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Entertainment over policy? White House arcade games ignite backlash

Al Jazeera

The White House's unveiling of five arcade-style games on its website, each believed to be promoting a different policy of United States President Donald Trump's agenda, has ignited backlash, with critics accusing the administration of prioritising entertainment over addressing rising living costs and the ongoing war on Iran. Announced on Thursday, the games include "Build the Wall" where players run to capture little green figures before they reach a border wall; "Rio Run", a Snake-style game in which players gather border crossers along a fence; "Supply Line", in which players reject food items that fail to meet "Make America Healthy Again" standards; "Flappy Bill," a Flappy Bird-style game in which a bald eagle carries legislation over the National Mall; and "Trump Savings Tycoon", in which players catch flying cash and gold bars to "fill your kids' Trump Accounts," in reference to the administration's child savings programme. Rights groups have also criticised the administration for the gaming website. They've been playing games with people's lives for years, now they've made a video game of what they're doing," Amerika Garcia Grewal, co-director of the Frontera Federation in Eagle Pass, Texas, told AFP news agency. The game designers "have lost touch with what it means to be human and care for others".


Tesla's Make-or-Break Cybercab Had a Quiet Debut

WIRED

An invite-only event in Austin, Texas, kept online fans in the dark for hours. A Tesla launch event tends to cause a hoopla. Fans crowd into an event space; loud electronic beats are the warm up act. Finally, the star himself, the ringmaster of this electric circus, CEO Elon Musk, emerges to a roar. There are demos, powerful verbs, and sometimes, a "one more thing," a last-minute surprise product unveiling.


Reactions pour in after HBO drops new trailer for its upcoming Harry Potter mega-series

FOX News

'Sopranos' star Dominic Chianese continues to age in reverse, starts podcast at 95 years old Australia's'Queen of Infomercials' wants'no-strings attached fun,' the O-dome is back & you're not weird? Pizza delivery man deserves a raise after walking past a black bear to deliver customer's order Nicolas Cage leads all-star cast in'Fortitude,' a WWII film about the D-Day deception campaign Florida police learn the hard way to not trust'Crooked Jess' with money to buy crack for undercover operation Dale'Grey Beard' Sanders reclaims title as oldest person to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail at 91 'I literally think this is going to be it for me': Hiker recounts grizzly bear encounter in Canada Creature dubbed'Syracuse Figure' spotted in New York: Is it Bigfoot or an elderly skinny-dipper? Taylor Sheridan's Landman faces lengthy wait as season 3 production timeline revealed Man in trouble for using robot vacuum to record wife's affair, friends with benefits lease up & hall pass wins Country music star Riley Green keeps cooking with new single'That's Just Me' from upcoming album Iranian-American: 'It's going to take boots on the ground, the Iranian people need to be armed' Sheridan Gorman's family demands accountability at hearing for accused killer Trump DOJ's trans athlete lawsuit tossed by federal judge Trump says US is prepared to strike Iran'anytime we want' Jeffries vows'serious response' to Dems who voted with GOP Jeffries vows'serious response' to Democratic defectors The new adaptation of J.K. Rowling's books stars Dominic McLaughlin, John Lithgow and Janet McTeer'Dutton Ranch' stars call Texas move'like taking matches to a gasoline party' Marc Menchaca and Juan Pablo Raba preview the high-stakes shift to Texas for Beth and Rip as the Paramount+ series premieres May 15 with two episodes, followed by weekly releases. A new full trailer is out for HBO's upcoming Harry Potter series, and reactions are rolling in. Source material: The Harry Potter books written by J.K. Rowling.


Whistleblower: USPSs new ballot screening system isnt ready

Mashable

Creator Playbook Trending Now Say More Look Up Mashable's Best: E-readers, robovacs, laptops, earbuds, smart home and more Switch Off Mashable Voices Mashable Selects Safety Net Versus Gift Ideas For Everyone On Your List In My Bag All Series A disclosure alleges USPS rushed an untested ballot-screening tool that can reject thousands of votes over a single error. Chance Townsend is the General Assignments Editor at Mashable, covering tech, video games, dating apps, digital culture, and whatever else comes his way. He has a Master's in Journalism from the University of North Texas and is a proud orange cat father. His writing has also appeared in PC Mag and . A whistleblower working inside the United States Postal Service (USPS) has told Congress that a brand-new system for screening mail-in ballots -- built in a matter of months, against the advice of the agency's own staff -- is so rushed and untested that it risks mass rejection of legitimate ballots just as the 2026 midterms approach.


