Racist videos that appear to be created with Google’s AI video generation tool Veo 3 have raked in millions of views across TikTok, according to findings from the nonprofit media watchdog Media Matters. The AI-generated videos uncovered by the organization are filled with racist tropes, many of which target Black people.

Media Matters determined that the videos — one of which received 14.2 million views — were generated with Google Veo 3 because of the “Veo” watermark in the corner of the clips. Some users also listed hashtags, captions, or usernames pertaining to Veo 3 or AI, according to Media Matters. Each clip found by the organization lasted just eight seconds, or was “composed of multiple clips each lasting no more than 8 seconds,” which tracks with Veo 3’s eight-second limit.

Veo 3, launched by Google in May, allows users to generate AI video clips and audio with just a text prompt. On its website, Google says it will “block harmful requests and results.” TikTok’s rules similarly state that “hate speech and hateful behavior has no place on TikTok,” and that the platform “will not recommend content that contains negative stereotypes about a person or group with a protected attribute.”

“We proactively enforce robust rules against hateful speech and behavior and have removed the accounts we identified in the report, many of which were already banned prior to the report publishing,” TikTok spokesperson Ariane de Selliers said in a statement to The Verge.

The Verge found some of the videos highlighted by Media Matters were also on YouTube but with fewer views, while Wired also discovered similar, racist AI-generated videos on Instagram. Other videos found by Media Matters contain antisemitic content and racist depictions of immigrants and Asian people.

Google didn’t immediately respond to The Verge’s request for comment.

Update, July 2nd: Added a statement from TikTok.

Microsoft’s layoff of roughly 9,000 employees is continuing to have downstream effects at the company’s subsidiaries. Aftermath reports that as many as 100 developers at Blizzard have been impacted, and as a result the studio is winding down development on its mobile tower defense game Warcraft Rumble.

In an announcement, Blizzard wrote that while the game will not be abandoned entirely, the company will cease development on any new content. “Moving forward, we’ll continue supporting Rumble with updates focused on regular, systemic in-game events and bug fixes, but no new content. ”

Blizzard continued, saying Rumble, “struggled to find its footing relative to our ambition for its long-term success.” And while its developers worked to respond to player feedback that, “ultimately wasn’t enough to put the game on a path to sustainability.”

Warcraft Rumble was the first mobile focused game in the Warcraft Universe. It launched in 2023 after nine years in development and was originally one of two mobile games Blizzard was working on, the other being Blizzard’s take on Pokémon Go. That game was never officially announced by Blizzard and cancelled sometime in 2022. Warcraft Rumble joins a handful of other Blizzard games in development stasis along with Starcraft II and Heroes of the Storm.

Earlier today, Xbox also announced that it was cancelling the Rare-developed Everwild, as well as the Perfect Dark remake, while shuttering The Initiative, the studio making it.

A mandatory update for Google’s mid-range Pixel 6A phones is coming next week that is meant to reduce the risk of the battery overheating on some devices. According to a support page post, Google is issuing the mandatory Android 16 update starting July 8 to all Pixel 6A devices. However, only users with “Impacted Devices” will see any effect on their battery.

Announced earlier this month, the update will reduce the battery capacity on affected phones after they reach 400 charging cycles, Google’s Alex Moriconi told The Verge. The move comes after at least two people reported their Pixel 6As catching fire. 

Google says affected users will get a notification when the phone has completed 375 cycles, giving them a heads-up that the new battery management features will be activated soon. Once these management tools are in effect, the battery won’t last as long between charges. 

According to Google, users may see other changes, “like reduced charging performance or short-term changes to how the battery-level indicator on your phone shows your battery capacity as your phone learns its revised battery capacity.” It’s not clear why some Pixel 6A phones are affected and others aren’t, but if yours is, Google is offering free battery replacement — you can check here to see if you’re eligible. 

The company has already dealt with a similar issue on the Pixel 4A, offering owners a free battery replacement or a $100 credit towards a new phone. It currently has an extended repair program for battery swelling issues on the Pixel 7A.

On July 2nd, Microsoft announced sweeping layoffs affecting as many as 9,000 employees, and they had a big impact on the company’s Xbox studios. Microsoft canceled Perfect Dark from The Initiative and closed the studio. Rare’s Everwild, announced in 2019, was canceled, too. And Forza Motorsport developer Turn 10 Studios will lose more than 70 employees.

