In a Friday night bulletin, TikTok issued a statement on what it calls a possible shutdown after tomorrow. In short, TikTok does not plan to remain operational in the United States through the weekend despite the Biden White House deferring ban enforcement to the Trump White House.TikTok cites critical service provider uncertainty from the government as reason for planning to still go dark this weekend:The statements issued today by both the Biden White House and the Department of Justice have failed to provide the necessary clarity and assurance to the service providers that are integral to maintaining TikToks availability to over 170 million Americans. Unless the Biden Administration immediately provides a definitive statement to satisfy the most critical service providers assuring non-enforcement, unfortunately TikTok will be forced to go dark on January 19.Another read is that TikTok wants to show U.S. users what a ban would look like if the Trump White House were to enforce it. The law doesnt specifically ban TikTok from service in the U.S.; it insists that China must divest from TikTok in favor of U.S. private ownership. Thats the legal angle that the Supreme Court upheld today in a rejection of TikToks free speech argument (which doesnt apply to China).As of this upcoming Monday afternoon, the White House will change hands as former President Trump replaces President Joe Biden. For his part, Trump has played coy on how his administration will handle enforcement of the TikTok divestment law.Perhaps the Biden White House will issue an even more convincing statement that TikTok is clear to operate in the United States. From a liability perspective, however, it seems no amount of reassurance from either administration provides TikTok with risk-free legal standing to continue operating in America.It now seems likely that TikTok will leverage its ability to selectively go dark on Sunday in order to show customers what divest-or-bust means for their addictive, brain cell-deteriorating smartphone app of choice. Attention spans may marginally improve by Wednesday if so.Meanwhile, the head of TikTok in the States plans to attend President Trumps inauguration affair on Monday alongside Apple CEO Tim Cook and other conveniently patriotic tech bros who each recently lost $1 million.Shop Apple on Amazon to support my work Add 9to5Mac to your Google News feed. FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.Youre reading 9to5Mac experts who break news about Apple and its surrounding ecosystem, day after day. Be sure to check out our homepage for all the latest news, and follow 9to5Mac on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to stay in the loop. Dont know where to start? Check out our exclusive stories, reviews, how-tos, and subscribe to our YouTube channel

Image by Amy T. Zielinski via Getty / FuturismBeloved "Mulholland Drive" director David Lynch lived just off that titular Hollywood street and his death may well have been related to the wildfires that blazed nearby.Sources close to the director toldDeadline that Lynch "took a turn for the worse" after being forced to evacuate his house due to the Sunset fire, which burned for about a day in the Hollywood Hills as larger conflagrations devastated other parts of LA County.Aged 78 at the time of his death, the lifelong smoker revealed to Sight and Sound magazine last year that he had been diagnosed with emphysema. During that gloomy interview, Lynch said that he didn't leave his house often due to fear of contracting COVID-19 alongside his debilitating lung disease, and could only work if he directed remotely."Ill tell you, I've gotten emphysema from smoking for so long, and so Im homebound whether I like it or not," the "Twin Peaks" creator told the magazine. "I cant go out. And I can only walk a short distance before I'm out of oxygen."Though no official cause of death has been released in the aftermath of Lynch's passing, speculation has raged online about the potential link between the fire-mandated evacuation of his Hollywood home a brutalist mauve mansion built by Frank Lloyd Wright's son for the writer Beverly Johnson that's located right off Mulholland and his death so soon after.The already-dodgy air quality in LA has been positively apocalyptic since it suffered warring wildfires last week and Lynch being exposed to it could well have contributed to his death,linking it in a grim way to the climate and energy crises also implicated in the deadly California fires.In a meta-analysis of studies about wildfire smoke's impact on emphysema, a common form of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), theHealthcare (Basel) journal suggested not only that inhaling post-fire particulates can lead to "increased all-cause mortality," but