Business & Technology
Data security experts warn about fun online personality tests
Data security specialists on Latvian Radio have warned the public to think twice before taking popular entertaining online tests, such as those predicting what a person will look like in 20 years. Such free tools often come at the cost of users' personal data.
LSM (rus) · 29 Aug, 14:37
NASA's Roman Telescope Hides a Major Technological Leap
NASA is preparing to launch the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, which carries an experimental coronagraph aiming to directly capture starlight reflected off a planet's surface for the first time. Test data from the instrument will help pave the way for future telescopes capable of imaging Earthlike planets.
Wired · 29 Aug, 13:33
Tusk: Russia seriously preparing for war escalation, next months seen as critical
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has warned that the coming seven to eight months could prove critical for the security of Ukraine, Poland and the wider region, saying Russia appears to be preparing for escalation. He pointed to a series of recent public signals suggesting Moscow's intentions.
iAuto.lv · 29 Aug, 12:37
Solar power capacity keeps growing fast — but what happens to worn-out panels?
Global installed solar power capacity is expanding rapidly, and the industry is increasingly focused on what happens to panels once they reach the end of their working life. Old panels contain both valuable and hazardous materials, and recycling systems are still developing.
Latvijas Avīze · 29 Aug, 11:34
Canada's outreach to Europe raises question of EU's borders
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's September visit to Strasbourg marks a step toward closer EU-Canada ties, though experts say full membership remains unlikely given geographic constraints. Discussion instead centers on new forms of partnership.
Euronews Business · 29 Aug, 09:38
Australia urged to legalise plug-in solar panels following UK's lead
An advocacy group says Australian households could save up to $370 a year if plug-in solar panels were legalised, as they now are in the UK. The devices are currently sold in Australia but cannot legally be connected to power outlets.
The Guardian World · 29 Aug, 09:06
Fuel Prices in the Baltics: Riga Sees Decline, Vilnius and Tallinn See Rise
Fuel prices in Riga fell last work week while they rose in Vilnius and Tallinn, according to data compiled by the LETA news agency.
LSM · 29 Aug, 09:01
Apple raises Apple TV and Apple One subscription prices by up to 20 percent
Apple has again increased subscription prices for Apple TV and Apple One, with monthly fees rising by two dollars and annual Apple TV pricing up 20 percent. Existing subscribers will get a month's notice before the new prices apply.
Ars Technica · 29 Aug, 07:07
Trump announces plans for new "space academy" to train future NASA leaders
US President Donald Trump has announced plans to create a new four-year academy aimed at training the next generation of technical leaders for NASA and the commercial space industry. The idea remains in early stages, with no location yet chosen.
Ars Technica · 29 Aug, 06:08
Rusal to Mothball Part of Russian Raw Materials Output, Vows to Ease Impact on Company Towns
Aluminum producer Rusal has asked the Russian government for support as it prepares to temporarily halt several loss-making raw materials plants. One of the towns affected was the site of major unrest in 2009 that forced Vladimir Putin to personally intervene.
Meduza · 29 Aug, 06:06
Ex-Twitter counsel launches new 'Twitter' platform while trademark ruling still pending
A group led by former Twitter legal counsel Stephen Coates has launched a new social network called Twitter at Twitter.now, even as a Delaware judge has yet to rule on a preliminary injunction sought by Elon Musk and X in a trademark dispute.
Engadget · 29 Aug, 05:08
Senators demand RFK Jr.'s resignation and criminal probe over Senate testimony
Newly released documents indicate Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. lied to senators during his 2025 confirmation hearings about the purpose of his 2019 trip to Samoa. Lawmakers are now demanding he resign or be removed, with one senator also calling for a criminal investigation.
Ars Technica · 29 Aug, 05:06
US driver puts 161,000 km on a Toyota Prius hybrid in eight months
US driver Shane Somers has driven roughly 161,000 kilometers on his Toyota Prius in just eight months while delivering medical supplies, with the hybrid holding up with only minimal repairs.
iAuto.lv · 29 Aug, 05:01
Nvidia and rivals race to snap up open-weight AI companies
Nvidia is reportedly in talks to acquire Hugging Face for $13 billion, following its Poolside deal and Stripe's purchase of OpenRouter. The flurry of deals shows open-weight AI has become one of tech's hottest acquisition categories.
TechCrunch · 29 Aug, 04:07
US cities cut Flock Safety contracts at record pace in August
At least 93 US jurisdictions have terminated contracts with license-plate-reading surveillance firm Flock Safety this August, a record pace, amid bipartisan backlash over misuse of the technology.
Ars Technica · 29 Aug, 04:04
What it takes to build your own retro arcade cabinet
Building a home retro arcade cabinet requires careful planning, from control panel layout to computer choice, with total costs ranging from a few hundred to over $1,000.
Engadget · 29 Aug, 04:03
Xbox CEO: next-gen Helix will be a family of devices, not one console
Xbox CEO Asha Sharma has revealed that the codenamed Project Helix will not be a single console but a whole family of devices. Exact device types and launch timing remain unknown.
The Verge · 29 Aug, 03:06
How to turn your old Android phone into a Wi-Fi extender
An unused Android phone can be repurposed to boost weak Wi-Fi coverage at home without buying new hardware. The fix relies on the phone's built-in hotspot feature and requires no extra apps or technical skill.
