theverge--2020-07-22--Why no one knows which stories are the most popular on Facebook

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What news should people see when they come to Facebook ?
In the old days , your answer might have been “ whatever they want to see , ” or even “ who cares ?
” But as Facebook ’ s dominance grew , and it became one of the most important arbiters of attention in the world , the question grew more pressing .
If a country where the median voter leans to the political left has a News @ @ @ @ @ @ @ right , that could cause concern .
If right-wing and even openly fascist politicians began to take over countries around the world , that kind of disconnect between an electorate and one of their primary news sources might come under even stricter scrutiny .
A nice thing about Facebook is that the company makes a tool that lets you see what links are popular there in real time .
Or rather , it bought one , in November 2016 .
It ’ s called CrowdTangle , and it lets anyone slice and dice @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of ways .
While it started as a tool for activists to manage their activity on social platforms , founders Brandon Silverman and Matt Garmur realized that the real money was in helping publishers master Facebook .
After Facebook retooled its algorithms to promote fewer stories from publishers , CrowdTangle became more useful as a tool for academics and journalists to understand the pulse of Facebook .
( Publishers still use it , too . )
One of the journalists who took notice of CrowdTangle ’ s abilities was Kevin Roose , a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ York Times .
( And also my friend , in the interest of full disclosure . )
For several years now , Roose has done a bit on Twitter where he uses CrowdTangle to assess the day ’ s most popular stories on Facebook .
And what he has found , for the most part , is that the most popular stories come from right-leaning publishers and pages .
On this day in June , the top stories came from Donald Trump , Franklin Graham , Fox News , and Ben Shapiro .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Fox News , Mark Levin .
On Monday : a sea of Fox News and Ben Shapiro , punctuated by a lone link from the liberal page Occupy Democrats .
Roose ’ s tweets in this format go — if not viral , exactly , then at least further around the timeline than your average publisher data set .
Let me say : I have retweeted these tweets .
I have retweeted them because , in an era where Congress has held multiple hearings inveighing against “ bias ” against conservatives on social @ @ @ @ @ @ @ opposite has been true all along : that social networks have been a powerful ally to the conservative movement , helping it to reach a much wider audience than it ever would have otherwise .
It is also true that these tweets have been driving people at Facebook absolutely crazy .
And the reason is that the way CrowdTangle measures the popularity of partisan links is not the way that Facebook , which owns the tool , thinks that we ought to be measuring popularity .
On Monday , the company decided that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to Roose ’ s latest CrowdTangle tweet — showing a top five of Fox News , Fox News , Occupy Democrats , Ben Shapiro , Ben Shapiro — John Hegeman fired back .
Hegeman , who took over the News Feed in 2018 after Adam Mosseri left to run Instagram , showed up on the timeline with a six-part response culminating in a ( beautifully designed ) graphic .
The graphic looks at the popularity of Facebook posts in two ways .
The first is by what social media heads call “ engagement @ @ @ @ @ @ @ comments , shares .
This is what CrowdTangle measures , and Roose is representing in his tweets .
Note that CrowdTangle measures only interactions on posts from publisher pages — if someone shares a New York Times link to their own page , it doesn ’ t get counted .
The second is by what we call “ reach ” — the number of people who scrolled by the link in their News Feed , regardless of whether they clicked it or engaged with it in any way .
It turns out if @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Americans have been seeing much more mainstream news in the News Feed than the CrowdTangle data would suggest .
For example , on July 5th , when the top CrowdTangle links came from Franklin Graham , Ben Shapiro , and Breitbart , the links with the most reach came from the Los Angeles Times , MSNBC , and something called Ranker.com ( “ the weirdest small towns in the United States ” ) .
ABC News , the New York Daily News , and People also made strong showings .
“ While some @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , likes or comments , this content is a tiny % of what most people see on FB , ” Hegeman tweeted .
“ News from these pages don ’ t represent the most viewed news stories on FB , either.
” Ultimately , Hegeman said , reach data better reflects how Facebook builds its algorithms ( solidly in the mainstream ) while engagement data better reflects user behavior ( frothing-at-the-mouth partisan ) .
In this view , Facebook is providing most people with a News Feed where the views track roughly with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ newspaper , but if your News Feed full of reactionary outrage bait , hey — that ’ s on you .
I ’ m told that Facebook decided to spin up some graphics after Roose inquired on Twitter about how to build a bot that tweets out the CrowdTangle stats every day .
Advertisers and policy makers had asked Facebook about the Roose tweets , sources familiar with the subject told me , and they had become of increasing concern to Hegeman , Facebook app lead Fidji Simo , and other employees who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ worried the CrowdTangle data painted an inaccurate picture of what most people see in the News Feed , and some fumed that Roose only seemed to tweet on days when right-wing pages were atop the leaderboard .
“ I started tweeting these lists a few years ago because most people don ’ t have CrowdTangle access , and it ’ s a useful way to track what ’ s happening on the world ’ s biggest media platform , ” Roose told me on Tuesday .
“ Facebook is welcome to post its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t want to keep doing this ! )
or share other kinds of data it thinks better reflects what ’ s popular on Facebook.
” Hegeman said that the company is exploring ways of making reach data public for the first time .
The main reason it has not been public to date , I ’ m told , is that it could raise privacy concerns — you don ’ t want CrowdTangle making public how many people saw your birthday fundraiser post , probably .
At the same time , if @ @ @ @ @ @ @ getting the most interactions , it can probably also share which are getting the most reach , and if it limits its list to the top 1,000 or so publishers on the site I imagine it can avoid most privacy issues .
Ultimately , in exasperating Facebook into sharing more data , Roose has done us all a service .
It is not just journalists who will benefit from better understanding the reach of the biggest Facebook posts — scan Hegeman ’ s mentions and you ’ ll see a host of academics @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will never be a single answer to the question of what people should see when they open Facebook .
But given the power of the platform , it seems more than fair to ask what they are seeing .
Today in news that could change public perception of the big tech companies Trending up : Apple has committed to being 100 percent carbon neutral for its supply chain and products by 2030 .
The company is already carbon neutral for its global corporate operations , but the new commitment would mean every Apple @ @ @ @ @ @ @ impact .
( Apple ) Trending sideways : Facebook started labeling posts about the November election , including those from President Trump and Joe Biden .
The labels do not contain a fact-check about whether the information is true or false , though .
( Donie O ’ Sullivan and Marshall Cohen / CNN ) ⭐ The House voted to ban federal employees from downloading TikTok on government-issued devices .
The policy is part of a package of bipartisan amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act , which the Senate is expected to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are jockeying to shape the the July 27th antitrust hearing , where the CEOs of Apple , Amazon , Google , and Facebook are set to testify before a House panel .
Some want the executives to testify individually rather than as a group .
Republicans are also pushing to open the hearing to lawmakers outside the antitrust subcommittee .
I ’ m gon na have to vote no on that one !
( Cristiano Lima / Politico ) The House antitrust panel recently interviewed Brad Smith , president and chief legal officer @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Microsoft ’ s history of antitrust regulation , but Smith also brought up his concerns over how Apple runs its App Store .
( Christopher Stern and Nick Wingfield / The Information ) Democrats are worried about a potential Russia-linked effort to interfere in the election by using a Senate panel to advance smears against presidential candidate Joe Biden .
The worry is that Russian-linked information is being funneled to those investigating Biden and his son , who was once paid as a board member of a Ukrainian energy company .
( David @ @ @ @ @ @ @ E. Barnes / The Information ) US officials accused China of sponsoring criminal hackers who are targeting biotech firms around the world working on coronavirus vaccines .
The FBI said the Chinese government was acting like “ an organized criminal syndicate.
” ( Ellen Nakashima and Devlin Barrett / The New York Times ) Coinbase said that it prevented little over 1,100 customers from sending 30.4 bitcoin ( currently worth about $ 278,000 ) to Twitter hackers last week .
But 14 customers still fell prey , and sent around $ 3,000 worth @ @ @ @ @ @ @ blacklisted their addresses .
( Yogita Khatri / The Block ) Facebook board member Peter Thiel is spending $ 850,000 on the Senate race of a hard-line anti-immigration candidate in Kansas .
Kris Kobach has been linked to Trump ’ s Muslim ban , and is currently involved in a private crowdfunded effort to build a wall along the southern border .
( Russell Brandom / The Verge ) Facebook is slowing its donations to US politicians .
The company ’ s political action committee is on track to spend significantly in 2020 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2018 — despite tripling revenues since 2016 .
( Rob Price / Business Insider ) Columbia Journalism Review is doing a series of interviews with organizers of the Facebook ad boycott .
This one , with Jessica González , co–chief executive of Free Press , highlights organizers ’ dissatisfaction with how the company has responded to calls for different policies surrounding hate speech on the platform .
( Columbia Journalism Review ) South Korea ’ s quarantine app had serious security flaws that could have allowed attackers to see the names and real-time @ @ @ @ @ @ @ app , which helped enforce quarantines , was a cornerstone of the country ’ s successful strategy to control the virus .
( Choe Sang-Hun , Aaron Krolik , Raymond Zhong and Natasha Singer / The New York Times ) ⭐ Since the start of 2020 , big tech companies in the US have invested around $ 17 billion in India .
The spike in investments is likely due to India ’ s growing tensions with China , which have spilled over into the tech sector and created an opening for US companies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ CNN : In Bangladesh , Facebook groups are acting as e-commerce platforms because and Amazon and eBay don ’ t exist .
The low barrier to entry presents a big opportunity for a generation of young Bangladeshis reeling from mass layoffs and fear of rising unemployment .
( Nilesh Christopher / Rest of World ) Jeff Bezos added $ 13 billion to his net worth on Monday due to a 7.9 percent surge in Amazon shares .
It ’ s the largest single-day jump for an individual since the Bloomberg Billionaires Index was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ / Bloomberg ) Amazon is delaying Prime Day in the US until later this year .
The event is typically held in mid-July , but the company is still struggling with skyrocketing demand due to the coronavirus pandemic , as well as ongoing pressure to keep its workers safe .
( Jon Porter / The Verge ) Amazon is expanding its robot delivery trials to Georgia and Tennessee .
The six-wheel delivery robot , Scout , debuted in January 2019 in Washington .
( James Vincent / The Verge ) Pay attention to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ star ratings .
Also , sort by “ most recent ” to help avoid falling for inauthentic reviews .
( Jon Keegan / The Markup ) TikTok plans to add 10,000 jobs in the US over the next three years .
The announcement comes as TikTok faces increased scrutiny ( and a potential ban ) from the White House .
( Margaret Harding McGill / Axios ) LinkedIn plans to cut about 960 jobs , or 6 percent of its global workforce , due to the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ and hiring divisions .
( Supantha Mukherjee / Reuters ) Instagram is testing out a new personal fundraising feature .
The test is launching in the United States , United Kingdom , and Ireland to let users raise money for their own personal causes .
It ’ s available first for Android users , with iPhones to follow .
( Ashley Carman / The Verge ) Stuff to occupy you online during quarantine Read about another dull quarantine weekend at home , Target , Home Depot , Chipotle , and our niece ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ kids were in bed , it started to rain , so we all got hammered in the Petersons ’ basement , six feet apart .
I wish more people understood how much fun you can have while socially distancing.
” Send us tips , comments , questions , and graphical responses to our tweets : casey @ theverge.com and zoe @ theverge.com .

