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Soccer leagues are using real-time AI tools to detect illegal streams and combat piracy

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  • Soccer piracy losses estimated between $700M and $800M annually
  • Real-time AI detection cuts piracy rates across major matches
  • Traditional blocking tools struggle against large-scale streaming networks

Piracy of live football streams has grown into an industrial-scale problem, with Spanish clubs warning that illegal viewing is draining hundreds of millions of dollars from the sport each year.

LaLiga estimates piracy costs its clubs, which include Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Atlético Madrid, between $700m and $800m annually, a figure that reflects both lost subscriptions and declining broadcast value.

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7 Of The Most Powerful American Engines Ever Built

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If there’s one thing the American automotive industry is probably best known for, it’s engines. Big ones, too, with plenty of classic, high-speed muscle cars from the 1960s sporting 400 cubic-inch V8s making healthy amounts of power. But while those engines that gearheads may look back on with fondness were very capable in their heyday, they’re not really all that powerful compared to what American automakers have to offer now.

Engines like the 426 HEMI might be iconic (and deservedly so, might we add), but its advertised 425 hp and 490 lb-ft of torque pales in comparison to big-power modern V8s from the likes of GM, Ford, and Dodge. These automakers have continued pushing the horsepower envelope forward with each passing decade, breaking past barriers that engineers working in the ’60s and ’70s probably thought were outright impossible.

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American carmakers don’t have a monopoly on big, high-performance power plants, of course. Some of the world’s most powerful V8s, for example, are the products of European automakers and their engineers. But that’s another topic for another time; for now, let’s dive into the world of high-power American engines and see just how crazy they can get.

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Dodge Viper V10 — 645 hp

The legendarily hard-to-drive Dodge Viper was, arguably, one of the most iconic American vehicles of its day. From its outrageous design to the massive V10 under the hood, the Viper was, and will likely always remain, a unique and likely impossible-to-replicate performance car. That said, the 1991 Viper’s 8.0-liter V10 only made 400 hp, which is honestly pretty tame by modern standards — and wasn’t necessarily earth-shattering even back then.

Dodge increased the Viper V10’s power and displacement over the years, though. The first bump came in 2003 with the third-gen Viper’s 8.3-liter, 500-hp power plant, followed soon by another bump to 8.4 liters and 600 hp in 2008. While these numbers are solid, some might feel that the V10 never quite made the amount of power one might hope from such a massive engine. That said, its final iteration was at least good enough to earn a place on this list.

In 2013, Dodge unveiled the fifth-generation VX I Viper, which boasted several improvements over its predecessors. It was a comfier and more luxurious car, with higher-quality materials and a more accommodating interior. Things improved under the hood, too: The 8.4-liter V10 now made 640 hp and 600 lb-ft of torque, good enough for Chrysler to claim that it was the most powerful naturally aspirated sports car engine on the market. The Viper’s engineers weren’t quite done, though, and they managed to squeeze out an extra 5 hp for 2015, bumping the V10’s output to 645 hp — a number it retained until the end of production in 2017.

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Chevrolet LT6 — 670 hp

Chevrolet’s LS series of small-block V8s may be the more recognizable of the automaker’s modern compact performance powerplants — and an incredibly popular choice for engine swaps the world over — but if it’s power you want, the newer LT engines are the ones to pay attention to. Case in point: The 5.5-liter LT6, which debuted in the 2023 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 with an impressive 670 hp and 460 lb-ft of torque. 

One of the secrets to the LT6’s impressive power output is the flat-plane crankshaft that Chevy engineers adopted for the engine. While we don’t have the space to dig into the differences between cross-plane and flat-plane cranks here, the gist is that flat-plane crankshafts require less balancing and are thus lighter. This, in turn, allows designers to make an engine that revs incredibly high and makes a lot of power while doing so; the LT6 specifically generates its 670 hp at 8,400 rpm, with redline arriving at 8,600 rpm.

It’s not solely down to the crankshaft design, of course: Chevy engineers pulled out all the stops to make nearly 700 hp from a 5.5-liter engine without the aid of boost. Other clever tricks include a high-flow exhaust, an oversquare bore and stroke that reduces piston speed at high revs, and an active intake manifold that rams extra air into the combustion chamber via a behavior known as resonance supercharging to squeeze as much power as possible out of the LT6. The result is a naturally aspirated small-block V8 that’s easily one of the most powerful Corvette engines ever.

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Chevrolet Performance ZZ632/1000 — 1,004 hp

Not all mega-powerful American engines come installed in cars from the factory; instead, some ship as crate engines. One of the most pertinent examples is the Chevrolet Performance ZZ632/1000. As the name indicates, the ZZ632 is a massive 632 cubic-inch tall-deck, big-block V8 that, as shipped, is good for 1,004 hp and 876 lb-ft of torque.

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The ZZ632 is a modern entry in Chevy’s storied lineage of big block engines, with the powerplant flying the same flag once flown by iconic big blocks like the 454 that powered the C3 ‘Vette, Monte Carlo and Caprice. Just with a lot more power, of course. However, unlike many other modern 1,000-hp American V8s, the ZZ632/1000 manages it without forced induction; instead, it’s a naturally aspirated motor that makes a strong argument for the old adage of there being no replacement for displacement.

