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"Kamala loves a Venn diagram, right? So in one circle, you've got Swifties, who love Taylor, and in the other circle, you've got people who love Kamala. In the middle, you have us — you have these people who support Taylor and support Kamala," Lexa Hayes, the friendship bracelet coordinator of the new organizing group Swifties for Kamala, tells Mashable.
SEE ALSO: Is it 'Kamala' or 'Harris'? The answer is complicated.Hayes is one of many Taylor Swift fans who have joined Swifties for Kamala, a coalition of fans campaigning for presidential hopeful and current Vice President Kamala Harris that operates independently of Swift herself, who still has not offered an endorsement of either candidate in the upcoming election. Born out of a tweet, the organization takes advantage of Swift fans' pre-existing passion and online savvy and aims to use it to turn the presidential election blue.
Tweet may have been deletedAlways interested in politics, Hayes never knew how to get involved, but Swifties for Kamala gave her an accessible, unintimidating introduction to the space. "It's talented people that I already know and am comfortable with," she said of the group.
Behind the constant Swift lyrical references, glittering 47s on their hands, and friendship bracelets is a legitimate organization helmed by Swifties with professional experience working on campaigns. April Glick Pulito, the coalition's political director, worked on the 2020 presidential election for the Wisconsin State Democratic party and on the Georgia Senate race runoff in 2022. The group's campaign manager, Annie Wu Henry, is a digital and political strategist who was instrumental in Senator John Fetterman's TikTok campaign strategy.
The Democratic Party immediately embraced Swifties for Kamala. The group's Aug. 27 Zoom rally featured speakers like Senator Elizabeth Warren and Senator Ed Markey, as well as recording artist Carole King and members of the House of Representatives. Indivisible, the organization that led the run-of-show, back-end, and registration for other affinity groups for Harris, like White Women Answer the Call, AAPI Communities for Harris, and Female Lawyers for Harris, similarly supported Swifties for Kamala.
Leah Greenberg, the co-executive director of Indivisible, thinks Swifties for Kamala has a ton of potential — organic potential that doesn't come from outside organizations.
"We've been seeing this big surge of different affinity groups, interest groups, and communities coming together to support Vice President Harris, and we've been trying to be supportive wherever we can," Greenberg told Mashable.
SEE ALSO: 'Kamala is a relaxing thought': Swifties for Kamala raise $100,000 for the Harris campaignThe Swifties for Kamala Zoom rally saw an estimated 27,000 participants and raised over $100,000 for the Harris campaign. Those are not insignificant numbers, but when compared to affinity groups politicians already appeal to, like Win With Black Women, Win With Black Men, White Women Answer the Call, and White Dudes for Kamala, which raised $1.5 million, $1.3 million, $2 million, and $4.2 million, respectively, Swifties for Kamala only made a fraction of the impact.
Fandom as an affinity groupSwifties for Kamala is similar to other Zoom coalition calls in that they bring together large, diverse groups of people with different lived experiences and issues they're voting around, coming together not necessarily over policy but for an individual candidate.
However, while other coalitions like White Women Answer the Call and White Dudes for Kamala organized in response to their demographic's role in and history of electing conservative and racist leaders, Swifties don't have as clear a lineage in the nation's voting history. Some Swifties say they have organized in defiance of groups of men on the right who belittle them. For others, it's a callback to their idol's past political stance.
For example, a rallying point among Swifties for Kamala is a tweet from the Republican Governor of Arkansas Mike Huckabee. After Swift broke her political silence and came out against Republican Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn in 2018, Huckabee wrote, "So @taylorswift13 has every right to be political but it won't impact election unless we allow 13 yr old girls to vote. Still with #MarshaBlackburn."
After the Zoom rally, the Swifties for Kamala account quote-tweeted Huckabee, writing, "Guess who's old enough to vote now." It received 90,000 likes. Another fan quote tweeted it with, "This aged like milk because those 13 year old girls in 2018 can vote in this election. We smile and smile." The post garnered 14,000 likes. But "Swiftie" isn't a political stance.
Tweet may have been deletedWhen asked about conservative Swifties, Glick Pulito alluded to their idol's few outspoken moments, saying, "Once you get deep enough into this fandom and have watched Miss Americana…" — a reference to Swift's 2020 documentary, implying that conservative fans aren't true fans. Swift's decision to talk about politics was a major focus of the film. It shows her, her father, and her team heatedly discussing her choice to come out in favor of Tennessee U.S. Senate candidate Bredesen. On the verge of tears, she expresses regret over not using her voice against Trump in 2016. "I can't change that...I need to be on the right side of history," she said in the documentary.
