That boiling water is a contentious topic of discussion is clear, but what about hot air? When you take a 12 VDC, 280 Watt-rated air fryer and pit it against a bog-standard 240 VAC, 1400 Watt unit, which one would you want to use when you’re doing some camping or other exciting off-the-grid opportunities? Unlike with boiling water the physics aren’t as clear-cut here, so [Cahn] did some testing to figure out exactly what the efficiency numbers look like

Since air fryers rely on the transfer of thermal energy from the resistive heating element into the food, any thermal energy that’s not immediately transferred is effectively wasted. This, combined with the relatively low power rating and thus much higher time demand of the low-voltage air fryer is enough to set one’s expectations pretty low.

As scientific test samples chicken nuggets were used with the test, following a preheating period for the 12 VDC unit. Both units managed to hit a safe temperature inside the nuggets after 20 minutes, thus successfully staving off food poisoning, but the browning with the 240 VAC air fryer was much better.

As for the efficiency, the 12 VDC unit required 150 Wh for 20 minutes plus the 10 minutes of preheating, with 45 minutes total at 225 Watt to get proper browning. Meanwhile the 240 VAC unit burned through 250 Wh in 20 minutes, with no pre-heating, though only 230 Wh with no inverter losses included. As a final test, the 12 VDC unit was run at 400 Watt using 14.6 VDC input, which did indeed get it up to temperature much faster.

Thus both are equivalent, just with the caveat that the low-voltage unit will take considerably more time to get the same result. This mirrors the results with boiling water, where most options mostly vary in how much time they require to get water up to a boiling temperature.

A new wearable device that looks like a simple beanie could soon change how people interact with computers. Developed by Silicon Valley startup Sabi, the prototype uses brain-computer interface (BCI) technology to convert a user’s internal speech into text, effectively allowing them to “type” using their thoughts.

According to a report by WIRED, the device is designed to be one of the least intrusive brain-tech wearables yet, avoiding the bulky, futuristic look of many experimental headsets. Instead, it blends into everyday clothing, making it more practical for daily use.

A Wearable That Listens To Your Thoughts

The beanie works using electroencephalography (EEG), a non-invasive method that reads electrical signals from the brain through the scalp. Unlike implant-based systems such as those being developed by companies like Neuralink, Sabi’s approach does not require surgery.

The goal is to detect “internal speech” – the words people think but don’t say out loud – and convert it into text on a connected device. If successful, this could allow users to communicate or control devices without speaking or typing.

To improve accuracy, the beanie reportedly includes tens of thousands of miniature sensors, far more than traditional EEG devices. This high-density sensing is designed to capture more detailed neural signals, helping the system better interpret what the user is thinking.

Why This Approach Matters

Brain-computer interfaces are not new, but most existing systems fall into two categories: invasive implants or bulky external hardware. Both approaches have limited mainstream adoption due to medical risks, cost, or usability challenges.

Sabi’s beanie takes a different path by focusing on comfort and accessibility. The device is designed to work out of the box without requiring daily calibration, which has been a major limitation for many BCI systems.

Early targets suggest typing speeds of around 30 words per minute, with the potential to improve as users become more familiar with the system.

This could open up new use cases, from accessibility tools for people with disabilities to hands-free computing for everyday users.

The Challenges Of Reading The Mind

Despite its promise, the technology faces significant hurdles. Brain signals vary widely between individuals, and even the same thought can produce slightly different neural patterns each time.

To address this, Sabi is developing a large-scale AI model trained on thousands of hours of brain data collected from volunteers. The aim is to identify patterns that correspond to internal speech across different users.

However, experts caution that “mind-reading” remains a complex and often overstated concept. Current systems can decode limited patterns or commands, but translating continuous, natural thought into text is still an evolving challenge.

Privacy And Ethical Questions

One of the biggest concerns surrounding this technology is privacy. Neural data is deeply personal, potentially revealing thoughts, intentions, and cognitive patterns.

Sabi says it is addressing this by encrypting data and working with neurosecurity experts to ensure safe handling. Still, the broader conversation around brain data rights and ethical use is likely to grow as such devices move closer to commercialization.

What Comes Next

The company is aiming to release its first consumer version of the beanie – and a cap variant – by late 2026.

If successful, the device could represent a shift toward more subtle, everyday brain-computer interfaces that integrate seamlessly into daily life.

For now, the idea of typing with your thoughts may still feel futuristic. But with devices like this beanie, that future is starting to look a lot more wearable—and a lot less intrusive.

