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There’s a new autonomous vehicle in town, or at least in the towns of Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Phoenix. Starting today, Alphabet self-driving vehicle developer Waymo will start picking up members of the public in its new Ojai vehicles (pronounced “oh hai”)—pale blue boxy minivans studded with sensors and complete with steering wheels, even though they’re designed to travel without drivers. For now, the rides in these new cars, which can be summoned through Waymo’s app, will be free.It’s been a long road for the vehicle, first announced by Waymo in 2021 and tested on public streets since 2024.…
Over the last year and a half, the reasoning models of the world’s leading AI labs have grown more sophisticated, better at adhering to instructions, and capable of completing multi-step processes. That has resulted in a surge in demand for AI agents, bots capable of autonomously executing 10-plus-step processes on behalf of users. Agents are taking over the internet. Last year, automated traffic spiked 23.5% from the previous year, eight times the rate of human traffic growth, according to research from Human Security. Retail sites have seen especially high surges, with traffic from AI sources up almost 400% year-over-year in the…
Visa has announced an undisclosed investment in AI coding platform Replit. The two companies are also exploring how to integrate Visa’s payment products into Replit, so that developers — and the AI agents they build — can accept payments directly from customers without leaving the platform. Visa added that more than 1,000 of its employees have been using Replit for prototyping and development. As part of the partnership, the companies are exploring how developers on Replit can use Visa’s suite for AI-powered payments, called Visa Intelligent Commerce, as well as Visa’s Trusted Agent Protocol — a system that allows AI…
As Danielle settled into the rhythms of new motherhood, her profession underwent a drastic reinvention.Danielle, who asked to use her first name to avoid damaging her job prospects, worked as a software developer at a car company in Portland, Oregon. Before she left the workforce in mid-2024, barely anybody used AI to write code; by the time she was ready to return, a year later, it had become the expectation. Once upon a time, she had been drawn to coding for the job security it offered, but AI was threatening to upend that. “The skills that I had learned—rote development…
Here’s the uncomfortable truth no one wants to say in a marketing meeting: We’re not losing because of bad marketing. We’re losing because customers don’t trust us. And we did it to ourselves. Over the last decade, we’ve engineered the hell out of marketing. We’ve built smarter funnels, sharper targeting, cleaner attribution models. We know exactly who to reach, when to reach them, and how much it costs to make them click. And yet, we’ve never been easier to ignore.That’s not a media problem.That’s a belief problem.We’ve turned marketing into a math problemThe industry has become obsessed with what’s measurable: clicks, conversions, and…
The raging demand for computers to run AI models has only accelerated, but there are two major obstacles that anyone in the business needs to overcome: getting the right chips, and getting them into data centers where they can start generating revenue. General Compute, a new inference neocloud — a company that rents out AI processing power, specializing in the phase when models are running and responding to users rather than being trained — has answers to those questions that illuminate where the AI ecosystem is headed. Those answers helped it raise a $15 million seed round at a $60…
Blood Pressure Signals continuously analyzes biometric trends that may correlate with cardiovascular strain. A new Nighttime Blood Pressure capability monitors whether blood pressure drops appropriately during sleep. Oura says this metric may reveal cardiovascular risks that daytime readings may miss. You can also add cuff readings to provide additional context.Meanwhile, Nighttime Breathing provides a rolling 30-day view of breathing disturbances during sleep to identify changes that could affect sleep quality or signal underlying issues. Earlier this month, Oura announced a partnership with Resmed that offers users with elevated nighttime breathing alerts access to sleep health resources, complete sleep assessments, and…
Mariana O’Kelly Leaves Leo Burnett to Lead Creative at DonerColle Partners The future of brands gets decided here. Join the industry’s top marketers at Brandweek for the ideas, insights, and connections shaping what’s next. Get your ticket. DonerColle Partners has tapped Leo Burnett executive creative director Mariana O’Kelly as its first chief creative officer, tasked with shaping the creative vision of the newly formed entity.In January, Stagwell agencies Doner and Colle McVoy joined forces in a strategic partnership that combined their leadership and capabilities while retaining their individual teams and clients. O’Kelly will lead the creative…
