Microsoft is retiring Teams’ Together Mode
Microsoft launched Teams' Together Mode during the pandemic to give the illusion of a bunch of people sitting in a conference room together, even if they were really sitt...
by Terrence O’Brien
May 17, 2026
7 articles
Revamped Siri will reportedly offer autodeleting chats
Apple is hoping that its record on privacy can be the differentiator on the AI front and maybe even buy it a little slack as it continues to lag behind the competition. A...
by Terrence O’Brien
University of Arizona students boo Eric Schmidt’s AI cheerleading during commencement
Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt delivered the commencement address at the University of Arizona on Friday. And, as his speech veered into talk of AI, he was repeatedly dro...
by Terrence O’Brien
Oddity is masterfully tense horror from the director of Hokum
Kudos to the designer of that horrifying golem. | Image: Shudder Hokum recently hit theaters, and it's already outperforming box office expectations. If this Kubrick-refer...
by Terrence O’Brien
ElliQ is a surprisingly helpful companion robot for older adults
A week before the ElliQ robot arrived, a neurologist told me we need to rebalance my mom's life. Her Parkinson's disease medication had steadily become less effective ove...
by Sheena Vasani
Fujifilm’s X Half is even more whimsical with a $300 price cut
Fujifilm’s X Half digital camera wasn’t designed to replace your main camera, though you’d be forgiven for assuming it was with its ludicrous $850 price. However, the com...
by Cameron Faulkner
Chatbots at the drive-thru are just the beginning
This is The Stepback, a weekly newsletter breaking down one essential story from the tech world. For more news about how AI is seeping into our daily lives, follow Emma R...
by Emma Roth