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• B-52 bombers receive gigabit weapon links through advanced fiber optic pylons
• The US Air Force plans 130 modern pylons for the aging strategic bomber fleet
• New pylons allow heavier weapons on upgraded B-52 aircraft for decades

The US Air Force is moving ahead with another major modernization effort for its fleet of 75 B-52H bombers, focusing on replacing weapons pylons originally designed during the late 1950s.

The proposed Advanced Wing Weapons Pylon introduces support for far heavier weapons while also bringing modern digital connectivity through the MIL-STD-1760E interface.

Those interface requirements include gigabit data transfer capability and fiber optic connections that allow advanced weapons to exchange significantly larger volumes of information with aircraft systems.

New pylons prepare decades-old bombers for future weapons

According to an Air Force business notice, the replacement pylon must carry either conventional or nuclear weapons weighing up to 20,000 pounds, while the wing hardpoint remains limited to 28,000 pounds.

This development effort will require about 36 months before reaching a critical design review, although industry feedback will determine whether that schedule remains achievable.

The service expects an initial production requirement of between 20 and 24 pylons, with at least 12 arriving during the first production year before expanding toward roughly 130 units.

The procurement replaces the Improved Common Pylon, introduced during the 1960s after its original design work began in 1959 for considerably lighter weapons.

Air Force documents explained that previous engineers never anticipated external weapons exceeding 5,000 pounds, leaving the current equipment facing structural concerns under modern operational requirements.

Officials said the replacement effort will identify suppliers capable of delivering accelerated pylon designs while modifying existing carriage equipment for newer and substantially heavier munitions.

The standardized electrical interface also enables modern avionics to exchange complex guidance, mission, and release information with sophisticated precision weapons through high-speed digital links.

Upgrade supports broader B-52J modernization effort

The pylon replacement forms part of the wider conversion turning today's B-52H fleet into the B-52J through new engines, modern radar, updated avionics, and expanded weapons integration capabilities.

The Air Force requested $30 million during fiscal 2027 for research and development supporting the new pylons, alongside another $50 million for integrating newer AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile variants.

Budget documents describe the Advanced Wing Weapons Pylon as "the key that unlocks all future heavy-weight weapon capabilities for the B-52," reflecting its importance within broader modernization plans.

The upgraded equipment increases both weapon weight capacity and carriage numbers, allowing each pylon to support eight JASSM missiles instead of six.

Separately, the Air Force requested $1 million during fiscal 2027 to begin examining possible long-term successors for the B-52, even as modernization continues.

Those parallel efforts illustrate how military planners intend to extend the bomber's operational usefulness toward almost 100 years while simultaneously examining eventual replacement options.

Whether every modernization objective proceeds according to current schedules remains uncertain, although ongoing investment shows continued confidence in extending the aircraft's military relevance for decades.

Via Aviation Tech Today

Morocco was no match for France, which lost 2-0. The French, one of the pre-tournament favorites, move on to the World Cup semifinals against either Spain or Belgium.

(Image credit: Odd Andersen)

Since disclosing massive global surveillance programs, the former US National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden has been campaigning to strengthen privacy and the right of citizens to not be monitored by government agencies.

Nothing to hide

Snowden published his memoir, Permanent Record, in 2019 as a means to convey his full story – including his upbringing and how he came to be the whistleblower we all now know.

Quote of the day

This article is part of TechRadar Pro's QOTD project to provide an insight into the minds of the brightest and most recognized figures in the technology industry today and in years gone by. Read the full series here.

In this book, the former NSA contractor used several analogies in a chain to underline what the right to privacy actually means, as he saw it, and to stress that just because you aren't using a particular right, that doesn't mean it shouldn't apply.

He argued that various freedoms may not apply to you, or make sense today, but that they may have meaning for you or those you know in the future. Privacy, too, fell into this category, and he urged more and more people to defend their rights.

Nothing to fear

The legacy of Snowden, since he first helped journalists reveal the breadth and extent of government-led spying in 2013, is far-reaching. His revelations sent shockwaves throughout not only the intelligence-industrial complex but society at several levels.

For example, there's been a dramatic surge in the use of software and applications in which end-to-end encryption can prevent communications data from being intercepted, either in a targeted or indiscriminate way.

Many of the practices he revealed were wound down thanks to the USA Freedom Act, while a US federal court ruled in 2020 that one of the NSA's mass surveillance programs, in which bulk telephone data was collected, was done so illegally and possibly unconstitutionally.

His disclosures also fuelled data protection movements and new laws around the world, like GDPR in the EU.

The move would benefit companies such as Tesla, which are already designing in that direction.

