Feed aggregator

Mark Zuckerberg has reorganized his company’s ambitions around a hypothetical future that is suddenly the talk of Silicon Valley.

For nearly three decades he has created mesmerizing planetarium shows at the American Museum of Natural History. But other galaxies await.

Generative A.I. chatbots are going down conspiratorial rabbit holes and endorsing wild, mystical belief systems. For some people, conversations with the technology can deeply distort reality.

Climate.gov may soon shut down, putting the end to an important U.S. government climate and weather resource used by countless people every year. The Guardian reports that the website's entire content production team was let go at the end of May, becoming some of the latest workers impacted by the Trump administration's widespread layoffs of federal employees.

Run by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Climate.gov publishes scientific data on the Earth's climate, including maps, educational material, and articles aimed at informing the general public. According to the website, Climate.gov's mission is to "provide science and information for a climate-smart nation." 

Sadly, this flow of climate information is likely to soon become a trickle at most, with Climate.gov's editorial team of 10 having reportedly all been dismissed by May 31. 

SEE ALSO: How do we navigate climate disinformation online?

The cuts began shortly after President Donald Trump's inauguration in February, with three of Climate.gov's editorial team members dismissed in the Department of Government Efficiency's (DOGE) mass purge of probationary employees. The remaining seven were subsequently axed in recent weeks, though all 10 remain on Climate.gov's now outdated list of staff at time of writing.

"[The current U.S. administration] think that climate change isn't real, and they don't want anybody talking about it," Climate.gov's former program manager Rebecca Lindsey told NPR. Lindsay was one of the three workers who were dismissed in February.

Trump has actively hindered efforts to combat climate change for years, withdrawing the U.S. from the Paris Climate Agreement and scrapping the Clean Power Plan during his first term as president in 2017. This week, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) confirmed reports that it is working to abolish all restrictions on greenhouse gas emissions from U.S. power plants that use fossil fuels. The EPA further revealed that it intends to weaken regulations which limit power plants' emissions of toxic air pollutants such as mercury.

The NOAA is one of the many government agencies struggling under extensive staffing cuts implemented by Elon Musk's DOGE this year. Approximately 1,000 former NOAA workers have reportedly been axed since Trump took office, making up 10 percent of the NOAA's workforce. This includes over 150 critical roles which have been left empty as of May.

NPR reports that Climate.gov will cease publishing new content on July 1, though it remains unclear what will happen to the content currently available. The website could be completely shuttered, left to rot, or even reappropriated to host less scientific articles that are more in line with Trump's views on climate change. Whatever happens, it seems clear that climate education and action are not high priorities for the Trump administration.

What if one day, when you opened the front door of your apartment, you found that you'd been completely walled in?

That's the premise for Netflix's upcoming mystery/thriller Brick, which sees a strange black wall enveloping an apartment block and trapping the residents inside.

Writer/director Philip Koch's movie looks like a twisty, claustrophobic ride.

Brick is streaming on Netflix July 10.

The Mini is a bite-sized version of The New York Times' revered daily crossword. While the crossword is a lengthier experience that requires both knowledge and patience to complete, The Mini is an entirely different vibe.

With only a handful of clues to answer, the daily puzzle doubles as a speed-running test for many who play it.

So, when a tricky clue disrupts a player's flow, it can be frustrating! If you find yourself stumped playing The Mini — much like with Wordle and Connections — we have you covered.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable

Here are the clues and answers to NYT's The Mini for Friday, June 13, 2025:

AcrossHouse and Doogie Howser, for short

• The answer is MDs.

Dessert wine

• The answer is Port.

Mugful after a sledding excursion

• The answer is Cocoa.

Desert whine?

• The answer is I'm hot.

"Like, yesterday!"

• The answer is ASAP.

DownChocolate-and-coffee drink

• The answer is Mocha.

Sag

• The answer is Droop.

Three-point percentage, e.g.

• The answer is Stat.

Poofy toy dogs, familiarly

• The answer is Poms.

Org. that employs Jack Ryan in Tom Clancy novels

• The answer is CIA.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Featured Video For You The Wordle Strategy used by the New York Times' Head of Games

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Mini Crossword.