Privacy in the digital age is more important than ever, and using a strong VPN can help keep your internet behavior safe from prying eyes. We write a lot about VPNs, and one provider has been making moves over the past two weeks to expand its global coverage. 

Proton VPN is the privacy tool in question, and the Swiss-based company’s network, which has the best free VPN option on the market, now spans roughly 20,000 servers across 145 countries — with new server locations in Lebanon, Nicaragua, Gabon, Papua New Guinea, Kyrgyzstan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo — making it the top provider on our best VPN list for worldwide coverage. 

VPNs, or virtual private networks, operate by masking your actual IP address with one from a remote server, allowing you to disguise your location and keep your internet activity secure.

There are a multitude of ways a VPN can enhance your experience, whether you’re looking to access streaming titles from another country or get around oppressive government firewalls that can block important information and communication pathways, and impede an open, uncensored internet.

Proton VPN now has the biggest global footprint out of all the VPNs CNET has tested. It has a vastly larger number of servers than NordVPN (9,300), and its reach exceeds NordVPN’s (135 countries), ExpressVPN’s (105 countries) and Surfshark’s (11 countries). 

There is one caveat in all of this expansion: Proton VPN doesn’t have a server presence in all 50 US states, unlike NordVPN. That said, it’s still an excellent choice for watching streaming TV shows and movies — especially if you’re traveling internationally.

A Proton VPN spokesperson didn’t immediately respond to our request for comment.

Popular gaming platform Roblox agreed to pay more than $12 million and implement new safety features as part of a settlement with the state of Nevada. This settlement comes amid several lawsuits accusing the company of an alleged lack of protection of children on the platform. 

The agreement resolves potential litigation over allegations that Roblox failed to adequately safeguard children while they played the online game, Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford said in a press release on Wednesday. 

As part of the deal, Roblox will spend $10 million over three years to encourage children to engage in non-digital activities, as well as institute age verification for all users. This will include “facial age estimation technology and government-issued ID for age assurance, and will use behavioral monitoring to identify users who may have been aged incorrectly,” according to the press release. 

“The injunctive relief that Roblox has agreed to will give parents the tools they need to protect their children on the platform; institute default protections to block predators from engaging with children; and ensure that messages involving minors are not encrypted,” Ford said in the press release.

Roblox also committed to spending $1 million over two years on a campaign to educate minors and adults about online safety and another $1.5 million to develop a law enforcement liaison position to work with state law enforcement agencies over concerns about the platform. 

Roblox Chief Safety Officer Matt Kaufman said it’s part of the company’s “work to establish a new standard for digital safety.”

“This resolution creates a blueprint for how industry and regulators can work together to protect the next generation of digital citizens,” Kaufman said Thursday. “We have no finish line when it comes to safety.”

Roblox is under significant legal pressure amid more than 140 lawsuits, according to Reuters. The suits, filed in 2025, allege the company knowingly created a gaming platform that allowed child predators to target minors. 

The company also faces lawsuits from state attorneys general in Texas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Iowa, Nebraska, Tennessee and Florida over similar accusations.

Age-based accounts coming soon

Two days before the settlement announcement, Roblox CEO and founder David Baszucki revealed new accounts for younger Roblox users.

Roblox Kids will be available for children between the ages of 5 and 8, and Roblox Select is for those ages 9 to 15. Roblox is reportedly used by nearly half of US children under 16. Children who are older than 16 will be in their own age group, simply called “Roblox.”

Kids and Select accounts would be available in those age groups as determined by Roblox’s age-check technology or by a verified parent.

Unmonitored chat in the game has been a point of criticism for the platform, as it allows predators to chat with children. Kids’ accounts will have chat turned off by default, with limited access to Minimal or Mild games as determined by the platform. Select accounts will have chat with safeguards and access to games with Moderate content, which is described by the platforms as having “moderate violence, light realistic blood, moderate crude humor, unplayable gambling content, and/or moderate fear.”

These new age-based accounts will roll out sometime in early June. 

A recent cosmological model combines two of the most eccentric ideas in contemporary physics to explain the nature of dark matter, the invisible substance that makes up about 85 percent of all matter in the universe. To understand it, it’s necessary to look beyond the Big Bang we all know and consider two concepts that rarely intersect: cyclic universes and primordial black holes.

A Different Kind of Multiverse

There are different versions of the “multiverse.” The most popular model—that of the Marvel Cinematic Universe—proposes that there are as many universes as there are possibilities and that these versions of reality are parallel. Physics proposes something more sober and mathematically consistent: the cosmic bounce.

