Why software factories are back - and how they work in the age of AI
I wore the world's first HDR10 smart glasses TCL's new E Ink tablet beats the Remarkable and Kindle Anker's new charger is one of the most unique I've ever seen I wore the world's first HDR10 smart glasses TCL's new E Ink tablet beats the Remarkable and Kindle Anker's new charger is one of the most unique I've ever seen Imagine submitting your vibe-coded app to a service that validates, tests, and then mass-produces it in a repeatable, automated fashion for delivery to a wide audience. Software factories will prepare prototypes for wide distribution. Leading AI companies are creating the foundations. Tune into the TV show Shark Tank, and the most recurring question you hear voiced by the venture capitalists to budding entrepreneurs is whether they have arrangements with a factory to cost-effectively mass-produce their pooper-scoopers, comfort socks, or scrub pads. The idea of a mass-production facility may make sense for software delivery as well.
Made by Google 2026: Heres what to expect
Mashable's Best: E-readers, robovacs, laptops, earbuds, smart home and more Look Up Say More Creator Hub Gift Ideas For Everyone On Your List Mashable Selects Versus Switch Off Trending Now Safety Net In My Bag VidCon with Mashable All Series Made by Google 2026: Here's what to expect Trevor Noah hosts a starry Made by Google lineup as leaks reveal nearly everything about the Pixel 11 series. 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 . Google returns to New York on Wednesday, Aug. 12, for its annual Made by Google hardware event, and this year the show arrives with an unusually thin veil of secrecy.
How to create flyers with AI that people won't hate: 8 tips (and prompts) that really work
I wore the world's first HDR10 smart glasses TCL's new E Ink tablet beats the Remarkable and Kindle Anker's new charger is one of the most unique I've ever seen I wore the world's first HDR10 smart glasses TCL's new E Ink tablet beats the Remarkable and Kindle Anker's new charger is one of the most unique I've ever seen How to create flyers with AI that people won't hate: 8 tips (and prompts) that really work Most AI flyers are still a mess, but the right prompts can make all the difference. AI can make decent flyers, but most still aren't great. Clear prompts and limits can produce much better AI flyers. A designer is best, but these tips work when that's not an option. I personally don't love them, and I can instantly spot one.
Spotify will now tell you when an artist isn't real
Mashable's Best: E-readers, robovacs, laptops, earbuds, smart home and more Look Up Say More Creator Hub Gift Ideas For Everyone On Your List Mashable Selects Versus Switch Off Trending Now Safety Net In My Bag VidCon with Mashable All Series Spotify will now tell you when an artist isn't real The new AI Persona badge will flag synthetic artist identities and keep their music out of recommendations by default. Olivia Tauber is the deputy editor of digital culture, covering creators, media, movies, beauty, and more. Based in New York, her work has appeared in The New York Times, Vanity Fair, The Cut, Teen Vogue, Complex, and Interview Magazine. She holds a Master's degree in Journalism from NYU and a Bachelor's from the University of Michigan. She also runs Fan Mail, a weekly pop-culture newsletter.
Windows license price hikes could make PCs even more expensive, report says
Mashable's Best: E-readers, robovacs, laptops, earbuds, smart home and more Look Up Say More Creator Hub Gift Ideas For Everyone On Your List Mashable Selects Versus Switch Off Trending Now Safety Net In My Bag VidCon with Mashable All Series Haley Henschel is a Chicago-based Senior Shopping Reporter at Mashable who reviews and finds deals on popular tech, from laptops to gaming consoles and VPNs. She has years of experience covering shopping holidays and can tell you what's actually worth buying on Black Friday and Amazon Prime Day. Her work has also explored the driving forces behind digital trends within the shopping sphere, from dupes to 12-foot skeletons . Windows laptops just can't catch a break. As the memory chip shortage rages on, a new report from the Taiwanese newspaper United Daily News (UDN) says PCs are facing further price hikes as Microsoft raises its Windows 11 licensing fees for device manufacturers.
A developer got Word 1.1a from 1990 to run on Windows 11 - try it yourself
I wore the world's first HDR10 smart glasses TCL's new E Ink tablet beats the Remarkable and Kindle Anker's new charger is one of the most unique I've ever seen I wore the world's first HDR10 smart glasses TCL's new E Ink tablet beats the Remarkable and Kindle Anker's new charger is one of the most unique I've ever seen A developer got Word 1.1a from 1990 to run on Windows 11 - try it yourself One developer managed to coax Word 1.1a to run on today's Windows. A developer ran a 35-year-old version of Word in today's Windows. The developer rebuilt the original sources and used modern replacements. Anyone can replicate this, but you'll need the right programming tools. I remember using Microsoft Word for Windows in the early 90s.
Abbott partners with Google Health for AI-powered glucose monitoring
Health care company Abbott has entered into a partnership to connect Google Health to its Lingo continuous glucose monitor (CGM). According to the press release, this multi-year collaboration will allow users of the over-the-counter Lingo device to see their metabolic data within the Google Health app, which could help a person "make better lifestyle and nutrition choices in the moment." The Lingo data can also be shared with the Google Health Coach, which offers AI-driven recommendations based on an individual's information. Lingo is explicitly intended for adults who are not using insulin. Engadget reported on the growing trend of non-diabetics using continuous glucose monitors back in 2023 and found little research that supported the benefits for that population to track blood sugar spikes so closely.
Authors face backlash for participation in 2022 Google AI study
In the spring of 2022, Google began reaching out to a series of writers, including award-winning science-fiction authors and New York Times bestsellers, for feedback on an experimental writing tool. Four years later, their participation has corners of the literary world up in arms. Google researchers knew at the time that they were approaching a breakthrough point with large language models (LLMs). DeepMind, the company's AI division, was internally testing a natural language generation model called LaMDA which had demonstrated emergent writing capabilities. That model would eventually form the basis for Google Gemini.