“We must make choices now for continued success in future years and a key part of that strategy is the discipline to prioritize the strongest opportunities,” Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer said in a memo to employees. “We will protect what is thriving and concentrate effort on areas with the greatest potential, while delivering on the expectations the company has for our business. This focused approach means we can deliver exceptional games and experiences for players for generations to come.”

A rumor was circulating that Spencer was planning to retire after Microsoft launched its next generation of Xbox, but the company tells The Verge that Spencer isn’t retiring as the chief of Xbox “anytime soon.”

Here’s all of our coverage of the layoffs.

• Blizzard is winding down support for its Warcraft mobile game
• The president of ZeniMax Online Studios is leaving.
• Microsoft’s Xbox cuts have hit key areas.
• Phil Spencer isn’t retiring as the chief of Xbox ‘anytime soon’
• Microsoft cancels its Perfect Dark and Everwild Xbox games
• Microsoft’s Forza Motorsport developer hit hard by Xbox cuts

There's always a reason why universal USB-C ports don't "just work" like you'd expect. In the early days, it was incompetence or naiveté. Later, manufacturers often cheaped out. But in the case of Nintendo's Switch 2, it appears to be intentional.

With the Nintendo Switch 2, it should be easy to plug your new, more expensive console into video glasses or TVs when you're traveling away from home. USB-C makes it so. But Nintendo has intentionally broken the Switch 2's compatibility with those devices, using a new encryption scheme and some form of dedicated encryption chip, two accessory manufacturers tell The Verge.

I haven't yet found pr …

Read the full story at The Verge.

Microsoft says that Phil Spencer, Microsoft Gaming CEO and the head of Xbox, isn’t retiring “anytime soon.” The company has responded to rumors of Spencer’s retirement, which have spread online today following Microsoft’s major layoffs.

“Phil is not retiring anytime soon,” says Kari Perez, head of Xbox communications, in a statement to The Verge. The denial comes after Call of Duty leaker GhostOfHope claimed “Phil Spencer will be retiring from his role as CEO of Microsoft Gaming after the launch of the next generation Xbox” and that Xbox president Sarah Bond would be taking over as CEO of Microsoft Gaming.

While Microsoft’s comment doesn’t address the rumor fully, it makes it clear Spencer isn’t retiring imminently. Separately, Microsoft communications chief, Frank Shaw, took to X to claim that at least part of the rumor was made up.

Spencer originally assumed leadership of the Xbox division in 2014, a promotion from his role as the boss of Microsoft Studios. As the boss of Xbox, he’s overseen many big initiatives, including the launch of the Xbox Series X / S, a huge push into Xbox Game Pass, acquisitions of major companies like Activision Blizzard and ZeniMax Media, bringing more Xbox games to platforms like PlayStation and Nintendo Switch.

While Spencer isn’t retiring anytime soon, Microsoft is continuing its big cuts today that have affected Xbox studios and employees. Perfect Dark and Everwild have been cancelled, while Forza Motorsport developer Turn 10 Studios will be letting go of more than 70 staffers. Zenimax Online Studios also reportedly canceled a new MMORPG codenamed Blackbird that had been in the works since 2018.

Banks are facing renewed pressure to protect their customers from scams on Zelle, the payment network owned by JPMorgan, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Capital One, and other big banks. In letters to the banks, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) asked them how often their customers report Zelle scams that originate from social media.

Last year, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) sued Wells Fargo, Bank of America, and JPMorgan Chase over claims they “rushed” Zelle’s launch in 2017 and failed to protect customers from “widespread fraud,” which resulted in more than $870 million lost to scams. In an attempt to protect its customers, Chase began blocking Zelle payments over social media, where scams often show up, last February. The CFPB dropped its Zelle lawsuit in March after President Donald Trump’s administration began dismantling the agency.

“Banks, including JPMorgan Chase, have historically failed to protect consumers from Zelle fraud and scams,” the letters state. “According to the CFPB’s lawsuit, for example, since Zelle was created, the banks that run the payment service have not meaningfully improved their ability to detect and prevent fraud or increased their reimbursements to customers defrauded on Zelle to match the increase in fraud rates.”

