Talk Fuse

    Topic: Technology

    Technology covers the tools, companies and systems shaping how people work, communicate, create and access information. It includes artificial intelligence, software, consumer devices, space and digital infrastructure, as well as the policy, security and social questions that follow them.

    The topic matters because technological change increasingly affects everyday life and public decision-making. Coverage helps readers follow new developments, assess their practical impact and understand the debates around innovation, privacy, reliability and accountability.

    • How Real Is the Pickleball in ‘The Dink’? A Pickleball Pro Takes on the Cast

      Apple TV+’s pickleball comedy “The Dink” arrives on 24 July, and The Hollywood Reporter enlisted a PPR-certified pickleball instructor to judge how authentically the film portrays the sport. The film, produced by Ben Stiller and directed by Josh Greenbaum, stars Jake Johnson as a former tennis prodigy who takes up pickleball, with Mary Steenburgen and…

    • What time does Black Ops 7 Season 5 start in your time zone?

      Call of Duty: Black Ops 7’s Season 5 update launches on Thursday, 23 July, bringing a large batch of new content across every mode as developer Treyarch continues its pattern of substantial post-launch support. The update includes new multiplayer maps and modes, additional zombies content, endgame features, and Warzone updates, giving players who have stayed…

    • Nintendo Basically Says That Splatoon 4 Will Happen

      Nintendo has indicated that competitive multiplayer will remain part of the Splatoon series, prompting expectations that a traditional fourth instalment will eventually follow. The comments matter because the newly released Splatoon Raiders spin-off takes the franchise in a different direction, but Nintendo says this does not replace its established competitive format. Producer Seita Inoue addressed…

    • NFMLA Expands NewNarratives Grants and Adds Absurd Fellowship for Emerging Auteurs to Use AI

      NewFilmmakers Los Angeles (NFMLA), a nonprofit supporting emerging filmmakers, has expanded its NewNarratives grant scheme, raising total available funding to $35,000 and introducing a new AI-focused fellowship in partnership with Absurd. The move builds on a programme launched in 2021 with Warner Bros. Discovery, which has so far attracted more than 1,175 applications from over…

    • Anthropic’s $1.5B copyright settlement approved; only 350 authors opted out

      A US judge has approved a $1.5 billion (£1.18 billion) settlement between Anthropic and a class of authors, closing the largest copyright class-action ever certified and the largest copyright settlement on record. The case arose after a court ruled that Anthropic’s use of books to train its AI models was fair use, but that it…

    • Here’s what that trash can with an X icon means on your electronics

      The small crossed-out wheeled bin icon found on most electronic devices is the official marking of the European Union’s Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive, which prohibits electronics from being thrown out with regular household rubbish. It signals that a device must instead be collected separately for proper recycling, reflecting growing global concern over…

    • Houthis threaten to attack shipping tankers if they use Saudi Arabian ports on Red Sea

      Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement has warned shipping companies that tankers using Saudi Arabian ports risk being attacked, moving quickly to enforce a naval blockade it announced a day earlier. The threat, coming alongside Iran’s separate moves against shipping in the strait of Hormuz, could hit Saudi oil exports that had until now escaped disruption from…

    • Canada’s SOCAN names Musical AI as its attribution partner to credit and pay creators whose work shapes AI music

      Canada’s performing rights society SOCAN has partnered with Musical AI, a Canadian rights technology firm, to build systems that identify when songwriters’ and composers’ work has been used by artificial intelligence, ensuring those creators are credited and paid. SOCAN will recognise Musical AI as an approved technology partner for attribution services, marking one of the…

    • Apple’s rumored ‘Upgrade’ program brings lease-to-own pricing for iPhones, Macs, and iPads

      Apple is reportedly preparing to launch a lease-style purchasing scheme called “Apple Upgrade” on 28 July, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, as component and RAM shortages push device prices higher. The programme would work like a car lease, letting customers upgrade early, keep the device, or return it at the end of the term, with…

    • Google releases three new Gemini models — but no 3.5 Pro

      Google DeepMind has released three new Gemini models — 3.6 Flash, 3.5 Flash-Lite and 3.5 Flash Cyber — but has again held back the long-awaited update to its flagship Gemini Pro model. The launch is notable largely for what was missing, since rivals OpenAI and Anthropic have been shipping new flagship models at a rapid…