A new ChatGPT Work program can let the AI take charge of your files.

A 20-minute nap will count toward your daily sleep total. But is a quick power nap worth it?

Meta reportedly plans to deploy its fourth custom AI chip by September as it looks to cut AI costs and reduce reliance on Nvidia and AMD.

The post Meta’s Custom AI Chip Timeline Just Got More Interesting appeared first on TechRepublic.

• Custom drone achieved a 261-minute flight after months of engineering refinements
• Guinness World Records recognizes Cape Town pilot for record-breaking multirotor endurance flight
• Software tuning unlocked crucial efficiency gains during the historic flight

A Cape Town YouTuber and drone pilot has secured a new Guinness World Record after keeping a custom-built multirotor drone airborne for 4 hours, 21 minutes, and 39 seconds.

The achievement followed months of redesigns, repeated testing, and engineering refinements that transformed an earlier prototype into an officially recognised endurance aircraft.

Rather than relying on a single breakthrough, the record came through a series of hardware and software improvements that steadily extended flight time beyond previous attempts.

Weight reduction and stronger construction unlocked longer endurance

Luke Bell had already exceeded the previous endurance benchmark with an earlier version that remained airborne for 3 hours, 31 minutes, and 6 seconds, although that attempt was never officially recognised.

Instead of submitting that result, Bell continued refining the aircraft with the goal of securing a larger margin and earning formal recognition from Guinness World Records.

One of the simplest improvements came after viewers suggested replacing two-piece clamp mounts with single-piece C-style clamps, reducing overall weight by approximately 26 grams.

Bell also rebuilt the airframe using continuous 1.88 metre carbon fibre tubes for each rotor arm, removing weak connection points that affected the earlier design.

Additional reinforcement connected the front rotor arms, while a custom mounting system secured the approximately 5 kg high-density SMC battery pack rated at 380 Wh/kg throughout the extended flight.

The drone also received specially designed 3D-printed landing gear incorporating thermoplastic polyurethane joints to absorb landing forces more effectively.

Live software tuning helped extend the record flight

Mechanical improvements alone did not deliver the final result because early test flights revealed vibration severe enough to interfere with the flight controller's inertial measurement units.

Bell replaced the original controller with a Cube Orange Plus system featuring isolated internal IMUs before installing an external antenna connected to a Here4 base unit for real-time kinematic positioning accurate to within 1 centimetre.

Further adjustments focused on the autopilot, where notch filter tuning removed resonant frequencies responsible for instability while reducing unnecessary power consumption during flight.

Bell also monitored live performance through a Wi Fi connection linked to a RadioMaster transmitter, allowing power logs and flight settings to be reviewed while the aircraft remained airborne.

The data showed the drone consumed about 500 W during straight flight, compared with roughly 450 W while turning, prompting a mid-flight route change with more frequent turns.

Flying at approximately 5.5 metres per second, or around 20 km/h, the drone eventually returned after 4 hours, 21 minutes, and 39 seconds before hovering until almost every remaining watt had been consumed.

This feat shows that larger batteries alone may not determine endurance, as careful engineering, software refinement, and efficiency improvements also played important roles.

Via Luke Maximo Bell (YouTube)

A public preview of Muse Spark 1.1 is now available to developers.

Amazon raised $25 billion through a bond sale as AI infrastructure spending accelerates, highlighting the growing cost of competing in the AI race.

The post Amazon Raises $25 Billion in Bond Sale as AI Spending Accelerates appeared first on TechRepublic.

A Pixel 11 pricing leak suggests Google may drop 128GB storage and start all models at 256GB, potentially raising entry prices.

The post Google Pixel 11: Pricing Leak Reveals Bigger Storage, Higher Costs appeared first on TechRepublic.

• Apex Recordhunter drone unofficially set a new air speed record of 434 mph
• High-speed demonstrator will help develop next-gen military drones
• Company targets further records with interceptor drones soon

Germany’s Quantum Systems Group has broken the world airspeed record for an electric drone, hitting speeds of 699km/h (434mph) during internal testing on June 26, 2026.

Though the company is yet to carry out a formal, independently verified attempt at setting a record under the official measurement rules to be recognized by both Guinness World Records and Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI), the speed far exceeds that of the current record holder – 657.59km/h (409mph).

The latest, unverified record was set in straight and level flight, and would represent a 6.3% increase over the current record. Official testing is expected within the coming weeks, the company said in a press release.

Record-breaker is merely a technology demonstrator

Quantum Systems explained that the Apex Recordhunter drone was developed over the past year, but “serves as a technology demonstrator for next-generation high-speed systems” rather than being a commercially viable product. “Several innovations from the project are expected to support future interceptor drone programs,” the company added.

