Jack Dorsey's Block has launched Buzz, a new open-source group chat platform for workplaces. It integrates AI agents and GitHub project management, aiming to challenge Slack by offering a model-agnostic, decentralized, and self-sovereign workspace for human-AI collaboration.
Arsenal teammates Declan Rice (England) and Martin Ødegaard (Norway) face off in a World Cup quarter-final. Both leaders in their prime, born just 28 days apart, will put their mutual respect aside for the crucial match in Miami.
An EU watchdog, the European Ombudsman, has opened an inquiry into European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen's refusal to release messages from a private group chat with Ukraine's Zelensky and other European leaders, following a complaint by Dutch outlet FTM regarding EU transparency rules.
Streamer IShowSpeed, born Darren Watkins Jr., has leveraged his massive online presence to become a global media phenomenon. His song "World Cup (Champions)" was added to FIFA's official album, showcasing his influence. He aims to inspire his 55 million subscribers by sharing his journey and introducing them to different cultures and sports, particularly soccer.
Discord's new age verification system, requiring video selfies and ID documents, has led to user backlash and a postponement of its rollout. This has driven users to seek open-source alternatives like Stoat and Element, which offer more control and privacy.
Bluesky has introduced group chat functionality, allowing up to 50 users to interact privately. This feature aims to enhance community focus and compete with rivals like X, which recently launched its own chat app.
Amid backlash against major dating apps, new privacy-focused gay hookup apps are emerging as community-powered alternatives. The US Take It Down Act also empowers individuals to remove nonconsensual nudes from the internet.
TikTok announced a new Campus Hub feature enabling verified college students to join exclusive group chats with up to 300 classmates and access personalized feeds featuring content from their university community. The feature, available across more than 6,000 universities through partnership with student verification platform UNiDAYS, aims to keep students connected during summer break and potentially compete with platforms like Discord and Facebook Messenger for everyday school communications.
A personal essay exploring phone addiction and the Brick, a $59 physical device that locks distracting apps using NFC technology. The author describes their daily cycle of scrolling through X, TikTok and other apps, unable to focus on their novel due July 31st, and how the Brick created the necessary friction to break the addiction cycle by requiring a physical trip to a plastic puck to unlock apps.
Shapes, a group chat app where AI characters interact alongside humans, has launched with $8M seed funding. Founded in 2022 by Anushk Mittal and Noorie Dhingra, the app has over 400,000 monthly active users and 3 million user-created AI "Shapes." The startup aims to address "AI Psychosis" concerns by integrating AI into communal conversations rather than isolated one-on-one interactions.
Marie-Louise Eta has become the first woman to manage a men's team in Europe's major leagues after Union Berlin appointed her as interim manager following the sacking of Steffen Baumgart. The 31-year-old former under-19 coach received a surprise call from president Dirk Zingler on Saturday night asking her to take charge for the rest of the season. Eta, who previously served as assistant manager during Bundesliga games, inherits a team struggling near the relegation zone with just two wins in 15 league games. Despite facing online trolls and sexist comments, she insists she is not a PR stunt and wants to be judged purely on her footballing performance.
A 23-year-old Florida International University student was arrested for allegedly making bomb threats in a WhatsApp group chat about an upcoming campus event. Gabriela Saldana sent messages referencing a bomb at the Ocean Bank Convocation Center, claiming it was a joke. Police say the messages constituted a credible threat. She faces a felony charge of making written threats to kill or cause bodily harm, with bail set at $5,000.
