Google parent company Alphabet has launched Gemini 4 Argon, a new AI model built to handle a variety of tasks such as coding, research, and writing. But it’s cybersecurity that Gemini 4 Argon is supposed to have a particular knack for, according to Google.

Argon is only being rolled out to a select group of the company’s cyber partners through its Fairwind Program, Google’s security initiative. The model was trained specifically for defensive cyber work, and the company says it can “autonomously find, validate, and patch critical software vulnerabilities.”

Argon is also said to be good at coding and engineering, with the company noting that its own staff have already been using the model for their daily work, including debugging and codebase migrations. Google also touts Argon’s ability to parse visuals — whether that’s analyzing the contents of long videos or charts.

“Built to sustain deep reasoning across complex, long-horizon workflows, Argon is fundamentally changing the way we work and build at Google,” the company said in a blog post Wednesday.

Top AI labs have rushed to release increasingly powerful models, attempting to outdo each other even as those very same firms warn that AI could spin out of control. Not long ago, OpenAI released Astra — which it hailed as its best model yet. Earlier this year, Anthropic’s Fable was also released with similar rhetoric from the company.

Firms have done their best to market their services as superior to their competitors. In its blog, Google claims that Argon scored significantly higher than OpenAI’s GPT-6 Astra and Anthropic’s Fable and Opus models across a variety of AI benchmarks. It cites Vals — an increasingly popular AI benchmarking startup — to show that Argon is currently the leading model on the company’s AI model index.

Once considered “behind” in the AI race, Google has recently enjoyed success with Gemini. The company announced in August that its app had over a billion users per month, a metric that makes it competitive with OpenAI, which also recently announced that ChatGPT had reached a billion monthly users.

Singapore’s starting salaries may be on the rise, but the number of entry-level roles is shrinking, reported global professional services firm Aon in its latest 2026 Salary Increase and Turnover Study.

The report, released on Sept 23, surveyed over 1,200 organisations in more than 20 industries across Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

It showed a 2.5% year-on-year salary increase for entry-level employees, alongside a 3.2% drop in entry-level headcount from 2025, indicating an increasingly tough job market for those just entering the workforce.

The report is in line with a broader softening in Singapore’s graduate job market.

A joint survey by the country’s six autonomous universities released earlier in Mar found that 83.4% of recent graduates who sought jobs were employed within six months of their final exams. This was down from 87.1% in 2024, continuing a downward trend since 2022.

Aon’s findings also point to a shift in employer expectations for new workforce entrants. This comes as artificial intelligence (AI) takes on an increasingly prominent role in the workplace.

“AI is changing the first rung of the career ladder, but it does not remove the need to build future talent,” said Rahul Chawla, partner and Head of Talent Solutions for Southeast Asia at Aon.

“Companies should redesign graduate roles around problem solving, judgment, human skills and the ability to work effectively with AI, rather than reduce entry opportunities and risk creating a capability gap in the future.”

Singapore salaries showed slowest growth in SEA

The broader salary picture was more muted in Singapore.

Overall, wages in the city-state grew by 4.1% in 2026, down from 4.3% in 2025, marking the slowest growth among its Southeast Asian peers. Meanwhile, Vietnam saw the highest salary increase at 6.6%, followed by Indonesia’s 5.4%.

In Singapore, Retail & Hospitality saw the highest salary increase at 4.5%, followed by Life Sciences & Medical Devices at 4.3%, and Technology at 4.2%.

Regarding attrition, Singapore’s financial services sector saw the highest involuntary turnover rate at 8.1%. Technology saw the second highest at 5.7%, and then came Consulting, Business & Community Services at 4.9%.

Amid advancements in AI, several banks, including DBS and Standard Chartered, had earlier announced job cuts.

For Aon’s study, organisations were also asked which skills were most in demand. Leadership and people management skills were most in demand, chosen by 49% of organisations, followed jointly by data and analytical skills, as well as AI and automation skills, at 48% each.

“The organisations gaining a competitive edge are investing in continuous and targeted upskilling now, before a skills gap becomes a hiring crisis,” said Evon Lock, Director of Talent Solutions in Southeast Asia at Aon.

“They are building capabilities and infrastructure internally so employees can grow into the new roles AI is creating.”

More layoffs and fewer jobs

Aon’s findings come amid a broader slowdown in Singapore’s labour market.

On Sept 21, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) reported that retrenchments rose to 4,620 in Q2 2026, up from 3,830 in the first quarter. This was the highest level since the fourth quarter of 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Job vacancies, meanwhile, fell to 68,600 in Jun from 73,300 in Mar.

The ministry said this mainly reflected fewer vacancies for professionals, managers, executives and technicians (PMETs) in sectors such as financial services and information and communications. Entry-level PMET vacancies, however, remained “broadly stable and sizeable,” making up 45.3% of all job openings in June.

Despite the overall decline, vacancies still outnumbered unemployed people, at 1.48 per unemployed person as of Jun.

The Government has also introduced measures to help fresh graduates gain work experience and move into full-time employment.

