AI can now answer questions so quickly that the search itself can feel optional. That convenience worries the Royal Observatory Greenwich, which has warned that instant AI answers can weaken the curiosity, scrutiny, and source-checking behind real knowledge.
The risk hides inside the usefulness. Chatbots can help people test ideas, move faster, and find new angles, but a finished response can also cut users off from the messy trail that makes learning stick. When that happens, information arrives without the struggle that turns it into judgment.
How much thinking should AI do for us
The Royal Observatory’s argument carries weight because it comes from an institution built on patient observation, not quick summaries. Paddy Rodgers, director of Royal Museums Greenwich, points to the habits that scientific discovery depends on, asking better questions, weighing evidence, and following leads that don’t look useful at first.
Astronomy’s own history backs him up. Early observers gathered vast records about the heavens, and later generations found uses for that data the original researchers couldn’t have predicted. A machine optimized for efficiency might have skipped those detours because they lacked immediate value.
What happens when intelligence becomes a utility
Sam Altman has described AI moving toward a metered service, with intelligence sold more like electricity or water and priced through usage. His framing is a business model, but it sharpens the cultural worry around AI as a replacement for mental effort.
If intelligence becomes something people buy on demand, reasoning can start to feel like a service call rather than a skill to practice. The danger grows when a polished answer gets treated as verified knowledge, especially when users can’t see what the system skipped, flattened, or failed to check.
What should people watch next
The better habit is to make AI work against your own certainty. Ask it to challenge an idea, expose missing evidence, and test a conclusion before you accept the response as finished.
That turns the Royal Observatory’s warning into a practical rule. Use AI to widen the search, not end it. Check what it leaves out, trace claims back to sources, and keep the final act of judgment in human hands.
Scientists have pushed wireless speed into territory that current mobile networks can’t touch. A Tokushima University team demonstrated a 112Gbps wireless connection in the 560GHz band, using soliton microcombs to generate a more stable terahertz signal for future 6G systems.
The near-term prize isn’t a faster handset. It’s the hidden infrastructure that carries traffic between network sites, where backhaul capacity can decide whether future 6G speeds feel real or get trapped behind crowded network pipes. That makes this a useful 6G speed breakthrough to watch, even if consumers won’t see it on a spec sheet anytime soon.
Why does this record carry weight
The 560GHz band gives the 112Gbps result its edge. The team sent a single-channel wireless signal well beyond the range where conventional electronic hardware starts running into weaker output power and higher signal noise.
That frequency range sits in the terahertz zone, which researchers are exploring as a way to open wider data lanes for 6G. Earlier communication systems at these frequencies have often stayed in the range of a few to several dozen gigabits per second. This test crossed the 100Gbps class beyond 420GHz, which pushes the work into a more serious category.
How did the signal stay clean
At these frequencies, raw speed depends on control as much as bandwidth. Phase noise and limited output power make wireless transmission harder to keep stable, especially when a system is trying to move more data through one channel without the signal falling apart.
When do real networks get closer
No one should read this as a phone upgrade arriving soon. The researchers still need to cut phase noise further, support higher-order modulation, improve terahertz output power, and extend transmission distance with better antenna design.
The first useful home for the technology will probably be mobile backhaul or photonic-wireless network links. That’s less visible than a new 6G phone, but it’s more important to the network itself. Before 6G can deliver massive speeds to everyday devices, the infrastructure behind those devices needs a faster way to move data around.
Google has always been ahead of the curve when it comes to protecting Pixel users from spam calls, and it looks like the company isn’t done yet. According to a recent teardown of the Google Phone app by Android Authority, Google is working on a new phone number spoofing detection feature.
What is phone number spoofing?
Phone number spoofing, also known as caller ID spoofing, is when a scammer tricks your phone into displaying a familiar or saved contact’s number, even though the call is actually coming from a completely different number.
As users are more likely to pick up a call if it looks like it’s coming from family members, friends, or authorized personnel, like a doctor or a bank representative, phone number spoofing is on the rise in the scam chart. It has become a surprisingly common tactic and one that has caught a lot of people off guard.
So what is Google doing about it?
Android Authority cracked open version 222.0.913376317 of the Google Phone app and found strings of code that point to an upcoming spoofing detection system. One of the strings reads, “Someone may be pretending to call from your contact’s number,” and another suggests that users will have the option to hang up the call immediately.
It’s not entirely clear how Google plans to detect spoofed numbers, but the timing is interesting. Only a few days back, Google announced a slew of security features, including verified financial calls, OTP protection, real-time malware detection, APK scanning in Chrome, and more.
