When Apple TV+ launched back in 2019, one of the most common complaints was its lack of a back catalog. And to some extent, the criticism made sense, especially given that some expected Apple tobundle in its vast iTunes movie library. Now, more than five years later, Apple has quietly built up a surprisingly solid library of original films and series. If you’re a relatively new subscriber, there’s a good chance you missed out on a few of these great early releases: Defending Jacob Based on William Landay’s 2012 best-selling novel of the same name, this limited crime drama series stars Michelle Dockeryand Chris Evans, as well as Jaeden Martellin the titular role of Jacob. Evans’ character is tasked with the defense of his own son in a murder trial, and the story explores the tectonic shifts caused by such an event in the life of a family. If you’ve watched Netflix’s recent Adolescence limited series, you know to expect this won’t be a light, dinner time, binge-worthy show, but it is definitely worth a watch. Watch Defending Jacob on Apple TV+ The Velvet Underground Being a Velvet Underground fan, I am partial to this one. But this excellently produced documentary explores how one of the most influential bands in history came together, and turned the rock scene upside down. As one IMDB reviewer put it, the documentary is “pieced together almost as strangely as the band itself”, which is possibly the highest praise director and writer Todd Hainescould possibly expect. Even if you are not a Velvet Underground fan, this documentary might surprise you. Watch The Velvet Underground on Apple TV+ CODA For the standards of a three-time Academy Award winner, this remake of 2014’s La Famille Bélier flies surprisingly under the radar. CODA stars Marlee Matlin, Troy Kotsur, and Emilia Jonesas members of a deaf family whose hearing daughter, played by Jones, serves as their connection to the hearing world. Until her musical ambitions begin to pull her in a different direction. CODA became the first movie produced by a streaming service to win Best Picture, and it also scored Apple the Academy Awards for Best Adapted, and Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role thanks to Kotsur’s portrayal of character Frank Rossi. Watch CODA on Apple TV+ WeCrashed Alongside the Theranos case, the WeWork saga is possibly one of the craziest, most interesting and unbelievable stories that only reality could provide. The show features Jared Letoas Adam Neumann, and Anne Hathawayas Rebekah Neumann. It explores the couple’s trajectory as they, well, manifested WeWork’s billion valuation. Based on a homonymous podcast, this eight-part series is a must-watch for any tech enthusiast. Just by writing about it, I feel like watching it again. Watch WeCrashed on Apple TV+ Black Bird This is yet another inspired-by-true-events limited series that made a bit of a splash when it came out, but was soon unfairly forgotten. Taron Egertonplays a playboy turned convict who accepts a plea deal involving a fellow convict, played by the fantastic Paul Walter Hauser. Black Bird also marks Ray Lotta’s final performance, and earned Apple quite a few awards due to Hauser’s terrifyingly good portrayal of… well, you’ll see. Watch Black Bird on Apple TV+ Billie Eilish: The World’s A Little Blurry I had never been a big Billie Eilish fan. I did know one or two of her songs, but that was it. Still, I gave Billie Eilish: The World’s A Little Blurry a try, and I’m glad I did. The documentary takes you alongon the ride all the way up to the top, and the loneliness that might come with it. The documentary highlights Eilish’s creative partnership with her brother Finneas O’Connell and her fiercely protective mother, who is set on not letting her daughter become another cautionary tale for early stardom. Watch Billie Eilish: The World’s A Little Blurry on Apple TV+ Do you have a favorite forgotten Apple TV+ gem? Any recent favorites you can’t recommend enough? Let us know in the comments. Apple TV+ is available for per month and features hit TV shows and movies like Ted Lasso, Severance, The Studio, The Morning Show, Shrinking and Silo. Add 9to5Mac to your Google News feed.  FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.You’re 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. Don’t know where to start? Check out our exclusive stories, reviews, how-tos, and subscribe to our YouTube channel #new #apple #these #older #titles

RoadCraft, newest off-road driving game by Saber Interactive, is out now on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. Similar to previous games in the studio’s repertoire – MudRunner, SnowRunner and Expeditions: A MudRunner Game – RoadCraft also focuses quite a bit on off-road driving, setting up supply chains, and putting players behind the wheels of industrial-grade vehicles. Check out the launch trailer below. Whereas previous games in the franchise have focused more on driving off-road vehicles in more remote parts of the world and setting up supply lines, the focus in RoadCraft is instead is to help in rebuilding places that have been devastated by natural disasters. Throughout the eight massive maps available in RoadCraft at launch, players will have to deal with the aftermath of tsunamis, earthquakes, and massive storms that have left the maps in ruin. In terms of gameplay, players are first tasked with scouting the area that they’ve just entered. After getting a lay of the land, the player is then given plenty of objectives to complete which will help them slowly rebuild pockets of industry all over the map. Where objectives initially start out being as simple as setting up a forward base by driving a truck full of important resources there, they can quickly start getting more complex, like having to manufacture pipes that you then have to use to replace broken ones in order to ensure that the overall area has steady access to gas. “Thanks to Saber Interactive’s expertise, RoadCraft pushes the boundaries of realism with an evolved physics engine, offering unprecedented, authentic interactions with the environment,” wrote the studio in its press release. “The only limit is the imagination you and your co-op partners bring!” At launch, RoadCraft features more than 40 vehicles to choose from, that range from SUVs to cargo trucks, cranes, and even bulldozers and road rollers. These vehicles can be used throughout the 8 maps available at launch, each one falling under one of three biomes. The studio has also confirmed that there are plans to bring in more vehicles, maps and biomes to the game through post-launch content releases. RoadCraft can be played in single-player, as well as with up to three other players in co-op multiplayer. Along with this, the game also features support for 14 languages, along with full voice-overs in English. A Rebuild Edition of the game is also available, which allows playears to buy the Invictus Type A scout vehicle right at the beginning. The Rebuild Edition also gives players access to the first paid DLC, which is slated for release later this year. For more details about RoadCraft, check out our review, where we gave it a score of 9 out of 10, praising its gameplay loop, variety of vehicles, co-op gameplay, and visuals. And in case you’re left with more questions about the game, here’s everything you need to know. Also check out the sandbox trailer released earlier this month which compared playing RoadCraft with children playing with toy trucks in their sandboxes. #roadcraft #out #now #ps5 #xbox

