TechRadar News

• Apple has just released the iOS 26 beta 5 update
• It contains numerous tweaks to the iPhone operating system
• It might also have leaked the Apple Watch Ultra 3’s display resolution

Apple has just released iOS 26 beta 5, and this latest iPhone update comes with a bunch of handy new features. But among the tweaks and adjustments is an unexpected leak, and it sheds light on what we might see when the Apple Watch Ultra 3 launches later this year.

According to iOS investigator and analyst Aaron Perris (via MacRumors), the iOS 26 beta 5 update seems to contain references to the display resolution of Apple’s upcoming Ultra 3 smartwatch. That will sit at a resolution of 422x514 pixels, Perris claims.

That’s a slight increase over the 410x502 pixels you’ll find in the Apple Watch Ultra 2. While it’s not a huge step up, any increase in resolution will be a welcome addition – particularly since Apple pitches the Ultra line of smartwatches as being designed for athletes and rugged explorers who need as much display clarity as possible.

MacRumors points out that there haven’t been any rumors indicating that the Apple Watch Ultra 3 might get a larger display than its predecessor, suggesting that Apple might instead opt to reduce the display bezels and use the same chassis as before. That would follow the pattern Apple has taken with its regular Apple Watch models, where display bezels have shrunk significantly over the years.

Changes galore

(Image credit: TechRadar)

A new Apple Watch resolution is not the only addition found in the iOS 26 beta 5 update. Elsewhere, Apple has added an option to the Settings app that restores the old way of switching between photo and video modes in the Camera app. You’ll also find that the Select button has been restored to the top-left corner of the Mail app.

And Apple has also added new icons and animations. That includes a Liquid Glass-style AirDrop icon, plus much more bouncy animations when swiping and navigating through your phone. There are also fresh splash screens for apps like Apple Music, Journal, Notes, and more.

Unlike previous iOS 26 betas, this update does not adjust the look and feel of the Liquid Glass redesign. Past tweaks have increased or reduced the glassy effect across a range of operating system elements, but the lack of changes this time suggests that Apple might have settled on something it’s happy with.

The full version of iOS 26 is expected to launch in September, right around the time Apple unveils the iPhone 17 range. And with the Apple Watch Ultra 3 expected to be among the new products, we could soon find out if the leaked display resolution is on the money.

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• The iPhone 17 series could be unveiled on September 9
• It might then ship on September 19
• We've detailed five of the biggest changes you can expect from these phones

We’ve long predicted – based on Apple’s usual patterns – that the iPhone 17 series would be announced on September 8, 9, or 10, and now a leak agrees with us, while also getting more specific.

According to “internal information from German mobile phone providers” shared by iphone-ticker.de (via GSMArena), the iPhone 17 series – including the iPhone 17 itself, the iPhone 17 Air, the iPhone 17 Pro, and the iPhone 17 Pro Max – will be unveiled on Tuesday, September 9.

They add that these phones will then apparently ship a week and a half later, on Friday, September 19.

While we’d take these claims with a pinch of salt, it is believable that major retailers would now have this information. Plus, it fits with our own predictions, and doesn’t conflict with any other leaks, so for now we’d say September 9 looks to be the most likely announcement date.

In which case, there’s only just over a month to wait for Apple’s next handsets, and these phones are likely to be worth the wait, as numerous upgrades and changes have been tipped. Below, we’ve listed five of the biggest changes we’re expecting.

1. A new design

An unofficial iPhone 17 Pro render (Image credit: AppleInsider)

Perhaps the biggest change tipped for the iPhone 17 line is a visual one, with numerous sources suggesting these handsets will get a redesign.

The main change is likely to come to the camera block, which will reportedly run across the entire width of the back on most models, giving these phones a more Google Pixel 9-like appearance.

This change could allow for more of a two-tone color scheme, too, with the large camera block being glossy while the rest of the rear is more matte.

2. An iPhone 17 Air instead of an iPhone 17 Plus

An unofficial iPhone 17 Air render (Image credit: Front Page Tech / ‪@Zellzoi‬)

Another big rumored change is the replacement of the Plus model with an iPhone 17 Air. This new model will reportedly be far slimmer than any previous iPhone, likely coming in at around 5.5mm thick, which would make it a more direct rival to the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge.

However, as a result of being so slim, it might also have a small battery, and is thought to have just one rear camera.

So, it’s a phone that might prioritize style over specs, though it could still have a large 6.7-inch screen like the iPhone 16 Plus.

3. A 120Hz refresh rate for every model

The iPhone 16 Plus has a 60Hz screen (Image credit: Future)

Apple has continued to stick with 60Hz screens on the base iPhones, despite most mid-range Android phones having had 120Hz screens for years now. But with the iPhone 17 line, Apple might finally be getting with the times.

Numerous reports suggest that all four expected models will have a 120Hz display, which should make scrolling feel smoother.

However, one source claims that while the screens will all be 120Hz, the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Air still won’t have a variable refresh rate, meaning that, unlike their Pro siblings, they probably wouldn’t support always-on display, as this needs a very low refresh rate to function without demolishing the battery. Either way, though, giving them a 120Hz refresh rate would definitely be an upgrade.

4. New cameras

The iPhone 16 Pro Max (Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)

The iPhone 17 series is also rumored to be getting some new cameras, with every model set to benefit.

For one thing, all four expected iPhone 17 models will apparently have a 24MP front-facing camera, giving you twice the megapixels of the current 12MP one. We’ve also heard that the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max could have a 48MP telephoto camera, which would be up from just 12MP on the current models.

Some less likely but still possible upgrades we’ve heard about include 8K video recording for the Pro models, and a mechanical aperture for at least one iPhone 17 model. That latter upgrade would allow you to adjust the aperture, and therefore also the depth of field.

And there are also some rumored camera upgrades that we’re not convinced we’ll see but can’t totally rule out, including an 8x optical zoom for the iPhone 17 Pro models and a second Camera Control button for all four models.

5. A big boost in power

Death Stranding on the iPhone 16 Pro (Image credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)

Finally, one totally unsurprising but still appreciated upgrade that we’re hearing about is a power boost thanks to a new chipset.

Specifically, the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max could have a new A19 Pro chipset, while the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Air could have an A19 chipset. In all cases, that should be an improvement, as the current models use A18 or A18 Pro chipsets.

Additionally, the iPhone 17 Pro, the iPhone 17 Pro Max, and possibly also the iPhone 17 Air could have 12GB of RAM – up from 8GB in the iPhone 16 series.

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• Critical security vulnerabilities have been identified in Broadcom chips
• These flaws leave Dell devices containing the chips at risk
• The resulting attack has been dubbed 'ReVault', and users should patch now

A host of critical security flaws in Broadcom chips could mean tens of millions of Dell laptops and other devices are at risk of possible attack.

The serious vulnerabilities have been found in over 100 models of Dell laptops with Broadcom chips, Cisco Talos has revealed, and are therefore at risk of an attack the researchers dubbed ‘ReVault’.

A ReVault attack could be used ‘as a physical compromise to bypass Windows Login and/or for any local user to gain Admin/System privileges’, allowing a hacker to steal sensitive information and credentials, as well as biometric data like fingerprint information.

Dell laptops at risk

These flaws could have a ‘significant’ impact on victims, and Cisco Talos reports two primary attack scenarios; a physical attack, and a post-compromise pivot.

As the name suggests, the physical attack refers to a local attacker with access to the victim’s device gaining direct access to the USH board over USB with a custom connector.

From there, the vulnerabilities become ‘in-scope for the attacker without requiring the ability to log-in into the system or knowing a full-disk encryption password’. If a system is configured to be unlocked with biometric data, it could be possible to adjust the CV firmware to allow any fingerprint rather than just legitimate users.