With the new call spoof detection feature and existing spam call protections, including Call Screening and spam detection, the Pixel phones have become the best anti-scam smartphones. There’s no word yet on when this feature will roll out, but it’s good to know Google is working on it.
Gemini and ChatGPT dominate the AI image generator conversation, but Ideogram has a cleaner argument for attention. It focuses on visual work people need to ship, from creator assets to layouts that have to fit a platform on the first try.
Its clearest advantage is typography. Ideogram is built for posters, banners, social posts, newsletter illustrations, and video thumbnails, with a particular strength in generating readable copy inside designs. One garbled word can wreck an otherwise usable graphic.
It also gives users practical controls, including prompt refinement, four image options per request, public galleries for inspiration, style choices, dimensions, remixing, and paid editing through Canvas. Those features help turn a rough request into something closer to publishable.
Why Ideogram keeps pulling users back
Ideogram puts text placement and format choices into the workflow from the start. For creators working on layout-heavy assets, that can cut down the repair loop that usually follows a flawed AI image result.
The service gives users four generated options each time, which adds a useful layer of selection before editing begins. Its automatic prompt refinement can expand a rough idea, while public galleries make it easier to study existing images and build from other starting points.
Why bigger tools don’t settle it
Gemini and ChatGPT still have strengths Ideogram doesn’t erase. Gemini’s Nano Banana Pro is positioned as versatile across logos, infographics, slide designs, portraits, and abstract visuals, while ChatGPT is strong for diagrams, and image edits guided through conversation.
Ideogram wins a more specific fight. It fits jobs where creator assets often fail over small details, especially copy in the design, reusable styles, flexible aspect ratios, and fast revision. For public-facing graphics, those details can outweigh brand familiarity.
Where Ideogram still makes you wait
Ideogram isn’t a clean win for everyone. The free plan includes restricted daily generations, slower rendering, public image creation, and lower-quality JPEG downloads. Paid plans add more images, faster output, extra dimensions, negative prompts, and Canvas editing.
The smartest approach is to treat Ideogram as a specialist. Flux, Adobe Firefly, Gemini, and ChatGPT all have their own strengths, but Ideogram deserves a test run when the job depends on readable design copy and repeatable formats.
Start with the free version, but don’t judge it from one request. Its value shows up after a few iterations, style changes, and format tests.
That demand also brought scalpers, who started listing the controller at inflated prices. Valve has since introduced a reservation queue to give real buyers a better shot at future stock. Still, one complaint kept coming up. For many players, the Steam Controller was simply too locked into Steam.
What was holding the Steam Controller back?
For players who mostly game through Steam, the setup works well. Steam Input handles the controller’s extra features and gives users plenty of control over how it behaves. Still, many players do not keep all their games inside Steam. For those users, the controller was harder to recommend because it did not work as smoothly across other launchers and non-Steam games.
That is now starting to change. As spotted by Phoronix, support for the new Steam Controller has been added to SDL (Simple DirectMedia Layer), the widely used cross-platform library that many games and apps rely on for controller input. It has also received a follow-up mapping update, which should help the controller behave more like a standard third-party gamepad in SDL-supported games.
How well does it work outside Steam now?
Early testing sounds promising, although it is not perfect yet. Testers in the SDL pull request said that the controller works with or without Steam running, and that touchpads, capacitive stick touch, grip sense, back buttons, gyro, accelerometer, and the QAM button are functional in some form.
That said, there are still minor touchpad issues, and running Steam in the background can cause double-input problems in some cases.
For now, it appears that the Steam Controller will have to rely on SDL to play third-party games. Valve developer Pierre-Loup has already clarified that adding standard Windows XInput support would essentially make it behave like an Xbox controller, which could limit its unique inputs, require a separate mode-switching setup, and add extra cost for users.
Apple is reportedly preparing one of the biggest Siri redesigns in years with iOS 27, but even after multiple delays, the company may still label the upgraded assistant as a beta product. According to reports from Mark Gurman of Bloomberg, internal test versions of iOS 27 already refer to the revamped Siri as a beta experience and include an option allowing users to leave the Siri beta entirely.
The move would be unusually familiar for longtime Apple users. When Apple originally introduced Siri in 2011, the assistant itself launched under a beta label before Apple quietly removed the branding in 2013. Despite that, Siri has continued to face criticism for lagging behind competitors in reliability, conversational abilities, and overall intelligence.
Apple’s AI catch-up strategy is taking longer than expected
The revamped Siri was originally expected to arrive in 2024 as part of Apple’s broader AI push. However, multiple reports now suggest the project has faced delays of nearly two years.
