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​With billions of users worldwide, Twitch is one of the world's most popular live streaming platforms, particularly beloved by gamers and creators. Launched in 2011, Twitch has evolved into a massive community where individuals share everything from gaming to general live broadcasts.

And the site's popularity is only highlighted through the follower counts, with the platform's most-followed channels boasting tens of millions, but who holds the top spot? Here are the 10 most-followed Twitch channels, according to Social Blade.

1. ibai – 19.76 million followers

Ibai Llanos is a prominent Spanish streamer and content creator. In June 2022, he set a Twitch record with a peak of over 3.3 million concurrent viewers during his "La Velada del Año II" boxing event. ​

2. Ninja – 19.19 million followers

Tyler "Ninja" Blevins is a well-known American gamer and streamer. He initially gained recognition through his exceptional skills in games like Halo 3 and later achieved immense popularity with Fortnite: Battle Royale.

3. KaiCenat – 18.59 million followers

Kai Cenant is an American streamer known for comedic content and his month-long November 2024 "Mafiathon " subathon.

4. auronplay – 16.86 million followers

Raúl Álvarez Genes, also known online as auronplay, is another Spanish streamer and YouTuber. His content focuses mostly on gaming streams and interactive content, amassing almost 17 million followers on the platform.

5. Rubius – 15.82 million followers

Rubius is a Spanish-Norwegian creator who joined Twitch in 2019 after immense success from his YouTube channel, elrubiusOMG. He has since amassed over 15 million followers for his gaming and interactive content.

6. jadoreshayne – 12.32 million followers

The jadoreshayne account has a whopping 12.24 million followers, however, it has minimal streaming activity, with no videos on the account.

7. TheGrefg – 12.21 million followers

Another Spanish content creator, TheGrefg is a popular content creator who primarily revolves around games like Fortnite and Minecraft, as well as interactive "Just Chatting" sessions. In January 2021, he set a Twitch record by attracting over 2 million viewers during the reveal of his personalized Fortnite skin.

8. xQc – 12.1 million followers

Félix Lengyel, better known as xQc, is a Canadian content creator and former professional esports player. His content includes a variety of games and "Just Chatting" sessions.

9. juansguarnizo – 11.55 million followers

Juan Sebastián Guarnizo, known as juansguarnizo, is a prominent Colombian content creator and streamer. Juan's content includes a variety of types, including "Just Chatting" sessions and gameplay streams.

10. Tfue – 11.3 million followers

Turner Ellis Tenney, known online as Tfue, is an American streamer and former professional esports player. Tfue gained popularity in the gaming community through his skills in titles like Destiny, Call of Duty, and, notably, Fortnite.

YouTube is the ultimate platform for vloggers, content creators, musicians, and anyone who loves to share their life through the art of video.

The most-followed channels on the platform have amassed huge subscriber counts, well into the millions, showing just how many of us enjoy sitting back and relaxing with a good YouTube video. From celebs to entertainment giants, influencers to creators, these channels dominate YouTube with viral videos, dedicated fan bases, and massive viewership.

SEE ALSO: YouTube channels to help keep your mind calm

But have you ever wondered who holds the acclaim of top spot for the most subscribed channel? Wonder no more, here are the 10 YouTube channels with the most subscribers, according to Social Blade.

1. Mr Beast - 415 million subscribers

MrBeast’s YouTube channel is known for its over-the-top challenges, massive cash giveaways, philanthropy, and jaw-dropping stunts, making it one of the platform’s biggest and most influential channels.

2. T-Series - 299 million subscribers

T-Series is India's largest Music Label & Movie Studio, and the YouTube channel features a vast collection of Bollywood music videos, movie trailers, and songs.

3. Cocomelon - Nursery Rhymes - 195 million subscribers

Cocomelon Nursery Rhymes' YouTube channel is a favorite among parents, featuring colorful, educational animations and catchy songs for young children. Engaging colors and fun storytelling aim to help toddlers learn letters, numbers, and life lessons.

4. YouTube Movies - 190 million subscribers

The YouTube Movies channel is the go-to spot for renting and streaming new movie releases, shorts and trailers. You can choose between renting, buying, or watching select titles for free with ads.

5. SET India - 185 million subscribers

SET India’s YouTube channel offers full episodes, clips, and promos from Sony Entertainment Television’s popular Indian shows. Featuring drama series, reality shows, crime thrillers, and comedy programs.

6. Vlad and Niki - 142 million subscribers

Vlad and Niki’s YouTube channel is a popular kids’ channel full of imaginative playtime adventures, toy reviews, and family-friendly challenges. The channel tells the stories of two brothers through educational content and exciting adventures.

7. Kids Diana Show - 135 million subscribers

Kids Diana Show’s YouTube channel features fun, colorful videos of young Diana playing imaginative games, reviewing toys, and other family-friendly adventures. This channel focuses on storytelling, games, and learning.

8. Like Nastya - 129 million subscribers

Like Nastya's YouTube channel is another family-friendly account that follows the exciting adventures of a young girl named Nastya. Videos include fun toy reviews, imaginative games, and educational content.

9. Stokes Twins - 128 million subscribers

The Stokes Twins' YouTube channel features a mix of pranks, challenges, comedic skits, and vlogs. Run by Alex and Alan Stokes, the pair have become known for their stunts and antics.

10. Music - 124 million subscribers

The Music YouTube channel is fairly self-explanatory in its content, but has surprisingly shared only posts and no videos. Content is not frequent and often features recent releases and promos of Shorts.

With billions of users worldwide, TikTok is one of the most popular social media platforms on the planet. Viral trends, trending sounds, and popular dances, there's no limit to what can kick off on TikTok.

We've been through a lot with TikTok, from lockdown dances to recent threats of a ban. But throughout all the ups and downs, some creators have managed to rack up millions of loyal followers. Check out our list of the top TikTok accounts with the most followers, according to Social Blade.

1. Khaby Lame – 161.7 million followers

TikTok's most followed account is none other than the king of the deadpan facial expression, Khaby Lame. His video content primarily involves duets and stitches to over-complicated life "hacks."

2. Charli D'Amelio – 156.5 million followers

Charli D’Amelio rose to TikTok fame during lockdown for her viral dance videos. She very quickly became one of the platform’s most-followed creators and is still holding strong today.

3. MrBeast – 119 million followers

Also one of the most subscribed YouTube accounts, MrBeast holds the number three position for TikTok. His content is full of crazy challenges and huge giveaways. His over-the-top generosity has amassed him millions of followers. He also recently went viral for offering to buy TikTok amid the recent ban in America.

4. Bella Poarch – 93.5 million followers

Bella Poarch skyrocketed to TikTok fame during the 2020 lockdown when her lip-sync video to M to the B became the platform’s most-liked video. Since then, she has remained popular on the app, even releasing her own single in 2021, Build A B****.

5. TikTok – 90.7 million followers

Taking the 5th spot on the most followed accounts is TikTok's own account. It posts celeb interviews, tips and tricks and updates from the CEO, Shou.

6. Addison Rae – 88.4 million followers

Addison Rae is another TikToker who blew up during the 2020 lockdown. Her viral dance videos made her one of the platform's biggest stars, a position she still holds strong today. She's now better known for her hit songs, releasing her debut single, Obsessed, in 2021.

7. Kimberly Loaiza – 83.6 million followers

Kimberly Loaiza is a popular Mexican influencer with tens of millions of followers across not just TikTok, but also YouTube and Instagram. Loaiza has also branched out into music, releasing multiple singles and touring.