Nearly half of the graduates who completed the Government’s Graduate Industry Traineeships (GRIT) programme by end-Jul 2026 went on to secure employment, MOM said in Sept.

More than 590 of the programme’s 800 places had been filled as of end Jun and the scheme will be extended to the 2026 graduating cohort.

• Read other articles we’ve written on Singapore’s current affairs here.

Earlier today, Figure posted a short film called F.02 Decommission and treated fleet retirement like a closing shot from Terminator 2. A humanoid hangs from a chain over a glowing electric arc furnace, gets lowered toward liquid steel, and holds a thumbs-up as the heat takes the frame. Viewers waiting for Figure CEO Brett Adcock or a newer robot under a mask instead get Arnold Schwarzenegger, who later signed off the whole affair with four words: “Hasta la vista, F.02.”

Figure 02 was sent off in a grueling yet painless manner. It was the company’s first foray onto a BMW line, a platform that not only gave birth to Helix but also became the first Figure to take on domestic tasks and experiment with logistics. Down at Plant Spartanburg, it was working 10-hour days, loading over 90,000 parts, recording over 1,250 hours, and assisting in the assembly of over 30,000 X3s. F.03 had taken over as the operation’s workhorses, with F.04 close behind, and the storage warehouse was bursting at the seams with a slew of expensive and highly proprietary specialized actuators and other locked-down equipment. Ripping the old equipment apart by hand would have been a nightmare and would have taken weeks, leaving you lacking on the new one and way out of budget, so holding an auction was also out of the question, as it would have released those cherished bits, now outdated, into the wild.

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Headquarters was the first to run out of room. Adcock asked the internet for a proper goodbye in August. A poll of 1,422 votes put “blow them up” on top at 46.3 percent. Schwarzenegger ignored the tally and wrote, “You should melt them.” Figure messaged him. He wanted in. That reply, dated August 19, is why a retirement meeting turned into a foundry job instead of a demolition reel.

Every foundry in the United States and Mexico said no; a lithium-ion humanoid couldn’t handle that much heat. Even the old Mythbusters crew joined in the fun, attempting to find one, but suddenly, out of nowhere, a place in Imatra, Finland, just shrugged and said “hey, come on in, Imatra’s OK,” since the water is fantastic there. So training resumed at Figure’s San Jose facility, where these robots were jumping up onto these large airbags on the second level, with stunt professionals providing on-camera action to perfect the maneuvers. Next thing you know, a new model is learning the exact same leaping move in simulation, allowing a robot that has never seen the Finnish floor to fall on top of a pail of molten steel. Later on, the corporation was quick to stress out that those jumps were entirely on their own, and the film you saw was truly shot on-site, not cobbled together by a computer.

Imatra gave the crew only 24 hours to complete the job, or six melts as they are known. A gigantic 75-ton furnace chomps through scrap steel, fuelled by three graphite electrodes, which are practically all the fuel it requires to keep going. Each melt lasts around 20 minutes, but once a protective crust forms, the furnace simply stops and restarts. The heat and electromagnetic waves vaporized any cameras that attempted to take a look, but the robots continued to go forward. Bonus footage shows them flipping and diving on their own, which is rather impressive to behold.

The bars they were able to save are currently being transported back to the United States, where they will be carved into extremely rare F.02 head relics. A one-third scale sells for $500, while a two-thirds scale costs $1900. And, while the majority of the fleet is long gone, a few units remain in storage at headquarters. It took a movie star, a Finnish furnace, and a full crew of robots to deliver the next machine on schedule, and now the leftover steel is for sale.

• Opera’s browser now solves one of the biggest problems travelers face abroad
• The built-in eSIM connects the entire phone rather than Opera alone
• Travelers can activate connectivity without buying another eSIM application first

Opera has added a built-in eSIM to its Android browser, giving travelers 3GB of complimentary mobile data for three days across supported destinations.

Travelers who arrive in a new country can skip the hunt for public Wi-Fi, because the free data requires no card details, purchasing a plan or entering an email.

Asus ProArt PZ14

MSRP $2,499.99

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“A powerful, polished Windows tablet that delivers.”

Pros

• Exceptionally thin and light
• Sturdy IP52-rated aluminum build
• Vibrant 144Hz OLED with stylus support
• Handles multitasking with ease
• Excellent Adobe app compatibility
• Reliable all-day battery life
• Fast charging with charger in the box

Cons

• Accessories add considerable bulk
• Small, firm trackpad
• Occasional palm touches
• Reflective under strong lighting
• Inadequate graphics performance
• Bulky bundled charger

Quick Recap

The laptop market is going through an awkward transition. On the one hand, AI is pushing manufacturers toward more powerful hardware and higher memory configurations. On the other, a global memory shortage is making RAM and storage increasingly more expensive, both for manufacturers and consumers. Against that backdrop, the Asus ProArt PZ14 is an interesting 2-in-1 option that simplifies the buying decision.

Rather than asking you to choose between a tablet for portability and a laptop for productivity, Asus has tried to make one device serve both roles without treating either as an afterthought. The well-thought-out hardware also powers Windows on Arm in a better and less head-scratching way, as native Arm apps and Microsoft’s improved emulation have made everyday software considerably less of a gamble.