Scientists have scored a pristine view of a pair of exotic worlds orbiting a star more than 300 light-years away — one with sand-like clouds and another surrounded in space by moon-making material. 

The discoveries come from YSES-1, a star system in the deep southern sky. Using the James Webb Space Telescope, a collaboration of NASA and its European and Canadian counterparts, a team of astronomers saw so-called "silicate clouds" directly for the first time on an exoplanet, a world far beyond our own solar system. The team's detection of a dusty disk around the sibling planet is also rare, perhaps just the third time scientists have seen one so clearly. 

Webb usually observes exoplanets through indirect methods, such as transmission spectroscopy, a technique for studying a planet's atmosphere by analyzing how starlight filters through it. What distinguishes this new research is that the two worlds — YSES-1b and YSES-1c — were directly imaged, meaning the telescope captured light from the planets themselves. 

Sitting far from their host star, these young planets glow from the leftover heat of their formation. Thanks to their temperature, size, and distance, the result is a clean picture of the exoplanets in thermal infrared, allowing scientists to get much more data. 

"What's really cool about this system is that unlike most planets, we can actually take a picture of them!" said Evert Nasedkin in a post on the social media platform Bluesky. You can see the image further down in this story.

SEE ALSO: A tiny star gave birth to an absolute giant. Scientists are puzzled.

The idea for this groundbreaking project began long before Webb was even open for business, said Kielan Hoch, lead author of the research recently published in the journal Nature. 

Scientists hypothesized the telescope could get both worlds in a single shot, "essentially giving us two for the price of one," Hoch said in a statement. 

What's really cool about this system is that unlike most planets, we can actually take a picture of them! We used the NIRSpec and MIRI instruments on JWST to observe nearly the full spectra of each of these exoplanets.

[image or embed]

— Evert Nasedkin (@evertnasedkin.bsky.social) June 10, 2025 at 1:15 PM

These two gas giant planets weigh five to 15 times the mass of Jupiter and orbit far from their host, a star similar to the sun. What's different is that it's only about 16.7 million years old, a mere whippersnapper compared to our middle-aged, 4.6 billion year-old sun. The planets are also in extremely distant orbits. YSES-1b, the innermost of the two, is still perhaps four times farther from its star than Pluto is from the sun.  

But given only a handful of known exoplanets can be directly imaged, the study has offered scientists a unique opportunity to see an early stage of a developing star system. From these observations of the YSES-1 system — the letters in its name stand for Young Suns Exoplanet Survey — astronomers can gain insight into how planets and moons form and evolve. 

SEE ALSO: Webb discovers a distant moon has an intriguing similarity to Earth

Few distant worlds meet the criteria for direct imaging because planets are often millions of times fainter than the stars they circle. And if they are orbiting close by, their own light usually gets swamped.  

The James Webb Space telescope captures a direct image of exoplanets YSES-1b and YSES-1c with its Near-Infrared Spectrograph instrument. Credit: NASA/ ESA / CSA / Hoch et al. / Nature

But scientists want these images because there is so much to learn from them. Molecules within a planet's atmosphere absorb certain colors of light, so when astronomers study a planet's spectrum, they can look for what's missing from the rainbow to determine which gases — like water, methane, and carbon dioxide — are present in the planet's air. For the YSES-1 system, scientists not only saw molecules in the direct imaging but detected cloud particles and a dust disk. 

On YSES-1c, rather than water vapor, the clouds are made of hot, ultra-fine rock grains. While Earth's clouds are often white and pillowy, these are probably hazy and dark, filling the sky with something akin to a glass powder. You can think of these silicate clouds sort of like the plumes of mineral ash that vent out of volcanoes. 

YSES-1b is even "weirder," said Nasedkin, one of the coauthors. Around it is a so-called circumplanetary dust disk that could serve as a birthplace for moons, similar to those seen around Jupiter. Scientists used computer models to figure out that the dust is hot — about 400 to 600 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Because this particular disk is much older than two previously found around other unrelated exoplanets, what is creating or sustaining it is a mystery. The original disk of planet-building material around the star is long gone, so the researchers have ruled that out as the source. 

"It's possible that we're seeing the dust emitted by collisions of moons and other small, rocky bodies left over from the planet's formation!" Nasedkin said.

