Punjab Times

Apple smart home display rumors now point to a fall launch with iOS 27

The Apple Home app icon on a graphic orange background.

The rumored “HomePod with a screen” we’ve heard so much about was reportedly lined up for launch in 2025, and then this spring, and now, according to the latest updates, it’s on the shelf until this fall. Leaker Kosutami posted as much on X last week, and today, Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman followed up with similar information, saying its robot arm-equipped cousin is now planned for launch in 2027.

According to Gurman, the J490 smart home display / HomePad is waiting for Apple to finish work on its chatbot-style AI update for Siri.

That was supposed to be ready by now, but it is now predicted to arrive later this year, along with the iP …

Read the full story at The Verge.

…read more

You can (sort of) block Grok from editing your uploaded photos

People can block the xAI’s Grok chatbot from creating modifications of their uploaded images on social network X. Neither X or xAI, both Elon Musk-owned businesses, have made a public announcement about this feature, which users began noticing on the iOS app within the image/video upload menu over the past few days. 

This option is likely a response to Grok’s latest scandal, which began at the start of 2026 when the addition of image generation tools to the chatbot saw about 3 million sexualized or nudified images created. An estimated 23,000 of the images made in that 11-day period contained sexualized images of children, according to the Center for Countering Digital Hate. Grok is now facing two separate investigations by regulators in the EU over the issue.

The positive side of the recent feature addition is that X and xAI have taken a step toward limiting inappropriate uses of Grok. This block is a simple toggle and it hasn’t been buried in the UI. So that’s nice.

The negative side, however, is that this token gesture that doesn’t amount to any serious improvement to how Grok works …read more

The government shutdown is hitting airports — but not ICE

Department of Homeland Security seal on white background.
Department of Homeland Security. | Image: The Verge

Chaos reigned at airports across the country last weekend, with thousands of travelers reportedly waiting in hours-long security lines thanks to staffing shortages. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and Coast Guard workers have turned to food banks for assistance after weeks without pay. But amid a partial government shutdown aimed at curtailing the Department of Homeland Security’s mass arrests and deportations, federal agents have continued their anti-immigrant crackdown unabated – and for now, there’s not much anyone can do.

DHS has gone without funding for four weeks in a standoff over immigration enforcement. Congressional D …

Read the full story at The Verge.

…read more

Everything from the last week of everything is gambling now

Hands with crystal ball and a big red arrow.

Kalshi is facing backlash from its own users after a class action lawsuit was filed last week alleging it failed to pay out as promised for wagers regarding when Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah ​Ali Khamenei would leave or be removed from office. Khamenei was killed in strikes on Iran last month, but according to the lawsuit, Kalshi didn’t implement a “death carveout” until after Khamenei had died.

Meanwhile, Kalshi is reportedly working to attract more women to its platform in an effort to grow its user base. As the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday, the percentage of women using Kalshi has doubled over the past ten months, growing …

Read the full story at The Verge.

…read more

Employees across OpenAI and Google support Anthropic’s lawsuit against the Pentagon

Collage of the Pentagon in Washington DC with binary code in the background.

On Monday, Anthropic filed its lawsuit against the Department of Defense over being designated as a supply chain risk. Hours later, nearly 40 employees from OpenAI and Google – including Jeff Dean, Google’s chief scientist and Gemini lead – filed an amicus brief in support of Anthropic’s lawsuit, detailing their concerns over the Trump administration’s decision and the technology’s risks and implications.

The news follows a dramatic few weeks for Anthropic, in which the Trump administration labeled the company a supply chain risk – a designation typically reserved for foreign companies that the government deems a potential risk to national …

Read the full story at The Verge.

…read more

Dutch intelligence services warn of Russian hackers targeting Signal and WhatsApp

The Netherlands’ military intelligence service and domestic intelligence agency have issued a join warning claiming that Russian hackers have launched “a large-scale global cyber campaign to gain access to Signal and WhatsApp accounts belonging to dignitaries, military personnel and civil servants.” According to the Dutch alert, hackers are imitating support chatbots to trick key targets into revealing their PINs for those communication platforms, which allows the bad actors to access incoming messages.

Last year in the US, the Pentagon advised members not to use Signal after the platform was subjected to similar phishing scams by Russian hackers. (Although the same US military leaders proved capable of creating their own security breaches without foreign interference just days prior.) 

Having another national government raise concerns about Signal and WhatsApp phishing scams offers yet another reminder to never provide security details or click links without a check on who is really asking for your info.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/dutch-intelligence-services-warn-of-russian-hackers-targeting-signal-and-whatsapp-203707202.html?src=rss …read more

Bluesky CEO Jay Graber will step aside

Bluesky Social Jay Graber speaks on stage during 2025 Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies Summit & Gala at Jacob Javits Center on June 05, 2025 in New York City. () | Photo by Eugene Gologursky/Getty Images for Fast Company

Jay Graber became the first CEO of Bluesky in 2021 when the network and its AT Protocol spun out from life as a Twitter research project to go independent, but now she’s leaving that role, as reported previously by Wired. While venture capitalist and former Automattic CEO Toni Schneider steps in as interim CEO until a permanent replacement is found, Graber says she will become Bluesky’s Chief Innovation Officer, focused on building new things for a platform that has gone from 30 million users about a year ago, to 40 million currently.

According to Graber, “Toni believes deeply in the Bluesky mission, and has been an advisor to the company a …

Read the full story at The Verge.

…read more

Bluesky’s CEO is stepping down after nearly 5 years

Bluesky CEO Jay Graber, who has led the upstart social platform since 2021, is stepping down from her role as its top executive. Toni Schneider, who has been an advisor and investor in Bluesky, will take over the job temporarily while Graber stays on as Chief Innovation Officer. 

“As Bluesky matures, the company needs a seasoned operator focused on scaling and execution, while I return to what I do best: building new things,” Graber wrote in a blog post. Schneider, who was previously CEO at Wordpress parent Automattic, will be that “experienced operator and leader” while Blueksy’s board searches for a permanent CEO, she said.

Graber’s history with Bluesky dates back to its early days as a side project at Jack Dorsey’s Twitter. She was officially brought on as CEO in 2021 as Bluesky spun off into an independent company (it officially ended its association with Twitter in 2022 and Dorsey cut ties with Bluesky in 2024). She led the company through its launch and early viral success as it grew from an invitation-only platform to the 43 million-user service it is today. During that time, …read more

Apple reportedly delays its planned smart display launch to fall

Mark Gurman at Bloomberg is back with the latest rumors about what’s afoot with Apple’s future plans, and how its ongoing difficulties with artificial intelligence seem to be creating further delays for its next wave of product launches. His sources say that Apple is expected to postpone the debut of its smart home display until later in 2026, likely September when it often introduces new gadgets. Although the hardware has reportedly been finished for months, this delay is being credited to the company’s AI-centric overhaul of Siri still not being complete.

The device, internally known as J490, has been one of Apple’s many poorly-kept secrets. Rumors about a HomePod smart speaker coupled with a screen first emerged back in 2022 and have resurfaced from time to time in the interim, often with promises that the device’s arrival was imminent. The latest claims anticipated that the official announcement was coming this spring, possibly as soon as this month. However, appears to Apple once again be hamstrung by an AI strategy that has left it scrambling to catch up to other industry leaders.

Apple …read more