Chevy predictably equips the ZZ632 with heavy-duty components to handle all that power (and 12.0:1 compression). It boasts forged internals all around barring the camshaft, which is billet steel. The rest, including the pistons, crankshaft, and rocker arms, are all forged aluminum or steel of some sort. It also has fuel injectors that deliver 86 pounds-per-hour and makes its headline figures on 93 octane gas — no E85 necessary here. There have been plenty of engine swaps featuring the ZZ632 over the years, but one of the most memorable is likely Hot Rod magazine’s yellow 1957 Chevy known as Project X, which got a ZZ632/1000 in a 2023 episode of “Hot Rod Garage.”

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Dodge Hellephant — 1,000/1,025 hp

What carries more weight than a Hellcat? If you ask Dodge, it’s the Hellephant. The automaker has used the name for two distinct engines, both of which one-upped the already powerful Hellcat engines by generating four-figure power numbers.

Dodge first revealed the 426 Hellephant at the 2018 SEMA show, where it sat in the engine bay of a restomodded ’68 Charger. The engine was based on the 6.2-liter Hellcat but achieved 1,000 hp and 950 lb-ft of torque on pump gas via several mods. These included an aluminum engine block, a 3.0-liter supercharger, special forged pistons, and an aggressive, high-lift camshaft, amongst other upgrades. Availability was very limited to start with, however, with units selling out within 48 hours and later delayed due to camshaft issues.

In 2023, Dodge released the Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170, with a 6.2-liter, 1,025-hp (on E85) Hellephant engine under the hood. Changes for this HEMI included a new 3.0-liter supercharger (with more boost courtesy of a 3.02-inch pulley) and a larger throttle body. Like the 426 Hellephant, Dodge sold the engine as a crate motor, calling it the Hellephant C170. As of mid-2026, Direct Connection has two variants of the Hellephant listed: The E85-capable, 6.2-liter 1,025-hp C170 and the 1,000-hp Hellephant A30 426 that it reintroduced in 2025. The C170 is technically the more powerful of the two, but we felt both were deserving of equal billing here — what’s 25 horsepower between friends, after all?

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Chevrolet LT7 — 1,064 hp

The 670-hp LT6 that debuted in the 2023 C8 Corvette Z06 was already very powerful, especially for a naturally aspirated powerplant. Despite that, even the most casual petrolhead would have guessed that there was predictably no way that the automaker was going to stick with a sub-700-hp engine for the C8 ZR1. And this hypothetical individual was proven very, very right in 2024, when Chevy revealed that the ZR1 would make 1,064 hp from its 5.5-liter, twin-turbocharged LT7 engine.

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Chevy’s chosen name is, of course, indicative of the engine’s family resemblance to the LT6, but there’s more to separate the two engines than the turbos. These include chunkier internals — with forged titanium connecting rods and all-new forged aluminum pistons — and altered cylinder heads to accept the 20 PSI that the turbos put out. This head casting also allows for both port and direct fuel injection, unlike the direct injection-only LT6. Another difference is that the engine designers developed an anti-lag system for the LT7, ensuring it stays in boost. Paired with a similarly upgraded transmission, the LT7’s 1,064 hp pushed the ZR1 to a record-breaking 233 mph top speed in 2024.

While the LT7’s raw power is the focus of this list, it would be remiss of us not to mention the electrified 1,250-hp Corvette ZR1x. This latest iteration of the C8 ‘Vette pairs the LT7 with a modified version of the front motor from the Corvette E-Ray, making for what is likely to be the quickest (and fastest) Corvette ever.

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SSC Tuatara V8 — 1,350/1,750 hp

While naturally aspirated, high-power V8s are undoubtedly impressive, getting huge power numbers out of eight cylinders invariably requires a bit of help, be it from a supercharger or twin turbos. Dodge went down the former route with the 1,000-hp Hellephant, while Chevy went for the latter to squeeze 1,064 hp out of the 5.5-liter LT7. But both of those pale in comparison to what Nelson Racing Engines (NRE) and SSC cooked up for the SSC Tuatara.

The Tuatara’s V8 is a 5.9-liter V8 that rocks dual 76mm NRE turbos and a flat-plane crankshaft that allows it to rev up to a dizzying 8,800 rpm. To allow the engine to get up that high, NRE engineers designed a large-bore, short-stroke engine to keep piston speeds down. Similarly, short-skirt pistons and lightweight titanium connecting rods ensure that the V8’s rotating assembly is lightweight enough to allow the engine to rev safely to nearly 9,000 rpm. It’s admittedly not quite one of the highest-revving production car engines ever, but it’s still plenty impressive for a such a large V8.

Cooling the hot air from NRE’s in-house twin turbos are two air-to-water intercoolers located in the intake manifold. These allegedly halve the intake air temperature and help squeeze out even more power from the engine. The final icing on the cake of ultra-high-horsepower is, of course, biofuel: The V8 makes its 1,750 hp when gassed up with ethanol or methanol. Without it, you’re looking at a paltry 1,350 hp instead. Still great, but not nearly as great as 1,750 hp.