In a post-compromise pivot, users without administrative privileges can use the CV firmware to trigger Arbitrary Code Execution, and potentially leak ‘key material essential to the security of the device’ and then gain the ability to modify the firmware permanently.

Dell confirmed that customers have been notified about available updates that address the vulnerabilities; “Working with our firmware provider, we addressed the issues quickly and transparently disclosed the reported vulnerabilities in accordance with our Vulnerability Response Policy.”

“Customers can review the Dell Security Advisory DSA-2025-053 for information on affected products, versions, and more. As always, it is important that customers promptly apply security updates that we make available and move to supported versions of our products to ensure their systems remain secure.”

It’s not yet clear if these vulnerabilities have been exploited in the wild, but users are of course advised to patch urgently to address them, as well as to regularly rotate passwords and use MFA where possible.

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By the end of episode 4, we knew Conrad’s point of view (POV) was going to be the crux of The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3 episode 5, and the move was smart enough to make it one (if not, the) of the best episodes in the show’s entire history. If there was ever a moment in the show’s sordid love triangle to emotionally eviscerate us, this was it, with Conrad (Christopher Briney) having to watch his unrequited love Belly (Lola Tung) become even more invested in his wayward brother Jeremiah (Gavin Casalegno), all the while teased by flashbacks of Belly and Conrad’s romantic past.

If this wasn’t bad enough, the latest episode of the hit Prime Video show also follows Conrad losing his mom after her battle with breast cancer, with their final scenes together before her memorial peppered in between the romantic angst. I’ve made no secret of the fact I feel incredibly sorry for him – and also wish he didn’t have these feelings, but the heart wants what the heart wants – but season 3 episode 5 drew my eye to someone else entirely.

Right from the start of The Summer I Turned Pretty, Belly has been the person who’s dragged us into this colossal mess in the first place. But her decisions are no longer having a superficial effect, with Conrad set to crumble in front of our very eyes. With this in mind, it’s probably time we all admit the ugly truth: Belly is an absolutely terrible character, and we’d all probably be better off with her out of the picture (in a non-sinister way).

Sorry, but Belly shouldn’t coming back from The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3 episode 5

shut the entire show off. delete the episode. #TheSummerITurnedPretty pic.twitter.com/v2LNnmHMPPAugust 6, 2025

Don’t just take my word for it, check out these pretty enraged fan reactions to The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3 episode 5. While the flashbacks of Conrad and Belly in bed together are the ultimate knife in the back, present-day scenes of Conrad metaphorically setting himself on fire to try and make Belly’s life easier are just as painful. Obviously, she takes no notice of his efforts, instead engrossed in her dead-end future with Jeremiah (featuring the worst engagement ring ever seen with the naked eye).

me whenever belly and jeremiah: #TheSummerITurnedPretty pic.twitter.com/CkyyQGAtspJuly 30, 2025

If The Summer I Turned Pretty wasn’t a work of fiction, the answer to how to straighten out the chaos would be obvious. While it’s clear Belly is a lost cause, the right people could be around Conrad to make him see his own worth – or at the very least, invest in some worthwhile therapy. The same goes for Jeremiah, who desperately needs to get his life back on track in order to be attractive to himself, and to women.

Sadly, none of this makes for good TV, so Prime Video would need to resort to more drastic measures to sort things out. I don’t think it’s above Belly to take off in a mega strop and never be seen again, especially considering the way she talks to her mom. If she gets last-minute cold feet before actually getting married, Belly could easily run away from everything and everyone… and as cruel as that is, I wouldn’t be too bothered if she did.

Given that season 3 is the final farewell for The Summer I Turned Pretty, the remaining episodes have to go out with a big bang. Could the TV show veer away from the books and surprise us all with a shock Belly departure? If Prime Video had any sense, they’d keep Conrad and Belly apart for good and teach their young, impressionable viewers a valuable lesson (don’t get married to selfish boys, kids).

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• Perplexity's AI chatbot will both find and book restaurant tables through OpenTable
• The conversational approach streamlines the process of fulfilling requests for the details of the location and when it has an opening
• Perplexity hopes the integration will encourage people to stay on the platform rather than needing to leave to complete a task

AI search engine Perplexity wants to do more than just find your next restaurant; it wants to book your table. Perplexity made a deal with OpenTable to embed the reservation tool into Perplexity. Instead of just providing links to restaurants to help you reserve a table, you can get a spot at any of OpenTable’s more than 60,000 restaurants within the conversation.

The first part of the process is the same as before in Perplexity. Ask for “a quiet Thai place in Brooklyn that’s good for vegetarians and has outdoor seating,” and it’ll serve up a filtered list of OpenTable options that match your requested decor, dietary needs, and vibe. If you see a location you'd like to go to that is available through OpenTable, there will be a “Reserve” button for when you want to go, and you’re done. Instead of hopping from search to decision to reservation, you now get everything in one conversation.

Dining Perplexity

The deal encourages people to stick around on Perplexity to make their dinner plans, part of a bigger trend where AI platforms try to not just provide information, but complete tasks. Booking a table might seem like a small thing, but the magic lies in collapsing all the invisible steps between wanting to find a place to go and actually doing so.

The normal route might involve a half-hour of browsing, second-guessing, and refreshing OpenTable to see what’s still available. With Perplexity’s new system, you describe the scenario and watch it solve itself. Under the hood, OpenTable’s own AI Concierge handles most of the work. It draws on each restaurant’s metadata, including menus, seating arrangements, and any tags attached to its listing on OpenTable, and uses that to give Perplexity more precise recommendations.

Perplexity shows the restaurant, available times, and then OpenTable handles the booking itself, complete with confirmation and any options to modify or cancel. It’s not an autonomous agent like ChatGPT's Agent Mode. It smooths the path between the two services but doesn't travel between them like an Agent would.

That's probably for the best since Perplexity can occasionally misunderstand your request or over-promise based on incomplete restaurant data, but OpenTable won't book you a table that's not available. And while OpenTable’s restaurant profiles are usually rich in detail, they still rely on restaurants to keep things accurate.

From OpenTable’s perspective, this is a distribution move. Putting their booking infrastructure into Perplexity’s flow gives them access to a new set of users. Instead of trying to win attention in a crowded app race, OpenTable becomes part of a platform people are already using. As AI assistants continue to evolve, expect more of these seamless handoffs between search, decision, and action. Booking a table might just be the beginning; better reserve your spot now.

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• Pandora notified its customers of a data breach
• Hackers stole people's names and email addresses
• Unconfirmed reports named ShinyHunters as perpetrators

Jewelry powerhouse Pandora has confirmed suffering a cyberattack which saw it lose sensitive customer information.

The company revealed the news in a data breach notification letter sent to affected customers which said, “We are writing to inform you that Pandora has experienced a cyber security attack, where some customer information was accessed through a third-party platform that we use.

“We want to reassure you that the attack has been stopped, and as a result we have further strengthened our security measures.”

ShinyHunters

Pandora stressed that “only very common types” of data were exfiltrated - names, and email addresses. Passwords, credit card details, and similar confidential data was not taken.

The company also said that its investigation determined that the data has not yet been abused, but it recommends users stay vigilant, and keep track of unsolicited email messages, or online interactions asking for their data.

“Therefore, we recommend that you do not click on links or download attachments from unknown sources,” it said.

The company did not say who the threat actors were, how they managed to access Pandora’s networks, or how many people were affected by this incident.

However BleepingComputer claims the attack was most likely the work of ShinyHunters who broke into Pandora’s Salesforce database.

According to the publication, ShinyHunters has been looking for a way into corporate Salesforce databases since January 2025 and have been using different social engineering and phishing tactics.

Apparently, one worked, and ShinyHunters are now saying they will “perform a mass sale or leak” of companies that decline to pay the ransom.