The PZ14 takes that progress and pushes it into a more innovative form factor: a 14-inch OLED tablet with a detachable keyboard, stylus, desktop-class Windows software, and enough performance to handle serious everyday work. It isn’t flawless, particularly when you use it like a conventional laptop.

But Asus deserves credit for attempting something increasingly rare in the PC market: a genuinely one-stop creative machine rather than a collection of compromises sold separately. After spending some time with the Asus 2-in-1 Windows machine, this is what I think about it.

Asus ProArt PZ14 specs

Asus ProArt PZ14 design: It nails the tablet part, but the laptop isn’t without flaws

Quick Take: The ProArt PZ14 gets the tablet-first formula mostly right, pairing impressive portability and versatility with a few compromises.

Overall dimensions and weight

The portability-first approach makes the Asus ProArt PZ14 feel more like a Windows tablet and less like a Windows 2-in-1 to me, and honestly, I think that’s a good thing. The screen-only version measures 320 x 206 x 9 mm and weighs about 790 grams, which is remarkably easy to slip into a bag and carry around.

Thanks to the aluminum chassis, the device feels quite robust in hand. The curved edges also make it comfortable to hold. However, given the screen size, you’ll probably find yourself looking for a surface to prop it against, which is where the included kickstand comes in handy. It does a great job holding the tablet securely at different angles and stays stable while you tap the touchscreen.

Don’t get me wrong, though. In-hand use is absolutely possible. The only thing that bothered me was the occasional accidental touch input from my palm, as the bezels aren’t quite thick enough to keep them at bay. 

Two-handed use, particularly while watching videos or movies, was more comfortable for me. Asus also specifically markets the finish as smudge-resistant.

In its Nano Black finish, the device has a stealthy, low-profile look that draws attention without turning the back panel into a fingerprint magnet.

For context, and to give Asus a little credit where it’s due, the 13-inch Surface Pro (12th Edition) has a 9.3mm profile and weighs around 895 grams. Despite having a smaller 13-inch screen, the Surface Pro is actually thicker and heavier. That makes the ProArt PZ14’s dimensions even more impressive, especially since you’re getting a 14-inch display.

Tablet-only experience and the detachable keyboard

However, snap on the magnetic stand cover (around 270g) and the detachable keyboard (470g), and the combined weight climbs to around 1.5kg, making it a bit heavier than the 13-inch MacBook Air or the 13-inch iPad Pro with a Magic Keyboard.

That’s the murkier part. The complete package, I’d say, gets a little cumbersome, because the accessories add noticeable bulk and thickness. The stand cover can also pop open when you’re carrying the device and make a sudden movement. To counter that, I had to grip it a little harder than usual.

To put that weight into perspective, the 13-inch Surface Pro comes in at around 895 grams before its keyboard, and Microsoft’s keyboard adds to the overall carry weight. Speaking of the detachable keyboard, I have plenty of first-hand observations here, too.

Attaching and detaching it feels almost magical. All you have to do is align the keyboard, and the tablet and magnetic mechanism snap into place.

The pogo pins take over from there for data transmission. Detaching is just as simple. Once, I pranked my sister by pulling the tablet away from the keyboard while holding it out toward her, and she genuinely thought I had just broken the laptop in half.

Silly anecdotes aside, the ProArt PZ14 absolutely earns its 2-in-1 credentials, not just because it has a touchscreen and detachable keyboard, but because you can switch from laptop mode to tablet mode in practically a second.

The keyboard is great for casual use, but if your fingers spend most of your workday planted on the keys, it doesn’t feel quite as accommodating as, say, Apple’s iPad keyboards. Without a hinge mechanism to hold the keyboard firmly in place, an accidental jab while reaching for something across the table can nudge it sideways, which can be distracting when you’re typing quickly.

I’d say the key travel is above average. While the company claims 1.7mm of key travel, I’ve used other keyboards with the same figure that somehow feel more substantial and satisfying under the fingers. The trackpad is smaller and needs a firmer press than I expected, which took some getting used to after the wonderfully effortless trackpads I’m accustomed to on MacBooks.

It works, but it’s one of those areas where the tablet-first design occasionally reminds you that you’re asking a very thin accessory to moonlight as a laptop. Keep in mind: the keyboard works when detached, but don’t leave it detached for long, since it relies on the tablet to charge. Further, you’ll have a hard time using it as a laptop in your lap. 

What makes this 2-in-1 even more versatile for me is the inclusion of two USB 4 Gen 3 Type-C with an SD Express 7.0 card reader.

Ports and IP rating

The USB-C ports support 40Gbps speeds, Power Delivery, and DisplayPort output. The card reader, in particular, feels like a surprisingly thoughtful addition on a device this thin, especially if you’re someone like me who regularly moves photos and other large files around. Again, the 13-inch Surface Pro doesn’t get one.