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Hennessey Fury V8 — 1,817/2,031 hp

Hennessey Performance is known for building many incredibly powerful vehicles, from a 1,200-hp version of the Cadillac CTS-V to the 1,400-hp Venom GT based on the Lotus Exige. But while all of those were indeed impressive achievements, the engine powering company’s most recent hypercar (as of 2026) easily bests them all: Say hello to the Fury V8.

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This ludicrously overpowered engine was revealed alongside the Venom F5 in 2020, with frankly mind-boggling numbers straight from the off. Hennessey claimed that the twin-turbocharged, 6.6-liter V8, which was based on GM’s classic LS small-block V8, would make 1,817 hp and a ludicrous 1,193 lb-ft of torque. While we’re not sure if any third-party outlet ever dared to take a Venom F5 to the dyno, we don’t see any reason to doubt those numbers, not least due to the F5’s impressive 221-mph half-mile and our own Dave McQuiling’s experience behind the wheel of one back in 2024.

Managing just over 1,800 hp from a 6.6-liter V8 would already have guaranteed the Hennessey and its Fury V8 a place in the history books, but the Texas-based tuner was far from done. In 2025, Hennessey announced the Evolution package for the Venom F5, which bumped output up to an even crazier 2,031 hp and 1,445 lb-ft of torque. This extra 200 hp or so comes courtesy of new turbos, updated billet aluminum pistons, higher-flow injectors, and lighter valve covers — and E85 fuel, of course.

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Beef: When to Watch Season 2 on Netflix

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Expect more bottled-up frustration, resentment and insecurity this week as Netflix‘s anthology dramedy, Beef, returns for a second season with a fresh cast and setting. 

After picking up a trio of Emmy awards for its debut season, which starred Steven Yeun and Ali Wong, director and screenwriter Lee Sung Jin starts from a clean slate with an entirely different talent lineup. Great Gatsby star Carey Mulligan and Frankenstein’s Oscar Isaac lead the story as Joshua and Lindsay Martín, a couple whose marriage is more than rocky. Cailee Spaeny and Charles Melton play a newly engaged couple, Ashley and Austin, who both work under the Martíns.

Produced by A24 and featuring a soundtrack by Billie Eilish’s brother Finneas, Beef is set for more dark humor as season 2 delivers another high-stakes feud. Read on to find out more on how to stream Beef’s second season this month.

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What’s the plot for Beef Season 2?

As with Season 1, this sophomore run of Beef centers around a big argument. But this time it’s between between Joshua and Lindsay, who are running an exclusive Southern California country club together. 

What starts off as a seemingly contained dispute quickly spirals, however, dragging in their friends and employees, including two staff members — the Gen Z couple played by Melton and Spaeny who witness their bosses’ shocking confrontation. 

The fallout from the argument triggers a chain of events, leading to both couples fighting for the approval of the club’s powerful billionaire owner played by Youn Yuh-jung. 

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How to watch Beef Season 2

Beef’s entire eight-episode second season will arrive on April 16 on Netflix. The streaming service recently raised prices on its subscription plans, which now range from $9 to $27 a month. 

James Martin/CNET

Netflix offers three plans in the US, ranging from $9 a month for its ad-free version to $20 or $27 a month if you want to stream without ads. 

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In the UK, the current pricing is £6 for Standard with Ads, £13 for Standard (Ad-Free) and £19 for Premium (Ad-Free). For Australian viewers, Standard with Ads comes in at AU$10, Standard (Ad-Free) is priced at AU$21, while Premium (Ad-Free) will set you back AU$30.

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April updates trigger BitLocker key prompts on some servers

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Windows BitLocker

Microsoft confirmed on Tuesday that some Windows Server 2025 devices will boot into BitLocker recovery after installing the April 2026 KB5082063 Windows security update.

BitLocker is a Windows security feature that encrypts storage drives to prevent data theft. Windows computers typically enter BitLocker recovery mode after hardware changes or events such as TPM (Trusted Platform Module) updates, to regain access to protected drives that have not been unlocked via the default unlock mechanism.

“Some devices with an unrecommended BitLocker Group Policy configuration might be required to enter their BitLocker recovery key on the first restart after installing this update,” Microsoft said.

Wiz

“In this scenario, the BitLocker recovery key only needs to be entered once — subsequent restarts will not trigger a BitLocker recovery screen, as long as the group policy configuration remains unchanged.”

However, as the company explained, this only happens for very specific configurations, on systems where all the following conditions are met:

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  1. BitLocker is enabled on the OS drive.
  2. The Group Policy “Configure TPM platform validation profile for native UEFI firmware configurations” is configured, and PCR7 is included in the validation profile (or the equivalent registry key is set manually).
  3. System Information (msinfo32.exe) reports that the Secure Boot State PCR7 Binding is “Not Possible“.
  4. The Windows UEFI CA 2023 certificate is present in the device’s Secure Boot Signature Database (DB), making the device eligible for the 2023‑signed Windows Boot Manager to be made the default.
  5. The device is not already running the 2023-signed Windows Boot Manager.

Microsoft added that this known issue is unlikely to affect personal devices, as impacted configurations are typically found on systems managed by enterprise IT teams.