Salesforce, on the other hand, confirmed that its solutions were not compromised.

"Salesforce has not been compromised, and the issues described are not due to any known vulnerability in our platform. While Salesforce builds enterprise-grade security into everything we do, customers also play a critical role in keeping their data safe — especially amid a rise in sophisticated phishing and social engineering attacks," Salesforce told the publication.

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• Samsung has confirmed more One UI 8 schedule details
• The Galaxy S25 phones will get a full update in September
• One UI 8 Watch will hit older watches later in the year

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 launched with One UI 8 (based on Android 16) preinstalled, and the rollout for older phones isn't far off: Samsung has confirmed the Galaxy S25 series is going to get the software update in September.

Samsung confirmed the news in a press release, which also announced the ongoing One UI 8 beta program will expand to the Galaxy S24, Galaxy Z Fold 6, and Galaxy Z Flip 6 next week, before reaching more devices next month.

The testing phase for One UI 8 started back in May – and not long after the official introduction of One UI 7 in fact. Samsung is clearly keen to catch up to Google's Android launch schedule, which has been shifted further forward this year.

Among the features the software update brings with it are upgrades to Bluetooth audio (enabling multiple, simultaneous connections), improved sharing options, more capabilities for the Now Bar, and upgrades to on-device security.

Watch this space

The Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 comes with One UI 8 Watch (Image credit: Samsung)

One UI 8 is going to be accompanied at some point by the One UI 8 Watch update for the best Samsung watches, but it looks as though the wait for that will be a little longer – it's going to arrive "later in the year" Samsung says.

You can already get One UI 8 Watch on your wrist, but only on a select number of models: the brand new Galaxy Watch 8 or Galaxy Watch 8 Classic, the refreshed Galaxy Watch Ultra for 2025, or the original Galaxy Watch Ultra launched in 2024.

As is the case with the phones and their software update, there is a beta available for watches too – but at the time of writing it's only available for the Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 series and only if you're in the US or Samsung's home country of South Korea.

One UI 8 Watch brings with it a selection of useful upgrades, including new tools for monitoring sleep and improving your runs, and antioxidant measurements. More improvements, including Gemini AI, could be on the way too.

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• It seems as though game prices will remain variable going forward
• Analyst Matt Piscatella described the market as the 'Wild West' in a recent interview
• 'Publishers and developers are trying to find the sweet spot for their pricing,' he explained

Don't expect uniform game prices any time soon, a prominent industry analyst has warned.

In a recent interview with GamesRadar, Circana executive director of games Mat Piscatella said that prices are "a little Wild West right now."

"We have more variability in launch pricing and strategies than we've ever had. We have a lot of titles trying to kind of nibble at the high end of that market, and we have many more that are launching at lower prices," he continued.

It's not difficult to find examples of the irregularity in game prices these days. A physical copy of Mario Kart World launched at $79.99 / £74.99, while the recent Donkey Kong Bananza was a lower $69.99 / £64.99.

Death Stranding 2: On the Beach retailed for $69.99 / £69.99, while a massive role-playing game (RPG) like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, in contrast, cost just $49.99 / £49.99.

"Ultimately, publishers and developers are trying to find the sweet spot for their pricing strategy," Piscatella explained.

"If you look at the games that are pushing that higher end of that price envelope, those are games that have super dedicated fan bases in general, where price sensitivity, particularly at launch, is very low, meaning that people want to play this game no matter what it costs," he added.

"I know a lot of people don't like it, but people still buy these games at these high price points, so they're going to keep getting made at high price points for the right game that can do that."

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• Perplexity says Cloudflare's analysis of its AI crawlers was technically flawed
• There seems to have been a mix-up with a third-party service used by Perplexity
• Perplexity wants Cloudflare to engage in dialogue – not just to post accusations online

Perplexity AI has accused Cloudflare of mischaracterizing its web crawlers as malicious bots after the latter claimed the AI company obfuscated its bot identity using deceptive strings and unexpected IP ranges.

Responding to Cloudflare's analysis and testing, Perplexity declared that analysis was technically flawed and that it misattributed unrelated traffic.

Perplexity has also asserted its traffic is user-driven, not stealth scraping or malicious crawling, suggesting that Cloudflare has misunderstood modern AI assistant behavior.

Cloudflare gets Perplexity all riled up

"It appears Cloudflare confused Perplexity with 3-6M daily requests of unrelated traffic from BrowserBase, a third-party cloud browser service that Perplexity only occasionally uses for highly specialized tasks (less than 45,000 daily requests)," the company wrote in an X post.

Hitting back at Cloudflare's obfuscation claims, Perplexity said the company obfuscated its own methodology, even accusing the company of pulling off a stunt to gain attention.

One of Perplexity's possible explanations reads: "Cloudflare needed a clever publicity moment and we–their own customer–happened to be a useful name to get them one."

"This controversy reveals that Cloudflare's systems are fundamentally inadequate for distinguishing between legitimate AI assistants and actual threats," the post continues.

In the post, Perplexity also offered context about how AI crawlers work: when a user asks a question, the AI agent doesn't retrieve the information from a central database, but rather fetches it in real time from the relevant websites. This contrasts to traditional web crawling, "in which crawlers systematically visit millions of pages to build massive databases, whether anyone asked for that specific information or not."

Moving forward, Perplexity urges Cloudflare to engage in dialogue instead of publishing misinformation about its practices.

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• Google Cloud adds six new AI agents for data scientists, engineers and more
• Advanced analytics will become more accessible with natural-language AI
• A solid data foundation is just as important, but Google can help you migrate

Google Cloud has launched six new AI agent tools to assist data engineers, data scientists, developers and business users realize even more productivity benefits.

Outlining a, "new era where specialized AI agents work autonomously and cooperatively to unlock insights at a scale and speed," Data Cloud Managing Director Yasmeen Ahmad explained the benefits of a "single, unified, AI-native cloud" over siloed tools when it comes to using AI.

Besides new, specialized AI agents, Google Cloud is also launching a series of APIs, tools, and protocols as well as updates to unify data.

Google Cloud launches even more AI agents

The first agent, destined for data engineers, is designed to automate complex data pipelines by allowing engineers to describe tasks and then autonomously building and executing workflows. A separate Spanner Migration Agent will simplify migrating from legacy databases like MySQL to Spanner, eliminating hours of tedious administrative work.

Data scientists will benefit from an agent that automatically performs exploratory data analysis, data cleaning, feature engineering and ML predictions, offering step-by-step reasoning and collaborative feedback, while business users and analysts will get to use two separate agents designed to answer questions about data and interpret code with visualisations and explanations, meaning that non-technical users can perform advanced analytics.

Finally, Gemini CLI GitHub Actions will automate pull requests, tests, reviews and implementation for developers.

"The true potential of the agentic shift is realized when developers not only use existing agents, but also extend and connect them to their own intelligent systems, creating a broader network," Ahmad explained.

With its new agents, Google Cloud hopes to lower the barrier of entry into advanced data analytics, "eras[ing] the line between operational and analytical worlds."

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• One of Alien: Earth's antagonists isn't based on tech bros like Elon Musk
• The actor behind the character didn't seek inspiration from real-world examples
• He let series creator Noah Hawley's writing do the talking

One of Alien: Earth's stars has denied that specific examples of real-life tech bros inspired the duplicitous character he portrays in the FX TV Original.

Speaking to TechRadar, Samuel Blenkin, who plays Boy Kavalier in the sci-fi horror franchise's first-ever TV project, said he simply relied on how the character had been written.

For the uninitiated: Boy Kavalier is the 20-something CEO and founder of Prodigy Corporation. One of five megacorporations that essentially rule planet Earth in the Alien universe, Prodigy is at the forefront of unlocking human immortality via its Hybrid program – an experimental procedure that transfers the consciousness of a human child into an artificial adult body.

