The Battle for the Soul of Buy Nothing
At the one-year anniversary of its launch, the Buy Nothing app had been downloaded 600,000 times, but only 91,000 people were regularly using it, not many...
Alphabet Layoffs Hit Trash-Sorting Robots
Teach a robot to open a door, and it ought to unlock a lifetime of opportunities. Not so for one of Alphabet’s youngest subsidiaries, Everyday Robots. Just...
The US Supreme Court Doesn’t Understand the Internet
Recent laws in both Texas and Florida have sought to impose greater restrictions on the way platforms can and cannot police content. Gonzalez v. Google takes a different track,...
What Is Blockchain? The Complete WIRED Guide
At this stage, when you say “blockchain,” you get two reactions: eye-rolling and dismissal or excited fervor at the potential for quick money. But it doesn’t...
Get Used to Face Recognition in Stadiums
Just because face recognition was installed for one use case doesn’t mean it won’t or can’t be adapted to others. In airports, Delta Airlines started using face recognition...
How the US Could Ban TikTok in 7 Not-So-Easy Steps
Individual users would not have faced penalties for staying on TikTok, and internet service providers like Comcast and Verizon would not have been covered under the...
The Kremlin Has Entered the Chat
On the chilly, clear afternoon of February 24, 2022—the day Vladimir Putin’s forces launched their full-scale invasion of Ukraine—a handful of Russian opposition politicians gathered in...
FTC fines drug discount app for sharing user information to Facebook and Google
The Federal Trade Commission has slapped prescription drug discount app GoodRx with a $1.5 million fine for the unauthorized disclosure of customers’ identifiable health information with...
Fact-Checkers Are Scrambling to Fight Disinformation With AI
Spain’s regional elections are still nearly four months away, but Irene Larraz and her team at Newtral are already braced for impact. Each morning, half of...
Layoffs Broke Big Tech’s Elite College Hiring Pipeline
Eva Xie did it right. She went to the highly competitive Bronx High School of Science in New York City and then MIT, where she studied...