What news should people see when they come to Facebook?
In the old days, your answer might have been “whatever they want to see,” or even “who cares?” But as Facebook’s dominance grew, and it became one of the most important arbiters of attention in the world, the question grew more pressing. If a country where the median voter leans to the political left has a News Feed occupied by links from the far right, that could cause concern. If right-wing and even openly fascist politicians began to take over countries around the world, that kind of disconnect between an electorate and one of their primary news sources might come under even stricter scrutiny.
A nice thing about Facebook is that the company makes a tool that lets you see what links are popular there in real time. Or rather, it bought one, in November 2016. It’s called CrowdTangle, and it lets anyone slice and dice popular links on Facebook in a variety of ways. While it started as a tool for activists to manage their activity on social platforms, founders Brandon Silverman and Matt Garmur realized that the real money was in helping publishers master Facebook. After Facebook retooled its algorithms to promote fewer stories from publishers, CrowdTangle became more useful as a tool for academics and journalists to understand the pulse of Facebook. (Publishers still use it, too.)
One of the journalists who took notice of CrowdTangle’s abilities was Kevin Roose, a columnist and podcast host at the New York Times. (And also my friend, in the interest of full disclosure.) For several years now, Roose has done a bit on Twitter where he uses CrowdTangle to assess the day’s most popular stories on Facebook. And what he has found, for the most part, is that the most popular stories come from right-leaning publishers and pages. On this day in June, the top stories came from Donald Trump, Franklin Graham, Fox News, and Ben Shapiro. Later that month: Franklin Graham, Fox News, Mark Levin. On Monday: a sea of Fox News and Ben Shapiro, punctuated by a lone link from the liberal page Occupy Democrats.
Roose’s tweets in this format go — if not viral, exactly, then at least further around the timeline than your average publisher data set. Let me say: I have retweeted these tweets. I have retweeted them because, in an era where Congress has held multiple hearings inveighing against “bias” against conservatives on social networks, the data suggested that the opposite has been true all along: that social networks have been a powerful ally to the conservative movement, helping it to reach a much wider audience than it ever would have otherwise.
It is also true that these tweets have been driving people at Facebook absolutely crazy. And the reason is that the way CrowdTangle measures the popularity of partisan links is not the way that Facebook, which owns the tool, thinks that we ought to be measuring popularity.
On Monday, the company decided that it had had enough. In response to Roose’s latest CrowdTangle tweet — showing a top five of Fox News, Fox News, Occupy Democrats, Ben Shapiro, Ben Shapiro — John Hegeman fired back.
Hegeman, who took over the News Feed in 2018 after Adam Mosseri left to run Instagram, showed up on the timeline with a six-part response culminating in a (beautifully designed) graphic. The graphic looks at the popularity of Facebook posts in two ways.
The first is by what social media heads call “engagement,” or interactions — likes, comments, shares. This is what CrowdTangle measures, and Roose is representing in his tweets. Note that CrowdTangle measures only interactions on posts from publisher pages — if someone shares a New York Times link to their own page, it doesn’t get counted.
The second is by what we call “reach” — the number of people who scrolled by the link in their News Feed, regardless of whether they clicked it or engaged with it in any way.
It turns out if you do this, you see that Americans have been seeing much more mainstream news in the News Feed than the CrowdTangle data would suggest. For example, on July 5th, when the top CrowdTangle links came from Franklin Graham, Ben Shapiro, and Breitbart, the links with the most reach came from the Los Angeles Times, MSNBC, and something called Ranker.com (“the weirdest small towns in the United States”). ABC News, the New York Daily News, and People also made strong showings.
“While some link posts get a lot of interactions, likes or comments, this content is a tiny % of what most people see on FB,” Hegeman tweeted. “News from these pages don’t represent the most viewed news stories on FB, either.”
Ultimately, Hegeman said, reach data better reflects how Facebook builds its algorithms (solidly in the mainstream) while engagement data better reflects user behavior (frothing-at-the-mouth partisan). In this view, Facebook is providing most people with a News Feed where the views track roughly with what you could expect from a typical newspaper, but if your News Feed full of reactionary outrage bait, hey — that’s on you.
I’m told that Facebook decided to spin up some graphics after Roose inquired on Twitter about how to build a bot that tweets out the CrowdTangle stats every day. Advertisers and policy makers had asked Facebook about the Roose tweets, sources familiar with the subject told me, and they had become of increasing concern to Hegeman, Facebook app lead Fidji Simo, and other employees who work on the News Feed. They worried the CrowdTangle data painted an inaccurate picture of what most people see in the News Feed, and some fumed that Roose only seemed to tweet on days when right-wing pages were atop the leaderboard.
“I started tweeting these lists a few years ago because most people don’t have CrowdTangle access, and it’s a useful way to track what’s happening on the world’s biggest media platform,” Roose told me on Tuesday. “Facebook is welcome to post its own lists (Really! I don’t want to keep doing this!) or share other kinds of data it thinks better reflects what’s popular on Facebook.”
Hegeman said that the company is exploring ways of making reach data public for the first time. The main reason it has not been public to date, I’m told, is that it could raise privacy concerns — you don’t want CrowdTangle making public how many people saw your birthday fundraiser post, probably. At the same time, if Facebook can share which big publishers are getting the most interactions, it can probably also share which are getting the most reach, and if it limits its list to the top 1,000 or so publishers on the site I imagine it can avoid most privacy issues.
Ultimately, in exasperating Facebook into sharing more data, Roose has done us all a service. It is not just journalists who will benefit from better understanding the reach of the biggest Facebook posts — scan Hegeman’s mentions and you’ll see a host of academics also salivating at the prospect. There will never be a single answer to the question of what people should see when they open Facebook. But given the power of the platform, it seems more than fair to ask what they are seeing.
The Ratio
Today in news that could change public perception of the big tech companies
🔼 Trending up: Apple has committed to being 100 percent carbon neutral for its supply chain and products by 2030. The company is already carbon neutral for its global corporate operations, but the new commitment would mean every Apple device sold would have net zero climate impact. (Apple)
🔃 Trending sideways: Facebook started labeling posts about the November election, including those from President Trump and Joe Biden. The labels do not contain a fact-check about whether the information is true or false, though. (Donie O’Sullivan and Marshall Cohen / CNN)
Governing
⭐ The House voted to ban federal employees from downloading TikTok on government-issued devices. The policy is part of a package of bipartisan amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act, which the Senate is expected to vote on later this week.
National security concerns about TikTok, owned by Chinese tech giant ByteDance, have picked up steam amid fears that U.S. users’ personal information could fall into the hands of government officials in Beijing. TikTok has said it has never handed over user data to the Chinese government, and that it would not do so if asked. But the assurances have done little to assuage its critics on Capitol Hill and across Washington, who are now pushing for more sweeping action against the platform. [Rep. Ken Buck] called TikTok a “serious national security threat” during a floor speech Monday before the vote and said the data the company collects from U.S. consumers “could be used in a cyberattack against our republic” if shared with Chinese government officials.
Lawmakers are jockeying to shape the the July 27th antitrust hearing, where the CEOs of Apple, Amazon, Google, and Facebook are set to testify before a House panel. Some want the executives to testify individually rather than as a group. Republicans are also pushing to open the hearing to lawmakers outside the antitrust subcommittee. I’m gonna have to vote no on that one! (Cristiano Lima / Politico)
The House antitrust panel recently interviewed Brad Smith, president and chief legal officer of Microsoft. The discussion centered on Microsoft’s history of antitrust regulation, but Smith also brought up his concerns over how Apple runs its App Store. (Christopher Stern and Nick Wingfield / The Information)
Democrats are worried about a potential Russia-linked effort to interfere in the election by using a Senate panel to advance smears against presidential candidate Joe Biden. The worry is that Russian-linked information is being funneled to those investigating Biden and his son, who was once paid as a board member of a Ukrainian energy company. (David E. Sanger, Nicholas Fandos and Julian E. Barnes / The Information)
US officials accused China of sponsoring criminal hackers who are targeting biotech firms around the world working on coronavirus vaccines. The FBI said the Chinese government was acting like “an organized criminal syndicate.” (Ellen Nakashima and Devlin Barrett / The New York Times)
Coinbase said that it prevented little over 1,100 customers from sending 30.4 bitcoin (currently worth about $278,000) to Twitter hackers last week. But 14 customers still fell prey, and sent around $3,000 worth of bitcoin to hackers before the exchange blacklisted their addresses. (Yogita Khatri / The Block)
Facebook board member Peter Thiel is spending $850,000 on the Senate race of a hard-line anti-immigration candidate in Kansas. Kris Kobach has been linked to Trump’s Muslim ban, and is currently involved in a private crowdfunded effort to build a wall along the southern border. (Russell Brandom / The Verge)
Facebook is slowing its donations to US politicians. The company’s political action committee is on track to spend significantly in 2020 than it did in either 2016 or 2018 — despite tripling revenues since 2016. (Rob Price / Business Insider)
Columbia Journalism Review is doing a series of interviews with organizers of the Facebook ad boycott. This one, with Jessica González, co–chief executive of Free Press, highlights organizers’ dissatisfaction with how the company has responded to calls for different policies surrounding hate speech on the platform. (Columbia Journalism Review)
South Korea’s quarantine app had serious security flaws that could have allowed attackers to see the names and real-time locations of people in quarantine. The app, which helped enforce quarantines, was a cornerstone of the country’s successful strategy to control the virus. (Choe Sang-Hun, Aaron Krolik, Raymond Zhong and Natasha Singer / The New York Times)
Industry
⭐ Since the start of 2020, big tech companies in the US have invested around $17 billion in India. The spike in investments is likely due to India’s growing tensions with China, which have spilled over into the tech sector and created an opening for US companies. Here’s Rishi Iyengar at CNN:
US distrust of Chinese tech continues to grow. President Donald Trump last week claimed credit for thwarting the expansion plans of Chinese tech company Huawei, and his administration has said it is “looking at” banning hugely popular short-form video app TikTok, owned by China’s ByteDance. It’s a step that would only further align the US with India. The Indian government banned TikTok and dozens of Chinese apps last month, after a border clash between the two countries that left 20 Indian soldiers dead led to calls for a boycott of Chinese products. And though India’s tech relationship with China still runs deep — Chinese smartphones dominate the Indian market, and most of India’s biggest startups have sizable Chinese investment — the recent tensions could strengthen India’s longstanding tech ties with the US.
In Bangladesh, Facebook groups are acting as e-commerce platforms because and Amazon and eBay don’t exist. The low barrier to entry presents a big opportunity for a generation of young Bangladeshis reeling from mass layoffs and fear of rising unemployment. (Nilesh Christopher / Rest of World)
Jeff Bezos added $13 billion to his net worth on Monday due to a 7.9 percent surge in Amazon shares. It’s the largest single-day jump for an individual since the Bloomberg Billionaires Index was created in 2012. (Jack Pitcher / Bloomberg)
Amazon is delaying Prime Day in the US until later this year. The event is typically held in mid-July, but the company is still struggling with skyrocketing demand due to the coronavirus pandemic, as well as ongoing pressure to keep its workers safe. (Jon Porter / The Verge)
Amazon is expanding its robot delivery trials to Georgia and Tennessee. The six-wheel delivery robot, Scout, debuted in January 2019 in Washington. (James Vincent / The Verge)
Pay attention to written Amazon reviews, not just the star ratings. Also, sort by “most recent” to help avoid falling for inauthentic reviews. (Jon Keegan / The Markup)
TikTok plans to add 10,000 jobs in the US over the next three years. The announcement comes as TikTok faces increased scrutiny (and a potential ban) from the White House. (Margaret Harding McGill / Axios)
LinkedIn plans to cut about 960 jobs, or 6 percent of its global workforce, due to the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic. Jobs will be cut primarily across sales and hiring divisions. (Supantha Mukherjee / Reuters)
Instagram is testing out a new personal fundraising feature. The test is launching in the United States, United Kingdom, and Ireland to let users raise money for their own personal causes. It’s available first for Android users, with iPhones to follow. (Ashley Carman / The Verge)
Things to do
Stuff to occupy you online during quarantine
Triangulate your personal opinion on banning TikTok. Alex Stamos made a handy graphic.
Read about another dull quarantine weekend at home, Target, Home Depot, Chipotle, and our niece’s graduation party. “After the kids were in bed, it started to rain, so we all got hammered in the Petersons’ basement, six feet apart. I wish more people understood how much fun you can have while socially distancing.”
Those good tweets
Talk to us