BitLocker recovery screen
BitLocker recovery screen (Microsoft)

​The company is now working on a solution to this issue and has shared temporary workarounds that allow installation of this month’s security updates.

Admins are advised to remove the Group Policy configuration before deploying the KB5082063 update, and to ensure that BitLocker bindings use the PCR7 profile by following these steps.

Those who can’t remove the PCR7 group policy before installing can apply a Known Issue Rollback (KIR) on affected devices to prevent the automatic switch to the 2023 Boot Manager and to avoid triggering BitLocker recovery.

In May 2025, Microsoft released emergency updates to address a similar issue that was causing Windows 10 systems to boot into BitLocker recovery after installing the May 2025 security updates.

One year earlier, in August 2024, Microsoft fixed another known issue triggering BitLocker recovery prompts across all supported Windows versions after installing the July 2024 Windows security updates.

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In August 2022, Windows devices also became stuck at a BitLocker recovery prompt after installing the KB5012170 security update.

Automated pentesting proves the path exists. BAS proves whether your controls stop it. Most teams run one without the other.

This whitepaper maps six validation surfaces, shows where coverage ends, and provides practitioners with three diagnostic questions for any tool evaluation.

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Google leaders including Demis Hassabis push back on claim of uneven AI adoption internally

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A viral post on X from veteran programmer and former Google engineer Steve Yegge set off a rhetorical firestorm this week, drawing sharp public rebuttals from some of Google’s most prominent AI leaders and reopening a sensitive question for the company: how deeply are its own engineers really using the latest generation of AI coding tools?

The debate began after Yegge summarized what he said was the view of his friend, a current and longtime Google employee (or Googler), who claimed the Gemini AI-firm’s internal AI adoption looks much more ordinary and less cutting-edge than outsiders might expect.

Yegge said Googler friend claimed Google engineering mirrors an “average” industry pattern of a 20%-60%-20% split: a small group of outright AI refusers (20%) a much larger middle still relying mainly on simpler chat and coding-assistant workflows (60%), and another small group of AI-first, cutting-edge engineers using agentic tools extensively and mastering them (20%).

A VentureBeat search of X using its parent company’s AI assistant Grok found that Yegge’s April 13 post spread quickly, topping 4,500 likes, 205 quote posts, 458 replies and 1.9 million views as of April 14.

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We’ve reached out to Google for comment on the claims and will update when we receive a response.

A veteran, oustpoken Googler voice

Why did the opinion of Yegge’s unnamed Googler friend land so hard? In part because Yegge is not just another commentator taking shots from the sidelines.

He spent about 13 years at Google after earlier stints at Amazon and GeoWorks, later joined Grab, and then became head of engineering at Sourcegraph in 2022. He has long been known in software circles for widely read essays on programming and engineering culture, and for an earlier internal Google memo that accidentally became public in 2011 and drew broad media attention.

That history helps explain why engineers and executives still take his critiques seriously, even when they reject them.

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Yegge has built a reputation over many years as a blunt insider-outsider voice on software culture, someone with enough standing in the industry that his judgments can travel fast, especially when they touch nerves inside big technology companies.

Wikipedia’s summary of his career notes his long Google tenure and the outsized attention his blog posts and prior Google critiques have received.

Unpacking Yegge’s friend’s argument

In this case, Yegge’s argument was not simply that Google uses too little AI. It was that the company’s adoption may be uneven, culturally constrained and less transformed than its branding implies.

His friend supposedly argued that some Googlers could not use Anthropic’s Claude Code because it was framed as “the enemy,” and that Gemini was not yet sufficient for the fullest agentic coding workflows. He contrasted Google with what he described as a smaller set of companies moving much faster.

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Pushback from Hassabis and current Googlers

The first major pushback came from Demis Hassabis, the co-founder and CEO of Google DeepMind, who replied directly and forcefully. “Maybe tell your buddy to do some actual work and to stop spreading absolute nonsense. This post is completely false and just pure clickbait,” Hassabis wrote.

Other Google leaders followed with lengthier defenses.

Addy Osmani, a director at Google Cloud AI, wrote that Yegge’s account “doesn’t match the state of agentic coding at our company.” He added, “Over 40K SWEs use agentic coding weekly here.”

Osmani said Googlers have access to internal tools and systems including “custom models, skills, CLIs and MCPs,” and pushed back on the idea that Google employees are sealed off from outside models, writing that “folks can even use @AnthropicAI’s models on Vertex” and concluding that “Google is anything but average.”

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Other current Google employees reinforced that message. Jaana Dogan, a software engineer at Google, wrote in a quote tweet: “Everyone I work with uses @antigravity like every second of the day,” later following up with another X post stating: “Unpopular opinion: If you think tokens burned is a productivity metric, no one should take you seriously. Imagine you are a top 0.0001% writer and they are only counting the tokens you produce.”

Paige Bailey, a DevX engineering lead at Google DeepMind, said teams had agents “running 24/7.”

Several other Google and DeepMind figures also challenged Yegge’s characterization, some disputing the factual basis of his claims and others suggesting he lacked visibility into current internal usage.

Yegge’s rebuttal

Yegge, for his part, did not retreat. In a follow-up to Hassabis, he wrote, “I’m not trying to misrepresent anyone,” but argued that by his own standard for advanced AI adoption, Google still does not appear to be doing especially well.

