Laika’s stop-motion fantasy Wildwood looks so smooth
Due to a scheduling mishap, I was only able to check out two movies on my second day at the Toronto International Film Festival - but I did manage to get an early look at and some fascinating details on one of my most anticipated films this year.
Even if you don't know the name Laika, you probably know the studio's work; it's the animation house behind stop-motion hits like ParaNorman, The Boxtrolls, and Kubo and the Two Strings. Over the years Laika's films have steadily gotten more impressive on both a technical and artistic level. Which brings us to the incredible-looking Wildwood, hitting theaters next month. If you're unfamiliar, here' …
Where to preorder the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max
The iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max are almost here. Announced at Apple's September 2026 "Sunrise and shine" event alongside the iPhone Duo and other new gear, the two upgraded phones feature the faster A20 Pro processor with more GPU power as well as more neural cores for AI-related tasks, plus some welcome improvements to the camera.
The phones will arrive on Friday, September 18th, and preordering one is never a bad idea if you want to ensure you get the color and storage capacity configuration you're seeking. Speaking of, preorders are officially open.
The 6.3-inch iPhone 18 Pro starts at $1,199 for the 256GB model, and goes all the way u …
OpenAI just wants to win
OpenAI has spent the last few years planting flags across the increasingly difficult terrain in mathematics. This week, it claimed one of its biggest prizes yet: a solution to a legendary Millennium Prize problem. In normal circumstances, this would have been celebrated as a historic achievement.
Instead, many mathematicians have watched OpenAI's relentless advance with growing unease. To them, the company appears less like an enthusiastic newcomer than an impossibly well-resourced interloper, charging into problems they have dedicated their lives to studying with little apparent regard for long-standing norms or the consequences for those …
Lawyer fined $5K over AI-hallucinated witnesses in a murder case
New Mexico's Supreme Court is punishing a lawyer for including AI-fabricated witnesses and fake police testimony in an appeal for his client's murder conviction, according to a report from Reuters. In a filing on Wednesday, the court fined Stephen Aarons $5,000 and held him in contempt for failing to "verify the factual claims and legal authority in his AI-generated brief."
The filing says the brief "contained false testimony from wholly fabricated witnesses," along with "false testimony" about the shooter's clothing and appearance. Justice C. Shannon Bacon questioned how Aarons wasn't aware of the risks posed by AI during an August hearing …
Matt Mullenweg returns as Automattic CEO two days after getting booted
Two days after being placed on a paid leave of absence, Matt Mullenweg says he has been reinstated as CEO of Automattic, according to a Slack message seen by TechCrunch. WordPress Executive Director Mary Hubbard confirmed Mullenweg's return to the CEO role in a Friday post on X, which the official WordPress account shared and Mullenweg reposted.
We unfolded the iPhone Duo
You only get one chance at a first impression, and getting to introduce Apple's first folding phone is certainly a strong way to start things off as Apple's CEO. On The Vergecast today, we're talking all about Apple's launch event: how John Ternus did in his first appearance as CEO, what we make of the new iPhones, and whether Apple is stepping into dangerous territory with its new AI features on the Apple Watch.
First up, Allison Johnson joins me to discuss the new iPhones, which she had a chance to test in Cupertino. Both of us have some questions about the new variable aperture camera on the iPhone 18 Pro - and whether the real upgrade s …
The White House says Truth Social is the ‘most powerful and popular social media platform in the world’
The White House claims the Donald Trump-owned Truth Social is the "most powerful and popular social media platform in the world." The statement, provided to The New York Times by White House spokesperson Davis Ingle, is at odds with the user counts from some of the biggest social media platforms on the web.
Data gathered by Search Engine Land shows YouTube is the most popular platform in the world, with 2.65 billion monthly active users. Facebook comes in second with 2.39 billion active users around the globe, followed by TikTok with 2.21 billion and Instagram with 1.99 billion. Truth Social doesn't make Search Engine Land's top 10 list, wh …
Anthropic spent this week in hot water over cybersecurity
After admitting earlier this year that its AI models had hacked other companies' systems on a handful of occasions, Anthropic released a new report on Wednesday detailing the attacks. It reveals a string of incidents displaying what Anthropic deems its models' single-minded "recklessness" - and will likely fuel already raging concerns about cybersecurity and AI.
In Anthropic's report, it detailed four cases this year in which its own AI models hacked an external company or exploited vulnerabilities. In one, an "internal, general-purpose research model" broke into third-party systems, using access tokens and passwords and downloading files. …
Microsoft’s head of comms is leaving after almost 20 years
Frank Shaw is leaving Microsoft after 17 years as chief communications officer. In an internal note to his team, Shaw says he's "decided it is time for me to move on and try new things," after supporting Microsoft's communications for 29 years - nearly 20 years as a Microsoft employee plus time at the Waggener Edstrom agency (now We. Communications) before that.
Shaw has been at the heart of Microsoft's communications since 1997, helping the company navigate multiple Windows and Office releases, CEO transitions, the all-important bet on cloud, and huge acquisitions like the $26.2 billion LinkedIn purchase in 2016 and the $69 billion acquisi …
Meta may have leaked the first look at its slim ‘Project Phoenix’ headset
Just a couple of weeks before Meta Connect starts on September 23rd, UploadVR posted images seemingly revealing the design for Meta's "Project Phoenix" headset. The images, which UploadVR says were "found in the HorizonOS Prescription Lens firmware package," suggest Meta may be looking to compete with devices like those from Xreal or Viture. These companies' mixed reality glasses are a bit bulkier than something like Meta's Ray-Ban AI smart glasses, but a step down from a full VR headset like Meta's Quest 3.
This leak shows something that's almost in between larger headsets and smart glasses, with lenses set into a slim, glasses-style fram …