theverge--2020-07-22--Watch how the Nintendo Switch runs Crysis Remastered in Digital Foundry’s graphical review

Thirteen years after the game ’ s original release , the question “ But can it run Crysis ” continues to be an in-joke among gamers , referring to whether any new piece of hardware is powerful enough to run Crytek ’ s graphically demanding game .
Now , we have proof that Nintendo ’ s handheld Switch is capable of the task ; Eurogamer ’ s Digital Foundry , an outlet renowned for their technical breakdowns , created a video that shows the differences between every version of Crysis released thus far and how the Nintendo Switch runs the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shocked that Crytek managed to create a competent port of Crysis Remastered on Switch .
It ’ s not all good , though .
Here are a few takeaways from Digital Foundry ’ s video : • It ’ s fairly crisp for a Switch game !
While the game can sometimes drop to an ugly 540p resolution or lower , it manages to hit the Switch ’ s native screen resolution of 720p on average • Global illumination , something not found in the original PC version , adds a more dramatic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ certain areas like a building that has natural light pouring in from a window • The detail on materials and surfaces such as your nanosuit , roads and other surfaces have been dialed back to the point they look extremely muddy and lack photorealism • You can still destroy buildings with grenades , shoot off boards on a bridge , and topple trees — but the game will chug momentarily • When diving underwater , there ’ s barely anything under the surface — most plants and rocks are gone on Switch • @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , “ Ascension , ” is still missing on Switch , likely due to how even the fastest PC parts available in 2018 struggled to maintain 30 fps In terms of Switch ports , Crysis Remastered seems better than The Outer Worlds , Obsidian ’ s critically-acclaimed 2019 ARPG that is playable but has blurred and ugly textures .
But , when compared to ports of Doom 2016 and Wolfenstein II : The New Colossus — two games that were “ impossible ” to port to Switch — Crysis Remastered leaves some things @ @ @ @ @ @ @ aside , both of those other games managed to keep all the content from the original releases , while Crysis Remastered is still missing that entire level , something that to this date can only be played on the original PC version .
Despite all its shortcomings , Digital Foundry says the Nintendo Switch version is “ without a doubt the best console release of a Crysis game to date , ” at least until the PS4 and Xbox One remastered versions come out .
Crysis Remastered will launch on Nintendo Switch first @ @ @ @ @ @ @ PS4 , and Xbox One versions do not have a new release date as of yet .
Go read Digital Foundry ’ s in-depth full report to see why they think Crysis Remastered for Nintendo Switch is a port worth checking out .

Thirteen years after the game’s original release, the question “But can it run Crysis ” continues to be an in-joke among gamers, referring to whether any new piece of hardware is powerful enough to run Crytek’s graphically demanding game. Now, we have proof that Nintendo’s handheld Switch is capable of the task; Eurogamer’s Digital Foundry, an outlet renowned for their technical breakdowns, created a video that shows the differences between every version of Crysis released thus far and how the Nintendo Switch runs the game.
I myself was kind of shocked that Crytek managed to create a competent port of Crysis Remastered on Switch. It’s not all good, though. Here are a few takeaways from Digital Foundry’s video:
It’s fairly crisp for a Switch game! While the game can sometimes drop to an ugly 540p resolution or lower, it manages to hit the Switch’s native screen resolution of 720p on average
Global illumination, something not found in the original PC version, adds a more dramatic atmosphere to the game, particularly in certain areas like a building that has natural light pouring in from a window
The detail on materials and surfaces such as your nanosuit, roads and other surfaces have been dialed back to the point they look extremely muddy and lack photorealism
You can still destroy buildings with grenades, shoot off boards on a bridge, and topple trees — but the game will chug momentarily
When diving underwater, there’s barely anything under the surface — most plants and rocks are gone on Switch
The game’s entire tenth mission, “Ascension,” is still missing on Switch, likely due to how even the fastest PC parts available in 2018 struggled to maintain 30 fps
In terms of Switch ports, Crysis Remastered seems better than The Outer Worlds, Obsidian’s critically-acclaimed 2019 ARPG that is playable but has blurred and ugly textures. But, when compared to ports of Doom 2016 and Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus — two games that were “impossible” to port to Switch — Crysis Remastered leaves some things to be desired. Slightly muddy visuals aside, both of those other games managed to keep all the content from the original releases, while Crysis Remastered is still missing that entire level, something that to this date can only be played on the original PC version.
Despite all its shortcomings, Digital Foundry says the Nintendo Switch version is “without a doubt the best console release of a Crysis game to date,” at least until the PS4 and Xbox One remastered versions come out.


theverge--2020-07-22--Twitter says hackers accessed the DMs of one elected official in last week’s attack

Twitter believes the perpetrators of last week ’ s unprecedented attack on the company accessed the direct message ( DM ) inbox of an elected official in the Netherlands , the company said Wednesday evening .
The revelation comes as part of the company ’ s ongoing investigation into last Thursday ’ s attack that allowed attackers to hijack the accounts of some of the service ’ s most high-profile users , including politicians Barack Obama and Joe Biden , to tweet a bitcoin scam .
In total , Twitter said it believes attackers accessed the DMs of up to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ including that elected official .
Twitter has “ no indication ” that other elected officials had their DMs accessed as part of the attack , however .
This wasn ’ t the first indication that DMs were a target for the attackers .
They attempted to download the “ Your Twitter Data ” archive for up to 8 accounts — a collection of data that does includes DMs — Twitter said in a blog post on Friday .
The company claims that none of those affected accounts were verified , however , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Joe Biden having their DMs accessed in that particular way .
Twitter also said Friday that the attackers weren ’ t able to view previous account passwords of the 130 targeted accounts , though they had the potential to see personal information like email addresses and phone numbers .
For 45 of the targeted accounts , attackers were able to initiate a password reset , log in , and tweet , according to Twitter , allowing them to pose not just as Obama and Biden but also Tesla CEO Elon Musk , Microsoft @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and others .