TL;DR: A lifetime license to Microsoft Office 2019 for Mac is on sale for $39.99 — enjoy permanent access to essential productivity tools.

Opens in a new window Credit: Retail King Microsoft Office 2019 for Mac: Lifetime License $39.99
$229 Save $189.01 Get Deal

Get a lifetime license to Microsoft Office 2019 for Mac on sale for $39.99 (reg. $229).

What you get:

• Lifetime access to Microsoft Office Home & Business 2019 you only pay for once

• Includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams, and OneNote — all optimized for Mac

• Perfect for creating polished documents, crunching numbers, and managing emails

• Designed for business and personal use with seamless integration into macOS 13, 14, and 15

• Instant download so you can start using it right away

• Continuous updates to keep your software fresh, plus lifetime customer support

Streamline your work and personal projects with a lifetime license to Microsoft Office Home & Business 2019 for Mac for just $39.99 (reg. $229).

StackSocial prices subject to change.

TL;DR: Live stream Indiana Pacers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder (Game 4) in the 2025 NBA Finals for free on YouTube. Access this free live stream from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

The 2025 NBA Finals continue to surprise and entertain, with the Pacers taking a 2-1 lead after the first game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. The pressure is now all on the Thunder. The pre-Finals favorites need to win Game 4, otherwise the Pacers will be one step away from lifting the trophy.

If you want to watch Indiana Pacers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder (Game 4) in the 2025 NBA Finals for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.

When is Indiana Pacers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder (Game 4)?

Indiana Pacers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder (Game 4) starts at 8:30 p.m. ET on June 13. This game takes place at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

How to watch Indiana Pacers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder (Game 4) for free

Indiana Pacers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder (Game 4) in the 2025 NBA Finals is available to live stream for free on YouTube.

This content is geo-restricted to India, but anyone can access this free live stream with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in India, meaning you can live stream the 2025 NBA Finals from anywhere in the world.

Live stream the NBA for free by following these simple steps:

1. Sign up for a VPN (like ExpressVPN)

2. Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)

3. Open up the app and connect to a server in India

4. Visit YouTube

5. Watch Indiana Pacers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder (Game 4) for free

Opens in a new window Credit: ExpressVPN ExpressVPN (1-Month) $12.95 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee) Learn More

The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but they do tend to offer money-back guarantees or free trials. By leveraging these offers, you can watch NBA live streams without actually spending anything. This clearly isn't a long-term solution, but it does mean you can watch select games from the NBA Finals before recovering your investment.

If you want to retain permanent access to free live streams from around the world, you'll need a subscription. Fortunately, the best VPN for streaming sport is on sale for a limited time.

What is the best VPN for YouTube?

ExpressVPN is the best service for accessing free live streams on platforms like YouTube, for a number of reasons:

• Servers in 105 countries including India

• Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

• Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure

• Fast connection speeds free from throttling

• Up to eight simultaneous connections

• 30-day money-back guarantee

A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $139 and includes an extra four months for free — 61% off for a limited time. This plan also includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month subscription for just $12.95 (with money-back guarantee).

Live stream Indiana Pacers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder (Game 4) for free with ExpressVPN.

Ice cream makers have had their moment in recent years. TikTokkers have taken a liking to these machines — and who can blame them? Ice cream is just plain yum — making the ice cream maker an on-trend appliance for cool kitchens.

Indeed, ice cream makers are having their moment in the sun (well, not quite the sun, because that would melt the ice cream, of course). And that's definitely a good thing. Because who doesn’t want a constant supply of the tasty frozen treat?

But there are things to know about making your own ice cream. It isn’t like rushing up to the ice cream van and ordering a 99 with a flake. Using an ice cream maker isn't quite that simple. Especially if you’ve never owned one before. Allow us to get you started with some info on ice cream makers, plus a round-up of the best models.

How does an ice cream maker work?

It’s easy. In most case you simply add the mixture into a bowl (cream, milk, sugar, and any flavouring), which the machine then stirs with a rotating paddle. The machine will then drop the temperature, freezing the mix. Some premium-level machines have a built-in freezer, others have a bowl that you need to pop in the freezer beforehand. The mix will also expand during the process. The amount of ice cream you’ll get depends on the bowl capacity. Other models, such as those by Ninja, have a different method but the principle is the same: Put your mix in the bowl and let the machine do the work.

