This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology. Synthesia’s AI clones are more expressive than ever. Soon they’ll be able to talk back. —Rhiannon Williams Earlier this summer, I visited the AI company Synthesia to give it what it needed to …
The Download: unnerving AI avatars, and Trump’s climate gift to China Read More »
During Black Friday in 2024, Stripe processed more than $31 billion in transactions, with processing rates peaking at 137,000 transactions per minute, the highest in the company’s history. The financial-services firm had to analyze every transaction in real time to prevent nearly 21 million fraud attempts that could have siphoned more than $910 million from its …
Transforming CX with embedded real-time analytics Read More »
Earlier this summer, I walked through the glassy lobby of a fancy office in London, into an elevator, and then along a corridor into a clean, carpeted room. Natural light flooded in through its windows, and a large pair of umbrella-like lighting rigs made the room even brighter. I tried not to squint as I …
Synthesia’s AI clones are more expressive than ever. Soon they’ll be able to talk back. Read More »
On a spring day in 1954, Bell Labs researchers showed off the first practical solar panels at a press conference in Murray Hill, New Jersey, using sunlight to spin a toy Ferris wheel before a stunned crowd. The solar future looked bright. But in the race to commercialize the technology it invented, the US would …
How Trump is helping China extend its massive lead in clean energy Read More »
Image: SanDisk Let’s be honest. Your phone probably doesn’t have enough storage space to get real creative. If you’re always shooting vids and snapping pics with your phone, then you might benefit from this 1TB SanDisk Creator Phone SSD—and right now it’s on sale for just $109.99 (was $134.99). That’s a smooth 19 percent discount …
Add 1TB of storage to your phone with SanDisk’s tiny SSD, now 19% off Read More »
Image: Baseus When you’re in a hurry and tossing USB cables into your bag, it’s easy for them to get tangled or damaged, especially when they snag on things as you take them out. Well, that won’t be an issue anymore if you get this speedy Baseus retractable cable—and right now it’s only $9.96 on …
This fast-charging retractable USB-C cable is a must-buy for $10 Read More »
Image: IDG / Matthew Smith Hunting for a solid gaming laptop that won’t totally destroy your wallet? We got our hands on a bunch of models under $1,000 and a couple of them seriously over-delivered. Whether you’re after buttery smooth gameplay, a laptop that won’t weigh you down, or just enough ports to hook up …
Tested! The best gaming laptops under $1,000 in 2025 Read More »
Image: Kamrui Mini PCs are a great way to get a desktop experience without the bulk or the expense. Today Amazon is selling one with an impressive AMD Ryzen 7000-series processor, 32GB of RAM, and dual monitor capability for just $269.99, with a coupon code. The Kamrui Mini PC doesn’t exactly have a catchy name, …
Outrageous! This tiny Ryzen PC with a huge 32GB RAM is just $269 Read More »
Image: Firefox Back in February of this year, Mozilla committed to supporting Firefox on older versions of Windows for at least another six months, which meant up to August 19th, 2025. Now, the company has once again updated its release calendar with some happy news for anyone still using older versions of Microsoft’s operating system. …
Firefox support for Windows 7 PCs gets extended once again Read More »
A virtual private network (VPN) can save you a lot of money if you use it right. By changing your virtual location, you can use one streaming service to see shows that might be scattered between three or four in your home country. You can also trawl the world for discounts that only show up …
The best VPN deals: Get up to 77 percent off ExpressVPN, ProtonVPN, Surfshark and others Read More »