8. Zach King – 82.1 million followers

Zach King's content is a must-watch if you love magic tricks, optical illusions and clever editing. One of his videos even became the most viewed. The video made it appear as if he was flying on a broomstick. It became the most-viewed TikTok video in 2019.

9. The Rock – 80.3 million followers

The Rock takes position eight for most followers on TikTok. Much like his famous YouTube account, he shares a lot of behind-the-scenes footage of his life, workouts, and even fitness tips for you to follow at home.

10. Will Smith – 79.5 million followers

Will Smith's TikTok is the perfect peek behind the scenes for fans to follow along with his life. He posts regularly, sharing day-to-day snippets of his life, memes, and generally hilarious content. He even participated in the recent "anxiety" dance trend, which is based on his Fresh Prince Of Bel Air moves.

SAVE $17.01: The Lego Star Wars Millennium Falcon set (75375) is now just $67.98 at Amazon, down from $84.99 — that’s 20% off and just 3 cents above its historic low.

Opens in a new window Credit: Lego Lego Star Wars Millennium Falcon (A New Hope 25th Anniversary) $67.98 at Amazon
$84.99 Save $17.01 Get Deal

For Lego collectors who’ve been waiting for the right price to bring the Millennium Falcon into orbit, this might be the bargain you’ve been waiting for.

As of Aug. 7, Amazon just dropped the price of the Lego Star Wars Millennium Falcon (from A New Hope) to $67.98. This is the special edition launched for the 25th anniversary of Star Wars Lego, marking a rare 20% discount on one of the most beloved ships in sci-fi history. According to price tracker camelcamelcamel, this price is just 3 cents shy of its all-time low — which is basically a hyperspace-level deal for Lego or Star Wars fans.

This 921-piece collector’s build feels like a tribute as well as a playset. Designed for adult builders and fans aged 18+, this mid-scale model of Han Solo’s famous ship is loaded with authentic detail, from the cockpit to the satellite dish and dual cannons. 

SEE ALSO: Our 13 favorite Lego sets, sourced from actual Lego fans

It even includes a buildable display stand, complete with a 25th anniversary Lego Star Wars brick, to show it off at a dynamic angle — like it’s blasting through space on a Kessel Run.

Part of Lego’s Starship Collection, this set is made for display, not play — though the building experience itself offers the kind of chill, immersive fun that many adult fans crave. Whether you're a lifelong collector, a new recruit to the universe of fancy brick models, or just looking for a standout piece for your shelf, this Falcon’s set to be the pinnacle centrepiece of your living room, bedroom, or home office space.

If you need to kit out your home with even more brick displays, check out our 13 favourite Lego sets, all of which have been confirmed by actual Lego fans. For Marvel lovers, the Lego version of Thanos’ Infinity Gauntlet has its own massive price drop too.

SAVE $19: As of Aug. 7, the Apple AirTag four pack is on sale for $79.98 at Amazon, down from the usual $99 — a 19% discount on Apple's compact Bluetooth trackers.

Opens in a new window Credit: Apple Apple AirTag (4 Pack) $79.98 at Amazon
$99 Save $19.02 Get Deal

If you’re tired of the daily “where’s my keys/wallet/backpack?” routine, Apple has a sleek solution that’s on sale. As of Aug. 7, you can grab a four pack of Apple AirTags for $79.99 on Amazon. That’s $19 off the regular $99 price and a solid investment for peace of mind.

Each AirTag pairs instantly with your iPhone or iPad thanks to Apple’s dead-simple one-tap setup. Once connected, your items show up in the Find My app alongside your other Apple gear. Whether you attach one to your keys, slide one in your luggage, or stick one in a pet's collar, the AirTag makes it ridiculously easy to track down your essentials.

SEE ALSO: Hurry! Apple AirPods 4 are back under $100 on Amazon.

For nearby items, the built-in speaker can play a sound to help you locate them. If it’s further away, Apple’s Find My network taps into hundreds of millions of Apple devices (all anonymously and securely) to help you track it down. And if you’ve got an iPhone with Ultra Wideband, the Precision Finding feature can guide you to your AirTag with real-time visual and haptic feedback. It’s basically like a game of Hot or Cold, but smarter.

These tags are also water and dust-resistant (IP67), feature a replaceable battery that lasts over a year, and can even be shared with up to five people, so family or roommates can help keep tabs on commonly used items.

SEE ALSO: The best Apple deals this week: MacBooks, AirPods, and more

Put one in your luggage, toss another in your gym bag, and maybe save one for your pet that likes to escape at 2 a.m.. Either way, $79.99 is a great price to stop losing your stuff — and your sanity.

If you’re looking for more upgrades, check out our guide to the best Apple deals of the week you can buy right now, or browse the best smartwatches for every wrist to round out your setup.

As 2025 dawned, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was promoting two developments he insisted would transform our lives. One, of course, was GPT-5 — a long-anticipated major upgrade to the Large Language Model (LLM) that powered ChatGPT's rise to tech world superstardom.

The other? AI Agents that don't just answer your queries like ChatGPT, but actually get stuff done for you. "We believe that, in 2025, we may see the first AI agents join the workforce and materially change the output of companies," Altman wrote back in January.

Well, we're eight months in, and Altman's prediction already needs a big old asterisk. Sure, companies are keen to adopt AI Agents, such as OpenAI's ChatGPT agent. In a May 2025 report, consultancy giant PWC found that half of all firms surveyed planned to implement some kind of AI Agent by the end of the year. Some 88% of executives want to increase their teams' AI budgets because of Agentic AI.

SEE ALSO: GPT-5 arrives imminently. Here's what the hype won't tell you.

But what about the actual AI Agent experience? With apologies to all those hopeful executives, the reviews are almost uniformly negative.

If "AI Agents" was a new high-tech James Bond movie, here's the kind of blurbs you'd see on Rotten Tomatoes: "glitchy ... inconsistent" (Wired); "came off like a clueless internet newbie" (Fast Company); "reality doesn't live up to the hype" (Fortune); "not matching up to the buzzwords" (Bloomberg), "the new vaporware ... overpromising is worse than ever" (Forbes).

Study finds OpenAI's entry failed nearly every time

A May 2025 Carnegie Mellon University study (PDF) found Google's Gemini Pro 2.5 failed at real-world office tasks 70% of the time. And that was the best-performing agent. OpenAI's entry, powered by GPT 4.o, failed more than 90% of the time.

GPT-5 is likely to improve on that number ... but that's not saying much. And not just because early reports say OpenAI struggled to fill GPT-5 with enough improvements to make it worthy of the release number.

Indeed, it's starting to look to researchers like this disappointment is baked in to the whole process of LLMs learning to do stuff for you. The problem, as this AI Agent engineer's analysis makes clear, is simple math: errors compound over time, so the more tasks an agent does, the worse they get. AI Agents who do multiple complex tasks are prone to hallucination, like all AI.

In the end some agents "panic" and can make "a catastrophic error in judgment," to quote an apology from a Replit AI Agent that literally deleted a customer's database after 9 days of working on a coding task. (Replit's CEO called the failure "unacceptable".)

Tellingly, that isn't the only AI-Agent-wipes-code story of 2025 — which explains why one enterprising startup is offering insurance on your AI Agent going haywire, and why Wal-Mart has had to bring in four "super Agents" in a bid to corral its AI Agents.

No wonder a recent Gartner paper predicted that 40% of all those AI Agents currently being initiated by companies will be canceled within 2 years. "Most Agentic AI projects," wrote senior analyst Anushree Verma, are "driven by hype and misapplied ... This can blind organizations to the real cost and complexity of deploying AI agents at scale."

What can GPT-5 do for AI Agents?