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He pointed to token usage and the replacement of older development habits with truly agentic workflows as the more meaningful benchmark, and said he would be willing to retract his criticism if Google could show its engineers were operating at that level.

AI adoption vs. AI transformation

That leaves the core dispute unresolved, but clearer. This is less a fight over whether Google engineers use AI at all than a fight over what should count as meaningful adoption.

Googlers are pointing to scale, weekly usage and the availability of internal and external tools. Yegge is arguing that those measures may capture broad exposure without proving a deeper change, an AI transformation, in how engineering work gets done. The clash reflects a wider industry split between visible usage metrics and more transformative, power-user behavior.

For Google, the subject is especially sensitive. Yegge has criticized the company before, including in a 2018 essay explaining why he left, where he argued Google had become too risk-averse and had lost much of its ability to innovate.

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If his latest critique had come from a lesser-known poster, it might have faded. Coming from a former longtime Google engineer with a record of memorable public criticism, it instead drew direct responses from some of the company’s top AI figures — and turned a single post into a broader public argument about whether Google’s AI leadership is as deep internally as it looks from the outside.

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The CDC Doesn’t Want You To See A CDC Report On How Effective COVID Vaccines Are

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from the why-not? dept

One of the most remarkable staffing decisions of the second Trump administration has been to allow the anti-vaxxers to run America’s health agencies. While RFK Jr. and his cadre of lieutenants prattle on about how they’re going to be super transparent, data-driven stewards of American health, their actions have put the lie to all of it. Vague statements about diseases, disinformation about the cause and source of other diseases, missed appointment deadlines for key personnel are all combined to create an HHS full of chaos, confusion, and the storied practice of CYA.

But these are ideological people, with some of the stupidest possible ideologies governing their actions. That’s how you get a situation where the CDC produces a report on the efficacy of recent COVID vaccines, following commonly used methodology, only to have the acting CDC director bury the report because he doesn’t like what it finds.

CDC scientists and insiders told the Post that the COVID-19 vaccine study went through the agency’s standard scientific review process and was slated for publication on March 19 in the agency’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR). But acting CDC director Jay Bhattacharya blocked the scheduled publication and is holding the study, claiming he has concerns about its methodology.

According to a summary the Post obtained, the study concluded that between September and December of last year, healthy adults vaccinated with a 2025–2026 COVID-19 vaccine saw the risk of emergency department or urgent care visits cut by 50 percent, and the risk of COVID-19-associated hospitalizations cut by 55 percent, compared with healthy adults who did not get this season’s shot.

Bhattacharya reportedly took issue with the test-negative design of the study, which is a well-established method to examine real-world data on vaccine effectiveness. This type of observational study looks at people who have symptoms related to the disease of interest (in this case, COVID-19) and have the same test-seeking behavior. Those who test positive for the disease of interest become positive cases in the study, and those who test negative are test-negative controls. Researchers then compare the two groups based on vaccination status.

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So there is no misunderstanding, Bhattacharya is completely full of shit here. He is not holding this CDC study back because he’s concerned about the test-negative methodology. I know that because the same CDC under the same acting Director published a study on the efficacy of flu shots that used the same test-negative method last month, a week before this same COVID vaccine study was to be published. If Bhattacharya had a problem with the method for the COVID study, why didn’t have the same problem with the flu shot study?

The answer is obvious: the methodology is not the issue here. Instead, the problem is the mRNA nature of most COVID vaccines. That, combined with Bhattacharya’s criticisms for COVID vaccines specifically, and his support for changing of the schedule and availability for them, means this study is at odds with his ideology and might be embarrassing for him personally.

Dan Jernigan, who headed CDC’s influenza division for six years and resigned last year in protest of Kennedy’s political interference at the agency, suggested to the Post that stalling the paper fits with Kennedy’s anti-vaccine agenda.

“The secretary has already taken steps to try and remove the availability of the vaccine from children and others, so if you’re putting out an MMWR that the vaccine is effective at preventing hospitalizations and medical care visits … that message is not in line with the direction you’ve been taking with the removal of the vaccine,” he said.

And there you have it: politics and personal CYA injected into matters of public health. Having those in charge of our health agencies prioritize their own personal stature over science, literally burying studies simply because they don’t like what they show, is certainly not going to lead to a more health America.

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Filed Under: anti-vaxxers, cdc, covid, covid vaccines, jay bhattacharya, rfk jr.

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‘A total disappointment’: Some Galaxy Watch owners are seeing major battery drains after the latest software update

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  • Many Galaxy Watch owners are reporting a battery drain issue
  • It seems to have stemmed from a recent software update
  • Samsung hasn’t yet commented but Google Play Services might be the culprit

Samsung makes some of the best smartwatches around, but we’re seeing multiple reports from Galaxy Watch owners about rapidly draining battery life — and the issue seems to be tied to a recent software update.

As spotted by Android Authority and others, users have taken to Reddit to complain about a sudden drop in battery life. Given the number of comments and upvotes that thread has received, it seems quite a few people are having problems.

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Do data and AI talent needs conflict with a workforce seeking stability?

