China has opened its first dedicated photonic computing lab in Shanghai, a joint venture between Shanghai Jiao Tong University and startup Lightelligence. The facility signals Beijing’s bet on light-based chips as a strategic workaround to US semiconductor export controls that have restricted access to conventional AI hardware.
TL;DR
China has launched its first dedicated photonic computing laboratory in Shanghai, signalling that Beijing sees light-based chips as a strategic route around Washington’s tightening grip on conventional semiconductor exports. The Shanghai Key Laboratory of Integrated Photonic Computing Chips and Systems opened on 11 June at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, the state-backed Jiefang Daily reported.
The lab is a joint effort between the university and Shanghai-based Lightelligence, one of the country’s leading photonic computing startups. Lightelligence listed on the Hong Kong stock exchange in April, surging roughly 380% on its first day of trading, and claims to be the first company in the world to achieve large-scale deployment of hybrid optical-electronic computing, though that assertion has not been independently verified.
Conventional AI chips push data through silicon circuits using electrons. Photonic chips swap electrons for photons, particles of light that travel faster and generate far less heat.
The theoretical payoff is significant. Photonic processors promise higher bandwidth, lower latency, and a fraction of the energy consumption, qualities that matter as training frontier AI models pushes data-centre power demands toward their limits.
Zou Weiwen, the lab’s director and a photonics professor at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, said optical computing was “an important pathway for achieving breakthroughs in computing power.” The facility will focus on photonic chip architectures, silicon-photonics integration, optical components, and the algorithms needed to make them commercially viable.
The lab’s launch coincides with Beijing’s broader drive for technological self-reliance. Washington has restricted China’s access to advanced semiconductors since 2022 and has widened the rules repeatedly, forcing Chinese firms to hunt for alternatives.
That search has already shifted China’s AI chip strategy away from general-purpose GPUs and toward custom silicon. Photonics represents a more radical pivot, one that could let Chinese engineers sidestep lithography bottlenecks entirely by building on the country’s existing strengths in fibre optics and laser technology.
Chinese authorities have flagged photonics and photonic-electronic hybrid accelerator chips as strategic national priorities. Shanghai officials said they had mobilised coordinated funding across multiple science and technology programmes to back the effort.
Beijing is already pouring money into AI infrastructure through other channels. A reported $295 billion blueprint would build a nationwide network of data centres running largely on domestic chips by 2028.
Photonic computing, however, remains far from production-ready. Zou acknowledged that the field faces “fundamental scientific challenges,” citing the absence of a mature software and algorithm ecosystem capable of efficiently harnessing photonic hardware.
The gap between laboratory promise and commercial reality is wide. But with conventional chips increasingly hard to source and AI workloads growing exponentially, China is clearly willing to bet on the physics of light.
What’s most disturbing about Trump’s “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History” executive order isn’t its fully-blinkered, jingoistic take on American history where America does no wrong and is almost always white right. I mean, that’s pretty awful on its own, but it’s the flip side of pretending whites do no wrong: pretending any victims of whites or any contributors of other races/colors/creeds simply don’t exist.
It’s the sort of thing dictators do. It’s the sort of thing novelists write about. It’s the sort of thing we Americans used to be able to criticize wholeheartedly because our country would never stoop so low as to rewrite history to please whoever was currently in power.
We no longer have the high ground. But we might be able to start making our way back to the top of the hill. It’s not because Trump et al are getting better or smarter or simply a bit less hateful. It will be because the courts are doing what they’re supposed to be doing: slowing this budding fascist’s roll.
A federal judge in Massachusetts has ordered the Trump administration to reinstall displays it removed from National Parks sites over the past year as part of a crackdown on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) content and climate change information.
[…]
Judge Angel Kelley sided with the challengers on Friday, finding that the federal government’s action “sets a dangerous precedent of censorship and sanitization” while undermining the “integrity” of the National Parks system.
The decision [PDF] leads off with the ideal this nation and its national parks are supposed to embody…
Often referred to as “America’s largest classroom,” National Parks serve in that spirit by telling the stories both of those who write history and those who go unheard. The beauty of history is the unvarnished storytelling of a time gone by and the delivery of undeniable truths. The Government’s stewardship of these park sites thus carries a responsibility to present history in full rather than in favored fragments.
… before detailing the hideous destruction being perpetrated by the Trump administration:
Unfortunately, the Government has disregarded these principles. Under the guise of promoting American dignity, this Administration seeks to share a limited history by ordering the removal of all signs, displays, and interpretive exhibits at National Parks that do not align with its preferred narrative, thereby telling half-truths. In recent months, the Government has torn down exhibits in Philadelphia’s Independence National Historical Park memorializing the legacy of people enslaved by the country’s first President; removed signage detailing climate threats at Fort Sumter in South Carolina, one of the most environmentally endangered sites in the country; and wiped away descriptions of history and science at countless National Parks across the United States. Not only does this undermine the integrity of the National Parks; it sets a dangerous precedent of censorship and sanitization.
Dozens of instances of censorship and erased history are listed in the lawsuit. And it’s all the sort of thing you’d expect from this administration:
By the date of the filing of this action, Defendants had removed dozens of signs related to climate change, civil rights, and diverse communities.
[…]
In addition, Defendants have removed multiple signs involving slavery, abolition, immigration,
labor, women’s suffrage, and civil rights…
The court says the order violates the law repeatedly. Not only does it steamroll existing laws governing the National Park Service and its congressional oversight, it fails to justify its own existence with even the briefest nod to serving the public’s interest. Most damningly, the executive order ignores the facts in favor of pushing the administration’s preferred version of US history:
[T]he Order fails to rationally connect any facts to the action taken. It claims that the removals will “restore Federal sites . . . to solemn and uplifting public monuments that remind Americans of our extraordinary heritage.” However, the Order fails to explain how unearthing and displaying the historical contributions of marginalized groups detracts from celebrating “our extraordinary heritage.” Indeed, the NPS’ purpose in installing these materials in the first instance was to attract new audiences to National Parks by celebrating diverse experiences.