Oura on Thursday unveiled the fifth generation of its popular smart ring, starting at $399. The Ring 5, which Oura describes as the world’s smallest smart ring, arrives just a year and a half after the company launched the Ring 4 and seven months after the Ring 4 Ceramic. The Ring 5 is 40% smaller than its predecessor and comes with more accurate sensing and enhanced battery life. The Ring 5 is launching alongside new software updates that include blood pressure signals, live activity tracking, on-demand care, and other features that will also roll out to the Oura Ring Gen3…
As we get out of the house, the gear-obsessed WIRED Reviews team is writing about our favorite bags and EDCs. Today, reviewer Boutayna Chokrane raves about her love for her Lululemon gym bag. You can also check out other Bag Check stories where WIRED writers share their carryall of choice.There’s a certain type of traveler who has spent years quietly furious at the travel-bag industry. One who has stood at luggage carousels watching identical cases circle endlessly; who has wrenched a shoulder hauling a poorly balanced pack through an airport; who has dug desperately through a seemingly bottomless compartment, searching…
For the past 14 years, one spreadsheet has made the rounds around adland each June: Propeller’s Cannes Lions 2026 Fringe Events and Parties List.This year, the list has evolved from a Google Doc to become a searchable microsite with almost 900 fringe events, 30 World Cup group-stage matches, and, for the first time, around 360 official Cannes Lions Palais sessions and awards shows. Ben Titchmarsh, Propeller’s associate group business development director, started the project in 2012 as “Ben’s Party List” to help himself and a few friends navigate the festival. Since then, it’s turned from a casual survival guide into…
Canon has, however, missed the opportunity to add a mode dial lock while redesigning. Inadvertently knocking the mode into the wrong settings is one of my biggest pet peeves with my Mark II, and the same is true with the Mark III. It’s probably not a big issue for general shooters, but when the Mark II (or III) is in a dual-camera harness, it has a tendency to knock against my waist and slip into the wrong mode. Now imagine quickly reaching for your camera to grab that split-second moment at a wedding, whether it’s a first kiss, confetti throw,…
NBA star Devin Booker grew up going to the McDonald’s in Sedona, Arizona, which is famous for swapping the brand’s traditional golden arches for turquoise ones that match the red rock scenery. So when the Phoenix Suns player started sketching ideas for his second signature Nike sneaker, those arches became inspiration.The result is the Nike Book 2 McDonald’s: a white basketball shoe with a turquoise Nike Swoosh and golden arch. To promote the launch, Nike, McDonald’s, and Wieden+Kennedy New York turned Booker’s longtime habit of hiding signed, unreleased sneakers in public into a scavenger hunt that sent fans into the…
Traditionally, sleep earbuds have been designed to mask outside noise and promote sleep with calming sounds. But today, a Boston-based startup called SOND is introducing a new type of earbuds designed to actively intervene to encourage better sleep. Founded by a pair of MIT grads, one who is Bose’s former Head of Global Sleep, SOND emerged from stealth on Wednesday with $7 million in funding. Together with the funding, the company introduced its debut product: Dreambuds, a closed-loop, in-ear system that captures 12 physiological signals from the wearer, then acts on them in real time to help consumers get better…
The first week of the French Open has yielded as many major upsets (two) as people collapsing on the court due to sweltering conditions.While temperatures in Europe are extremely hot for this time of year, they aren’t Sahara-in-the-middle-of-summer hot. To truly understand why people on the court are struggling amid the heat, you need to look at an obscure measure known as the wet bulb globe temperature. Consider it a souped-up version of the adage “it’s not the heat, it’s the humidity” that’s best suited for gauging the impact of heat on human health.A ball girl nearly fainted during a…
There are only 3 days left to save up to $410 on your ticket to TechCrunch Disrupt 2026. Early Bird pricing ends May 29 at 11:59 p.m. PT, and once the deadline passes, ticket prices increase. If you plan to attend one of the most influential gatherings in tech this year, now is the time to lock in your pass before rates go up again. Disrupt: Where the tech ecosystem moves forward From October 13–15 at Moscone West in San Francisco, TechCrunch Disrupt brings together 10,000+ founders, investors, operators, and innovators driving the future of technology. Whether you’re raising capital, scouting investments, hiring talent, launching…