Buildner Announces Winners of the 5th Annual Last Nuclear Bomb Memorial CompetitionSponsored ContentSave this picture!Courtesy of BuildnerBuildner has announced the results of its competition, the In recognition of this treaty, Buildner invites conceptual designs for a memorial to be located on any known decommissioned nuclear weapon testing site. The conceptual memorial is intended to reflect the history and ongoing threat of nuclear weapons, aiming to promote public awareness of nuclear disarmament. The challenge is intended to bring attention to the history and dangers of nuclear weapons. Participants are tasked with designing a space that commemorates nuclear warfare victims and conveys the need for a nuclear-free future. As a 'silent' competition, submissions are not allowed to include any text, titles, or annotations.The next edition of this competition, the , has been launched with an early bird registration deadline of June 12, 2025.The briefThis competition invites designers to conceive a memorial that meaningfully engages the public with the critical issue of nuclear disarmament. Memorials play a crucial role in capturing history and facilitating collective reflection, shaping how future generations understand and respond to global challenges. The proposed memorial will specifically address the legacy of nuclear warfare, emphasizing the urgency of diplomatic solutions and international solidarity in preventing nuclear conflict.Design proposals are encouraged to consider the following core principles: Vision of Peace: Proposals should embody the aspiration for a world free of nuclear threats, incorporating symbolic or abstract representations that inspire unity and harmony. Reflection and Remembrance: Designs must foster a thoughtful and enduring dialogue, offering visitors a contemplative environment where they can reflect upon the consequences of nuclear weaponry. Educational Impact: The memorial should provide visitors with accessible insights into the historical realities and ongoing dangers of nuclear arms, actively promoting public knowledge and awareness. Emotional Engagement: Successful memorials will create a powerful emotional connection, provoking personal and collective introspection on peace, responsibility, and the human cost of nuclear conflict. Sustainable Stewardship: Designs must embrace environmental sustainability, reinforcing the memorial's overarching message of responsible stewardship and enduring peace. this picture!Jury PanelThis year's submissions were reviewed by a distinguished jury panel featuring experts from architecture, urbanism, and the arts:  Olha Kleytman, founder of Ukraine-based SBM Studio, brings expertise in architecture and urban design, alongside her humanitarian work through the NGO "Through the War."  Flora Lee, Associate Partner at MAD Architects, has contributed to major international projects including the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art.  Peter Newman, a London-based artist, explores humanity's relationship with space and modernity, with exhibitions spanning Trafalgar Square, the Hayward Gallery, and the Guggenheim Museum in Venice.  Vincent Panhuysen, co-founder of KAAN Architecten, integrates contextual sensitivity into large-scale projects, such as the Netherlands American Cemetery Visitor Center.  James Whitaker, founder of Whitaker Studio, is an architect known for his widely published Joshua Tree Residence.  Wu Ziye, co-founder of China's Mix Architecture, has received international acclaim for his studio's exploration of spatial consciousness, materiality, and integration with nature. Buildner's other ongoing competitions include: the 10th edition of MICROHOME competition, in collaboration with Kingspan and Hapi Homes; the Mujassam Watan Urban Sculpture Challenge aimed at finding innovative sculptures reflecting Saudi Arabia's heritage, modern achievements, and future ambitions; and the Howard Waterfall Retreatcompetition, which invites architects to propose designs for a multi-generational family retreat at the scenic and historically significant Howard Falls in Pennsylvania, USA. Each of these competitions aims to build the winning designs.Projects:First Prize Winner + Buildner Student AwardProject title: Urbs AeternaAuthors: Alessia Angela Sanchez, Erminia Cirillo and Adele Maria Saita, from ItalyThe project presents a memorial using sand and metal to depict a post-apocalyptic vision of what appears to be Rome reduced to an archaeological remnant. The design evokes the destruction and preservation paradox, allowing viewers to observe the site from above or navigate its fractured streets leading to a central void. A ghostly wireframe reconstruction of a vanished temple stands as the focal point, symbolizing loss and memory. The restrained material palette reinforces themes of impermanence and time. While conceptually strong and visually compelling, its cost and environmental impact raise questions. The experience unfolds gradually, inviting contemplation.this picture!this picture!Second Prize WinnerProject title: The Rainbow Of RenewalAuthors: Chen Yang, Ruijing Sun and Chao Li, from the United StatesThe project envisions a memorial for the last nuclear bomb through a landscape intervention that transforms destruction into renewal. A circular water installation generates mist, evoking the image of an explosion while simultaneously creating rainbows, symbolizing hope. The design's ephemeral quality enhances its poetic impact, making it a striking presence on the horizon. The intervention integrates with the natural environment, fostering an evolving atmospheric experience.this picture!this picture!3rd Prize Winner + Buildner Student AwardProject title: Projected DestructionAuthors: Marco Moreno Donohoe of Washington University in St. Louis , WUSTL, the United StatesThis project envisions a memorial set within a cratered landscape. A striking linear structure cuts through the void, acting as both a bridge and a viewing platform, inviting visitors to experience the vastness of destruction. The interplay of light and shadow within the perforated walls creates dynamic spatial effects, offering different perspectives from above and within. The scale and placement evoke a sense of isolation and reflection.this picture!this picture!Highlighted ProjectsProject title: Mycelial Rebirth: Fungi Restoring Nuclear Wounds Authors: Shengfeng Gao, Zhuohan Zhou and Shengnan Gao from the United StatesThis project envisions a memorial landscape where fungi serve as agents of ecological healing in a post-nuclear context. A dense forest setting is activated by a grid of ultraviolet lights that stimulate mycelial growth, enhancing the fungi's capacity to absorb and break down radioactive contaminants. As the soil regenerates, the design allows for gradual ecological succession, beginning with mushrooms and pioneering vegetation. The illuminated ground plane forms a quiet, immersive field that marks both decay and recovery. Over time, the site transforms into a living testament to resilience, where nature's unseen networks remediate and renew.this picture!this picture!Project title: Nuclear Living ForceAuthors: Luis Manuel Carcamo Cura of company LUIS CARCAMO ARQUITECTOS, from MexicoThis project responds to the atomic age by offering a message of harmony over despair, using the human eye as a central metaphor for awareness and reflection. A series of monumental, petal-like structures rise from a crater-shaped void, recalling both the iris and the bomb site in Santa Fe. Surrounding this core, the Flower of Life geometry guides the masterplan, symbolizing universal patterns and organic regeneration. The design emphasizes nature's resilience, referencing ecosystems like Chernobyl where life has returned unaided. Rather than mourning destruction, the project celebrates life, order, and the potential for collective transformation.this picture!Project title: The Illusion of ChoicesAuthors: Ruiqi Yao, University of Edinburgh from the United KingdomThis project explores the illusion of choice within the existential tension between nuclear war and peace. Set inside a vast crater, visitors begin their journey in a monumental spherical chamber, where a singular path ends abruptly, symbolizing unreachable goals and the false promise of nuclear power. Descending into a subterranean network, seven red-lit paths depict ruin and inevitability, while one blue-lit path offers a narrow route toward peace and introspection. The final space contrasts confinement with openness, guiding visitors through mirrored walls toward a hopeful exit. Through spatial transitions and stark lighting contrasts, the project stages a powerful moral journey.this picture!this picture!Project title: Möbius Elegy: Red Warning and Green ReturnAuthors: Daii Shimada, Mai Nakano