In other words, this executive order is basically just a Truth Social rant pretending to be a lawful directive.
[T]he Order fails to rationally connect any facts to the action taken. It claims that the removals will “restore Federal sites . . . to solemn and uplifting public monuments that remind Americans of our extraordinary heritage.” However, the Order fails to explain how unearthing and displaying the historical contributions of marginalized groups detracts from celebrating “our extraordinary heritage.” Indeed, the NPS’ purpose in installing these materials in the first instance was to attract new audiences to National Parks by celebrating diverse experiences.
The order concludes by using Trump’s self-serving rationalizations against him, which is exactly the sort of thing I’d love to see more of in future court orders rejecting this administration’s fascist advances:
Because Defendants deemed it important to strip the parks of these undeniable truths in anticipation of the 250th Anniversary of our great Nation, it is equally important that our shared history be honestly told and fully restored by the 250th Anniversary to properly honor the remarkable achievements of the United States.
LOL. Stick that in your White House lawn MMA fight, you asshat. Restore what’s been destroyed, says the court: that would be “truth and sanity,” rather than this steady stream of atrocities this administration continues to inflict on the US.
Filed Under: bigotry, censorship, erasing history, interior department, national park service, trump administration
Huawei has unveiled HarmonyOS 7 at its developer conference in China.
The update introduces a redesigned interface with glass-inspired visual effects and new AI-powered features, some of which look quite similar to Apple’s often criticised Liquid Glass design that continues in iOS 27.
The company also claims there is a noticeable performance boost over the previous version. The update is set to roll out across Huawei’s ecosystem of smartphones, tablets, PCs, wearables and smart home devices.
HarmonyOS 7 introduces a more transparent, layered design language, with glass-like buttons, sliders and interface elements appearing throughout the operating system. Furthermore, Huawei has also added new 3D effects that can transform lock screens and other parts of the interface into more dynamic scenes.
Beyond the visual refresh, Huawei is putting AI front and centre – because, of course, it is. The company says its upgraded assistant can now handle more in-app actions and complete a wider range of requests. Crucially, this does not require users to jump between apps. New AI-powered photo editing tools are also on the way, alongside an updated Intelligent Agent Framework. The framework aims to make automated tasks more reliable.
Huawei is also promising a performance improvement. According to the company, HarmonyOS 7 delivers a 15% uplift compared to HarmonyOS 6.1. However, it has yet to provide detailed benchmarks showing exactly where those gains will be most noticeable. In practice, users can likely expect smoother app launches and improved responsiveness across the system.
The developer beta for HarmonyOS 7 is available from today for eligible devices, while the finished version is expected to arrive later this year.
While the new AI features will attract plenty of attention, the redesigned interface could end up being the bigger change for everyday users. The glass-inspired look gives HarmonyOS 7 a noticeably different feel. Meanwhile, the promised performance improvements suggest Huawei is focusing on substance as well as style.
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Despite the number in the name, I’ve taken to considering the OneOdio Studio Max 2 to be more like a ‘pro’ version of the originals rather than a completely new pair of headphones. I’ve been testing them for several weeks, and the experience doesn’t feel hugely changed (even though the price is).
The originals upon which they are based were released in early 2025, and after I finished my review, I found myself using them daily. They’re always plugged into my guitar amp or keyboard for when I want to do some music practice; a few select features made them uniquely handy for making music.
The OneOdio Studio Max 2 are, mostly, a very similar proposition. They’re not designed for audiophiles so much as DJs, studio musicians and other music-makers — but they have enough of a consumer-friendly bent that they’re not just for the studio. If you’re an amateur musician or music producer, and want cans for the task in hand but also for general use, you’re the target audience.
Like their predecessors, I wouldn’t strongly recommend these for general use, though. They’re big and chunky, so I felt self-conscious wearing them in public, and the fit was unreliable, so they shook when I was walking. On top of that, the audio quality is pretty poor, and you won’t get noise cancellation. There’s a reason the old pair stayed tethered to my instruments.
That sounds like a deluge of criticism, and an odd one given the score above, but the Studio Max justify themselves with their tools for professionals or music creators.
These puppies connect to other devices in four ways: there’s both a 3.5mm jack and a 6.35mm one, so you’ve got more cable versatility than most other cans. Of course, you’ve got Bluetooth, but there’s also an audio transmitter included in the box that can connect to any analog source.
With the transmitter, you can get 9ms latency between the headphones and audio source. This is OneOdio’s pitch for why they’re great DJ headphones — with no transmission delay, you won’t miss your bass-dropping cue. OneOdio isn’t the only brand to offer this feature, but crucially, its headphones are the cheapest to do so.
Upgrades to this transmitter also form the main upgrades over the original Studio Max. The latency has been halved from 20ms and the bitrate has been increased, but the transmission distance has been halved to 10m. Given that the price has increased, though, it might not be a tempting upgrade for many buyers of the original.
For music producers or performers, the foldable form factor is appreciated, as is the massive 120-hour battery life over Bluetooth (and the battery life when using the transmitter has been doubled to 50 hours in this model). I can see it being particularly useful for touring musicians for this reason, who can’t charge regularly — although IEMs will still rule supreme for that.
More so than most headphones I test, the OneOdio Studio Max 2 are situational, and niche. I wouldn’t recommend them to people on the market for the best headphones for general use, nor would I suggest professionals buy them over specially-designed studio kit.
