Timef 04/24/2025

Spotify announced on Thursday that it expanded the availability of its AI Playlist feature to over 40 additional markets, including countries in Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Caribbean.  The AI-powered tool, currently in beta on Android and iOS devices, lets listeners create personalized playlists based on written prompts, such as “workout music to make my […]

As anyone could have seen coming, the rush to preorder Nintendo Switch 2 consoles crashed a bunch of websites.

As artificial intelligence systems become smarter, one A.I. company is trying to figure out what to do if they become conscious.

Preorder the new Nintendo Switch 2 at GameStop for $449.99 with a release date of June 5.

TechCrunch Disrupt returns October 27–29 to Moscone West in San Francisco — and we’re inviting thought leaders, founders, VCs, and tech experts to apply for a chance to take the stage at one of the most anticipated tech events of the year. Applications are now open to speak at Disrupt 2025, where over 10,000+ tech […]

Microsoft's annual Work Index Report finds that many companies are already deploying AI agents — and they may soon replace some human workers.

When the Apple Watch launched, it was unclear if smartwatches would pan out. Ten years later, Apple has a $100-billion hit that reshaped the watch industry and ushered in a new age of fitness tracking.

These 35 Chrome extensions have privacy and security concerns. Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson says to delete them now.

RepAir recently raised a $15 million extension to its Series A.

Founders, the battlefield is open. And the bold are stepping forward. Startup Battlefield 200 at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025 is now accepting startups to compete in the ultimate pitch showdown in front of over 10,000 tech leaders from around the globe to witness.. This is no ordinary pitch. This is the fight for visibility, capital, and […]

Revolut, the $45 billion neobanking startup founded in the U.K., may have put its IPO plans on ice, but its balance sheet is looking pretty hot. The company reported net profit of $1 billion (£790 million) in 2024, while its customer base grew by 38% to 52.5 million, according to its annual report. Revenues increased […]

This 16-inch Windows laptop runs quietly, has an excellent touchscreen, and delivers surprisingly decent performance.

Companies like Google and Microsoft have equipped their productivity suites with AI features and assistants, while startups such as ClickUp and ReadAI have focused heavily on building AI integrations and search capabilities. In alignment with this growing trend of infusing digital work suites with AI, Dropbox on Thursday upgraded its AI search tool, Dash, first […]

Peter Stormare is back and snarling in "Until Dawn," the horror movie based on the hit survival game. Review.

From charging adapters to external monitors, we’ve gathered the essential peripherals for your Apple laptop.

Volkswagen of America and Uber on Thursday unveiled an ambitious plan to launch a commercial robotaxi service — using autonomous electric VW ID. BUZZ vehicles — in multiple U.S. cities over the next decade. The companies expect to launch a commercial service in Los Angeles, the first city on the list, by late 2026. VW […]

As of April 24, the Lego Star Wars: The Phantom Menace Mos Espa Podrace Diorama is on sale at Amazon for $65. Normally it's listed for $79.99, so you're saving 19%.

Get those curls and waves looking extra luscious with our favorite diffusers and diffuser attachments.

Instagram’s long-promised video-editing app is out now. Here’s how to use Edits to make Reels, and how the software differs from TikTok’s CapCut.

Ever wonder how much electricity you’re using when you prompt, or thank, an AI model? Hugging Face engineer Julien Delavande did, so he built a tool to help arrive at the answer. AI models consume energy each time they’re run. They’re run on GPUs and specialized chips that need a lot of power to carry […]

"The Last of Us" stars Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey dance to "Xanadu" in a very cute clip by Max.

As of April 24, the Sony WH-CH720N headphones are on sale at Amazon for $98. This is a 35% discount off their list price of $149.99.

A WIRED investigation reveals that the US Department of Homeland Security has deployed at least 30 YouTube ads since April 1 to threaten irregular migrants with deportation and a ban on reentry.

Perplexity's voice assistant has hit Apple devices, announced the Nvidia- and Jeff Bezos-backed AI company on Wednesday.

Tesla says it already launched a robotaxi service, albeit only for employees.

Tech expert Kurt “CyberGuy" Knutsson says 329,000 mph fusion rocket promises to be fast, disruptive and enable deep-space missions.

Build a Grogu in a hover pram model at participating stores and take it home with you for free.

As of April 24, the 64GB Fire Max 11 tablet is on sale at Amazon for $184.99. This is 20% off its usual list price of $229.99.

Geopolitical pressures are accelerating a demand in many countries and regions to reshore — that is, to redevelop critical industry infrastructure, and to bring back businesses, which had moved or outsourced some or all of their industrial operations to cheaper countries further away. But that is easier said than done. In the key area of […]

Most vibrators sold in the U.S. are made in China, and experts fear prices will skyrocket.

There is no way to actually avoid tariffs, and the cheap luxury goods you see on TikTok are not actually luxury.

Ancient Mars likely had rainy days to feed its rivers and lakes, a new study suggests, challenging theories it lacked precipitation.

What's fresh on Netflix, Max, Prime Video, and more? Here are the must-sees and the better-off-to-avoids.

