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Why You Might Already Own SpaceX Shares, Siri's AI Makeover, and Knicks Owner's Surveillance Machine

WIRED

Today on, we take an early look at the SpaceX IPO and why you might find yourself among the investors without even realizing it. This week on, our hosts discuss SpaceX officially going public and who will benefit the most from it, as well as Apple's WWDC and the brand-new release of Siri AI. They also get into how Meta removed a face-recognition feature after a WIRED report exposed it--and later in the show: an investigation into how New York Knicks' owner James Dolan created an extensive surveillance system inside all of his Madison Square Garden properties. Write to us at [email protected] . You can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how: If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link . Before we start, two quick things. If you've been enjoying listening to the show, would appreciate it if you took a second to rate it in your app of choice. It really helps us reach more people. Second, if you have any questions related to tech, privacy, or politics that you would like me, Zoë, and Leah to take on, now is the time to submit them to [email protected] . It doesn't matter how big or how small, we want to hear from you and get you answers. I'm a little tired, but it's because I got to see Lionel Messi play soccer last night and score a goal on a penalty kick. It was a friendly of Argentina versus Iceland. You'll never guess who won. Is that an obvious thing? It's far from their first attempt, but it's going to stick this time. We're also taking an early look at the SpaceX IPO this week, which is slated to become the world's largest IPO of all time. We'll get into who is slated to benefit the most. Elon Musk, who is already the world's richest man, but on track to become even richer and why you might find yourself among the investors without even realizing it. And in case you missed it, WIRED reporters recently uncovered that Meta had silently embedded code that would power a face-recognition system for its smart classes in the Meta AI app on millions of people's phones.


There's a new skydiving Rubik's Cube-solving champ in town, but there's one big problem with this feat

FOX News

Jemele Hill says she feels'terribly sad' for Karmelo Anthony because his lawyer was white Five of the most unhinged fan theories that make'The Sopranos' a re-watchable masterpiece'Whalefall' trailer is here to add getting swallowed by a sperm whale while SCUBA diving to your list of fears Christopher Nolan's'The Odyssey' uncorks a Trojan Horse popcorn bucket that stores the goods in its crotch New trailer released for upcoming post-apocalyptic thriller'The Dog Stars' with Jacob Elordi'House of the Dragon' Season 3 premiere runtime and details revealed for hit HBO series You're not getting away with watering your grass with your'crank' out on Sheriff Grady Judd's watch Taylor Sheridan's hit CIA/military series'Lioness' gets official season release date on Paramount+ It wasn't on his shopping list, but a man managed to accidentally shoot himself in the groin at Walmart anyway Trump's Iran deal announcement sends markets skyrocketing, oil prices tumble Trump's Iran deal will not change regime's terror behavior, expert warns Paul Mauro: Crockett's weapon argument lacks'basic algebraic logic' Trump says Iran agreement documents are in'final shape,' signing soon Former Navy lieutenant commander says Iran doesn't'have a whole lot to work with' Massive national sporting events fuel market of'illicit trafficking,' says ex-DOJ prosector Doug Burgum praises Trump's leadership on rolling back regulations Iranian oil operations face'nuclear option' as US blockade traps ships Mike Pompeo: A piece of paper is'largely worthless' to the Iranian regime Trump says Iran will sign a deal'by this weekend' A solid WEEK after election night, progressive Nithya Raman has suddenly surged into the lead in LA--leaving voters completely flabbergasted. Few things amaze me like people who can solve a Rubik's Cube. Sure, lots of things amaze me more -- mountains, elaborate water features, how my dog sits on the couch and watches like he's super into it -- but it's a very specific kind of amazement that's like, Man, that's wild; I could never do that... nor do I really care to. But I like that other people are super into it to the point that there's now a Guinness World Record cottage industry of people solving them under different circumstances, and we've got a new top dog when it comes to solving a bunch of them while skydiving. A Rubik's Cube, the ultimate test of dexterity and spinning colored blocks.


Welcome to the Waymo World Cup

WIRED

It might not feel all that different from older World Cups--for better or worse. Waymo, the Alphabet subsidiary offering robotaxi rides in 11 US metros right now, says it's ready for the FIFA World Cup . Match attendees can catch driverless rides to six of the 16 North American venues: stadiums in Atlanta, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, and the San Francisco Bay Area. The sprawling football event, expected to attract some 6.5 million visitors to the continent over more than a month, could prove an exciting close-up for Waymo . The company says it's serving half-a-million paid rides a week--paltry stuff compared to the likes of ride-hail giants Uber and Lyft, but more impressive once you remember that the things don't have drivers.


Trump's Border Crackdown Is Wreaking Havoc on the World Cup

WIRED

Trump's Border Crackdown Is Wreaking Havoc on the World Cup Travel bans and other visa issues are creating problems for World Cup participants even before the whistle blows. Even before the first whistle blows, the 2026 World Cup --taking place from June 11 to July 19 across the United States, Canada, and Mexico--already has winners and losers away from the field. Here, amidst denied visas, prolonged checks, and contested entries, a parallel competition is emerging where human rights are at stake. This World Cup was meant to be a global celebration of soccer in North America. For the first time in history, the tournament is being held in three different countries, a move meant to unite the entire continent and turn the World Cup into an even more inclusive event.