It's possible that ChatGPT agent will vault to the top of the reliability charts once it's powered by GPT-5. (Again, that's not the highest of barriers.) But the new release is unlikely to fix what really ails the Agentic world.

That's because guardrails are already being erected — by companies as well as regulators — shutting down what even the most reliable AI Agent can do for you.

Take Amazon, for example. The world's largest retailer, like most tech giants, is talking a big game on AI Agents (as they did at a Shanghai Agentic AI fair in July, pictured above). At the same time, Amazon has shut down the ability of any AI Agent to browse and buy anywhere on its site.

That makes sense for Amazon, which has always wanted control over the customer experience, not to mention its desire to deliver ads and sponsored results to actual human eyeballs. But it's also curtailing a massive amount of potential Agent activity right there. (On the plus side, no "catastrophic failure" involving a large pile of next-day deliveries at your door.)

And do we trust AI Agents to buy online for us anyway? It's not that they're evil and want to steal your credit card data; it's that they're naive and vulnerable to being phished by bad actors who do want your card.

Even GPT-5 may not be able to get around one vulnerability seen by researchers: data embedded in images can instruct AI agents to reveal any credit card info they might have, with the user being none the wiser.

If that kind of problem is exploited on a corporate scale, then Altman may be right about AI Agents "materially changing output" — just not in the way he meant.

Connections is the one of the most popular New York Times word games that's captured the public's attention. The game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for today's Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable What is Connections?

The NYT's latest daily word game has become a social media hit. The Times credits associate puzzle editor Wyna Liu with helping to create the new word game and bringing it to the publications' Games section. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

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Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.

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Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

SEE ALSO: NYT's The Mini crossword answers for August 4 Here's a hint for today's Connections categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Done on a computer

• Green: To put a hole in

• Blue: They share a distinguished body part

• Purple: Tennis stars

Featured Video For You Connections: How to play and how to win Here are today's Connections categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Mouse actions

• Green: Perforate

• Blue: Ones with pointy ears

• Purple: Wimbledon winners

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections #788 is...

What is the answer to Connections today

• Mouse actions: CLICK, DRAG, HOVER, SCROLL

• Perforate: BORE, PIERCE, POKE, PUNCH

• Ones with pointy ears: BATMAN, DEVIL, ELF, VULCAN

• Wimbledon winners: BORG, GRAF, KING, SINNER

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for August 4

Are you also playing NYT Strands?

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to today's Connections.

If you're reading this, you're looking for a little help playing Strands, the New York Times' elevated word-search game.

Strands requires the player to perform a twist on the classic word search. Words can be made from linked letters — up, down, left, right, or diagonal, but words can also change direction, resulting in quirky shapes and patterns. Every single letter in the grid will be part of an answer. There's always a theme linking every solution, along with the "spangram," a special, word or phrase that sums up that day's theme, and spans the entire grid horizontally or vertically.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable

By providing an opaque hint and not providing the word list, Strands creates a brain-teasing game that takes a little longer to play than its other games, like Wordle and Connections.

If you're feeling stuck or just don't have 10 or more minutes to figure out today's puzzle, we've got all the NYT Strands hints for today's puzzle you need to progress at your preferrined pace.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for August 4 SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for August 4 NYT Strands hint for today’s theme: Rock solid

The words are loyalty-related.

Today’s NYT Strands theme plainly explained

These words describe rigidity.

NYT Strands spangram hint: Is it vertical or horizontal?

Today's NYT Strands spangram is horizontal.

NYT Strands spangram answer today

Today's spangram is Hold Fast.

Featured Video For You Strands 101: How to win NYT’s latest word game NYT Strands word list for August 7

• Steady

• Devoted

• Firm

• Sound

• Hold Fast

• Unwavering

• Constant

Looking for other daily online games? Mashable's Games page has more hints, and if you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now!

Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to today's Strands.

Oh hey there! If you're here, it must be time for Wordle. As always, we're serving up our daily hints and tips to help you figure out today's answer.

If you just want to be told today's word, you can jump to the bottom of this article for today's Wordle solution revealed. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable SEE ALSO: NYT Connections today: Hints and answers for August 4 Where did Wordle come from?

Originally created by engineer Josh Wardle as a gift for his partner, Wordle rapidly spread to become an international phenomenon, with thousands of people around the globe playing every day. Alternate Wordle versions created by fans also sprang up, including battle royale Squabble, music identification game Heardle, and variations like Dordle and Quordle that make you guess multiple words at once. 

Wordle eventually became so popular that it was purchased by the New York Times, and TikTok creators even livestream themselves playing.

What's the best Wordle starting word?

The best Wordle starting word is the one that speaks to you. But if you prefer to be strategic in your approach, we have a few ideas to help you pick a word that might help you find the solution faster. One tip is to select a word that includes at least two different vowels, plus some common consonants like S, T, R, or N.

What happened to the Wordle archive?

The entire archive of past Wordle puzzles was originally available for anyone to enjoy whenever they felt like it, but it was later taken down, with the website's creator stating it was done at the request of the New York Times. However, the New York Times then rolled out its own Wordle Archive, available only to NYT Games subscribers.

Is Wordle getting harder?

It might feel like Wordle is getting harder, but it actually isn't any more difficult than when it first began. You can turn on Wordle's Hard Mode if you're after more of a challenge, though.

SEE ALSO: NYT's The Mini crossword answers for August 4, 2025 Here's a subtle hint for today's Wordle answer:

A marine animal.

Does today's Wordle answer have a double letter?

There are no recurring letters.

Today's Wordle is a 5-letter word that starts with...

Today's Wordle starts with the letter C.

SEE ALSO: Wordle-obsessed? These are the best word games to play IRL. The Wordle answer today is...

Get your last guesses in now, because it's your final chance to solve today's Wordle before we reveal the solution.

Drumroll please!

The solution to today's Wordle is...

CORAL.

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be a new Wordle for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for August 4

Reporting by Chance Townsend, Caitlin Welsh, Sam Haysom, Amanda Yeo, Shannon Connellan, Cecily Mauran, Mike Pearl, and Adam Rosenberg contributed to this article.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to today's Wordle.

Google, the search engine, is having one of its weakest years since 2015. Which is to say, its market share has dipped just below 90% for almost every month in 2025, according to Statcounter. Of course, that still puts Google very much on top of the search world. And it is seeking to cement that dominance with more AI Overviews.

If you've managed to miss them since they arrived in May 2024, Google AI Overviews are the roughly 250 word AI-written summaries atop some Google search results. Just how many Google results get AI Overviews is a closely guarded secret. Research from SE Ranking found them on as many as 18% of all queries in 2024 (with a dip to 7% soon after release, amid a wave of weird results including the infamous "glue on pizza" AI Overview).

In March 2025, Pew Research also found 18% of searches came with AI Overviews. Then in May 2025, SE Ranking saw a sudden jump: AI Overviews on nearly 30% of Google searches.

This result may yet be an outlier. Google declined to say how many results get the AI Overview treatment, but remains confident that the product is helping. "As people use AI Overviews, we see they’re happier with their results," a Google person said in a statement, "and they come to Google to even ask more of their questions."

Google offered no evidence for that claim. Still, the Pew study also suggested users trust Google AI Overviews — or at least, users are 50 percent less likely to click on links in search results with an AI Overview attached. The crash in clicks from search results has already produced what many online publishers are calling a traffic apocalypse.

But should they be trusting AI Overviews more than articles that cite experts? In a year when the most hallucinatory of OpenAI's new models get it wrong 40% of the time, this question has never been more important.

