OFFBEAT

At last, somewhere comfy to sit while your PlayStation 5 game loads

Microsoft’s latest Xbox merchandising deal means at least you can sit on an IKEA cushion while you wait for your PlayStation 5 to boot.

IKEA has announced YXSTABY, a nine-piece collection of items aimed at the XBOX completist who has to have every possible piece of merchandise associated with their beloved game console. Need a stool? How about one modeled on a controller’s thumbstick? A cushion? There’s a D-pad to throw on the sofa.

And a tariff refund for Xbox customers? Ah, well, the IKEA deal only goes so far…

IKEA has long had a reputation for being that place where relationships go to die, thanks in part to the occasionally labyrinthine layout of its store. Xbox has, under the leadership of Asha Sharma, acquired a similar rep as far as staffers and game studios are concerned. Thousands of workers were laid off in recent months as Sharma “reset the business” to improve the platform’s standing in a market dominated by rivals.

In the UK, IKEA charges £12 for a cushion or platter, and up to £115 for a side table on wheels. The Reg suspects Xbox branded stuff will be a little pricier but considerably less than an Xbox itself. 

Microsoft Store shows the comparatively weedy Xbox Series S retailing for £429.99, while the beefier Series X goes for £669.99. When launched in 2020, the Series S cost £249. “Unfortunately,” wrote Microsoft, “console storage and memory prices have increased by more than 2.5x and we expect another doubling by the fall of 2027.”

It is far from alone. Price rises have become a way of life in the tech industry in recent months as demand for memory outstripped supply.

This is not the first gaming-related wares that IKEA has sold. The BRÄNNBOLL collection predates the Xbox collaboration and features “everything to improve your gaming adventures, from a rug that helps you hit the enemies, not the table, to gaming bolsters that boost your comfort and play.”

The YXSTABY range was unveiled at Gamescom this month, but eager buyers have a little longer to wait for that Xbox-inspired stool. The range will be in stores and available online from October 1. ®

TL;DR: Scientists have built a quantum battery prototype that can produce an electrical current after charging in femtoseconds, marking a step forward for a technology that has largely remained theoretical and limited to small-scale lab experiments. The prototype is far from replacing conventional batteries, but it provides evidence that quantum effects could eventually enable faster energy transfer in quantum hardware and other specialized systems.

The device, developed by a team led by CSIRO quantum science researcher James Quach, is designed to take advantage of a quantum effect called superabsorption. In simple terms, the more molecules involved, the faster the system can absorb energy.

That is the opposite of what happens with conventional batteries, which generally take longer to charge as they get larger. The work does not mean quantum batteries are ready to replace those used in phones, laptops, or electric vehicles. The prototype stores only a small amount of energy and holds it for nanoseconds. Still, researchers say the experiment demonstrates that energy can be rapidly absorbed and extracted from a quantum battery.

The prototype uses an optical microcavity made of two mirrors separated by about 100 nanometers. The space between the mirrors is filled with organic dye molecules. A laser shines into the cavity, causing the light and molecules to interact strongly.

That interaction creates hybrid light-matter states. The molecules do not absorb energy independently, as they would in a classical system. Instead, they respond collectively.

The battery charges in femtoseconds, or quadrillionths of a second. It can retain energy for nanoseconds, about six orders of magnitude longer than the charging period.

Quach’s team first demonstrated superabsorption in 2022. The newer experiment added the ability to extract an electrical current. The current remains small, but demonstrating it is an important step toward making a quantum battery useful beyond a physics experiment.

Quantum batteries are not expected to compete with conventional batteries simply by storing more energy. Their main attraction is the possibility of very fast charging and precise energy delivery.

CSIRO’s clean lab for engineering prototype quantum batteries.

Dario Ferraro, an associate professor of physics at the University of Genova, told the BBC that quantum batteries are intended to improve the speed and control of energy delivery rather than significantly increase the amount of energy a battery can store.

For now, the gap between the prototype and a useful power source remains wide. The device can hold only a few billion electron volts of energy and retains it for a very short time. A real-world system would need far greater capacity and much longer storage times.

Quach said his group has built a hybrid design intended to address those limitations. It combines quantum components for rapid charging with classical layers that can store energy for longer. He said the team is preparing a paper on the work.

The researchers also plan to link multiple microscopic batteries together. “If we do those two things, then we’re on our way to being able to power a conventional device,” Quach said.

The optical microcavity system has one practical advantage: It operates at room temperature. Other quantum-battery designs use superconducting materials, which are already important in quantum computing but require extremely cold operating conditions.

Superconducting systems can operate at temperatures below -150°C. “This is fine for quantum computers, but not so useful to power your mobile phone,” Quach said.