How long does it take to make ice cream?

As you’ll see below, different ice cream makers will work with different timescales — somewhere between 20 and 50 minutes. It’s worth noting that pre-freezing a bowl can take around eight hours or more. Up to 24 hours in some cases, in fact. So, if you live in a household with kids who are likely to start demanding ice cream at any given time, it might be worth keeping that bowl in the freezer permanently, so it’s always ready.

What other features do ice cream makes have?

On more expensive models you’ll find literally cool features, such as built-in freezing or settings to control the consistency of your ice cream (or other frozen dessert). One feature that’s always welcome — and found in cheaper models — is a chute in the lid to add ingredients, whether it’s flavouring or nuts, while the ice cream is being made.

What else can ice cream makers make?

Ice cream makers don't only make ice cream. Certain models will make ice cream variations, such as sorbet and gelato, or frozen yoghurt. What’s not to like? The Ninja model below offers an impressive ten different varieties of frozen dessert, so these machines can be very versatile.

What is the best ice cream maker?

There are plenty of top-quality models on offer from well-known brands like Cuisinart and Sage. We have checked out customer reviews, features, and specifications to put together a very chill list. Whether you're a total beginner looking to whip something up, or a professional ice cream maker-in-the-making, there’s something for you here.

These are the best ice cream makers in 2025.

Connections is the one of the most popular New York Times word games that's captured the public's attention. The game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for today's Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable What is Connections?

The NYT's latest daily word game has become a social media hit. The Times credits associate puzzle editor Wyna Liu with helping to create the new word game and bringing it to the publications' Games section. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

SEE ALSO: NYT's The Mini crossword answers for June 13 Here's a hint for today's Connections categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Outlook

• Green: Found at Ben & Jerry's

• Blue: Popular in the '90s

• Purple: They share the first word

Featured Video For You Connections: How to play and how to win Here are today's Connections categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Perspective

• Green: Seen at an ice cream shop

• Blue: Hit songs of 1998

• Purple: Hot ___

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections #733 is...

What is the answer to Connections today

• Perspective: ANGLE, BENT, LENS, POINT OF VIEW

• Seen at an ice cream shop: CONE, CUP, LITTLE SPOON, SCOOP

• Hit songs of 1998: CLOSING TIME, IRIS, ONE WEEK, TOO CLOSE

• Hot ___: DOG, POTATO, ROD, WATER BOTTLE

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for June 13

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Connections.

If you're reading this, you're looking for a little help playing Strands, the New York Times' elevated word-search game.

Strands requires the player to perform a twist on the classic word search. Words can be made from linked letters — up, down, left, right, or diagonal, but words can also change direction, resulting in quirky shapes and patterns. Every single letter in the grid will be part of an answer. There's always a theme linking every solution, along with the "spangram," a special, word or phrase that sums up that day's theme, and spans the entire grid horizontally or vertically.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable

By providing an opaque hint and not providing the word list, Strands creates a brain-teasing game that takes a little longer to play than its other games, like Wordle and Connections.

If you're feeling stuck or just don't have 10 or more minutes to figure out today's puzzle, we've got all the NYT Strands hints for today's puzzle you need to progress at your preferrined pace.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for June 13 SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for June 13 NYT Strands hint for today’s theme: Scattering Petals

The words are garden-related.

Today’s NYT Strands theme plainly explained

These words are types of colorful plants.

NYT Strands spangram hint: Is it vertical or horizontal?

Today's NYT Strands spangram is horizontal.

NYT Strands spangram answer today

Today's spangram is Flower Girls

Featured Video For You Strands 101: How to win NYT’s latest word game NYT Strands word list for June 13

• Daisy

• Violet

• Azalea

• Lily

• Flower Girls

• Petunia

• Rose

• Poppy

Looking for other daily online games? Mashable's Games page has more hints, and if you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now!

Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Strands.

Oh hey there! If you're here, it must be time for Wordle. As always, we're serving up our daily hints and tips to help you figure out today's answer.