The issue for Apple is timing. While Apple continues refining Siri, rivals like Google Gemini, ChatGPT, and other Android-based AI systems have already rolled out advanced conversational assistants with broader real-world capabilities.
That gap has increasingly made Siri feel outdated compared to competing AI products, especially as Apple continues marketing Apple Intelligence as a major part of the iPhone experience.
Why the beta label matters
If Apple officially launches the new Siri as a beta feature in iOS 27, it could serve two purposes. First, it gives Apple flexibility to continue refining the assistant publicly after launch while lowering expectations around bugs, hallucinations, or missing features. Second, it allows the company to release AI features sooner rather than waiting for a more polished final version.
The beta branding would also reflect the broader challenge Apple currently faces in AI. Unlike competitors that prioritize rapid deployment, Apple has historically focused more heavily on stability, privacy, and controlled rollouts.
Reports also suggest Apple is introducing stronger privacy controls into Siri’s AI experience, including optional auto-delete settings for conversation history.
What happens next
Apple is expected to reveal more about Siri’s redesign and its AI roadmap during WWDC next month. Developer beta versions of iOS 27 will likely be the first public look at the new Siri experience.
However, the larger question remains whether Apple’s slower, more cautious AI rollout can still compete in a market where rivals have spent the last two years aggressively pushing generative AI into mainstream consumer products.
For now, Siri’s overhaul appears less like a finished comeback and more like Apple finally arriving at the AI race – still mid-development.
AI-generated videos are getting so realistic now that spotting a fake version of someone online is becoming harder by the week. And for creators, that opens up a pretty uncomfortable problem: what happens when your face starts appearing in videos you never made? YouTube seems to be taking that concern seriously.
The platform is now expanding its AI likeness detection system to a much larger group of creators, giving eligible users new tools to track and report videos that digitally imitate them using artificial intelligence. The feature was previously limited to a smaller pilot group within the YouTube Partner Program, but YouTube says it will begin rolling it out to all eligible creators over 18 in the coming weeks.
YouTube wants creators to catch AI clones faster
The new system lives inside YouTube Studio and is designed to help creators identify when their face may have been used in altered or synthetic videos uploaded to the platform. This means YouTube’s detection tools scan for AI-generated content that appears to replicate a creator’s likeness. If the system finds something suspicious, creators can review the content and request removal if it violates YouTube’s privacy policies.
That matters because AI-generated impersonation is becoming a growing issue online. Deepfake-style videos can now mimic facial expressions, voices, and even speaking patterns with alarming accuracy. For creators who build trust through their online identity, fake videos can quickly become damaging or misleading. YouTube says the tool is meant to give creators more visibility into how their images are used while helping audiences avoid confusion about manipulated content.
Setting it up is fairly simple — but matches may take time
Once the feature becomes available for your account, you can set it up directly through YouTube Studio on desktop. Here’s how to do it:
Open YouTubeStudio on desktop.
Go to Content Detection > Likeness > Start Now.
Give YouTube permission to use likeness detection.
Complete the one-time identity verification process.
Go to Content Detection > Likeness > Start Now.
Give YouTube permission to use likeness detection.
Complete the one-time identity verification process.
Once setup is complete, the platform will start scanning for AI-generated or altered videos that may be using your face. If any matches are detected, you’ll be able to review the content and request removal directly through YouTube Studio.
Interestingly, YouTube also warns that creators may not immediately see flagged videos after enrolling. That doesn’t necessarily mean the feature is broken — it could simply mean there aren’t many AI-generated uploads using their face in the first place.
The company says the system continues working quietly in the background even when no matches appear. This rollout also highlights a bigger shift happening across online platforms right now. AI tools are evolving faster than most moderation systems can keep up with, and companies are increasingly being pushed to build safeguards around identity misuse, synthetic media, and deepfakes before those problems spiral further. For YouTube creators, this new detection system may become one of the platform’s most important AI-era safety tools yet.
While the idea is appealing, I have never fully enjoyed using the speech-to-text feature for voice typing. I understand why it exists, and I have used it in a pinch. But it has always felt like one of those phone features that works just enough times to be useful, and not often enough to be conveniently reliable.
It’s not just about speaking clearly; the problem is a bit more subtle. You have to avoid doubling back mid-sentence, or you have to pretend your brain naturally produces clean text messages in one smooth pass. And since mine does not, I’m looking forward to Google’s new Rambler feature for Gboard. It’s a part of the Gemini Intelligence on Android, but what has my attention is how it works.
