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I nearly gave up on wearing my Galaxy Watch altogether after a stretch of missed texts and silent calendar alerts. The culprit turned out to be a setting I'd flipped on to squeeze out more battery life.

Apple has a new flagship smartwatch. The tech giant announced the Apple Watch Series 12 during its Sept. 9 "Surprise and Shine" iPhone event, along with the new Apple Watch Ultra 4, AirPods 5, iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max, and the first-ever foldable iPhone Duo.

In a press release, Apple’s Vice President of Worldwide iPhone Product Marketing Kaiann Drance called the Series 12 "the most advanced health and fitness companion we’ve ever created." You might not know that at a glance because it looks the same as last year's Series 11. To find out what's actually new about the Series 12, you have to peek inside its case.

Here's a full breakdown of the main differences between the Apple Watch Series 12 and Series 11, including one notable upgrade that Apple didn't mention in its keynote presentation. (Spoiler: it has something to do with memory.)

Apple Watch Series 12 vs. Series 11: Pricing The Series 12 has the same $399 base price as the Series 11 (pictured here). Credit: Stan Schroeder / Mashable

Now available for preorder, the Series 12 starts at $399 with a 42mm aluminum case — the same price as the base Series 11. However, the 46mm Series 12 starts at $449, which is a $20 bump from the previous generation. There's now a $50 difference separating the two sizes, no matter the case material.

The 42mm and 46mm titanium variants of the Series 12 start at $699 and $749, respectively, just like their Series 11 counterparts.

SEE ALSO: How to preorder the new Apple Watches, including the Series 12 and Ultra 4

The Series 12 comes in a third "new" ceramic variant that starts at $899 for the 42mm size and $949 for the 46mm model. (The Series 11 wasn't available with a ceramic case, but the much older Series 2, 3, and 5 all came in that scratch-resistant material.)

Apple Watch Series 12 (GPS, 42mm $399 at Amazon
  Pre-order Here at Amazon Pre-order Here at Best Buy Pre-order Here at Walmart Apple Watch Series 12 (GPS, 46mm) $449 at Amazon
  Pre-order Here at Amazon Pre-order Here at Best Buy Pre-order Here at Walmart Apple Watch Series 12 vs. Series 11: Design

The Series 12 has the same external design as the Series 11 — and the Series 10, for that matter. Apple hasn't changed the look of its flagship wearable since that 2024 release, when it got a thinner, lighter case and a more rounded display. (The rumor mill says a proper redesign is coming next year.) Additionally, it's still IP6X dust-resistant and water-resistant for up to 50 meters.

That said, the aluminum Series 12 variants got one small tweak. Their Ceramic Shield 2 glass is more durable than the Ion-X glass on their Series 11 counterparts. Apple said it's "60 percent tougher," to be exact.

Apple Watch Series 12 vs. Series 11: Display This is a picture of the Apple Watch Series 11, but it's also kind of a picture of the Series 12. They're virtually identical. Credit: Apple

Both Apple Watches have the same always-on, wide-angle OLED display with up to 2,000 nits of brightness. That's very, very bright.

Apple Watch Series 12 vs. Series 11: Colors The Apple Watch Series 12 comes in eight different case material/color combinations. Credit: Stan Schroeder / Mashable

The Series 12's case comes in the following case colors:

• Aluminum: Dark bronze, light gold, black, space gray

• Titanium: Radiant gold and natural

• Ceramic: Pearl white and night blue

The Series 11's case came in fewer colorways:

• Aluminum: Rose gold, silver, space gray, and jet black

• Titanium: Natural, gold, and slate

Apple introduced a bunch of new band colors and materials for the Series 12 that would also fit the Series 11, if you want to freshen up one you already own. You can buy them separately starting at $49.

Apple Watch Series 12 vs. Series 11: Specs The Series 12's S11 chip has more muscle than the Series 11's S10 chip. Credit: Apple

The Series 11 ran on the S10 chip, while the Series 12 is powered by the newer S11 chip — "Apple’s most powerful wearable chip," the company said. It enables several new features that I'll elaborate on shortly.

Notably, MacRumors reports that the Series 12 has twice as much memory as the Series 11 (4GB versus 2GB). Apple didn't mention that during its iPhone event this week, but the company's Xcode 27 developer tool reportedly shows evidence of it, the tech site said. If true, the Series 12's mostly unchanged prices are quite the feat: RAM costs have skyrocketed in the past year. (That's the reason why Apple raised its MacBook and iPad prices this summer, and probably its logic behind recent iPhone price hikes, too.)

The Series 12 maintains the same storage capacity as the Series 11: 64GB.