If you just want to be told today's word, you can jump to the bottom of this article for today's Wordle solution revealed. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable SEE ALSO: NYT Connections today: Hints and answers for June 13 Where did Wordle come from?

Originally created by engineer Josh Wardle as a gift for his partner, Wordle rapidly spread to become an international phenomenon, with thousands of people around the globe playing every day. Alternate Wordle versions created by fans also sprang up, including battle royale Squabble, music identification game Heardle, and variations like Dordle and Quordle that make you guess multiple words at once. 

Wordle eventually became so popular that it was purchased by the New York Times, and TikTok creators even livestream themselves playing.

What's the best Wordle starting word?

The best Wordle starting word is the one that speaks to you. But if you prefer to be strategic in your approach, we have a few ideas to help you pick a word that might help you find the solution faster. One tip is to select a word that includes at least two different vowels, plus some common consonants like S, T, R, or N.

What happened to the Wordle archive?

The entire archive of past Wordle puzzles was originally available for anyone to enjoy whenever they felt like it, but it was later taken down, with the website's creator stating it was done at the request of the New York Times. However, the New York Times then rolled out its own Wordle Archive, available only to NYT Games subscribers.

Is Wordle getting harder?

It might feel like Wordle is getting harder, but it actually isn't any more difficult than when it first began. You can turn on Wordle's Hard Mode if you're after more of a challenge, though.

SEE ALSO: NYT's The Mini crossword answers for June 13, 2025 Here's a subtle hint for today's Wordle answer:

Part of a ship.

Does today's Wordle answer have a double letter?

There are no recurring letters.

Today's Wordle is a 5-letter word that starts with...

Today's Wordle starts with the letter B.

SEE ALSO: Wordle-obsessed? These are the best word games to play IRL. The Wordle answer today is...

Get your last guesses in now, because it's your final chance to solve today's Wordle before we reveal the solution.

Drumroll please!

The solution to today's Wordle is...

BILGE.

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be a new Wordle for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for June 13

Reporting by Chance Townsend, Caitlin Welsh, Sam Haysom, Amanda Yeo, Shannon Connellan, Cecily Mauran, Mike Pearl, and Adam Rosenberg contributed to this article.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Wordle.

If you like playing daily word games like Wordle, then Hurdle is a great game to add to your routine.

There are five rounds to the game. The first round sees you trying to guess the word, with correct, misplaced, and incorrect letters shown in each guess. If you guess the correct answer, it'll take you to the next hurdle, providing the answer to the last hurdle as your first guess. This can give you several clues or none, depending on the words. For the final hurdle, every correct answer from previous hurdles is shown, with correct and misplaced letters clearly shown.

An important note is that the number of times a letter is highlighted from previous guesses does necessarily indicate the number of times that letter appears in the final hurdle.

If you find yourself stuck at any step of today's Hurdle, don't worry! We have you covered.

SEE ALSO: Hurdle: Everything you need to know to find the answers Hurdle Word 1 hint

A twig.

SEE ALSO: Apple’s new M3 MacBook Air is $300 off at Amazon. And yes, I’m tempted. Hurdle Word 1 answer

SPRIG

Hurdle Word 2 hint

Intelligent.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for June 13, 2025 Hurdle Word 2 Answer

SMART

Hurdle Word 3 hint

To resupply weapons.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for June 13 SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for June 13, 2025 Hurdle Word 3 answer

REARM

Hurdle Word 4 hint

Very angry.

SEE ALSO: NYT Strands hints, answers for June 13 Hurdle Word 4 answer

LIVID

Final Hurdle hint

Minor.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Games available on Mashable Hurdle Word 5 answer

PETTY

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Meta is making its first major minority investment in an outside company as it tries to catch up to a growing field of artificial intelligence rivals.

Let's start with something positive: As of this writing, Walmart has both the Nintendo Switch 2 console and the Nintendo Switch 2 + Mario Kart World Bundle in stock.

So, what's the catch? According to the product listing pages, the new Nintendo consoles are being sold by third-party sellers — and with jacked-up prices. The bundle normally retails at Walmart for $499, but it's currently listed for sale from seller "GAMES FOR US" for $749. The $449 console is listed for sale for $672, a $223 increase.