also that older people with COPD are at greater risk of becoming ill or dying after wildfires.And the fires notwithstanding, Lynch acknowledged in his Sight and Sound interview that his love affair with cigarettes was likely to do him in."Smoking was something that I absolutely loved but, in the end, it bit me," he told the magazine. "It was part of the art life for me: the tobacco and the smell of it and lighting things and smoking and going back and sitting back and having a smoke and looking at your work, or thinking about things; nothing like it in this world is so beautiful.""Meanwhile," he said, "its killing me."Observers on social also tied those poetic factors together when mourning the "Inland Empire" auteur."Dying from cigarettes and a fire itself caused by both nature and human evil is deeply Lynchian," one wrote.Share This Article

Time zones: EST (UTC -5), CST (UTC -6), MST (UTC -7), PST (UTC -8), AKST (UTC -9), HST (UTC -10)As a Senior iOS Engineer you will work alongside a small team of engineers, creatives, and project managers working on mobile apps that connect fans and collectors to the exciting world of Funko.This is a contract position.Your Superpowers in ActionDevelop iOS apps using the latest Apple frameworks and technologies to deliver exceptional user experiences.Implement advanced animations and transitions with a focus on performance and usability.Develop resilient non-UI components, including networking, caching, and long-running task functions, classes, and libraries.Participate in our established code review process to ensure code quality and consistency.Must-Have Superhero GadgetryExpertise in UIKit and SwiftUI.Strong architectural skills, designing scalable apps with reusable components and patterns.Strong skills in creating custom UI components.Proven experience building apps with adaptive layouts for various screen sizes.Deep understanding of Swift Concurrency and solving complex multithreading challenges.Familiarity with functional reactive patterns and frameworks like Combine.Experience integrating with external data sources (e.g., REST APIs) and managing caching effectively.Proficiency with Git and branch-based workflows such as GitHub Flow.Meticulous attention to detail, writing clean, maintainable code.Write unit tests for critical sections of the code base.Experience with the full app deployment lifecycle, including continuous integration, TestFlight, and App Store submission.5+ years of experience as a design-focused iOS software engineer.Nice to HaveExperience with 3D libraries such as Unity, RealityKit, SceneKit, or Metal.Understanding of ARKit.Familiarity with Core Bluetooth for interacting with external peripherals over BLE.Familiarity with in-house app development workflows and deployment processes, including ad-hoc and enterprise signing.

Looking for the most recentregular Connections answers? Click here for today's Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.Soccer, football, car racing -- hope you know a little bit about all those sports in order to solve today's NYTConnections: Sports Editionpuzzle. And the purple category spreads an even wider net. Read on for hints and answers for today's Connections: Sports Edition puzzle.For now, the game is in beta, which means the Times is testing it out to see if it's popular before adding it to the site's Games app. You can play it daily for now for free -- and then we'll have to see if it sticks around.Read more: NYT Has a Connections Game for Sports Fans. I Tried ItHints for today's Connections: Sports Edition groupsHere are four hints for the groupings in today's Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.Yellow group hint: Get a kick out of it.Green group hint: Pass the pigskin.Blue group hint: Pole position.Purple group hint: We are the champions.Answers for today's Connections: Sports Edition groupsYellow group: MLS teams.Green group: NFC East teams.Blue group: F1 Grands Prix.Purple group: Reigning champions in their respective leagues.Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English WordsWhat are today's Connections: Sports Edition answers? The completed NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Jan. 18, 2025. NYT/Screenshot by CNETThe yellow words in today's ConnectionsThe theme is MLS teams. The four answers are Dynamo, Galaxy, Sounders and Union.The green words in today's ConnectionsThe theme is NFC East teams. The four answers are Commanders, Cowboys, Eagles and Giants.The blue words in today's ConnectionsThe theme is F1 Grands Prix. The four answers are Mexico City, Miami, Monaco and Singapore.The purple words in today's ConnectionsThe theme is reigning champions in their respective leagues. The four answers are Chiefs, Dodgers, Liberty and Manchester City.