Without the support of the CFPB, the three lawmakers are now taking matters into their own hands. They asked the banks that own Zelle, which they claim is “associated with significant scams and fraud,” if they have noticed any broader trends of fraud on the payment platform, such as whether they come from social media or another source. The lawmakers are also pressing the banks for their policies on reimbursing customers who fall victim to scams on Zelle and other peer-to-peer payment networks. The banks have until July 14th to respond.

“Zelle is leading the fight against scams and fraud and has industry-leading reimbursement policies that go above and beyond the law,” Zelle spokesperson Eric Blankenbaker said in a statement to The Verge. “The misguided attacks by the previous leadership of the CFPB would have emboldened criminals, cost consumers more in fees, stifled small businesses and made it harder for thousands of community banks and credit unions to compete.”

Update, July 2nd: Added a statement from Zelle.

A court in France has sentenced three former Ubisoft executives for sexual and psychological harassment. Serge Hascoet, Tommy Francois, and Guillaume Patrux each received fines and suspended prison sentences for actions that were discovered as a part of a yearslong investigation into sexual harassment and bullying at the game publisher.

According to The Guardian, Hascoet, Ubisoft’s former chief creative officer, allegedly commented that a female employee’s mood could be improved if someone were to have sex with her in order to “show how to calm her.” Francois, Ubisoft’s former editorial vice president, was additionally convicted of attempted sexual assault as well as sexual harassment related to an alleged incident where he tried to forcefully kiss a female employee at a party while colleagues held her down. Patrux, a former game director, was alleged to have thrown furniture in open-plan office space, throwing other objects at employees, and drawing swastikas on a colleague’s notebook.

Investigations into Ubisoft began in 2020 as a part of the #metoo movement in video games. Current and former employees took to social media in June 2020 to describe harmful incidents and attitudes at the Far Cry and Assassin’s Creed developer that spanned decades. An internal survey conducted at that time reported that out of 14,000 employees surveyed, 25 percent had seen or experienced workplace misconduct, while 20 percent said they did not feel safe or respected at the company.

In the aftermath, several Ubisoft executives, including Hascoet, resigned, while others, including Francois, were fired. In 2023, five former employees, including Hascoet and Francois, were arrested by French police following an investigation into the company.

According to French newspaper Le Monde, Francois blamed company culture at Ubisoft for his behavior, saying he was a part of a culture that was “everywhere, in every department” and that he didn’t think it was “abnormal.”

The Verge has reached out to Ubisoft for comment. 

With less than a week until Prime Day kicks off, we’re already seeing some exciting early deals pop up. And now we can add two more great discounts to the list: the refurbished ad-supported Kindle Paperwhite is down to $106.99 ($37 off) at Amazon, while the refurbished Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition is $126.99 ($53 off) at Amazon. Both discounts bring the like-new e-readers to all-time lows — just in time to read Andy Weir’s Project Hail Mary before the movie adaptation hits theaters next year.

Kindle Paperwhite (refurbished 2024)

Where to Buy:

• $143.99 $106.99 at Amazon

The Kindle Paperwhite is one of our favorite e-readers, especially for those who are already in the Kindle ecosystem. It offers a large 7-inch display, sharp 300ppi resolution, and an adjustable warm white front light, making it more comfortable to read in different environments. It’s also waterproof, so you can read while lounging by the pool, which I plan to do a lot of this summer. Meanwhile, the battery is rated to last for up to 12 weeks on a single charge, though your mileage may vary depending on your reading habits.

If you don’t want ads on your e-reader, the Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition offers an ad-free experience — plus a few other goodies that the standard Kindle Paperwhite doesn’t. For starters, the Signature Edition has double the storage, so you can download even more books, PDFs, and audiobooks, which you can listen to with Bluetooth headphones or speakers. It also features an auto-adjusting front light, so you don’t have to constantly adjust the brightness throughout the day. Finally, the Signature Edition supports wireless charging, a feature you don’t often see in this space.

Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition (refurbished 2024)

Where to Buy:

• $179.99 $126.99 at Amazon

Both models are faster than the last-gen iterations thanks to a dual-core processor, so turning pages, highlighting text, and looking up words is more responsive. Amazon says its refurbished products are thoroughly inspected, cleaned, and tested to ensure they’re fully functional, and you get the same one-year limited warranty as new products. If you need a break from games, movies, and podcasts, we have plenty of great book recommendations to check out.