Mashable has tested AI Overviews for hallucinations in questions twice before (in in May 2024 and December 2024), endeavoring to focus on genuine searches (as opposed to glue-on-pizza-style gotcha questions). Here's what we found in 2025.

How accurate are Google AI Overviews? Don't ask Google

First of all, here's what that Google spokesperson had to say about AI Overview accuracy: "The vast majority of AI Overviews are highly factual and we’ve continued to make improvements to both the helpfulness and quality of responses."

But don't tell that to the AI Overview that pops up when you ask the same question on Google: the service wildly overestimates how much it hallucinates.

Credit: Google screenshot

Take a moment to chef's-kiss the irony here. A Google AI Overview is saying AI Overviews are wrong as much as 60% of the time, and it's wrong, according to Google.

Here's a Mashable story that the AI Overview cites, and appears to have misunderstood. It was reporting on a journalism experiment: various AI chatbots were given an article excerpt and asked to name the article and its author. The chatbots made up answers 60% of the time: troubling in itself, but that has nothing to do with hallucinations in Google AI Overviews — which Google says are supposed to be more accurate than other AI because they're "rooted in search results."

A Google spokesperson says that AI Overview accuracy is roughly equivalent to a similar, older search feature called featured snippets — which isn't exactly the best argument, given that they have been known for dumb results too, and once promoted a bizarre conspiracy about President Obama.

Still, in my tests, which were more anecdotal than rigorous study, only 1 in 5 AI Overviews returned an inaccurate or misleading answer. Don't be so down on yourself, Google AI Overviews!

Google AI Overviews can get it wrong when AI Mode gets it right

When AI Overviews do get it wrong, however, it can be a doozy. Case in point:the hottest nerd question on the internet right now. Or at least, the one question every Doctor Who fan wants answered right now.

Fake fan! Credit: Google screenshot

To explain: in the finale of the long-running sci-fi show's most recent season, the 15th Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa) regenerated into ... well, someone who looks like the Doctor's former companion Rose Tyler (Billie Piper). The BBC, meanwhile, has conspicuously not announced Piper as the 16th Doctor. Fans suspected some kind of timey-wimey fakeout — until Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies revealed that even he didn't know if Piper was the 16th or not.

In other words, it's a hotly-debated open question, served with a healthy dose of nuance. But not according to the Google AI Overview, which confidently announced that Piper was not the 16th Doctor. And for an encore, went on to claim that Gatwa was still the Doctor, despite Gatwa and the BBC clearly stating otherwise. (We hear you, AI Overview: moving on from your favorite Doctor is hard.)

But here's the kicker: clicking on Google AI Mode returns a completely different answer. AI Mode natters on at length without giving a straight yes or no, pretty much as a Doctor Who fan would:

Credit: Google screenshot

OK, good job AI Mode! Next question: why the heck didn't you share any of this with your hardworking buddy in the next cubicle, AI Overviews?

Google declined to make a search executive available for interview (after doing so for our December 2024 checkup). But it's hardly hallucination to suggest that an in-depth AI Mode query requires more processing power than an AI Overview. A Google spokesperson said that AI Mode is a cutting-edge tool based on the latest Gemini models, and that more of its results would wind up in AI Overviews over time.

Which is fair enough, but this does lead to the uncomfortable conclusion that Google is knowingly pushing less accurate results our way, while placing a more likely correct answer one click away.

SEE ALSO: Welcome to Google AI Mode! Everything is fine. AI Overview shoots for the moon, misses

So much for science fiction. Surely science fact is easier?

Not if the science fact question is "when is the next mission to the Moon," as much of a gimme as that sounds. Google AI Overview claimed that NASA's Artemis II mission is aiming to launch in September 2025, citing its source as a NASA press release from January 2024.

All well and good — except there was another NASA press release in December 2024, moving Artemis II's target date to September 2026.

For a service that appears to be replacing a lot of news clicks, the AI Overview seems sometimes uninterested in things that are, y'know, new.

AI Overview doesn't know DOGE

Another odd stuck-in-2024 moment came when I searched for "Elon Musk DOGE controversy." This yielded an AI overview on ... a lawsuit over alleged price manipulation of Dogecoin, which was settled in November 2024.

Wonder if Google users who type those keywords might be thinking of more recent DOGE-related events, perhaps involving the entire U.S. government rather than a memecoin?

SEE ALSO: DOGE damage is just getting started, IT experts warn

It would be a DOGE-like level of craziness to suggest that these results were entirely representative, however.

In my tests, as in our previous two check-ups, most AI Overviews yielded decent summaries; as a newly-minted vegan I was pleased to see it knew about the existence of vegan pesto (replace the parmesan in regular pesto with nutritional yeast or cashew cheese), and I found novel suggestions for popping small dents out of my car trunk door (hair dryer followed by plunger).

So if it's mostly useful, is it bad that AI Overview sometimes hallucinates? Your mileage may vary. But when I put it as a Google query, AI Overviews recused themselves. Instead, Google offered a featured snippet from Abeba Birhane, AI Accountability advisor to the Mozilla Foundation, responding in the negative.

"Google’s AI overviews hallucinate too much to be reliable," Birhane wrote in 2024. "There is no clear evidence showing users even want this AI Overview."

So whether AI Overviews or snippets are the future of Google search, it seems we can look forward to either one contradicting official Google statements.

Connections: Sports Edition is a new version of the popular New York Times word game that seeks to test the knowledge of sports fans.

Like the original Connections, the game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for the latest Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable What is Connections Sports Edition?

The NYT's latest daily word game has launched in association with The Athletic, the New York Times property that provides the publication's sports coverage. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

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Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.

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Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

SEE ALSO: NYT Mini crossword answers, hints for August 7, 2025 Here's a hint for today's Connections Sports Edition categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Health group

• Green: Soccer competitors

• Blue: Birds of a feather

• Purple: Top picks

Featured Video For You Connections: How to play and how to win Here are today's Connections Sports Edition categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Exercise classes

• Green: MLS teams

• Blue: Baltimore Ravens QBs, past and present

• Purple: First-round QBs in 2018

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections Sports Edition #318 is...

What is the answer to Connections Sports Edition today

• Exercise classes - PILATES, SPIN, YOGA, ZUMBA

• MLS teams - CREW, RAPIDS, REVOLUTION, WHITECAPS

• Baltimore Ravens QBs, past and present - DILFER, FLACCO, JACKSON, MCNAIR

• First-round QBs in 2018 - ALLEN, DARNOLD, MAYFIELD, ROSEN

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to today's Connections.

The Mini is a bite-sized version of The New York Times' revered daily crossword. While the crossword is a lengthier experience that requires both knowledge and patience to complete, The Mini is an entirely different vibe.

With only a handful of clues to answer, the daily puzzle doubles as a speed-running test for many who play it.

So, when a tricky clue disrupts a player's flow, it can be frustrating! If you find yourself stumped playing The Mini — much like with Wordle and Connections — we have you covered.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable

Here are the clues and answers to NYT's The Mini for Thursday, August 7, 2025:

AcrossParts of a museum dinosaur exhibit

• The answer is Bones.

Smiling Face with Sunglasses, for one

• The answer is Emoji.

Painter's stand

• The answer is Easel.

Restaurant item often asked for by signing the air

• The answer is Check.

Overly slapdash

• The answer is Hasty.

DownTree with smooth gray bark

• The answer is Beech.

Nebraska city that's home to Union Pacific headquarters

• The answer is Omaha.

Features of bloodhounds that are said to be 1,000 times stronger than humans

• The answer is Noses.

Boot from a game

• The answer is Eject.

___ smooth

• The answer is Silky.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Featured Video For You The Wordle Strategy used by the New York Times' Head of Games

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to today's Mini Crossword.