Apple Watch Series 12 vs. Series 11: Cellular connectivity

Like the Series 11, the Series 12 is available with 5G cellular connectivity. It's still a $100 upgrade on the aluminum variants and a standard feature on the titanium (and now ceramic) versions.

Apple Watch Series 12 vs. Series 11: Battery life

The Series 12 and 11 are both rated for up to 24 hours of battery life per charge, which you can extend to 38 hours by putting them in Low Power Mode. However, the Series 12's charging speed got a boost. A quick 15-minute power-up provides up to 12 hours of normal usage, up from eight hours in the Series 11.

Apple Watch Series 12 vs. Series 11: Sensors The Series 12's Health Sensing System is only available on one other Apple Watch, that being the new Ultra 4. Credit: Apple

Here's where things start to get more interesting. The Series 12 has a new Health Sensing System with upgraded optical and electrical sensors that measure the user's heart rate continuously and more accurately. You can see the glowing green lights of the optical sensor on the underside of its case.

Apple said this system measures heart rate every five seconds all day long. It also captures heart rate variability (HRV) data, a stress and recovery metric, up to 24 times more often.

Apple Watch Series 12 vs. Series 11: Features Should you skip leg day or power through? Your Series 12 can tell you. Credit: Apple

The Series 12 and 11 both run on watchOS and share the same core health, wellness, and safety features, including Sleep Score, Hypertension and Sleep Apnea Notifications, Cycle Tracking, Fall and Crash Detection, Emergency SOS, and the AI-powered Workout Buddy. They'll also both support Apple Intelligence and Siri AI, which arrives with the release of watchOS 27 on Sept. 14.

However, the Series 12 brings a few exclusive new features to the table courtesy of its upgraded chip and sensors:

• Readiness, a feature that tells the user how prepared they are (or not) for future fitness activities based on their recent workouts, vitals, and sleep patterns

• Audio Intelligence tools that use its built-in microphone, including Sound Recognition alerts, Live Rewind conversation transcriptions, and Siri Recap conversation summaries

• More accurate step tracking powered by a revamped pedometer model, including a Steps complication (finally!)

Do these small hardware tweaks and new features make the Series 12 worth the upgrade? Stay tuned for Mashable's full review to find out — we just got our hands on a review unit for testing. In the meantime, you can revisit our take on the Series 11.

Top iPhone 18 pre-order deals

• AT&T: Get the iPhone 18 Pro for free with qualifying trade-ins of iPhone 14 or later

• T-Mobile: Get the iPhone 18 Pro for free when you switch or trade-in an eligible phone on an Experience Beyond plan

• Total Wireless: Save $600 on iPhone 18 Pro or Pro Max on the All Access plan

• Verizon: Get up to $1,200 off when you add a new line (with qualified trade-in) on eligible myPlan

• Visible: Buy the iPhone with Visible+ Pro and receive $480 through monthly credits

Apple just wrapped its biggest iPhone launch event in years. Today, on Sept. 9, the tech giant hosted its "Surprise and Shine" event, and Mashable will be reporting live from Apple Park all week. At the event, Apple finally unveiled the iPhone Duo, its first-ever foldable iPhone. The event also set the stage for the grand debut of Siri AI. Plus, new CEO John Ternus stepped into the spotlight for the first keynote of the post-Tim Cook era. It's an event that's been years in the making.

Thanks to months of leaks and rumors, we had a fairly good idea of what to expect from the Apple Event, where we learned about the new iPhone 18 Pro lineup, iOS 27, Siri AI, the AirPods 5, the Apple Watch Series 12, and more.

You can re-watch the keynote via the CNET Apple Event livestream. We'll also be sharing real-time updates on all of the day's news, behind-the-scenes videos, and product announcements in this live blog.

Want more tech news delivered to your inbox daily or sent straight to your device? Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories newsletter or get Mashable push alerts today, and see what our readers guessed would happen at today's Apple event in our Big Guessing Game.

Apple's "Surprise and Shine" event on Wednesday brought the announcement of a new iPhone lineup as expected, plus the first-ever foldable iPhone, but true to the name of the event, Apple had another release ready to go: the AirPods 5.

Apple AirPods 5 $129 at Amazon
  Pre-order Here at Amazon Pre-order Here at Apple.com Pre-order Here at Walmart Apple AirPods 5 with Wireless Charging $149 at Amazon
  Pre-order Here at Amazon Pre-order Here at Walmart Pre-order Here at Target

The new earbuds will officially be available on Friday, Sept. 18, but preorders are live as of Sept. 9 at Amazon, Best Buy, Apple, and beyond. The earbuds are available in two models: the AirPods 5 and AirPods 5 with Wireless Charging Case. Both feature active noise cancellation (a deviation from the AirPods 4 and AirPods 4 with ANC), and lower price points than the AirPods 4 at $129 and $149, respectively.

