Georgia Tech announced the finalists in its wild musical instrument competition
Georgia Tech announced the finalists in its wild musical instrument competition

Georgia Tech has announced the finalists in its annual Guthman Musical Instrument Competition. Every year, for the last 28 years, the school invites inventors from around the world to submit new instruments of their own design to compete for $10,000 in prizes. Past finalists have included founding members of Teenage Engineering, Artiphon, and Roli. And […]

My uncanny AI valentines
My uncanny AI valentines

Hopping over a pile of dirty snow, I arrived on a frigid February evening at a wine bar in midtown, a purple neon sign reading “EVA AI cafe.” Inside, several people were seated at tables and booths, staring at phones. Servers milled about, placing mini potato croquettes and nonalcoholic spritzers on each table. Like many […]

A powerful tool of resistance is already in your hands
A powerful tool of resistance is already in your hands

In an eyewitness video analyzed frame by frame by The New York Times, Alex Pretti raises one hand and holds a phone in the other. Federal agents tackle him, and one appears to find and remove a gun holstered on his hip. Then, an agent shoots – and a second follows. They appear to fire […]

The Pocket Taco is the best way to turn your phone into a Game Boy
The Pocket Taco is the best way to turn your phone into a Game Boy

My ongoing quest to turn my iPhone into one of my favorite consoles of all time has led me to a curiously named controller. GameSir’s Pocket Taco is only barely pocketable, and distinctly lacking in taco fillings, but for $35, it’s an excellent and easy way to turn your phone into a Game Boy-inspired handheld […]

Ring’s Flock breakup doesn’t fix its real problem
Ring’s Flock breakup doesn’t fix its real problem

The most striking thing about Ring’s statement that it had parted ways with Flock Safety is what the home security company didn’t say. There was no mention of the public backlash around ties to ICE, or any promise to address users’ concerns about the company’s relationships with law enforcement. In an increasingly authoritarian political climate, […]

How to un-Big Tech your online life
How to un-Big Tech your online life

Hi, friends! Welcome to Installer No. 116, your guide to the best and Verge-iest stuff in the world. (If you’re new here, welcome, happy National Ferris Wheel Day to all those who celebrate, and also you can read all the old editions at the Installer homepage.) This week, I’ve been reading about Letterboxd and Mike […]

The DJI Romo robovac had security so poor, this man remotely accessed thousands of them
The DJI Romo robovac had security so poor, this man remotely accessed thousands of them

Sammy Azdoufal claims he wasn’t trying to hack every robot vacuum in the world. He just wanted to remote control his brand-new DJI Romo vacuum with a PS5 gamepad, he tells The Verge, because it sounded fun. But when his homegrown remote control app started talking to DJI’s servers, it wasn’t just one vacuum cleaner […]

DJI’s first robovac is an autonomous cleaning drone you can’t trust
DJI’s first robovac is an autonomous cleaning drone you can’t trust

It’s been eight years since I last reviewed a robot vacuum. Having spent the last two months with a new flagship, I’m shocked by how much they’ve advanced from early bump-and-run models. In October, DJI launched its very first robovacs in Europe. I’ve been testing the top-of-the-line Romo P model, which doesn’t yet have a […]