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The report shows that many organisations plan to increase the size of their data teams, however, many professionals say they are unlikely to change employers in 2026.

The Data Salaries Job Sentiment Analysis 2026 report, published by Analytics Institute and SAS, examines the growing challenges being experienced by organisations looking to expand their data capabilities. The companies spoke to 167 employees and Analytic members across Ireland to collect the information. 

What was discovered is that there is potentially an emerging AI skills mobility issue in which the heightened demand for data and AI expertise is colliding with a workforce that is increasingly choosing stability over job movement. 

The report found that, while 64pc of organisations have plans to increase the size of their data teams throughout 2026, 70pc of professionals who contributed their information explained that they are unlikely to change employers this year. 

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“AI technologies are beginning to reshape roles within the data profession, but their impact is more evolutionary than disruptive,” said Lorcan Malone, chief executive of the Analytics Institute. 

He added, “Rather than replacing expertise, AI is augmenting it, increasing the need for strong governance, critical thinking and the ability to translate outputs into meaningful business outcomes. This makes continuous learning, adaptability, and targeted upskilling more important than ever.”

However, he noted retention has become a defining theme within the space, as job mobility has started to slow, tenure is increasing and professionals are placing greater emphasis on meaningful work, career progression and strong leadership. This, he explained, is leading to the creation of environments that support long-term development where engagement is central to sustaining high-performing data teams. 

Job satisfaction was found to be of key importance to employees across the sector, with nearly half of participants agreeing that they enjoy their role a lot or moderately, with the remainder stating that they enjoy their role “a little”. Meaningful work (65pc), a supportive boss (49pc) and hybrid work (38pc) were also found to be among the most important workplace features or benefits. 

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Of the minority of professionals who are open to moving, perhaps surprisingly, salary alone was not the key motivator. The study explained that 41pc of professionals would move for a greater challenge. Many want to work on AI and data projects that have real impact, mainly on projects that go beyond pilots or cost-cutting exercises and drive genuine innovation.

“With only around 30pc of professionals willing to move, organisations face competition for a limited group of talent,” said Alan McGlinn, the director for financial services UK&I and Ireland country lead at SAS.

He said, “If companies are poaching talent from the same group, the pond could become very small. To grow capabilities and succeed with AI and data initiatives, companies need to invest in internal skills development, data literacy and training.”

How important is data strategy?

Rising from 45pc last year, to 49pc in 2026, data was found to be central to organisational strategy, with the number of those who see data as important but not yet central declining slightly from 36pc to 33pc. The report said, this suggests that more companies are prioritising data within strategic decision-making. 

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Only 0.66pc reported that data is not important, which the report said highlights its “near-universal value”. Data visualisation and business intelligence reporting were found to be among the most critical technical skills in the sector, with 74pc of respondents identifying them as essential. As were project management 43pc,  machine learning and AI at 33pc. 

Data also suggested there are evolving trends in the tools used by data professionals. Excel at 77pc and SQL at 71pc remain the most widely used technologies, while Python adoption has grown significantly to 53pc, which the report said is reflective of the increasing use of open-source analytics tools across organisations.

Malone said, “Overall, the report shows that as organisations increasingly rely on data-driven insight to inform strategy and improve performance, the demand for skilled professionals remains strong. 

“Companies that can attract and retain individuals with both technical expertise and commercial understanding and develop skills internally where hiring is difficult, will be best positioned to unlock the full value of their data and AI investments.”

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FCC just handed Netgear a de facto router monopoly in the US

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The Federal Communications Commission has announced that Netgear has been given conditional approval that effectively exempts it from a previous ban on foreign-made networking routers. The conditional approval gives the company a de facto — though potentially temporary — monopoly on the selling and servicing of new consumer routers in the US.

“We’re pleased to share that Netgear is the first retail consumer router company to receive conditional approval from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) as a trusted consumer router company,” Netgear CEO CJ Prober said in a statement. “As a US founded and headquartered company, Netgear is aligned with the vision for a more secure digital future for our customers. For the last thirty years, we have been, and continue to be, committed to leading the consumer router category for the United States and setting the bar for quality, performance, innovation and security.”

Both Netgear’s lines of Nighthawk and Orbi mesh routers are covered by the approval until October 1, 2027, which appears to mean that the company can continue to offer software updates to both lines and presumably release and sell new models in the future.

The FCC dramatically expanded the Covered List, a collection of communications equipment seen as posing a risk to national security, to cover all foreign-made routers in March 2026. The decision prevents companies who make routers outside of the US from introducing new foreign-made models, and pushing certain software updates to existing models after March 1, 2027. Confusingly, though, it doesn’t require anyone to replace their existing router or prevent those companies from selling routers they’ve already made. Receiving conditional approval is the definitive way companies can get off the list, but part of the FCC’s requirements for approval is the company offering a plan to bring some or all of its manufacturing to the US — a theoretically costly decision.

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Engadget has contacted Netgear for information about the US manufacturing plan it included in its application for conditional approval. We’ll update this article if we hear back.

The vast majority of router companies, even ones that are headquartered in the US like Netgear, build their routers in Asia. It’s not clear what makes Netgear’s currently foreign-made routers safer than, say, an Amazon Eero 7 or a Google Nest WiFi Pro. Until other companies are given conditional approval, though, Netgear is in a unique position.