The subtitles for one of Crunchyroll's newest anime series make it pretty clear that the company is going all in on ChatGPT.

This week as viewers logged on to Crunchyroll to check out Studio Gokumi's Necronomico and the Cosmic Horror Show, many were surprised to see that the series' subtitles were filled with typos, grammatical errors, and explicit references to ChatGPT. The subtitles seemed very much like text that had been generated with AI and slapped onto Necronomico and the Cosmic Horror Show without first being reviewed and edited for accuracy.

Errors in subtitles aren't unheard of, but sentences like "Is gameorver. if you fall, you …

Read the full story at The Verge.

Neil Druckmann, co-creator of The Last of Us video game and co-showrunner on the HBO adaptation, will be stepping away from the television series moving forward. In a statement, Druckmann — who is also studio head at The Last of Us developer Naughty Dog — said the decision was made to focus on the studio’s upcoming games.

“With work completed on season 2 and before any meaningful work starts on season 3, now is the time to transition my complete focus to Naughty Dog and its future projects, including writing and directing our exciting next game, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, along with my responsibilities as studio head and head of creative,” Druckmann wrote.

Druckmann co-led the HBO series for its first two seasons alongside Craig Mazin, best-known as the creator of another HBO series, Chernobyl. Druckmann’s work on the show is likely one of the main reasons it has hewed so closely to the source material. Before that, he was heavily involved in most of Naughty Dog’s major releases, including not only The Last of Us and its sequel, but also serving as creative director on Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End.

The studio’s next release, Intergalactic, is a sci-fi bounty hunting game, which was revealed at The Game Awards in December. The Last of Us on HBO was renewed for a third season earlier this year, and wrapped up season 2 in May.

Microsoft is canceling its Perfect Dark and Everwild games as part of sweeping cuts to its Xbox division. Matt Booty, Xbox president of game content and studios, revealed that Microsoft will be closing The Initiative, the studio behind Perfect Dark, in an internal memo to Xbox employees today.

The cuts are part of layoffs affecting around 9,000 employees across Microsoft, with Turn 10 Studios, the developer behind Forza Motorsport, also hit hard by today’s layoffs.

Here is Booty’s memo to staff:

Following Phil’s note, I want to share more about the changes to the Studios business units.

We have made the decision to stop development of Perfect Dark and Everwild as well as wind down several unannounced projects across our portfolio. As part of this, we are closing one of our studios, The Initiative. These decisions, along with other changes across our teams, reflect a broader effort to adjust priorities and focus resources to set up our teams for greater success within a changing industry landscape. We did not make these choices lightly, as each project and team represent years of effort, imagination, and commitment.

Our overall portfolio strategy is unchanged: build games that excite our players, continue to grow our biggest franchises, and create new stories, worlds, and characters. We have more than 40 projects in active development, continued momentum on titles shipping this fall, and a strong slate headed into 2026.

For those directly affected, we are working closely with HR and studio leadership to provide support, including severance, career transition assistance, and where possible, opportunities to explore roles on other teams.

To everyone across our studios: thank you. Your creativity and resilience continue to define who we are. I believe in the strength of our teams and the direction we’re taking on the path ahead.

Matt

Microsoft announced layoffs today affecting as many as 9,000 employees, and as part of the changes, more than 70 people will be let go at Forza Motorsport developer Turn 10 Studios, according to a source familiar with the situation.

The cuts were made on a call with Microsoft HR representatives this morning, and are hitting the “vast majority” of the studio. One source described the layoffs as leaving enough people behind to keep Forza Motorsport up and running.

Managers at Turn 10 didn’t discuss project plans on the call this morning, and Microsoft didn’t immediately respond to a request, from The Verge, for comment on the situation.

Here’s the list of other games that are reportedly affected by Microsoft’s cuts.

• Rare has canceled Everwild, which was first announced in 2019, VGC and Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier report.
• Zenimax Online Studios has canceled a new MMORPG codenamed Blackbird, Schreier says. Windows Central is “investigating reports from our sources” about the cancellation.
• Microsoft is canceling its new Perfect Dark game that it announced in 2020, according to an internal memo from Xbox president of game content and studios Matt Booty. The company showed off gameplay during the 2024 Xbox Games Showcase, but at the time, didn’t provide a release window for the game.

