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Showing posts from April, 2025

Blake Lively's Met Gala looks, ranked from least to most iconic

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Blake Lively attends the 2022 Met Gala. Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic/Getty Images Blake Lively is a frequent Met Gala attendee, walking its famous red carpet 10 times. She has upped her Met Gala fashion game nearly every year she has attended. Lively wore her most iconic Met Gala outfit as co-chair in 2022. It's fashion's favorite time of the year: Met Gala season. The 2025 Met Gala is set to take place on May 5. Stars will gather at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art for the annual charitable fundraiser, hosted by Anna Wintour, which benefits the museum's Costume Institute. For the gala's "Superfine: Tailoring Black Style" theme, celebrating dandyism and menswear, stars will put their spin on the event's "Tailored for You" dress code. Many celebrities make a statement at the event, but people are often particularly excited to see Blake Lively's interpretations of Met Gala themes , thanks to her dramatic red-carpet looks. Che...

If you own Ray-Ban Meta glasses, you should double-check your privacy settings

Meta has updated the privacy policy for its AI glasses, Ray-Ban Meta, giving the tech giant more power over what data it can store and use to train its AI models. The company emailed Ray-Ban Meta owners on Tuesday with a notice that AI features will now be enabled on the glasses by default, according […] from TechCrunch https://ift.tt/WOeUCxj via IFTTT

White House press secretary says Trump is 'trolling' about a 3rd term but notes $50 'Trump 2028' hats are 'flying off the shelves'

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Some of President Donald Trump's closest allies have floated him seeking a third term. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Karoline Leavitt laughed off any notion that President Trump is aiming for a third term. "Trump trolling," she said during remarks to new media members in Washington. The Constitution bars Trump from seeking a third term. But some of his allies are still pushing it. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Tuesday laughed off any notion that President Donald Trump would seek a third term in office, though she used the opportunity to note the popularity of the "Trump 2028" hats being sold on the Trump Organization's website. When Leavitt was asked at the White House about the chance that Trump may push for another term in office, she smiled. "Trump trolling," she said. "Although the hats are flying off the shelves." On the Trump organization's site, red hats donning "Trump 2028" are being s...

Troubled startup CaaStle is now facing two new lawsuits and more allegations

CaaStle, the embattled fashion startup whose board of directors accused its founder, Christine Hunsicke, of financial misconduct, is starting to face lawsuits from a partner and a supplier over missed payments and more allegations of fraud. As first reported by Axios and by suits seen by TechCrunch, CaaStle is being sued by P180, a vehicle […] from TechCrunch https://ift.tt/JGcWYek via IFTTT

My name is Karen. People online use it to make fun of me.

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The author has a love-hate relationship with her name. Courtesy of the author Growing up in Egypt, no one could pronounce my name correctly. Then, when I moved to Canada, people questioned whether it was my real name. Complaining about a name feels like a first-world problem, but I've never gotten a break. My name is Karen . For years, I always had a love-hate relationship with my name. Growing up in Egypt , my name was very unique. My mom named me after her friend, a strong woman she admired. As a child, she was the only person I met with that name. Back home in Egypt, some people struggled to pronounce it correctly. Years later, being a Karen became a thing. My name is a conversation starter. Secretly, I always wanted to change my name to something common. So, I opted for a nickname instead. My nickname, Karkoura, helped me blend in instead of standing out. As a teen, I actually started to like it. I began to appreciate the uniqueness it brought to my identity. M...

I visited a beautiful mountain town 2 hours east of Seattle that made me feel like I was in Europe

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I love visiting Leavenworth, a mountain town in Washington that feels European. Molly Allen Leavenworth is a Bavarian-style town in Washington that feels like a slice of Europe. The town has great German food, specialty shops, and buildings with European-inspired architecture. It's also surrounded by alpine views, waterfront trails, and incredible foliage in the fall. There are spectacular mountain views just about anywhere you go in the Pacific Northwest . However, the small mountain town of Leavenworth may just be one of the best spots to enjoy them from. Just over a two-hour drive from Seattle, the Bavarian-style town is one of my favorite awe-inspiring places to visit for just a day or a whole weekend. Leavenworth didn't always look like a Bavarian village. Buildings in Leavenworth have European-style designs. Molly Allen In the late 1800s, this area was booming with a railroad and thriving logging and sawmill industries. A few decades later, the railroad...

