Tech | The Verge

All the evidence revealed so far in Musk v. Altman

2026-05-01T15:14:51-04:00

The Musk v. Altman trial is underway, and that means exhibits, or the evidence to be presented in court, are being revealed piece by piece. So far, email exchanges, photos, and corporate documents are circulating from the earliest days of OpenAI - and from before the AI lab even had a name. Some high-level takeaways: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang gave OpenAI an in-demand supercomputer, Musk largely drafted OpenAI's mission and heavily influenced its early structure, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman appeared to want to lean heavily on Y Combinator for early support for OpenAI, OpenAI president Greg Brockman and Ilya Sutskever worried about Musk's level of con …

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Birdfy’s smart bird feeder is down to its best-ever price for Mother’s Day

2026-05-01T14:42:24-04:00

From crafting machines to smart calendars, a number of unique gifts are already on sale in the run-up to Mother’s Day, May 10th. Birdfy smart feeders are another discounted option to consider, particularly the new Birdfy Feeder Metal 2 (4K), which is on sale for $259.99 ($50 off). If you’re looking to spend less, you can also grab the basic Birdfy Feeder for just $99.99 ($100 off) from Amazon or Birdfy, with the latter retailer throwing in a free botanical gift bag and greeting card.

Birdfy Feeder

Where to Buy:

Birdfy’s standard bird feeder uses a 1080p camera with a 155-degree field of view and color night vision to capture birds in clear detail as they stop by. It then sends real-time alerts to the Birdfy mobile app for Android and iOS, where you can watch live feeds or browse recorded clips, whether you’re at home or away. Birdfy saves 20-second clips in the cloud for free for up to 30 days, too, so you can revisit old footage or share your newfound observations with friends later.

The app also includes a handful of AI-powered features, which are free for a week, after which they require a premium Birdfy subscription ($4.99 a month or $69.99 for lifetime access). The tools allow you to identify more than 6,000 bird species, share fun facts, and receive daily highlights and monthly summaries. You can also set alerts for specific bird species, just in case you’re trying to capture that elusive summer tanager or the occasional gray flycatcher that happens to pass by.

What’s more, the Feeder is relatively easy to set up and maintain, given that it comes with a flip-up roof and all the mounting attachments you need for affixing it to a pole, wall, or tree. It offers an IP65 weather-resistant rating and features a large 50-ounce seed container, so you don’t need to refill it as often as some other models. It also runs on a 5,200mAh rechargeable battery that can last up to three months, or indefinitely with the optional solar panel, which starts at $29.99.

Birdfy Feeder Metal 2 (4K)

Where to Buy:

If you’re willing to spend more, the higher-end Birdfy Feeder Metal 2 (4K) takes things a step further with a sharper 4K camera and a more durable metal design. It also comes with a built-in solar cell and AI bird recognition, so you don’t need to pay extra for a subscription. It’s one of the first models to support Birdfy’s forthcoming advanced OrniSense AI system, too, which will provide additional information about visiting birds, including health insights and details such as gender.

Other Birdfy Mother’s Day deals

Birdfy Bath Pro with Stand

The Birdfy Bath Pro is a solar-powered smart birdbath with a built-in fountain and dual-lens camera system. It features a 1080p wide-angle lens, a 2K portrait lens, and AI-powered recognition software that can identify more than 6,000 species. Additional features include color night vision, two-way audio, and an IP66 waterproof rating.

Where to Buy:

Birdfy Feeder Rookie

The Birdfy Feeder Rookie is an entry-level feeder with a built-in 1080p camera that sends real-time alerts to your phone and displays live feeds. It can capture HD video in slow motion with color night vision, while a paid subscription lets you identify visiting bird species via AI. The feeder also holds up to 1.3 liters of seed and offers an IP66 rating.

