🌠 The sky is falling: On Prince Edward Island in Canada, Laura Kelly’s doorbell cam caught the exact moment a meteorite fell. In a big first, the cam also caught the sound it made on impact. This happened last July, but scientists just released their findings. Huh … sounds different than I expected.
The sky is falling
On Prince Edward Island, Canada Laura Kelly’s doorbell cam caught the exact moment a meteorite fell. In a big first, the cam also caught the sound it made on impact. It happened last July, but scientists just dropped their findings. Huh, sounds different than I expected.
$580 million
How much Tom got for Myspace. Remember that guy in the white T-shirt from your Top 8? That’s Tom Anderson. He doesn’t show his face much these days, but he was just spotted in California. Tom and co-creator Chris DeWolfe sold the early social media site to News Corp in 2005. A few years later, Tom retired to Hawaii to lei around.
🛑 Stop letting Big Tech decide what you see: StartMail is my pick for privacy-first email. It’s super easy to switch over your contacts and mail, or you can treat it as a fresh inbox for only your VIPs. Save 60% now with my special link.
Adult diaper influencer: You read that right. It’s 27-year-old YouTuber Bumble Pree, who has trouble controlling her bladder as a result of multiple sclerosis. Her two diaper companies, InControl and Rearz, make options with trendy designs like kawaii-style cats and unicorns. Their ads feature cute gals in crop tops. The adult diaper biz is set to hit $24 billion by 2030. Hooray, I wrote all that without making a poop joke!
Space heaters recalled: Nearly 8,000 Vornado VH2 Whole Room Heaters sold on Amazon are being recalled. The power cord could detach, leading to electric shocks and fires. Check your heater for the date codes “JUL24” or “AUG24,” along with “TYPE VH2” on the silver label. Hit this link for help.
👀 The IRS is watching: If you sold over $5,000 on sites like eBay, Etsy or StubHub last year, keep an eye out for a 1099-K form in the mail (paywall link). The reporting threshold used to be $20,000. Now, you need to report side hustle earnings over $5,000, even if you don’t get a form from a specific site.
No, you didn’t miss jury duty: This scam is spreading across the U.S. It starts with a call or email from a “court official” saying you’ve gotta pay up via wire transfer or gift card to avoid fines or arrest since you were a no-show. Delete the email or hang up the phone. Then, if you’re still concerned, call your county’s courthouse. Heads-up: Real government websites end in .gov.
Let’s talk AI-bot it: The CIA’s new AI chatbot takes on the personalities and views of foreign presidents and prime ministers so agents can better prepare. This upgrade is part of the intelligence agency’s plan to woo tech partners and create a more Silicon Valley-like work culture.
💸 Stargate will change everything: Yesterday’s announcement by President Trump, along with the biggest tech CEOs, is the most consequential technical project of the century. Stargate is bigger than anything. Oracle CEO Larry Ellison, OpenAI’s Sam Altman and SoftBank’s CEO Masayoshi Son declared a half-trillion-dollar investment in AI. In medicine, Stargate promises cures and the ability to stop most diseases from happening. We cannot fathom all this means except that our country will be an AI leader. Stargate will create an immediate 100,000 jobs.
$50 per year
To use a $900 camera as a webcam. A photographer had the bright idea to use his fancy Canon PowerShot G5 X Mark II digital camera for video meetings. When he plugged it in, nothing. Then, he found the reason on Canon’s site: It’s $5 per month or $50 per year for the software. Shutter up.
$24,000
What reality star Spencer Pratt got in donations on TikTok after he and his wife, Heidi Montag, lost their home in the LA wildfires. They got another $125,000 on GoFundMe. Keep in mind the couple made anywhere from $70,000 to $90,000 per episode of “The Hills” and, until the fire, bragged on social media about their luxury lifestyle, including a $1 million wardrobe. The Pratts had insurance. If you want to help victims of the fires, I have a better idea: Donate to RedCross.org.
Can you read cursive handwriting? Now, this is something. The National Archives needs volunteers to help transcribe over 200 years of handwritten historical documents. Most are from the Revolutionary War era, including pension records, geographers’ field notes, and immigration and census records. Interested? Sign up online to get started and preserve the past. What a fun thing to do!
🎾 This is causing quite a racket: The Australian Open is live on YouTube … sort of. Due to broadcast rights sold to media companies, live coverage is limited to animated avatars playing on a computer-generated court. It’s less Grand Slam and more Nintendo Wii. Don’t believe me? Check out this hilarious Week 1 recap. Unbelievable.
$5 to $50
Drop in Apple’s trade-in values for iPhones, iPads, Macs and Apple Watch models. You used to get up to $650 for an iPhone 15 Pro Max; now, it’s $630 at best. Hit this page to check your new trade-in value.
The agony of de-feet: Beijing is hosting the world’s first human-robot marathon in April. Picture this: 12,000 human runners competing alongside humanoid robots, all vying for cash prizes awarded to the top three finishes. The catch? The robots must look human and use bipedal legs to walk or run; wheels are strictly forbidden.
😡 Another AI porn scandal: This time, it’s targeting teenage girls at a private school in Pennsylvania. One mom says her 14-year-old daughter cried hysterically when she found fake nude photos of herself circulating amongst her peers. The alleged perpetrators, two boys, saved her photos off social media, altered them with AI, and then shared them on Discord.
Jobs at stake: In the coming weeks, OpenAI is expected to announce Ph.D.-level bots capable of handling complex human tasks. This is what Mark Zuckerberg mentioned recently on Joe Rogan’s podcast. AI upgrades this year could replace mid-level software engineers and write their own code. We’re moving far beyond single command prompts, folks. Good thing you’re here so you’re in the know.
AI stalking: GeoSpy is an AI tool trained on millions of images, and it uses details like architecture style to pinpoint a photo’s location in seconds. It’s been publicly available for months, and creeps are using it for stalking. Now, the service is locked to permission-only and marketed to the government … because that’s so much better.
🚨 National security alert: Chinese hackers breached the U.S. Department of Treasury, gaining access to over 400 computers, including those belonging to the Secretary and other top officials. Over 3,000 files were compromised, exposing sensitive info about sanctions, law enforcement and international affairs. An investigation is underway, but this is just the tip of the iceberg.