Engadget · 29 Aug, 03:04
Russia's Rostov Region declares emergency over Black Sea grain export halt
The governor of Russia's Rostov region has declared a regional state of emergency after grain shipments through Black Sea ports came to a standstill. The move follows disrupted shipping in the Azov-Black Sea basin since mid-July.
Ukrainska Pravda · 29 Aug, 03:04
Chinese automakers follow Tesla's bet on humanoid robots as next profit driver
Several Chinese automakers, including Xpeng and BYD, are pouring resources into humanoid robots as car profit margins shrink. Xpeng's robotics unit recently raised over $900 million.
TechCrunch · 29 Aug, 03:03
Over 20 details spotted in the extended GTA VI look
Netflix briefly held an exclusive 26-minute extended look at Grand Theft Auto VI, revealing numerous new gameplay mechanics ahead of the game's November 19 release. The footage highlights combat changes, expanded carjacking and a new reputation system.
Engadget · 29 Aug, 02:05
Trump's Call Interrupted Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's All-Hands Meeting
President Donald Trump called Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang on his mobile phone in the middle of a company all-hands meeting on Thursday, briefly interrupting the event. The call came a day after Nvidia reported record quarterly revenue.
Wired · 29 Aug, 02:04
Do XREAL's a01 smart glasses make sense for watching movies?
A TechCrunch reviewer tested XREAL's a01 smart glasses as a movie-watching device, finding the image quality impressive but the overall experience redundant and impractical compared to a large screen.
TechCrunch · 29 Aug, 02:02
Google now auto-expanding AI Overviews, pushing search results further down
Google has started automatically showing full AI Overview summaries at the top of some search results pages instead of a truncated preview, pushing the traditional list of links even further down. The company says the feature appears for topics its systems determine are most useful to expand.
The Verge · 29 Aug, 02:01
Analysts warn US-Canada trade war could push Canada into recession
Analysts estimate current tariffs could cost Canada 100,000 jobs, while an end to the USMCA trade pact could tip the country into recession.
Al Jazeera · 29 Aug, 01:01
AI cloud firm Lambda raises $1B in debt to buy more Nvidia chips
AI cloud company Lambda has secured $1 billion in short-dated private debt to purchase Nvidia AI chips it plans to lease to Microsoft, its latest loan aimed at funding GPU infrastructure.
TechCrunch · 29 Aug, 00:20
Leaked build of NVIDIA's DLSS 5 produces unsettling results in games
An early, unfinished build of NVIDIA's DLSS 5, extracted from NBA 2K27, has been grafted onto other games with strange, uncanny valley-like visual results. The leaked version also causes a significant performance drop.
Engadget · 28 Aug, 23:23
Anthropic researcher shows early AI system that improves model alignment on its own
Anthropic has published research on an automated system that reliably improves AI models' behavior on alignment benchmarks without hurting overall performance. The results are seen as an early step toward AI that can train and improve itself.
TechCrunch · 28 Aug, 23:22
Anthropic researcher offers early look at AI that improves its own alignment
Anthropic has published research showing automated systems can reliably improve AI models' performance on alignment benchmarks, boosting results on all 10 tested measures. The findings suggest automated alignment research could become practical in the near future.
TechCrunch AI · 28 Aug, 23:21
Open-weight AI firms become tech's hottest acquisition targets
Nvidia, Stripe and other tech giants have struck or are reportedly pursuing multibillion-dollar deals for open-weight AI model platforms as companies seek alternatives to costly frontier-lab models. The wave includes a reported $13 billion Nvidia bid for Hugging Face.
TechCrunch AI · 28 Aug, 22:21
Microsoft Teams Becomes a Growing Tool for Scammers in China
A romance scam network in China has been using Microsoft Teams to gain victims' trust before stealing large sums of money, with some losses reaching hundreds of thousands of dollars. Microsoft has begun rolling out warnings, though the scheme persists.
Wired · 28 Aug, 22:21
How long does a Fire TV Stick actually last?
Amazon guarantees security updates for Fire TV Stick devices for at least four years, but that doesn't mean the hardware stops working afterward. Real-world lifespan depends more on aging apps and hardware capability than on any fixed deadline.
Engadget · 28 Aug, 22:20
Brave browser adds email alias feature to shield users' real addresses
Brave has rolled out a new email alias feature that lets users sign up for websites without revealing their real email address. Messages sent to the alias are automatically forwarded to the user's primary inbox.
TechCrunch · 28 Aug, 22:19
Dolby Atmos vs. lossless audio: what's the real difference?
Dolby Atmos and lossless audio are both marketed as premium streaming features, but they address entirely different aspects of sound and require different setups to enjoy fully.
Engadget · 28 Aug, 21:20
Federal judge rules Trump administration's Anthropic blacklist was illegal
A US federal judge ruled that the Trump administration illegally retaliated against AI company Anthropic by barring federal agencies and defense contractors from using its products, ordering the directives be rescinded.
Ars Technica · 28 Aug, 21:18
Canada's economy rebounds sharply in Q2, but US tariff risk looms
Canada's economy posted a strong rebound in the second quarter, driven by robust domestic demand, though the threat of future US tariffs continues to cloud the outlook.
Al Jazeera · 28 Aug, 20:21