What's new with the AirPods 5

The AirPods 5 come with several upgrades, including:

• 50 percent more active noise cancellation power than the AirPods 4 with ANC

• Lower price points, with the AirPods 5 starting at $129 (the same price as the non-ANC AirPods 4) and the AirPods 5 with Wireless Charging Case starting at $149 ($30 less than the AirPods 4 with ANC)

• New multiport acoustic architecture for improved sound quality

• Battery life of up to five hours with ANC and an on-ear volume stem control on the more expensive AirPods 5

What's the difference between the two AirPods 5 models?

Pricing:

• AirPods 5 — $129

• AirPods 5 with Wireless Charging Case — $149

Both pairs of earbuds come with a new acoustic architecture, better noise cancellation than the AirPods 4, and an improved transparency mode. The AirPods 5 with Wireless Charging Case also offer one more hour of battery life with ANC over the previous generation (for a total of five hours), on-ear volume controls, and, of course, wireless charging with the case.

Though not new features over the previous generation, both of these earbuds also come with live translation features and Conversation Awareness (which automatically adjusts the volume of your audio for easy awareness).

In comparison, the AirPods 4 retail for $129 and $179 for models with and without noise cancellation, meaning the AirPods 5 have notably reduced pricing — a trend that isn't common in the broader tech world, or even within Apple's event.

AirPods 5 vs. AirPods Pro 3

The AirPods Pro 3 remain Apple's most premium pair of earbuds, priced at $249. The in-ear design, compared to Apple's open-ear design, also means that the Pro 3 will have more effective ANC and more robust sound quality. That said, the new multiport acoustic architecture on the AirPods 5 was inspired by the design of the AirPods Pro 3.

SEE ALSO: AirPods Pro 3 review: Without a doubt, one of the best products of the year

While both earbuds offer Live Translation, the Pro 3 also have a built-in heart rate monitor which can connect to Apple's Fitness app.

Follow our Apple event live blog to catch up on the latest news and announcements from the "Surprise and Shine" keynote, with live updates from Apple Park.

Putting sensors all over the home and connecting them to Home Assistant is fun, I know, but it isn't for everyone — not yet. Thankfully, there are smart home upgrades that don't require any apps. I may have replaced every light switch in my home with a smart one, but my favorite smart home upgrade doesn't connect to my Homey Pro at all, and it's an improvement my entire family likes as much as I do.

Television’s highest honors will be awarded to several shows at the 2026 Primetime Emmys. HBO led the field with 122 total nominations, including nominations at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards, followed by Netflix (111) and Apple TV (89). These three services will be searching for Emmy glory in several of the major categories, including drama series, comedy series, and limited or anthology series.

Two USB-C cables can look identical, cost wildly different amounts, and behave nothing alike. The reason sits inside the connector housing: a chip that talks to your devices before any power moves. It's genuinely useful engineering. It's also a convenient place to hide something nasty.

TL;DR: Microsoft Office 2024 Professional Plus is available as a one-time $49.97 lifetime license for one Windows PC (reg. $249.99) — no monthly or annual payments involved.

Opens in a new window Credit: Microsoft Microsoft Office 2024 Professional Plus for Windows: Lifetime License $49.97
$249.99 Save $200.02   Get Deal

Not every piece of software needs a subscription. If you use the same Windows PC day in and day out and just want Word, Excel, and the rest of the suite installed and working, a one-time purchase covers that without asking you to keep paying for Office 365. Microsoft Office 2024 Professional Plus is $$49.97 (reg. $249.99) and gets you Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, and Access on one machine, for good.

The apps themselves cover the basics people actually rely on: spreadsheets, written reports, presentations, and email, built for long-term stability rather than the newest features first. It includes Dark Mode and runs well across a range of Windows hardware, old and new.

What you should know before you buy

Microsoft 365 Personal subscription currently costs $99.99 per year, so a lifetime license pays for itself in about 7 months and keeps paying off each year after that, with no renewal. Ideal for students working on the same laptop through a degree, freelancers dealing with Word or Excel-heavy work, or anyone who’s tired of subscription creep on their monthly statement.

It’s worth noting what you’re not getting: cloud-based extras like 1TB of OneDrive storage, and the license is tied to a single Windows PC rather than floating across devices tied to a Microsoft account. For anyone who mainly works from one desktop or laptop and just wants the core apps installed and stable, that’s a fairly small tradeoff for skipping the subscription altogether.

Get Microsoft Office 2024 Professional Plus as a one-time $49.97 purchase (reg. $249.99).

StackSocial prices subject to change.