However, not long after Prodigy successfully creates six Hybrids, the USCSS Maginot – a deep-space research vessel owned by Weyland-Yutani, one of Prodigy's rivals and the Alien franchise's most famous multinational – crashes into Prodigy City. Upon discovering that the Maginot was transporting five dangerous alien lifeforms, including one of the franchise's iconic Xenomorphs, to Weyland-Yutani, Kavalier takes ownership of the potentially lethal extra-terrestrials for experimental purposes.

Alien: Earth introduces four new life-threatening organisms to the sci-fi horror franchise's universe (Image credit: FX Networks)

Anyone who's seen an Alien movie – or even a Jurassic Park one – knows that playing with things you don't fully understand is a recipe for disaster. Regardless of the consequences, though, the arrogant and so-called 'boy genius' Kavalier is hell-bent on unearthing the bioweapons' secrets in the Hulu and Disney+ TV Original.

If Kavalier's self-important and rebellious personality seems familiar, it might be that you're reminded of supposed 'tech revolutionaries' who, like Kavalier, claim their technological advancements are for humanity's benefit in spite of concerns about their use.

Need examples? How about the uncanny valley nature of Elon Musk's Tesla Bots, which some observers have likened to the Terminators from the James Cameron-created dystopian sci-fi franchise? What about artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots, such as ChatGPT, that use the OpenAI software co-created by Sam Altman? Or, take a look at Facebook founder and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg's all-consuming quest to make the Metaverse a real thing.

No, Alien: Earth's Samuel Blenkin didn't base Boy Kavalier on Elon Musk (Image credit: Getty Images)

For what it's worth, Blenkin rejected – or, rather, strongly sidestepped – the notion that any or all of the above, or any other tech guru, influenced his portrayal of Kavalier.

Nevertheless, he also indicated that projects penned by series creator Noah Hawley (Fargo, Legion) are often a commentary on people who've been in the public eye for the last few years, and/or the ever-changing nature of our own world. In Blenkin's view, then, it's possible that characters in the franchise's inaugural TV show might be crudely influenced by certain individuals who exist right now.

"I think that Noah did such a good job of painting a vivid character," Blenkin told me. "Like all of Noah's characters, they clearly have strands of the stuff that we're facing today and what's resonant right now.

"But what I love is that he [Kavalier] has very specific mannerisms and obsessions," Blenkin continued. "[He has] this Peter Pan obsession, he never wear shoes or socks, he has a little ball he throws about, his attention span is lacking, and he has an obsession with childhood and childhood innocence equating with the kind of genius [he is] and seeing himself as a boy who never grew up.

"He's able to break rules and not be held to the same account as an adult with that kind of morality," he added. "Everything that was written about him was so vivid on the page, so I kind of let the rest of the character threads take care of themselves."

Alien: Earth launches with a two-episode premiere on Hulu (US) on August 12 and Disney+ (internationally) on August 13. Before it arrives, read my review of Alien: Earth or get the lowdown on the series our dedicated guide on Alien: Earth.

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• BMW has launched an espresso machine built around a motorcycle engine
• The Big Coffee Boxer is hand-made, with a dual boiler and rotary pump
• It costs €7,900 (about $9,100 / £6,900 / AU$14,000), and only 80 will be made

If your usual morning coffee isn't giving you the same boost it used to and your wallet is weighing you down, BMW has just launched the espresso machine for you. The Big Coffee Boxer, made in collaboration with the coffee experts at ECM Manufacture, is built using a BMW R 18 Big Boxer motorcycle engine – and it'll certainly be a conversation-starter.

In terms of specs, the Big Coffee Boxer is up there with the best espresso machines. It features dual boilers, meaning you can pull a shot of espresso and steam milk at the same time, and professional-grade steam and hot water valves.

There's no color touchscreen here. Instead, the Boxer has two pressure dials (one for each boiler) and a discreet shot counter to help you see when it's time to backflush the machine, which is essential to remove residue and keep your coffee tasting as good as possible.

There's optional pre-infusion (a process that gently pre-soaks the ground coffee before applying the full brewing pressure), you can choose from three brewing temperatures, and use either a refillable water tank or a direct water supply if you're not opposed to a spot of plumbing.

Here's the catch

(Image credit: BMW, ECM)

Naturally, none of this comes cheap. Breville's new Oracle Dual Boiler raised eyebrows last week when it launched with a price tag of AU$4,499 (about $3,000 / £2,200), but the Boxer makes that look positively affordable as each BMW-branded espresso machine will set you back €7,900 (about $9,100 / £6,900 / AU$14,000).

To put that into context, if you currently pay $4 every day for a takeout coffee, it'll take you about six years and three months to offset the cost of the Boxer (not including the beans). You'll have to decide quickly, too, because only 80 of the machines will be made.

If that's a little outside your budget, take a look at our roundups of the best coffee makers and best bean-to-cup coffee machines, all of which are somewhat more affordable (if not as stylish).

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Wix website builder review (2025)

Wix is a giant in the website builder industry. Its marketing campaigns across all mainstream media have made it a household name. While some services give you only a few templates, Wix has more than 500.

Pros

• Limited free plan
• Vast library of templates has something for every business type
• Huge number of professional features
• Easy to use
• Extensive ecommerce tools can build a feature-packed web store
• Excellent image features
• Hundreds of apps connect you to many other platforms and services

Cons

• Above average prices
• Can’t change a template once you’ve chosen it
• Only 2GB storage with the cheapest plan
• Email not included as standard (it’s a paid extra)

Squarespace website builder review (2025)

If you've been keeping an eye out for easy-to-use, all-in-one solutions to create a stunning website, you've surely stumbled upon Squarespace website builder somewhere along the line.

Pros

• Built-in email marketing
• Essential ecommerce features with most plans
• Lots of lovely, mobile-responsive templates
• Free trial with no credit card info required
• Helpful link in bio tool
• Free SSL certificate
• Helpful 24/7 customer support and well-supplied knowledgebase
• A solid set of features

Cons

• No free plan
• No telephone support
• Low level of customization

If you are looking for a simple solution to build a great website there are countless options out there. However, with many of the best website builders offering similar features, tools, and price points, it can be hard to know which one is the best option for you.

Wix and Squarespace are two of the market-leading website builders. They provide everything you need to create professional websites without coding skills - including website hosting, ecommerce features, easy-to-use interfaces, and more.

They even offer similar starting prices with Wix premium plans starting at $17/mo (or less with our Wix promo codes) and Squarespace coming in ever-so-slightly lower with its entry level plan starting at $16/mo (or less with our Squarespace promo codes).

Yet they do differ in many areas including tools, design flexibility, templates, and what you get with each plan. If you're looking to pick one over the other, our detailed guide will walk you through the highs and lows of each so you can make the right choice. Let's dig in.