But there’s a small overlap in the Venn Diagram between those groups, in which the cans may find appreciative buyers. That’s included me, as a dedicated user of the original model — but check the price of the original OneOdio Studio Max 1 before you buy, though, because if it gets price drops, it might be the better-value buy.
The OneOdio Studio Max 2 were unveiled on May 11, 2026 — that’s a year and three months on from the release of their predecessors.
The official price of the Studio Max 2 is $189 / £179 (about AU$360, but they don’t seem to have enjoyed an Australian release at the time of writing).
In the box you get the headphones, transmitter, various cables (loads of cables) and a handy carry case. It’s the complete package, and I’ve never felt the need to root around in my drawers for other wires.
For context, the original Studio Max released for $169 / £135 / AU$275, so there’s been a price hike here, which varies quite a bit by region.
|
Drivers |
45mm |
|
Active noise cancellation |
No |
|
Battery life |
120 hours |
|
Weight |
353g |
|
Connectivity |
Bluetooth 6.0, 3.5mm, 6.35mm, 2.4Ghz transmitter |
|
Frequency response |
20Hz to 40kHz |
|
Waterproofing |
NA |
Let’s address the elephant in the room, or lack thereof: there are some features missing here, which some music listeners might miss. There’s no active noise cancellation, for example, and the app is quite barebones. It has three EQ presets (normal, monitoring and bass), and a 10-band custom mode, as well as a few extras such as wear reminders, volume limiters, and a way to pan the sound to the left or right ear cup only.
What you do get is pretty rocking though. Take the battery life: 120 hours equates to five straight days of music playback. No, not five hours. Five days. That figure matches the original pair, and I can’t name another option which lasts that long.
Another key feature is the range of connection options. Naturally, you can connect them via their 3.5mm port, or the 6.35mm jack so they can connect to professional audio kit easily. The Studio Max 2 support Bluetooth 6.0, allowing for more reliable wireless connection than the old pair.
But perhaps the key selling point here is the transmitter, which comes included in the box. Using OneOdio’s RapidWill+ 3.0 technology, this transmitter lets you cut the response time between your source and the Studio Max 2 to just 9ms. It uses 2.4GHz connectivity, and all you need to do is plug it into your output device, and your headphones can pick it up.
All the cables you need are included in the box, so it’s a plug-and-play style situation. The transmitter needs to be charged via USB-C, and lasts for 50 hours per charge.
OneOdio has used a 45mm driver in each Studio Max 2 cup, and the headphones are certified for Hi-Res Audio and Hi-Res Audio Wireless, with LDAC compatibility too. Unfortunately it’s not quite the recipe for success it would appear to be on first glance.
The Max 2 sound muddy and muffled, with rumbly and ill-defined bass stomping over over lines of a song. Any semblance of a soundstage is forgotten, instead presenting your music as one amorphous sonic boulder.
Glorious by The Hoosiers is presented like a confused mush of synths, and the bass in Charlie Mars’ She Ain’t Coming Back veers between drowning out everything else, and being inaudible.
They also offer a sound that’s tinnier than anything else at this price point, with noticeably compressed hi-hats and distorted guitars that really shouldn’t be distorted. I’d usually cite a song here as an example, but you can basically insert any song that has instruments here.
Usually I’d turn to an equalizer to try to fix problems like this, but you’ve got three options: the default, a Bass Mode (that’s not going to fix the problem), a custom EQ and Monitoring Mode. Those latter two both gave music a crunchier feel, so I stayed far away.
It’s worth noting that criticism I levelled here, I also put against the Studio Max 1. As far as I can tell, the sound hasn’t changed much.
Don’t buy the Studio Max 2 if you’re looking for svelte, lightweight or fashionable over-ear headphones. They’re bulky and large, with a design that’s quite industrial. You’ve seen the pictures, you know what they look like, and I felt self-conscious wearing them outside the house.
The cups and headband are pretty soft, yet they weren’t too comfy to wear, perhaps because of their 353g weight. At least they’re good at at catering for different shapes of head, thanks to how versatile they are: the cups rotate around different angles. This also makes them easily-foldable for bags, and handy to form for review pictures.
However, and likely as a natural side-effect of the size, they didn’t stick in place reliably. If I was walking, they’d sway a tiny bit, and I imagine they’ll wobble if you’re an active DJ enjoying your own set.
Adorning each Studio Max 2 cup is a range of buttons and ports. The left cup has a 6.35mm port, while on the right you’re getting volume up, volume down and power buttons, a 3.5mm jack, a slider to toggle between Bluetooth and ultra-low latency, and a USB-C port for charging too.
Two things to point out that images don’t convey. Firstly, these things creak quite a bit; I’m used to this being a symptom of cheap plastic used in the design, but it doesn’t feel like the case here. I think the many moving parts are to blame. Secondly, the back of the cups are grooved to resemble vinyl records; a neat touch, but if my previous pair are any indication, they can be huge dust magnets.
If you’re looking at the OneOdio Studio Max 2 as consumer-friendly headphones, it’s hard to argue that they offer you good value for money. There are great cans for music fans at a third of the price — from OneOdio itself, as well as other brands.
That’s also true if you’re looking for general studio headphones, for that matter.