Rambler turns natural spoken thoughts into concise text. Google says that it can deal with the way people actually speak, including self-corrections, repeated words, and filler sounds like “ums,” “ahs,” and “likes.” This might sound boring until you think about how often typing is the slowest part of using a phone.
Bigger phones might finally be for me
Modern smartphones now sport near 7-inch displays that are fantastic for watching, reading, and gaming. But typing on them or using them with one hand is still annoying. And with the screen getting taller, there’s an awkward reaching game to hit the letters at the far side of a wider keyboard. Trying to reply while walking, carrying a bag, sitting in a cab, or holding coffee usually means typos, shorter replies, or waiting until both hands are free.
Voice typing should have been the obvious fix. The problem is that raw speech-to-text often gives you exactly what you said, and people don’t speak in rigid sentence structures. Real speech has pauses, restarts, half-formed thoughts, and random corrections. A voice note can carry that chaos because tone helps. A text message cannot.
Rambler’s solution is simple. Google is letting you talk how you’d normally do in a conversation or voice note. But rather than getting the exact wording and focusing on accuracy, Rambler will pick out the important parts and fit them into a message that still sounds like you.
The bilingual angle is actually huge
The great part about being bilingual is how two different languages blend during natural speech. So it was great to hear that multilingual support is available right from the get-go. Google says Rambler can switch between languages in a single message using Gemini’s multilingual model, including examples like English mixed with Hindi. A lot of people, like myself, do not text in one language alone.
We switch depending on the person, the mood, or the context. Standard voice typing can struggle when a sentence naturally moves between languages. It might get the words right, though it skips the rhythm. If Rambler can actually preserve that mixed-language flow while cleaning up the clutter, it becomes far more practical than a generic “make this sound professional” AI button.
It still has to prove it is faster than typing
I am not convinced this becomes a daily habit for everyone. A lot of people already type fast enough. Some prefer voice notes. Others may not want to talk to their phone in public, no matter how smart the transcription gets. There is also a privacy comfort test. The company claims that it will show when Rambler is enabled, and that audio is only used to transcribe in real time and is not stored or saved. Still, it has to prove that it is fast and low-effort to really stick around. But at least, Google is promising that you don’t have to think twice before speaking or make perfect sentences.
The iPhone Shortcuts app reminds me of Minecraft. It might be relatively easy to jump into, but it offers nearly limitless potential, allowing you to build anything you want. The same holds true for the Shortcuts app, and that endless possibilities are what many iPhone users might find intimidating. But you don’t have to.
If you are new to iPhone shortcuts, think of them as little automated helpers. You can build them yourself or find ones that others have built and use them. And that’s the beauty of shortcuts. If you don’t want to get your hands dirty, you can find shortcuts others have created and tailor them to your needs.
With that said, let’s check out my favorite shortcuts. These are not the best shortcuts on everyone’s list, but they are the ones I use daily to get things done faster and more efficiently.
App settings: stop digging through the settings app
Anyone who has spent more than five minutes hunting for an app’s permissions inside the Settings app knows how frustrating it can be. You have to open the Settings app, scroll all the way down, open the Apps section, scroll again to find your app, and only then can you enter its settings.
This shortcut fixes that completely. It uses the Get Current App and Open URLs actions in the Shortcuts app to detect which app you are currently in and jump straight to its settings page. Once you set it up and add it to your Control Center, all you have to do is open the app, swipe down from the top, and tap the shortcut.
It will automatically open the current app’s settings. It is genuinely one of the most practical shortcuts I have ever created, and you can download it using the link below.
Apple Frames 4: make your screenshots look professional
If you ever share screenshots on social media, a blog post, or a presentation, this shortcut is for you. Apple Frames 4 is a free shortcut by Federico Viticci of MacStories, which can wrap your screenshots in a proper device frame.
The latest version is noticeably faster, supports all recent Apple devices, and even lets you choose frame colors and scale the images proportionally. What I love most about this shortcut is that it can take multiple screenshots as input and combine them in one image.
All the images in this article have been created using the same shortcut. If you also take screenshots regularly, I can highly recommend this shortcut. I would also recommend you check out my favorite screenshot utility for Mac. It offers all the missing features of Mac’s built-in screenshot tool and then some.
Scan document: your pocket scanner is already in your hand
You don’t need a third-party app to scan documents on an iPhone. You don’t even need to open the Notes or Files app the usual way. With this shortcut, you can open the document scanner instantly and scan and save papers without any extra steps.
I have it in my Home Screen and use it whenever I need to quickly scan a receipt, a letter, or any paper document. It’s one of those shortcuts that sounds simple until you realize how much time it saves you every week.
