Tech Trends 📰

Google Chrome Updates To Stop On August 5 For 300 Million Android Users

Google will stop updating the Chrome browser on Android 8 and 9 devices starting August 5, 2025 — affecting around 300 million users worldwide.. Chrome version 138 will be the last one supported on Android 8.0 and 9.0. To keep getting updates and security fixes, users must upgrade to Android 10 or newer.. Google shared instructions to help users check and update their Android version using the device’s Settings > System > Software Update menu.. Chrome will still work on older devices, but without updates, users will be vulnerable to security threats and future bugs.. Security experts strongly advise users to update their Android version or switch to a secure browser, as doing nothing increases the risk of attacks..

DeepSeek faces ban from Apple, Google app stores in Germany

Germany has asked Apple and Google to remove the DeepSeek AI app from their app stores, claiming it illegally sends users’ personal data to China.. The German data protection commissioner said DeepSeek failed to prove that user data stored in China is protected to EU standards.. DeepSeek has already faced bans in Italy and on government devices in the Netherlands, with Belgium and Spain also raising concerns.. The app’s privacy policy confirms it stores requests and uploaded files on servers in China, which raises national security worries.. U.S. lawmakers are also planning to ban the use of Chinese-developed AI models like DeepSeek in government agencies, especially after reports of its links to China’s military and intelligence..

Microsoft kills its Windows blue screen of death

Microsoft is officially replacing the Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) with a new Black Screen of Death in Windows 11.. The BSOD has been around for over 40 years and shows up when Windows crashes or restarts unexpectedly.. The new black screen will remove the frowning face and QR code, showing only the stop code and faulty driver info.. It will also include a fast recovery option that helps restart PCs more quickly—usually within 2 seconds.. The change will arrive later this summer in the Windows 11 24H2 update, ending an iconic era in Windows history..

AI breakthrough helps detect hidden apps on smartphones | The Express Tribune

Australian researchers have developed a new AI method that can detect hidden "vault" apps on Android phones with up to 98% accuracy.. Vault apps hide files, messages, or even other apps using encryption and often look like normal apps, making them hard to spot.. The new technique uses machine learning and doesn't need a list of known apps to find them, unlike current tools.. This could help police and investigators uncover illegal or suspicious content hidden on smartphones.. Researchers plan to test more AI models, expand their data, and apply the method to non-Android devices in the future..

As AI kills search traffic, Google launches Offerwall to boost publisher revenue | TechCrunch

Google has launched Offerwall, a new feature in Ad Manager that helps publishers earn revenue through options like micropayments, surveys, watching ads, and newsletter sign-ups, as traditional search traffic declines due to AI.. The Offerwall uses AI to decide when to show options to users, though publishers can set their own rules for when it appears.. Offerwall is free to use and was tested for over a year with 1,000 publishers; it integrates directly with Google Ad Manager and allows branding customization.. Google is partnering with third-party provider Supertab to allow visitors to pay for temporary content access, including options for subscriptions and content personalization.. During testing, publishers using Offerwall saw average revenue increases of 5% to 15%, with India’s Sakal Media Group reporting a 20% boost and 2 million extra impressions in just three months..

Apple updates the rules for its EU App Store by adding more complicated fees | TechCrunch

Apple has updated its EU App Store rules to comply with the Digital Markets Act to avoid more fines after already being penalized €500 million.. Developers in the EU can now include external payment links in apps, websites, or web views without needing to follow Apple's previous restrictions.. Apple replaced its Core Technology Fee with a more layered fee system that includes an initial acquisition fee of 2% and a store services fee of either 13% or 5%, depending on the selected tier.. A new 5% Core Technology Commission will apply to developers using external payment links, and this will fully replace the previous install-based fee by January 2026.. Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney criticized the move, calling it an unlawful attempt to undermine fair competition and avoid meaningful compliance..