Scan documents from anywhere with this lifetime subscription to iScanner, now $24.99 (reg. $199).

Get a grade-A refurbished Apple MacBook Air for just $199.97 (reg. $999).

Ditch monthly fees and store your files forever with Koofr’s 1TB lifetime cloud storage for $119.97 — secure, private, and easy to use across all devices.

Clean your pool the easy way with this cordless robotic cleaner — now $100 off as a refurbished model with free shipping while supplies last.

Live stream Vancouver vs. Inter Miami in the 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup for free from anywhere in the world.

For years, websites included information about what kind of crawlers were not allowed on their site with a robots.txt file. Adobe, which wants to create a similar standard for images, has added a tool to content credentials with an intention to give them a bit more control over what is used to train AI models. […]

Adobe on Thursday launched the latest iteration of its Firefly family of image generation AI models, a model for generating vectors, and a redesigned web app that houses all its AI models, plus some from its competitors. There’s also a mobile app for Firefly in the works. The new Firefly Image Model 4, Adobe says, […]

Save 29% on a four-pack Apple AirTag bundle at Amazon.

Save 15% on the Beats Fit Pro at Amazon.

Save 32% on the Amazon Fire HD 10 tablet at Amazon.

Answers to each clue for the April 24, 2025 edition of NYT's The Mini crossword puzzle.

As of April 24, the WD_Black 2TB C50 Expansion Card for Xbox is on sale at Amazon for $179.99 — 22% off its regular $229.99 price.

As of April 24, Nintendo Switch 2 is available for preorder at Walmart for $449. Ships June 5 with upgraded specs and no Mario Kart required.

As of April 24, Pokémon Charizard ex Super Premium Collection is on sale for $49.94 at Amazon — 38% off its usual $79.95 price.

Finally make peace with PDF files with this lifetime license to PDF Converter Pro; now just £18.08 (reg. £75.36) with code SAVE20 through April 27.

Still don't understand how air fryers work? We got you.

The best cordless lawn mowers from top brands like Flymo and Einhell.

Find the best free online courses from MIT.

How to unblock porn for free. Unblock XVideos for free from anywhere in the world.

Live stream the 2025 MotoGP Grand Prix of Spain for free from anywhere in the world.

How to unblock porn for free in South Carolina. Unblock and watch Pornhub for free from anywhere in the world.

How to get free books on Stuff Your Kindle Day. Download free cozy mystery books on the latest Stuff Your Kindle Day.

Hints and answers to today's Hurdle all in one place.

The best smart scales from top brands like Garmin and Fitbit.

The best wired, wireless, and wire-free earbuds from top brands like Bose and Apple.

Connections: Sports Edition is a New York Times word game about finding common sports threads between words. How to solve the puzzle.

The NYT Strands hints and answers you need to make the most of your puzzling experience.

Connections is a New York Times word game that's all about finding the "common threads between words." How to solve the puzzle.

Here's the answer for "Wordle" #1405 on April 24 as well as a few hints, tips, and clues to help you solve it yourself.

According to the WSJ, a recently discovered will suggests late Zappos co-founder Tony Hsieh had concrete plans for his fortune despite previous beliefs that he died without leaving instructions for an estate that’s estimated to be worth $1.2 billion. Among other things, the document, signed in 2015 and included in a recent court filing, contains […]

Google’s AI Overviews feature credible-sounding explanations for completely made-up idioms.

Tech and consulting giant IBM was not immune to the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) cuts. IBM had 15 of its federal contracts cancelled due to DOGE-related cuts during the first quarter of 2025, according to reporting from Reuters and Bloomberg. These cuts amount to $100 million in future payments, per Bloomberg. Federal contracts represent […]

Ryan Coogler’s horror movie has shattered box office records—and the myth that audiences don’t care about original stories.

AI coding assistant startup Windsurf cut its prices “across the board” it announced on Monday, touting “massive savings” for its users as competition with its rival Cursor intensifies. Windsurf said it’s getting rid of its complex system of “flow action credits,” which charged developers for actions its AI did in the background. It’s also cutting […]

With Nintendo Switch 2 preorders about to go live, it's time to freshen up on how to track restocks.

As of April 23, the 2025 Apple MacBook Air powered by the M4 chip has fallen to a new record-low price on Amazon.

Tesla has started testing its autonomous ride-hail service with employees in Austin and the Bay Area ahead of the company’s planned robotaxi launch this summer. “FSD Supervised ride-hailing service is live for an early set of employees in Austin & San Francisco Bay Area,” the company posted Wednesday on X. FSD stands for “Full Self-Driving,” […]

Government censorship has found its way to Bluesky, but there’s currently a loophole thanks to how the social network is structured. Earlier this month, Bluesky restricted access to 72 accounts in Turkey at the request of Turkish governmental authorities, according to a recent report by the Freedom of Expression Association. As a result, people in Turkey can […]

Toward the end of March, OpenAI announced its intention to release its first “open” language model since GPT‑2 sometime this year. Now, details about that model are beginning to trickle out from the company’s sessions with the AI developer community. Sources tell TechCrunch that Aidan Clark, OpenAI’s VP of research, is leading development of the open model, […]