and Midori Watanabe, from JapanThis project imagines a regenerative forest emerging from the scars of nuclear devastation. Set within a vast desert crater, a radial pattern of multicolored vegetation radiates outward, suggesting seasonal cycles and ecological diversity. The planting strategy appears gradual and deliberate, with craters used as microclimates for reforestation—each acting as a node in a larger ecological system. A lone figure stands before the transformed landscape, underscoring the scale and ambition of the intervention. Through time-lapse-like sequences, the imagery suggests the forest's steady expansion, turning the desert into a sanctuary of life. The memorial becomes a living archive of resilience and renewal.this picture!Project title: Soft FalloutAuthors: Louis Bourdages and Cedric Harvey, from the Université Laval School of Architecture, CanadaThis project proposes an immersive memorial defined by a luminous, amorphous structure suspended over a crater. From the outside, the glowing yellow form evokes a captured sun or lingering explosion, radiating both warmth and unease. Inside, visitors enter a soft, undulating landscape of quilted fabric that molds to the human body, allowing for stillness, reflection, or playful interaction. Light filters through the translucent skin, creating a surreal atmosphere suspended between comfort and disquiet. The form's biomorphic geometry contrasts the rationality of war, transforming the site into a sensorial space of pause and presence.this picture!Project title: "Used to be there"Authors: Hữu Nhân Hoàng, Hoàng Kỳ Lê and Anh Khoa Huỳnh, VietnamThis project constructs a memorial as a collective reflection on memory, identity, and everyday life disrupted by nuclear war. Set in a radial formation across a barren landscape, semi-transparent glass panels display ghosted historical photographs—scenes of people, architecture, and ordinary moments—layered over the present. Visitors navigate between these life-sized images, encountering echoes of the past embedded in space. The transparent surfaces blend time periods and dissolve boundaries, inviting viewers to see themselves within the continuity of human experience. Rather than focusing on devastation, the project quietly honors what stands to be lost: ordinary lives, familiar places, and shared memories.this picture!Visit the website for the recently launched , to take part and learn more, before the early bird registration deadline of June 12, 2025. Image gallerySee allShow less Cite: "Buildner Announces Winners of the 5th Annual Last Nuclear Bomb Memorial Competition" 21 May 2025. ArchDaily. Accessed . < ISSN 0719-8884Save世界上最受欢迎的建筑网站现已推出你的母语版本!想浏览ArchDaily中国吗?是否 You've started following your first account!Did you know?You'll now receive updates based on what you follow! Personalize your stream and start following your favorite authors, offices and users.Go to my stream #buildner #announces #winners #5th #annual

It is perhaps an understatement to say that Donald Trump is obsessed with popularity. Throughout his time in the limelight, he has repeatedly made it clear just how much he cares about polls — so much so that he’s made some up out of whole cloth and even called to “investigate” ones that showed he had low approval ratings, which he called “FAKE POLLS FROM FAKE NEWS ORGANIZATIONS.” He often exaggerates his political mandate and refers to his November victory as a historic landslide despite the fact that he didn’t even win a popular-vote majority.But since returning to the White House, President Donald Trump has been doing very unpopular things, and it shows: According to a recent New York Times poll, two-thirds of respondents described Trump’s second term as “chaotic,” 59 percent said it’s “scary,” and 54 percent disapproved of his overall job as president. And though his approval rating has been improving in recent weeks, the overall number is still negative.More specifically, Trump’s most high-profile moves have been opposed by the majority of Americans. An ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos poll showed that two-thirds of Americans disapproved of Trump’s handling of tariffs. A CNN poll found that a majority of Americans opposed deporting immigrants to a Salvadoran prison. And only 17 percent of Americans support deporting legal immigrants who participated in protests against Israel, according to the New York Times.Given the way Trump is governing, it can sometimes seem like how the majority of people feel doesn’t matter to the president, leading to more despair among those who disapprove. But is it actually true that polls and public opinion no longer influence Trump’s decisions? The takeaway, told through examples from the past four months, is more hopeful.Trump doubles down on birthright citizenship, deportationsOne of the most obvious examples of public opinion failing to sway the president comes from Trump’s handling of immigration, especially when it comes to the most controversial aspects of his policy. For years, Trump has railed against birthright citizenship, saying that the United States shouldn’t automatically give citizenship to people born on American soil. In his second term, one of Trump’s first executive orders was an attempt to end birthright citizenship, even though it’s enshrined in the US Constitution. The order, which has since been blocked by the courts, has little public support. An NPR/Ipsos poll in February, for example, found that only 31 percent of Americans support ending birthright citizenship. In May, the same poll found that only 28 percent of Americans favored Trump’s executive order. But that hasn’t made Trump stop his crusade against birthright citizenship, and his administration has taken the case up all the way to the Supreme Court.Another area where Trump has shown little, if any, movement despite public outcry is deportations. His administration deported Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadorian immigrant and Maryland resident, sending him to the notorious maximum security prison in El Salvador along with other deportees the administration has alleged are gang members. The Trump administration admitted that Abrego Garcia’s deportation was the result of an “administrative error.”A New York Times/Siena College poll found that only 31 percent of Americans approved Trump’s handling of this case, and another poll showed that only 26 percent of Americans believed that Abrego Garcia should remain in El Salvador. Despite that, and the fact that the courts have ordered the Trump administration to facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return to the United States, the president has been unwilling to do so. On X, the White House said that he would be “never coming back.”The same New York Times/Siena poll also found that only 17 percent of Americans support moves to deport legal immigrants for expressing their views about Israel. But the Trump administration has continued its effort to deport green card holders and revoke student visas for those who participated in pro-Palestinian protests.Trump has also shown little interest in how people feel about the more minor issues that seem to be his pet projects. Only a quarter of Americans seemed to like the idea of renaming the Gulf of Mexico — but Trump is so fixated on leaving his imprint on that body of water that he has a map labeling it the Gulf of America in the Oval Office. The White House even banned Associated Press reporters from accessing presidential events because their outlet still refers to it as the Gulf of Mexico. Large majorities also oppose Trump’s idea to annex Canada and Greenland, but that hasn’t stopped him from talking about his plans to do so. But Trump is still largely complying with the courts — for nowOn the other hand, there are examples of Trump at least pretending to fall in line with public opinion. Take, for example, Trump’s delicate dance when it comes to how the administration handles court rulings. Defying the judicial branch is a red line for many voters. A Pew poll found that 78 percent of Americans believe that Trump should obey federal courts, and 88 percent believe that Trump should