Opens in a new window Credit: Nintendo Nintendo Switch 2 console $672 at Walmart
Shop Now Opens in a new window Credit: Walmart Nintendo Switch 2 + Mario Kart World Bundle $749 at Walmart
Get Deal

The last we checked, Walmart said only six of the bundles were left in stock, and buyers are limited to one purchase per order. The console on its own is also low in stock.

This is the first time we've seen a Switch 2 product listing page with an honest-to-gosh "Add to cart" button since Target started selling the console online on June 6.

Now, here at Mashable, we do not recommend feeding trolls, wild animals, or price gougers. However, this is such a rare sight, we wanted to update our daily Switch 2 restock tracker with the news.

To be honest, we knew this day was coming. Eager resellers were already listing the Switch 2 for sale on sites like eBay before the launch even happened. It was only a matter of time until price gougers and third-party sellers started listing the Switch 2 at higher prices.

After the June 5 launch, Nintendo announced it had sold 3.5 million in a week, surpassing even the very high expectations. With high demand and limited supplies, this news was inevitable.

See the sight for yourself at Walmart.

Google Cloud was identified by a Cloudflare representative as the cause of a massive outage that disrupted services across the internet Thursday.

The widespread internet outage affected a variety of popular platforms, with users reporting problems accessing Google services, Cloudflare, Spotify, Twitch, and Discord.

The outage also included popular cloud hosting services such as Cloudflare, which reported service disruptions on its status page. However, a Cloudflare representative stated in an email to Mashable that Google Cloud was responsible for the disruptions to internet services.

"This is a Google Cloud outage," a Cloudflare spokesperson told Mashable by email. They added, "A limited number of services at Cloudflare use Google Cloud and were impacted. We expect them to come back shortly. The core Cloudflare services were not impacted."

On the Google Cloud status page, the company initially reported that it was "experiencing service issues with multiple GCP products beginning at Thursday, 2025-06-12 10:51 PDT."

At 3:41 p.m. ET, Google Cloud provided a further update: "Our engineers have identified the root cause and have applied appropriate mitigations. While our engineers have confirmed that the underlying dependency is recovered in all locations except us-central1, we are aware that customers are still experiencing varying degrees of impact on individual google cloud products. All the respective engineering teams are actively engaged and working on service recovery. We do not have an ETA for full service recovery."

On its own status page, Cloudflare reported, "Cloudflare’s critical Workers KV service went offline due to an outage of a 3rd party service that is a key dependency. As a result, certain Cloudflare products that rely on KV service to store and disseminate information are unavailable..."

Mashable reached out to Google for comment on the outages, and we will update this story if they respond.

On Thursday afternoon, the website Down Detector showed a spike in user error reports starting around 2 p.m. ET. (Disclosure: Ziff Davis owns both Mashable and Down Detector.) By 3:30 p.m., service had been restored at many of the affected platforms, though some users are still reporting problems.

Prime Day is coming, and if you want to shop all the best deals, you'll need an Amazon Prime account.

Here's how shoppers can sign up for Amazon Prime:

Total Time

• 5 minutes, email address or phone number

What You Need

• Internet access

Step 1: Go to the Amazon Prime sign-up page and click on Start your free 30-day trial.

Head to Amazon Prime's sign-up page.

Step 2: Input your email if you have an existing Amazon account or click on Create Your Amazon account.

A new sign-in page will open up on the website. Input your email or mobile number and password if you have an existing Amazon account or click on Create Your Amazon account. If you make a new account, you'll need to provide some basic information such as name, email, and password.

Step 3: If you're creating a new account, follow the steps to verify your email with a One-Time Password.

If you choose to create a new account, Amazon will send an OTP to your respective email address or mobile number for account verification. If you are using an existing account, skip to Step 5.

Step 4: Input the OTP and click on Verify.

Once the OTP verification page appears on the screen, input the code and click on Verify.

Step 5: Sign up for your free one-month trial or purchase a full subscription.