Where to Buy:

Amazon’s built-in AI price history expands to show the entire last year

2026-05-01T13:56:52-04:00

Amazon's built-in price tracking feature now allows you to see how much a product's price has changed over the past year. To use the feature, open the Amazon app and select the "Price history" button next to the item's price, or ask Amazon's AI assistant Rufus.

The expansion comes just weeks ahead of Amazon's annual Prime Day event, which California Attorney General mentioned in his "price fixing" lawsuit against the retail giant. In the lawsuit, Bonta accuses Amazon of pushing other companies to raise the price of their products at other retailers in the days leading up to its annual deals event. Bonta also claims Amazon "bullied vendors t …

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Dreame — the vacuum company — just ‘launched’ its own phones

2026-05-01T13:55:08-04:00

This is just one of 29 different Aurora Lux designs. | Photo by Kelsey McClellan / The Verge

Dreame, a Chinese manufacturer best known for its robot vacuums but with ambitions to do much more, says it's making smartphones now. I'm not sure I believe it.

The company showed off two phones at its own Next event, which took place in California this week, though both had previously been revealed in China in March. Neither phone has actually launched though - in China, the US, or elsewhere - and the company has revealed only a handful of specs about either.

Aurora Nex LS1 is the more interesting of the two, but also the less plausible. It's a modular smartphone with a magnetic attachment point where the rear camera would normally be. Dr …

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Severe Linux Copy Fail security flaw uncovered using AI scanning help

2026-05-01T12:55:16-04:00

Nearly every Linux distribution released since 2017 is currently vulnerable to a security bug called "Copy Fail" that allows any user to give themselves administrator privileges. The exploit, publicly disclosed as CVE-2026-31431 on Wednesday, uses a Python script that works across all of the vulnerable Linux distributions, requiring "no per-distro offsets, no version checks, no recompilation," according to Theori, the security firm that uncovered it.

Ars Technica points out this blog post where DevOps engineer Jorijn Schrijvershof explains that what makes Copy Fail "unusually nasty" is the likelihood for it to go unnoticed by monitoring t …

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We just got a new reason to believe the Trump phone is real(ish)

2026-05-01T12:28:39-04:00

Where's the Trump phone? We're going to keep talking about it every week. We've reached out, as usual, to ask about the Trump phone's whereabouts. This time we've discovered a little more evidence that the phone is on its way to a release.

Trump Mobile's T1 Phone has just passed another milestone on its slow road to release. The phone has received the little-known PTCRB certification, a first step toward being certified to work on major networks and be issued with IMEI numbers.

You probably haven't heard of PTCRB certification - I hadn't until recently. It doesn't come up very often. It's the North American certification process for smartp …

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Aurzen’s tiny trifold projector is almost 40 percent off right now

2026-05-01T13:43:13-04:00

Not all trifolds are created equal — just ask our own Allison Johnson, who recently spent time with Samsung’s ill-fated Galaxy phone. Aurzen’s Zip projector is the kind of trifold gadget we can fully get behind, though, and it’s currently on sale at Amazon for $259.99 ($140 off). You can also pick it up in several colors directly from Aurzen for the same price, or in the gold shade for a new low of $249.99.

Aurzen Zip Tri-Fold Portable Mini Projector

Where to Buy:

While not nearly as powerful as Anker’s Nebula P1 and other portable projectors we’ve recently tested, the Zip is surprisingly capable despite its small stature and battery-powered operation. The snake-like 720p projector offers up to 100 lumens of brightness — meaning it will work best in dark environments, or in brighter rooms when viewing a smaller image — while its built-in battery should last about 80 minutes based on our real-world testing. That’s not exactly marathon battery life, but it’s easy enough to top off the Zip using a power bank or wall adapter.

In terms of support, the Zip can quickly connect to iPhones via AirPlay and to Android devices over Miracast, Smart View, and similar standards, allowing you to wirelessly mirror everything you can see on your phone. You can use it to watch any movies you’ve downloaded on your device, peruse your social feeds, or get in a quick session with your favorite game. It works in both landscape and portrait orientations, too, and supports Bluetooth, letting you listen privately with headphones or pair it to your favorite speaker.