What you’re paying for is the transmitter, to allow for low-latency wireless music from any source, including instruments. If you need a gadget like it, the Studio Max 2 undercuts its rivals — if not, then these aren’t the cans for you.
|
Attributes |
Notes |
Rating |
|---|---|---|
|
Features |
The app may be barebones, but the fantastic battery life and useful connection modes are a winner. |
4 / 5 |
|
Sound quality |
Don’t buy them if you want good-sounding headphones. |
2.5 / 5 |
|
Design |
It’s not a look that’ll appeal to many, and it’s not very comfy, but at least it’s versatile. |
3 / 5 |
|
Value |
The affordable transmitter makes these good value (if that’s a feature you need). |
3.5 / 5 |
| Header Cell – Column 0 |
OneOdio Studio Max 2 |
AIAIAI TMA-2 |
AlphaTheta HDJ-F10 |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Drivers |
45mm |
40mm |
40mm |
|
Active noise cancellation |
No |
No |
Yes |
|
Battery life (ANC on) |
120 hours |
40 hours |
30 hours |
|
Weight |
353g |
217g |
356g |
|
Connectivity |
Bluetooth 6.0 |
Bluetooth 5.3 |
Bluetooth 5.2 |
|
Waterproofing |
NA |
NA |
NA |
I used the OneOdio Studio Max 2 for roughly a month before writing this review.
During the testing process, they were connected to a wide variety of devices including my guitar amp, my keyboard, my PC and my smartphone. Across this board, I used every connection option possible.
Mostly, the testing was done for music playback, but I also used it for a variety of other tasks including audio mixing, video editing, playing my own music and, for one weekend, audio recording alongside a field recorder and boom mic.
I’ve been reviewing gadgets for TechRadar since early 2019, and in that time have tested plenty of audio products including the original Studio Max 1 (the number is in the name, I’ve not added it!).
The U.S. Department of Justice announced Friday that it has seized the CFAKE.com and SOCFAKE.com websites, which allegedly hosted nonconsensual AI-generated nude images and videos of women, in what appears to be the first publicly announced domain seizure under the TAKE IT DOWN Act.
According to the DOJ, the sites shared sexually explicit digital images, or deepfakes, depicting politicians, celebrities, athletes, musicians, and even royalty from multiple countries.
“According to the probable cause affidavit supporting the seizure warrants, the digital forgeries were made to appear to be sexual images of famous women, including politicians, first ladies of multiple countries, royalty, journalists, television presenters, athletes, entertainers, and others,” reads the DOJ announcement.
A deepfake is AI-generated or AI-manipulated media that depicts a person saying, doing, or appearing in ways that never occurred. Deepfake images and videos can be created from existing photos, videos, or audio recordings and are commonly used to generate nonconsensual nude content, impersonation scams, phishing attacks, and cryptocurrency fraud.
The CFAKE.com and SOCFAKE.com domains were seized on Thursday by the DOJ and Homeland Security Investigations after a federal judge found probable cause that they were being used to violate the TAKE IT DOWN Act.
The domains now display a seizure notice stating they were taken offline pursuant to a seizure warrant as part of an operation involving the US, Italy, and France.
“THIS DOMAIN HAS BEEN SEIZED by the United States Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New Jersey Field Office pursuant to a seizure warrant issued by the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey as part of coordinated law enforcement actions by HSI, French National Police, the Paris Prosecutor’s Office, Italy’s Polizia di Stato – Postal and Cybersecurity Police, United States Department of Justice’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey for violations of 47 U.S.C. § 223,” reads the seizure banner on the websites.
“The TAKE IT DOWN ACT (47 U.S.C. § 223) prohibits the nonconsensual publication of intimate imagery and digital forgeries (i.e., deepfakes). Violators are subject to fines, imprisonment or both.”
The investigation began after Italy’s Postal and Cybersecurity Police alerted US authorities to the websites.
According to Italian media reports, investigators opened an inquiry in October 2025 after receiving complaints regarding AI-generated sexually explicit images depicting women from politics, sports, entertainment, and other public-facing professions.
Italian authorities later obtained a court order blocking access to the websites within Italy while continuing their investigation. The DOJ says evidence gathered by US law enforcement was later shared with French authorities.
French prosecutors and investigators then conducted an investigation that led to the arrest of a suspect in Nice, France, on June 10, along with the seizure of cryptocurrency allegedly connected to the operation.
The bipartisan TAKE IT DOWN Act was signed into law in May 2025 to combat the spread of nonconsensual imagery, including AI-generated deepfake pornography. The legislation was championed by First Lady Melania Trump as part of her “Be Best” initiative.
The law makes it a federal crime to publish sexually explicit altered images depicting identifiable individuals without their consent. The legislation also requires online platforms to remove reported intimate images and deepfakes within 48 hours of receiving a valid request from a victim.
“These domain seizures mark a significant victory in the fight against deepfake pornography,” Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said in Friday’s announcement.
“The TAKE IT DOWN Act, championed by First Lady Melania Trump, gives us the tools we need to combat the abuse and exploitation of women and children through these fabricated images.”
The law was previously used against an Ohio man who pleaded guilty to charges related to creating AI-generated sexually explicit images.
However, the seizure of CFAKE.com and SOCFAKE.com appears to be the first publicly announced use of the law to target websites allegedly used to distribute deepfake pornography.
Security teams log 54% of successful attacks and alert on just 14%. The rest move through your environment unseen.
The Picus whitepaper shows how breach and attack simulation tests your SIEM and EDR rules so threats stop slipping by detection.
Two University of Washington alumni who built companies out of everyday frustrations — hard-to-recycle household waste and the struggle to focus while working alone — have been recognized with the Allen School’s 2026 Alumni Impact Awards.
David Dawson, co-founder of Ridwell, and Nodira Khoussainova, co-founder of Focused Space, received the award at the Allen School’s graduation celebration on June 12.
The goal is not only to recognize accomplished alumni but to “show all of you, our new graduates, that you’re joining a long line of individuals who are changing the world,” said Dan Grossman, Allen School vice director and professor, introducing Dawson and Khoussainova at the school’s graduation ceremonies Friday evening.