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Best GoPro Camera (2026): Compact, Budget, Accessories

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The Top 5 GoPro Hero Cameras Compared

GoPros to Avoid

GoPro doesn’t sell anything older than the Hero 12, but there are plenty of Hero 11s and even Hero 10s out there for sale on the internet. We suggest avoiding them. They may work fine, but modern accessories designed for later models won’t work, and these cameras have likely been through the wringer. (They are action cameras, after all.)

GoPro

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Hero 11 Black

GoPro no longer sells the Hero 11, but it’s still commonly available on Amazon and other retailers. Unfortunately, it’s usually the same price as the Hero 12 (around $300) and therefore not worth buying.

The Best GoPro Accessories

Best GoPro Camera  Compact Budget Accessories

Photograph: Scott Gilbertson

Should you buy a bundle? Generally, I say no. Get the camera, figure it out, and see how you end up using it. When you find yourself trying to solve a problem, start looking for an accessory. Here are some of my favorite things that I’ve tested and used, but if you have favorites you think I should try, drop a comment below.

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A Good MicroSD card for $50: According to GoPro’s recommendations, you want a microSD card with a V30 or UHS-3 rating. That said, GoPros can be finicky about SD cards. I’ve had good luck with, and recommend, the Samsung linked here. Another card I’ve used extensively is the Sandisk Extreme Pro.

GoPro Media Mod for $100: By far my most-used accessory, the media mod does add some bulk, but in most cases this is more than made up for by the fact that you can plug in a real microphone (I use mine with a Rode Wireless). Sound quality is radically improved with this one. This may be less necessary if you get the Hero 12 or later, since those models do have support for Bluetooth mics.

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GoPro Handlebar Mount for $40: I’ve been doing a lot more riding lately, and this mount pretty much lives on my bike these days. It’s been rock solid in my testing, and beats any of the third-party mounts I’ve tested.

GoPro Tripod Mount Adapters for $30: Unless you have the Hero 12 or 13, which have a tripod mount built-in, you’ll need a few of these to mount your GoPro to a tripod like the GorillaPod.

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GoPro Floaty for $35: If you’re getting anywhere near the water, grab one of these. Trust me, you will drop your GoPro, and when you do, you will glad you have this (unless the water is clear and you’re a good free diver). GoPro also makes a Floating Hand Grip ($23), which not only floats but has a leash for diving or surfing.

GoPro Selfie Stick for $80: This 48-inch extension pole collapses up surprisingly small and isn’t very heavy. It’s the best selfie stick I’ve used. I rarely use it for selfies, but it makes a great monopod on soft ground, like a sandy beach.

DaVinci Resolve Studio for $300: This is my video editing software of choice. There is a free version, but I got tired of converting media to fit the restrictions of the free version. Best money I ever spent when it comes to making better videos.

Do More With Your GoPro

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GoPro Hero 13 Black in color White with the Anamorphic Lens attachedPhotograph: Scott Gilbertson

So you bought a GoPro, now what? Well aside from reading the manual and learning how to control it, the best thing to do is get out there and experiment. Here are a few suggestions and things I use my GoPro for regularly.

GoPro Labs: GoPro Labs is an alternative firmware for your GoPro Hero camera that enables all sort of features and experiments that allow you to do things you can’t do with the stock firmware. There is some risk of instability and bugs, but I’ve been using the Labs firmware for five years now and never had an issue. It’s like adding 10 new features to your GoPro for free. I’ll reference several of my favorites in the sections below, but you can see the full list of things you can do with GoPro Labs on the GoPro Labs website.

TimeLapse Videos: After mounting the GoPro on my bike, this is my most used feature. GoPro’s time lapse is incredibly easy to use (compared to most mirrorless cameras anyway) and with the Labs firmware you can do really long timelapse shots, over 24 hours if you have a battery pack to help power it.

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Raise the Bitrate: By default the Hero 13 Black does not record at the highest bitrate. This is likely the reason your video looks mushy and not as clear and sharp as it should. Change that by going to the ProTune settings and pick “high” for the bitrate. If you want to go crazy you can use Labs to raise your bitrate all the way the 200 (the “high” setting in the stock firmware is 100). The caveat is that depending on your SD card, you may not be able to record that high. But every bit helps. The trade off is that cranking up the bitrate does chew through battery and can also lead to overheating, so if you’re shooting in very warm conditions, you might want to dial this down. Some footage is better than no footage because you overheated and the camera shut off.

Learn Manual Exposure: The Hero 13 Black gives you full control over exposure, so take advantage of it. Play with the exposure compensation especially (called EV Comp in the settings). Try dialing it down to -1 for midday shots. Also play with max ISO. The lower you can keep this, the better your footage will look, though because the GoPro kinda sucks in low light, there are some limits here.

Improve Sound with the Media Mod: It bears repeating, but the Media Mod is the best way to get good sound out of the GoPro without investing in Bluetooth mics (which is impractical in many mounting scenarios anyway). The only time the media mod leaves my GoPro is when I’m in the water (sadly, the Hero with the media mod installed is not at all waterproof).

Is Now a Good Time to Buy?