It is a battery-electric, fixed-wing aircraft developed by the firm’s N3XT advanced development team, benefiting from Porsche-subsidiary-supplied V4Smart battery cells.

Of course, the drone and its successors would not target consumer photographer and hobby markets, instead focusing on high-speed interceptors for modern warfare. Quantum Systems says lessons learned from Apex will directly influence future interceptor platforms for real-world defense scenarios.

“Super proud of the Quantum Systems team, showing our engineering ambition across our Group and reinforcing our commitment to developing world leading technologies,” co-CEO Florian Seibel wrote.

Engineers from Quantum’s Ukrainian WIY Drones division also contributed to the program – a noteworthy inclusion because Russia has increasingly deployed high-speed, jet-powered one-way attack drones. Deploying high-speed drones like the one Quantum Systems has developed could be much cheaper and more accessible than sending off expensive air-defense missiles.

Records continue to be broken as rapid development continues

By mid-July, the company also hopes to have set two other records. The first – the highest speed achieved by an FPV interceptor drone carrying a 500g payload – by its STRILA Interceptor. Second, its SPYS drone, gunning for the highest speed achieved by an anti-aircraft class FPV interceptor drone.

These achievements and potential records reflect an ongoing global race to develop faster military drones, but they also underscore the growing relevance of airborne, remote and autonomous weapons in modern warfare.

That said, other electric drones have technically achieved even higher speeds. Tom’s Hardware recently reported of a New Zealand duo who recorded high speeds of 730km/h (453mph) – that Blackbird drone uses sawtooth carbon fiber prop blades.

Despite lacking official recognition, the duo had previously set a record of 626km/h (388mph) in December 2025 with a separate drone, before quickly being overtaken by another record-holder which achieved a higher 659km/h (408mph). Regardless, an 11.7% increase from December’s first record to today’s unofficial record confirms there’s plenty of scope to continue pushing the boundary.

Here are hints and the answer for today's Wordle for July 10, No. 1,847.

Here are some hints and the answers for the NYT Connections puzzle for July 10, No. 1,125.

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle for July 10, No. 859.

The memo from the Smithsonian's secretary, Lonnie Bunch, responded to a White House report that calls the National Museum of American History driven by "a radical, activist ideology."

(Image credit: J. Scott Applewhite)

• The Mac mini has emerged as an affordable system for agentic workloads
• Apple has seen "incredible demand" for the Mac mini and Mac Studio
• Apple silicon can handle an agentic AI while other architectures use a GPU and CPU

If you’re looking for the best way to explore and deploy agentic AI without breaking the budget, the Mac mini might be just what you’re looking for.

Apple’s Doug Brooks has expressed enthusiasm for how the Mac mini and Mac Studio desktop computers are capable of handling agentic AI tasks, thanks to Apple silicon, the ARM-based SoC that the company has introduced over the past half decade.

Success with local AI on these machines has been attributed to design choices made before the arrival of advanced LLMs, with the evolution of Apple’s Neural Engine highlighted as a key factor.

How the Mac mini is ideal for agentic AI

The Mac Studio is also suited to agentic AI (Image credit: Future)

Brooks is the senior product manager of Apple silicon, and referred to the “incredible demand” for Mac minis and Mac Studios when speaking to The Deep View before WWDC 2026.

Describing the Mac mini as an “amazing system” that can “tap into the strengths of Apple silicon and unified memory in a very power-efficient way, and increasingly they're delivering compelling price-performance as well.”

The price point of a Mac mini – compared to the more expensive Mac Studio – makes it particularly suited to teams exploring agentic AI but without the budget to pay for tokens and larger systems.

Neural Engine technology dates back to the A11 chip, and its evolution and inclusion within the current generation of Apple chips, and its high-performance, power-efficient compute processes are pivotal in delivering machine learning to the desktop.

As many AI tools were available first on the Mac (or released exclusively for macOS), it seems that upgrading to the latest Mac mini or switching from Windows has been instrumental in demand.

Mac mini: amazing for AI

Apple’s work on AI has seen deployment in everyday use across computers, tablets, and smartphones, and the company has been a leading exponent of hybrid AI, where an agent can “decide what needs to happen locally and what needs to happen in the cloud based on the workload.”

“For agentic workloads, people often want a system that's under their control, isolated from their primary machine, and capable of running 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”

But it is the strength of the Apple Mac mini and Apple Studio – as well Apple’s notebooks – in handling AI that seems to have enthused Brooks the most. He cites security and economics as concerns for developers and creators who are now realising that they can handle AI workloads sitting at their desk – whether using a Mac mini or something more powerful.