January 17, 20252 min readSpaceX Starship Explosion Likely Caused by Propellant Leak, Elon Musk SaysThe seventh test flight of SpaceXs Starship ended with a successful landing of the rockets first stage but also the loss of the Starship vehicleBy Mike Wall & SPACE.com The two stages of SpaceXs Starship megarocket separate during the vehicles seventh test flight on January 16, 2025. The upper stage was lost about six minutes later. SpaceXThe explosion that destroyed the upper stage of SpaceX's Starship vehicle yesterday (Jan. 16) was likely caused by a leak, Elon Musk said.Starship launched yesterday afternoon from SpaceX's Starbase site in South Texas, kicking of the seventh flight test of the 403-foot-tall (123 meters) megarocket.Things went well initially. The vehicle's two stages the Super Heavy booster and Ship upper-stage spacecraft separated on time, and Super Heavy returned to Starbase as planned, where it was caught by the launch tower's "chopstick" arms.On supporting science journalismIf you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.Ship ran into problems shortly after its partner's big moment, however. The 171-foot-tall (52 m) spacecraft broke apart over the Atlantic Ocean roughly 8.5 minutes after liftoff, creating a sky show seen by observers in the Turks and Caicos islands and other nearby locales.Though it's still early in the anomaly investigation, SpaceX has already identified a likely cause, according to Musk, the company's founder and CEO."Preliminary indication is that we had an oxygen/fuel leak in the cavity above the ship engine firewall that was large enough to build pressure in excess of the vent capacity. Apart from obviously double-checking for leaks, we will add fire suppression to that volume and probably increase vent area. Nothing so far suggests pushing next launch past next month," Musk said via X, the social media platform he owns, about 2.5 hours after Flight 7 launched. (Starship's Raptor engines are powered by liquid oxygen and liquid methane.)As the latter part of that post indicates, SpaceX plans to fly Starship often in 2025; the company has applied for permission to launch the megarocket from Starbase up to 25 times this year.That pressure overload apparently led to a fire "in the aft section of the ship, leading to a rapid unscheduled disassembly," SpaceX wrote in a blog post about Flight 7 yesterday evening, stressing that this interpretation is based on initial data analyses. ("Rapid unscheduled disassembly" is a term of art for a spacecraft explosion.)"We will conduct a thorough investigation, in coordination with the FAA, and implement corrective actions to make improvements on future Starship flight tests," the company added, referring to the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration."Starship flew within its designated launch corridor as all U.S. launches do to safeguard the public both on the ground, on water and in the air," SpaceX continued in the blog post. "Any surviving pieces of debris would have fallen into the designated hazard area."Still, the anomaly did have some effects beyond the SpaceX sphere. "The FAA briefly slowed and diverted aircraft around the area where space vehicle debris was falling," agency officials told Space.com via email yesterday afternoon, noting that normal aircraft operations resumed shortly thereafter.Copyright 2025 Space.com, a Future company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Ubisoft says Assassin's Creed Shadows will have less map icon 'hand-holding', more player-driven exploration"We wanted to craft an open world where information [becomes] a form of reward."Image credit: Ubisoft News by Matt Wales News Reporter Published on Jan. 18, 2025 Assassin's Creed Shadows is - assuming it doesn't get delayed for a third time - almost upon us, and in the run-up to its March release, Ubisoft is continuing its series of deep dives highlighting some of the ways this latest series entry will be breaking from tradition. And this time around, it's the turn of exploration, which is promising to be a little more player-driven and a little less like an explosion in a map marker factory.In its latest blog post, Ubisoft says Assassin's Creed Shadows makes "major changes and additions" to exploration in order to "foster a unique sense of discovery" as players roam the world. The aim, it explains, is to move away from an overabundance of 'hand-holding' map icons and markers toward an open world where information is "key [and] a form of reward". As such, rather than be immediately showered with points of interest, players will need to discover and earn information - either directly, through their spies, or via NPCs on their travels.The world map, for instance, will initially only show region names and vague illustrative hints at potential key locations, with more details being revealed as players explore regions, sub-regions, and local landmarks. Notably, players will eventually earn scouts that can be sent ahead to reveal more precise location for quest objectives.Synchronisation in Assassin's Creed Shadows.Watch on YouTubeOne of Assassin's Creed's most iconic exploration features is also getting an overhaul, with viewpoints - AKA synchronisation points - now behaving a little differently. In Shadows, synchronisation no longer uncovers a clutter of map icons over a large area, instead revealing nearby key points of interest that can be manually tagged and added to the compass. Ubisoft says the goal is to give players a "more intentional and active way to find their next adventure."In a similar fashion, the classic companion eagle has now been jettisoned, and players will instead need to find a good vantage point to observe the surrounding area and plan their approach, manually searching out and tagging valuable items, enemies, and so on.Also new are safe houses - known as "kakurega" - that players can acquire. These provide "safe" fast travel points (discovered viewpoints also unlock fast travel, but these are frequently in dangerous enemy zones), as well as other useful functions. Players can, for instance, refill rations, tools, and ammunition; access their gear stash; manage and accept contracts; replenish scouts, and manage allies that can be summoned for help.And here's a look at Shadows' objective board.Watch on YouTubeElsewhere in Ubisoft's update, there's mention of Assassin's Creed Shadows' Objective Board - a version of the visual quest log previously seen in Mirage, which expands to show new targets and objectives as more characters and challenges are encountered. Or rather, it reveals clues pointing to the location of new opportunities, which players must piece together for more specific directions - unless they want their scouts to do the hard work for them.Ubisoft also highlights Shadows' Pathfinder tool, which - given the inclusion of more unclimbable scenery this time around - is intended to help players avoid false shortcuts that would increase their travel time. When a quest is tracked and its location is revealed (or when players manually place a marker on the map), Pathfinder can be deployed while on horseback to draw a white line overlay on the ground showing the shortest route to a player's destination.A few more exploration details can be found in Ubisoft's latest blog post - and if that's left you sufficiently intrigued, Assassin's Creed Shadows is now due to launch for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC on 20th March. Ubisoft recently delayed the game's release yet again (it was previously scheduled for 14th February) as it explores potential sales options.