Microsoft-owned King was also affected by the layoffs, with about 10 percent of its employees being let go. Raven Software, which works on the Call of Duty series, was impacted as well.

“To position Gaming for enduring success and allow us to focus on strategic growth areas, we will end or decrease work in certain areas of the business and follow Microsoft’s lead in removing layers of management to increase agility and effectiveness,” Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer says in a memo to employees.

Last year, Microsoft shut down the studios behind Redfall and Hi-Fi Rush as part of a “reprioritization of titles and resources.”

Lorde fans are clearly struggling to play the CD version of her new album. Customers who purchased the special edition of Virgin released on a transparent plastic disc are reporting on Reddit and TikTok that many CD players, car stereos, and other sound systems they’ve tried are unable to play it.

The transparent CD, promoted as being fully recyclable, is currently sold out on Lorde’s webstore and was the only disc variant available for the Virgin album. That may have been a welcome compromise for fans, given the singer opted to forgo a CD release entirely for her 2021 album Solar Power over waste and environmental concerns, but little comfort to customers who can’t purchase alternative options.

“Very cool looking (and I’m not going to return it), but doesn’t work in three of my players,” said one Reddit user. “PC was able to rip, but the files are not great (distortion and clipping).” User reports indicate that older hardware is less likely to work with the CD than devices with newer sensors.

One TikTok user demonstrated that her car CD player was unable to recognize the disc and said that forcing the CD inside resulted in automatic ejection, mirroring similar reports made in Reddit comments. “Whoever decided to design this is an idiot,” said elyxirtalkssmack. “Cars can’t read this CD, Walkmans can’t read this CD. You need to create CDs that are fit for purpose for the medium in which they are played on, which is older technology.”

Lorde has yet to address any of the issues raised about the transparent Virgin CD. The official cause of the playability issues also hasn’t been confirmed.

It’s certainly a striking disc. CDs with even partially clear designs are uncommon and can be a hit with collectors, but the lack of functionality in this example has been a bitter experience for some Lorde fans. “Seems like they didn’t account for this,” one TikTok user said. “Pretty disappointing. I know it was for an aesthetic, but at least press it on normal CDs too.”

The entire point of Jurassic World Rebirth is to get the franchise back into audiences' good graces with a new set of characters and a story meant to tap into the spectacular energy that made the original such a huge hit. All the same ingredients are there - dinosaurs running amok in a tropical paradise, humans running for their lives, and a sizable enough VFX budget to, theoretically, make it all look dazzling on the big screen. But for all of its attempts at being thrilling crowd pleaser, there's a limpness to Jurassic World Rebirth that makes it feel like a film that might have been better suited for one of the streamers.

Set a few years …

Read the full story at The Verge.

Amazon’s early Prime Day sale started off slow, but as the event draws closer to its official kickoff on July 8th, it’s beginning to pick up steam. Right now, for example, Prime members can grab an Amazon Echo Hub at Amazon for just $119.99 ($60 off), marking a new low price.

Amazon Echo Hub

Where to Buy:

• $179.99 $119.99 at Amazon (with Prime)

As you might expect, Amazon’s controller makes managing your smart home a breeze. Rather than switching between apps or using voice commands, the Echo Hub allows you to control your smart home from a single, easy-to-use interface. With just a tap of its eight-inch touchscreen, anyone at home can turn on lights, adjust the smart thermostat, or view a live feed from their video doorbell or security camera. If you use Alexa Routines, you can even create personalized shortcuts to automate multiple tasks, meaning you can dim the lights, lock the doors, and adjust the thermostat with just a single tap. And while it works best with other Amazon devices, what makes it a terrific value is that it also supports both Matter and Thread, allowing you to connect it to platforms beyond Alexa.

As an added bonus, the Echo Hub can function like a stripped-down Echo Show, one you can power via a single ethernet cable and place either on your counter or mount on your wall for a cleaner, more streamlined setup. You can also use it to showcase favorite photos, check your to-do list, play music, and even stream videos. The sound quality isn’t as impressive as it is on Amazon’s newer smart displays — and it lacks support for video calls — but it makes up for it by offering a more private, distraction-free experience that’s void of both ads and unwanted cameras.