Twitter believes the perpetrators of last week’s unprecedented attack on the company accessed the direct message (DM) inbox of an elected official in the Netherlands, the company said Wednesday evening. The revelation comes as part of the company’s ongoing investigation into last Thursday’s attack that allowed attackers to hijack the accounts of some of the service’s most high-profile users, including politicians Barack Obama and Joe Biden, to tweet a bitcoin scam.
Although Twitter didn’t name the Dutch official, local media reported last week that far-right, anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders, had his account hacked, retweeting a number of conspiracy theories and replacing Wilders’ profile photo with a caricature of a Black man and Moroccan flag. A hacker interviewed on Dutch radio also claimed to have access to Wilders’ DMs at the time.
In total, Twitter said it believes attackers accessed the DMs of up to 36 of the 130 targeted accounts, including that elected official. Twitter has “no indication” that other elected officials had their DMs accessed as part of the attack, however.
This wasn’t the first indication that DMs were a target for the attackers. They also attempted to download the “Your Twitter Data” archive for up to 8 accounts — a collection of data that does include DMs — Twitter said in a blog post on Friday. The company claims that none of those affected accounts were verified, however, which would seem to rule out politicians like Joe Biden having their DMs accessed in that particular way.
Twitter also said Friday that the attackers weren’t able to view previous account passwords of the 130 targeted accounts, though they had the potential to see personal information like email addresses and phone numbers.
For 45 of the targeted accounts, attackers were able to initiate a password reset, log in, and tweet, according to Twitter, allowing them to pose not just as Obama and Biden but also Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, Kanye West, and others.


theverge--2020-07-22--The New York Times is acquiring the podcast studio that created Serial and S-Town

The New York Times has acquired the audio production company behind the popular podcast series Serial , which is widely credited with helping popularize the modern narrative podcast movement .
The company , called Serial Productions , was formed in 2017 by Sarah Koenig , Julie Snyder , and Ira Glass after the success of the podcast ’ s initial season three years prior , and the team has gone on to produce two follow-up seasons of Serial and a standalone podcast called S-Town .
Terms of the deal were not disclosed .
As part of the deal , The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ being described as an “ ongoing creative and strategic alliance ” with This American Life , the syndicated radio program from which Serial was originally spun off and for which Glass still works as a host .
The parent company of This American Life will remain independent , but Serial Productions will now be considered one of The Times ’ independent podcast teams alongside the hugely successful The Daily and other programs .
The New York Times is also entering into a partnership with This American Life The first joint show from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ starts next week : As Serial Productions joins The Times , the team plans to produce a number of shows and series under The Times and Serial Productions banner .
The first , “ Nice White Parents , ” will bring listeners along with award-winning reporter Chana Joffe-Walt as she examines the role white families play in shaping public education .
You can listen to the trailer tomorrow , with the first two episodes available on Thursday , July 30 on NYTimes.com or wherever you get your podcasts .
“ We ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wanted to find a home where we felt shared values , one where we would be supported and resourced to tell more stories , of the highest quality , ” Snyder , who is Serial Productions executive editor , said in statement .
“ We ’ re thrilled to be joining The Times , where they have demonstrated a commitment to pursuing the possibilities of audio and long-form narrative journalism.
” The Times deal will greatly benefit the paper ’ s growing audio journalism ambitions , but it ’ s also a signal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more competitive and now experiencing some consolidation as a result .
Spotify , for example , is using its financial might to scoop up exclusives with big names like Kim Kardashian West and Joe Rogan , after having acquired big podcast production companies like Bill Simmons ’ The Ringer and Reply All parent company Gimlet Media .
Earlier today , Spotify announced a new video podcast feature that will mean its competing even more directly with YouTube .
And Apple , which has remained one of the biggest distributors of podcasts to date @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the originals game with its announcement of a new daily news podcast of its own earlier this month .

The New York Times has acquired the audio production company behind the popular podcast series Serial, which is widely credited with helping popularize the modern narrative podcast movement. The company, called Serial Productions, was formed in 2017 by Sarah Koenig, Julie Snyder, and Ira Glass after the success of the podcast’s initial season three years prior, and the team has gone on to produce two follow-up seasons of Serial and a standalone podcast called S-Town. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
As part of the deal, The Times is entering into what’s being described as an “ongoing creative and strategic alliance” with This American Life, the syndicated radio program from which Serial was originally spun off and for which Glass still works as a host. The parent company of This American Life will remain independent, but Serial Productions will now be considered one of The Times’ independent podcast teams alongside the hugely successful The Daily and other programs.
The New York Times is also entering into a partnership with This American Life
The first joint show from the new combined teams, detailed below, starts next week:
As Serial Productions joins The Times, the team plans to produce a number of shows and series under The Times and Serial Productions banner. The first, “Nice White Parents,” will bring listeners along with award-winning reporter Chana Joffe-Walt as she examines the role white families play in shaping public education. You can listen to the trailer tomorrow, with the first two episodes available on Thursday, July 30 on NYTimes.com or wherever you get your podcasts.
“We’re incredibly proud of ‘Serial’ and wanted to find a home where we felt shared values, one where we would be supported and resourced to tell more stories, of the highest quality,” Snyder, who is Serial Productions executive editor, said in statement. “We’re thrilled to be joining The Times, where they have demonstrated a commitment to pursuing the possibilities of audio and long-form narrative journalism.”
The Times deal will greatly benefit the paper’s growing audio journalism ambitions, but it’s also a signal that the podcast market is becoming ever more competitive and now experiencing some consolidation as a result. Spotify, for example, is using its financial might to scoop up exclusives with big names like Kim Kardashian West and Joe Rogan, after having acquired big podcast production companies like Bill Simmons’ The Ringer and Reply All parent company Gimlet Media.


theverge--2020-07-22--Microsoft’s AI-powered ‘Eye Contact’ feature is finally coming to the Surface Pro X

Microsoft ’ s AI-powered “ eye contact ” feature for the Surface Pro X is finally starting to roll out , months after it was originally announced for the ARM-powered Surface laptop last year .
The new feature is rolling out now as part of Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 20175 , which means that it likely isn ’ t too far from a broad release .
According to Microsoft , the new feature relies on the “ artificial intelligence capabilities of the Microsoft SQ1 processor ” to adjust where your eyes are looking in a video call or chat @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to be making eye contact with the camera — even if the lens is off to the side or you ’ re looking down at your display .
When enabled , the eye contact correction will automatically apply to any app that uses the front camera ( like Zoom , Skype , or Google Meet ) , although it only works when the Surface Pro X is in landscape mode .
An interview with VentureBeat from last fall indicates that the technology involves the unique AI capabilities of the ARM-based SQ1 processor , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
That means that it won ’ t be available on regular , x86 Windows computers — the kind of processing going on here just draws too much power to be practical on a regular machine .
If this sounds familiar , that ’ s because Microsoft isn ’ t the only company working on AI-corrected gazes : Apple has been working on a similar “ FaceTime Attention Correction ” feature for some time , with early versions of the functionality showing up in iOS 13 betas last year before getting pulled from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ iOS 14 website does list the feature , though , so iPhone and iPad users won ’ t have too long to wait before they ’ re able to fake paying attention during long FaceTime calls , too .

Microsoft’s AI-powered “eye contact” feature for the Surface Pro X is finally starting to roll out, months after it was originally announced for the ARM-powered Surface laptop last year.
The new feature is rolling out now as part of Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 20175, which means that it likely isn’t too far from a broad release.
According to Microsoft, the new feature relies on the “artificial intelligence capabilities of the Microsoft SQ1 processor” to adjust where your eyes are looking in a video call or chat to make sure that you always appear to be making eye contact with the camera — even if the lens is off to the side or you’re looking down at your display. When enabled, the eye contact correction will automatically apply to any app that uses the front camera (like Zoom, Skype, or Google Meet), although it only works when the Surface Pro X is in landscape mode.
An interview with VentureBeat from last fall indicates that the technology involves the unique AI capabilities of the ARM-based SQ1 processor, enabling the feature on the Surface X. That means that it won’t be available on regular, x86 Windows computers — the kind of processing going on here just draws too much power to be practical on a regular machine.