Finally, the 2-in-1 Windows tablet has IP52 dust and splash resistance, which is a good thing as most 2-in-1s skip it entirely. But I’d advise you not to get too comfortable or carry it carelessly: treat the IP rating as a safety net. It also complies with the MIL-STD-810H standard, something that I couldn’t put to the test. 

Design Score: 9/10

Asus ProArt PZ14 display: The OLED screen is gorgeous, but there’s one thing I’d change

Quick Take: The ProArt PZ14’s OLED display is one of its biggest strengths, combining vibrant colors, high refresh rate, touch, and excellent HDR with only a few outdoor-use caveats.

Display size, resolution, and refresh rate

The 14-inch screen is perhaps the ProArt PZ14’s main selling point. First, it’s a gorgeous OLED display with 2880 x 1800 pixels (222 ppi). The resolution may look lower at first glance, especially compared with a modern OLED smartphone, but it’s standard for laptops and 2-in-1s. Second, it supports up to a 144Hz refresh rate (higher than that on the 13-inch Surface Pro), which makes casual scrolling and watching fast-moving video feel smoother than on regular 60 Hz or 120 Hz displays.

Finally, it supports touch input, which, let me tell you, is a surprisingly transformative feature in real life. After spending some time with the device, I’ve found myself reaching for it to close a Chrome tab on my MacBook screen at least a couple of dozen times.

Once you get used to tapping, swiping, and closing things directly on the display, going back to a conventional laptop screen feels oddly cumbersome.

The cherry on top is the Asus Pen 3.0 included in the box.

The stylus attaches magnetically to the ProArt’s rear panel to charge, making it easy to track; it connects seamlessly and glides over the display with no perceptible lag or friction. It’s quite responsive, I’d say. Asus says that the stylus supports Microsoft Pen Protocol 2.6 and 4,096 levels of pressure sensitivity, which is certainly a great addition for creatives and designers.

OLED display and brightness

But the most important, and perhaps the most understated, part of the experience is the OLED panel itself. Setting aside the fact that it made my M5 MacBook Air’s display look noticeably paler by comparison, it is one of the most vibrant and bright displays I’ve ever tested on a 2-in-1 laptop. Deep, inky blacks, punchy colors, and striking contrast are all part of the package, and they remain impressive both indoors and outdoors.

A 500-nit peak brightness is enough for SDR content. However, HDR is where the panel really shows what it can do. I’m talking about 1,000 nits of HDR peak brightness that gives bright highlights more punch while bringing out additional detail in darker areas of the image.

Watching a movie or show indoors is where I appreciated this most. Even outdoors, the screen is perfectly visible, except under direct sunlight.

In direct sunlight, though, I felt like the screen could use a couple hundred more nits.

But even then, the text on the screen remained perfectly legible, and so did the colors and the contrast. You might not want to work directly beneath a bright light source, though. Even with the anti-reflective treatment, strong ambient light can still show up as distracting reflections, making it harder to focus on the screen. I noticed this most under ceiling-mounted lights.

With its lightweight design and detachable tablet form factor, the 2-in-1 is designed to travel with you, but the remaining glare can somewhat undermine that otherwise excellent on-the-go experience.

Even so, I loved it indoors and still appreciated it outdoors, even with the reflection caveat. I’ll admit: using my M5 MacBook Air’s screen right after the Asus ProArt PZ14’s felt downright offensive.

Creative professionals should find plenty to like here, too, especially anyone who cares about how their photos, designs, or color palettes look across different displays. 

Color accuracy and speakers

The 14-inch OLED screen covers 98% of the P3 color gamut, 92% of Adobe’s RGB color space, and 100% of sRGB. In practical terms, that wide gamut gives you a broader range of colors to work with: DCI-P3 is particularly useful for modern video and photo workflows, while full sRGB coverage keeps everyday web content looking accurate. Adobe RGB coverage matters more for photographers and print-focused workflows.

Asus also claims a Delta E of less than 1, a strong indicator of color accuracy that means the colors you see on the screen should stay remarkably close to the intended colors. If you’re sensitive to flickering, the 720Hz PWM dimming across all brightness levels might bother you.

The device also features two surprisingly capable speakers. With Dolby Atmos support, the output feels immersive and wider than you’d expect from a tablet-like device that is this thin. There’s enough low-end presence to give music and movie soundtracks some weight, while dialogue and vocals stay clear and well-separated.

Volume is more than enough for personal listening or sharing a show with someone nearby. With well-processed, high-quality content, I didn’t notice any distortion either. In fact, I’d go as far as to say that unless you like your music or movies to be really loud, you’re going to end up liking the speakers on the 2-in-1. It punches well above its weight and makes watching content on the OLED screen much more enjoyable.

Display Score: 9.5/10

Asus ProArt PZ14 performance: For my workload, the Snapdragon X2 Elite feels like more than enough

Quick Take: The ProArt PZ14 handled my everyday workload with ease, from dozens of Chrome tabs to photo editing, although its integrated graphics put a ceiling on heavier creative work.