abide by Supreme Court rulings. A New York Times/Siena poll similarly showed that only 6 percent of Americans believe that Trump should ignore Supreme Court rulings. And a Fox News poll found that two-thirds of Americans believe that the president must follow the Supreme Court. Trump has clashed with the courts and even defied some of their orders. But despite all of his complaining about the courts, Trump hasn’t gone so far as to be openly defiant. His administration, for example, still publicly states that it’s complying with the courts even when it’s not, knowing that explicitly rejecting court orders will likely prompt some backlash. And while there have been a few standout cases, as in the case of Abrego Garcia, the Trump administration has, for the most part, gone through the court process and abided by the rulings. They paused federal layoffs, for example, restored student visas, and released detained immigrants per court orders. Even as his administration finds ways to slow-walk court orders, Trump has said that he would “never defy” the Supreme Court. “I wouldn’t do that,” he told Time magazine in a recent interview. “I’m a big believer in the Supreme Court, and have a lot of respect for the justices.”Trump sidelines Elon MuskFor months, it seemed like Trump’s championing of Elon Musk was one of the starkest signs that he truly did not care about what his constituents think. The Tesla CEO was tasked with leading the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, which has wreaked havoc across agencies in the federal government. DOGE has been responsible for mass layoffs of federal workers and has proposed cuts to all sorts of programs, including Social Security. Musk himself had an outsize presence at the start of the Trump administration — even appearing in TV interviews alongside the president.Musk’s role in the Trump administration was designed to be temporary, with his status as a “special government employee” lasting 130 days. But at the start of Trump’s presidency, White House officials predicted that Musk’s role would be more permanent and that he would last longer than the 130-day limit that his status provides.That, however, doesn’t seem to be the case. Polls consistently show that a majority of Americans have an unfavorable view of Musk. And one of Musk’s most public setbacks came after he campaigned heavily in favor of the Republican in Wisconsin’s Supreme Court election, only for the Democrat to win by 10 points.Soon after that election, Trump signaled to his Cabinet that they will be seeing less of Musk. According to Politico, “Trump is increasingly mindful of next year’s midterms and making sure he doesn’t jeopardize his House majority. He’s kept a careful eye on the town hall outrage over DOGE, even as Republicans have chalked those scenes up to coordinated liberal stagecraft.” Trump, who made a habit of mentioning Musk’s work earlier on in his administration, has even stopped bringing him up nearly as much in public, something that his fellow Republicans in Congress have also done. Trump walks back tariffsPerhaps the ultimate example of Trump heeding public opinion comes from one of his most chaotic policies. When he came into office, Trump promised to impose taxes on imports from allies and foes alike. And since then, his plan can best be described as on again, off again.On the day he was inaugurated, for example, Trump announced he would impose 25 percent tariffs on Canada and Mexico starting on February 1. A Reuters/Ipsos poll at the time showed that a majority of Americans opposed slapping a tax on imports from the United States’ two largest trading partners, with only 37 percent of Americans supporting tariffs on Canada. Just two days after the tariffs went into effect, Trump announced he would implement a 30-day pause, claiming that he was satisfied with his agreement with the two countries over their border policies.A similar story played out when Trump finally announced his broader tariff policy, which imposed import taxes on the vast majority of countries. In the days and weeks that followed, poll after poll showed Americans were unhappy with the policy, with one poll showing that some two-thirds of Americans opposed Trump’s tariffs. Notably, financial markets were also rattled, and stock prices plunged. Trump then scaled back and paused his tariffs, focusing his trade war with China as opposed to the whole world. And eventually, Trump started walking back how aggressive he was willing to be on China as well.What does this all mean?A lot of Americans who oppose Trump might feel helpless during this second term, seeing little reason to protest or express their discontent. But just because Trump is term-limited and doesn’t have to win another election doesn’t mean that public anger won’t influence his administration. One of the fears of a second Trump term was that Trump would be emboldened and even more reckless than he was in his first. But there still seems to be evidence that despite governing in a deeply polarizing and unpopular way, Trump is probably swayed by the polls. That’s not to say that protests would stop the administration from implementing its agenda, but it is to say that if there’s enough discontent, Trump has shown that he might adjust his priorities. And with enough public outcry, Trump, like other presidents, sometimes scales back some of his more controversial policies to make them more palatable. It’s hard to predict just how much hold public opinion has over Trump, or when bad poll numbers might prompt him to reverse course, but he clearly cares about his legacy, what the overall public thinks about his performance as president, and, maybe most importantly, how his party will fare in the midterms next year. Trump would love nothing more than to still have a majority in Congress for the last two years of his presidency. So when it comes to which areas he might be willing to move on in order to cater to the broader electorate, it’s likely going to be issues that have staying power and could haunt the GOP in 2026. That’s likely why he panicked about tariffs and blinked: Not only are they deeply unpopular, but the potential negative consequences on prices and the overall economy might make Republicans less electable, just as historic inflation hurt Democrats’ chances last cycle. Expressing discontent over Trump’s policies also has a ripple effect that goes beyond how Trump might respond to one poll or protest here or there. When Trump first launched his retribution campaign against law firms and his assault on universities, some institutions cowered and bent to his will. But over time, as Trump grew more emboldened while the public grew more wary, some institutions started to fight back. At the end of the day, Trump’s power is derived from the people, and he is not immune to pushing his luck. See More: #trump #still #afraid #voters

On a week like this, it’s hard not to feel like you’re living in dueling realities. On one side, you’ve got the futuristic vision Google is telling you about at its annual developer event, Google I/O. The company waxed on for nearly two hours about how its Gemini generative AI assistant will help provide even more complex answers from the web, make purchases and complete bookings on your behalf, and generally just do all the Gemini stuff it does now faster and better.If you believe what these companies are saying, we’re living in an era where artificial intelligence is always on the brink of a life-changing breakthrough. What’s especially wild is that none of this is even that big of a leap from what these same sorts of systems have already been promising and the way they’ve been framed for months — for casual individual use, sure, and also for serious company business. And that, my friend, is an ever-increasing liability for anyone who still cares about getting things right.Behind the generative AI curtains Let’s back up for a second and talk about what all of these generative AI tools actually are — and aren’t. The real issue here isn’t that this type of technology isn’t in any way valid or useful — far from it. It’s just that it isn’t designed to do or currently even