I quit driving and delivering for Uber. The rush of claiming gigs can easily distract you from making money

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One former delivery and ride-hailing driver said the thrill of claiming orders and rides kept him on the apps. Boston Globe Gig work has become a common source of income for millions of Americans. One former Uber worker explained why he's leaving the app for good. It's easy to keep claiming gigs without making enough money, he said. This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Justin St. James , a former food delivery and ride-hailing gig worker. The interview has been edited for length and clarity. During COVID was the first time I heard about a family member doing gig work . They made $500 for a week of work, and it was easy to get on the app. I started delivering in 2022. After I started working for food delivery apps like Uber Eats, I realized that there's no feeling like it. I have never made so much money so fast. You're working for it, not gambling. But when you've worked on a Tuesday and Wednesday and you get average orders, Friday ...

Almost 100 days in, polls find that a majority of Americans think the economy is getting worse under Trump

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 President Donald Trump's approval ratings are not great after nearly 100 days in office. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Americans elected Trump to bolster the economy. But, so far, they're unimpressed. An array of new polls shows Trump in negative territory regarding his handling of the economy. Trump's trade policies have injected uncertainty into the economy and raised fears of a recession. Last year, President Donald Trump rode a wave of voter angst over the economy to sweep the swing states and win a second term in the White House. However, almost 100 days into Trump's second term, voters appear unimpressed, expressing dissatisfaction with the president's handling of inflation and tariffs. In the latest Washington Post-Ipsos survey , conducted from April 18 through April 22, Trump had a 39% approval rating on the economy, with 61% of adults disapproving of the president's performance on the key issue. The survey found that 53% of adults feel that...

4chan is back online, says it’s been ‘starved of money’

4chan is partly back online after a hack took the infamous image-sharing site down for nearly two weeks. The site first went down on April 14, with the person responsible for the hack apparently leaking data including a list of moderators and “janitors” (one janitor told TechCrunch they were “confident” that the leaked data was […] from TechCrunch https://ift.tt/XBwFe10 via IFTTT

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent defends the 'strategic uncertainty' of Trump's trade talks: 'Nobody's better at creating this leverage'

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 Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent defended Trump's trade policy. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images Bessent defended Trump's trade policies during an ABC News interview on Sunday. "In game theory, it's called 'strategic uncertainty,'" Bessent said of Trump's tariff strategy. Bessent also said he believed there was a "path" to negotiations with China. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says President Donald Trump is using "strategic uncertainty" in trade negotiations with world leaders. During an ABC News interview with "This Week" co-anchor Martha Raddatz on Sunday, Bessent firmly defended Trump's approach to tariffs despite sagging voter sentiment over his handling of the economy. "In game theory, it's called 'strategic uncertainty,'" Bessent said of Trump's back-and-forth tariff strategy. "So you're not going to tell the person on the other side of the negotiation where you...

Tesla is promoting 'pre-tariff' EVs in Canada as prices begin to rise

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Tesla urged customers in Canada to take advantage of "pre-tariff" prices. Tesla Tesla is encouraging Canadian customers to explore its "pre-tariff" inventory online. Trump imposed 25% tariffs on imported vehicles and parts. Canada retaliated with a similar tariff. Automakers said the tariffs could upend the supply chain and raise prices. Tesla is encouraging customers in Canada to purchase its vehicles at "pre-tariff prices." The company is displaying a small banner atop its website for Canadian shoppers that reads, "Explore pre-tariff priced inventory while supplies last." Clicking the banner lets customers view Tesla's inventory that's not yet been affected by tariffs, including the Model S, Model 3, Model X, Model Y, and the Cybertruck . Tesla's promotion comes in response to President Donald Trump's 25% tariff on imported passenger vehicles and key parts and Canada's similar retaliatory tariffs. Both sets of ...

Google’s DeepMind UK team reportedly seeks to unionize

Around 300 London-based members of Google’s AI-focused DeepMind team are seeking to unionize with the Communication Workers Union, according to a Financial Times report that cites three people involved with the unionization effort. These DeepMind employees are reportedly unhappy about Google’s decision to remove a pledge not to use AI for weapons or surveillance from […] from TechCrunch https://ift.tt/aHCVghK via IFTTT

I'm now 40 and unlikely to have children. My family lineage ends with me.