Wix vs Squarespace: A detailed breakdown

Feature

Wix

Squarespace

Starting price

$17.00/month

$16.00/month

Free plan

Yes

No

Templates

900+ templates across multiple categories

180+ templates across 19 categories

Editor type

Highly flexible drag-and-drop editor with unstructured placement

Structured editor with Fluid Engine (grid-based drag-and-drop)

AI website builder

Wix AI - creates websites based on questions

Blueprint AI - generates sites based on brand personality and preferences

Storage

Starting at 500MB (varies by plan)

Unlimited on all plans

Mobile optimization

Dedicated mobile editor

Automatically responsive templates

Ecommerce features

Product management, point of sale, shipping options, abandoned cart recovery, advanced booking system

Product management, bookings, shipping options, point of sale, abandoned cart recovery

Payment gateways

80+ payment options

Limited payment options

Marketing tools

Email builder, newsletters, email campaigns, Facebook ads integration

Email templates, newsletters, campaigns, direct Instagram/Facebook sales

SEO tools

Meta titles/descriptions, URL customization, Google Search integration, canonical tags, image optimization, site inspection

Meta titles/descriptions, custom URLs, image alt text, Google Search Console integration, canonical tags

Analytics

Traffic monitoring, visitor behavior tracking, revenue reports, personalized suggestions, customer insights

Traffic monitoring, engagement tracking, sales statistics, Google Analytics integration, Purchase Funnel

App marketplace

500+ apps and integrations

35+ extensions

Blogging

Basic blogging features

Advanced blogging with monetization options

Customer support

Live chat, phone support (premium), knowledge center

Email support, knowledge base, community forum

Security

SSL certificates, DDoS protection, firewall

SSL certificates, DDoS protection, firewall

Design flexibility

Highly customizable with pixel-perfect positioning

More structured with focus on professional design

Multilingual support

Available through Wix Multilingual app

Requires third-party integration (WeGlot)

Forum feature

Available through Wix Forum app

Requires third-party integration

Live chat feature

Available through Wix Live Chat app

Requires third-party integration

Custom fonts

Direct upload in editor

Requires CSS code

Scheduling tools

Built-in booking system

Acuity Scheduling ($16/month)

Free domain

Yes (1st year)

Yes (1st year)

Content creation AI

AI tools for product descriptions, image generation

AI tools for product descriptions, email content, blog posts

Wix vs Squarespace: Features

Both Wix and Squarespace have strong features in 2025, but each shines in different ways. Wix boasts a huge template library with over 900 designs. In contrast, Squarespace has around 180 curated templates. Wix's app marketplace is much larger with over 500 integrations, while Squarespace has about 35 extensions. For ecommerce, Wix supports over 80 payment gateways and offers features like pre-order tracking and tax automation. Squarespace includes ecommerce in all plans but has fewer payment options.

Both platforms also use AI technology. Wix provides dedicated tools including product descriptions, image generation and editing, section editor, and even an AI marketing assistant. Squarespace offers AI for product descriptions, email content, and blog posts.

Squarespace's BluePrint AI helps build websites based on brand personality and preferences. Wix AI creates sites based on user questions in a chatbot interface. Squarespace generally has better blogging features with monetization options, but, Wix excels in business tools and customization.

The best choice depends on your needs. Squarespace suits users who value design quality and blogging features, plus it offers ecommerce in all plans. Wix is better for those wanting flexibility, extensive app integrations, and more business tools.

Wix vs Squarespace: Ease of use

Wix and Squarespace are both easy to use for non-programmers without coding experience, but the learning curve still varies.

Wix features a simple drag-and-drop editor. Users can place elements anywhere on the page. This allows for pixel-perfect positioning, ideal for beginners who want total customization. Wix also offers two editing options: the original editor for small businesses and creators and Wix Studio for agencies needing top-notch design tools.

Squarespace is user-friendly too, but its editing system is more structured. The Fluid Engine, introduced in July 2022, allows drag-and-drop within a grid area. This design offers fewer constraints than the Classic Editor but still maintains some order. Users get consistent and professional results but at the cost of creative freedom. It takes more clicks to achieve the same results as Wix, plus you must manually save changes.

Overall, Wix wins for ease of use, especially for beginners who want creative freedom. Its user-friendly interface, automatic saving, and strong backup system enhance accessibility. Squarespace may suit those who prefer structure and consistency, as its limitations help avoid design errors while ensuring a polished look.

Wix vs Squarespace: Support

Wix provides many support options, including live chat and phone support in over ten languages. However, priority phone support requires a Business Elite subscription. Support is available from Monday to Friday, depending on the language. Wix also has a Knowledge Center with tutorials and guides. For Wix Studio subscribers, the Wix Studio Academy offers hundreds of short courses to help users maximize features.

Squarespace takes a different approach to customer support. It doesn't offer phone support. Instead, you have the option to use 24/7 human chat support, hire third-party experts, or participate in the community forum where users can ask for advice. It also provides documentation and tutorials. But unlike Wix, Squarespace's live chat support system relies on human support agents, not AI.

Wix offers more responsive support that's easier to avail. But, Squarespace stands apart with its strictly human-first support system. While the former offers more accessible, diverse, and affordable options, Squarespace is the better choice for users who need constant access to experts who can troubleshoot complex issues.

Wix vs Squarespace: Pricing and plans

Plan

/mo (paid monthly)

/mo (paid annually)

/mo (paid every 2-years)

/mo (paid every 3-years)

Free

$0

$0

$0

$0

Lite

$24

$17

$14

$12

Core

$36

$29

$24

$21

Business

$43

$36

$29

$26

Business Elite

$172

$159

$121

$110

Wix offers a free plan and four paid tiers. The Light plan starts at $17/month, up from the previous $16. The Core plan costs $29/month, the Business plan is $36/month, and the Business Elite plan is $159/month. Wix's entry-level plans are cheaper than Squarespace's. However, the Light plan lacks ecommerce features, which begin with the Core plan.

Plan

Monthly cost (paid monthly)

Monthly cost (paid annually)

Personal

$25

$16

Business

$36

$23

Commerce (Basic)

$40

$28

Commerce (Advanced)

$72

$52

Squarespace does not have a free plan. It offers four paid options with annual discounts. The Personal plan starts at $16/month (billed annually). The Business plan is $23/month, while Commerce Basic (Plus) is $39/month, and Commerce Advanced is $99/month. All Squarespace plans include ecommerce capabilities, making it easy for users to sell products online. Squarespace also offers unlimited storage on all plans. In contrast, Wix's storage ranges from 2GB on the Light plan to unlimited on the Business Elite plan.

For value comparison, Wix gives more resources and features at similar price points, especially for business and ecommerce. However, Squarespace offers better value for users focused on ecommerce, as those features are included in all plans. Your best choice depends on your needs. Wix is more affordable for entry-level sites and offers more features at higher tiers. Squarespace provides robust ecommerce capabilities from the start.

Expert insight Wix vs Squarespace: Final verdict

After comparing Wix and Squarespace in detail, we think that both platforms have unique strengths for different users. Wix shines with its easy drag-and-drop editor, wide template library, large app marketplace, and responsive customer support. Its flexible design options and AI tools are great for those who want creative freedom and customization. With a free plan and lower prices, Wix is also more accessible for beginners and budget-friendly users.

Squarespace, on the other hand, lacks a free plan and phone support but stands out with its sleek templates and structured design. This approach ensures consistent, high-quality results. All Squarespace plans include ecommerce features, making it a better choice for users who want to sell products online from the start. Squarespace also offers excellent blogging tools, unlimited storage, and better site performance.

The best choice depends on your needs.

Choose Wix if you want maximum design flexibility, lots of app integrations, and lower costs. Go for Squarespace if you prioritize professional design, structured editing, better performance, and all-in-one ecommerce features. For most beginners and small businesses seeking value and ease of use, Wix is the more versatile option. In contrast, design-focused professionals and ecommerce businesses may prefer Squarespace.

Wix vs Squarespace: FAQsCan I change my website template after I've started building my website?

Squarespace allows you to switch your template at any time. Your website content will automatically be transferred into the new design, although it will likely need some editing to make sure it still fits and flows well. Wix doesn’t let you switch templates once you have published your site. If you want to use a new template after this, you will need to build your website from scratch.

Is Wix or Squarespace cheaper?

Both website builders have similar entry level plans with similar prices with Wix starting at $17/mo and Squarespace starting at $16/mo. As you move up the pricing tiers, the gap starts to widen, with Squarespace remaining the cheaper of the two, but Wix offering access to more tools and resources. Wix’s most expensive (Business Elite) plan works out at $159/mo (paid annually), compared to Squarespace’s most expensive plan that comes in at $99/mo.