theverge--2020-07-22--Remember the chumbox providers? This is how they look now

You know that chumbox of weird garbage that appears at the bottom of most news sites , including this one ?
You know the one !
It ’ s labeled “ Promoted stories ” or “ Around the web.
” It ’ s got headlines like : “ 1 Weird Trick to Lose Weight , ” “ You Won ’ t Believe What [ STAR NAME HERE ] Looks Like Today !
, ” and “ Throw this vegetable out !
” There are two major players in the field — Taboola and Outbrain — and the Justice Department has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ called chumboxes ?
Well , chum is fishbait — you throw decomposing fish guts , blood , and bones into the water to lure other fish .
A chumbox is like this but for humans online .
You won ’ t BELIEVE why publishers are using them These chumboxes exist because they ’ re more lucrative than other kinds of advertising : you add them to your site — that ’ s free !
— and then make money off the unwary souls who want to know “ Is CBD good for my @ @ @ @ @ @ @ evidently , good : besides Vox Media , Bloomberg , Business Insider , The Washington Post , CNN , and more feature these boxes at the bottoms of their stories .
“ This is clearly working , somehow , ” said Eric Hadley , former marketing chief at Outbrain , told The New York Times last year .
“ You may laugh at these ads , but people click on them.
” But maybe the money isn ’ t good enough ?
When the merger was announced last year , TechCrunch described its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and size of the audience in order to compete against Facebook and Google .
According to TechCrunch , each company was “ already clearing $ 1 billion in revenues annually.
” Outbrain shareholders get $ 250 million in cash and 30 percent of the stock in the combined company , which will be called Taboola and will be led by Taboola CEO Adam Singolda .
When the merger was announced , the Justice Department “ spent months examining company documents , interviewing top executives and talking to both companies ’ customers , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the DOJ waved the merger through because “ other companies were getting into the sponsored-content game , ” the Journal said .
Those competitors include Gemini ( owned by Verizon ) and a new , unnamed product from Google , according to the WSJ .
Human-sized bird has one weird trick for dodging antitrust allegations The US antitrust inquiry isn ’ t the only one .
The UK ’ s Competition and Markets Authority is looking into whether the merger will decrease competition in digital advertising .
The acquisition is part of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that began in 2019 and may be accelerated by the cratering ad market in the pandemic .
Ad spending is expected to slump 10 percent this year , The Economist reports .
Scale is important for competing with Facebook and Google in ads .
Both companies are behemoths , and combined , they represent two-thirds of worldwide digital ads , The Economist reports .
Chumboxes have an advantage that Google and Facebook don ’ t : they are placed on the publisher ’ s own page .
Facebook and Google , on the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , but that traffic might not stay to click around .
Please enjoy the chumbox at the end of this article .

You know that chumbox of weird garbage that appears at the bottom of most news sites, including this one? You know the one! It’s labeled “Promoted stories” or “Around the web.” It’s got headlines like: “1 Weird Trick to Lose Weight,” “You Won’t Believe What [STAR NAME HERE] Looks Like Today!,” and “Throw this vegetable out!” There are two major players in the field — Taboola and Outbrain — and the Justice Department has approved their merger.
Why are they called chumboxes? Well, chum is fishbait — you throw decomposing fish guts, blood, and bones into the water to lure other fish. A chumbox is like this but for humans online.
You won’t BELIEVE why publishers are using them
These chumboxes exist because they’re more lucrative than other kinds of advertising: you add them to your site — that’s free! — and then make money off the unwary souls who want to know “Is CBD good for my pet?” The money is, evidently, good: besides Vox Media, Bloomberg, Business Insider, The Washington Post, CNN, and more feature these boxes at the bottoms of their stories.
“This is clearly working, somehow,” said Eric Hadley, former marketing chief at Outbrain, told The New York Times last year. “You may laugh at these ads, but people click on them.”
But maybe the money isn’t good enough? When the merger was announced last year, TechCrunch described its goal as increasing the number of customers and size of the audience in order to compete against Facebook and Google. According to TechCrunch, each company was “already clearing $1 billion in revenues annually.”
[Gallery] The most-celebrated chumbox providers
Outbrain shareholders get $250 million in cash and 30 percent of the stock in the combined company, which will be called Taboola and will be led by Taboola CEO Adam Singolda.
When the merger was announced, the Justice Department “spent months examining company documents, interviewing top executives and talking to both companies’ customers,” The Wall Street Journal reported. Ultimately, the DOJ waved the merger through because “other companies were getting into the sponsored-content game,” the Journal said. Those competitors include Gemini (owned by Verizon) and a new, unnamed product from Google, according to the WSJ.
Human-sized bird has one weird trick for dodging antitrust allegations
The US antitrust inquiry isn’t the only one. The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority is looking into whether the merger will decrease competition in digital advertising. The acquisition is part of a larger wave of advertising industry consolidation that began in 2019 and may be accelerated by the cratering ad market in the pandemic. Ad spending is expected to slump 10 percent this year, The Economist reports.
Scale is important for competing with Facebook and Google in ads. Both companies are behemoths, and combined, they represent two-thirds of worldwide digital ads, The Economist reports.
Surgeon reveals a simple method for merging chumboxes


theverge--2020-07-22--Tesla will build Cybertruck factory in Austin, Texas

Tesla will build its next US factory in Austin , Texas , CEO Elon Musk announced today , wrapping up a months-long search for a location to build the upcoming Cybertruck .
Construction work is “ already underway , ” Musk said .
“ It started this weekend.
” Tesla was recently granted tens of millions of dollars in tax breaks from both the county in Texas where the factory will be built and from a local school district .
The company was also considering Tulsa , Oklahoma , and Musk said Tesla would “ strongly consider ” it for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Texas will be open to the public , Musk said , and that there will be a boardwalk and hiking and biking trails .
“ It ’ s going to basically be an ecological paradise .
Birds in the trees , butterflies , fish in the stream , ” he said .
In addition to the Cybertruck , Tesla will also build Model Ys and Model 3s destined for the East Coast , as well as the Tesla Semi , Musk said .
It will be the company ’ s fourth factory in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in California , battery factory in Nevada , and solar factory in New York .
Tesla also has a new vehicle factory outside Shanghai , China , and is building another factory outside Berlin , Germany .
The site where Tesla is building the factory consists of about 2,100 acres of land east of the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport , with about two miles of exposure to Texas ’ Colorado river .
It ’ s largely unused at the moment , though a sand and gravel mining company operates in the center of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ county officials , Tesla ’ s senior global director of public policy said this of the site : Tesla plans to hire up to 5,000 workers at an average salary of $ 47,147 , with entry-level positions starting at $ 35,000 .
It will invest at least $ 1 billion and is planning to make a factory of between 4 and 5 million square feet .
“ Tesla is one of the most exciting and innovative companies in the world , and we are proud to welcome its team to the State of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Abbott said in a statement .
“ Texas has the best workforce in the nation and we ’ ve built an economic environment that allows companies like Tesla to innovate and succeed .
Tesla ’ s Gigafactory Texas will keep the Texas economy the strongest in the nation and will create thousands of jobs for hard-working Texans .
I look forward to the tremendous benefits that Tesla ’ s investment will bring to Central Texas and to the entire state.
” It ’ s currently unclear what , if any , promises Tesla @ @ @ @ @ @ @ choosing to build in the Austin area .
Kevin Stitt , the governor of Oklahoma , said in a statement that he will be “ actively recruiting Tesla ’ s supplier base to Oklahoma , ” and that just being a finalist has raised the state ’ s profile .
“ Over the past few months , Tulsans and Oklahomans as a whole showed the nation and the world that our state is worthy of being one of two finalists for an innovative , cutting-edge company like Tesla , ” Stitt said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ all the best .
In fact , I wish them so much success they are forced to expand again , because I know just the place.
” Steve Adler , the mayor of Austin , said in a statement that the factory will be “ an important economic boost in East Austin , especially as we fight the economic effects of the virus.
” “ It ’ s like being invited to the prom with our dress and corsage on ” “ Tesla moving to Austin is exciting .
It gives us three @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It gives us thousands of good wage jobs that don ’ t need a 4-year degree .
Its factory will be better for people and the planet , ” Adler said .
Reached for comment Wednesday afternoon , Hector Nieto , the public information officer for Travis County , Texas , said that county officials had not been notified of any decision .
“ It ’ s like being invited to the prom with our dress and corsage on , but we ’ re still waiting for them to show up.
” Musk @ @ @ @ @ @ @ spot to build a new factory back in March .
“ Scouting locations for Cybertruck Gigafactory .
Will be central USA , ” he tweeted on March 10th .
Nashville , Tennessee was reportedly an early candidate , before Austin and Tulsa ultimately emerged as the finalists .
Officials in ( and residents of ) Tulsa put on a lot of flashy moves , like painting a 70-foot-tall statue of an oil driller to look like Musk .
Patel said last month that Tesla had held conversations with “ nearly every state and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ While Tesla took its time working out a massive deal for its first Gigafactory in Nevada a few years back , the company was far more expedient this time around .
The process only seemed to accelerate in May when Musk threatened to pull Tesla out of California over the public health orders that forced the company to close its vehicle factory there , and multiple reports soon sprouted that Austin and Tulsa were the finalists .
Not long after , Tesla started having public discussions about tax incentives for a possible deal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of those those meetings that many residents expressed concern about Musk ’ s behavior during the pandemic , and especially the battle he picked with Alameda County , where Tesla ’ s California factory is located .
Local union members also repeatedly pressed officials during these meetings to get Tesla to agree to better wages and worker protections .
Tesla did ultimately agree to some concessions , like paying food service and janitorial workers the same $ 15 per hour minimum wage that entry-level factory workers will make .
However , many more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ during those meetings about the idea of Tesla building a factory in Austin .
In the final meeting of the Travis County Commissioners Court , the policy-making and administrative arm of the local government , a common phrase emerged among those in support of bringing Tesla to Texas : that this was a “ generational ” opportunity that Austin shouldn ’ t miss out on .
Commissioner Jeffrey Travillion said his precinct , which is where the factory will be , represents “ the greatest amounts of poverty and the smallest amounts of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ economic resources ” in the Austin area .
Travillion , who was advocating for approving the tax package in response to a request to delay the vote , said he felt the Tesla factory could help address those problems .
“ If we are talking about a transformational process that will address poverty and opportunity in that area for generations , it would be difficult for me to accept that we have a consensus moving forward and we didn ’ t make a decision , and allowed this project to go to another @ @ @ @ @ @