Dawson, who received his bachelor’s from the Allen School in 2006, has been involved in Seattle startups for nearly two decades. After serving as an early Zillow engineer, Dawson went on to co-found a string of Seattle startups across hospitality, food delivery and recycling.
In 2018, with two startups already launched, he turned his attention to a problem right in front of him. Frustrated that recycling something as common as a battery was so hard, he co-founded Ridwell, a subscription service that offers home pickup and mail-in collection of waste that municipal recycling systems didn’t support. Last year, the service announced that it had surpassed 130,000 customers, and it has since surpassed 150,000.
Dawson credited the computer science program for helping him become resilient, personally and professionally. His mentors emphasized that setbacks were part of the process, a lesson that became invaluable in the unpredictable world of early-stage startups:
“It’s okay to fail some and pick yourself up and ask for help,” he noted in a UW announcement about the award. Mentorship and community connections he built on campus ultimately empowered him to take risks and build meaningful companies.
Most recently, alongside fellow tech veterans Marius Ciocirlan and Wesley Yun, Dawson co-founded MarkOS, an AI tool that lets companies continually audit marketing media to ensure that content is compliant and up to date with their latest messaging as soon as it comes out.
Grossman, in his remarks, noted that Dawson “has spent the two decades since graduating building technology companies rooted in community, purpose, and the people around him.”
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Khoussainova received her PhD from the Allen School in 2012. After a tenure as a software engineer at Twitter, leading its product insights & experiments team, she went on to co-found Streamlit in 2018, an open-source front-end framework for machine learning models. The company was acquired by Snowflake in 2022 for $800 million.
Those experiences gave her front-row seats to the daily realities of tech work, allowing her to see how technology was impacting human behavior and mental health. In 2021, she co-founded Focused Space, a platform that lets people, particularly ADHD or neurodivergent remote workers, be more productive using neuroscience.
By providing on-demand virtual “body doubling” sessions, users can find accountability and motivating effects by intentionally working in parallel with others, helping people enter a “flow state” more easily, according to the company’s website.
She credited the Allen School’s focus on systems thinking for helping her as an entrepreneur, noting that “running a company is basically a systems problem.”
Previous award recipients include:
A full list of past awardees can be found on the Allen School’s alumni page.
Over the weekend, Google CEO Sundar Pichai faced a small revolt when he delivered his commencement speech at Stanford University, where he earned his graduate degree in materials science and engineering. About 200 students from the graduating class reportedly walked out, while others loudly booed the tech executive.
The focus of the protest was Google’s defense ties — including Project Nimbus, the controversial $1.2 billion contract, shared with Amazon, to provide cloud and AI services to the Israeli military, as well as its relationship with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.
Student signs included phrases like “ICE SPIES WITH GOOGLE AI” and “GENOCIDE RUNS ON GOOGLE,” as well as “FREE FREE PALESTINE,” a press release associated with the protest notes. Students also waved Palestinian flags and shouted “free Palestine,” online video of the protest shows.
“We are walking out because we refuse to glorify the corporations that fuel this violence and exercise our power to choose differently,” a statement associated with the protest reads.
The walkout was organized by a number of campus activist groups, including Stanford Students for Justice in Palestine, No Tech for Apartheid, and Tech for Liberation. TechCrunch reached out to Google for comment.
As the war in Gaza has raged, Google’s participation in Nimbus has drawn protests from both inside and outside of the company. In 2024, Google fired 28 workers for protesting the contract, although it has continued to suffer internal dissent over the issue since then. It was also recently criticized by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, which accused it and other companies of “choosing to look the other way” on Israel’s use of their services.
Project Nimbus also enjoys support from Amazon. Microsoft has also been criticized for its support of the Israeli military, although the company restricted the Israeli government’s use of its technology after an investigation found that its cloud services were being used to mass-surveil Palestinians.
The student protest also drew criticism from business leaders online. Vinod Khosla, the billionaire co-founder of Sun Microsystems and one of Silicon Valley’s most prominent venture capitalists, posted on X that the protest was “biased, idiotic, short-sighted and very selfish,” adding that it was selfish because the students “ignored the bottom 3 billion people on this planet that could benefit from AI and they are worried about their misinformed selfish self-interest.”
Pichai’s appearance at Stanford is part of a broader pattern. Speakers at college graduation ceremonies around the country have faced boos when they have attempted to get outgoing college students excited about AI. But rarely has student animus been as targeted as it was with Pichai, directed not at AI hype, but at the specific business decisions made by the company he leads. In general, young people seem to believe that AI is threatening their employment opportunities and may be ruining other parts of society as well.
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Robotics has permeated almost every aspect of our lives in manufacturing, healthcare, domestic help, and even entertainment. To accomplish this, it has evolved to have many forms, whether it’s robotic arms for sorting packages to microscopic ones that have all sorts of medical applications. And perhaps, one of its most compelling evolutions is how some robots are starting to look more like humans.
Through the years, scientists have developed a lot of humanoid robots. However, one recently started singing with supporting human musicians. In April 2026, the Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) unveiled a special performance with the humanoid robot Sophia, wherein she sang a trio of original songs alongside an orchestra. In a press release, HKBU shares that the performance was meant for “prompting the audience to consider questions of reality, existence, and embodiment.” That said, it isn’t the first time Sophia has dabbled in the arts. In 2019, Sophia also starred in a short film called SophiaWorld as well.
