Skip to main content

Today’s Storystream

Feed refreshed

WhatsApp’s iOS beta gets a new “Recently Online” section in contacts.

WABetaInfo reports the feature is live in beta version 24.9.10.71 of Meta’s encrypted messaging app. Recently online contacts will only show up for those who haven’t “disabled their last seen and online status,” according to the outlet.


A screenshot showing the new Recently Online section, which sits above the Alphabetical list of contacts.
The new “Recently Online” section.
Screenshot: WABetaInfo
So what’s next for Tesla’s Superchargers?

In the wake of more “absolutely hard core” layoffs at Tesla that were especially hard on the charging division, Elon Musk is saying the company still plans to grow its Supercharger network “at a slower pace.”

Compare that to the message he sent internally, as reported by The Information: “We will continue to build out some new Supercharger locations, where critical, and finish those currently under construction.”


Elon Musk tweet reading “Tesla still plans to grow the Supercharger network, just at a slower pace for new locations and more focus on 100% uptime and expansion of existing locations”
Screenshot: Elon Musk (X)
W
Twitter
OpenAI makes ChatGPT’s chat history feature available to everyone — no strings attached.

OpenAI says free and Plus subscribers can now use the feature without giving over their chats to train its models.

With chat history on, users can pick up previous chats where they left off, and the chatbot will reply as though they never stopped. The company also says users can start one-off chats that aren’t saved in the history.


What will AMD do for gamers next?

Because it sure didn’t paint a rosy picture of gaming in the Q1 2024 earnings call — “The demand has been quite weak,” said AMD CFO Jean Hu. AMD’s gaming biz was down 48 percent year over year on both semiconductor (PS5, Xbox, Steam Deck etc) and GPU sales, and it’s forecasting a “significant double digit percentage” decline for the rest of the year too.


Gaming is down, will continue to go down.
Gaming is down, will continue to go down.
Image: AMD

The Verge’s 2024 Mother’s Day gift guide

We found a collection of unique gift ideas that go beyond the flowers and chocolates that typically rule the day.

With $1B in sales, AMD’s MI300 AI chip is its fastest selling product ever.

AMD also says an AI PC refresh cycle will help PCs return to growth in 2024, and that 150 software vendors will be developing for AMD AI PCs by year’s end. The company’s top priority is ramping AI data center GPUs, though, which are “tight on supply.” New AI chips are coming “later this year into 2025,” too.


AMD’s Q1 2024 earnings summary.
AMD’s Q1 2024 earnings summary.
Image: AMD
E
External Link
Texas can continue age-gating porn sites, Supreme Court rules.

Earlier this month, the adult entertainment group Free Speech Coalition filed an emergency appeal to overturn the online age verification law, but the Supreme Court has rejected the request. The group said the law violates free speech rights, as it forces users to upload a photo of their government ID to access porn sites.


N
Twitter
I love you.

Mega Bass is long gone. Extra Bass is over. ULT POWER SOUND is here.


G
External Link
Columbia suspends Palestinian student who is on a student visa.

Mahmoud Khalil, one of the students negotiating with the university over the encampment, told The City administrators had previously assured him he wouldn’t be disciplined.

I quoted Khalil in my article about the doxxings at Columbia:

I am here on a foreign visa. That’s why for the past six months, I’ve barely appeared on the media. ... I did not participate, fearing that I will be arrested and ultimately deported from this country.


R
External Link
Feds arrest “Bitcoin Jesus” Roger Ver and accuse him of evading nearly $50 million in taxes.

You can read the details of Ver’s alleged misconduct here, but, with this news arriving as Binance founder Changpeng Zhao was sentenced for failing to establish adequate anti-money laundering protections, I’m reminded of this line from Ver, quoted in 2014:

“Money laundering is not a crime,” Ver says. “It’s just because certain men with guns don’t like what other people are doing with their own money, so they decide it’s okay to lock those people in a cage.


China’s dream moon base has a NASA Space Shuttle.