Last year was monumental for the AI industry in the U.S. and beyond. There were 49 startups that raised funding rounds worth $100 million or more in 2024, per our count at TechCrunch; three companies raised more than one “megaround,” and seven companies raised rounds $1 billion in size or larger. How will 2025 compare? […]

At Semafor’s 2025 Word Economy Summit on Wednesday, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said he believes Netflix’s long-term goal to achieve a $1 trillion market capitalization is possible if the streaming giant continues to perform well.  Sarandos said, “In the previous five years, we’ve doubled our revenue, we grew profits 10 times, and we grew our […]

After a sluggish couple of years, fintech appears to be making a comeback. In the first quarter of 2025, fintech startups globally raised a combined $10.3 billion — marking the highest level of funding since the first quarter of 2023, according to CB Insights research. The average deal size of $17.7 million also marked the […]

Amid rumors that the company is eyeing an IPO, Discord appointed former Activision Blizzard Vice Chairman Humam Sakhnini as CEO. Discord co-founder Jason Citron will leave his CEO role after thirteen years at the company. Discord straddles the gaming and social media spaces — despite its initial emergence as a platform for online multiplayer gamers […]

In mid-April, OpenAI launched a powerful new AI model, GPT-4.1, that the company claimed “excelled” at following instructions. But the results of several independent tests suggest the model is less aligned — that is to say, less reliable — than previous OpenAI releases. When OpenAI launches a new model, it typically publishes a detailed technical […]

The franchise’s Disney era has been defined by toothless politics, but Andor Season 2 is a vivid metaphor for America’s descent into authoritarianism.

The U.S. Department of Justice is probing Disney’s deal to take a controlling stake in FuboTV, Bloomberg reports. Fubo is a live TV streaming service known for its extensive sports coverage. Officials are examining whether the deal would create a concentration of power in the sports streaming market. In January, Disney announced that it was going […]

Despite being the biggest electric vehicle market in the world, China might decide it's had enough of Tesla. In this episode of Uncanny Valley, we break it all down.

AdGuard Family subscription blocks ads, prevents malware, and offers parental controls on multiple devices for A$25.

Protests against Elon Musk and Tesla have been spreading around the world thanks to the CEO’s involvement in the Trump administration. Now those protests are listed in an official “risk factor” in paperwork Tesla is required to file with federal regulators. The new language, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday morning, shows […]

Shoppers who sign up for auto-delivery today will save 25% and lock in their discounted price through the end of the year.

The "Gilmore Girls" and "Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" creator returns for a show about New York and Paris-based dance companies, "Étoile." Review.

OpenAI on Wednesday brought the tech behind its new and improved image generation feature in ChatGPT to its API, allowing developers to integrate it into their apps and services. OpenAI’s new image generator, which launched for most ChatGPT users in late March, went viral for its ability to create realistic Ghibli-style photos and “AI action figures.” […]

A new video purporting to show the dimensions of the iPhone 17 Air makes the new device look very impressive.

The Amazon Book Sale takes up to 80% off popular book titles, including e-books. Plus, get the Kindle Colorsoft on sale for its lowest price yet.

Margaret Mitchell, an AI ethics researcher at Hugging Face, tells WIRED about a new dataset designed to test AI models for bias in multiple languages.

If you share your password on Max, you might have to pay more very soon.

As of April 23, check out the best Lego Star Wars Day deals we've gathered.

Stay up to date on the latest AI technology advancements and learn about the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.

Apple and Meta are the first companies fined under the EU's tough tech law.

Gemini, Google’s AI chatbot, had 350 million monthly active users around the globe as of March, according to internal data revealed in Google’s ongoing antitrust suit. The Information first reported the stat. Usage of Google’s AI offerings has exploded in the last year. Gemini had just 9 million daily active users in October 2024, but […]

Shopping refurbished isn't just a hack for laptops and phones. Get a renewed Shark FlexStyle for under $200 and save $40 over a brand new version.

You’re not the only one thinking about where AI is headed. So why come alone? From now through May 4, buy your Early Bird ticket to TechCrunch Sessions: AI and save up to $210 — plus get 50% off a second ticket for your colleague, co-founder, collaborator, friend, or whoever you want to bring. It’s […]

Recession indicator? Intel is set to lay off tens of thousands of its employees.

During the ongoing Google antitrust trial, an OpenAI executive testified that the ChatGPT maker would be interested in buying Chrome.

Critically heralded documentary "Pee-Wee as Himself" is coming soon to Max. Watch the trailer.

Less than a month after its release, Samsung already has a BOGO deal on the new Samsung Frame Pro: Get a $400 Music Frame for free with purchase.

The trailer for "Heads of State", an action comedy starring John Cena and Idris Elba, has dropped. Watch.

With AvatarFX from Character AI, we're one step closer to a video chatbot you can interact with in real-time.

WhatsApp just launched Advanced Chat Privacy to give users more control over sensitive conversations.

As of April 23, you can get the Soundcore Anker Life Q20 hybrid ANC headphones for just $39.99, down from $59.99 at Amazon. That's 33% off.