The conversation resulted in her first political endorsement, in which she called on fans to support Bredesen in 2018 and called his opponent, Blackburn, "Trump in a wig." In 2020, a month before the presidential election, she endorsed President Joe Biden and Vice President Harris in a V Magazine article. She also posted a photo of herself holding Biden-Harris 2020 campaign cookies to social media.
For fans, her outspokenness was consistent with the larger messaging of her Lover era. The album featured the pro-LGBTQ rainbow anthem "You Need to Calm Down," and her go at a feminist takedown of the male-dominated system, "The Man."
In the years since she's uploaded several Instagram posts about Black Lives Matter, tweeted about her terror after the overturning of Roe v. Wade, and encouraged her followers to vote, resulting in 35,000 new voter registrations.
"There are so many Swifties for Kamala because there's a real inclusiveness [to Swift's music]. Like all of Lover," continued Glick Pulito. "Her art does not lend itself to putting people down or moving backward. Loving this artist who strives to continue to make the world better, who strives to create good art, and who strives to constantly show up for her fans and herself and her family and her community — I'm not surprised that so many Swifties are committed to building a better future."
Swifties for Kamala define their eight policy stances as "equality, freedom, and safety," with nods to common sense gun reform, reproductive freedom, and a "permanent ceasefire between Israel and Hamas." Post Lover and Miss Americana, Swift's image aligned fairly well with these vague policy areas.
The tension between Swifties for Kamala and Taylor SwiftHowever, in the past couple of years, Swift, with her chart-topping albums, re-recordings, and The Eras Tour, has reached unprecedented levels of stardom, giving her unprecedented reach to millions. But she has yet to endorse Vice President Harris, a major reckoning point among Swifties for Kamala.
Swifties for Kamala organizes over a personal identity marker, liking Swift, with no inherent political attachments. They are also organizing around Swift, someone who can attach herself to policies and people outside of Swifties for Kamala's goals, further complicating their group. Unlike other interest-based affinity groups, like the public transit-oriented Train Lovers for Kamala, there's no apparent policy the group can immediately agree on, and Swift's recent public actions don't necessarily align with Harris' campaign.
For example, last October, Swift officially reached billionaire status and came under fire for her use of a private jet and its environmental impact. Meanwhile, Swifties for Kamala lists "climate change is taken seriously" as one of their eight policies. In a recent public outing, Swift was photographed hugging Trump supporter Brittany Mahomes at the U.S. Open, much to the disappointment of many of her fans.
"What would they need to get our vote? They don't need to have a favorite Taylor Swift song, but it certainly helps,"Swift's lifestyle appears increasingly inconsistent with the political change one might expect a digitally active fan to want. But, as Henry reminded Mashable, "Swifties are not a monolith."
The diversity among fans calls into question the effectiveness of Swifties as a voting coalition, though. None of the organizers had specific ideas when pressed on how a politician might "court" the Swiftie vote as part of their own campaigns. They spoke in vague terms, as believers in Vice President Harris first and foremost. Not even the dissolution of monopolies, which could be used to rally the troops as it was a central rallying point for Swifties due to Ticketmaster's fumbling of selling Eras Tour tickets, was brought up as a core tenant of Swiftie beliefs. Politicians in support of the group were more specific. Senator Warren brought up taking on corporations like Ticketmaster during the Zoom rally, and Senator Markey referenced the climate crisis.
SEE ALSO: Meet the Swifties trying to take down Ticketmaster"What would they need to get our vote? They don't need to have a favorite Taylor Swift song, but it certainly helps," joked Glick Pulito.
Across their social media presence, on their website, and at the Zoom rally, Swifties for Kamala repeats, "Not affiliated with Taylor Swift," but she's still their bonding force and inspiration.
"We're not waiting for any one person anywhere to call people to action," explained Henry. "So much of what the Swiftie community does happened organically and not because they were told you should be doing this thing."
Hayes pointed to Swift's aptly-titled third album Speak Now as a point of inspiration. "[Swift] is this force in our lives that gives us confidence to be the people that we want to be and to fight for the change we want in the world. It's not about getting her attention, but the community that we built and using that force for good," she said.
Is fandom the future of campaigning?Despite the political tension between Swift and her fans, the organization is still a glimpse into the potential future of fandom and politics. "One of the things that keeps [organizers] going is being in community with each other," Greenberg said of her work at Indivisible. "It's only natural that a group of people — who are brought together by their passion for and excitement around Taylor Swift — are also sustaining their political work and weaving their political work together with their excitement and passion, as members of an incredibly engaged fan community."
SEE ALSO: How fandom is shaping the 2024 presidential electionSimilarly, Henry told Mashable, "It's potentially a blueprint for how we can mobilize and invest in other digital communities just as we do in geographical areas. We should be reaching out to online spaces because, for better or worse, people are more online and dependent on online spaces."