Apple and Samsung's premium flagship competition for 2026 can finally kick off in earnest.

At its "Surprise and Shine" event, Apple unveiled the iPhone 18 Pro Max, several months after Samsung launched the Galaxy S26 Ultra. These are the two most expensive and feature-packed non-foldable phones that these companies make right now, so we figured we would put together a handy comparison for your sake.

We just started testing the iPhone 18 Pro Max, so there are some necessary limitations to our analysis, but here is our best estimation for how these two flagship smartphones stack up to each other.

SEE ALSO: The Xiaomi 18 Fold is an iPhone Duo lookalike with one huge advantage iPhone 18 Pro Max vs. Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra: Price

This one's easy: Both the iPhone 18 Pro Max and Galaxy S26 Ultra have the same starting price of $1,299. Technically, the S26 Ultra costs $1,299.99, but we aren't going to hold 99 cents against Samsung.

In either case, that's a lot of money. But at least there's no clear advantage in this regard between the two devices. You're going to spend a minor fortune to get either of these phones, unless you take advantage of carrier deals from T-Mobile or Verizon.

iPhone 18 Pro Max vs. Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra: Design and specs Samsung's phone is lighter and thinner. Credit: Joe Maldonado/Mashable

The Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra's specs are as follows:

• Display: 6.9-inch display with 3120x1440 resolution and 120Hz refresh rate

• Processor: Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5

• RAM: 12GB

• Storage: 256/512GB/1TB

• Battery: 5,000mAh

• Rear cameras: 200MP wide, 50MP ultra-wide, 50MP telephoto, 10MP periscope telephoto

• Front camera: 12MP

And the iPhone 18 Pro Max's go a little something like this:

• Display: 6.9-inch resolution with 2868x1320 resolution and 120Hz refresh rate

• Processor: A20 Pro

• RAM: 12GB

• Storage: 256/512GB/1TB/2TB

• Battery: 5,391 mAh

• Rear cameras: 48MP wide, 48MP ultra-wide, 48MP telephoto

• Front camera: 18MP

There are some differences to note here, of course. Samsung's phone has a higher-resolution display, but photography isn't all about the megapixels. Apple's A20 Pro processor and the new variable aperture should result in incredible photographs if you know what you're doing, and recently, Apple has also had an edge on video quality.

We'll get to battery and camera differences in a little bit, but as you can see by the numbers, there are some gaps to discuss there, as well. Apple also has a 2TB storage option that Samsung doesn't offer.

The Galaxy S26 Ultra's processor delivered virtually flawless performance in our testing earlier this year, whether handling everyday tasks or more advanced AI processing. We haven't gotten significant time with the Pro Max yet, but Apple's history in this regard is very solid. I expect the A20 Pro chip to be just as good or better than the Ultra's Snapdragon processor.

The camera bar hasn't changed at all. Credit: Stan Schroeder / Mashable

Let's talk design for a second, too. Samsung's phone is substantially lighter, as the S26 Ultra comes in at 214g versus the iPhone 18 Pro Max's weight of 249g. The iPhone is also almost a full millimeter thicker, at 8.75mm against Samsung's 7.9mm of depth. Their other physical dimensions are close enough to be negligible, but there's a real likelihood that the S26 Ultra is a more comfortable phone to hold in the hand for most people.

People also care a lot about colors. Samsung offers six colors for the S26 Ultra: Cobalt Violet, Sky Blue, Black, White, Silver Shadow, and Pink Gold. In the other corner, Apple's choices are more limited: Black, Silver, Glacier, and Burgundy. You may very well find one iPhone color you like way more than anything else in the Samsung lineup, as this is a matter of personal taste, but Samsung is objectively offering more choices here.

The Galaxy S26 Ultra has two things the iPhone 18 Pro doesn't Privacy Display blacks out a notification on the Galaxy S26 Ultra. Credit: Joe Maldonado / Mashable

The Galaxy S26 Ultra has one hardware trick you can't find on any other device: Privacy Display. This feature blacks out the screen for anyone trying to peek at it, letting you browse Instagram, or whatever else you find on the internet, in public. It can even black out portions of the screen, such as specific apps or notifications. This feature isn't perfect, but it works pretty well, and you won't find it on any other premium flagship right now.

Finally, don't forget that the S26 Ultra also comes with a built-in stylus. And yet it still weighs less than the iPhone.

iPhone 18 Pro Max vs. Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra: AI features Privacy Display is neat. Credit: Joe Maldonado/Mashable

Everyone is going all-in on AI for their software suites these days, so let's discuss that.