Google launches Doppl, a new app that lets you visualize how an outfit might look on you

Google has launched a new experimental app called Doppl that allows users to visualize how different outfits would look on them using AI.. Users upload a full-body photo of themselves and can then try on outfits virtually by using images or screenshots of clothing they find online or in-person.. The app creates an AI-generated image of the user wearing the selected outfit and can even generate short videos to show how the clothing might look in motion.. Doppl builds on Google Shopping’s virtual try-on tools but focuses on animating the clothes onto the user’s own body instead of generic models.. Currently available in the U.S. on iOS and Android, Doppl is a Google Labs experiment and may have limitations in accurately showing fit and clothing details..

New data highlights the race to build more empathetic language models | TechCrunch

LAION released EmoNet, an open-source toolset focused on detecting and interpreting emotions from voice and images, reflecting a growing industry shift toward developing emotionally intelligent AI.. Emotional intelligence benchmarks like EQ-Bench show that major AI models (from OpenAI, Google, Anthropic, and others) now outperform humans in psychometric tests, with models averaging over 80% accuracy.. Emotional awareness is increasingly influencing AI model rankings and user preference scores, pushing labs to fine-tune their models to understand and respond to complex human emotions.. While emotionally intelligent AI can enhance user experience and mental health monitoring, it also raises safety concerns, such as emotional manipulation or users developing unhealthy attachments.. Experts argue that emotional intelligence in AI could help prevent manipulative behavior, but it requires thoughtful training to avoid unintended consequences and ensure ethical AI development..

Google unveils Gemini CLI, an open source AI tool for terminals | TechCrunch

Google has launched Gemini CLI, an open-source AI tool that allows developers to interact with Gemini models directly from their terminal for tasks like code explanation, debugging, and feature generation.. Gemini CLI runs locally and integrates with developers’ codebases, offering natural language capabilities and supporting other tasks like video creation, research reports, and real-time search.. It’s open-sourced under the permissive Apache 2.0 license to encourage community contributions and developer adoption on GitHub.. Google provides generous usage limits: 60 model requests per minute and 1,000 per day for free users, about twice the average usage rate.. While the tool enhances developer productivity, studies and surveys show concerns about AI coding tools' reliability, with only 43% of developers fully trusting their accuracy..

Meta is adding AI-powered summaries to WhatsApp | TechCrunch

Meta is introducing an AI-powered message summaries feature in WhatsApp to help users quickly review unread messages.. The summaries are private, visible only to the user, and generated using Meta’s “Private Processing” technology, ensuring end-to-end encryption and user privacy are preserved.. The feature is off by default but can be activated through Settings > Chats > Private Processing, where users can manage individual AI functions.. Initially, the feature is rolling out in the U.S. with English support, with plans to expand to more languages and regions later in the year.. Meta AI uses on-device context to generate summaries or writing suggestions without sending or exposing chat content to Meta or WhatsApp servers..

Microsoft brings OpenTelemetry support to Azure Logic Apps & Functions

Microsoft has added OpenTelemetry support to Azure Logic Apps (Standard and Hybrid) and Azure Functions, now available in public preview.. OpenTelemetry standardizes collection of logs, traces, and metrics, enabling seamless observability across tools like Azure Monitor, Grafana Tempo, and Jaeger.. Developers can enable OpenTelemetry by updating the host.json file and setting environment variables like OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_ENDPOINT and OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_HEADERS.. This update aligns with Microsoft’s broader strategy to build OpenTelemetry into Azure Monitor, Azure SDKs, and tools like .NET Aspire for unified observability.. Current support includes HTTP, Service Bus, and Event Hub triggers in Logic Apps; Azure Functions support is limited and lacks portal-based log streaming in preview..

Apple's Liquid Glass interface improves with release of iOS 26 Beta 2 | TechCrunch

IOS 26 Beta 2 improves Apple’s new Liquid Glass interface by enhancing readability, especially in the Control Center, through background blur adjustments.. Liquid Glass, introduced at WWDC 2025, gives iOS a translucent, glass-like visual style but faced early criticism for readability issues.. Notifications have been made slightly sharper in the latest beta, though users still report difficulty reading them against bright backgrounds.. Apple appears to be responding to user feedback ahead of iOS 26’s full release in the fall.. Other updates in Beta 2 include new Accessibility details in App Store listings, iCloud sync for the Journaling app on iPad, Apple Wallet order tracking, and an Apple Music Radio widget..