has championed TrueCinema as a more realistic listening experience. Since it simulates the characteristics of the room, it’s supposed to make it seem like you aren’t wearing headphones at all. I’m not convinced on that point, but the feature does significantly enhance the spatial audio capabilities of the Ace for TV Audio Swap.

For example, subtle details in movies — things like footsteps, as well as various beeps, clicks and taps in Rogue One — are a lot more obvious with TrueCinema. There’s more overall depth and direction to the sound as well, which makes this the optimal mode for watching TV or movies with Sonos’ headphones. I’m confident my review score would’ve been higher if this was part of the original package since it makes such an obvious improvement to sound quality.

TV Audio Swap for two

Billy Steele for Engadget

The marquee feature for the Sonos Ace for the last year has been TV Audio Swap. This allows you to send the sound from a compatible Sonos soundbar to the headphones for an individual listening experience. Of course, this means you can watch an action flick at full volume after your family goes to bed or to tune in to a sporting event without annoying your partner. This has worked well for me both during my review and in the time since.

Unfortunately, I don’t have a second pair of the Ace, so I can’t vouch for how well TV Audio Swap now works with a companion. But since the ability to send soundbar audio to two sets of Ace headphones is one of the main items in the recent software update, I can’t discuss the overall state of the device without mentioning this feature’s availability.

Improved ANC and clearer calls

Another aspect of the Ace’s update is improved active noise cancellation (ANC), but not in the way you might expect. The company didn’t figure out a way to block more noise per se, but it does account for any sound leaks that may impact performance. Sonos says its refined ANC setup can adapt to changes in fit caused by hair, glasses and hats in real time using the sensors inside the Ace. With that tweak, I noticed the slightest difference in ANC performance when sunglasses or a hat kept the ear pads from sitting flush on my face, but it’s not quite as good as a tight seal. I’d characterize this update as a modest improvement, but it’s still an improvement nonetheless.

Sonos also claims that this software update offers an improved call experience thanks to higher resolution audio. The company also added Sidetone, or the ability for you to pipe in your voice during calls when ANC is enabled. Plenty of companies have this, to varying degrees, and the effectiveness depends on how natural the sound is and whether or not you’re able to make any adjustments. In the case of the Ace, Sidetone acts as an enhanced ambient mode, and it definitely improves the call experience. Since I could speak normally and didn’t feel the need to shout to hear myself, video and voice calls felt more natural.

Wrap-up

A year after their debut, the Sonos Ace is living up to the lofty expectations the company set when the headphones arrived. After spending time with this batch of updates, I’m convinced the Ace would’ve benefitted from having all of this ready at launch, especially TrueCinema. Since one of the Ace’s main functions is personal living room listening, taking so long to deliver the feature that would boost sound quality this much is another misstep.

On the other hand, it’s good to see Sonos is still working to improve the Ace. When you consider the company spent most of 2024 fixing a majorly botched app redesign, it would have been understandable if Sonos left the Ace to languish until it was time for version 2.0. The company had to delay products last summer, and according to a report in March, it even canceled another entirely. When CEO Patrick Spence resigned in January, interim chief executive Tom Conrad expressed the need for “getting back to basics” (Conrad was named permanent CEO on July 23). Improving a major new product that was overshadowed by a poor run of form is certainly one way to reclaim some of your reputation. It also doesn’t hurt that the Ace is currently available for $149 less than its original $449 price.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/headphones/a-year-later-the-sonos-ace-is-finally-fulfilling-its-potential-170035355.html?src=rss

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