Snap is launching a new Specs AI tool, and it’s coming to iOS and Mac
Snap is introducing "Specs Intelligence," a new AI assistant that can connect other digital accounts to help you with things like work tasks and keeping track of travel information. It seems similar to AI assistants like Meta's Muse and Gemini's Spark, though Snap is pitching Specs Intelligence as an "anticipatory AI service" that "helps you manage what needs attention today, so you can make progress toward your longer-term goals." Like with other AI assistants, you can also chat with it.
Specs Intelligence is being launched alongside Specs, Snap's first consumer pair of augmented reality glasses. But it's also available on iOS today in pre …
I wore Snap’s $2,200 smart glasses
My favorite part of wearing the Specs, Snap's new augmented reality glasses, was playing dominoes. Sitting across the table from a Snap employee wearing the same pair of chunky glasses, I could select a virtual domino with a pinch and then move my hand to drop it in place, watching the tile snap down in front of us on a real table. It was unlike anything I've tried in other VR headsets or smart glasses - the ability to sit with another person and have a shared digital experience.
Snap really believes in AR glasses. The company has spent more than half a decade developing the technology, producing two generations of glasses that only ever sh …
The 2.5-hour AI-generated Odyssey movie is 2.5 hours too long
Christopher Nolan's engrossing take on The Odyssey dominated at the box office and spurred a newfound interest in classic literature among filmgoers. But a new retelling of the story made entirely with AI is so bad that it might just make viewers hate the original tale altogether.
The new film, called Odysseus: The Fall, comes via AI firm Fountain 0 and is written and directed by company cofounder Ash Koosha, who also lent his likeness to the title character and created all of the music. (The film's credits are very short.) The studio's only previous work is an AI film called Dreams of Violets that made it into Tribeca earlier this year. Th …
The AI data center e-waste problem is huge — and getting bigger
E-waste from the AI boom has been vastly underestimated, a new report warns. By 2050, it could become enough trash to fill 23 million shipping containers - roughly enough 40-foot containers to circle the world six times if lined up in a row.
It's a significantly higher estimate of AI's e-waste than previous studies have found because the authors of the new report factor in all the infrastructure needed to support servers in data centers. The broader scope provides a clearer picture of junk AI leaves behind, according to the nonprofit Basel Action Network (BAN), which published the paper today.
"AI may feel weightless, but every model dep …
Resident Evil is a comedy first and a thrilling nightmare second
When Paul W.S. Anderson's Resident Evil hit theaters in 2002, video game movies were largely seen as a niche. Films like Mortal Kombat and Tomb Raider had proven that big-screen game adaptations could be successful, but the commercial and critical failure of projects like the 1993 Super Mario Bros. still cast a long shadow. And while Anderson's vision of Raccoon City might have captivated audiences on the whole, many hardcore fans of Capcom's games were left disappointed by the way the original movies wildly deviated from the source material.
Weapons director Zach Cregger's new take on Resident Evil is a return to the franchise's fundamenta …
Walmart takes a bite off the cost of Metroid Ravenous physical preorders
The Metroid series is going back to its 2D roots again with Metroid Ravenous for the Nintendo Switch 2, the first side-scrolling game in the series since 2021’s Metroid Dread for the Nintendo Switch. If you’re already excited enough to consider preordering, you can save $10 on the physical version of the game when you buy it from Walmart. It’s $59.88 instead of $69.99, about the same as buying it digitally. The game launches on January 28th, 2027, but it’s not clear how long the preorder discount will last. If it’s anything like other Walmart preorders, it may occasionally disappear.
Nintendo first showed off the side-scrolling adventure game at its September 2026 Direct, with a frantic trailer cutting between cinematic sequences, Samus dashing and rolling across a variety of environments, and engaging a number of enemies and bosses in battle. Samus absorbs some powerful abilities at the conclusion of Dread, and Ravenous seem to be all about plowing through anyone stopping her from escaping the planet. Other details of the story, including unique new mechanics, are being kept under wraps for the time being.
If you haven’t played Metroid Dread, I recommend it, especially at its $41.99 discounted price at Amazon. It’s part of Nintendo’s “Customer Appreciation” sale happening through September 26th, and several other games and accessories are cheaper, too.
Apple might make servers again to cash in on the AI rush
According to The Information, Apple is planning to get back into the server game and might just pair up with Nvidia to make it happen. Apple retired its Xserve line in 2011 and has largely left enterprise machines to other manufacturers since. But the growing demand for compute power as the AI industry continues to expand has apparently led the company to believe there is an opening for its powerful but efficient ARM-based M processors. Its Mac Mini and Mac Studio have proven popular with AI developers, which has led to shortages.
The server product, whether it's called Xserve or something else, likely won't debut until 2029. Word is that i …
Your ‘health age’ is fake
This is Optimizer, a weekly newsletter sent from Verge senior reviewer Victoria Song that dissects and discusses the latest gizmos and potions that swear they're going to change your life. Opt in for Optimizer here.
During last week's Apple Watch announcement, I let out a distinct "Noooo!" in the Steve Jobs Theater. Along with a new readiness metric and a redesigned Health app, Apple had just announced that later this year, it'd be introducing a new longevity feature called Health Age.
This is a familiar concept in the wearable and health tech world. The idea is that if you put effort into your health and fitness, your physiological age c …
Google will now let any AI agent run your smart home
Google is opening up its smart home to AI agents, letting tools like Claude and Open Claw access and control your connected devices and analyze your home's data using the standardized Model Context Protocol.
Google Home MCP is a new integration that lets third-party AI agents control and monitor your smart home and act on your behalf. It "allows any AI agents that support MCP, including Google Antigravity, Claude, Hermes or Open Claw, to securely work with all of the devices and event history in your Google Home ecosystem," Taylor Lehman, group product manager at Google Home & Nest, said in a blog post.
According to Lehman, Home MCP integ …
Claude comes for Gemini with its own take on Docs and Slides
Claude is getting a pair of new tools today: Docs and Slides. They'll let you create documents and presentations through Claude chats, which you can export, edit, and share with other users.
As part of the announcement, Anthropic is also simplifying how Claude chats work, merging regular chats and Cowork into "one Claude," with all of its AI productivity tools available from any chat. Artifacts and Claude Design capabilities will be available through the new single interface as well. According to Anthropic, Claude "can now figure out what a task needs, so what Cowork and Design can do is available from any conversation, with the context, sk …