The biggest downside to the Zip, at least for some folks, is that you won’t be able to use it to watch content from services like Netflix, Hulu, and HBO Max due to copyright restrictions. Aurzen does make a USB-C dongle that allows you to stream DRM-protected content, if you truly can’t get by without watching the latest episode of Euphoria. You’ll have to pay a whopping $109 for the privilege, or find another way.

Read our full Aurzen Zip Projector review.

More ways to save today

As part of Garmin’s ongoing Mother’s Day celebration, the Venu 4 is currently on sale at Amazon, Best Buy, and REI in both the 41mm and 45mm configurations for $499.99 ($50 off), matching its best price to date. The Venu 4 is essentially a refreshed version of the Venu 3, only with expanded sleep tracking, the ability to log lifestyle habits (like caffeine intake), and extra accessibility features. Typically, the smartwatch is $100 more expensive than the last-gen model, meaning this limited-time promo takes the sting out a bit.
Amazon’s Fire TV Stick 4K Plus is still available at Woot for $16.09 with code FIRE30, but if you want a more capable streaming device, Google’s speedy TV Streamer (4K) is available at Amazon and Best Buy for $76.99 ($23 off). That’s nearly the best price we’ve seen for the terrific set-top box, which offers built-in Google Assistant, serves as a Matter-ready smart home hub, and pulls together recs from across your favorite streaming services. Read our review.
Microsoft’s latest Xbox Wireless Headset is down to $89.99 ($40 off) at Amazon and Target, which is about $10 shy of its lowest price to date. The first-party gaming headset features Dolby Atmos and Bluetooth 5.3 support, as well as similar ear cup dials to the original model, which we found fantastic. You also get a solid 20 hours of battery life and better mics, which sound just as good with Xbox consoles and mobile devices as they do on PC.

Some of Xteink’s credit card-sized e-readers are losing their best feature

2026-05-01T10:24:54-04:00

The X3 is Xteink’s smallest e-reader. | Photo: Andrew Liszewski / The Verge

The Xteink X4 and X3 are excellent alternatives to Kindles and Kobos if you want an e-reader that's as easy to slip into your pocket - just not out of the box. Both devices come with stock firmware that's clunky, limited, and occasionally confusing, but that can be easily fixed by plugging them into a PC to install alternative software called CrossPoint Reader which delivers a more polished user interface and improved functionality. But now buyers report Xteink is blocking the upgrade, which might depend on where you live and where you purchase its devices.

The issue was first reported by a Reddit user earlier this week when they discovere …

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Pentagon strikes classified AI deals with OpenAI, Google, and Nvidia — but not Anthropic

2026-05-01T10:22:45-04:00

The Pentagon has struck deals with OpenAI, Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Nvidia, Elon Musk's xAI, and the startup Reflection, allowing the agency to use their AI tools in classified settings, according to an announcement on Friday. At the same time, the Defense Department has left out Anthropic - which it previously used for classified information - after declaring it a supply-chain risk.

This builds upon deals with OpenAI and xAI, which have already reached agreements with the Pentagon for the "lawful" use of their AI systems. A report from The Information suggests Google has struck a similar agreement. As noted by The Wall Street Journal, Mi …

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The Verge’s 2026 Mother’s Day gift guide

2026-05-01T10:09:19-04:00

Whether it's managing a busy home or looking out for everyone around them, moms spend a lot of time every day caring for others. Mother's Day, May 10th, is an opportunity to return the favor, so we've rounded up practical gadgets and little luxuries that can lighten her load.

This year's picks are designed to support moms in a variety of ways, regardless of their interests. Some of our recs, like Roborock's mop-equipped Q10 Plus, can help save precious time, while smart screens like the Skylight Calendar 2 can help take the stress out of managing a busy family schedule. Other gifts are all about relaxation and self-care, whether through wel …

Read the full story at The Verge.