Developed by Hanson Robotics, CNBC reported that her features were inspired by the iconic film beauty, Audrey Hepburn, and the creator’s wife. But while initially unveiled over a decade ago, her (still) transparent skull and eerie facial expressions still continue to trigger a few people. Not to mention, Sophia was the poster child of how technology can turn evil when she said that she’ll destroy humans. But, what exactly causes us to be a little nervous around her?
There’s a term for the very visceral, uncomfortable reaction we tend to experience in the presence of humanoid robots and it’s called “uncanny valley.” In general, the science behind uncanny valley has been around for half a century, wherein researchers explored how our affinity rises and falls within a spectrum of “likeness.” Many studies fundamentally attribute the fact that we (as well as other animals) are biologically wired to be cautious around “imposters” that look like us but aren’t. As of this writing, there’s no hard and fast rule for where a given likeness falls within positive or negative affinity, so it’s not exactly quantifiable how “human” something needs to be to be considered comfortable to be around them.
However, there’s still a possibility that we can still get used to our robot brethren and co-exist more meaningfully in the future. For example, if we are exposed to enough humanoid-looking robots more frequently, it’s possible that we normalize their appearances and behaviors. In recent times, body modification is growing increasingly accessible. As the appearances of human beings evolve, so do our expectations for what is considered “normal.” For example, people can add permanent horns to their head or even have futuristic tattoos that turn their skin into biological touchpads. It’s also possible that more research can help bridge the gap between the precise factors that make a robot feel more human.
There are several components that make robots feel more human, which include gait, appearance, and ability to communicate. Technology-wise, it looks like all three are getting better each year, even if they’re done separately. Recently, the China Media Group shared a YouTube video showing humanoid robots performing impressive movements that ranged from dance, martial arts, and even backflips during its 2026 Spring Festival Gala. In the same year, other robots have proven to be formidable opponents for elite athletes from kinds of sports, including marathons and table tennis.
Around the same time, we reported how Chinese robotics company DroidUp also launched Moya, a biomimetic AI robot that was designed to be as close to a human as possible. To do this, they did everything from give her layered human-like skin, micro facial movements, and warm body temperature. While she still has a long way to go, it’s only a matter of time until technology surprises us even further, especially as developments in both appearance, movement, and artificial intelligence begin to intersect.
But until that day comes, we can all enjoy the fact that many other robotics companies are taking a different route. For now, there are a lot of little robots that you can buy from Amazon, which do everything from help you keep your plants alive, play chess or soccer with you, or teach you how to draw. While they’re not necessarily as talented as Sophia, the fact that they’re cute may help the transition.
Sony only recently revealed God of War: Laufey, but new information is already beginning to paint a clearer picture of when players may finally get to experience the next chapter in the franchise. According to industry insider NateTheHate, the latest release window he has heard points to a launch sometime during the first half of 2027. While Sony and Santa Monica Studio have not officially confirmed a date, the report suggests development may be further along than many fans expected.
The claim also aligns with recent comments from Bloomberg journalist Jason Schreier, who indicated that the lack of a release date should not be interpreted as a sign that the project is years away. Taken together, the reports suggest Sony may already have a relatively firm launch target in mind.
If the timeline holds, God of War: Laufey would arrive roughly four and a half years after God of War Ragnarök, which launched in November 2022. That would represent a shorter development cycle than many fans typically associate with modern blockbuster PlayStation games.
The biggest change in God of War: Laufey is its protagonist. For the first time, players will take control of Faye, also known as Laufey the Just. While she has been one of the most important characters in the Norse saga, her presence has largely been felt through memories, stories, and the impact of her decisions on Kratos and Atreus.
This game puts her at the center of the narrative. Early gameplay footage suggests Santa Monica Studio is building a very different combat system around Faye’s abilities. Unlike Kratos, whose fighting style revolves around brute force and powerful weapons, Faye appears to rely heavily on magic and environmental manipulation.
Players will reportedly be able to freeze rivers, reshape terrain, and use the environment itself as part of combat encounters. The result appears to be a faster and more agile combat style that distinguishes her from previous God of War protagonists.
The setting is equally intriguing. The story takes place in a mysterious realm known as the Everywhen, an afterlife dimension that appears to expand the franchise beyond the locations explored in the Norse saga.
Another detail generating excitement among fans is the possibility of new mythological influences. Rumors suggest that while Norse mythology will remain a key part of the experience, elements inspired by Egyptian mythology could also appear. If true, it could mark the beginning of a larger expansion of the God of War universe and potentially set up future entries in the franchise.
Reaction to Faye as the lead character has been mixed but largely positive. Some fans are eager to finally learn more about one of the series’ most mysterious figures. Others remain attached to Kratos and are cautious about moving away from the character who has defined the franchise for two decades.
Sony has reportedly reassured players that Kratos remains an important part of the series and is not being written out of future plans. For now, the reported first-half 2027 release window remains unofficial. However, if the timeline is accurate, fans may not have to wait long for a deeper look at the game. A PlayStation Showcase or State of Play later this year could provide the next major update.
Until then, God of War: Laufey is shaping up to be one of PlayStation’s most anticipated upcoming releases.
ASUS does not need an introduction. The company makes everything from motherboards and monitors to gaming laptops, routers, mice, and the kind of RGB-soaked gear that can make a desktop look like it is trying to contact low Earth orbit. But headphones? That is where things get more interesting.
The ASUS ROG Kithara is not just another gaming headset with a detachable mic and a logo large enough to be seen from the hallway. Developed with HiFiMAN, it uses custom 100mm planar magnetic drivers and takes a very different path from most gaming headsets: open-back, wired, unapologetically audio-first, and priced at a surprisingly competitive $299.