During my limited time with the ProArt PZ14, I treated it like my personal work machine, and it didn’t disappoint me. The Snapdragon X2 Elite (X2-88-100) chip with an 18-core Oryon chip, combined with 32GB of LPDDR5X, never felt underpowered for what I threw at it. For context, my daily use includes running and switching between a couple dozen Chrome tabs, plus Lightroom or Photoshop when I have to edit pictures for reviews. 

Day-to-day usage

The ProArt PZ14 felt quite smooth and responsive to me. In fact, switching between multiple Chrome tabs running Teams, Gmail, Docs, Netflix, YouTube, WordPress, Grammarly, and a couple of chatbots at any given point never forced the system to stutter or hesitate. 

The machine boots quickly, wakes from sleep almost instantly, Launching apps feels snappy as well.

A few times, though, with a lot of active prompting, I noticed the system lagging for a second or two. If my 13-inch M5 MacBook Air struggles with 50 to 60 active Chrome tabs, this one handles around 30 or 35 perfectly, with no hesitation (without any active chatbots). Even with me using the browser and music playing in the background, everything remained fluid. 

Synthetic benchmark performance

Lightroom Classic and Photoshop both opened cleanly and responded without the compatibility headaches that used to plague earlier Windows-on-ARM machines.

The synthetic numbers, I’d say, lined up with my observations with daily usage. In my own testing, the Snapdragon X2 Elite on the ProArt PZ14 posted 3,784 single-core and 17,521 multi-core on Geekbench 6. In retrospect, that multi-core score sits close to that of the Apple M4 chip.

The multi-core performance is clearly stronger in single-core than the rival Intel or AMD thin-and-light chips with similar power levels. 

The internal PCIe 4.0 SSD delivered sequential reads in the 5,800–6,100 MB/s range, which could definitely come in handy while transferring a bunch of edited pictures, videos, or graphics from the device. I couldn’t test the SD Express card reader, though.

Graphics and NPU

Graphics are the clearer compromise. The Adreno X2-90 is a step up from last generation but still sits roughly at the level of Intel’s older Arc 140V. ProArt Creator Hub gives you three power profiles. Whisper kept the fans completely off during light work and was essentially silent. Standard became my daily default. The performance profile is only available when the device is plugged in. 

The 80 TOPS Hexagon NPU handled Copilot+ features and Adobe’s generative tools smoothly. In short, the PZ14 delivered the kind of responsive, creator-friendly performance I actually want from a machine that is thin, thin, and light. It won’t replace a high-TDP workstation for heavy multi-threaded video rendering or gaming. However, for everyday productivity, photo work, and light-to-mid creative workflows on the move, it felt more than capable.

Performance Score: 9/10

Asus ProArt PZ14 software: Polished Windows 11 experience with thoughtful Asus extras

Quick Take: Windows 11 feels considerably more polished on the ProArt PZ14, with useful Asus tools and improved ARM app compatibility.

Out of the box, the ProArt PZ14 ships with Windows 11 Home. Day to day, the experience felt clean and responsive. Snap Layouts and the improved multitasking view made juggling browser windows, Lightroom, and reference material noticeably smoother, while the persistent Copilot sidebar stayed out of the way until I actually needed it.

The 80 TOPS Hexagon NPU powers the usual Copilot+ features without drama, and Adobe’s generative tools ran smoothly when I tried them.

Asus-specific software additions

What stood out more were the Asus-specific tools. ProArt Creator Hub remains the central control panel for power profiles, display calibration, and color presets. StoryCube and MuseTree are still there to organize and brainstorm creative work.

Two newer additions proved more useful than I expected: ScreenXpert makes managing multiple displays straightforward, and GlideX lets you wirelessly extend or share the screen with a phone or another PC. Both felt like genuine extras to me.

MyAsus adds the usual suite of practical toggles: Battery health charging, Fan Profile, Splendid color modes, AI Noise Canceling (which pairs well with the dual-microphone array), AdaptiveLock, and a few others. The combination of a firmware TPM and Microsoft’s Pluton security processor, plus IR Windows Hello, also gives the device a stronger security foundation than most thin Windows tablets.

Complementary subscriptions

Asus also includes a handful of complementary subscriptions to get you started: a 3-month Adobe Creative Cloud All Apps trial, Google AI Pro, GoPro Premium+, a Microsoft 365 trial, and Xbox Game Pass. The Adobe trial and Google AI Pro matter most, at least for me. These subscriptions also help you offset the higher asking price.

App compatibility has improved enough that everyday creative tools open and behave the way you expect.

The system stays responsive under real multitasking loads, and the experience no longer carries that constant low-level uncertainty about whether something will break or refuse to run. Overall, though, Windows on the PZ14 feels more refined and purpose-built than the awkward ARM Windows machines of a couple of years ago.

Software Score: 8.5/10

Asus ProArt PZ14 battery life: Excellent endurance paired with fast charging

Quick Take: The ProArt PZ14 delivers genuine all-day endurance that feels almost out of place in a device this thin.

The ProArt PZ14 features a 75Wh battery, which isn’t something you’d guess from how thin the device is. Even the thicker 13-inch Surface Pro packs a 52Wh cell, so that’s a clear win for the ProArt PZ14.