For now, the group hopes to be present at Swift's remaining U.S. tour dates in Florida, Louisiana, and Indiana before the election. Many of those are after the voter registration deadlines, so until then, Swifties for Kamala plans to focus on encouraging people to vote. "We want to remind people that every vote counts, especially since she has an upcoming date in Florida," said Hayes.
The friendship bracelet coordinator is also set to launch her brainchild in the coming weeks, an effort known as the "You're Not Alone, Kid Campaign." Hayes says, "It's basically a motivation campaign to remind people to get to the polls and to not let motivation wane."
Tweet may have been deletedHayes hopes to get volunteers in every state to make bracelets and place them around public spaces in the community. Each bracelet will have a QR code that directs the scanner to the Swifties for Kamala website, where voter information is available. On Oct. 13, the group plans to launch the campaign to the public by posting photos of the hidden bracelets to its social media accounts. It will track where the bracelets are found.
"Getting a beer with a political candidate is a little outdated," Glick Pulito said. Now, it's about memes. It's about viral posts. It's about harnessing the power of the internet, as Swifities for Kamala does so well. "It makes [politics] more accessible, and the more accessible you make it, the more people are gonna engage with it."
Like it or not, fandoms are a central part of digital natives' lives. Swifties for Kamala are harnessing that power for the election—friendship bracelets and all. It doesn't matter who Swift endorses; look what she already made them do.
GET A FREE POWER TOOL WITH PURCHASE: As of Jan. 28, The Home Depot is offering free power tools of up to $219 in value with the purchase of select tool combo kits. Shop brands like Milwaukee, Ryobi, and Dewalt to take advantage of the deal and get a free tool — like a brushless jigsaw or a brushless planar tool — with your purchase.
Opens in a new window Credit: The Home Depot / Ryobi / Milwaukee / Dewalt / Makita The Home Depot Power Tool and Battery Deals Get a free tool when you purchase a power tool or battery combo pack. Shop NowWhether you're a DIY-dad, forever fixing up your home, or a contractor out on the job each day, tools and battery packs are crucial to getting the job finished. If you need to re-up on your work kit, it's a great time to buy.
As of Jan. 28, the Home Depot is currently offering free power tools of up to $219 in value with combo deals from brands like Milwaukee, Dewalt, Ryobi, and Makita. To take advantage of this deal, shop from select combo deals, then click the 'Free' box next to your product — you'll find it on the right of the page. Once you do, you'll be able to scroll through a selection of free tools that are available with your purchase and add the tool to your cart.
SEE ALSO: Get $60 off the Apple Watch Ultra 2 in Best Buy's 48-hour flash saleEach brand offers an array of free tool types. We saw the biggest value from Dewalt, which included freebies up to $219 in value, including a brushless jigsaw and brushless planar tool. On the other hand, Ryobi offered the lowest overhead price to take advantage of the deal, with a $99 battery pack bundle that gets you a free tool with up to $79 of value.
Whether you're looking for new batteries to keep your drills running, or you need a variety of new tools that will open up new sources of work, this Home Depot tool sale offers a great opportunity to maximize your tool purchasing power.
SAVE $119.01: As of Jan. 28, get the Bose Ultra Open Earbuds for just $179.99. That's 43% off and the lowest price we've seen.
Opens in a new window Credit: Woot Bose Ultra Open Earbuds $179.99 at WootReady to upgrade your current pair of earbuds? Or maybe you don't have a pair and want to snag some for a great deal. Whatever the case may be, if you're in the market, you can't go wrong with earbuds from Bose. And thanks to a deal that's going on today from Woot, you can score an affordable model that you'll want to use everywhere from the gym to relaxing in bed at night.
As of Jan. 28, the Bose Ultra Open Earbuds are $179.99 at Woot, down from their usual price of $299. That's a discount of 43% and the lowest price we've seen.
The Bose Ultra Open Earbuds are a little different than some of the others on the market. They rest on the outside of your ears instead of giving you a perfect seal. That lets them direct sound toward your inner ear so you can still enjoy music and podcasts without blocking out all the sounds you need to hear.
This design makes the Ultra Open Earbuds excellent for working out, running, or taking a walk — they're perfect for activity. They're also water-resistant in the event you sweat or take a short dip in the pool (but don't dunk your head under the water). All this, and they still sound excellent. They might take a little getting used to, but they're very much worth it, especially at this price.
SHOP E-BOOKS AT BOOKSHOP.ORG: Bookshop.org launched its e-book store, and every purchase supports local, independent bookstores.