SAVE UP TO $480: Through Sept. 23, you can get a free NFL Sunday Ticket for the 2025 season (regularly $60/month) by switching to select Verizon phone or home internet plans. On Aug. 7 starting at 8 a.m. ET, Verizon customers also have the chance to score free tickets to NFL games on the My Verizon app.

Opens in a new window Credit: Verizon / Youtube Free NFL Sunday Ticket for the 2025 season With select Verizon phone or home internet plans Get Deal

Football fans, it's a good day to have Verizon — so much free football watching is coming your way. First up, Verizon is resurrecting its free NFL Sunday Ticket deal from last year, covering subscription costs for the whole 2025 season for most phone and home internet customers. But there are opportunities for an even better watch experience than through a screen: Verizon is literally giving away free tickets to NFL games.

On Aug. 7, tickets to see teams like the Philadelphia Eagles, Los Angeles Rams, and more will be available on the My Verizon app during three windows: 8 a.m. ET, 12 p.m. ET, and 3 p.m. ET. The freebies will be available in limited quantities, of course, and could easily sell out within the hour. This could be the most important alarm you set all year.

SEE ALSO: 3 things I love and hate about 'College Football 26'

If you miss out on the tickets, more free stuff is coming in September: Keep your My Verizon app handy to snag drops like passes to Tate McRae or Disney on Ice, TopGolf gift cards, and Fandango movie tickets.

For all of the other Sunday games that you'll want to watch this season, NFL Sunday Ticket is a crucial streaming app to have on your devices. There are three ways to unlock free NFL Sunday Ticket through Verizon:

• Buy a 5G phone with a new Unlimited line on myPlan (for all new and existing customers)

• Bring your current phone and open a new Unlimited line on myPlan (for all new and existing customers)

• Switch to Verizon Home Internet on a Fios 1 Gig, Fios 2 Gig, 5G Home Ultimate or LTE Home Plus plan

Depending on whether you're a new or returning subscriber, NFL Sunday Ticket can end up costing $480 for the season — $60/month for returning users and $34.50/month for new users for eight months. This NFL Sunday Ticket deal will last through Sept. 23, so you still have time to decide on your new phone or to figure out how to ditch your current plan.

NFL Sunday Ticket gets you access to every out-of-market game on every Sunday afternoon, including streaming multiple games at one time with multiview mode. That's a much more fun way to keep up with those packed 1 p.m. ET and 4:05 to 4:25 p.m. ET time slots than watching scores scroll across the bottom of the screen.

More featured deals

• Apple AirTag (4-Pack) — $79.99 (List Price $99.00)

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TL;DR: All Wallabies home games and fixtures against New Zealand are available to live stream for free on 9Now. Access this free streaming platform from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

There are no easy games in the Rugby Championship. Every match is a huge test, as some of the best teams in the world come together to battle it out for Southern Hemisphere supremacy. That's great news for fans seeking top-quality competition.

The bad news is that this competition is difficult to follow for free. It's difficult, but there's always a way.

If you want to watch the 2025 Rugby Championship for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.

What is the Rugby Championship?

The Rugby Championship is an international rugby union competition contested annually by Argentina, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. Each team plays six matches comprised of three home and three away fixtures.

South Africa are the defending champions. New Zealand have won the most titles (20).

When is the 2025 Rugby Championship?

The 2025 Rugby Championship takes place from Aug. 16 to Oct. 4. The full schedule is as follows:

• South Africa vs. Australia — Aug. 16

• Argentina vs. New Zealand — Aug. 16

• South Africa vs. Australia — Aug. 23

• Argentina vs. New Zealand — Aug. 23

• Australia vs. Argentina — Sept. 6

• New Zealand vs. South Africa — Sept. 6

• Australia vs. Argentina — Sept. 13

• New Zealand vs. South Africa — Sept. 13

• New Zealand vs. Australia — Sept. 27

• South Africa vs. Argentina — Sept. 27

• Australia vs. New Zealand — Oct. 4

• Argentina vs. South Africa — Oct. 4

Fans can live stream select fixtures from the 2025 Rugby Championship without spending anything.

How to watch the 2025 Rugby Championship for free

All Wallabies home games and fixtures against New Zealand are available to live stream for free on 9Now.

9Now is geo-restricted to Australia, but anyone from around the world can access this site with a VPN. These handy tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to secure servers in Australia, meaning you can unblock 9Now from anywhere in the world.

Access free live streams of the 2025 Rugby Championship by following these simple steps:

1. Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)

2. Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)

3. Open up the app and connect to a server in Australia

4. Visit 9Now

5. Watch the 2025 Rugby Championship for free from anywhere in the world

Opens in a new window Credit: ExpressVPN ExpressVPN (1-Month Plan) $12.95 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee) Get Deal

The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but leading VPNs do tend to offer free-trial periods or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can gain access to free live streams of the 2025 Rugby Championship without committing with your cash. This is obviously not a long-term solution, but it does give you time to watch top fixtures before recovering your investment.

What is the best VPN for 9Now?

ExpressVPN is the best service for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport for free, for a number of reasons:

• Servers in 105 countries including Australia

• Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

• Strict no-logging policy so your data is always secure

• Fast connection speeds

• Up to eight simultaneous connections

• 30-day money-back guarantee

A one-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $99.95 and includes an extra three months for free — 49% off for a limited time. This plan also includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.95 (with money-back guarantee).

Live stream the 2025 Rugby Championship for free with ExpressVPN.

TL;DR: Through September 7, the Weather Hi-Def Radar Storm Watch Plus app is $27.99 for lifetime access with code TAKE30 — packed with live radar, alerts, and detailed weather maps.

Opens in a new window Credit: Weather Hi-Def Weather Hi-Def Radar Storm Watch Plus: Lifetime Subscription $27.99
$199.99 Save $172 use code TAKE30 Get Deal

If your idea of “checking the weather” involves peeking out the window, it might be time to level up. Whether you’re camping, running, or just trying to beat rush hour before the hail hits — this app’s got your back.

Weather Hi-Def Radar Storm Watch Plus gives you lifetime access to radar you can actually use. Use promo code TAKE30 through September 7 to get it for $27.99 (MSRP $199.99).

See real-time and future radar on a zoomable map with zero fluff. The app goes beyond basic forecasts with storm tracks, lightning alerts, air quality data, wildfire overlays, and road condition layers. No matter where you are, it’s all on demand.

You can tap and hold any location to check current conditions, save spots for fast access, and get push notifications for lightning or precipitation within 10 miles. Tracking a hurricane, getting tornado alerts, preparing for winter storms, snow depth, marine warnings — it’s all layered in.

For hikers, skiers, travelers, and anyone who needs more than just a high/low temperature prediction, this is your weather toolkit. And with widgets and full-screen radar views, you’ll know what’s coming without digging through menus.

Pay once, stay informed forever, rain or shine.

New users can get a lifetime subscription to the Weather Hi-Def Radar app on sale for $27.99 with coupon code TAKE30 until September 7.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

TL;DR: This near-mint 2020 MacBook Pro has premium specs and a clean look. Get it for just $439.97 (MSRP $1,799) through September 7.

Opens in a new window Credit: Apple Refurbished Apple MacBook Pro (i5 2GHz, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD) $439.97
$1,799 Save $1,359.03 Get Deal

Get a refurbished Apple MacBook Pro (i5 2GHz, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD) for just $439.97.