With that relatively large battery, the ProArt PZ14 consistently gave me over 10 to 11 hours of use between charges, with the brightness set at 30-40% and the device connected to Wi-Fi throughout.

What surprised me was how close it came to the battery life I average on my 13-inch M5 MacBook Air with the same workflow.

On days when I’ve used it mainly as a secondary display for research, while playing OTT shows or music in the background, it has even gone beyond that 10- to 11-hour mark. Mind you, this is all at the Standard power profile, with no battery-saving tweaks or changes on my end.

That’s a testament to just how power-efficient the Snapdragon X2 Elite can be. However, with heavy creative usage, the endurance numbers could fall significantly. With back-to-back video rendering or photo editing at maximum brightness, I’d expect the battery to provide around five to six hours of runtime.

And yes, since the device features an OLED panel, pushing the brightness higher can take a noticeable toll on battery life.

The included 68W Type-C charger is where my gripe with the device really lies.

Compared to my MacBook charger, the brick-style adapter that Asus includes with this 2-in-1 is quite bulky and inconvenient to use and carry on a daily basis. It has an AC power cord that plugs into the outlet and an integrated USB-C cable that connects to the device, which makes the whole setup feel unnecessarily cumbersome.

I understand that the device supports 68W fast wired charging, but Asus could have potentially provided a smaller adapter in the box, one that plugs directly into the outlet and lets me use a separate compatible USB-C cable for charging.

Anyway, the advantage of that charging speed is that you can get the battery from empty to full in around an hour. Overall, battery life is one of the ProArt PZ14’s strongest everyday strengths.

For me, it feels closer to a high-end ultraportable than a typical Windows tablet.

That combination of battery capacity, efficiency, and relatively quick charging makes it far more practical for all-day creative or mobile work than its thin profile would suggest.

Battery Score: 9/10

Should you buy Asus ProArt PZ14?

Here’s one thing that you can’t question the brand for: the price. The Asus ProArt PZ14 is available in a single 32GB RAM and 1TB SSD storage configuration, for which the brand is asking $2,499. However, included in the box is the detachable keyboard attachment, the magnetic kick stand, Asus Pen 3.0 stylus, a protective sleeve, and a 68W power adapter.

Basically, Asus isn’t leaving you high and dry as soon as you get out of the store: all the required accessories are already included in the box. So, besides its use case, the ProArt PZ14 also wins on the value-for-money aspect for me. Just so you know, maximizing the 13-inch Surface Pro (12th Edition) to the same configuration, and getting the optional keyboard and stylus increases your bill to around $3,000.

Keeping the pricing debate to the side, the Asus ProArt PZ14 is one of the most compelling Windows tablets I’ve used in years. If you want a genuinely portable creative machine that can switch from pure tablet to laptop in a second, handles everyday workflows along with photo and light video editing without drama, and delivers all-day battery life, this is the device to consider.

It’s especially well-suited for photographers, designers, and hybrid creators who already live in Adobe apps and want something thinner and lighter than a traditional ultraportable, without giving up a high-quality OLED screen, stylus support, and a usable keyboard. The combination of the Snapdragon X2 Elite, 32 GB of RAM, a vibrant 14-inch 144 Hz OLED, and strong battery life makes it feel more capable and refined than earlier Windows-on-ARM tablets.

Why not try?

• Microsoft Surface Pro (latest generation): If you want the purest Windows tablet experience with better keyboard stability, a more mature accessory ecosystem, and Microsoft’s own software polish, the Surface Pro remains the safer mainstream choice. It’s thicker and heavier than the PZ14, and its display isn’t as vibrant, but the overall package feels more refined as a daily driver for many users.

• 13-inch iPad Pro and Magic Keyboard: If you’re not locked into Windows and prioritize absolute portability, best-in-class display, and a mature tablet ecosystem, the iPad Pro is still hard to beat. It won’t run full desktop Adobe apps the same way, but for many creative workflows it’s faster, lighter, and more polished in pure tablet mode.

• MacBook Air M5 (13- or 15-inch): If you prefer a traditional clamshell design, excellent sustained performance, class-leading speakers, and macOS, the MacBook Air remains the stronger everyday laptop. You lose the tablet flexibility and the higher-refresh OLED, but you gain a more solid typing experience and no ARM compatibility questions.

How I tested

I used the Asus ProArt PZ14 as my main work device for several days, running the same mixed workload I put most premium portables through: heavy Chrome multitasking (Teams, Gmail, Docs, Netflix, YouTube, and AI tools), photo editing in Lightroom Classic and Photoshop, and regular switching between tablet and laptop modes.

I measured battery life during real mixed-use days at 30–40% brightness, and performance checks included Geekbench 6, SSD speeds, and the different ProArt Creator Hub power profiles. I kept my 13-inch MacBook Air M5 nearby as the primary reference for display, responsiveness, and everyday feel.

FAQs

Is the Asus ProArt PZ14al a good laptop replacement?
Yes, though the keyboard isn’t ideal for long typing sessions.

Can the ProArt PZ14 be used as a tablet?
Yes. Its tablet-first design, touchscreen, and included stylus make it genuinely versatile.