Shop ebooks on Bookshop.org 'Onyx Storm' by Rebecca Yarros $14.99 at Bookshop.org Shop Now 'We Do Not Part' by Han Kang $13.99 at Bookshop.org Shop Now 'Intermezzo' by Sally Rooney $14.99 at Bookshop.org Shop NowLaunched in 2020, Bookshop.org's mission has always been supporting local bookstores. Every purchase directly supports the local bookstore of your choice (even if you're across the country from your favorite hometown shop) while still allowing you the freedom to shop online. Today, the platform has a new way for you to shop local online — as of Jan. 28, Bookshop.org has launched its e-book platform, empowering independent bookstores to sell digital copies.
If you've been looking for a Kindle Store alternative, Bookshop.org is offering you just that. Now you can buy e-books on Bookshop.org's digital platform to read on your smartphone or tablet. You can purchase e-books directly from the Bookshop.org or the Bookshop.org e-book app and read them on the app or directly on your web browser (not on Kindle).
SEE ALSO: 1,000 romance books are available for free in the latest Stuff Your Kindle DayBookshop.org's e-book platform is now live. You can purchase new releases like the much anticipated Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros or bestsellers like Intermezzo by Sally Rooney. There's also a selection of $3 e-books. Make sure you select a bookstore of your choice to support; otherwise, your purchase profits will go toward a split pool for all bookstore participants.
SAVE $13.98: The 40-ounce Hydro Flask Travel Tumbler in pink Valentine's Day shades like Zinnia, Camilla, and Bayberry Ombre are on sale at Amazon for just $25.97, down from the normal price of $39.95. That's a 35% discount.
Opens in a new window Credit: Hydro Flask Hydro Flask Travel Tumbler (40-ounce, select colorways) $25.97 at AmazonWe're about two weeks away from Valentine's Day on Feb. 14 which means it's time to start shopping. To avoid any stress of shipping delays or missed package delivery, we're in an ideal week to snag all those pretty pink gifts, for all of the Valentine's in your life. If your partner, mom, sister, or best friend could use some hydration motivation, check out this great gifting option at Amazon that's on a stellar discount.
As of Jan. 28, the 40-ounce Hydro Flask Travel Tumbler in fun Valentine's Day colorways like Zinnia, Camilla, and Bayberry Ombre are on sale at Amazon for only $25.97, marked down from the standard price of $39.95. That's a 35% discount that'll save you $13.98 on the stainless steel bottle.
Hydration is one of life's simple success hacks. It's oh so simple to drink water, but it's also impossible to stay hydrated. Somehow, almost all of us tend to forget that we need water (and plenty of it) to thrive. If your Valentine tends to always be parched, gifting a stylish Hydro Flask is a thoughtful present.
SEE ALSO: Lego just dropped a Twilight-inspired build that'll arrive in time for Valentine's DayToday's deal extends to colorways that are sure to satisfy the pink-themed holiday. And we love the large, 40-ounce capacity.
The Hyrdro Flask comes with an ergonomically-designed handle and a leak-resistant lid with flexible straw. It's also safe to clean in the dishwasher. Plus, the double-wall vacuum insulation means your chilled drinks will stay cold longer.
If you've been browsing for a thoughtful Valentine's Day gift that your sweetheart will use everyday, the Hydro Flash Travel Tumbler is perfect. And thanks to the sale price at Amazon, you'll be saving 35% off the normal price. A sweet deal for everyone involved.
U.S. tech companies are known to stockpile as much user data as they can, but DeepSeek's privacy policy makes Meta, Google, and OpenAI look tame.
Over the past few days, China-based AI startup DeepSeek has catapulted into tech consciousness with an open-source model that many claim is just as good, if not better, than OpenAI models and API costs for a fraction of the price. DeepSeek R1 might be significantly cheaper to run, but your privacy and security are the actual cost.
Looking through the fine print of DeepSeek's Privacy Policy, numerous red flags worth examining before you sign up.
SEE ALSO: DeepSeek AI: What you need to know about the ChatGPT rival DeepSeek's collected data is subject to local Chinese laws"The personal information we collect from you may be stored on a server located outside of the country where you live. We store the information we collect in secure servers located in the People's Republic of China," the privacy policy reads.
In another section about how DeepSeek shares user data, the company states that it may share user information to "comply with applicable law, legal process, or government requests."
Tweet may have been deletedAs with the ongoing TikTok ban — initially enacted due to concerns about privacy, national security, surveillance, and propaganda — DeepSeek's privacy policy raises concerns about a U.S. foreign adversary's ability to access U.S. user data. Users are familiar with the massive amounts of data U.S. tech companies collect, but China's cybersecurity laws make it much easier for the government to demand data from its tech companies. Additionally, DeepSeek users have reported instances of censorship, when it comes to criticizing the Chinese government or asking about Tiananmen Square.