Read our Echo Hub review.

A few additional deals

• If you’re looking for a location tracker that works with both Apple’s Find My network and Google’s, the Pebblebee Clip Universal is available for an all-time low of $27.99 ($7 off) from Best Buy and Pebblebee (with code FREEDOMTOFIND20). It’s a great option for mixed-platform households and comes packed with useful features for keeping track of your valuables, including an LED light, support for Alexa and Google Assistant, and even a “Find Phone” feature that lets you locate your phone using the tracker. Plus, unlike Apple’s AirTag, it includes a snap-on key ring, so you won’t need to buy a separate accessory to attach it.
• You can buy the Apple Pencil Pro at Amazon, Walmart, and Target for $99 ($30 off), which is $10 shy of its all-time low. Unlike the more affordable USB-C Apple Pencil, Apple’s step-up stylus offers Find My support, pressure sensitivity, a gyroscope, and support for squeeze gestures that can even be used to control your smart home. Just keep in mind that the stylus isn’t compatible with all iPads — it only works with the latest iPad Pro, iPad Mini, and M2- or M3-powered iPad Air models.
• BuyDig is selling LG’s 65-inch C4 OLED TV with a $75 Visa gift card for $1,296.99 (about $1,400 off), which is one of its better prices to date. LG’s latest OLED panels are both brighter and faster, but the last-gen C4 still offers plenty of gamer-friendly features, including a fast 144Hz refresh rate and support for both AMD FreeSync Premium and Nvidia G-Sync for smoother, more responsive gameplay. It also supports Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos, making it ideal for a wide range of content.

ICEBlock, an app that lets users anonymously report sightings of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials, has soared up App Store charts after receiving criticism from Donald Trump’s administration. On Monday, US Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem responded to CNN’s coverage of ICEBlock in a post on X, calling it an “obstruction of justice.”

Following this comment, ICEBlock grew in popularity overnight, bringing it to the top of the App Store on Tuesday before dropping to the third spot at the time of writing. According to its website, ICEBlock lets users report sightings of ICE officials with “two taps” and view reports that others have made within a five-mile radius. It also says the app stores no personal data, “making it impossible to trace reports back to individual users.”

On Tuesday, Noem told reporters that she’s going to work with the Department of Justice to see if the Trump administration can “prosecute” CNN over its ICEBlock report: “What they’re doing is actively encouraging people to avoid law enforcement activities and operations.” ICE acting Director Todd Lyons also claimed CNN’s reporting is “willfully endangering the lives of officers.” 

A message within ICEBlock says “it is not to be used for the purposes of inciting violence or interfering with law enforcement,” according to CNN. ICEBlock launched in April in response to President Trump’s mass deportation efforts across the country. CNN says ICEBlock has over 20,000 users who are mostly located in Los Angeles, where many ICE raids are being carried out.

The Trump administration’s threats have only seemed to increase interest in ICEBlock, which has since seen fakes make their way to the Google Play Store, where it’s currently not available because “there is no way to provide 100% anonymity” on Android, according to the app’s developer. Trump supporters and right-wing influencers have also started interacting with the app, with some of them claiming they are “flooding” ICEBlock with fake reports in an attempt to drown out real sightings.

The Verge reached out to Apple with a request for comment about ICEBlock’s presence on the App Store but didn’t immediately hear back. 

The new Nuki Smart Lock ($159), the company's first designed for US deadbolts, is the most advanced retrofit smart lock I've tested. It features a sleek, compact design that looks and works like a regular doorknob, but it's much more than a doorknob. It can automatically unlock as you approach, lock behind you, unlock using a keypad or your fingerprint, and be controlled from anywhere. It also supports every smart home platform through Matter, and you can still use your existing key - if you're old-school like that.

I love the button integrated into the stainless steel design that locks and unlocks with a single press - no need to turn th …

Read the full story at The Verge.

The alien invasion continues, as Apple just confirmed the next season of Invasion will be streaming this summer. The new season will premiere on Apple TV Plus on August 22nd, with weekly episodes running on Fridays through to October 24th. Alongside the announcement, Apple also released a very brief teaser, which, if nothing else, suggests we’re going to learn a lot more about the invading aliens as the conflict ramps up.

