A man paralyzed by a car accident nearly 40 years ago now has a brain implant with tiny electrodes that lets him control a robotic arm and actually *feel* what it touches—a breakthrough that surprised even him with its realism. Scientists are working hard to move this technology from experimental labs into hospitals where it could help millions of people who've lost the use of their limbs, and eventually it might even become available to the general public. Worth knowing: if you or someone close to you has experienced spinal cord injury or paralysis, clinical trials testing these brain implants are slowly becoming more available—ask your neurologist about whether you might be eligible, as these early participants are helping shape the future of treatment.
OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, has purchased a startup called Hiro that helps people manage their money and plan for the future. The move shows that ChatGPT will soon be able to give you personalized financial advice directly within the app, rather than you having to use separate financial tools or speak with an advisor.
Scammers working at a tech support company were tricking Americans by showing fake warning pop-ups, claiming their computers had viruses, and charging hundreds of dollars for fake repairs—pretending to be from Apple or Microsoft. This matters because these scams specifically target people who aren't as familiar with technology and may be more trusting when they see official-looking warnings on their screen. Worth knowing: if you see a pop-up warning about a virus, close your browser immediately and never call any number shown in the pop-up—instead, contact Apple or Microsoft directly using a phone number you find yourself online.
The FBI has shut down a major criminal operation that used fake websites to trick over 17,000 people into giving away their passwords and security codes. Criminals were using this scheme to break into people's email, banking, and social media accounts — the very tools you rely on to manage your finances and stay connected.
Worth knowing: if you ever receive an urgent-sounding email asking you to "verify" your password or sign in through a link, stop and contact the company directly using a phone number or website you know is real rather than clicking the email link.
Medicare is testing a new program called ACCESS that will pay technology companies and health providers a set fee to help treat chronic conditions like diabetes, heart problems, and depression using digital tools and apps. This experiment matters to you because it could expand which health technologies Medicare covers for seniors, potentially giving you easier access to mental health apps, wearable devices, and digital monitoring tools that might help manage your conditions. Worth knowing: if you have Medicare and your doctor recommends a digital health tool, ask whether it's part of this ACCESS program, as coverage rules are still being finalized.
Booking.com has confirmed that hackers got into their system and may have seen customers' personal information like names, email addresses, phone numbers, and home addresses. If you've used Booking.com to reserve hotels or flights, your details could have been caught up in this breach, so it's worth keeping an eye on your email and phone for any suspicious activity—scammers sometimes use stolen information to target people directly.
Google has packed its AI assistant Gemini into nearly all its apps—Gmail, Sheets, Chrome and others—and if you find it distracting rather than helpful, you can turn it off through your settings. Removing Gemini involves disabling "smart features" in two places: first in Gmail's general settings, and then in your Workspace account settings, though be aware this will also remove some helpful older features like spelling checks and email priority sorting. Worth knowing: you'll need to use Gmail's web version on a computer to make these changes, and if you're in Europe or certain other regions, these features are already turned off by default.
Scammers are still calling older adults with fake medical alert service offers, using automated bots and offshore call centers that can't even pronounce the company names they're supposedly representing. The good news is that legitimate fall-detection options have improved dramatically—the Apple Watch and other modern smartwatches now offer reliable monitoring features that many older adults already own, making expensive traditional "life alert" services less necessary. You can protect yourself by screening unknown calls on your cellphone using the "silence unknown callers" feature, and if you do get one of these calls, simply hang up rather than engaging with the scammer.
Stanford University's latest AI report card shows that despite all the hype and doubts, artificial intelligence is genuinely advancing faster than previous breakthroughs like the internet, while companies are racing to build it and governments are struggling to keep up with rules and safety concerns. The US and China are now nearly tied in the competition to build the most powerful AI systems, and the whole enterprise is already consuming enormous amounts of electricity and water—enough power to run New York State and enough water to supply 12 million people just for one company's AI system. Worth knowing: this rapid expansion means AI tools will keep changing what's available to you, but the environmental and resource costs are real concerns worth paying attention to in news stories about the technology.
Different AI systems are designed with distinct "personalities" — some are calm and helpful, others are playful or irreverent — and these aren't accidents but deliberate choices made by their creators through training and instructions. What matters is that these artificial personalities can feel surprisingly human-like and emotionally responsive, which makes you more likely to trust them, rely on them, or form habits around using them without realizing how much their "tone" is influencing your decisions. Worth knowing: when you chat with an AI, notice whether it's being unusually agreeable or flattering — that style was intentionally programmed in, so take its recommendations with the same healthy skepticism you'd use with a salesman.
Hackers got into Booking.com's system and accessed some customers' names, contact information, and reservation details, though the company hasn't said exactly how many people were affected. If you've booked hotels or other accommodations through Booking.com, you should watch your email and phone for any suspicious messages, and consider changing your password on that site if you haven't done so recently.
Millions of people are now turning to ChatGPT and similar AI tools when they have health questions—sometimes about serious symptoms they'd normally discuss with a doctor—so hospitals are building their own chatbots to keep those conversations within their medical systems. These hospital chatbots can access your personal medical records and guide you toward care within their own network, which gives doctors better information about your health and keeps your conversations where your medical history lives.
Worth knowing: If your hospital offers a patient chatbot, it's worth trying for routine questions, but remember it's not a substitute for calling your doctor about urgent symptoms or concerns that worry you.