• Runs on a 10th-Gen Intel Core i5 processor with Turbo Boost up to 3.8GHz, ideal for multitasking, heavy tabs, and creative apps

• Comes with 16GB of LPDDR4X RAM and a 512GB SSD, giving you the speed and storage space needed for editing, design, or dev work

• Features a 13.3-inch Retina display with 2560×1600 resolution, 500 nits of brightness, and True Tone — so it always looks good, even outside

• Includes Apple’s Magic Keyboard with Touch Bar and Touch ID, so you can type and sign in quickly, as well as access shortcuts without reaching for the trackpad

• Up to 10 hours on a single battery charge

• Four Thunderbolt 3 ports let you connect displays, charge fast, transfer files, or plug into accessories using USB-C

• Ships as a grade “A” refurbished unit, which means near-mint condition, minimal or no visible wear, and a third-party 30-day warranty.

• Preloaded with macOS and eligible for upgrade to macOS Sequoia 15

This refurbished Apple MacBook Pro is priced at just $439.97 and ready to take on your toughest tasks — grab it while supplies last.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

TL;DR: Get lifetime access to Imagiyo’s AI image generator for $49. This includes 500 images per month, no watermark, and commercial use rights.

Opens in a new window Credit: Imagiyo Imagiyo AI Image Generator: Lifetime Subscription (Standard Plan) $49
$495 Save $446 Get Deal

Tired of chasing “free” AI tools that slap watermarks on everything or limit your output after five clicks? Imagiyo skips the gimmicks and gives you exactly what you need — a clean, powerful image generator that actually lets you use what you make. No subscriptions, no credit systems, no monthly nonsense. Just your words turned into visuals.

For a limited time, lifetime access to Imagiyo is available for a one-time payment of $49.

Built on advanced AI models like Stable Diffusion and FLUX Schnell, Imagiyo lets you generate 500 high-quality images every month, two at a time, in multiple sizes. It’s browser-based, works on both desktop and mobile, and takes seconds to go from text prompt to final download. The UI is designed to be clean and easy to use so you can focus on your masterpiece.

Want to create commercial assets? Go for it. You can use your generated images commercially, unless your content violates copyright. And if you’re experimenting with more sensitive or NSFW content, Imagiyo allows that, too, as long as you have your settings on “private”.

Every image you create is downloadable, watermark-free, and stored for future access. You can use tools like PromptHero to find inspiration for prompts, or just start typing and see what happens — there’s no wrong way to explore.

No ads, no bloat, no limits on access. Just 500 new image credits every month for life. You get updates included, access to multiple generation engines, and nothing to install. It’s ideal for artists, marketers, designers, writers, and anyone who thinks in pictures.

This lifetime license to Imagiyo is for new users only, available for $49 — and once you buy, you’ll need to redeem your code within 30 days. After that, it’s yours forever.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

TL;DR: Before buying a new car for tech perks, upgrade your current dash with this 10-inch wireless touchscreen display that supports CarPlay, Android Auto, GPS, Bluetooth, and more — for only $119.99 with free shipping.

Opens in a new window Credit: Wireless Car Display 10-inch Touchscreen Wi-Fi/Bluetooth Wireless Car Display with Apple CarPlay & Android Auto Support $119.99
$199.99 Save $80.00 Get Deal

If your current car doesn’t support CarPlay or Android Auto, don’t stress — there’s no need to trade it in just to stream Spotify or get real-time navigation.

This 10-inch Touchscreen Wireless Car Display brings modern dashboard tech to just about any vehicle, and it does it in style. For $119.99 (reg. $199.99), you’re getting a portable, full-featured upgrade that’s sleek, functional, and refreshingly easy to install.

Running on Android 12, this screen lets you download your favorite apps, stream maps through Google or Waze, and tap into real-time traffic insights, all without fumbling with your phone. And yes, it supports both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, so you can read messages, make hands-free calls, or queue up a podcast directly from the touchscreen.

More than just flashy features, it’s also packed with smart functionality. When you shift into reverse, the screen automatically switches to your backup camera view (not included), complete with parking guidelines for safer maneuvering. Built-in Bluetooth makes it simple to connect your phone, and the integrated speaker means you don’t need to rely on your car’s stereo if you don’t want to.

Whether you’re heading out on a road trip, carpooling to school, or just trying to make your commute less chaotic, this display adds convenience and connectivity in all the right places. And as a bonus, FM transmission means you can even broadcast audio from the screen to your car’s radio, giving you the best of both worlds.

It’s an ideal gift for someone with an older car for yourself, if you’re not quite ready to commit to the expense of a new vehicle.

Big tech, small investment.

Get the 10-inch Touchscreen Wireless Car Display for $119.99 (reg. $199.99) plus free shipping for a limited time.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

Looking for something great to watch at home? Streaming subscribers are spoiled for choice between Hulu, Netflix, HBO Max, Disney+, Apple TV+, Prime Video, Shudder, Paramount+, Peacock, and more. And that's before you even look at the vast libraries of movies and television programs within each streamer!

SEE ALSO: The 10 best TV shows of 2025 (so far), and where to stream them

Don't be overwhelmed or waste an hour scrolling through your services to determine what to watch. We've got your back, whatever your mood. Mashable offers watch guides for all of the above, broken down by genre: comedy, thriller, horror, documentary, and animation, among others. But if you're seeking something brand-new (or just new to streaming), we've got you covered there, too.

Mashable's entertainment team has scoured the streaming services to highlight the most buzzed-about releases of this week and ranked them from worst to best — or least worth your time to most watchable. Whether you're in the mood for Carrie Bradshaw's dramatics, clown-centered carnage, kooky crime comedies, splashy horror, Seth Rogen shenanigans, or the return of the Addams Family, we've got something just for you.

14. And Just Like That..., Series Finale: Part 1

And just like that, it's come to an end. Again. Sex and the City spinoff And Just Like That… will air its very last episode next Thursday, Aug. 14, after showrunner Michael Patrick King announced Season 3 would be its last. The first of a two-part finale, this week's episode will be a farewell to Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker) and her well-dressed New York friends and lovers. It's been a wild ride, through the series' engagement with modern dating, vaginal suppositories, new tech, and making a mess of Diwali — and all the wild cameos they could muster. Though it's tested us at times, the spinoff has shown how much Sex and the City fans will do for real love. Ridiculous, inconvenient, consuming, can't-live-without-each-other love. — Shannon Connellan, UK Editor

Starring: Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon, Kristin Davis, Mario Cantone, Sarita Choudhury, Evan Handler, David Eigenberg, Nicole Ari Parker, John Corbett, Sebastiano Pigazzi, Dolly Wells, Mehcad Brooks, Jonathan Cake, and Logan Marshall-Green

How to watch: The first part of the two-part series finale for And Just Like That... premieres on HBO Max on Aug. 7.

13. Clown in a Cornfield

Based on Adam Cesare's novel of the same name, Clown in a Cornfield delivers exactly what you'd expect from the title. In the rural Midwestern setting of Kettle Springs, Missouri, the landscape is rich in cornfields, all the better to hide the creeping clown-faced killer who stalks local teens. His name is Frendo. There was a time when he was a symbol of local pride, the mascot of the Baypen Corn Syrup factory. But as new kid in town Quinn Maybrook (Katie Douglas) soon learns, Frendo is back. And he's out for blood.

Splashy in violence and rich in subgenre tropes, Clown in a Cornfield offers few surprises. But slasher fans have been giddy over this one since its SXSW premiere. — Kristy Puchko, Entertainment Editor

Starring: Katie Douglas, Aaron Abrams, Carson MacCormac, Kevin Durand, and Will Sasso

How to watch: Clown in a Cornfield debuts on Shudder on Aug. 8.