• Microsoft engineers are committed to making WinUI open source
• But first it needs to be separated from proprietary Windows code
• GitHub will become WinUI's home for the community

Microsoft has confirmed WinUI will become, "truly open source", however deep entanglements with proprietary Windows code could put this goal a long way off yet.

Windows UI Library (WinUI) is a user interface framework for building modern, fluid and responsive user interfaces on Windows, which works with Win32, .NET and C++ apps.

However, while the project lacks a specific end date, Lead Software Engineer Beth Pan did share more details about Microsoft's phased plans in a GitHub post.

WinUI is on a road to become fully open source

"While we’re not ready to commit to a specific end date for completing all milestones, we are actively working toward it," Pan wrote.

The four phases of Microsoft's plan begin with more frequent syncing of internal commits to GitHub, starting post-WASDK 1.8 which is set for an August 2025 release.

From there on, Microsoft will allow external developers to clone and build the repo with full setup docs, after which third-party developers will be permitted to contribute and run tests.

The final stage will see GitHub become the "primary place for development, issue tracking, and community engagement."

However, because so much of the codebase touches proprietary Windows layers, Microsoft is planning a gradual and deliberate transition to separate what can be open-sourced.

"Our current focus is on foundational work that unlocks value for contributors and increase transparency," Pan added.

A separate GitHub project board has been established for the community to collaborate with Microsoft going forward.

Community responses have been generally positive and supportive, with many expressing their satisfaction that the project lives on with Microsoft's support.

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• Turtle Beach is launching three new racing wheel products
• The VelocityOne Race KD3, VelocityOne F-RX, and Racer wheels release on September 9
• You're able to pre-order them now from the brand's website

Gaming peripheral brand Turtle Beach has just announced three upcoming racing wheels, all targeting budget to mid-range sim enthusiasts, and they may just be great additions to our best racing wheels guide in the future.

The Turtle Beach VelocityOne Race KD3, Turtle Beach VelocityOne F-RX, and the Turtle Beach Racer are all available to pre-order today from the brand's website, and will launch simultaneously on September 9, 2025. All these products are part of the 'Designed for Xbox' lineup, meaning they're compatible with Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S as well as PC.

Starting with the Turtle Beach VelocityOne Race KD3, this is a direct drive racing wheel that includes a wheel, 'K: Drive' wheel base, and a set of pedals. The motor will deliver 3.2Nm of force feedback and up to 2,160 degrees of rotation. It sounds like a suitably powerful mid-range option in line with the Logitech G923, and will retail at $449.99 / £329.99.

Next is the Turtle Beach VelocityOne F-RX. Similar to the Thrustmaster Ferrari 488 GT3, this is a standalone wheel suited to serious racing sim enthusiasts, and could be a great choice for iRacing or F1 25. It looks to have all the buttons, dials and switches necessary for an immersive sim racing experience, and will be available individually for $249.99 / £189.99. The F-RX is compatible with K: Drive wheel bases, too.

Finally, we have a budget option available in the Turtle Beach Racer. This looks to be the one to go for if you don't have room for a direct drive setup, and is more of a plug-and-play wheel. It has a lap mount if you're only option is playing on the couch, and also supports wireless connectivity with up to 30 hours of battery life. Do keep in mind that there may be some slight latency issues there, though. The Turtle Beach Racer will retail at $179.99 / £139.99.

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When Meta shocked the industry with its $14.3 billion investment in Scale AI, the reaction was swift. Within days, major customers (including Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI) began distancing themselves from a platform now partially aligned with one of their chief rivals.

Yet, the real story runs deeper: in the scramble to amass more data, too many AI leaders still assume that volume alone guarantees performance. But in domains like robotics, computer vision, or AR - that demand spatial intelligence - that equation is breaking down. If your data can't accurately reflect the complexity of physical environments, then more is not just meaningless; it can be dangerous.

In Physical AI, fidelity beats volume

Current AI models have predominantly been built and trained on vast datasets of text and 2D imagery scraped from the internet. But Physical AI requires a different approach. A warehouse robot or surgical assistant isn’t navigating a website, it’s navigating real space, light, geometry, and risk.

In these use cases, data must be high-resolution, context-aware and grounded in real-world physical dimensions. NVIDIA’s recent Physical AI Dataset exemplifies the shift: 15 terabytes of carefully structured trajectories (not scraped imagery), designed to reflect operational complexity.

Robot operating systems trained on these types of optimized 3D datasets will be able to operate in complex real-world environments with a greater level of precision, much like a pilot can fly with pinpoint accuracy after training on a simulator built using precise flight data points.

Imagine a self-driving forklift misjudging a pallet’s dimensions because its training data lacked fine-grained depth cues, or a surgical-assistant robot mistaking a flexible instrument for rigid tissue, simply because its training set never captured that nuance.

In Physical AI, the cost of getting it wrong is high. Edge-case errors in physical systems don’t just cause hallucinations, they come with the potential to break machines, workflows, or even bones. That’s why Physical AI leaders are increasingly prioritizing curated, domain-specific datasets over brute-force scale.

Building fit-for-purpose data strategies

Shifting from “collect everything” to “collect what matters” requires a change of mindset:

1. Define physical fidelity metrics

Establish benchmarks for resolution, depth accuracy, environmental diversity, and temporal continuity. These metrics should align with your system’s failure modes (e.g., minimum depth-map precision to avoid collision, or lighting-variance thresholds to ensure reliable object detection under specific conditions).

2. Curate and annotate with domain expertise

Partner with specialists: robotics engineers, photogrammetry experts, field operators, to identify critical scenarios and edge cases. Use structured capture rigs (multi-angle cameras, synchronized depth sensors) and rigorous annotation protocols to encode real-world complexity into your datasets.

3. Iterate with closed-loop feedback

Deploy early prototypes in controlled settings, log system failures, and feed those edge cases back into subsequent data-collection rounds. This closed-loop approach rapidly concentrates dataset growth on the scenarios that matter most, rather than perpetuating blind scaling.

Data quality as the new competitive frontier

As Physical AI moves from labs into critical infrastructure, fulfillment centers, hospitals, construction sites, the stakes at play skyrocket. Companies that lean on off-the-shelf high-volume data may find themselves leapfrogged by rivals who invest in precision-engineered datasets. Quality translates directly into uptime, reliability, and user trust: a logistics operator will tolerate a misrouted package far more readily than a robotic arm that damages goods or injures staff.

Moreover, high-quality datasets unlock advanced capabilities. Rich metadata, semantic labels, material properties, temporal context, enables AI systems to generalize across environments and tasks. A vision model trained on well-annotated 3D scans can transfer more effectively from one warehouse layout to another, reducing re-training costs and deployment friction.

The AI arms race isn’t over, but its terms are changing. Beyond headline-grabbing deals and headline-risk debates lies the true battleground: ensuring that the data powering tomorrow’s AI is not just voluminous, but meticulously fit-for-purpose. In physical domains where real-world performance, reliability, and safety are at stake, the pioneers will be those who recognize that in data as in engineering, precision outperforms pressure (and volume).

I tried 70+ best AI tools.

This article was produced as part of TechRadarPro's Expert Insights channel where we feature the best and brightest minds in the technology industry today. The views expressed here are those of the author and are not necessarily those of TechRadarPro or Future plc. If you are interested in contributing find out more here: https://www.techradar.com/news/submit-your-story-to-techradar-pro

As enterprise AI becomes more embedded into the fabric of everyday tools, the biggest challenge facing organizations isn’t AI adoption; it’s AI management. Gone are the days when AI features like meeting transcriptions or document summarization stood out as cutting-edge.