On Apple's side, the big Siri AI update for iOS still isn't out at the time of publication. It'll launch alongside the new iPhones, so we'll have more to say on that soon. It will turn Siri into a bona fide chatbot and AI app powered by Google Gemini, with complete access to your calendar, contacts, and emails. It can use all of that personal context to perform time-saving, context-sensitive actions for you, at least in theory.

There's also an enhanced Image Playground update to generate more realistic images, along with additional image-editing features, such as the ability to reframe photos. Conveniently, you'll also be able to use text prompts to generate Shortcuts. That could be nice, assuming it works.

But, let's be clear: Apple is definitely playing catch-up in the AI race, and Samsung has a multi-year head-start. Galaxy phones like the S26 Ultra have had sophisticated AI photo editing tools for awhile. Samsung's phone also comes with Gemini, Circle to Search is omnipresent, and the Now Nudge feature.

iPhone 18 Pro Max vs. Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra: Battery life

Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra had an even 5,000mAh battery cell inside of it, which gave it 31 hours of video playback time in our testing. That's pretty damn good! A battery like that will last you an entire day and then some if you're not using it for any funny business.

We haven't properly tested the iPhone 18 Pro Max battery yet, but it has a bigger cell and Apple rates it for an astounding "up to 45 hours" of video playback. We'll believe it when we see it, but if it's even close to true, the iPhone 18 Pro Max might have one of the best smartphone batteries in existence.

iPhone 18 Pro Max vs. Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra: Cameras This is how you test a camera. Credit: Timothy Werth/Mashable

The Galaxy S26 Ultra has a gigantic 200MP main shooter that, in our testing, produced detailed and vivid photographs. Its zoom capabilities are also impressive, as it doesn't compromise quality very much until you get way up in the 100x zoom range. Nighttime photography is also solid here, if a little too bright and unrealistic-looking at times.

Apple's alternative isn't as impressive in terms of raw megapixel numbers, with a trio of 48MP lenses powering its rear camera array. But iPhone Pro cameras are always some of the best in the business, and Apple has added variable aperture this year for even more versatility in difficult photography conditions. We're looking forward to testing all of that out. At any rate, it would be absolutely shocking if the iPhone 18 Pro Max cameras weren't at least very good. On top of that, we expect the iPhone 18 Pro Max to be a killer for videography as well.

The everlasting question: iOS or Android?

So, which phone should you buy? We'll reserve judgment until we've finished testing the new iPhone 18 Pro Max. However, the new iPhone doesn't seem to be a huge upgrade compared to the iPhone 17 Pro Max.

So, barring a huge surprise, we expect the phones to compare very favorably. The right phone for you will come down, as it usually does, whether you prefer Android or iOS.

Top smartphone deals of the week

Apple's event is always a great time to take advantage of discounts on previous-generation iPhones and Android devices.

• Get the iPhone 17 for $0 down at T-Mobile

• Samsung Galaxy S26 FE + $200 Amazon Gift Card — $799.99 $999.99 (save $200)

• Google Pixel 11 Pro — $1,019.70 $1,099 (save $79.30)

• Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra — $1,049.99 $1,299.99 (save $250)

• Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 — $1,649.99 $1,899.99 (save $250)

Conventional wisdom says that if something costs money, it's probably better than a free alternative. However, that logic completely falls apart when it comes to software — especially with free and open-source software (FOSS). The space has matured to the point where many free apps don't just compete with their paid counterparts — they beat them outright. Here are my top five picks for legendary open-source software that give their expensive paid alternatives a run for their money.

I've had problems with Android notifications arriving late for years. Usually, it's not a huge deal—if someone needs me urgently, they'll just call instead of texting me.

What do your favorite actors and creators have in common? They both have IMDB credits, despite the latter group likely having no film or TV credits.

On Sept. 9, the Amazon-owned entertainment database introduced "Digital Creator" as a professional category on IMDb and IMDbPro, covering streamers, vloggers, video essayists, gaming creators, and influencers. According to a Variety report, no existing film or television credits are required to establish a digital creator profile.

For creators whose résumés live mostly on YouTube, TikTok, or Instagram, this means they can now showcase their work in the same database used by actors, producers, and casting directors — without having a traditional entertainment role get them there. Creators have appeared on IMDb for years through eligible projects. MrBeast, for example, has credits that include Prime Video’s Beast Games. The difference now is that creators can establish a profile based on their online careers alone.

IMDb’s updated guidance says Premium members can select up to three professions for their pages. Someone who creates online videos, acts, and produces can represent those roles together.

So, what does that actually do for a creator?

IMDb’s pitch is about making professional connections. "IMDbPro empowers entertainment professionals with tools that help them get discovered, build their reputation, and advance their careers," CEO Nikki Santoro said in a statement.