DeepSeek collects extensive data, including keystrokesNot only does DeepSeek collect "text or audio input, prompt, uploaded files, feedback, chat history, or other content that [the user] provide[s] to our model and Services," but it also collects information from your device, including "device model, operating system, keystroke patterns or rhythms, IP address, and system language."
Tweet may have been deletedCompanies with AI models like Google, Meta, and OpenAI collect similar troves of information, but their privacy policies do not mention collecting keystrokes. There's also the added issue that DeepSeek sends your user data straight to Chinese servers.
Tweet may have been deleted DeepSeek retains user information for as long as they wantDeepSeek's privacy policy states that the company retains user information "for as long as necessary to provide our Services and for the other purposes set out in this Privacy Policy."
For context, Google Gemini could can retain your data for up to three years, so, not great. OpenAI saves your deleted data for 30 days or 90 days for Operator. However, Meta also has an indefinite data retention period in the U.S.
If knowing that Meta saves your data indefinitely makes you uneasy, DeepSeek's policy is even more of a cybersecurity red flag because of China's governmental authority over its private sector. An undefined retention period exposes user data to even more risk to security breaches.
Other DeepSeek privacy and security questions left unansweredIn DeepSeek's privacy policy, there's no mention of the security of its servers. There's nothing about whether data is encrypted, either stored or in transmission, and zero information about safeguards to prevent unauthorized access.
DeepSeek also doesn't say whether users can opt out of sharing their data to train its models. Although Google and Meta have this in common with the LLM, which is to say it's not completely unfounded, it's always worth mentioning: Whatever you share with the chatbot, you share with the internet — and maybe the Chinese government in this instance.
Mashable has reached out to DeepSeek for further clarification about its policies and will update this story with a response.
Visible from space, the world’s largest iceberg is headed towards a remote Antarctic island, threatening local animals.
A23a, the trillion-ton megaberg, which is 40 meters tall, twice as broad as London, and viewable through satellites, could either collide with the island of South Georgia, or get trapped in ocean currents revolving around it. Past iceberg collisions on the island, which is home to King penguins and about half of the world’s population of Southern elephant seals, have led to mass animal deaths due to starvation.
A23a first broke off from Antarctica’s Filchner Ice Shelf in 1986, when it measured around 3,900 square kilometers, and some of its sides extended up to 400 meters tall. The warming of waters near Antarctica have been shrinking it slowly, and scientists expect it to eventually break into multiple vast pieces.
SAVE $100: As of Jan. 28, the Apple iPad Mini (A17 Pro, 128GB, WiFi) is on sale for $399 at Amazon. That's 20% off its list price of $499.
Opens in a new window Credit: Apple Apple iPad Mini (A17 Pro) $399.00 at AmazonIt doesn't need to be a big sale event for an exciting deal to drop. There have been quite a few deals appearing at numerous retailers that have been well worth jumping on after the holidays, and this discount on an Apple iPad Mini is no different.
The Apple iPad Mini (A17 Pro, 128GB, WiFi) has dropped to $399 at Amazon. This is $100 off its list price of $499 and marks a return to its lowest-ever price, according to price tracker camelcamelcamel. If you've had your eye on this tablet and have been waiting for the best time to grab it, now's a great time to do so.
SEE ALSO: Rate your favorite smart home gear for a chance to win a $250 Amazon gift cardAlongside its portable design, this tablet boasts a Liquid Retina display that makes images pop on its 8.3-inch screen and the new A17 Pro chip for powerful performance. In our review, Mashable's Stan Schroeder says, "If you're new to the iPad, and you want the most compact one around (or any compact tablet), the new iPad mini 7 is the best choice."
This deal likely won't stick around for long, so don't miss out on the Apple iPad Mini (A17 Pro, 128GB, WiFi) back at its lowest-ever price at Amazon.
If you're curious to see even more Apple deals that are available right now, have a look at this discount on the Apple Watch Ultra 2 in Best Buy's 48-hour flash sale. Outside of that flash sale, you can also save on an Apple Watch Series 10 right now at Best Buy.
Move over ChatGPT, there's a new contender to the throne. Chinese startup DeepSeek AI blasted its way to the top of Apple's App Store this week, hammering U.S. tech stocks in the process — and reacting to the news on The Daily Show, Jon Stewart was shocked and appalled.
"I was promised a new era of American prosperity and greatness!" says the host in the clip above. "DeepSeek? DeepSeek? We're getting our asses kicked by DeepSeek? Who names an AI company after the thing it actually does? Where are your random letters? Where's your GPT, your Grok? DeepSeek sounds like what you might use it for — China's even beating us at naming shit."