Resize & convert: resize images without downloading a third-party app
How many times have you shared a photo only to find out it was too large, or in the wrong format for where you needed it? Since the iPhone Photos app doesn’t let you resize an image or change its format, I found a simple shortcut to do it.
The steps are pretty easy, too. You pick the image, set the size, and the shortcut handles the rest. I use this a lot when I need to send images for articles or posts that require specific dimensions.
It handles a task I would otherwise have to do on my Mac or download a third-party app on my iPhone to complete.
I deal with a lot of PDFs, and sometimes I need to extract a few pages to share or save. So I downloaded a shortcut that lets you select specific pages from a PDF and extract them into a new file.
It sounds like a small thing, but if you have ever had to send someone just two pages from a 40-page PDF, you know how handy this is. You don’t need to download any app, pay a subscription, or open your Mac. Your iPhone handles it in seconds.
Clipboard history: because you always lose what you copied
This is one of the most underrated shortcuts on this list. While macOS has finally added a clipboard history feature with the macOS Tahoe update, the iPhone still doesn’t have a clipboard history. That means every time I copy something on my iPhone, it erases all the previously copied items.
So I built a shortcut to work around it. Now, every time I copy something on my iPhone, it saves to a note, creating a running clipboard history I can refer back to whenever I need it. The only issue is that I have to run the shortcut manually for it to work.
So that’s why I have added it to the Back Tap gesture (go to Settings → Accessibility → Touch → Back Tap) on my iPhone. Once I copy something I want to save, I simply tap the back of my iPhone three times to trigger the shortcut and save the copied item in a preassigned note.
When you download the shortcut, make sure to edit it by tapping the three-dot menu and selecting the note you want to use as your clipboard history.
Turn off mobile data when iPhone connects to Wi-Fi
To balance the manual activation of the last shortcut, I give you one that is pure automation. Once you set it up, you never have to think about it again. The shortcut uses the Shortcuts automation feature to detect when your iPhone connects to a Wi-Fi network and automatically turns off your mobile data.
I have also set up the companion automation that turns mobile data back on when you leave Wi-Fi. It saves battery life and prevents your phone from uselessly using mobile data when it doesn’t need to. Since this is an automation, there’s no way to share a downloadable link, but you can learn how to create this shortcut. The screenshot should give you the basics of how to do it.
My 7 favorite iPhone shortcuts
I know the Shortcuts app can feel intimidating at first, but most of these require very little setup, and the payoff is immediately obvious. Start with one that solves a problem you have right now, and before long, you will be building your own.
If you have an iPhone and are not using Shortcuts, you are missing out on one of the most powerful tools Apple has built. So, definitely give this a try, and your life will never be the same.
Most budget headphones today look painfully similar. Same safe designs, same recycled “deep bass” marketing, and the same feature checklists. That’s exactly why Edifier’s newly launched Auro Ace immediately stands out, thanks to its animated dot-matrix display built directly into the earcups and a design that clearly prioritizes personality as much as audio.
Edifier’s Auro Ace headphones put lyrics directly on the earcups
The biggest highlight of the Auro Ace is its customizable dot-matrix display that can show synced song lyrics, animations, custom text, and pixel-style graphics directly on the headphones. Users can tweak these effects through Edifier’s companion app.
Beyond the flashy visuals, the headphones also come with fairly respectable specs for the price. The Auro Ace packs 32mm dynamic drivers, Bluetooth 6.0, dual-device connectivity, USB audio support, and AI-backed call noise reduction. Edifier claims the headphones can deliver up to 62 hours of battery life with the display disabled, while a 15-minute charge can provide roughly 11 hours of playback.
The headphones are priced at 279 yuan in China, which converts to roughly $40, firmly placing them in the affordable audio category.
I’m still trying to understand who the lyric display is actually for
I’ll be honest, the whole lyric-syncing feature feels a little baffling to me. If I’m the one listening to the song, why would I want the lyrics glowing on the outside of my headphones where literally everyone else can see them except me? It almost feels like a feature designed less for the listener and more for random strangers sitting across the metro.
Then again, that also seems to be exactly what Edifier is going for here. The company has included multiple built-in visual themes and customization options designed to match different outfits, moods, or aesthetics, treating the Auro Ace more like a wearable fashion accessory than just another pair of budget headphones.
And honestly? Maybe that’s not such a bad thing. Budget audio products have become incredibly repetitive lately, with brands endlessly recycling the same ANC and bass-heavy marketing buzzwords while the hardware itself looks nearly identical. At least the Auro Ace has some personality. Weird personality, sure, but personality nonetheless.