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The author (not pictured) is the last in her family lineage. Crispin la valiente/Getty Images I often think of the women in my family since we all shared similar names. I'm 40 and probably won't have kids, so my family lineage ends with me. I wonder what my ancestors would think of the life I chose. Going back at least five generations, I am the end of a line of women whose names I carry . Some of these women, mostly Anna's and Maria's, Maria Graziana, Anna Marie, and Anna Margaret further up the tree, are no more than branches to me, settling in Brooklyn in the early 1800s from Ireland or far more recently from Italy. My mother and her mother, Anna, and Maria, are the women who raised me and who I think of when I sign a document or order a coffee. However, they all cross my mind, these women confined to lives that might not have kept them comfortable or safe, living in times when they had no choices and focused on survival. Their history has boiled dow...

Google will stop supporting early Nest thermostats on October 25

Google announced this week that beginning on October 25, it will no longer support or release software updates for the first and second generation Nest Learning Thermostats. And it will completely stop launching new Nest products in Europe. That means owners of the Nest thermostats released in 2011 and 2012 (as well as the version […] from TechCrunch https://ift.tt/jiCrcJR via IFTTT

Meta's data center could be 'transformative' for Louisiana, utility says—as long as customers pay the $5 billion power bill

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Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan. Evelyn Hockstein/REUTERS Meta is building a $10 billion AI data center in northeast Louisiana. Entergy Louisiana says it needs to build a major new natural gas plant to power the facility. The utility wants permission to pass the plant's construction costs onto its entire customer base. In Louisiana, a battle is heating up over who will pay for the new power plants needed to serve the $10 billion data center Meta is building in the state's northeastern corner. Meta announced in December the 2,000-acre Richland Parish data center campus , which is expected to be completed in 2030. The company plans to use the data center to train AI models . Consumer advocates and climate groups filed new testimony with the Louisiana Public Service Commission on April 11, pushing the state regulator to reject a request by Meta's electricity provider to shift $5 billion in construction costs for the plants on its entire cust...

Chess.com reaches 200 million members

Chess.com reaches a new membership milestone as it nears its 20th birthday. Chess.com, the online chess platform that was founded in 2005 and launched in 2007, has surpassed 200 million members. Of those 200 million members, 1.5 million are paying users. More than 6 million games of chess are played every day on the platform. […] from TechCrunch https://ift.tt/LHabF49 via IFTTT

'Andor' sparked backlash with the first sexual assault in 'Star Wars.' Adria Arjona says it's important the story is 'honest and genuine.'

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Adria Arjona as Bix Caleen in "Andor" season two. Lucasfilm/Disney+ The third episode of "Andor" season two includes an attempted sexual assault. It has sparked backlash from some "Star Wars" fans, who think it's out of place in the franchise. Adria Arjona told Business Insider it was important to deal with her story in a genuine way. Warning: Major spoilers for "Andor" season two. "Andor" season two sparked backlash among fans by including the first reference to sexual assault in " Star Wars ." Actor Adria Arjona said she had in-depth conversations to get her story right. The series takes place five years before the events of the 2016 movie, "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story," which is a prequel to 1977's "Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope." Arjona plays Bix Caleen, a rebel fighter who was tortured by the Empire in "Andor" season one and is experiencing PTSD. In the third episod...

6 things to look for in Tesla's 'company update'

On Tesla's latest earnings call, investors will be looking for signs of what may impact the company's future, including backlash against the Tesla brand, Elon Musk's DOGE run, and the timeline for rolling out affordable EVs. Read the original article on Business Insider from Business Insider https://ift.tt/pIDtEqS via IFTTT

Political interference with the Fed would mean worse inflation and higher unemployment, top official says

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Alex Wong/Getty Images Messing with the Fed's independence could result in higher inflation and joblessness, Austan Goolsbee said. Trump has ramped up the pressure on Fed Chair Powell to cut interest rates in recent weeks. The White House has said Trump's team is looking into potentially removing Powell before the end of his term. Meddling with the Federal Reserve's ability to independently set interest rates could result in dire consequences for the economy, Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee said on Monday. The top official underscored the importance of Fed independence in an interview with CNBC on Monday, adding that political meddling with the central bank could result in hotter inflation and higher unemployment. "When there is interference over the long run, it's going to mean higher inflation, it's going to mean worse growth and higher unemployment , because there's just going to be a little less willingness to step up and do the ha...