Airbnbs with indoor pools (especially the heated kind) are the kinds of needle in a haystack rentals that can save a winter vacation from feeling completely miserable on the coldest months of the year, or heighten the excitement of the enclave youve secured for a week of summer bliss. And though any of your standard Airbnb rentals will offer guests some generous amenitiesa plush bed, a functional kitchen, and a high-pressure shower immediately come to mindonly a very select few allow you to book a pool that's all yours (not shared, or fought over, by a bunch of resort guests).Needless to say, a sheltered swimming pool (even if its not heated) surrounded by floor-to-ceiling windows is even better for locking in this vacation and tuning everything else out. And you might be surprised to know this, but theres a decent range of Airbnbs around the country with indoor pool optionsfrom East Coast cabins to Southern cabanasfor you to retreat to when the weather feels plain miserable outside.We cant think of a better cure for the doldrums than a few minutes soaking in a heated saltwater pool with a scenic backdrop and some of your nearest and dearest, can you? Without further ado, the best Airbnbs with indoor pools (i.e., where we are mentally right this moment).Multilevel Home in Colorado Springs, ColoradoColorado is a state known for its epic ski resorts and wintery locales, but in the city of Colorado Springs, all kinds of adventures await you when you book into this Southwestern-style home that feels all but plucked out of the desert. The jewel of the home is its long stretch of indoor pool that heats up to 90 degrees Fahrenheit so you can break a sweat even when its in the single digits outside. Spread across multiple levels that include plenty of terraces for enjoying the great outdoors, you can also get up and close and personal with nature on any of the surrounding hiking trails (including the ones that snake through Pulpit Rock Park and Garden of the Gods).BOOK NOW

Media Democratic lawmakers pen letter accusing Meta, OpenAI, Google and more of trying to 'buy favor' with Trump 'Funny, they never sent me one of these for contributing to Democrats,' OpenAI CEO Sam Altman tweeted in response to the letter By Nikolas Lanum Fox News Published January 17, 2025 2:30pm EST close Big Tech CEOs Musk, Bezos and Zuckerberg to attend Trump's inauguration Fox News congressional correspondent Aishah Hasnie has more on who will be in attendance and policies President-elect Donald Trump will enact during his first day in office on 'Special Report.' Democratic lawmakers have penned a letter accusing Big Tech companies and leaders of engaging in an "effort to influence and sway" the incoming administration following substantial donations to President-elect Donald Trumps inaugural fund.The letter, obtained by Fox News Digital, was distributed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Sen. Michael Bennet to Amazon, Apple, Google, OpenAI, Meta, Microsoft and Uber."Big Tech companies have come under increased scrutiny from federal regulators for antitrust violations, violations of privacy, and harms to workers, consumers, and competition. At the same time, lawmakers in both parties have voiced support for regulating tech platforms, in recognition that there is currently no comprehensive set of rules for the tech sector," the letter states.BIDEN WARNS OF 'ULTRA-WEALTHY' 'OLIGARCHY' DESPITE ACCEPTING DONATIONS FROM DEM MEGA-DONORS Senators Elizabeth Warren and Michael Bennet are asking tech companies for answers following their contributions to President-elect Trump's inaugural fund. (Photo by Win McNamee/Oleg Nikishin/Getty Images)"We are concerned that your company and other Big Tech donors are using your massive contributions to the inaugural fund to cozy up to the incoming Trump administration in an effort to avoid scrutiny, limit regulation, and buy favor," the document continues.Warren and Bennet claim these donations "raise questions about corruption and the influence of corporate money on the Trump administration, and Congress and the public deserve answers."The letter asks the mentioned companies to answer questions by January 31 about these contributions, including the rationale behind them and what kinds of communications were made to the Trump team. Logos of major Big Tech companies. (smart city file image: istock)"Funny, they never sent me one of these for contributing to Democrats," OpenAI CEO Sam Altman tweeted in response to the letter.Altman noted that his $1 million donation to the inaugural fund was a personal contribution, and he was confused about the document's details, considering his company had no part in the decision.In a statement to Fox News Digital, an OpenAI spokesperson said, "Sam believes that President Trump will lead our country during a pivotal moment for AI and American innovation and looks forward to working with him and his administration."TRUMP INAUGURATION GUEST LIST INCLUDES