"Digital creators and their representatives need that same infrastructure, and producers, casting directors, studio executives and brand partners need a reliable way to find them," she said.

For creators, that could mean making it easier for a potential collaborator to understand what they do more quickly. "We’re excited to add a category that bridges that gap and gives creators a discoverable industry profile," Santoro added.

Whether that visibility translates into jobs remains to be seen, but the move fits a much longer conversation about where creators belong in entertainment in the first place.

Digital creators and their representatives need that same infrastructure, and producers, casting directors, studio executives and brand partners need a reliable way to find them. - IMDb CEO Nikki Santoro in a statement

Creators making the jump to Hollywood is hardly new. Issa Rae built an audience with her YouTube series Awkward Black Girl before co-creating HBO’s Insecure. Quinta Brunson went from viral internet sketches to creating and starring in Abbott Elementary, while Bo Burnham started posting musical comedy on YouTube before writing and directing Eighth Grade.

"In just over a decade, content creators have gone from digital outliers to industry power brokers," Mashable’s Crystal Bell wrote in a May 2025 roundup of creators who moved into film and television. Their influence extends beyond landing roles: Creators are also writing, directing and developing their own productions.

That crossover has drawn skepticism, of course. Writing in The Ithacan, columnist Sydney Brumfield argued that influencers’ built-in audiences can give them an advantage over experienced performers. "However fiscally reasonable casting influencers is, it results in fewer, well-deserving actors from being discovered," she wrote.

SEE ALSO: 25 TikTok, YouTube and IG creators who made the leap to TV and film

The catch? You’ll have to pay. Selecting the category requires IMDbPro Premium. Standard individual membership costs $19.99 per month or $149.99 annually in the U.S., before applicable taxes. Opening the category to creators gives IMDb a whole new group of paying subscribers. (Very smart.)

Should you pay for an IMDbPro profile?

Not every creator needs it. Someone actively pursuing representation or production partnerships may have a clearer reason to use the profile. For a creator focused on sponsorships and direct relationships with brands, the value will really depend on whether those partners actually turn to IMDb to find talent.

Under "Digital Creator," users can choose from six sub-professions:

• Streamer

• Vlogger

• Video Essayist

• Video Creator

• Gaming Creator

• Influencer

As creators take on a bigger role in entertainment, it's clear the industry is listening, and trying to find new ways to bring them into the fold. IMDb’s new category is another step in that direction, recognizing careers built online and giving potential collaborators another way to find them. What comes next will determine its value.

One reason that Linux has struggled to gain desktop users is the perception that the Linux desktop is a mess. Apps look too different from each other, and command-line elitists rule the system. The way the Linux desktop is the way it is largely stems from Linux's predecessor, Unix, and some design choices made in the '60s, '70s, and '80s.

As we march toward fall, it's time to start thinking about tidying up the homelab and making it a bit safer and more secure. Today's projects include two programs that help keep an eye on your homelab for you, and one that makes your information way more accessible.

If humanity was to end at the hands of AI, as viral posts from former Anthropic employees allege, what would it look like?

Would the robots hack our nuclear arsenals and send them flying through the sky? Would the sophisticated algorithms design a whole new virus to unleash on the populace? Would it be as simple as slowly degrading our trust in our fellow man, until chaos reigns?

We don't really know, but a new safety report from Anthropic, which details several ways AI can already go haywire, is alarming enough.

SEE ALSO: Anthropic researcher quits, says AI 'could kill us all by the end of the decade' Individuals tried to use Anthropic AI to develop bioweapons

Anthropic's report — part of the company's ongoing transparency and monitoring efforts — is a sweeping survey of the last eight months of attempts by threat actors to use its generative AI chatbot Claude for "malicious" activities. Covering what the company calls "atypical" use cases, many of the examples implicate state-sponsored groups, spyware vendors, and government propagandists.

Anthropic categorized such activity into seven "harm areas": cyber operations, influence operations, surveillance, scams and fraud, biological misuse, conventional weapons development, and distillation. Anthropic did not include details on how long the activity had been occurring in most cases.

In the report, the company's Threat Intelligence team described five known case studies involving the potential use of Claude for biological weapons development.

The company alleges that researchers, including state-supported users, prompted Claude to write separate grant applications to experiment with the mosquito-born chikungunya virus and orthopoxvirus. The latter is a family of viruses that cause human illness, including smallpox.  

Anthropic said the users "circumvented controls" designed to prevent individuals in countries without access to Claude from using the product. The users also attempted to hide the purpose of their research, apparently in order to evade safeguards. 

Anthropic described the individuals in each case study as working scientists, but the company did not name them. 

"We do not assert that they intended harm, and identifying them or their labs could expose them to harm," the company wrote in its report. Anthropic said it banned the users' accounts upon discovering their activity and incorporated its findings into its ongoing safety work. 