Tesla will build its next US factory in Austin, Texas, CEO Elon Musk announced today, wrapping up a months-long search for a location to build the upcoming Cybertruck. Construction work is “already underway,” Musk said. “It started this weekend.”
Tesla was recently granted tens of millions of dollars in tax breaks from both the county in Texas where the factory will be built and from a local school district. The company was also considering Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Musk said Tesla would “strongly consider” it for future projects.
The new factory in Texas will be open to the public, Musk said, and that there will be a boardwalk and hiking and biking trails. “It’s going to basically be an ecological paradise. Birds in the trees, butterflies, fish in the stream,” he said.
Construction is already underway
In addition to the Cybertruck, Tesla will also build Model Ys and Model 3s destined for the East Coast, as well as the Tesla Semi, Musk said. It will be the company’s fourth factory in the US, following the vehicle factory in California, battery factory in Nevada, and solar factory in New York. Tesla also has a new vehicle factory outside Shanghai, China, and is building another factory outside Berlin, Germany.
The site where Tesla is building the factory consists of about 2,100 acres of land east of the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, with about two miles of exposure to Texas’ Colorado river. It’s largely unused at the moment, though a sand and gravel mining company operates in the center of the development. In a June meeting with county officials, Tesla’s senior global director of public policy said this of the site:
The potential is just great for recreation, for beauty, and the vision of being able to potentially transform an old mining site into a sustainable factory with recreational opportunities — that’s just a vision that sits perfectly with our mission.
Previous Next
1 / 8 The Southeast corner of the Austin Green development property Tesla is considering buying for its Cybertruck factory runs up agains Texas’ Colorado River. Photo by Sean O’Kane / The Verge Previous Next
1 / 8 The Southeast corner of the Austin Green development property Tesla is considering buying for its Cybertruck factory runs up agains Texas’ Colorado River. Photo by Sean O’Kane / The Verge
Tesla plans to hire up to 5,000 workers at an average salary of $47,147, with entry-level positions starting at $35,000. It will invest at least $1 billion and is planning to make a factory of between 4 and 5 million square feet.
“Tesla is one of the most exciting and innovative companies in the world, and we are proud to welcome its team to the State of Texas,” Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said in a statement. “Texas has the best workforce in the nation and we’ve built an economic environment that allows companies like Tesla to innovate and succeed. Tesla’s Gigafactory Texas will keep the Texas economy the strongest in the nation and will create thousands of jobs for hard-working Texans. I look forward to the tremendous benefits that Tesla’s investment will bring to Central Texas and to the entire state.”
It’s currently unclear what, if any, promises Tesla received from the state of Texas for choosing to build in the Austin area.
Kevin Stitt, the governor of Oklahoma, said in a statement that he will be “actively recruiting Tesla’s supplier base to Oklahoma,” and that just being a finalist has raised the state’s profile.
“Over the past few months, Tulsans and Oklahomans as a whole showed the nation and the world that our state is worthy of being one of two finalists for an innovative, cutting-edge company like Tesla,” Stitt said. “I wish Elon Musk and Tesla all the best. In fact, I wish them so much success they are forced to expand again, because I know just the place.”
Steve Adler, the mayor of Austin, said in a statement that the factory will be “an important economic boost in East Austin, especially as we fight the economic effects of the virus.”
“It’s like being invited to the prom with our dress and corsage on”
“Tesla moving to Austin is exciting. It gives us three things we need in east Austin. It gives us thousands of good wage jobs that don’t need a 4-year degree. Its factory will be better for people and the planet,” Adler said.
Reached for comment Wednesday afternoon, Hector Nieto, the public information officer for Travis County, Texas, said that county officials had not been notified of any decision. “It’s like being invited to the prom with our dress and corsage on, but we’re still waiting for them to show up.”
While Tesla took its time working out a massive deal for its first Gigafactory in Nevada a few years back, the company was far more expedient this time around. The process only seemed to accelerate in May when Musk threatened to pull Tesla out of California over the public health orders that forced the company to close its vehicle factory there, and multiple reports soon sprouted that Austin and Tulsa were the finalists.
Not long after, Tesla started having public discussions about tax incentives for a possible deal in Austin. It was at one of those those meetings that many residents expressed concern about Musk’s behavior during the pandemic, and especially the battle he picked with Alameda County, where Tesla’s California factory is located. Local union members also repeatedly pressed officials during these meetings to get Tesla to agree to better wages and worker protections. Tesla did ultimately agree to some concessions, like paying food service and janitorial workers the same $15 per hour minimum wage that entry-level factory workers will make.
A “generational” opportunity for Austin
However, many more residents and local business owners expressed excitement during those meetings about the idea of Tesla building a factory in Austin. In the final meeting of the Travis County Commissioners Court, the policy-making and administrative arm of the local government, a common phrase emerged among those in support of bringing Tesla to Texas: that this was a “generational” opportunity that Austin shouldn’t miss out on.
Commissioner Jeffrey Travillion said his precinct, which is where the factory will be, represents “the greatest amounts of poverty and the smallest amounts of access to health, social, and economic resources” in the Austin area.
Travillion, who was advocating for approving the tax package in response to a request to delay the vote, said he felt the Tesla factory could help address those problems.


theverge--2020-07-22--Tesla turns a profit for the fourth quarter in a row — a first for the company

Tesla turned a profit of $ 104 million in the second quarter of 2020 despite shutting down its electric vehicle factory in Fremont , California , for roughly seven weeks because of the COVID-19 pandemic .
As a result , Tesla has now been profitable for four straight quarters for the first time in company history — an elusive benchmark the company has long sought .
But perhaps more importantly , Tesla says it has a “ site selected ” for its next Gigafactory in the US .
During a call with investors , Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Texas .
He described it as an “ ecological paradise ... with birds in the trees , butterflies , fish in the stream.
” The factory will also be open to the public , he said .
The company is on track to receive several tax incentive packages from local authorities in Austin , Texas , though it had also been in talks with Tulsa , Oklahoma .
Tesla will use the facility to build the Cybertruck and more Model Y SUVs .
“ We ’ re going to be doing a major @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
Tesla kept its finances in the black by selling 90,650 vehicles this past quarter even with that factory shutdown — an increase over its first quarter pace of 88,000 cars delivered but still below the company ’ s record of 112,000 in the fourth quarter of 2019 .
This helped the company generate $ 6 billion in revenue , buoyed by $ 370 million in energy storage sales and $ 487 million in services revenue .
Elon Musk has promised that his company will deliver 500,000 vehicles by the end of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is still possible .
Tesla says it ’ s installing “ additional machinery at the Fremont Factory , which is expected to increase total Model 3 / Model Y capacity from 400,000 to 500,000 units per year.
” Tesla once again wasn ’ t purely profitable based on its sales , though , as it also sold $ 428 million worth of regulatory credits in the quarter , an increase over the $ 354 million in credits it sold during Q1 of this year ( and a record for the company ) .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ thanks in large part to the pandemic .
And yet the company ’ s run of profitable quarters may now put it in the vaunted S & P 500 .
The company ’ s stock price is sure to rise as a result ( it is up sharply in after-hours trading ) , continuing an incredible run over the last few months that has seen it rebound from a low of around $ 360 per share to now well over $ 1,500 .
That run — which has been fueled by unprecedented stock @ @ @ @ @ @ @ released Model Y , and a swirl of other factors — has made Tesla the most valuable automaker in the world .
Tesla ’ s success in the second quarter of this year didn ’ t come easy Tesla ’ s success in the second quarter of this year didn ’ t come easy .
CEO Elon Musk fought a very public battle with local officials over the stay-at-home order that was put in place to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus .
He ultimately reopened the Fremont factory in violation of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ arrested , ” he tweeted in May , “ I ask that it only be me.
” Much like other automakers and factory operators around the country , Tesla has dealt with COVID-19 infections at its facilities .
Employees have spoken publicly — some even on the record , despite Tesla ’ s history of retaliation against whistleblowers — about the cramped conditions that they ’ ve had to work in , which seem to grate with the detailed “ return to work playbook ” that the company released in May .
Multiple @ @ @ @ @ @ @ positive for COVID-19 , though the company disputes exactly how many and says fewer than 10 contracted the novel coronavirus while at work .
If Tesla can keep COVID-19 from spreading through its workforce , and it doesn ’ t have to deal with any further shutdowns — neither of which are a given — it could be in for a very strong second half in 2020 .
It was able to deliver 122,000 cars in the final quarter of 2019 without the new factory in Shanghai , China ( which came online @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or the new Model Y SUV ( which started shipping in March ) .
Tesla is also working on more powerful versions of its older Model S and X vehicles that could break cover by the end of this year .
While the company isn ’ t on pace to hit its target of 500,000 deliveries in 2020 based on the first two quarters , that could change quickly if all of these factors come together .
It used to feel like a risky bet to believe Tesla could orchestrate such accomplishments .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the best with goal-setting or making accurate predictions .
But Tesla has been doing just that as of late , perhaps for the first time in the company ’ s 17-year history .
It met the low end of its delivery goal for 2019 despite a dreadful first quarter last year .
It shipped the Model Y months ahead of schedule .
It even finished the first quarter of 2020 with $ 8.1 billion in cash — the most in company history — just in time to afford some stability during one of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .

Tesla turned a profit of $104 million in the second quarter of 2020 despite shutting down its electric vehicle factory in Fremont, California, for roughly seven weeks because of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, Tesla has now been profitable for four straight quarters for the first time in company history — an elusive benchmark the company has long sought.
But perhaps more importantly, Tesla says it has a “site selected” for its next Gigafactory in the US. During a call with investors, Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced the factory would be located in Austin, Texas. He described it as an “ecological paradise... with birds in the trees, butterflies, fish in the stream.” The factory will also be open to the public, he said.
The company is on track to receive several tax incentive packages from local authorities in Austin, Texas, though it had also been in talks with Tulsa, Oklahoma. Tesla will use the facility to build the Cybertruck and more Model Y SUVs. “We’re going to be doing a major, major factory there,” Musk said.
“site selected”
Tesla kept its finances in the black by selling 90,650 vehicles this past quarter even with that factory shutdown — an increase over its first quarter pace of 88,000 cars delivered but still below the company’s record of 112,000 in the fourth quarter of 2019. This helped the company generate $6 billion in revenue, buoyed by $370 million in energy storage sales and $487 million in services revenue.
Elon Musk has promised that his company will deliver 500,000 vehicles by the end of 2020, and the company maintains that is still possible. Tesla says it’s installing “additional machinery at the Fremont Factory, which is expected to increase total Model 3 / Model Y capacity from 400,000 to 500,000 units per year.”
Tesla once again wasn’t purely profitable based on its sales, though, as it also sold $428 million worth of regulatory credits in the quarter, an increase over the $354 million in credits it sold during Q1 of this year (and a record for the company). Its overall revenue was down year-over-year, thanks in large part to the pandemic. And yet the company’s run of profitable quarters may now put it in the vaunted S&P 500.
The company’s stock price is sure to rise as a result (it is up sharply in after-hours trading), continuing an incredible run over the last few months that has seen it rebound from a low of around $360 per share to now well over $1,500. That run — which has been fueled by unprecedented stock market activity, optimism about the newly released Model Y, and a swirl of other factors — has made Tesla the most valuable automaker in the world.
Tesla’s success in the second quarter of this year didn’t come easy
Tesla’s success in the second quarter of this year didn’t come easy. CEO Elon Musk fought a very public battle with local officials over the stay-at-home order that was put in place to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus. He ultimately reopened the Fremont factory in violation of that order. “If anyone is arrested,” he tweeted in May, “I ask that it only be me.”
Much like other automakers and factory operators around the country, Tesla has dealt with COVID-19 infections at its facilities. Employees have spoken publicly — some even on the record, despite Tesla’s history of retaliation against whistleblowers — about the cramped conditions that they’ve had to work in, which seem to grate with the detailed “return to work playbook” that the company released in May. Multiple workers at the Fremont factory have tested positive for COVID-19, though the company disputes exactly how many and says fewer than 10 contracted the novel coronavirus while at work.
If Tesla can keep COVID-19 from spreading through its workforce, and it doesn’t have to deal with any further shutdowns — neither of which are a given — it could be in for a very strong second half in 2020. It was able to deliver 122,000 cars in the final quarter of 2019 without the new factory in Shanghai, China (which came online at the beginning of this year) or the new Model Y SUV (which started shipping in March). Tesla is also working on more powerful versions of its older Model S and X vehicles that could break cover by the end of this year. While the company isn’t on pace to hit its target of 500,000 deliveries in 2020 based on the first two quarters, that could change quickly if all of these factors come together.


theverge--2020-07-22--Microsoft just had a stellar three months thanks to Azure, Surface, and Xbox

Microsoft posted fiscal fourth quarter earnings on Wednesday , beating Wall Street expectations on both sales and profit for the past three months amid the economic downturn caused by COVID-19 .
In fact , it appears many of Microsoft ’ s various divisions are benefiting from the effects of the pandemic , with the shift to remote work and shelter-in-place orders around the world pushing people toward gaming , video conferencing , and other virtual pastimes .
“ The last five months have made it clear that tech intensity is the key to business resilience .
Organizations that build their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ emerge from this crisis stronger , ” Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said in a statement .
He goes on to say Microsoft is in the unique position of being able to “ help every organization transform and reimagine how they meet customer needs , ” in other words support remote work in the new reality .
The company says it earned $ 38.0 billion in revenue this past quarter , up 13 percent from a year ago .
Of that amount , $ 11.2 billion was profit , a 5 percent jump from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ main takeaway : Microsoft ’ s business is booming , thanks largely to its continued gains in the cloud computing sector and big jumps in Surface and Xbox revenues .
The company ’ s Intelligent Cloud sector contributed $ 13.4 billion for the quarter , a 17 percent jump from last year .
Most of the gains are thanks to Microsoft ’ s Azure platform , which grew nearly 50 percent .
“ Our commercial cloud surpassed $ 50 billion in annual revenue for the first time this year .
And this quarter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , growing 12 percent year-over-year , ” Microsoft Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood , said in a statement .
As for Surface and Xbox , it ’ s clear that , while not as big a moneymaker as Azure or the company 's Office and Windows divisions , are still growing considerably .
Microsoft says Surface revenue is up almost 30 percent in the past three months from this time a year ago , while Xbox “ content and services revenue , ” in other words game sales and subscriptions to Xbox Live @ @ @ @ @ @ @ percent .
Also helping this quarter are Microsoft 's quiet but steady revenue-drivers , including Windows OEM ( up 7 percent ) , Office Commercial ( up 5 percent ) , Office Consumer ( up 6 percent ) , and LinkedIn ( up 10 percent ) .
Thanks to its status as a relatively untouched company during the pandemic , Microsoft ’ s stock has been soaring and closed on Wednesday at $ 211.75 per share , just short of its all-time high of $ 216.38 .
The company is now the second @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a market cap of more than $ 1.6 trillion , narrowly beating Amazon and just slightly under Apple .

Microsoft posted fiscal fourth quarter earnings on Wednesday, beating Wall Street expectations on both sales and profit for the past three months amid the economic downturn caused by COVID-19. In fact, it appears many of Microsoft’s various divisions are benefiting from the effects of the pandemic, with the shift to remote work and shelter-in-place orders around the world pushing people toward gaming, video conferencing, and other virtual pastimes.
“The last five months have made it clear that tech intensity is the key to business resilience. Organizations that build their own digital capability will recover faster and emerge from this crisis stronger,” Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said in a statement. He goes on to say Microsoft is in the unique position of being able to “help every organization transform and reimagine how they meet customer needs,” in other words support remote work in the new reality.
The company says it earned $38.0 billion in revenue this past quarter, up 13 percent from a year ago. Of that amount, $11.2 billion was profit, a 5 percent jump from this time a year ago. The main takeaway: Microsoft’s business is booming, thanks largely to its continued gains in the cloud computing sector and big jumps in Surface and Xbox revenues.
The company’s Intelligent Cloud sector contributed $13.4 billion for the quarter, a 17 percent jump from last year. Most of the gains are thanks to Microsoft’s Azure platform, which grew nearly 50 percent. “Our commercial cloud surpassed $50 billion in annual revenue for the first time this year. And this quarter our Commercial bookings were better than expected, growing 12 percent year-over-year,” Microsoft Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood, said in a statement.
As for Surface and Xbox, it’s clear that, while not as big a moneymaker as Azure or the company's Office and Windows divisions, are still growing considerably. Microsoft says Surface revenue is up almost 30 percent in the past three months from this time a year ago, while Xbox “content and services revenue,” in other words game sales and subscriptions to Xbox Live and other digital content, grew 65 percent. Also helping this quarter are Microsoft's quiet but steady revenue-drivers, including Windows OEM (up 7 percent), Office Commercial (up 5 percent), Office Consumer (up 6 percent), and LinkedIn (up 10 percent).


theverge--2020-07-22--Leaked specs reveal how Samsung’s regular Galaxy Note 20 falls short of the Ultra

Samsung ’ s August Unpacked event is getting closer , and today , there ’ s a thorough spec dump for the standard Galaxy Note 20 .
We ’ ve already gotten the full rundown for the top-tier Note 20 Ultra , but now we can get a fuller picture for just what differences there are between the two — and the sacrifices Samsung made on the “ smaller ” phone .
WinFuture has published the specs , just as it did for the bigger upcoming Note .
The most significant downgrade is definitely the screen .
The regular Galaxy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 1080p display that tops out at a very traditional refresh rate of 60Hz .
( The Note 20 Ultra is believed to have an enormous 6.9-inch 3200 x 1440 display that runs at 120Hz like the Galaxy S20 . )
On the plus side , images make clear that the Note 20 has a flatter display than the Ultra ’ s somewhat curved edges .
Samsung is also reserving the 108-megapixel camera for its flagship Note 20 Ultra , opting for a 12MP wide , 12MP ultrawide , and 64MP portrait / telephoto @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 20 that allow for 8K video recording and 30x zoom .
( The Ultra is rumored to get up to 50x zoom capabilities . )
Even the S Pen is held back a bit on the regular Note 20 , with a 26-millisecond response rate for Samsung ’ s stylus compared to the newly improved , near-instant 9ms on the Ultra model .
The standard Note 20 will have a 4,300mAh battery with reverse wireless charging , 256GB of storage ( there ’ s no microSD support for this one ) , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the same processor as the larger Ultra , but you can definitely see where Samsung decided to give the Ultra an advantage .

