Tesla’s robotaxi push is confusing the hell out of regulators

For a company that’s staking its future on AI and robotics, Tesla sure is having a tough time explaining its technology to government regulators. The company’s efforts to launch a robotaxi service in San Francisco, which isn’t actually a robotaxi since it features safety drivers in the front seat, is alarming state officials in charge of overseeing autonomous vehicle testing, according to a new report from Reuters. Emails between Tesla and state officials illustrate the growing sense that the company is trying to have its cake and eat it too. Despite Elon Musk’s public statements that…

Figma made its design tools more accessible to AI agents

Figma is launching some new updates that allow AI models to directly communicate with its app-building tool and access designs remotely. Figma’s Model Context Protocol (MCP) server — a bridge that enables AI models to tap directly into the code behind prototypes and designs created using Figma’s tools — has now been expanded to support the design platform’s AI prompt-to-app coding tool, Figma Make.“By using a Figma Make file via an MCP client, AI models can see the underlying code instead of a rendered prototype or image,” Figma’s technology chief, Kris Rasmussen, said in the…

Bang & Olufsen’s new earbuds will cost you more than the latest iPhone

Bang & Olufsen’s latest Beo Grace earbuds offer a flashy aluminum design and the brand’s “most advanced” active noise cancellation for a staggering $1,500. These pricey new buds pump sound through 12mm titanium drivers, featuring ANC powered by six microphones that adjust audio based on ambient noise and the shape of your ear.The Beo Grace earbuds support Dolby Atmos spatial audio and the transparency mode inside the equally expensive Beoplay H100 headphones, which aim to recreate the sound of your environment “free from hiss or distortion.” Other features include tactile controls…

YouTube wants you to go live

YouTube is the most powerful platform in entertainment, and as such it has outsize influence on what kind of entertainment people make and watch. When YouTube adds a mid-video ad break, videos get longer to accommodate it. When YouTube tells podcasters to make video, podcasters make video. And for its next act, it appears the company is prepared to turn all its creators into livestreamers. On this episode of The Vergecast, The Verge’s Mia Sato takes us through all the news from last week’s Made On YouTube event, and explains why live content is so important – and so hard to cultivate. YouTube’s…

GoPro Max 2 review: There’s a new 360 camera contender in town

In a break from tradition, GoPro hasn’t announced a new Hero Black camera this fall. Instead, this year’s flagship is the much-rumored Max 2 360 camera ($500). The Max 2 lands at a time when spherical video is having a mini renaissance, taking on Insta360’s X5 ($550) and DJI’s Osmo 360 ($550). Perhaps surprisingly, GoPro’s Max 2 is the most affordable of the three, suggesting that the company might be looking to gain ground on its rivals and, hopefully, make the creatively warped world of 360-degree video more accessible. With a mix of pro features like Timecode, GP-Log (with LUTs…

Google is turning Gemini into a gaming sidekick with a new Android overlay

Google might have found a way Gemini could be useful while you're playing games on your phone. The company is introducing a new software overlay today it calls the Play Games Sidekick that gives you access to Gemini Live while you play, alongside a host of other gaming-focused updates to Google Play that could make the app platform a better home for gamers.Sidekick exists as a small, moveable tab in games downloaded from the Play Store that you can slide over to show relevant info and tools for whatever game you're playing. By default, that's things like easy access to a screenshot…