That price matters because the 800-pound planar gorilla in the room is Audeze’s Maxwell 2, the wireless audiophile gaming headset that has already made the case that gamers do not have to settle for bloated bass, plastic build quality, and “immersive” tuning that sounds like someone threw a blanket over a subwoofer. The Kithara is not trying to beat Audeze at the same game.
It is ASUS and HiFiMAN asking a more focused question: what happens when you strip away wireless convenience, lean into planar performance, and build a gaming headset for listeners who care just as much about music as they do about footsteps?
About My Preferences: This review is a subjective assessment and is therefore shaped by my personal preferences. While I try to mitigate this as much as possible during my review process, I’d be lying if I said my biases were completely erased. So, for you, my readers, please keep the following in mind:
My ideal sound signature includes competent sub-bass, textured mid-bass, a slightly warm midrange, and extended treble.
I have mild treble sensitivity.
My testing equipment and standards can be found here.
The Kithara feels nicely built in the hand. ASUS’s gamer-focused branding is emblazoned on the metal earcup grilles, which are cleanly machined and precisely installed into the earcup shells.
The Kithara is quite large, but not particularly heavy. Its adjustable headband slides along a spring-steel insert, and the notched adjustments feel tactile when moved. However, I encountered instances where the headband slipped out of its notches even while I was sitting still. That proved irritating, especially after carefully setting the headband to fit my head and properly angling the earcups.
As is tradition with HiFiMAN headphones, the Kithara’s cables are detachable. It uses standard dual-mono 3.5mm sockets, so aftermarket cables should be easy to source.
ASUS includes several cables in the box: one with a built-in boom microphone and one for standard headphone use. The boom-mic cable features in-line volume control and splits into two 3.5mm plugs, one for headphone audio and one for microphone input. That makes it easy to connect the Kithara to separate headphone and microphone jacks on a PC motherboard or case.
For devices without analog 3.5mm jacks, ASUS also includes a USB-C adapter. In my testing, it worked properly with Windows 10, Windows 11, and Linux Mint.
Platform compatibility is broad, but there are some caveats. ASUS lists support for PC, Mac, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, iPad, iOS, Android, and Xbox consoles via 3.5mm connection. For PlayStation consoles, the USB-C adapter is the safer route for full headset and microphone support. Xbox support is more limited: audio works through the 3.5mm jack on the controller, but microphone support should not be assumed. Regardless, the mic’s performance, on supported devices, is strong. It ignores significant amounts of background noise while delivering strong voice pickup.
The second cable is fairly standard, with a simple black chain braid and modular terminations. ASUS includes 6.35mm, 4.4mm balanced, and 3.5mm plugs in the box, making the Kithara compatible with a wide range of headphone amps, DACs, PCs, consoles, and portable devices.
Comfort depends heavily on individual ear anatomy, so your mileage may vary.
The Kithara is physically large, but it doesn’t feel especially heavy on the head. Despite weighing 420 grams, I found it very comfortable during extended listening sessions, even when my office had warmed up. My head is average in size, but my wife’s is quite small. She was able to use the Kithara, though only at its smallest headband setting. Even then, the headset floated slightly and didn’t make ideal contact with the top of her head. She reported no discomfort around her ears, however.
For context, the Kithara is lighter than the Audeze Maxwell 2, which weighs roughly 490 grams, but heavier than many mainstream gaming headsets from SteelSeries, Logitech, and HyperX that typically fall in the 300-400 gram range. Its comfort is helped by good weight distribution and large earcups rather than a particularly low overall weight.
Each Kithara comes with a unique frequency-response certificate that details the measured behavior of that specific unit. While the Kithara’s overall sound signature should remain consistent from unit to unit, some variance is still possible.
Broadly speaking, the Kithara has a V-shaped sound signature, with elevated bass and treble. Its midrange is neutrally toned, sounding full and rich without becoming thick or heavy. The Kithara’s soundstage is wide and deep, complemented by its speedy, responsive drivers. Extension is excellent, with the upper treble and sub-bass reaching toward the extremes with minimal roll-off.
As is tradition with headphones made by HiFiMAN, the Kithara’s treble is bright and forward. It renders metallic elements crisply and with precision, layering hi-hats and cymbals effortlessly. The Kithara’s ability to capture lifelike timbre is impressive. For example, I was able to clearly make out the ringing guitars being strummed in the background of “Throw Me in the Water” by WILD, even as the chorus became progressively busier.
The cost of having such forward and energetic treble is that the Kithara can occasionally sound harsh or sibilant. The vocals and synthetic effects in “Satisfy” by Nero pushed close to the edge of comfort for me at my normal listening volume, creating a bit of distraction that is not present with my less-bright headphones.
The Kithara has a subtly cool midrange that slightly deviates from neutral tonality. This clean style of tuning complements the Kithara’s speed and technical ability, allowing it to render impressive textural depth. While listening to “In Exile” by Thrice, I was impressed by the consistency and delicacy with which the Kithara resolved the vibration of guitar strings against the fretboards. And it’s not just guitars; the Kithara’s midrange is tuned to perform well across the board.
I found that the Kithara was more than capable of staging subtle and nuanced vocal performances, pulling plenty of detail from tracks like “What a Shame” by Shinedown. Elements with complex harmonics, like the piano in “The Ocean” by Manchester Orchestra, are delivered with fullness and a sense of cohesion, which is not always common in headphones with cooler-leaning mids like the Kithara.
The Kithara’s bass is surprisingly forward, delivering full-sounding mid-bass while still extending well into the sub-bass. It synergizes well with drums in rock and alternative music, generating subtle, rich drum beats. They are not thunderous, but they do have a delicate tactility to them. This allows the Kithara to develop a solid, full foundation on tracks like “My Hero” by Foo Fighters.