In this model, the universe is not born from a singularity, but expands, contracts, and expands again in an endless cycle. Each “universe” is not parallel, but sequential—that is, one arises from the ashes of the previous one.

Is it possible for something to survive the end of its universe and endure into the next? According to a paper published in Physical Review D, yes. Author Enrique Gaztanaga, a research professor at the Institute of Space Sciences in Barcelona, shows that any structure larger than about 90 meters could pass through the final collapse of a universe and survive the rebound. These “relics” would not only persist, but could also seed the formation of giant, unexplained structures observed in the early stages of the present-day universe. Moreover, they could be the key to understanding dark matter.

For decades, the dominant explanation for dark matter has been that it is an unknown particle or particles. But after years of experiments without direct detections, physicists have begun to explore alternatives. One of them proposes that dark matter is not an exotic particle, but an abundant population of small black holes that we overlook.

The idea is appealing, but it has a serious problem. For these black holes to explain dark matter, they would have to exist from the earliest moments of the universe, long before the first stars could collapse. There are indications that these objects could exist, but a convincing physical mechanism to explain their origin is lacking.

A Universe Born With Black Holes

This is where Gaztanaga’s newly proposed model shines. If cosmic bouncing allows compact structures to survive the collapse of the previous universe, then the current universe would have already been born with pre-existing black holes. They would not have to have been generated by extreme fluctuations or finely tuned inflationary processes, but would simply have been there from the first instant.

The assumption has the potential to solve two riddles at once: the origin of black holes and the nature of dark matter. If this model is correct, dark matter would not be a mystery of the early universe but rather a legacy of a cosmos that predates our own.

“Much work remains to be done,” Gaztanaga, also a researcher at the Institute of Cosmology and Gravitation at the University of Portsmouth, said in an article for The Conversation. “These ideas must be tested against data—from gravitational-wave backgrounds to galaxy surveys and precision measurements of the cosmic microwave background.”

“But the possibility is profound,” he added. “The universe may not have begun once, but may have rebounded. And the dark structures shaping galaxies today could be relics from a time before the Big Bang.”

This story originally appeared in WIRED en Español and has been translated from Spanish.

More than 75,000 individuals using distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) platforms for disruptive attacks have been warned through emails and letters during the latest phase of the Operation PowerOFF international law enforcement action.

The ongoing operation is supported by Europol and involves authorities in 21 countries. Coordinated efforts led to the arrest of four people, taking offline 53 domains, and issuing 25 search warrants.

“Leading up to the action week, a series of operational sprints took place, gathering experts from national authorities across the globe to carry out actions against high-value target users of DDoS-for-hire platforms and raise awareness about the illegality of these activities,” Europol says.

“During these sprints, the participating countries disrupted illegal booter services, dismantling the technical infrastructure that supports illegal DDoS.”

The operation has a global span, and includes multiple European Union countries as well as Australia, Thailand, the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, and Brazil.

“Booter services” are DDoS-for-hire platforms that allow users to pay for renting the firepower of DDoS swarms, typically consisting of compromised routers and IoTs, and directing it to their intended targets.

Some operators of these services attempt to hide their real goal by claiming they are used for legitimate stress testing, but lack verification of target ownership and hence are still used for illegal attacks.

The latest Operation PowerOFF action was built on previous phases that resulted in dismantling key infrastructure and seizing databases with more than 3 million criminal accounts.

Europol states that the operation is now entering its prevention phase, which includes launching awareness campaigns and disruption measures.

These involve placing search engine ads aimed at young people seeking DDoS tools, removing from search results more than 100 URLs that promote these illegal services, and adding on-chain warning messages tied to illicit payments.

AI chained four zero-days into one exploit that bypassed both renderer and OS sandboxes. A wave of new exploits is coming.

At the Autonomous Validation Summit (May 12 & 14), see how autonomous, context-rich validation finds what’s exploitable, proves controls hold, and closes the remediation loop.

Claim Your Spot

A Call of Duty movie is still happening, but don’t hold your breath for it to hit screens any time soon. Today, the popular FPS’ social media revealed that the movie’s theatrical release date will be June 30, 2028.

A film adaptation of the game franchise was first revealed last year, and shortly after, we learned that Taylor Sheridan and Peter Berg would be serving as the producers. The duo, whose past credits include Friday Night Lights and Yellowstone, will also be co-writing the project under Berg’s direction. We still haven’t heard anything about the cast, or even what era of the long-running series will be depicted, so it seems like a safe bet that there’s still a ways to go before this wraps. But CoD is nothing if not a money-maker, so reimagining it as a summer blockbuster seems pretty expected.