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Earlier this week, GoPro announced its new Mission 1 cameras, which offer cinema-ready features in an action camera form. The Mission 1 cameras have a new image processor, the GP3. The last time GoPro updated its processor was in 2021 with the release of the Hero 10 with used the GP2.

The GP3 is a 5-nanometer system on a chip (SoC), which matches what we saw in Insta360 and DJI’s action cameras released late last year. More interesting is the claim that the GP3 will have “more than 2X the pixel processing power,” which would be what you want to handle 8K (or higher) footage. The Hero 13 Black is limited to 5.3K video.

The Mission 1 cameras will have better low light performance, which GoPro has sucked at in the past, while retaining the small camera form factor. However, it’s worth noting here that GoPro has yet to mention the price and the Mission 1 and Mission 1 Pro aren’t available for preorder until May 21. The Mission 1 Pro ILS, along with some of the bundles, will not arrive until later this year (GoPro says Q3).

If you want a GoPro for the start of the summer, the Hero 13 Black is still fine. Otherwise, I will update this guide once I’ve tested one, or all, of the Mission cameras.

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GoPro’s New MISSION 1 Line of Cinema Cameras Boast 8K Recording and Swappable Lens System

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GoPro Mission 1 Cinema Camera
GoPro unveiled its MISSION 1 series today, a trio of compact cinema cameras designed to tackle both extreme action and demanding film work in a single robust chassis. The lineup includes the regular MISSION 1, MISSION 1 PRO, and MISSION 1 PRO ILS, all of which share the same cutting-edge 50-megapixel one-inch sensor, as well as a new GP3 CPU that pushes resolution, performance, and battery life further than anything GoPro has done before.



Each of the three models uses the same core components to give excellent low-light performance and up to 14 stops of dynamic range right out of the box. Individual pixels measure 1.6 micrometers at maximum resolution and combine to generate effective pixels of 3.2 micrometers while shooting 4K film, capturing substantially more light than rival action cameras’ small sensors. The GP3 chip handles the heavy lifting with power efficiency, preventing the cameras from overheating even while filming long, high-resolution clips, and allowing them to function for hours on a single battery charge.

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The video options are quite impressive, especially since the MISSION 1 PRO and MISSION 1 PRO ILS can record 8K at 60 frames per second in the regular 16:9 aspect, 4K at 240 frames per second, and 1080p at 960 frames per second for silky-smooth slow-motion views. Both models feature open-gate 4:3 recording at 8K30 and 4K120 resolutions, providing filmmakers greater options when cropping later. The MISSION 1 base model steps things back a bit to 8K at 30 frames per second, 4K at 120 frames per second, and 1080p at 240 frames per second, but retains the 4K120 open-gate option. Every model can shoot 50-megapixel RAW photographs at up to 60 frames per second in bursts, and all can capture 10-bit color in either a GP-Log2 profile for grading or HLG HDR for extremely bright highlights.

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Battery life has just become a whole lot better, with the upgraded Enduro 2 cell easily lasting over 5 hours at 1080p30 and more than three hours at 4k30 on any of the models – and charging faster than previous generations. Even at the highest settings, such as 8K60 on the PRO models, the cameras will gladly run for more than an hour as long as there is enough airflow due to the better thermal design. Storage remains simple with a microSD card, and the bodies are still waterproof down to a generous 20 meters without the need for an additional case.


The physical changes make daily use easier, since each camera now has a larger OLED screen on the rear and a front display for quick checks. The buttons are higher up, making them easier to press with gloves on, and the overall construction feels sturdy enough to survive rigorous use. Stabilization is implemented via the popular HyperSmooth method, which has been tuned to work well with larger sensor data sets. Audio has also advanced significantly, with four microphones on board capable of recording crisp 32-bit float sound, wind suppression, and compatibility for wireless mics or USB-C connected choices.

GoPro Mission 1 Cinema Camera
The Mission 1 Pro ILS includes a Micro Four Thirds lens mount, allowing you to use any prime lens while still benefiting from the camera’s full-fat HyperSmooth stabilisation. This gives up a world of possibilities for telephoto shooting, macro work, and custom glass, all without sacrificing the compact size or sturdy build quality that we’ve come to expect from GoPro. Meanwhile, the other two models include a fixed wide-angle lens with a 159-degree field of view and a retractable hood to reduce glare.

GoPro Mission 1 Cinema Camera
GoPro Mission 1 Cinema Camera
GoPro Mission 1 Cinema Camera
Mounting-wise, GoPro sticks with what we know and love, with built-in fingers and a magnetic latch that fits perfectly into their usual range of grips, cages, and housings. If you want to get a little more fancy, there’s a new point-and-shoot grip that includes cold-shoe mounts and a standard thread for easy setup. If you need even more flexibility, the extra media mods provide more input options.

GoPro Mission 1 Cinema Camera
GoPro plans to launch pre-orders for the Mission 1 and Mission 1 Pro on May 21, with the first units entering stores on May 28. The Mission 1 Pro ILS will be released later in the third quarter, but don’t worry, we’ll know precisely how much it will cost once the specifics are finalized. For the time being, the company is pitching the entire line as a more inexpensive option to get your hands on some significant tiny cinema equipment.
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