capable of doing what nearly every tech company out there is breathlessly telling us it can handle in our personal and professional lives. At their core, Gemini, ChatGPT, and other such systems are powered by a type of technology known as a large language model — or LLM, for short. In the simplest possible terms, an LLM looks at massive amounts of real-world language data and then uses that to learn patterns and predict the most likely next word over and over, in response to any prompt it’s given. In other words, these engines don’t truly understand context or “think” about the answers they’re giving you in any human-like sense. They merely predict words, based on patterns observed in sprawling sets of human-created data, and then string those words together to form sentences and, eventually, entire paragraphs and documents whenever they’re summoned and given a task. Somehow, that’s translated into tech companies plastering them into every possible place and presenting them as the end-all answers for every possible purpose — everything from replacements for search to replacements for writing in Gmail, Google Docs, and other such places.And we don’t need to rely on theoretical examples to see just how dangerous of a situation this can create. Artificial intelligence, genuine jeopardy The reality of these systems’ limitations has been showing itself time and time again for quite a while now, in scenarios that are all too real and should serve as a serious wake-up call for any company — or even individual — buying into the hype. Plain and simple, these things don’t know what they’re saying. They string together characters that sometimes make sense but are also extremely likely to include errors and often even flat-out fabricated nonsense. When they do get something right, it’s mostly just by chance. And you, as the user, have no way of immediately detecting the difference. For instance, across the broader genAI landscape — with the exact same foundational limitations affecting Gemini and all these other similar systems: Just last week, Anthropic — the company behind the business-popular genAI chatbot Claude — had to apologize in court after learning its system completely made up a legal citation the company’s lawyer used as part of an ongoing copyright case.Days earlier, a California judge discovered “numerous false, inaccurate, and misleading legal citations and quotations” in a submitted brief apparently created with the aid of AI. Last month, a company relying on an AI “support agent” was forced to apologize when it learned said agent was making up nonexistent policies while interacting with customers. In an experiment, Carnegie Mellon University created a simulation in which AI agents were tasked with handling low-level chores at a realistically structured software company — performing the same sorts of feats at which these systems are promised to be proficient. They failed miserably. In the oft-cited area of genAI coding expertise, researchers are finding case after case where the systems invent package names that don’t exist and lead to all sorts of time- and money-wasting errors — not to mention troubling security vulnerabilities. The Columbia Journalism Review tested eight different genAI search engines and found they got all sorts of information wildly wrong — offering incorrect and fabricated info and even nonexistent citations — and, worse yet, they served up those inaccuracies with an astonishing amount of confidence. Lest you think this is an artifact of long-dated early versions of these engines, the instances above are all from the past few months.Worse, as reported in The New York Times earlier this month, the act of “AI hallucination” — a fancy euphemism for “their tendency to serve up lies and inaccuracies” — only seems to be getting worse as the systems get more powerful. Yet somehow, hardly anyone seems to be taking notice — or letting that reality get in the way of the much more enticing vision the tech industry is desperate to sell us. Just this week, a new report revealed that a whopping half of tech execs expect these very same sorts of error-prone AI agents to function autonomously in their companies within the next two years — which, translated out of corporate geek-speak, essentially means they’ll be replacing human workers and operating with little to no supervision. Crikey. How long will it take for everyone to wake up? Time for a generative AI reset Google and all the other companies behind these tools — along with the corporate number-crunchers, clout-chasing LinkedIn bros, and mainstream media outlets blindly buying into the hype — like to pretend that all the stuff we just went over somehow isn’t a serious and immediately disqualifying issue for these systems. But no matter what sorts of impressive demos and over-the-top marketing materials they sling at us, the reality here in the real world is that these large-language model chatbots simply aren’t reliable when it comes to providing accurate answers and information. So, sure:  They’re incredibly handy as “legal advisors” — until you realize how the technology actually works and how likely it is toget information wildly wrong andflat-out make up facts along the way. They’re fantastic as “search engines” — until it dawns on you that 20% of what they tell you is likely to be inaccurate. And they’re wonderfully useful as “coding assistants” and “customer service agents” — if you conveniently look past the constant instances of them screwing stuff up and costing you business. What’s especially troubling is the justification that these generative AI helpers are at least getting better and growing less likely to get stuff wrong. Even if you set aside the aforementioned data challenging that notion, a system getting something wrong 5%, 10%, or even 20% of the time is arguably worse than one that gets stuff wrong half the time. Think about it: If something’s wrong constantly, people are at least likely to notice and realize that it’s useless as an info-providing tool. But when it’s wrong only once or twice out of every 10 or 20 uses, it’s especially dangerous — as users will be lulled into a false sense of security and less likely to be watching for those errors. Now, again, all of this isn’t to say these genAI systems aren’t at all useful or worth using. They can be quite helpful — if you think of them in the right way. The problem is mostly that that reality doesn’t align with the much broader vision that tech companies are trying to peddle. But if you think of these systems as narrowly limited starting points for certain types of specific tasks, they can actually save you time and make your life easier. With that in mind: No, Gemini and other such generative AI services aren’t instant answer engines, nor are they digital lawyers or even coders. But they can be useful note-takers and info-organizers. They can be quite helpful as image analyzers and manipulators. They can work wonders when it comes to creating polished presentations without all the usual effort, too — or creating calendar events without the typical clunkiness. They can even be valuable brainstorming partners, in a sense, or deep-dive research assistants. But, critically, it’s up to you to think about how you’re using ’em and to treat their offerings as simple starting points — ways to save you the early steps of seeking out sources and stumbling onto ideas as opposed to a single-step replacement for critical human thinking. At the end of the day, one lucky instance doesn’t discount the very real and completely unpredictable risk of random fabrications and inaccuracies. And, clearly, it’s entirely on us to use these tools wisely and take ’em for what they are: word prediction engines that can be helpful in certain limited, specific scenarios — not the all-purpose magic answer machines some companies desperately want them to be. Ready for more no-nonsense Googley insights? Join my free Android Intelligence newsletter to cut through the hype and get plain-English perspective on the news that matters. #great #google #gemini #deceit