Today, they are expected. According to McKinsey's 2024 State of AI report, 72% of organizations have adopted at least one form of generative AI, and over half report using it in more than one business function. But this surge in adoption has led to a new operational crisis: AI sprawl.

What Is AI Sprawl and Why Does It Matter Now?

AI sprawl is the unchecked proliferation of AI tools and systems across departments, applications, and infrastructure without a unified strategy. The result? A chaotic digital ecosystem where:

• Redundancy is rampant (e.g., multiple summarization tools embedded in different apps)
• User experiences are inconsistent
• Data governance becomes unmanageable
• Security vulnerabilities go undetected

For example, companies eager to integrate AI across their tech stacks often deploy similar capabilities in silos - an AI assistant in a messaging platform, a different one in email, another in help desk software - without a shared interface or policy layer. This fragmented approach increases operational costs, confuses users, and makes compliance audits a nightmare.

The Rise - and Limits - of Vertical AI

Most enterprise AI today is what we call "vertical AI": narrow capabilities embedded directly into a specific tool, often by that tool’s own vendor. These AI features are excellent at solving bounded problems but struggle at scaling across workflows or departments.

IDC research notes that organizations are spending up to 30% more per seat due to overlapping AI functionality across their application ecosystems (IDC). While each solution may serve a use case in isolation, collectively they add inefficiency and cost.

The Real Cost of Fragmentation

Here’s where AI sprawl hurts the most:

• Wasted Spend: Gartner estimates that up to 25% of enterprise AI investment is duplicative, particularly in use-case specific tooling.
• Poor AI Literacy: Employees have to relearn how to interact with each tool’s AI assistant, eroding trust and slowing adoption.
• Regulatory Risk: Privacy settings and data policies vary app by app, creating blind spots for security teams and legal counsel.
• Broken Context: AI models can’t share knowledge between systems, meaning insights are trapped inside individual tools.

A Smarter Alternative: Interoperability as Strategy

Instead of asking, “How many AI tools do we have?” CIOs and CTOs must ask, “How well do our AI systems work together?”

Interoperability means more than just integrations or connectors; it requires AI tools that can share context, adhere to consistent governance, and surface insights across platforms. This horizontal approach avoids the trap of buying more features and focuses instead on making those features work in concert.

Three Core Benefits of AI Interoperability

1. Holistic Intelligence: AI-driven insights from one tool (ex: CRM) can inform decisions in customer support, marketing, and HR when systems talk to each other.
2. Trustworthy User Experience: Employees get consistent behavior, language, and recommendations regardless of the app they’re using.
3. Centralized Oversight: IT and security teams can manage data policies, model updates, and risk controls from a single pane of glass.

Charting a Coherent Path Forward

To navigate from fragmentation to function, enterprise leaders must pursue both operational alignment and robust governance practices. The good news is that AI sprawl is not an inevitable cost of innovation - it can be addressed proactively.

By taking a strategic approach that blends centralized governance with interoperable infrastructure, organizations can rein in AI fragmentation before it becomes unmanageable. The way forward is clear, actionable, and within reach.

• Build a centralised AI governance council that includes IT, compliance, legal, and business users.
• Define enterprise-wide AI usage policies and audit mechanisms to ensure consistent, responsible practices.
• Implement monitoring tools that track model performance, data lineage, and access across platforms in real time.
• Consolidate and rationalize tools to eliminate duplicative spend and improve oversight.
• Audit the AI landscape by inventorying every AI-enabled tool, feature, and data dependency across the organization.
• Invest in AI infrastructure by adopting open standards like MCP, APIs, and orchestration platforms that promote interoperability.
• Upskill employees through literacy programs that demystify AI, reduce risk, and build trust in intelligent systems.

In fragmented environments, IT and compliance teams are often required to support multiple incompatible permissioning models, audit trails, and deployment protocols. A centralized platform enables governance teams to monitor model performance and data lineage in real-time, reducing exposure while aligning AI use with evolving regulatory expectations.

Less Hype, More Harmony

Enterprise leaders need to stop chasing the next flashy AI feature and start focusing on cohesion, governance, and usability. The future isn’t about having the most AI, it’s about having the most effective, connected, and secure AI.

The maturity curve for AI adoption will increasingly reward organizations that move beyond fragmented experimentation. Those who consolidate capabilities and embed AI within core processes will unlock sustainable growth, resilience, and competitive advantage.

In the age of ubiquitous AI, everyone has tools, but not everyone has traction. The innovators aren’t the ones with the most features; they’re the ones who make it all work together. AI sprawl may be a modern challenge, but orchestrated intelligence is the competitive edge of tomorrow.

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This article was produced as part of TechRadarPro's Expert Insights channel where we feature the best and brightest minds in the technology industry today. The views expressed here are those of the author and are not necessarily those of TechRadarPro or Future plc. If you are interested in contributing find out more here: https://www.techradar.com/news/submit-your-story-to-techradar-pro

Artificial intelligence (AI) isn’t something on the horizon. It’s already part of how people are getting work done.

Recent research from HP and YouGov found that 72% of UK employees using AI tools say it saves them time every week. One in ten are saving more than five hours. Some are using it to reduce manual admin. Others say it helps them focus, collaborate more effectively, or feel more in control of their day.

But these gains aren’t coming from structured enterprise rollouts. In many cases, they’re the result of quiet experimentation - employees using what’s already at their fingertips, often without training or direction from IT.

At the same time, more than a quarter of UK businesses still report having no formal AI strategy. This creates a growing disconnect: employees are forging ahead on their own, while the organization risks falling behind. It’s not a technology gap; it’s a leadership one.

In my conversations with CIOs and IT leaders across the UK and wider Northwest Europe market, I hear a mix of urgency and uncertainty. Everyone agrees AI is critical to future competitiveness. But there are open questions around where to start, how to scale responsibly, and how to balance experimentation with governance.

That hesitation is understandable, especially in industries where risk and compliance frameworks are tight. But as more teams adopt AI organically, the absence of a centralized plan introduces its own risks - from data leakage to inconsistent performance and lost opportunities for enterprise-wide value.

A rare opportunity to re-architect from the ground up

The end of Windows 10 support in 2025 presents a strategic window. Many organizations are already reviewing their device strategies and digital estate planning. This moment, whether viewed as a compliance trigger or a chance to modernize, is an ideal time to align IT infrastructure decisions with longer-term goals around workplace tools and AI integration.

We’re seeing growing interest in AI-capable endpoint devices as part of that strategy. These systems offer local processing, reduced latency, and better data control-critical features for organizations managing hybrid environments or strict regulatory requirements. But while improved performance and privacy are important, the real benefit is this: AI becomes embedded, accessible, and usable without disrupting the way people already work.

I’ve spoken with IT leaders who are introducing AI incrementally through use cases that matter to employees: summarizing meetings, creating first drafts, reducing clicks. It doesn’t need to be complex to be effective, but it does need to be intentional.

From pilot mode to platform mindset

Too many organizations remain stuck in test-and-wait mode. A pilot project goes well, but momentum fizzles. There’s no clear business owner, no framework to expand, no metrics to track long-term impact. Here, AI remains confined to one team or workflow, useful but limited.

To unlock real value, businesses need to stop thinking in projects and start thinking in systems. That means moving AI out of isolated pockets and into the core of IT and business strategy. From what I’ve seen across sectors, this shift requires three mindset changes.

First, move from experimentation to prioritization. AI isn’t a side initiative anymore. It needs sponsorship, resourcing, and KPIs tied to outcomes the organization cares about - whether that’s productivity, cost savings, or faster decision-making.

Second, move from scattered adoption to secure design. Governance, data privacy, and accountability must be built in from the beginning. In regulated industries, this is non-negotiable. But even in more flexible sectors, employees need to know where AI fits and what the boundaries are.