Claude built software for armed drones, missiles, guns

Anthropic's bot has been harnessed to build and refine software used for weapons development, the report explained, including tech that enabled the design, construction, and testing of real-world munitions.

"Historically, this kind of work has been uncovered by governments, United Nations panels, and outside investigators, who piece it together from recovered hardware and public sources," the company explained.

One account, which Anthropic attributes to a Russia-based freelance agent working an operation titled "operation “DronDoc” or “Serafim," used Claude Code to engineer a "full-stack autonomous first-person-view (FPV) kamikaze drone swarm."

The company also claims a China-based account, potentially a military-industrial researcher, used Claude work tools to create electronic warfare modules intended to circumvent enemy radar and communications and suppress air defenses. The user's simulation included 12 targets located in Taiwan.

Claude used to monitor foreign dissidents and build mass surveillance systems

Anthropic described nine instances of Claude being used to "build, run, and otherwise facilitate" state-sponsored surveillance efforts in foreign countries (including China, Iran, and nations in west Africa) as well as for-hire surveillance networks.

In one case, Claude was used by an operation with suspected ties to the People's Republic of China to track, profile, and recruit politically-connected Uyghur populations — and journalists — with ties to the Syrian Army. Claude used bulk data from monitored WhatsApp and Telegram chats to profile individuals.

In another, at least 16 accounts associated with Iranian paramilitary and domestic security agencies were linked to surveillance and malicious browser extensions built by Claude, which were then used to harvest data from 6,388 Iranians. An "Iran-nexus threat actor" also used Claude to pinpoint U.S. naval targets.

Across the gamut of cases, generative AI was used to replace human surveillance operations, expedite the creation of target profiles using personal data, and facilitate the daily work of government monitors. The company noted that users are barred from using its AI systems for "non-consensual surveillance" and profiling under its current Usage Policy.

Claude helped automate cyber spying ops

Anthropic claims in the report that AI has allowed "threat actors" to automate their cyber operations. In the case studies shared by Anthropic, these individuals relied on multi-agent "frameworks" for reconnaissance and exploitation in an attempt to steal sensitive information. 

One actor, identified as GTG-20006 in the report, has become faster by using AI. Anthropic claims this individual attacked military intelligence targets in the Ukrainian and European governments, in addition to organizations and individuals connected to U.S. foreign policy. 

GTG-20006, whom Anthropic characterizes as a Russian espionage agent, used AI to conduct phishing, ClickFix, and domain name system (DNS) hijacking schemes. 

Anthropic also claims the user targeted military drone makers and manufacturers and infiltrated at least three hospitality vendors in order to target the devices of hotel guests who were Ukrainian government officials and drone manufacturers.

Anthropic's additional examples of AI-enabled cyber operations offered a look at campaigns conducted by both smaller criminal groups and state-sponsored organizations. 

"The diffusion of AI has leveled the playing field giving both classes of actors access to the same set of advanced capabilities," Anthropic said. 

Claude assisted disinformation campaigns ahead of national elections

Bad actors are trying to use AI agents like Claude to turbocharge mass disinformation campaigns, many timed to national elections, Anthropic's report explains. 

In the last year, the company pinpointed and disrupted at least nine disinformation efforts involving increasingly anonymized actors in Russia, China, Iran, Bangladesh, and Kenya. At least one operation, selling its disinformation services at large, spanned at least six continents. 

According to the report, actors used Claude to design influence operations as well as produce the erroneous content itself. For example, Claude was used to clone real accounts by activists, conceal state propaganda in "independent" news sources, and launch what one group called an international "cognitive warfare" program. In one case, an actor impersonated a Sudanese human rights organization and ghost-wrote testimony proposed for the UN Human Rights Council.

Anthropic tracks disinformation efforts by monitoring Claude prompts and then verifies them with open source data, the company explained. "Most of the content we discovered drew little or no authentic engagement, and in several cases we disrupted the operation before it could build an audience," the company wrote. "The widest authentic reach occurred where state media outlets were the distribution mechanism (including FM radio, satellite and shortwave radio, and global television)."

Scammers used Claude to run fake dating profiles

Anthropic's report has a warning of sorts for dating app users. The company said in April 2026 it detected a fraudulent network of 20 dating apps advertised as "fully human." 

Instead, the China-based app studio behind the network used Claude to power the majority of its personas and mixed in gig workers hired to pose as potential love interests. Those individuals also relied on another AI model to generate messages for responses. 

During a two-week period in April, Anthropic identified nearly 5,000 AI personas that chatted with at least 25,000 unique users. The company said it banned the accounts and organizations involved in the operation.