It should have been obvious that Google I/O 2025 would be jammed-packed, considering the company felt the need to hold a separate event to cover all of its Android news. But color me shocked that Google pulled off a nearly two hour-long presentation, full of announcements and reveals, mostly about AI. Not all AI announcements are equal, of course. Some of the news was geared towards enterprise users, and some towards developers. But many of the features discussed are on their way to consumers' devices too, some as soon as today. These are the updates I'm going to focus on here—you can expect to try out these features today, in the coming weeks, or at some point in the near future.Gemini Live is coming to the iPhoneEarlier this year, Google rolled out Gemini Live for all Android users via the Gemini app. The feature lets you share your camera feed or screen with Gemini, so it can help answer questions about what you're seeing. As of today, Google is now bringing the feature out to iPhones with the Gemini app as well. As long as you have the app, you can share your camera and screen with the AI, no matter what platform you're on. AI Mode is the future of Google SearchGoogle has been testing AI Mode in Search since March. The feature essentially turns Google Search into more of a Gemini experience, allowing you to stack multiple questions into one complex request. According to Google, it's AI can handle breaking down your query and searching the web for the most relevant sources. The result, in theory, is a complete report answering all aspects of your search, including links to sources and images.AI Mode is rolling out for all users—not just testers—over the coming weeks. But it's not just the AI Mode experience that Google has been testing. The company also announced new AI Mode features at I/O. Cram multiple searches into oneFirst, there's Deep Search, which multiplies the number of searches AI Mode typically would make for your query and generates an "expert-level fully-cited report" for you. I would still fact check it thoroughly, seeing as AI has a habit of hallucinating. AI Mode is also getting Gemini Live access, so you can share your screen or camera in Search.Use "Agent Mode" as a real world personal assistantProject Mariner is also coming to AI Mode. Google says you'll have access to "agentic capabilities," which basically means you can rely on the AI to complete tasks for you. For example, you'll be able to ask AI Mode to find you "affordable tickets for this Saturday’s Reds game in the lower level," and not only will the bot do the searching for you, it'll fill out the necessary forms. Google says that functionality will apply to event tickets, restaurant reservations, and local appointments.You can see that in action with Agent Mode, which will theoretically be able to execute complex tasks on your behalf. We don't know a lot about how that will work yet, but we do have a clear example from the Google I/O stage. During the presentation, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai tasked Gemini's Agent Mode with finding an apartment with in-unit laundry, keeping to a certain budget. Gemini then got to work, opening the browser, pulling up Zillow, searching for apartments, and booking a tour. AI Mode will pull from your previous search history in order to deliver you more relevant results. That includes results that apply to your whereabouts—say, local recommendations for an upcoming trip—as well as preferences. New Gemini features coming to WorkspaceGoogle announced a number of new Gemini features at I/O, some of which are coming to Workspace. One of the features Google focused on most was Personalized smart replies in Gmail. While Gmail has an AI-powered smart reply feature already, this one goes a step further, and bases its responses on all of your Google data. The goal is to generate a reply that sounds like you wrote it, and includes all the questions or comments you might reasonably have for the email in question. In practice, I'm not sure why I'd want to let AI do all of my communicating for me, but the feature will be available later this year, and for paid subscribers first.If you use Google Meet with a paid plan, expect to see live speech translation start to roll out today. The feature automatically dubs over speakers on a call in a target language, like an instant universal translator. Let's say you speak English and your meeting partner speaks Spanish: You hear them begin to speak in Spanish, before an AI voice takes over with the English translation. 'Try it on'Google doesn't want you returning the clothes you order online anymore. The company announced a new feature called "try it on" that uses AI to show you what you'd look like wearing whatever clothing item you're thinking about buying. This isn't a mere concept, either: Google is rolling out "try it on" today to Google Search lab users. If you want to learn more about the feature and how to use it, check out our full guide. Android XRAs the rumors suggested, Google talked a bit about Android XR, the company's software experience for glasses and headsets. Most of the news it shared was previously announced, but we did see some interesting features in action. For example when using one of the future glasses with Android XR built in, you'll be able to access a subtle HUD that can show you everything from photos to messages to Google Maps.On stage, we also saw a live demo of speech translation, which Android XR overlaying an English translation on screen as two presenters spoke in different languages.While there's no true timeline on when you can try Android XR, Google's big news is that it is working with both Warby Parker and Gentle Monster on making glasses with the service built in. Veo 3, Imagen 4, and FlowGoogle unveiled two new AI generation models at I/O this year: Imagen 4and Veo 3.Imagen 4 now generates higher-quality images with more detail than Imagen 3, Google's previous image generation model. However, the company specifically noted Imagen 4's improvements with text generation. If you ask the model to generate a poster, for example, Google says that the text will be both accurate to the request, as well as stylistic. Google kicked off the show with videos generated by Veo 3, so it's safe to say the company is quite proud of its video generation model. While the results are crisp, colorful, and occasionally jam-packed with elements, it definitely still suffers from the usual quirks and issues with AI-generated video. But the bigger story here is "Flow," Google's new AI video editor. Flow uses Veo 3 to generate videos, which you can then assemble like any oother non-linear editor. You can use Imagen 4 to generate an element you want in a shot, then ask Flow to add it to the next clip. In addition to the ability to cut or expand a shot, you can control the camera movement of each shot independently. It's the most "impressive" this tech has seemed to me, but outside of a high-tech story board, I can't imagine the use for this. Maybe I'm in the minority, but I certainly don't want to watch AI-generated videos, even if they are created via tools similar to the ones human video creators use. Veo 3 is only available to Google AI Ultra subscribers, though Flow is available in limited capacity with Veo 2 to AI Pro subscribers. Two new Chrome featuresChrome users can look forward to two new features following Google I/O. First, Google is bringing Gemini directly to the browser—no need to open the Gemini site. Second, Chrome can now update your old passwords on your behalf. This feature is launching later this year, though you'll need to wait for the websites themselves to offer support.A new way to pay for AIFinally, Google is offering new subscriptions to access its AI features. Google AI Premium is now AI Pro, and remains largely the same, minus the new ability to access Flow and Gemini in Chrome. It still costs per month.The new subscription is Google AI Ultra, which costs a whopping a month. For that price, you get everything in Google AI Pro, but with the highest limits for all of the AI models, including Gemini, Flow, Whisk, and NotebookLM. You get access to Gemini 2.5 Pro Deep Think, Veo 3, Project Mariner, YouTube Premium, and 30TB of cloud storage. What a deal. #all #biggest #news #features #announced