Cameras, Sensors, and 3D Body Scans: All the Tech Helping Eliminate Blown Calls

WIRED

Soccer officials already rely on cameras to see who's offside and who sent the ball out of bounds. But during this World Cup, refs will use digital twins of each player to view plays from every angle. At the 2026 World Cup, the refs on the field and the officials on the sidelines will be able to use an abundance of tech to help call penalties, spot offside violations, and make other consequential decisions. The video assistant referee system, known as VAR, and the semi-automated offside technology (SAOT) have been used in soccer for years. But the setup at this summer's World Cup represents some of the most advanced uses of adjudication tech to date--not just in soccer, but across all high-level sports.


Inside soccer's data renaissance

MIT Technology Review

Many of the insights hitting soccer pitches today trace back to Jesse Davis and a team of computer scientists open-sourcing tools for some of the sport's trickiest problems. Imagine tuning in to the opening kickoff of a World Cup match and seeing a player intentionally send the ball all the way down the pitch and right out of bounds on the opponent's end. Casual fans might scratch their heads. If you were Jesse Davis, though, you'd know that this play could be a prime setup to score. Davis is a professor of computer science at KU Leuven in Belgium and head of its Sports Analytics Lab, which has been at the vanguard of a data awakening in soccer since its inception more than a decade ago. Though the research group brings machine-learning models to bear on a variety of sports--including basketball, volleyball, and field hockey--nowhere is its impact felt more than on the soccer pitch.


How Mexican World Cup Stadiums Achieved FIFA's Environmental Certifications

WIRED

Venues hosting the 2026 World Cup must meet high standards to obtain environmental certifications, but FIFA also requires that they use natural grass, which is water-intensive to maintain. Estadio Banorte, formerly called Azteca stadium, in Mexico City. Because of their scale, soccer stadiums require a fair amount of energy and water. In that time, they also generate large volumes of waste, mainly plastics and food trash. For the 2026 World Cup, the first to be held in three countries in 16 different stadiums, FIFA maintained the requirement that the venues must have LEED environmental certifications, which measure performance in water, energy, and waste management.


How to Watch the 2026 World Cup

WIRED

The games start June 11 and end with a grand finale in New Jersey on July 19. There are 104 of them. Here's how to watch'em all. The FIFA Men's World Cup is almost here, and this one will be the biggest ever. The tournament is hosted by three countries: Mexico, Canada, and the US.


What's Going On in Donald Trump's Head? We Don't Have Brain Scans. We Do Have This.

Slate

No one can say for sure what's going on in the president's head. His 25 greatest obsessions can get us a little closer. This is the year the first baby boomers--those born in 1946--turn 80, and that cohort includes Donald Trump. We have all recently lived through what it means to have an 80-year-old commander in chief, but at a political moment that's simultaneously more horrific, erratic, and just plain befuddling than anything this country has seen in ages, we wanted to understand the brain of 80-year-old president. Plenty of people are trying to discern whether his recent rants and raves are due to a more serious cognitive decline--we understand the instinct; we've done it too --but we went a different (if related) route. The more we dug into Trump's many fixations, the more we realized that this man still thinks he lives in the 1980s. We also discovered--without too much surprise--that he often seems to fundamentally misunderstand the works he treasures most deeply. These items might not replace a brain map, but they do create a certain holistic view of what animates and splinters Trump's mind. Sometimes, they just help explain his worldview. Other times, they seem to have had real influence on policy and the America that Trump is trying to create. Welcome to Trump Brain, the 25 things that define who the president is--and what he wants. Please enable javascript to fully experience this interactive. When millions of people took to the streets in October to protest Trump's authoritarianism, the president responded by dunking on his critics online. Specifically, he posted an A.I.-generated video of a fighter jet, piloted by himself in a literal crown, dropping human excrement onto the crowds. It was perhaps Trump's most juvenile use of A.I. slop yet--the kind of low-quality, feverish content made possible by artificial intelligence. Trump undoubtedly is the perfect president for the A.I. slop era. In some ways, this is because he's the ideal audience for it: Like many older internet users delighted by the technology, Trump seems to enjoy mindless, cartoonish, childish content. One of the videos he shared depicted him playing soccer with Cristiano Ronaldo in the Oval Office.


Donald Trump Is Ready for Fight Night. So Are Donors

WIRED

Donald Trump Is Ready for Fight Night. The UFC event on the White House's South Lawn is the president's birthday gift to himself. Sources expect it to be a lobbying extravaganza. President Donald Trump is enthralled with the Ultimate Fighting Championship staging an event at the White House on his birthday this weekend--in effect his present to himself, since he came up with the idea. We have the details on both the fighting and the anticipated lobbying.