Luckily, Stewart is able to find some light at the end of the tunnel. "I do know this is bad news financially, but is anyone else somewhat excited that AI had its job replaced by AI?"
If you're interested in why DeepSeek is getting so much attention, here's what it does better than OpenAI's ChatGPT.
SAVE $1,000: As of Jan. 28, Samsung's 83-inch S85D OLED 4K Smart TV is on sale for $2,499.99 at Best Buy. This is $1,000 off its list price of $3,499.99.
Opens in a new window Credit: Samsung Samsung 83-Inch Class S85D Series OLED 4K Smart Tizen TV (2024) $2,499.99 at Best BuyIf you've been on the hunt for a bigger TV, Best Buy's a great place to look right now. The retailer has some excellent deals on a wide range of TVs, including some gigantic options. The 83-inch Samsung S85D OLED 4K Smart Tizen TV is one of these picks on sale right now with a massive discount of $1,000 on list price.
This has dropped the price tag of this TV from $3,499.99 to $2,499.99, which is a deal that's well worth taking advantage of. Not to mention, it also comes with a one month Xbox Game Pass Ultimate membership, so gamers can jump into the Game Pass library right after getting the TV set up.
SEE ALSO: Rate your favorite smart home gear for a chance to win a $250 Amazon gift cardAlongside its massive size, which makes this TV an excellent pick for movie nights, its 4K OLED display offers a crisp, vibrant picture that brings every detail to life no matter what you're watching. It also has built-in Dolby Atmos that's a treat for your ears, immersing you in the sounds of your favorite shows and films. And speaking of shows and films, it's also a smart TV, so your favorite streaming apps are just a click away.
Don't miss out on $1,000 off the 83-inch Samsung S85D OLED 4K Smart Tizen TV at Best Buy.
If you want to see some more TVs on sale right now, Best Buy's also offering discounts on the similarly huge 100-inch Hisense U76 Series 4K QLED TV and the 75-inch Samsung DU6950 4K Smart TV. Outside of Best Buy, Amazon also has a very nice deal on the Hisense U8 Series 85-inch 4K Smart TV that's worth checking out.
Chinese AI startup DeepSeek has captured the tech world's attention in a way we haven't seen since ChatGPT and now, Donald Trump's got something to say about it, too.
"The release of DeepSeek, AI from a Chinese company should be a wake-up call for our industries that we need to be laser-focused on competing to win," said the president, addressing House Republicans in Miami on Monday.
The comments come after a red day in the U.S. stock market, in which Nvidia shed more than $500 billion in market cap on fears that DeepSeek's optimized approach to AI will reduced demand for Nvidia hardware.
DeepSeek R1 is the latest LLM from Chinese AI company DeepSeek. It wins over competitors, including OpenAI's most powerful models, in benchmarks, while requiring less computing power for training. It's cheaper to use than OpenAI's models, and it's open-source, making it easy for any tech company to use, repurpose, and modify as they see feet. Read our detailed overview of DeepSeek R1 on Mashable.
SEE ALSO: DeepSeek could dethrone OpenAI's ChatGPT. Here's whyWhile there are still a lot of unknowns about DeepSeek R1 and the company that built it, numerous U.S. tech leaders praised its efficiency and the fact that it's open-source. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Microsoft's Satya Nadella called DeepSeek R1 "super impressive," while investor Marc Andreessen called DeepSeek "one of the most amazing and impressive breakthroughs" he'd ever seen.
UPDATE: Jan. 28, 2025, 3:02 p.m. CET OpenAI CEO Sam Altman also chimed in with his opinion on DeepSeek early on Tuesday. "deepseek's r1 is an impressive model, particularly around what they're able to deliver for the price. we will obviously deliver much better models and also it's legit invigorating to have a new competitor! we will pull up some releases," he wrote on X.
The impact that DeepSeek had on the U.S. stock market immediately raised question on how the Trump administration will handle the news, including the possibility of outright banning it in the U.S.
Tweet may have been deletedSo far, however, it appears that Trump is seeing it as healthy competition rather than a threat to U.S. companies.
The Super Bowl LIX matchup is set and it's one that should feel familiar: The Kansas City Chiefs will face-off with the Philadelphia Eagles. It's a rematch of the Super Bowl from two years ago.
The Chiefs won that first matchup, 38-35, and this go-round they'll be looking to win their third Super Bowl in a row — a feat accomplished by no other NFL team. The Eagles, of course, will be looking for redemption.
We've got all the details ahead of the big game.
When to watchSure, you might be excited for the game — but you're going to have to wait a while to watch it. The Super Bowl is scheduled for Sunday, Feb. 9 in New Orleans. It's set to kick off at 6:30 p.m. ET. Once it gets going, a typical broadcast of the big game lasts somewhere around four hours.