The China National Space Administration released a video showing its concept for a future lunar base, which it says it will have set up by 2045, writes Space.

The China Global Television Network appears to have blurred out the Shuttle in the video on YouTube.


A screenshot of a moon base, with the US Space Shuttle lifting off in the background.
Good to see the Space Shuttle back at work.
Image: China National Space Administration

Binance founder’s sentencing hearing

Changpeng Zhao pleaded guilty to money laundering charges.

Can Rabbit’s R1 outsmart the smartphone assistants? Let’s find out!

The pilot episode of a thrilling and imaginary new game show.

E
External Link
Amazon’s Red One budget reportedly soared past $250 million.

Sources tell The Wrap that the high costs stemmed from Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s “chronic lateness,” along with inexperienced production execs:

“It should look like a $200 million-plus movie, but it doesn’t, because more than half goes to buyouts of the stars and the above the line,” the production insider said. “Amazon MGM have so many movies that nobody’s concentrating on what actually needs to get done. Given their volume, they can’t concentrate.”


C
Youtube
My Adventures with Superman is giving Clark Kent more muscle in season 2.

The first season of My Adventures with Superman left most of the superheroic heavy lifting to Clark Kent (Jack Quaid) as villains terrorized metropolis. Even more of Superman’s classic foes are making their way to the show in its second season (out May 25th.) But this time around, the Man of Steel is going to have a bit more Kryptonian muscle on his side.


Meta’s Quest headsets now let you view panoramic images in VR.

As part of its v65 release, Meta has announced that Quest 3, Quest Pro, and Quest 2 owners with iOS 17 can now upload panoramic images to the Quest mobile app and view them in VR. It’s also expanding the ability to upload and view spatial videos to all iPhone users with iOS 17.


Image: Meta

The legal challenges that lie ahead for TikTok — in both the US and China

Having lost its fight in Congress, TikTok faces a tough battle in US courts and with China’s own export controls.

Get a load of the horsehead on this nebula.

Scientists using the James Webb Space Telescope recently produced the “sharpest infrared images to date” of the Horsehead Nebula, according to the European Space Agency.

As BBC Science Focus explains, images like this are made up of multiple composites taken at different infrared wavelengths, then shifted to the visible spectrum and combined.


A color-shifted image of a portion of the Horsehead Nebula. The dust clouds are blue and brown, a reddish glow follows their contour, and stars and galaxies sit in the background.
A small portion of the Horsehead Nebula.
Photo: ESA/Webb, NASA, CSA, K. Misselt
E
Twitter
Twitch’s scrollable discovery feed has arrived.

The TikTok-style discovery feed lets you swipe through livestreams and clips on Twitch’s mobile app. If you land on a livestream you like, you can tap into the stream to start tuning in.


“This wasn’t a mistake, it wasn’t a regulatory oops,” says Kevin Mosley, the prosecutor.

As a result of asking forgiveness, not permission, Changpeng Zhao made himself a billionaire and celebrity, Mosley says.


7

Verge Score

Jeep sets a reveal date for its all-electric Wagoneer S.

The battery-powered mid-sized SUV will be officially unveiled at an event in New York City on May 30th. It’s a curious move for the off-road focused brand — NYC doesn’t exactly scream “rear locking differentials” — but Jeep says it will show off new features like “all-terrain management, advanced Jeep brand-focused technology and impressive performance credentials.”

I suppose Manhattan’s many prodigious potholes could count as going off-road.


Light-up LED grilles are so hot right now.
Light-up LED grilles are so hot right now.
Image: Jeep
W
External Link
What new features is Apple considering for Safari?

According to AppleInsider, it’s testing Safari updates like “Intelligent Search,” which would offer on-device AI-powered webpage summaries and a built-in “Web Eraser” feature that lets you selectively — and persistently — block content on websites.

AppleInsider’s story, which cites unnamed sources, seems at least plausible, given Apple is widely expected to debut a smattering of AI features at WWDC in June.