The world’s first fully functioning proof-of-concept quantum battery.

Mauro Paternostro, a quantum physicist at Queen’s University Belfast, said the optical approach is a strong way to demonstrate that quantum charging can work. However, he added that it may be difficult to draw energy from such a system in a controlled and useful way. “A microcavity gives you a beautiful ensemble demonstration, but poor control over getting the energy back out in a useful, directed form,” he said.

The first practical use of quantum batteries, if they reach that point, may be in quantum hardware rather than consumer electronics. Quantum computers already rely on specialized equipment, and some use superconducting systems that operate at cryogenic temperatures.

Quach said a quantum battery could eventually help reduce energy use in quantum devices and support faster, more reliable operation. However, those benefits have not yet been demonstrated.

Ferraro said quantum effects are fragile and can break down when the system interacts with its environment. He expects quantum batteries to remain most useful in quantum-scale applications. “In my view… quantum batteries are unlikely to replace conventional batteries in everyday applications such as mobile phones or electric vehicles,” Ferraro said. “Their natural domain is the quantum scale.”

The latest prototype does not settle that debate. It does show that researchers can use quantum effects to charge a system quickly and extract an electrical current. The next challenge is building a device that can store more energy, hold it longer, and release it where it is needed.

VodafoneThree’s networks director says UK mobile quality is not ready for AI traffic and that planning rules, not money, are the obstacle, with more than half of its upgrades to existing masts requiring permission. The EU’s Gigabit Infrastructure Act has since November given authorities four months to decide a permit, after which it is deemed granted.

The UK’s largest mobile operator says its own network is not good enough. “I am embarrassed today at the level of quality of our network,” Andrea Donà of VodafoneThree told the Guardian.

He was describing what happens when AI traffic arrives. His comparison was the signal loss people get at a stadium, made permanent.

The starting position is poor. UK mobile coverage is worse than every EU member state and every other G7 country, on Opensignal data compiled for Which?. The same analysis puts it 57th globally for network performance.

Money is not the obstacle. VodafoneThree has committed £11B to upgrading masts, and it is cutting its mast count by 30%.

Almost none of the work needs a new site. About 96% of the upgrades are on existing structures, and more than half of those still require planning permission.

Donà’s ask is procedural rather than financial. “Planning reform is the lowest possible cost growth policy, it doesn’t require any government money,” he said.

The European Union legislated exactly that in 2024. The remedy he is describing is already on the statute book across the Channel.

Under the Gigabit Infrastructure Act, national authorities have four months to decide a permit application for a very high capacity network, and the permit is deemed granted if they miss the deadline.

It has applied since November last year. Member states may opt out of the automatic approval, but they have to offer compensation or a right to sue instead.

Brussels is going further. The Digital Networks Act proposes indefinite spectrum licences, use it or share it rules, and simpler deployment in exchange for tougher coverage duties.

The UK is bound by none of it. Its operators also point out that mobile networks are critical national infrastructure without the reliefs data centres receive on business rates and energy.

Elsewhere the gap is being attacked from a different direction. A Spanish startup raised €150M to beam 5G to ordinary phones from orbit, which needs no local consent at all.

Which is the shape of the problem. Britain protects the building where the model runs and not the network that has to reach it.

offbeat

Spike drone defense system is designed to be carried in a rucksack or mounted on top of a vehicle

A defense startup has raised $7 million to develop its counter-drone system that uses small interceptors to defend against swarms of FPV (First-Person View) drone swarms, the kind causing heavy battlefield casualties in Ukraine.

San Francisco-based Mara says it has secured the funding to bring its Spike drone defense system to market, aiming to provide a cost-effective counter to small FPV attack drones – typically quad-copters with an explosive payload.

The system comprises separate Spotter sensor / targeting units and multiple Seeker kinetic interceptors. The latter are small (250g / half a pound), fast (200 kmph / 124 mph), tube-launched, and have onboard intelligence to help find their way to the target.

Mara claims that deployments can scale from a single rucksack kit to protect a squad of troops, to a vehicle-mounted launcher, up to a multi-kilometer perimeter shield for a base or site.

A launcher can be fitted with up to 48 of the Seeker interceptors, and reloaded in less than a minute, or so the firm says.

The Spotter detection and tracking sensor combines electro-optical and acoustic sensors with an optional low-signature radar, for day and night all-weather protection.

“Small drones changed the battlefield because they distributed the cost and capability of precise attack,” Mara co-founder and CEO Daniel Kofman said in a statement.