What about the halftime show?It is a very highly anticipated halftime show this year, to say the last. Kendrick Lamar is slated to perform, fresh off a yearlong beef with Drake. It's already confirmed that SZA will perform alongside Lamar and it has been rumored that others could show up as well.
Tweet may have been deletedTypically speaking, the halftime show will begin about 90 minutes after kickoff — but that is far from guaranteed. Football games don't last a uniform amount of time.
Do we know the best Super Bowl commercials yet?We don't know every commercial that'll air during the big game, but a number of commercials have debuted or been teased already.
Budweiser has dropped its usual clydesdale commercial.
Uber Eats has teased an ad with Martha Stewart and Charli XCX.
Stella Artois has teased an ad with David Beckham.
Adam Brody has been part of a teaser for Pringles.
And a couple of personal favorites, Detroiters Tim Robinson and Sam Richardson, are slated to appear in a Totino's ad.
There will obviously be developments and news to come — but for now all we can do is wait for the game.
In If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You, Rose Byrne’s face becomes the close-up canvas for a wildly unsettling comedy-drama. Written and directed by Mary Bronstein — her first feature in 17 years following Yeast— the film follows Byrne as Linda, a mother hanging on by a thread during what appears to be a prolonged nervous spiral. Mirroring her experience, it’s a deeply anxiety-inducing work, whose high-strung energy is owed to a daring audio-visual approach that ought not to be sustainable, but ends up hair-raising and hilarious in the long run. The result, in a word, is excellent.
Through their deft command of drama, Byrne and Bronstein make a formidable pair, as they present the slow demolition of one the most alluringly unpleasant protagonists in modern cinema (alongside Marianne Jean-Baptiste's Pansy in Mike Leigh’s recent Hard Truths).
SEE ALSO: 2025 movie preview: All the films you'll want to know aboutThe film is as illuminating as it is upsetting, presenting new cinematic dimensions to facets of motherhood rarely touched upon in Hollywood (prior to Nightbitch last year, the most prominent example was arguably Tully back in 2018). At a glance, If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You is Uncut Gems for postpartum depression (it was notably produced by Josh Safdie and longtime Safdie brothers writer/editor Ronald Bronstein). However, its narrative and aesthetic language is entirely its own, from its occasional hypnotic flourishes, to its distressing psychological portrait of a mother on the verge of a nervous breakdown, told almost entirely in close up.
What is If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You about?You can trace the film’s fantastic dramatic setup across its first four scenes — three of which are therapy sessions of different kinds. Normally, it isn’t worth breaking down a festival release so numerically, but If I Had Legs is so dramatically fine-tuned that each moment feels like an escalation. It begins on a tight close-up of Byrne’s Linda, and stays there for longer than is comfortable. In fact, it gets increasingly claustrophobic, as an off-screen doctor (Bronstein herself) discusses Linda’s care options for her preschool-aged daughter (Delaney Quinn), who eats partially through a feeding tube in her stomach, which Linda insists is unnecessary.
Right from the word go, Linda’s judgement as a mother is in question. However, it’s hard to keep casting aspersions on the character (or at least, to keep them at the forefront of one’s mind) when Byrne delivers such a captivatingly troubled, melancholy, exhausted performance — and from which Bronstein refuses to avert the camera's gaze. However, when Linda leaves the appointment — a moment that might usually portend a calming interlude — the camera remains fixed on her at an uncomfortable proximity, as her daughter remains beyond the frame, asking repetitive questions, as children do. When they arrive home, there's still no peace for Linda, with her ongoing domestic cacophony crowned with the chaotic collapse of her bedroom ceiling, forcing her to relocate everyone to a cheap motel.
Featured Video For You Amy Adams on how she transformed into a dog in 'Nightbitch'Linda's second session, held with her amusingly stone-faced therapist (Conan O’Brien) the next day, clues us into some of her self-destructive tendencies. However, her third and most surprising session is the most revealing. She walks right out of her therapist's office and down the hall to her own; she's also a therapist, setting up cycles of advice and therapy-speak that she either gives, or is given, but never adheres to herself. She has the right language, and the right emotional tools in theory, to thrive, but between a traveling husband who berates her over the phone, a doctor who thinks she’s a bad mother, and a daughter who she loves but who needs constant care, she doesn’t have a moment to implement these changes or methods for self-care.
This desperation is something Bronstein deftly aestheticizes, in ways that feel both prolonged and hyper-active, making Linda’s anguish downright difficult to watch. The movie confronts a woman’s unspoken uncertainties of motherhood in ways that are sometimes repulsive, but deftly-navigated, with tremendous empathy for the movie’s irascible subject.