Now users have two options: sign up for a free one-month trial or purchase a full subscription, though many users might not qualify for a free trial if they have already availed it in the past with the same email or phone number. If you are purchasing a subscription, click on one of these four plans to become a prime member: Monthly Prime Membership — costs $14.99 per month Annual Membership — costs $139 per year or under $12 monthly Student Monthly Membership — costs $7.49 per month; students are eligible for exclusive offers including a 6-month free Prime trial. Prime for government assistance recipients — costs $6.99 per month (must verify eligibility)

Meta has struck out against a popular app used to produce AI-generated nonconsensual intimate images — commonly referred to as "nudify" or "undress" apps — as the company selectively cracks down on advertisers.

In a new lawsuit filed in Hong Kong against the makers behind a commonly-used app known as Crush AI, the tech giant claims parent company Joy Timeline HK intentionally bypassed Meta's ad review process using new domain names and networks of advertiser accounts in order to promote the app's AI-powered deepfake services.

"This legal action underscores both the seriousness with which we take this abuse and our commitment to doing all we can to protect our community from it. We’ll continue to take the necessary steps — which could include legal action — against those who abuse our platforms like this," Meta wrote in a press release.

SEE ALSO: FDA wants to use AI to speed up drug approval process

Meta has previously been under fire for failing to curb nudify apps from advertising on its platform, including allowing ads featuring explicit deepfake images of celebrities to appear repeatedly on the platform — in addition to its advertising policies, Meta prohibits the spread of non-consensual intimate imagery and blocks the search terms "nudify," "undress" and "delete clothing." According to an analysis by Cornell researcher Alexios Mantzarlis, Crush AI allegedly ran more than 8,000 ads across Meta platforms between the fall of 2024 and January 2025, with 90 percent of its traffic coming from Meta platforms. Broadly, AI-generated ad content has plagued users, as the company has relaxed its content moderation policies in favor of automated review processes and community-generated fact-checking.

Victims of AI-generated nonconsensual intimate imagery have spent years fighting for greater industry regulation and legal pathways for recourse. In May, the Trump Administration signed the Take It Down Act, a law that criminalizes nonconsensual intimate imagery and sets mandatory takedown policies for online platforms. AI-generated child sexual abuse material (CSAM) has also proliferated across the internet in recent years, prompting widespread concern about the safety and regulation of generative AI tools.

In addition to taking legal action against Crush AI, Meta announced it was developing a new detection technology to more accurately flag and remove ads for nudify apps. The company is also stepping up its work with the Tech Coalition’s Lantern program, an industry initiative to coalesce information on child online safety, and will continue sharing information on violating companies and products. Since March, Meta has reported more than 3,800 unique URLs related to nudify apps and websites and discovered four separate networks trying to promote their services, according to the company.

UPDATE: Jun. 12, 2025, 5:33 p.m. EDT The Google Cloud service page has posted another update saying, "most of the Google Cloud products have confirmed full service recovery."

UPDATE: Jun. 12, 2025, 5:12 p.m. EDT The Google Cloud service page says engineers "have implemented mitigation for the issue" and are "seeing signs of recovery" in multiple regions. The status update says Google Cloud expects the recovery to complete in "less than an hour."

If you noticed some of your favorite sites aren't working this afternoon, you're not alone. It seems like practically the entire internet is down, including Google Cloud, OpenAI, Twitch, Discord, Nintendo, and Spotify.

Down Detector, a platform where users can report errors and other problems, showed a widespread spike in problems. (Disclosure: Down Detector is owned by Mashable's parent company Ziff Davis.) And on social media platforms like X, users also shared their frustration.

On the Google Cloud status page, the service admitted to "service issues" at 2:46 p.m. ET. According to the most recent updates at 3:41 p.m. ET and 4:16 p.m. ET, engineers “have identified the root cause and have applied appropriate mitigations.” However, the company also noted that they don’t have an ETA for full recovery.

Meanwhile, a Google Cloud representative provided this statement to Mashable: "We are currently investigating a service disruption to some Google Cloud services."

The Google Cloud status page states that affected areas include regions all across Asia, Australia, Europe, the Middle East, and North and South America.

What is Google Cloud?

Google Cloud is a popular cloud hosting service. Because it provides hosting for a variety of other services, websites, and apps, an outage with Google Cloud Products (GCP) could cause major ripple effects across the digital ecosystem.

This story is developing and we'll update it with more information...