Invasion originally premiered in 2021 as part of the streaming service’s big push into science fiction. After a slow start, its epic story, which is told from the perspective of multiple characters around the world, finally started coming together by the end of season 2. The show was renewed for a third season last year.

Here’s how Apple describes what to expect when the show returns:

In season 3, those perspectives collide for the first time, as the series’ main characters are brought together to work as a team on a critical mission to infiltrate the alien mothership. The ultimate apex aliens have finally emerged, rapidly spreading their deadly tendrils across our planet. It will take all our heroes working together, using all their experience and expertise, to save our species. New relationships are formed, old relationship are challenged and even shattered, as our international cast of characters must become a team before it’s too late. 

Naturally, with this kind of premise, much of the main cast is returning, including Golshifteh Farahani, Shamier Anderson, India Brown, Shane Zaza, Enver Gjokaj, and Shioli Kutsuna (fresh off a starring role in Death Stranding 2: On the Beach).

The news comes as Apple’s foray into sci-fi shows few signs of letting up. In addition to the imminent return of Invasion, the existential comedy Murderbot is currently streaming, while season 3 of Foundation is set to premiere on July 11th. Meanwhile, yesterday Apple confirmed that production on its Neuromancer adaptation was underway.

Tesla sales hit a new low, with the company reporting a 14 percent drop in second-quarter vehicle deliveries compared to a year ago. 

The company said that it produced a total of 410,244 vehicles between April–June of this year, including 396,835 Model 3 and Model Y vehicles, as well as 13,409 “other vehicles” like the Model S, Model X, and Cybertruck. That represents a minor 0.1 percent drop compared to the second quarter of 2024, when the company produced 410,831 vehicles. 

Tesla also said that it delivered a total of 384,122 vehicles, including 373,728 Model 3 and Model Y vehicles, as well as 10,394 other vehicles — a 14 percent decline compared to the second quarter of 2024, when it delivered 443,956 vehicles. (For a direct-to-consumer company like Tesla, deliveries are a proxy for sales.)

Expectations were pretty grim for this quarter, with UBS predicting an 18 percent decrease in deliveries year over year, and Barclay estimating 375,000 vehicles sold. Tesla may have outperformed these expectations, but the company is still on a steady decline since reporting its first year-over-year sales drop since 2020 last year.

It was another troubling sign for the once high-flying EV company as it continues to struggle with rising competition, stagnant demand for electric vehicles, and a growing backlash against Elon Musk’s political activities within President Donald Trump’s administration. The Tesla Takedown protest movement, which began earlier this year, has targeted hundreds of Tesla dealerships around the world in an effort to erode the company’s sales even further. 

Last month, Musk announced that he was stepping away from his position at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) amid a bitter feud with Trump — but insisted that DOGE’s controversial cost-cutting efforts would continue. Still, his reputation in the US has plummeted, with a majority of people saying they have a negative view of him. His claims to have saved the government a trillion dollars by slashing “waste, fraud, and abuse” seem to have been mostly overstated. 

There were other worrying signs ahead of the Q2 report. Tesla’s sales in Europe have been in a serious slump with five straight consecutive months of decline, according to registration data from the European Union. In China, the company’s sales continue to decrease as domestic brands like BYD grab more market share. (Tesla does not break out sales regionally, so registration data from Europe and China are watched closely.) 

During Q1, Tesla attributed some of the drop in sales to design and production changes for the newly refreshed Model Y. But now the revamped EV is widely available, and the automaker’s numbers are still going in the wrong direction. 

There’s been inner turmoil at Tesla, too. Last week, Omead Afshar, Tesla’s VP of manufacturing and a longtime Musk ally, left the company — with some reports suggesting he was fired. His departure follows that of Milan Kovac, head of the Optimus humanoid robot project, earlier this month.

The launch of Tesla’s long-delayed robotaxi service was also a bit of a bust. Instead of the “unsupervised” vehicles that Musk had promised at the beginning of this year, the robotaxis featured Tesla-employed safety monitors in the front passenger seat. Several videos of the service in action showed significant safety lapses, including a robotaxi driving over the double yellow line into the opposite lane of traffic and braking hard in the middle of the road for no reason.