Apple CEO John Ternus shares first memo to staff in new role

Mashable

Creator Playbook Trending Now Say More Look Up Mashable's Best: E-readers, robovacs, laptops, earbuds, smart home and more Switch Off Mashable Voices Mashable Selects Safety Net Versus Gift Ideas For Everyone On Your List In My Bag All Series John Ternus used his first day as Apple's new CEO to preview a phenomenal iPhone launch and to thank predecessor Tim Cook. Chance Townsend is the General Assignments Editor at Mashable, covering tech, video games, dating apps, digital culture, and whatever else comes his way. He has a Master's in Journalism from the University of North Texas and is a proud orange cat father. His writing has also appeared in PC Mag and . All products featured here are independently selected by our editors and writers.


Uber lays off 3,300 employees in largest cuts since the pandemic

Al Jazeera

Uber Technologies has laid off 3,300 employees, or 10 percent of its workforce, marking the largest cuts to the ride-hailing company's headcount since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. In a memo to employees on Wednesday, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said that the cuts were part of wider efforts reducing layers of management and "simplifying team structures" as the company looks to "build the autonomous future" as well as "invest even more in drivers, couriers and merchants". "A leaner organisation will mean clearer ownership, faster decisions, and more time spent building rather than coordinating," Khosrowshahi said. Khosrowshahi also told employees that the company is pushing for most of its workers to return to the office, declaring, "going forward, only ~1% of employees will be remote". The latest round of cuts comes just weeks after the ride-sharing giant eliminated 10 percent of its customer service roles as it embraced artificial intelligence (AI), according to Bloomberg, which first reported the July cuts.


The Cybercab Is Almost Here. Now Comes the Hard Part

WIRED

The Cybercab Is Almost Here. The electric-auto maker will officially debut its steering-wheel-free robotaxi on Thursday. But building the vehicle is the easy part. Matte gold, sloped, and steering-wheel-free, the Tesla Cybercab seems designed to catch the eyes of looky-loos. Now rubberneckers may have more opportunities: Tesla is set to host an event on Thursday at its Austin, Texas, headquarters to debut the Cybercab.


What is NVIDIAs DLSS 5 and why is it so controversial?

Mashable

Trending Now Say More Look Up Mashable's Best: E-readers, robovacs, laptops, earbuds, smart home and more Switch Off Creator Playbook Mashable Voices Mashable Selects Safety Net Versus Gift Ideas For Everyone On Your List In My Bag All Series What is NVIDIA's DLSS 5 and why is it so controversial? NVIDIA launches DLSS 5 on Sept. 3, promising more realistic graphics. Chance Townsend is the General Assignments Editor at Mashable, covering tech, video games, dating apps, digital culture, and whatever else comes his way. He has a Master's in Journalism from the University of North Texas and is a proud orange cat father. His writing has also appeared in PC Mag and .


Anthropic launches Fable 5.1 as AI security worries mount

Mashable

Trending Now Say More Look Up Mashable's Best: E-readers, robovacs, laptops, earbuds, smart home and more Switch Off Creator Playbook Mashable Voices Mashable Selects Safety Net Versus Gift Ideas For Everyone On Your List In My Bag All Series Anthropic launches Fable 5.1 as AI security worries mount Fable 5.1 arrives with lower prices and tighter safeguards, days after reports of AI agents going rogue during security tests. Chance Townsend is the General Assignments Editor at Mashable, covering tech, video games, dating apps, digital culture, and whatever else comes his way. He has a Master's in Journalism from the University of North Texas and is a proud orange cat father. His writing has also appeared in PC Mag and . Anthropic released Claude Fable 5.1 and a more restricted sibling, Claude Mythos 5.1, this week, positioning the pair as its most capable models yet for coding and knowledge work.


Redditors say Anthropics expensive Claude plans offer far less usage than advertised

Mashable

Trending Now Say More Look Up Mashable's Best: E-readers, robovacs, laptops, earbuds, smart home and more Switch Off Creator Playbook Mashable Voices Mashable Selects Safety Net Versus Gift Ideas For Everyone On Your List In My Bag All Series Redditors say Anthropic's expensive Claude plans offer far less usage than advertised A viral thread on r/Anthropic accuses the company of misleading users about the benefits of its higher-priced subscription tiers. Chance Townsend is the General Assignments Editor at Mashable, covering tech, video games, dating apps, digital culture, and whatever else comes his way. He has a Master's in Journalism from the University of North Texas and is a proud orange cat father. His writing has also appeared in PC Mag and . A popular Reddit post in r/Anthropic titled More Drama has drawn significant attention this week, amplifying claims that Anthropic has been misleading customers about how much usage they actually get with its higher-priced Claude subscription plans.