Yet many defensive countermeasures are concentrated into one costly point solution, he claims. “Spike creates a distributed mesh of small, cheap nodes that can each aim and shoot in multiple directions at once.”

The components of its Spike system have already been tested by potential customers, Mara says. Seeker completed intercepts cued through US Army systems at an exercise in Texas, while Spotter has been operated on an armored vehicle during another Army exercise in Europe.

Most recently, Ukrainian forces operated Spotter near to the front line in their country, where it tracked multiple FPV drones.

Mara says it has research and testing agreements with three US defense organizations, and is in early-stage engagements with international military partners in the UK, Czech Republic and Ukraine.

The $7 million funding round was led by Khosla Ventures.

We asked Mara for further details, such as the range of its Seeker interceptors and just how inexpensive they are, and will update if we get answers. ®

The big picture: South Korea is preparing to offer free generative AI services to its entire population, using the technology to help people handle everyday tasks such as booking medical appointments, finding housing, and sorting out taxes. The program is intended to expand access to homegrown AI systems while giving the government a larger role in how they are used for everyday services.

The government’s “AI for All” program will begin beta testing in September, followed by a broader launch later this year. On Friday, Seoul named three technology consortia to provide the services. They include groups led by the country’s two largest telecom companies and the operator of Kakao, one of South Korea’s most widely used consumer platforms.

The services are expected to connect to government systems rather than function solely as standalone chatbots. Residents will be able to use them to book doctor appointments, search for apartments, and get tax guidance. Small businesses will be able to calculate taxes and check whether they qualify for government support. Parents will receive recommendations for educational content.

Each consortium plans to introduce its own AI app and add generative AI features to existing products. Users will have unlimited access, with no token limits under the government-supported plans.

Seoul will supply some of the computing capacity needed to run the services. The government plans to distribute up to 512 Nvidia B200 chips among the three consortia and help cover operating costs. The Ministry of Science and ICT has not disclosed the program’s total cost.

The initiative is part of South Korea’s effort to build a stronger domestic AI industry and reduce its reliance on systems developed in the US and China. The government is trying to steer more consumers toward locally developed AI products by making premium-level services widely available at no cost.

South Korea already has a large market for generative AI. A government survey earlier this year found that about one-quarter of South Koreans pay for AI services. By comparison, a PNC Bank survey found that about 2% of Americans pay for such services. Seoul estimates that more than 20 million people in South Korea use free generative AI tools.

The rollout is backed by a broader increase in AI spending. President Lee Jae Myung’s administration has set aside about 10 trillion won, or $7.2 billion, for AI-related spending in 2026. That is three times the amount allocated the previous year.

For South Korea, the project will test whether generative AI can become part of the country’s basic digital infrastructure. Its success will depend on whether the systems are reliable enough for people to use them for practical, routine tasks.

The government has not set an adoption target for the new service.

The growing backlash against surveillance companies like Flock may have reached a tipping point. A new survey has found that more Americans oppose these surveillance cameras than support them.

According to a new YouGov survey of 20,000 people across the U.S. that was shared exclusively with The Washington Post, 46% of respondents opposed the company’s surveillance cameras in their communities, while 38% supported them. This is a reversal from last year, when the majority of survey respondents said they were in favor.

Flock is one of the more visible surveillance companies, operating more than 120,000 license plate readers across the U.S. that can track the whereabouts of vehicles. The company has been embroiled in controversy following reports of police abusing the cameras’ surveillance, which resulted in dozens of U.S. communities rejecting Flock’s cameras or canceling their contracts amid privacy concerns.

The survey also reported that more respondents said the surveillance would not make them feel any safer.

When reached by TechCrunch, Flock claimed there was wide support for its surveillance technology, but acknowledged that “support isn’t unconditional,” and touted the rollout of its recent safeguards. Critics, like the ACLU, have said the company’s new safeguards amount to little, and Flock remains a major threat to civil liberties.

Amid the intensifying backlash, Flock CEO Garrett Langley last week called for a “compromise” between surveillance and privacy, following a rise in vandalism targeting Flock cameras.

US Open 2026 has served up a sensational Round 1 draw, headlined by Matteo Berrettini vs Stan Wawrinka, Rafael Jodar vs Thanasi Kokkinakis and Carlos Alcaraz vs Roman Safiullin. The hard-hitting Russian is a less-than-ideal opponent for the No.2 seed and reigning champion, who’s been out of action since April with a wrist injury.

The tie that looks set to steal the show, however, is Berrettini’s clash with 2016 champion Wawrinka. They met for the very first time at Wimbledon two months ago – and produced the match of the tournament. With Wawrinka set to hang up his racket this year, it could end up being his final ever appearance at a major.