TECH TITANS MARK ZUCKERBERG, JEFF BEZOS, ELON MUSK Tech leaders, including Elon Musk, Shou Zi Chew, Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg are set to attend Trump's inauguration on Monday. (ETIENNE LAURENTBAY ISMOYOMARK RALSTONANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP/Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty Images)Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft and Uber donated $1 million to Trumps inaugural fund.Apple CEO Tim Cook personally donated $1 million to the fund.Many of these tech company leaders are expected to attend Trump's inauguration.Fox News Digital has reached out to Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta, Microsoft, and Uber for comments.Nikolas Lanum is an associate editor for Fox News Digital. Related Topics

New booster packs are also being added.Late last year, The Pokmon Company announced it would finally be adding an anticipated feature to the mobile app Pokmon Trading Card Game Pocket in January 2025.It's now been reconfirmed the trading feature will arrive "this month" - with the team also detailing what exactly you can expect from this new feature, which will be gradually rolled out.Read the full article on nintendolife.com

Seven-year-old electric vehicle startup Canoo has filed for bankruptcy and will cease operations immediately. The company is liquidating its assets in a Chapter 7 proceeding in the Delaware Bankruptcy Court.The company said in a press release published late Friday that it was in discussions with foreign sources of capital that proved unsuccessful, and also singled out an inability to secure funding from the U.S. Department of Energys Loan Program Office, which has been on a lending spree in the waning days of the Biden administration.Canoo said in its bankruptcy filing that it had owed money to fewer than 49 creditors, with outstanding liabilities totaling between $10 million and $50 million. It claimed to have fewer than $50,000 in assets.The bankruptcy filing comes just a few weeks after Canoo furloughed the remainder of its workers and idled its factory in Oklahoma. The company struggled throughout 2024 to get more than a few of its electric vans into the hands of prospective customers, and suffered numerous executive departures. It had just $700,000 in the bank in mid-November.Canoo is the latest EV startup to go bankrupt after merging with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) as a shortcut to going public. Electric Last Mile Solutions was the first in June 2022. But since then, Fisker, Lordstown Motors, Proterra, Lion Electric, and Arrival all filed for different levels of bankruptcy protection in their various home countries. (Canoo bought Arrivals assets out of insolvency in 2024, though its unclear if it ever put any of it to use.) Canoo announced plans to merge with a SPAC Hennessy Capital Acquisition Corp. in August 2020, and went public that following December, raising around $600 million. In the years since it went public, the company made a small number of its bubbly electric vans and handed them over to partners some paying willing to trial the vehicles. The United States Postal Service, Department of Defense, and NASA all have or had Canoo vehicles. At one point the company even courted Walmart, which agreed to purchase as many as 10,000 EVs from Canoo in 2022. But the deal was essentially non-binding and bore little risk for the retail giant.Canoo was founded in late 2017 by a splinter group of executives that were fed up with the drama surrounding the other EV startup where they worked at the time, Faraday Future. Originally called Evelozcity, those executives developed a modular electric vehicle platform that could power cabins in multiple shapes and sizes, and utilized advanced technology like a steer-by-wire system.The ideas inside Canoo were attractive enough that the startup at one point was in talks to with Apple, which was interested in a potential investment or even acquisition as a way to boost the tech giants own secretive electric car project. But Canoo underwent numerous pivots after it went public and gained a new chairman and CEO in Tony Aquila. A serial entrepreneur, Aquila immediately refocused Canoo away from selling to consumers and prioritized commercial fleets. On his watch, Canoo repeatedly changed plans on whether it would build its own electric vehicles or outsource the work. At one point Canoo announced it was moving its headquarters to Bentonville, Arkansas the home of Walmart but then never really followed through. Signs of a bankruptcy were bubbling up all week. Reddit users noticed that the companys billboard outside its office in Justin, Texas had been taken down. Multiple employees who were on furlough told TechCrunch that they received official termination notices. Some people who had placed $100 deposits when the company was still planning on selling to regular customers had started to get refunds. This story is developing