You might’ve heard of Grok, X’s answer to OpenAI’s ChatGPT. It’s a chatbot and, in that sense, behaves as you’d expect — answering questions about current events, pop culture and so on. But unlike other chatbots, Grok has “a bit of wit,” as X owner Elon Musk puts it, and “a rebellious streak.” Long story […]
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Illustration by Nick Barclay / The Verge
A new Illinois bill called the Journalism Preservation Act (SB 3591) that’s currently sitting in the state’s Senate would require online companies to pay local news publishers for work viewed by residents on their platforms.
This follows in the footsteps of national laws in Canada and Australia, as well as in California. Like in those cases, Meta says it will pull news from its platforms in the state if the bill becomes law.
Meta spokesperson Jamie Radice told The Verge via email that news isn’t the reason most people visit Facebook and Instagram, and if the law passes, “we will be forced to make the same business decision that we made in Canada to end the availability of news in Illinois.” We asked Google for comment, but it did not…
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
YouTube is constantly tinkering with its app design across different platforms and screen sizes, and today, the company shared the latest changes coming to its TV-optimized app. There’s a clear focus on making the viewing experience more interactive and giving greater prominence to chapters, comments, and video descriptions — without getting in the way of the video you’re trying to watch.
The new view shrinks the video down slightly to make space for the description, comments, and other elements around it. It’s not YouTube’s new default look, since many people will still prefer a full-screen layout. But you can easily click into the more interactive interface from the standard video player screen.
“What users will be able to see on…
Image: Block
Block, the Jack Dorsey-led payment company, has released its long-in-the-works Bitcoin hardware wallet — but you can’t use cryptocurrency to buy it. You can only purchase the $150 Bitkey wallet with your credit or debit card, a sign that crypto might not be as prevalent as its designers had anticipated.
Block first introduced a prototype of the wallet in 2022 before opening preorders last December. The self-custody Bitcoin wallet, which Dorsey nicknamed “rockey,” lets users store cryptocurrency outside of an exchange to protect the funds from a potential collapse.
Bitkey is paired with a mobile app and recovery tools in case users lose the wallet or their phone. There’s a fingerprint sensor on top of the device, a USB-C charging port,…
You can use our exclusive discount code on anything at Speck’s site. | Speck / Amazon
Whether you’re looking to protect a new phone or freshen up the look of an older one, Speck’s sitewide sale is a great place to start. Exclusively for readers of The Verge until March 18th, you can save 20 percent on anything you purchase from the case maker’s site. Just use code 20VERGE at checkout to receive the discount.
Speck makes cases for both Apple and Samsung devices, from iPhones and flagship Galaxy Android phones to tablets and even AirPods and MacBooks. You can choose from several fun colors with one of the opaque Presidio2 Grip iPhone 15 cases or show off your phone’s natural beauty with a Presidio Perfect-Clear case, for example. They have MagSafe magnets and antimicrobial protection and are down to $39.99 each ($10 off)…