If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You is an audio-visual gut punchIn a strange but considered flourish, we almost never see Linda’s daughter throughout the film, even though she exists off-screen. Anyone who enters Linda’s orbit onscreen becomes the immediate object of her ire and fed-up tirades: her doctor, her therapist, a nagging hospital parking attendant, and even the motel's kindly superintendent James (a rare screen role for A$AP Rocky). Some of Linda's rants are even laced with subtle racial animus; this is hardly an angel to whom Bronstein is trying to endear us.
By not seeing her young daughter quite as completely as these other characters (even the ones she despises), and by speaking to her dismissively, Linda creates a coping mechanism of sorts — a disconnected, passive façade that prevents her from placing her vulnerable child in the same category as these other irritants. She enacts motherhood — as the fulfilment of a social contract — on autopilot, conversing with her kid with the same repetitiveness with which she changes her mechanical feeding bag overnight (a process accompanied by drone-like beeping that weighs Linda down).
It's hard to shake the sense that not fully engaging with motherhood might not just be a need for Linda, or a survival mechanism, but a secret want she represses. In society’s eyes, the worst thing a mother can do is fail at the Sisyphean trials of parenthood. Perhaps this is something Linda has internalized. It certainly goes hand-in-hand with the guilt she does fully express, over her child’s physical condition and sickness, which only adds to her reasons for not meeting her daughter’s gaze.
SEE ALSO: How 6 generations of iPhone captured 20 years of motherhood in 'Motherboard'However, actually observing other people around her doesn’t mean Linda fully connects with them either. At one point, when she picks up a baby that isn’t hers, the infant’s close up is accompanied by shrill and piercing sound design (by Filipe Messeder) that lasts an eternity. Everyone is, to some degree, an annoying abstraction to her, whether by intent, or by the mere happenstance of her state of mind. This also applies to one of her unstable patients, Caroline (Danielle Macdonald), a new mother who seems on the verge of psychosis, and yet lucidly expresses the same feelings of postpartum doubt with which Linda has been living for so long — but refuses to see (or accept).
As Linda visits her apartment each night to check on the hole in her ceiling, it takes on unexpected physical properties that yield strange visions. This turns the literal and symbolic chasm into something practically metaphysical. Maybe it’s caused by Linda’s lack of sleep, or maybe it’s something deep within her subconscious lashing against the walls of her mind. Either way, the resultant drama is thrilling, hilarious, and upsetting all at once, and it’s largely owed to Byrne’s fearless, fully-embodied commitment to the part.
Rose Byrne delivers a monumental performanceBronstein knows exactly how to capture Byrne’s nervous energy. The constant close ups keep the character on-edge, as though her motherhood (and her womanhood) were being interrogated, à la Carl Theodor Dreyer’s close up-heavy silent classic The Passion of Joan of Arc.
Just when the camera starts to pull back from Linda’s close ups, promising the briefest of respite, it becomes just as stressful in other ways, with Byrne’s fidgety body language conveying a burgeoning unease. Before long, relentless tight shots become a more desirable alternative, as if the best that we — and that Linda — could hope for is a moment of familiar discomfort, rather than a novel one with unexpected results.
Where Byrne begins her journey is the kind of fragile emotional place most great screen performances have to carefully build toward. But in If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You, the precipice of total breakdown is the character’s baseline. Touch her and she might shatter — while cutting you in the process.
Things never stop getting worse for Linda, and Byrne’s depiction only grows more frayed. The character’s difficulties build in completely absurd ways, resulting in moments that are as jaw-droppingly funny as they are physically cringe-worthy. It’s the kind of film that’ll make you squirm in your seat while laughing till you almost break a rib. But it’ll also make you want to call your mom, owing to the depths of agony Byrne reaches into, playing a woman who speaks over everyone, and yet, wants desperately to be heard.
Whether or not she deserves this particular hell is the kind of moral judgement the film practically never allows you to consider. The plot leaps forward with reckless abandon, just as mounting absurdities reach fever pitch, but the movie never breaks away from Byrne’s gradual self-immolation. Her conception of Linda — as a person doing her best, driven to short-tempered cruelty and selfishness by her circumstances — is too multidimensional, and too lifelike, to ever truly be disliked.
Just like Jean-Baptiste in Hard Truths, there isn’t a single moment during which the torment driving Byrne’s character to lash out isn’t visible behind her eyes, begging to be recognized. It’s a plea made all the more urgent by the fact that If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You feels in a constant state of hair-raising climax. And so, it grabs you by the collar and pulls you along for its harrowing plunge, forcing you to witness — and to understand — the worst yet most deeply human impulses a mother can have.
If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You was reviewed out of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival.
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