12. The Pickup

From The Blackening director Tim Story comes a heist comedy whose cast alone should have you adding it to your queue.

Two eras of Saturday Night Live icons collide. Eddie Murphy and Pete Davidson star as armored truck guards who have one hell of a shift ahead of them. A old-timer on this job, Russell (Murphy) is keen to finish on time to get home to his wife (Eva Longoria) to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary. Travis (Davidson) is newer to this line of work, and far more prone to panic. To be fair, it's doubly stressful when not only are they held up by a clever thief, but that thief also happens to be Travis' hook-up from the night before (Keke Palmer). And that's before we get to her blackmail plan, which involves an even bigger scheme! — K.P.

Starring: Eddie Murphy, Pete Davidson, Eva Longoria, Andrew Dice Clay, Marshawn Lynch, and Keke Palmer

How to watch: The Pickup debuts on Prime Video on Aug. 6.

11. Freaky Tales

Want a flick that has a vintage midnight movies vibe? Then you'll thrill over Freaky Tales. Co-written and co-directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck (Half Nelson), this collection of vignettes set in 1987 Oakland features big stars and some gnarly twists.

One story focuses on some young punks who are looking to kick Nazis out of their scene. Meanwhile, a budding rap duo gets a chance to shine. A pro-baller goes vigilante when a home invasion leaves his loved ones dead, and a newly minted father (Pedro Pascal in daddy mode again!) seeks revenge on the crew that killed his wife. Weird, wild, and a bit wonky, Freaky Tales delivers on its name. — K.P.

Starring: Pedro Pascal, Ben Mendelsohn, Jay Ellis, Normani, Dominique Thorne, and Jack Champion

How to watch: Freaky Tales debuts on HBO Max on Aug. 8.

10. Taurasi

As women's basketball and the WNBA continue to surge in popularity thanks to young stars like Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, and Paige Bueckers, there's no better time to catch up on the history of the sport and learn about the players who paved the way. Enter Taurasi, Prime Video's docuseries about one of the GOATs of the sport: Diana Taurasi.

A player who's gamely alternated between playing the hero and embracing the heel role (she's the queen of trash-talking for a reason), Taurasi is an undeniably fascinating — even polarizing — figure. Her story is equally fascinating, with Taurasi examining her journey from UConn star to WNBA legend, along with her time playing overseas in Russia. At only three parts, there's a sense that there could be even more to the story, but it's still a delight to hear Taurasi's frank input on her own life. — Belen Edwards, Entertainment Reporter

How to watch: Taurasi is now streaming on Prime Video.

9. Outlander: Blood of my Blood

Outlander fans know all about the time-traveling love story of Claire (Caitríona Balfe) and Jamie (Sam Heughan) — but what about their parents' love stories?

Prequel Outlander: Blood of My Blood weaves the romances of the two couples together and delivers origin stories for key Outlander players. Claire's parents, Julia Moriston (Hermione Corfield) and Henry Beauchamp (Jeremy Irvine), cross paths during the horrors of World War I, while Jamie's parents, Ellen MacKenzie (Harriet Slater) and Brian Fraser (Jamie Roy), meet in the Scottish Highlands in the 18th century. Before Outlander airs its eighth and final season, Blood of My Blood is sure to tide over Outlander fans' cravings for sweeping romance.* — B.E.

Starring: Hermione Corfield, Jeremy Irvine, Harriet Slater, Jamie Roy, Tony Curran, Séamus McLean Ross, Sam Retford, Rory Alexander, and Conor MacNeill

How to watch: Outlander: Blood of My Blood premieres Aug. 8 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Starz, with new episodes streaming Fridays on the Starz app and Starz streaming and on-demand platforms.

8. Jurassic World Rebirth

Set five years after Jurassic World: Dominion, the seventh installment in the Jurassic Park film series follows a smirking mercenary (Scarlett Johansson) and a paleontologist wearing "slutty little glasses" (Jonathan Bailey) onto a tropical island, where dinosaur blood might prove a medical miracle. If they can get it and survive!

Marking the return of Jurassic Park screenwriter David Koepp (Presence, Kimi, Death Becomes Her) to the series, Jurassic World Rebirth took a big swing to get this franchise back on track. But the results were a mixed bag. In my review for the film's theatrical release, I wrote, "Jurassic World Rebirth is a rocky ride. Some bits are absolutely exhilarating, while others feel like a chore. But unlike the humans in this franchise, the humans of our world just cannot tire of these incredible beasts, happy to shell out ticket money to get as close as we might to their enormous majesty. And this film, including its hilariously calamitous opening with its requisite kill, will deliver, feeding both all our yearning for excitement and our need for escapism." — K.P.

Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Mahershala Ali, Jonathan Bailey, Rupert Friend, and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo

How to watch: Jurassic World Rebirth is now available for rent or purchase on Prime Video.

6. & 7. Now You See Me & Now You See Me 2

With the upcoming sequel Now You See Me, Now You Don't coming to theaters this fall, now's a good time to revisit the first two films in the Four Horsemen trilogy.

2013's Now You See Me established the world of four magicians who use their incredible illusions to pull off a dazzling bank heist. (Danny Ocean could never!) Three years later, the crew reconvened for exciting adventure that pitted them against a tech genius. How will these schemes lead to Now You See Me, Now You Don't? There's only one way to find out. And that's a movie marathon, baby! — K.P.

Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Mark Ruffalo, Woody Harrelson, Mélanie Laurent, Isla Fisher, Common, Dave Franco, Michael Caine, and Morgan Freeman

How to watch: Now You See Me and Now You See Me 2 are now streaming on Netflix.

5. The Monkey

Osgood Perkins, the twisted mind behind Longlegs, delivers a darkly hilarious adaptation of a gnarly Stephen King short story. Remember those creepy robotic monkey toys that played an instrument at the turn of a crank? Well, this one beats its drum as a harbinger of doom. Specifically, that tinny tum-tum-tum means someone is going to die in a very violent and even comically gruesome way.

Twin brothers Bill and Hal first learned of the monkey's heinous skills when they were both boys. Now grown and estranged (and both played by Theo James), they're at odds over what to do with the monkey as it resurfaces for fresh blood. A tale of parenthood, paranoia, and how to laugh in the face of death, The Monkey is one of the wackiest and most gruesome movies this year. Brace yourself! —K.P.

Starring: Theo James, Tatiana Maslany, Elijah Wood, Christian Convery, Colin O'Brien, Rohan Campbell, and Sarah Levy

How to watch: The Monkey is now streaming on Hulu.

4. Sister Midnight

Writer/director Karan Kandhari's wild debut Sister Midnight is a must-see for the weirdos (hi). Radhika Apte gives a tremendous, unhinged performance as small-town bride Uma, whose arranged marriage to Gopal (Ashok Pathak) reaches levels of weird you could only dream of. Set in Mumbai, Sister Midnight is "a film as strange, hilarious, and unpredictable as its protagonist," as I wrote in my review. The twists are uncanny, the long-simmering thirsts bestial, and the score, by Interpol's Paul Banks, is everything. — S.C.

Starring: Radhika Apte, Ashok Pathak, Chhaya Kadam, and Smita Tambe

How to watch: Sister Midnight is now available for rent or purchase on Prime Video.

3. Platonic, Season 2

Who says bad influences are just for kids? Platonic, created by Francesca Delbanco and Nicholas Stoller, explores the underrepresented realm of forty-something fuck-ups, and it's gloriously fun in its second season.

Rose Byrne and Seth Rogen reunite as college besties Sylvia and Will. She's a mother of three, chronically organized, and starting her own business as a party planner. He's her first big client — a loud, brash beer brewer poised to marry his perky boss, a massively powerful CEO. Everything seems to be coming up roses, but these two always find the thorns.