Gas prices have fluctuated since the U.S. and Israel launched a war on Iran, which disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and left consumers unsure of what they'll pay at the pump.

(Image credit: Joe Raedle)

The Trump EPA calls Biden-era rules for cutting pollution from heavy trucks "unworkable." The proposed changes have been celebrated by trucking groups and denounced by environmental groups.

(Image credit: Brandon Bell)

I test a lot of espresso machines here at TechRadar — over a dozen a year — and so far 2026 has delivered a particularly impressive crop. Whether you're looking for your first ever coffee maker or are a seasoned pro hunting for the perfect premium brewer, there's an option for you.

There are so many new espresso machines, in fact, that you might be spoilt for choice, which is where I come in. To help make your decision easier, I've rounded up this collection of the three best machines we've tested this year. Each one has been through our rigorous review process, and received a score of at least four and a half stars out of five.

If you can't see something that quite suits your needs, take a look at our complete roundup of the best espresso machines you can buy today, and the best Nespresso machines if you prefer your morning brew in pod form.

Philips Café AromisFutureFutureFutureFutureFutureFutureFutureFuture

Release date: March 2026

Score: 5/5

This espresso machine (the Philips Café Aromis 8000 Series, to give it its full name) is a premium coffee maker that looks stunning, makes sublime coffee, and is fun to use as well. It has a menu of 50 drinks — hot and cold — and is astonishingly quiet in use too thanks to cleverly designed noise shielding.

Its milk system is particularly impressive, producing different textures to suit the type of drink you're making, and because the milk never enters the body of the machine itself, it's a piece of cake to keep clean. Just detach the carafe, disassemble it into its three hard plastic components, and wash them in the top drawer of your dishwasher. There are separate carafes for hot and cold milk, and they both work equally well with dairy or plant-based equivalents.

Espresso machines with Wi-Fi or Bluetooth connectivity are quite common, but after connecting your phone, usually all you get is a simple instruction manual. Not here. The Philips Home app is styled like an AI chatbot, and asks you a series of questions about your beans and taste preferences to help tailor the brew setting to your liking. It's certainly not cheap, but it's a superb espresso machine that earned a full five stars.

Read our full Philips Café Aromis review

Philips BaristinaFutureFutureFutureFutureFutureFutureFutureFuture

Release date: February 2026

Score: 5/5

Philips has been really nailing it when it comes to espresso machines this year. The Baristina is very different to the Café Aromis, but if you're new to the world of speciality coffee, or just want something reasonably affordable, it's the better choice.

This is the smallest and cheapest bean-to-cup coffee maker I've ever tested, and it's so easy to use, it's a great option for anyone thinking of making the switch from coffee capsules. Just load your beans in the top, fill the water tank, push in the empty portafilter handle, and slide it to the right. The Baristina will grind the perfect dose of coffee into the basket, tamp it down, then slide the whole handle to the left and pull the shot for you.

It's a piece of cake, and much easier to clean than a typical automatic espresso machine because there's no moisture or debris building up inside an enclosed case. The only drawback is that it can't steam milk (unless you pick up a bundle with the standalone milk frother), but Philips has just launched an updated version — the Baristina Latte — that solves that particular issue. I'm very much looking forward to testing it

Read our full Philips Baristina review

Meraki Espresso Machine Gen 2FutureFutureFutureFutureFutureFutureFutureFuture

Release date: March 2026

Score: 4.5/5

The Meraki Espresso Machine Gen 2 (available direct from Meraki in the US, and from Bella Barista in the UK) is the most stylish coffee maker we've tested so far this year, with its satin finish, chrome and wood accents, pivoting touchscreen display, and separate 'towers' for its twin boilers, water tank, and bean hopper. It's huge, but if you've got the space, it's worth every centimeter.

This is a manual espresso machine, but is packed with thoughtful features that make achieving a delicious brew that little bit easier. For example, there are built-in scales beneath the grinder and grouphead to help you grind exactly the right dose of beans, then weigh your extracted coffee and stop the pump at precisely the right time. There's a temperature sensor to help you avoid scalding your milk, and if you really want a helping hand, you can scan a code on a bag of Meraki's own coffee beans, and the machine will adjust its own settings accordingly.

The standout feature, though, is its dual boiler, which is something we rarely see in a home espresso machine. "Not only does it produce exceedingly well-extracted espresso over and over again, it easily froths a range of milks without losing pressure or cooling down," said our reviewer Josh Russell.

Read our full Meraki Espresso Machine Gen 2 review