OpenAI’s o3 AI model scores lower on a benchmark than the company initially implied

A discrepancy between first- and third-party benchmark results for OpenAI’s o3 AI model is raising questions about the company’s transparency and model testing practices. When OpenAI unveiled o3 in December, the company claimed the model could answer just over a fourth of questions on FrontierMath, a challenging set of math problems. That score blew the […] from TechCrunch https://ift.tt/UtT9yK0 via IFTTT

Kids sure love video game movies

“A Minecraft Movie” isn’t just a hit — after three weekends in theaters, the film is estimated to have grossed $344 million domestically and $720 million worldwide. That makes it the biggest movie of an admittedly underwhelming year at the box office (so far), and the second biggest video game movie of all time. Coming […] from TechCrunch https://ift.tt/zQtY0xS via IFTTT

Amid Trump's feud with Jerome Powell, a GOP senator says the Fed Chair has 'tiger blood' and will 'do what he thinks is right'

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Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana, left, has expressed confidence in Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images Jerome Powell has drawn the ire of Trump over the Fed's economic outlook. Trump blasted Powell over interest rates and said the chair's "termination cannot come fast enough." However, Sen. John Kennedy told NBC he doesn't think Powell is going anywhere. President Donald Trump has amped up his attacks on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell in recent days. On Thursday, Trump said he was "not happy" with Powell. On Friday, National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett said Trump's team would "study" whether the president could remove Powell. Later that day, Trump criticized Powell for not lowering interest rates. However, on Sunday, Republican Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana said on NBC's "Meet the Press" that he doesn't believe that Powell is going anywhere. ...

Amex's Gen Z and millennial cardholders are bucking industrywide trends, CEO says

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According to Amex CEO Stephen Squeri, Generation Z and millennial Amex cardholders have an average FICO score of 750 and lower delinquency rates, bucking industry-wide trends. Silas Stein/picture alliance via Getty Images Data shows Gen Zers are racking up more credit card debt than older generations. But younger American Express cardholders seem to be telling a different story. Amex CEO Stephen Squeri said Gen Z and millennial customers have better-than-average FICO scores and spend less. Younger American Express credit card holders are bucking industrywide trends regarding fiscal responsibility, said Amex CEO Stephen Squeri. Squeri said during an earnings call on Thursday, in which the company surpassed Wall Street expectations,   that millennial and Gen Z customers are "performing significantly better, both from a FICO perspective and from a delinquency perspective, than the industry." Studies have shown that the younger generation is racking up historic levels...

Congress has questions about 23andMe bankruptcy

3The leaders of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce said they are investigating how 23andMe’s bankruptcy might affect customers’ data. Representatives Brett Guthrie, Gus Bilirakis, and Gary Palmer (all Republicans) sent a letter Thursday to the genetic testing company’s interim CEO Joe Selsavage asking a number of questions about how 23andMe will handle customer […] from TechCrunch https://ift.tt/1t68Duf via IFTTT

Security startup SplxAI raised $7 million to preemptively police AI. Here's its pitch deck.

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SplxAI tests for AI security vulnerabilities and edits system prompts to be safer. This is a slide from its pitch deck, which has helped it raise $7 million so far. SPLX.AI SplxAI raised $7 million to enhance AI security, offering tools like Agentic Radar for protection. The company tests for security vulnerabilities and edits system prompts to be safer. Its CEO believes GenAI gives cyber attackers an edge, and companies must vet technology earlier. Companies are racing to adopt AI in pursuit of productivity and profits, but the last thing anyone wants is a chatbot going off the rails. AI systems are vulnerable to all kinds of new threats, from data poisoning to adversarial attacks. In a World Economic Forum survey of over 200 business leaders in 2023, more than half said generative AI would give cyber attackers an overall advantage in the coming two years, while just under 9% said that advantage would go to the defenders. It's now two years later, and it seems the maj...