SEE ALSO: 'Platonic' - Everything you need to know

Mid-life crises were never so achingly hilarious as Platonic Season 2 explores what might happen when work, marriage, and friendship aren't as you might dream. While there's plenty of laughs in this one, "Road Trip" is the ep that had us screaming. —K.P.

Starring: Rose Byrne, Seth Rogen, Luke Macfarlane, Tre Hale, Andrew Lopez, and Carla Gallo

How to watch: Platonic Season 2 debuts on Aug. 6 on Apple TV+.

2. Sorry, Baby

See the directorial debut that had critics cheering out of Sundance 2025. Internet comedian Eva Victor has always had a challenging sense of humor. With Sorry, Baby, which she directs, writes, and stars in, she tones down the zaniness while maintaining an edge that runs alongside a deep empathy for her heartbroken heroine, who's coping with the trauma of sexual assault.

The event itself is off camera, but looms large over the life of grad student Agnes, even as years pass and she becomes a professor. While her peers seem to move on, she feels stuck. But could the support of friends and even the occasional sandwich-offering stranger help her heal?

In my rave review out of Sundance, I declared, "Bittersweet, brilliant, and heartwarmingly funny, Sorry, Baby is a movie that is sure to find an audience beyond Sundance. And not just because A24 is a master of marketing offbeat cinema, but because Victor has a voice that is strong, strange, and demands to be heard." — K.P.

Starring: Eva Victor, Naomi Ackie, Lucas Hedges, John Carroll Lynch, Louis Cancelmi, and Kelly McCormack

How to watch: Sorry, Baby is now available for rent or purchase on Prime Video.

1. Wednesday, Season 2, Part 1

Do you hear that? The kooky, spooky sound of rhythmic snapping? That can only mean one thing: Wednesday Season 2 has landed on Netflix, bringing Wednesday Addams (Jenna Ortega) and the whole Addams Family with her. This season, Wednesday returns to Nevermore Academy and receives a terrible vision. Her roommate Enid (Emma Myers) is going to die — and it's all Wednesday's fault. With the clock ticking and a new rash of murders plaguing the nearby town of Jericho, will Wednesday be able to save her bestie and solve a new case?

Season 2 of Wednesday fine-tunes the formula from the fun, if wonky, Season 1, ditching its love triangle (thank goodness) and upping the horror factor. The result is a macabre blast. As I wrote in my review of the show's first four episodes, "Watching [Wednesday's] detective exploits continues to be pure gothic fun, and that's something worth snapping about." — B.E.

Starring: Jenna Ortega, Isaac Ordonez, Victor Dorobantu, Luis Guzmán, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Joanna Lumley, Fred Armisen, Emma Myers, Hunter Doohan, Joy Sunday, Moosa Mostafa, Georgie Farmer, Noah B. Taylor, Evie Templeton, Steve Buscemi, Billie Piper, Christopher Lloyd, Luyanda Unati Lewis-Nyawo, Jamie McShane, and Thandiwe Newton

How to watch: Wednesday Season 2, Part 1 is now streaming on Netflix, with Part 2 premiering Sept. 3.

(*) denotes a blurb comes from a previous list.

It's not really a surprise that Tim Burton's Wednesday takes spooky aesthetic cues from The Addams Family — Charles Addams' New Yorker cartoons, the '60s sitcom, and the '90s movies — but it's a delight to see some deeply specific references hidden in the second season to the 1991's The Addams Family.

A monochromatic beacon of comedy in the early '90s, Barry Sonnenfeld's The Addams Family and its superb sequel The Addams Family Values were on repeat in our house. Suffice to say, I've watched the film on VHS enough times to spot a niche reference when I see it.

SEE ALSO: 10 burning questions we have for 'Wednesday' Season 2, Part 2

Wednesday Season 2 includes a handful of references to the film through production design, blink-and-you'll-miss-it scenes, and one gloriously chaotic casting choice. Here's what I could spot:

Wednesday's octopus bed Jenna Ortega's Wednesday has the same bed as Christina Ricci's Wednesday and I love it. Credit: Jonathan Hession / Netflix

In The Addams Family, Wednesday (Christina Ricci, who plays science teacher Marilyn Thornhill in Wednesday) is obsessed with the Bermuda Triangle. She studies it. Extending this marine mystery mania to her bedroom decor, Wednesday's bed is adorned with a large octopus. In Wednesday Season 2, episode 1, when our stormy protagonist (Jenna Ortega) is about to leave for Nevermore Academy from the Addams mansion, you can see her bed also has an octopus on it. Reader, I need this bed.

Pugsley's traffic shenanigans Pugsley's stop sign stash in "The Addams Family." Credit: Barry Sonnenfeld Orion/Paramount USA Scene Still Comedy La famille Addams

In Wednesday Season 2, episode 1, Pugsley (Isaac Ordonez) is bullied by his sister Wednesday to use his electricity powers to zap a stop sign on their way to Nevermore Academy. It causes a major pileup. To me, it's possibly a reference to the stop signs pilfered by Pugsley (Jimmy Workman) in The Addams Family, which cause a traffic accident we hear but don't see onscreen.

Thing lends a hand — as a golf tee Thing: Always handy. Credit: Courtesy of Netflix

If you don't remember the iconic Raul Julia as Gomez Addams, consider this your homework. In The Addams Family, whenever Julia's Gomez needs a a bit of R&R, he hits golf balls from his roof right into his neighbour's windows. Thing, ever courteous, acts as a tee in these scenes. In Wednesday Season 2, we see Thing re-enacting this moment in episode 2, during a montage of Thing being treated like a servant by Morticia and Gomez (Catherine Zeta-Jones and Luis Guzmán). This time, Gomez hits Thing instead of the golf ball, sending the poor dude flying into a tree.

Morticia and Gomez's dance Catherine Zeta-Jones and Luis Guzmán in "Wednesday." Credit: Jonathan Hession / Netflix

The perpetually lusty heads of the Addams Family love a tango, with Morticia (the iconic Anjelica Huston) and Gomez quite literally setting the floor ablaze in The Addams Family Values. In Wednesday Season 2, episode 3, Zeta-Jones and Guzmán cut a rug of their own, with choreography that pays tribute to their predecessors.

The camp episode Camp Outcast > Camp Chippewa Credit: Helen Sloan / Netflix

Wednesday Season 2, episode 3, sees the Nevermore students off to Camp Jericho aka Camp Outcast in what seems to be a nod to The Addams Family Values. In the sequel film, Wednesday and Pugsley are shipped off to Camp Chippewa, sheer torture for them both (and not the good kind). But in Wednesday, the camp is made for Outcasts, with dagger throwing, a pitch black watchtower, and coffin-shaped s'mores.

Honorable mention: It's Christopher Lloyd! An icon: Christopher Lloyd's Fester Addams. Credit: Snap / Shutterstock

Watching Addams icon and Movie Wednesday Christina Ricci join the cast for Wednesday was a delight for The Addams Family fans. In Season 2, we get another Addams casting treat: the great Christopher Lloyd, whose melodramatic performance as Uncle Fester in the '90s movies is all-time. Lloyd plays a Futurama-style floating head in a jar, Nevermore science professor Dr. Orloff, who meets Wednesday in episode 2. Poor Orloff is the perpetual target of student pranks at Nevermore — have some respect!

Did you spy any more references to the Addams Family movies? Or perhaps the '60s sitcom? Let us know in the comments.

Wednesday Season 2, Part 1 is now streaming on Netflix. Part 2 lands on Sept. 3.