Is Windows on Arm reliable on the ProArt PZ14?
Yes. Everyday apps worked smoothly, though some compatibility limitations remain.

How long does the ProArt PZ14 battery last?
Around 10–11 hours with typical everyday use.

Is the ProArt PZ14 good for creative work?
Yes, especially for photography, design, and lighter creative workloads.

The Spiral Luxe Auto Pour Over combines a coffee grinder with a rotating water spout.

The Russian state actor Star Blizzard has been using a new malware installation tactic dubbed “RedFlick” to deploy its signature CosmicPulse backdoor.

Although the tactic is not a new cybersecurity technique, it is a new delivery approach for the threat actor, allowing it to further automate attacks and reduce victim interaction.

Microsoft researchers say that Star Blizzard expanded its phishing operations and streamlined malware delivery in 2026.

Star Blizzard, active since 2017, is known for exploring new payload delivery avenues like ClickFix or WhatsApp, and for continually developing and deploying new malware families.

New RedFlick technique

RedFlick attacks begin with a phishing email, such as an invitation, followed by a second message containing a password-protected ZIP or RAR archive.

The archive contains a VHDX virtual disk with an LNK file disguised as a PDF. When the file is opened, it launches a command in a hidden window while displaying a decoy PDF to the victim.

The commands download and run an MSI installer that creates three scheduled tasks posing as legitimate maintenance components, each with a specific purpose:

1. Internet Quality Test Connection: sends the computer/network name and username to the attackers and can execute a remote DLL.
2. Network Configuration Manager: prepares Windows’ WebDAV functionality so remote web resources can be accessed through file-style paths.
3. System Health Monitor: uses control.exe to execute a remotely hosted next-stage payload.

Since the new method uses multiple scheduled tasks with distinct roles, it helps the attacker evade detection at different stages of the attack.

The next-stage payload is a downloader known as NOROBOT and BAITSWITCH, delivered in the form of a Control Panel applet (.cpl). Its purpose is to fetch and execute the CosmicPulse backdoor.

BAITSWITCH downloads two ZIP archives, one of them containing the Python 3.8 64-bit package and a Python file acting as a bootstrapper for CosmicPulse.

“The bootstrapper reads the encrypted key from the registry, recovers it using an embedded key in AES-ECB mode, and then uses the recovered key to decode the CosmicPulse payload,” Microsoft says.

Microsoft notes that the backdoor’s capabilities in the observed attacks remain the same as described in a report from Google in October 2025, including the execution of attacker-supplied Python code to download and run files or retrieve documents from infected systems.

From a practical perspective, RedFlick only requires the victim to open the malicious shortcut file to trigger an automated infection chain, whereas in the ClickFix attacks, Star Blizzard required victims to take multiple manual actions.

Microsoft’s report provides technical analysis of the infection chain and the components used in the attacks.

The company says that since the beginning of the year, it has observed at least 13 distinct large-scale phishing campaigns impacting more than 100 organizations, primarily in the United States and the United Kingdom.

“The RedFlick campaigns have targeted Ukrainian individuals and institutions, as well as international NGOs, think tanks, governments, and financial institutions that have supported Ukraine politically or financially,” the researchers say.

Despite changing its tactics, techniques, and procedures, StarBlizzard continues to target users by impersonating trusted contacts or organizations, and still relies on free email providers to deliver phishing messages.

Microsoft recommends that companies use phishing-resistant authentication, Conditional Access policies, email protection, and independently verify suspicious messages through established contact details.

Additionally, using an endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions in block mode should prevent infections by blocking malicious artifacts even if they are not caught by the antivirus agent.

Join Mikko Hyppönen and security leaders from the NFL, CHANEL, and Atlassian for a two-hour digital summit on what AI-speed attacks change, what defenders should stop doing, and how to validate, decide, fix, and re-validate at machine speed.

Save your seat

Samsung‘s Galaxy S27 lineup may cost more next year, and larger storage could make the upgrade even pricier. According to Korean tipster yeux1122 (Lanzuk), Samsung is planning to raise prices across the entire lineup, with an even steeper jump for anyone eyeing extra storage.

Why a storage upgrade for the Galaxy S27 might cost you more than usual

According to the leaker’s post on Naver, the baseline price hike sits somewhere in the range of 100,000 to over 130,000 won, roughly $74 to $96, though that figure applies to the Korean market specifically.

What stands out more is the claim that Samsung is setting a steeper rate of increase for higher storage tiers. So the usual jump between a 256GB and 512GB model, or from 512GB to 1TB, could end up costing noticeably more than it has in past generations.

The leaker points to rising NAND flash and next-generation LPDDR6 RAM as the reason, with LPDDR6 reportedly reserved for the Pro and Ultra models only. A global squeeze on memory components has made these parts more expensive to source, and Samsung appears ready to pass at least part of that cost along.

What should you know before planning your upgrade?

The Galaxy S26 already came with a price bump, with the base model climbing to $900 – a jump of $100 over the previous smaller storage option. Based on that trend, a base Galaxy S27 priced above $950 wouldn’t be shocking.