It is with this undercurrent of richness that the Kithara builds its high-contrast presentation. With this depth, it renders a convincingly weighty atmosphere on tracks like “Kids” by MGMT and “Lisztomania” by Phoenix. Their respective bass lines sound phenomenal on the Kithara, and I almost thought I had been listening to a dynamic-driver headphone.
As bassy as the Kithara can be, it is ultimately still an open-back planar headphone. As such, there is a limit to how much punch and rumble its drivers can produce. While articulate and full-range, the Kithara does not generate enough bass output to feel truly immersive on electronic tracks like “No Way (Bassnectar Remix).” I was likewise a bit disappointed by the amount of rumble it produced while listening to “Blackout” by Mike Hawkins.
The Kithara is sold under ASUS’s gaming sub-brand, ROG. As such, we put it through the wringer, using it for both competitive multiplayer games and robust, story-driven single-player experiences.
In fast-paced FPS titles like Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 and Battlefield 6, the Kithara performed admirably. Directional cues, even subtle ones, were rendered crisply and intelligibly. The Kithara’s forward treble was not particularly fatiguing during prolonged gunfights, though I do not typically play games at very high volumes.
I was also impressed with the Kithara’s ability to manage chaotic scenes in battle-royale games. Titles like Apex Legends, which often demand precise placement of sonic cues generated by multiple competing squads, can be challenging for warmer headphones, but not for the Kithara. Tense, audio-oriented extraction shooters like Arc Raiders are an even better match for the Kithara’s precise and well-measured tuning.
The ASUS ROG Kithara is a high-fidelity gaming headset built for listeners who care as much about music as they do about competitive play. Its HiFiMAN-developed planar magnetic drivers, open-back design, detachable cables, useful accessory package, and full-band boom microphone make it a far more serious audio product than most headsets wearing a gaming badge.
What makes the Kithara unique is its focus. It is not trying to be a wireless do-everything headset like the Audeze Maxwell 2. There is no Bluetooth, no ANC, no battery, no app, and no virtual surround processing trying to dress up mediocre drivers. Instead, ASUS and HiFiMAN have built a wired, open-back planar headset with wide staging, fast transient response, strong detail retrieval, and enough bass presence to avoid sounding thin.
That focus also creates limitations. The Kithara leaks sound, offers little isolation, and its forward treble may be too much for gamers or listeners with stronger treble sensitivity. The fit may also be less ideal for smaller heads, and some users may not need the boom mic or USB-C adapter enough to justify the full package. At $299, it faces real competition from traditional audiophile headphones and feature-rich gaming headsets alike.
But for the right user, the Kithara makes a lot of sense. If you want planar-driver speed, an open and spacious presentation, strong gaming positional accuracy, and a tuning that works well for both music and FPS titles, the ASUS ROG Kithara is one of the more interesting wired gaming headsets in its class.
★★★★★★★★★★ Sound Quality
★★★★★★★★★★ Comfort
★★★★★★★★★★ Usability
★★★★★★★★★★ Build Quality
★★★★★★★★★★ Value
Photo credit: Katie Jameson/Caltech/DSA Project
Construction crews will soon start work on a remote valley floor in Nevada. Caltech astronomers intend to place 1,650 radio dishes across a rectangle roughly 20 kilometers long and 16 kilometers wide. The finished array will sweep the visible sky several times during its first five years of operation and move 100 times faster than any radio telescope now in use.
This new project, known as the Deep Synoptic Array, consists of a constellation of dishes that will catch radio waves with wavelengths thousands of times longer than light from visible stars. These waves include crucial information about pulsars, strange celestial bodies, rapid radio bursts that we don’t yet understand, distant galaxies, and black hole events. The truth is that no other instrument we know of has the same catching area or ability to produce clear images over a wide field of vision as this one.
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Each dish has a diameter of approximately 6.1 metres, and one of the prototypes may be seen at Caltech’s Owens Valley Radio Observatory in California, where engineers have been working on the concept for years. When everything is ready, it will just sit on some basic mounts and be linked to a supercomputer situated elsewhere via fiber-optic links. The computer will subsequently be able to integrate the signals from all 1,650 dishes in real time.
So, in theory, the raw data would be too large for most storage devices to handle. That is why the team developed the idea of a ‘radio camera’ that eliminates all superfluous data while maintaining only the cleaned photos. That wizardry is made possible by software that runs on a bank of NVIDIA GPUs and quickly turns incoming waves into finished visuals. Only the final, clean photographs are kept in storage. The system is still processing massive amounts of data, more than all of the internet traffic in the United States, but it only requires tens of petabytes of storage per year, rather than the 100 exabytes expected.
Because the DSArray was meant to be fast, it is unsurprising that it will have a large impact on the number of sources that we can catalog in a short amount of time. The previous generation of telescopes were only able to catalog around 20 million sources over their operational lifetime. The new array is intended to function on the first day of operation, which is an excellent idea. Over the next five years, it plans to discover more than 1 billion previously undisclosed radio sources. The list of scientific goals that this data will help astronomers achieve is extensive, but it includes over 100,000 fast radio bursts that can be traced back to the galaxy from whence they originated. They also hope to find over 20,000 new pulsars and maps of star and gas forms within galaxies that are far more detailed than previous optical and infrared surveys.
Photo credit: Francois Kapp/Caltech/DSA Project
The fact that the receivers function perfectly at room temperature keeps the electronics simple, so we don’t have to worry about them breaking every five minutes, and the special parts that convert radio waves into electrical signals don’t need to be overly complicated, as they simply use ordinary metal parts inspired by baking pans or something, which makes sense when you think about it. All of this low-cost, low-complexity technology has been tried in previous pathfinder arrays of 110 dishes and has proven to be effective.
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