Do you want to make a podcast from notes you record on your iPhone? You can, as Google has introduced an iOS version of its popular NotebookLM tool, which can do this, among other things. The news follows hot on the heels of speculation that Apple may try to overcome shortcomings in its own AI development by opening up its platform to third-party AI services in addition to ChatGPT and Apple Intelligence. It may be relevant to point out that Apple this week made it possible to use Google Translate instead of Apple’s own Translate app on iPhones. What is NotebookLM? Notebook LM has won a ton of praise since it appeared. It is a really useful document summarization system that is very handy for researchers — and can even turn topics you write about into engaging and thought-provoking podcasts. The service achieves this through use of Google’s Gemini genAI system, which seems to be improving rapidly when it comes to focused tasks. “We’ve received a lot of great feedback from the millions of people using NotebookLM, our tool for understanding and engaging with complex information. One of the most frequent requests has been for a mobile app — for listening to Audio Overviews on the go, asking questions about sources in the moment, and sharing content directly to NotebookLM while browsing,” said Google when it announced the new apps. Making a podcast on your iPhone NotebookLM has been available as a web app, and now also as an app for iOS and Android. Once installed, you can use the mobile app to create new notes and access those you may already have created via your Google account. You can also add new sources to notes and create podcasts of those notes. But one of the best new features is the ability to get involved in the podcast/conversation.  Tap the Join button and you can interact with the AI-generated hosts, asking them questions or steering the conversation. It’s remarkable, particularly if you are still trying to explain which song you want Siri to play in Apple Music.  It shows the extent to which Apple’s AI services are playing catch-up and may also be why Apple’s management is thinking about opening up the company’s platform to third-party AI services. Is this how Apple will make AI services optional? The move to make Google Translate an option for users shows how that may be done. Just as Apple is being forced to permit users to choose between browsers in Europe, the options tool for Translation lets you select which service to use for that.  Finding a way to offer these choices while preserving platform integrity is easier said than done. Apple has admitted to having thousands of engineers tasked with figuring out how to make that possible.  But as the company moves forward with developing solutions that deliver such choice, it is also creating the template we will probably see it follow as it moves to offer up support for different forms of AI services on its devices. With that in mind, it is likely that, as AI services introduce apps for Apple’s systems, the company will introduce a new setting in which users will be able to choose what service to use. It is possible that Apple will need to keep Apple Intelligence as the first point of contact, acting as a kind of concierge for queries, which it then directs to an appropriate AI. Users will then select which service will offer the default AI. What about people who don’t want to use these services? For enterprise users, this poses additional challenges. To avoid data leaks, not every business will be prepared to authorize employees to use every available genAI model. That challenge implies that Apple will also need to build APIs for Mobile Device Management to enable IT to switch off access to these third-party genAI models for managed devices. The problem with access must therefore logically extend to app-based control. IT will want to be able to prevent people from using apps such as NotebookLM on managed devices, presumably by setting restrictions on the use of certain apps. It also seems viable to expect Apple to offer up an additional choice — one in which users are given the opportunity to select to stay with a purely Apple experience. After all, that should also be an option for those who like it, right? You can follow me on social media! Join me on BlueSky,  LinkedIn, and Mastodon. #this #how #apple #will #make

The BBC’s research and developmentarm serves a public purpose, which, according to the department’s director Jatin Aythora, is to make some of the technologies and inventions it creates available either for free or at really low cost. This is something Aythora says BBC R&D has done for many years. Aythora sees his job as helping the team to achieve the technical breakthroughs that the news and media industry can benefit from. The team is tasked with developing technologies and capabilities that benefit the wider society within the UK in a way that minimises the cost to the BBC.  “We all focus on the public purpose of the BBC, which is very much about researching and developing for societal good,” he says. Aythora believes he is a technologist at heart, having started his career as an engineer, and has worked across different industries as he climbed the career ladder. “Every time I’ve changed jobs, I’ve changed industries,” he adds. The benefit of working in many different industries has given Aythora the opportunity to continue learning, which he regards as an important skill for technology leadership. “Curiosity and the ability to learn plays an important role,” he says, adding that these help with confidence and broadens the depth and breadth of knowledge. When asked about applying technology know-how in different sectors, in Aythora’s experience, irrespective of the business sector, technology challenges and opportunities are quite similar: “It’s how you apply technology and what you do with it in the organisational context that matters the most. Technology is linked to the return on investment, which, in any organisation, has to deliver value.” A recent project the BBC Research and Development team has been working on is around demonstrating the authenticity of content. “The verifiability of content has become quite an important aspect of our daily lives. We often come across news that we question, and then we askor we go to search for other sources to validate and verify,” Aythora says. The team has been working with Microsoft and its chief scientific officer, Eric Horvitz, for several years, developing an approach to verifying content called Content Credentials. “This is a really good example of transferable knowledge from one industry to another,” adds Aythora.  Aythora previously worked at De Beers and in diamond mining. One of the important challenges De Beers faced was to prove where a particular stone came from and whether it was a “clean” diamond, which resulted in the development of Forevermark to verify the authenticity of diamonds. “We invented a piece of technologythat would mark a diamond with a specific watermark that can be traced from where it originates to how many hands it would have exchanged over a period of time,” he says, adding that the same concept can be applied in the content world. “If a piece of BBC content is appearing on social media platforms, you want to be sure of where it has actually come from.” “It’s how you apply technology and what you do with it in the organisational context that matters the most” Jatin Aythora, BBC Research and Development For Aythora, verifying content is an important challenge not only for the news, the media industry and the BBC, but also the wider technology industry. “The content credentials capability and the standards that we’ve invented are now being adopted by most of the large technology organisations, including OpenAI, Google and Microsoft,” he says. The Content Credentials feature on the BBC news site provides a button which enables people reading stories to check the authenticity of the information. The tool uses metadata, such as the time or date an image was taken, compares locations, matches the weather conditions in the image to actual reported weather, notes whether shadows are casting in the correct way, and runs searches for other instances of the material online in case the image has been taken out of context. Content Credentials is now a technical standard from the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity, which was co-founded in 2019 by BBC Research and Development – alongside other members including Adobe and Microsoft. BBC News Verify published its first article using the C2PA standard in March 2024. Another project coming out of BBC R&D looks at evolving radio using virtual worlds in a way that can draw in a younger audience, as Aythora explains: “We’ve been exploring how can we make that performance much more interactive and immersive for younger generations who are not going to listen to the radio.” Last year, the BBC partnered with Bristol-based tech company Condense to design immersive live music experiences for younger audiences, which enables fans to join these live events as avatars on their mobile or laptop. The New Music Portal, which began with Radio 1’s New Music Show, hosted by Jack Saunders, enables the audience to navigate the venue like a video game while chatting with other fans via an instant messaging platform.  “We made this experience easy for people to access – youneed a device that’s connected to the internet,” says Aythora. He hopes that as virtual reality headsets become more popular and affordable, the experience can evolve to provide a true immersive experience using these devices. Speech-to-text tech and AI BBC R&D tends to have a decade-long outlook on technology, which implies it has been working on certain technologies such as artificial intelligencefor a long time. Recalling the first implementation, Aythora says: “We take it for granted today, because we have access to technology that can do speech to text, but 10 years ago that wasn’t the case. BBC R&D had the best speech-to-text algorithm that was delivering 85% accuracy.” This was significantly higher than the accuracy available from some providers, which, according to Aythora, was only 30% accuracy. Speech-to-text tech powers also subtitles on BBC Sounds. “When we started with the journey of speech to text, we were the market leaders, but we’re not market leaders anymore. AI has matured quite significantly, so what we do is take the best of our capability and the best of what the industry has to provide,” he says, adding that BBC R&D combines the AI technologies developed in-house and products available from speech-to-text providers to deliver “amazing experiences for our audiences”. The BBC is also looking at using AI with video. “We believe defect detection using computer vision and AI models is going to be important for organisations like the BBC,” Aythora says. “There needs to be a method through which we are able to highlight if a particular piece of video or an image has been manipulated.” The BBC’s biggest challenge – and one that the research and development team needs to be cognizant of as it embarks on technology innovation – is how to deliver services at scale at an affordable cost point. “We are a public service organisation. We don’t have an endless amount of money available to us,” Aythora says, adding that this is a different challenge compared with a commercial organisation that uses technology either to gain a competitive edge or drive profit.  IT and technology leaders often encounter situations when they cannot achieve results as quickly as they would like due to organisational constraints. Aythora believes patience is key: “Patience plays an important role in your ability as a leader not only to manage certainty and opportunities, but the challenges as well.” Aythora also recommends IT leaders validate their ideas, adding: “Don’t assume that your idea is the right idea and the best idea. Validate it with various people to build confidence. The more you validate, the more confident you will become, either to pursue it or not to pursue it. Sometimes your ideas might just not be the right idea, and that’s OK, you just have to accept that. But at the same time, continue to validate it.” This is important as good ideas tend to be taken up eventually. “It’s only a matter of time and context before the idea becomes more relevant,” he says. Technologists and IT leaders can often face what may seem like insurmountable barriers and objections to the technology proposals they put forward, but perseverance is key. Among the themes to come out of the conversation with Aythora is one of self-belief – to use Aythora’s words: “Self-belief is not instant; it becomes a belief over a period of time. It’s a journey that we go through.” executive interviews Executive interview – Adding common sense to generative AI creativity: We speak to the chief scientist at Neo4j about why graph databases should work alongside large language models to keep them in check. Executive interview – Will video kill the streaming star?: While we are used to live streaming, video messages seem cheesy – but Vimeo’s chief product officer believes they will revolutionise communications. #interview #driving #tech #innovation #bbc

Fidji Simo is leaving Instacart for a newly created role at Sam Altman’s startup as it prepares for a potential public offering. #silicon #valley #ceo #tasked #with

The worst nightmare of all those who fight for Managed Democracy has been made a grim reality. Play Video Despite the valiant efforts of our Helldivers to push back the fleet, the Illuminate have reached Super Earth. Now they are swarming our cities, terrorizing citizens, and destroying our infrastructure. It’s time to rise up and take arms and fight for the precious foundations and soil of Democracy manifest. Helldivers, return to our planet and defend what is rightfully ours. Super Earth… our home The urban sprawl of Super Earth is the site of the conflict. Fight among the towering skyscrapers and crowded streets of our home turf as the Illuminate rain down destruction all around you. Inside the city biomes, you will tackle operations and work to liberate cities together, having a significant impact on planetary campaigns. Repel the invasion The Helldivers are tasked with a new objective: to repel the Illuminate invasion by gaining ground over the squids as they fight to control areas where the fleet is landing. It won’t be a walk in the park, divers. Like a game of intergalactic tug-of-war, you will struggle against the incoming forces, gaining and losing control quickly. Arm the cannons Even in the face of such danger, we are not helpless, and all is not lost. The might of Super Earth’s arsenal lies hidden beneath our peaceful, democratic streets. With your help, we must activate our Planetary Defense Cannons and take down the Illuminate fleet in a grand show of power. Call for backup It’s all hands on deck as you encounter SEAF troops who will help join the fight to defend our Freedom. These small squads will fight enemies on their own, or they can be ordered to follow Helldivers and provide temporary backup as you navigate toward objectives. Salute and lead them on the path to victory, divers! Protect citizens However, you must also be aware of the many civilians still roaming the streets, fearing for their lives. They may be panicked, Helldivers, but it is your sworn duty to keep them safe and they look to you as the ultimate protectors of liberty. Remember: any civilian lives lost from friendly fire will be punished. Prepare for the fight Last week, we released a powerful primary weapon customization system and expanded surplus options to fight against the Illuminate as they emerged from the singularity. Now that you have learned the tactics of these new squid troops–like the Crescent Overseer and the hulking Fleshmob–you must master these tools to continue the fight on Super Earth. Use every available resource, divers, and decimate their forces! Our major update, Heart of Democracy, is now live. Helldivers, to your hellpods immediately! Citizens, enlistment centers will remain open for recruitment. The battle for Super Earth has begun. Internet Connection and Helldivers 2 game required for update. #helldivers #heart #democracy #update #live