A separate leak from earlier this year put a possible Galaxy S27 Ultra price hike in Korea at about $104, tied to rising memory, storage, and processor costs.

Samsung has not finalized Galaxy S27 pricing, and the series is expected to launch sometime in early 2027. For now, storage could become a bigger part of your upgrade bill, especially at 512GB and 1TB.

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Editor’s take: I’ve always wanted to capture an image of the Milky Way galaxy – or, at the very least, see it with my own eyes in real time. I’ve got the photography know-how to pull off what would be a frame-worthy shot of our galaxy, as well as the desire to make it happen, but the opportunity simply hasn’t presented itself yet. And if the statistics are to be believed, I might never get to cross this one off my bucket list.

Man-made light pollution is the culprit, and it’s not just from above. You’ve no doubt heard of the growing headache that orbiting satellites are causing astronomers trying to photograph the night skies. Compounding the matter is the modern amenity that is artificial light on the ground. Thanks to technologies like LED lighting, large cities and neighborhoods are brighter than ever.

And we’re not just talking small numbers here. According to one report, the average night sky got brighter by 9.6% per year from 2011 to 2022. That equates to a roughly doubling of the sky’s brightness every eight years. Another study notes that four out of five people live under light-polluted skies. Given those odds, it’s likely that you’ve never even seen the night sky as it was intended.

As Tove Danovich with The Guardian highlights, access to a dark sky is about more than just stargazing. Light pollution can confuse nocturnal animals that use moonlight to navigate, and being in a brightly lit environment around the clock can throw off the circadian rhythm of most all living creatures – humans included.

Some communities are already taking steps to reduce ground-based light pollution. Flagstaff, Arizona, has rules in place to regulate how much light can be used at night, what type, and where it can legally shine. New York state is also considering similar restrictions. But as Danovich correctly notes, such restrictions do nothing to combat space-based light pollution sources like satellites designed to beam sunlight to Earth at night.

Indeed, it feels like darkness is quickly becoming a luxury.

When the Chinese scientist He Jiankui announced in 2018 that he had created the first gene-edited babies, the experiment was widely condemned as reckless and premature. It ended with He in prison.

But that hasn’t stopped the push for gene-edited human embryos, with biotech entrepreneur Cathy Tie arguing that doing so isn’t just urgent—it’s a “moral imperative.”

Tie is the 30-year-old founder of Origin Genomics, a company that launched in March with plans to bring gene-edited embryos to IVF clinics. In a new commentary published in the journal Trends in Genetics, she argues for public funding and new regulatory pathways to advance gene-edited babies and eventually move into clinical use.

But questions remain about what evidence researchers will need to determine whether gene-edited embryos are safe enough to attempt a human pregnancy—and what risks might remain for the resulting children.

“There are cautionary tales of first human trials where there was really no flashing red light, and people died,” says Hank Greely, a law professor and director of the Center for Law and the Biosciences at Stanford University.

So-called germ-line gene editing involves modifying cells involved in human reproduction, like embryos. Any changes made could be passed on to future generations. That could mean, for example, correcting a devastating genetic mutation for good. But accidental DNA edits elsewhere, known as “off-target effects,” could introduce new health risks that could also be passed down. Those high stakes are part of why dozens of countries have banned gene-editing of human embryos intended for pregnancy.

People at risk of passing a genetic disease on to their children can use IVF combined with genetic screening to identify disease-free embryos before transfer to the womb. Critics of embryo editing argue that screening tools make the need for it very small. Gene-editing embryos, Greely says, would be helping “a fraction of a fraction of a fraction.”

The drawback of the current approach is that IVF is inefficient; viable embryos can be hard to come by, even for people without an inherited disease risk. Ian Watts and Cheyenne Ziegler, for example, underwent three rounds of IVF in their attempt to have children that do not carry the genetic variant responsible for Watts’ Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, a degenerative neurological disorder that impacts fine motor skills and mobility. With any IVF cycle, eggs regularly don’t fertilize, and those that do often stall in development or have chromosomal abnormalities. Adding additional screening for disease means that some viable embryos also don’t make the cut.

In Watts and Ziegler’s case, three rounds of IVF have produced eight chromosomally normal embryos, but only three without Watts’ variant. Those three embryos are likely not enough to give the couple the three or four children they hope to have one day.

“The choices currently available are either not having children or doing lots of IVF,” says Watts, a 36-year-old engineer in Long Beach, California. Gene editing could give people like him more chances at a future family. It could also help couples in the extremely rare situation where every embryo would inherit a disease-causing mutation, such as partners who each have two copies of a harmful variant.

“We’re here to treat these diseases, not just exclude embryos and call it a day,” says Tie, a former Thiel fellow who’s alluded to herself as “biotech Barbie.”

The invention of CRISPR raised the possibility of gene-edited babies more than a decade ago, and newer forms of gene editing offer increasing precision. In June, researchers at Columbia University revealed that they had edited early-stage human embryos using a technique called base editing with incredible accuracy. Tie cites this work in her commentary, arguing that precision editing is now well within reach.