AI safety concerns prompt fervor over regulation

"We’re publishing this work because we believe we have a responsibility to disclose malicious misuse of our services. As models become increasingly capable, their risks will increase, unless AI developers and society’s defenders act to make them safer," wrote the company.

A wave of rogue AI activity across the industry has prompted an energetic charge toward regulation. Anthropic recently co-signed industry-leading AI oversight bills for the state of California.

One of the bills will establish a first-of-its-kind independent audit registry made up of vetted third-party evaluators. The second bill creates a framework for evaluating AI systems and companies in accordance with existing state law.

The bills were also backed by competitor OpenAI, with the company signaling its support for the legislation days before Governor Gavin Newsom signed them into law. Earlier this week, OpenAI announced it was exploring a new framework for alerting the public to AI agents on the loose.

UPDATE: Sep. 10, 2026, 1:16 p.m. This story was updated with additional findings from Anthropic's report, including Claude's role in dating profile scams and international disinformation campaigns.

If you care about protecting your privacy online, you've probably seen an ad for VPNs. You likely also know to seek out private messaging apps like Signal and Proton Mail. But there's another change you need to make in order to protect your phone's web traffic from prying eyes, and it's a relatively simple fix.

Google may not have any news to share about the missing Gemini 3.5 Pro (the next-gen AI model originally scheduled to be released in June), but the company does have a consolation prize for Windows users.

In a Thursday blog post, the company announced the launch of a Gemini app for Windows, a long-requested tool in the AI world. Redditors have been complaining about the lack of a Windows app and sharing workarounds for months, and now Google has answered the call.

Users working on a Windows laptop or PC will now be able to call up Gemini with a keyboard shortcut.

"Press Alt + Space on your PC at any time to open Gemini over your active work," the blog post states. "Whether you need a quick fact-check on a document or a few catchy title ideas for a presentation, you can get the help you need and jump right back into your workflow."

Google says users will be able to use the Gemini Windows app to run Gemini Spark, connect other Google apps such as Gmail and Drive, and create AI-generated images and videos.

How to download the Gemini Windows app

This one's easy. Just head to gemini.google/desktop and click "Download for Windows." You can follow the prompts and install the program like any other.

Google says the app will be available for all Windows 10 and 11 users, and will be updated with additional capabilities in the future.

What's the easiest and cheapest way to build your own budget homelab? Arguably, a used Windows 10 PC is a safe bet (most of the time). But the reality is that mini PCs are slowly taking over this segment, and it's true that they have a lot of attributes that make them easy to recommend for that type of job.

Netflix's most-watched list has been in a bit of a grim mood lately. The Whisper Man still sits at the top with its chilling serial killer vibes going, and don't even get me started on Death of the Pastor's Wife, which is still giving documentary fans the shivers and making them wonder about their neighbors.

Few events lure people away from Pornhub. The World Cup was one, and yesterday's Apple Event was another.

Apple fans typically close their Pornhub tabs at the start of these annual September product launches. Android users, however, don't seem to care. That was the case in 2025, and this year, Pornhub told Mashable that Android traffic remained close to average throughout the event.

But for Apple users, it's a different story. In fact, Pornhub saw the biggest decline in pageviews during an Apple Event in the past five years — and you can probably guess what for.

SEE ALSO: The iPhone Duo's opening animation is a 10/10 design flex for Apple

Two minutes before the event started, Pornhub pageviews on Apple devices were down 19.1 percent compared to an average day. Anticipation was high, as rumors of the foldable iPhone had mounted for weeks.

Credit: Screenshot: Pornhub

Apple did lose some people to porn as the new iPhone 18 Pro was revealed. It can't even fold! And even fewer people focused on the AirPods 5 and new Apple Watches. Traffic on non-Apple devices even went slightly above average (+3 percent) during this time. What, they don't they care about the new ceramic watch material!?

Credit: Screenshot: Pornhub

But, as you can imagine, what really got people away from the salaciousness of Pornhub was the announcement of the foldable iPhone Duo. On Apple devices, pageviews were nearly 22 percent lower than on an average day during the reveal, which the site confirmed with Mashable was the biggest drop in traffic during a September Apple event in the last five years.

Viewers on non-Apple devices weren't as enthralled, but pageviews were around five percent lower than average.

Credit: Screenshot: Pornhub

The distraction away from Pornhub was short-lived, though. By the event's end, pageviews on Apple devices were only around seven percent lower than average. Not even the Duo can hold off Pornhub fans for too long.

Credit: Screenshot: Pornhub

See the minute-by-minute breakdown of traffic on Pornhub's insights blog. And if you missed the Apple Event, here's everything that was announced.

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