Samsung’s August Unpacked event is getting closer, and today, there’s a thorough spec dump for the standard Galaxy Note 20. We’ve already gotten the full rundown for the top-tier Note 20 Ultra, but now we can get a fuller picture for just what differences there are between the two — and the sacrifices Samsung made on the “smaller” phone. WinFuture has published the specs, just as it did for the bigger upcoming Note.
The most significant downgrade is definitely the screen. The regular Galaxy Note 20 will have a 6.7-inch, 1080p display that tops out at a very traditional refresh rate of 60Hz. (The Note 20 Ultra is believed to have an enormous 6.9-inch 3200 x 1440 display that runs at 120Hz like the Galaxy S20.) On the plus side, images make clear that the Note 20 has a flatter display than the Ultra’s somewhat curved edges.
Samsung is also reserving the 108-megapixel camera for its flagship Note 20 Ultra, opting for a 12MP wide, 12MP ultrawide, and 64MP portrait / telephoto trio on the back of the Note 20 that allow for 8K video recording and 30x zoom. (The Ultra is rumored to get up to 50x zoom capabilities.)
Even the S Pen is held back a bit on the regular Note 20, with a 26-millisecond response rate for Samsung’s stylus compared to the newly improved, near-instant 9ms on the Ultra model.


theverge--2020-07-23--Pandora wants you to talk to its ads

Pandora wants you to talk to its ads

Pandora wants you to talk to its ads .
The company is expanding on its voice control features today with a beta launch of voice-activated ads , after initially testing the feature last year .
Only listeners who already hear ads will be offered the voice-activated ones , which ask the listener to agree to hear additional brand content .
They have to say “ yes ” to initiate .
The idea is that people can actually engage with such ads when they ’ re driving or otherwise unable to use their hands .
This is particularly important to brands @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ads are actually getting the message across .
Pandora ’ s initially partnering with 13 companies to launch the feature , including Acura , Doritos , Volvo , Xfinity , and T-Mobile .
On top of that feature , Pandora is updating its Voice Mode assistant for some users to allow them to request a specific song or album .
Up until now , they ’ ve only been able to ask for favorite stations , podcasts , or personalized recommendations through Voice Mode .
The catch with this new feature , however @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their request if they watch a branded video first .
This applies to all users , regardless of whether they pay for a premium Pandora subscription .
Interactive voice ads appear to be a thing the industry is widely interested in testing .
They ’ re also being tested on Pandora competitor Spotify .
The company began testing the ads earlier this year , but in that test , whenever a user heard a voice-controlled ad , they could say “ play now ” and be taken to a piece of relevant content @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Pandora ’ s offering just offers listeners a longer brand message .
As people use smart speakers more , or wireless headphones with their phone in their pocket or bag , advertisers want to know how well their ads perform .
With traditional display advertising , they can monitor a clickthrough rate , but with audio , that ’ s harder to do .
Interactive voice ads are one way advertisers might learn more about who ’ s interested in their product .

Pandora wants you to talk to its ads. The company is expanding on its voice control features today with a beta launch of voice-activated ads, after initially testing the feature last year. Only listeners who already hear ads will be offered the voice-activated ones, which ask the listener to agree to hear additional brand content. They have to say “yes” to initiate.
The idea is that people can actually engage with such ads when they’re driving or otherwise unable to use their hands. This is particularly important to brands that want to know whether their audio ads are actually getting the message across. Pandora’s initially partnering with 13 companies to launch the feature, including Acura, Doritos, Volvo, Xfinity, and T-Mobile.
Speak up to hear branded content
On top of that feature, Pandora is updating its Voice Mode assistant for some users to allow them to request a specific song or album. Up until now, they’ve only been able to ask for favorite stations, podcasts, or personalized recommendations through Voice Mode. The catch with this new feature, however, is listeners can only pull off their request if they watch a branded video first. This applies to Free and Plus users, not Premium.
Interactive voice ads appear to be a thing the industry is widely interested in testing. They’re also being tested on Pandora competitor Spotify. The company began testing the ads last year, but in that test, whenever a user heard a voice-controlled ad, they could say “play now” and be taken to a piece of relevant content, like a podcast or playlist. Pandora’s offering just offers listeners a longer brand message.
As people use smart speakers more, or wireless headphones with their phone in their pocket or bag, advertisers want to know how well their ads perform. With traditional display advertising, they can monitor a clickthrough rate, but with audio, that’s harder to do. Interactive voice ads are one way advertisers might learn more about who’s interested in their product.
Correction 7/23, 2:22 PM ET: This piece originally stated that Spotify began its interactive voice ads test this year. It actually started last year. We regret the error.


theverge--2020-07-23--Good Sudoku on the iPhone teaches you the beauty of sudoku

Zach Gage was never really interested in sudoku .
But that changed when he started watching the Cracking the Cryptic channel on YouTube , where seasoned pros tackle seemingly impossible puzzles , like the “ Miracle Sudoku ” video that recently went viral .
Played at such a high level , he found the ubiquitous puzzle game “ beautiful.
” Problem was , when he set out to learn how to play , he couldn ’ t find any mobile apps that allowed for those high-level techniques .
So Gage teamed up with designer Jack Schlesinger to make Good Sudoku @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ This inspiration for this was really I just wanted to learn sudoku , ” Gage says , “ and it seemed very hard to do with what was out there.
” Over the last few years , Gage has made a habit of revisiting classic games and remixing them so that they feel at home on a smartphone .
So far , that ’ s included a randomized version of chess , multiple takes on solitaire , and a streamlined version of pool .
When he started looking into sudoku , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of games available on mobile .
Despite the popularity of the game , there were few high-quality touchscreen renditions and even fewer that allowed for the intricate note-taking necessary to pull off a “ Miracle Sudoku.
” “ How is it possible that there is this great game , that millions of people love , and they ’ re all playing a version that isn ’ t even the real game ?
” he says .
“ I just have to make this .
It would be a disservice to not make and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ black hole.
” Good Sudoku stands out for a few reasons .
For one thing , it features a clean , simple design that ’ s both beautiful and functional .
It also offers a huge range of puzzles , ranging from extremely easy to “ ow my brain hurts ” difficult .
The most notable thing about the game , though , is how interested it is in teaching you to play at a higher level .
Good Sudoku has a hint system powered by an AI that shows you the next @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lessons on high-level sudoku techniques in a way that ’ s easy to grasp .
Just as important , the game gives you the tools to utilize those techniques , with a robust note-taking system for keeping track of what numbers could go where .
The challenge scales in a way that makes sense ; when you choose to take on a new difficulty level , the game will tell you what skills you ’ ll need to complete the puzzles .
Good Sudoku also eliminates some of the busywork inherent in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ When you have a row or grid that ’ s entirely complete except for one number , tapping on it will give you the only possible option , speeding things up quite a bit .
Building all of this was a lot of work .
Gage says that there ’ s more code in the hint system than the rest of the game combined .
And when it came to creating puzzles , the design duo built a generator from scratch and then spent about a month generating hundreds of thousands of puzzles @ @ @ @ @ @ @ took those , curated them , and organized them into various difficulty levels .
But the hope is that all of this work results in a structure that simultaneously eases new players in and challenges hardcore puzzle fanatics .
Perhaps the most surprising thing about Good Sudoku is how faithful it is to the game .
Given Gage ’ s propensity for twisting classic games into something new , releasing a relatively straightforward sudoku app almost seems out of character .
But there are a few reasons it exists in this form .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ are already plenty of excellent sudoku twists , making it a less-interesting design challenge .
“ There are so many good ones , ” Gage says .
More importantly , though , he felt compelled to fill a void .
After he finished Apple Arcade launch title Card of Darkness ( which Schlesinger also worked on ) , he received numerous requests to take on sudoku next .
And since Good Sudoku was announced , fans have reached out about their struggles to find a good app .
“ Who would ’ ve @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for ?
”

Zach Gage was never really interested in sudoku. But that changed when he started watching the Cracking the Cryptic channel on YouTube, where seasoned pros tackle seemingly impossible puzzles, like the “Miracle Sudoku” video that recently went viral. Played at such a high level, he found the ubiquitous puzzle game “beautiful.” Problem was, when he set out to learn how to play, he couldn’t find any mobile apps that allowed for those high-level techniques. So Gage teamed up with designer Jack Schlesinger to make Good Sudoku, which is out today on iOS.
“This inspiration for this was really I just wanted to learn sudoku,” Gage says, “and it seemed very hard to do with what was out there.”
Over the last few years, Gage has made a habit of revisiting classic games and remixing them so that they feel at home on a smartphone. So far, that’s included a randomized version of chess, multiple takes on solitaire, and a streamlined version of pool. When he started looking into sudoku, he was shocked at the dire state of games available on mobile. Despite the popularity of the game, there were few high-quality touchscreen renditions and even fewer that allowed for the intricate note-taking necessary to pull off a “Miracle Sudoku.”
“How is it possible that there is this great game, that millions of people love, and they’re all playing a version that isn’t even the real game?” he says. “I just have to make this. It would be a disservice to not make and share this because this is like a black hole.”
Good Sudoku stands out for a few reasons. For one thing, it features a clean, simple design that’s both beautiful and functional. It also offers a huge range of puzzles, ranging from extremely easy to “ow my brain hurts” difficult. The most notable thing about the game, though, is how interested it is in teaching you to play at a higher level. Good Sudoku has a hint system powered by an AI that shows you the next most logical move and also gives brief lessons on high-level sudoku techniques in a way that’s easy to grasp.
Just as important, the game gives you the tools to utilize those techniques, with a robust note-taking system for keeping track of what numbers could go where. The challenge scales in a way that makes sense; when you choose to take on a new difficulty level, the game will tell you what skills you’ll need to complete the puzzles. Good Sudoku also eliminates some of the busywork inherent in the game — most notably, counting. When you have a row or grid that’s entirely complete except for one number, tapping on it will give you the only possible option, speeding things up quite a bit.
Building all of this was a lot of work. Gage says that there’s more code in the hint system than the rest of the game combined. And when it came to creating puzzles, the design duo built a generator from scratch and then spent about a month generating hundreds of thousands of puzzles powered by four computers. They then took those, curated them, and organized them into various difficulty levels. But the hope is that all of this work results in a structure that simultaneously eases new players in and challenges hardcore puzzle fanatics.
Perhaps the most surprising thing about Good Sudoku is how faithful it is to the game. Given Gage’s propensity for twisting classic games into something new, releasing a relatively straightforward sudoku app almost seems out of character. But there are a few reasons it exists in this form. For one, he says that there are already plenty of excellent sudoku twists, making it a less-interesting design challenge. “There are so many good ones,” Gage says. More importantly, though, he felt compelled to fill a void. After he finished Apple Arcade launch title Card of Darkness (which Schlesinger also worked on), he received numerous requests to take on sudoku next. And since Good Sudoku was announced, fans have reached out about their struggles to find a good app.