Third, move from short-term rollout to long-term enablement. AI success isn’t about deployment alone. It’s about building trust, training users, and supporting adoption in ways that stick. That means investing in support infrastructure-not just software licenses.

Some of the most effective CIOs I’ve worked with are building cross-functional AI working groups that bring together IT, data, ops, HR, and business units. These teams aren’t just coordinating rollouts-they’re shaping roadmaps, reviewing risks, and evolving policies together. That kind of alignment isn’t flashy, but it’s what allows AI to move from tactical to transformative.

AI that works - for people and the business

Beyond the tech stack, there’s a broader benefit to consider. In the same HP and YouGov research, AI users reported lower stress, improved work-life balance, and greater satisfaction with their roles. When implemented well, AI doesn’t just make work faster, it makes it more manageable and more meaningful. That translates into retention, productivity, and culture shifts that directly affect the bottom line.

As IT leaders, we don’t just manage systems, we shape environments. Our job is to build the foundations that allow people to do their best work. And increasingly, that means designing ecosystems where AI can be adopted confidently, used securely, and evolved sustainably.

The momentum is already there. Employees are experimenting. The tools are ready. The opportunity now is to implement structure and take those individual wins and build a strategy that turns them into lasting, measurable impact.

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• Microsoft's VP for OS Security has provided his vision of Windows in 2030
• It will be multimodal and involve 'more talking to our computers'
• AI will power the ability to 'do much more sophisticated things'

Ever wondered what Windows will be like at the turn of the decade, when 2030 rolls around?

Windows Central discovered a video clip uploaded on Microsoft's YouTube channel in which its Corporate VP for OS Security, David Weston, provides his vision for Windows in 2030 (you can watch it below).

In the short interview, Weston delivers answers to some set questions which are mostly on the topic of security (unsurprisingly, given that's his expertise), AI, jobs, and the business world. He does address the title of the video at one point, though, and gives us his thoughts on how Windows might look by the end of the decade.

Weston observes: "I think we will do less with our eyes and more talking to our computers. And I truly believe that a future version of Windows, and other Microsoft operating systems, will interact in a multi-modal way."

"The computer will be able to see what we see, hear what we hear, and we can talk to it and ask it to do much more sophisticated things. I think it will be a much more natural form of communication."

Weston adds: "The world of mousing around and typing will feel as alien as it does to Gen-Z to use MS-DOS."

Much of the rest of the video discusses AI and jobs, as mentioned, and how we can expect AI to take over grunt work to free us humans up to do more interesting and creative tasks (or that's the long-held theory anyway).

And indeed, how future security experts will be AI bots that you'll interact with just like a real person, talking to them in video chats and meetings, or emailing to give them tasks.

Analysis: Far-fetched?

To me, this doesn't feel like a vision of Windows in five years' time (well, it's nearer four if we want to nit-pick, and I do), but a good deal further out than that. Although Weston does hint that this is a broader vision of a 'future version of Windows', and I get the gist: the future is 'multimodal' - moving away from the simple mouse and keyboard as the main inputs for the PC - and, of course, everything's built around AI (naturally).

Will the future of Windows be like this, though? I'm certainly not betting against it being focused heavily on AI, as that very much looks to be the case. In general, AI feels like an almost irresistible force in terms of where computers are heading, and Microsoft is clearly trying to jam more AI into Windows wherever it can - a path that the software giant is doubtless going to forge ahead with.

Today, I've been writing about clues hidden in the background of Windows 11 that suggest another AI agent might be coming to the taskbar in the desktop OS. That possible addition would live alongside the agent already introduced to the Settings app, which is a smart addition.

With powerful NPUs potentially set to be included in desktop chips soon, as well as Copilot+ laptops, AI is likely to become much more widespread in the world of PCs pretty swiftly. I'd even go as far as to guess that the next version of Windows won't be Windows 12, but Windows AI (or Windows Copilot maybe, if that's still the brand for AI), the focus on this arena is likely to be that strong.

There are promises, lofty ideas, and marketing around AI, though - and then the reality of what Microsoft can achieve. Remember when Copilot was first introduced to Windows 11? We were told it would be able to change a swathe of settings in the operating system based on a vague prompt from the user (like 'make me more productive'). That still hasn't happened, and appears to be firmly on the back burner.

Which is to say that while I don’t doubt that Microsoft has these big ambitions, whether a very different way of working with a Windows PC will happen in 2030 seems doubtful to me.

Granted, I can indeed envision that talking - giving voice commands (which are coming along nicely in Windows 11) - could become a much more important, but still supplementary, part of the Windows experience and interface. And AI (presumably) doing more sophisticated things, yes, fair enough - maybe even manipulating Windows settings in one fell swoop at the behest of the user will be realized in a manner that works well.

Hey, maybe Windows AI, or Windows 2030, or whatever it ends up being called, will finally get rid of the legacy Control Panel, as a commenter on Weston's video amusingly observes. Hah - it makes me feel giddy just to imagine it. This is a battle Microsoft has been fighting for far too long, after all,

But mouse-and-keyboard usage is being made to feel like the equivalent of us being forced to revert to the days of DOS, all text and tinkering with the config.sys and autoexec.bat files to get a PC game to work? That feels like more than a stretch, and something much, much further away in the Windows computing timeline - but I could be wrong.

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• Microsoft is prepping Windows XP Crocs, dubbed the '50th Anniversary Exclusive'
• It'll be the first version of Windows to take this step, if true
• The Crocs come with six Jibbitz and a carrying tote

Yes, Microsoft is still celebrating its 50th anniversary, and while the company has done a lot of looking back, it’s also looking forward. Err, at least taking a step forward.

Sure, we’ve seen some iconic Windows ugly sweaters, including one with Minesweeper and one with Clippy, but Windows XP is going where no other version of Windows has ever gone before – to Crocs.

TechRadar's confirmed with the tech giant that the Microsoft 50th Exclusive Crocs – aka the Windows XP Crocs – are official, and got five images of the shoes.

According to a report from The Verge, Windows XP Crocs are currently available for internal order by Microsoft employees – priced at $80 – with the story noting that the employees “get first dibs” ahead of a “worldwide launch.”

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(Image credit: Microsoft)

We’ve seen other collaborations from the Croc brand, with plenty of Disney properties included – I mean, kachow, Lightning McQueen Crocs that light up – along with fashion houses, and even McDonald's. The Windows XP Crocs, though, take the iconic green hills and blue skies wallpaper to the shoe form.

And I know what you’re thinking, but the images of the Windows XP Crocs do indeed confirm the existence of a Clippy Jibbitz (aka what Crocs calls their shoe charms). The Windows XP Crocs will come with an iconic helper as well as a pointer, the MSN butterfly, a classic Internet Explorer logo, the recycling bin, and a folder. That comes to a whopping six Jibbitz in total.

(Image credit: Microsoft)

You also get a drawstring tote that's inspired by the classic, now iconic, Windows XP wallpaper. Microsoft did confirm the existence of the Crocs to us and shared these images, but didn't share anything more on pricing or availability.

At a reported price tag of $80, the Windows XP Crocs aren’t cheap, but if you’re a Microsoft collector or someone who’s also opted to get the previous ugly holiday sweaters, they might be the perfect shoe to add to your collection. Of course, I think many would be happy if Microsoft goes the route of other retro, nostalgia-fueled drops – it could be a fresh skin for Windows or even another wallpaper drop, and that would still be a great way to honor the 50th.

You might recall that Microsoft dropped a limited 50th anniversary edition of the Surface Laptop, which looked pretty snazzy. It’s also a more subtle way to celebrate 50 years of Microsoft than, say, blue and green Crocs.

Stick with TechRadar as once we learn more about pricing and how to get a pair of the Microsoft 50th Exclusive Crocs, we'll be sure to update this post.

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