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Skip the $350 cans: Our favorite budget headphones are just under $70 at Amazon

Mashable - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 19:00

SAVE $30: As of Oct. 29, Mashable's favorite budget headphones, the JLab JBuds Lux ANC (Jélle edition in Royal Caviar), are on sale for $69.99 at Amazon. That's 30% off their $99.99 list price.

Opens in a new window Credit: JLab JLab JBuds Lux ANC $69.99 at Amazon
$99.99 Save $30   Get Deal at Amazon

If you refuse to spend $350 on headphones just to tune out your coworkers, here’s some good news: Amazon just knocked 30% off the JLab JBuds Lux ANC (Jélle collection in Royal Caviar). That brings them down from $99.99 to $69.99, saving you an easy $30 on a pair our team genuinely loves.

We test piles of headphones at Mashable, and these earned the "best value" spot in our guide to the best pairs under $100. Plus, in our massive roundup of the best headphones of 2026, the JBuds Lux ANC snagged the crown for the best budget headphones.

Our guide lays it out plainly: if you’re a pure "value fiend" who doesn't care to drop hundreds on expensive cans, these more than get the job done. Once you tweak the equalizer in the app (the out-of-the-box settings lean a little heavy on the bass), tracks sound surprisingly clean and separated instead of turning into muffled mush.

SEE ALSO: Early Black Friday noise-cancelling headphones deals are here: Get Sony headphones for under $90

The active noise cancellation won't create a spooky, absolute void of silence like a $400 pair of Sonys, but it easily dampens office chatter, air conditioners, and subway hum. Even better, you can actually adjust the ANC intensity in the app — a feature some luxury brands don't even give you.

And the battery life is almost comical: you get 70 hours of juice, or 40-plus with ANC running. You can pack them for a cross-country flight, use them all week at your desk, and still forget where you left the charging cable because you rarely need it.

$69.99 is the cheapest way to buy yourself peace, quiet, and 70 hours of battery life — grab a pair of the JLab JBuds Lux ANC before this deal sells out.

Google stock just had its worst day ever: Why the markets are so spooked

Mashable - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 18:28

Alphabet stock recorded its worst-ever day on Thursday, dropping 12.29 percent by close of day; Alphabet is the owner of Google, among other companies. The drop came despite the very strong revenue growth Google reported in a Q3 earnings call.

It was the largest single-day drop for Google stock, according to Yahoo Finance, and the decline erased almost $500 billion in value in a matter of hours. Per Yahoo, it was also the second-largest one-day loss ever recorded for a company listed in the United States. The sums involved are truly astronomical.

To put $500 billion in perspective: If you stacked $5 billion worth of $100 bills on top of each other, the resulting tower would rise above the atmosphere and about 90 miles beyond the International Space Station. Or, put it like this: If you spent $1 million every day, it would take you 1,369 years to spend $500 billion.

As one of the world's largest companies by market value, the impact extended far beyond Google, affecting other tech stocks; moreover, the Dow Jones, S&P 500, and Nasdaq all experienced losses overall on Thursday, per Yahoo.

Why are the markets so spooked?

Google's third-quarter earnings filing revealed that the company faces significantly more risk than it discussed in its Q3 earnings call, according to Bloomberg. In addition to the more than $1 trillion in future purchase commitments Google faces, Bloomberg reported that Google's quarterly filing listed an additional $98.5 billion in possible commitments. The discrepancy showed just how much exposure Google has if the AI spending spree — which you can imagine as a giant, slowly expanding bubble — fails to deliver.

That's not the only red flag scaring investors, either.

Google also reported negative cash flow for the third quarter. The company reported negative cash flow for the first time last quarter.

Not everyone is pessimistic about Google's stock or the AI spending spree, however. Google did report 25 percent revenue growth, thanks in large part to its cloud services. Google's latest frontier AI model, Gemini 4 Carbon, is also at the top of the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index. And the massive capital expenditures on AI could prove profitable in the long term; the tech industry is clearly betting this is the case.

But as today's sell-off shows, if AI investments don't pay off, that bet would have wide-ranging impacts on the economy at large.

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Big Tech’s Data Center Blitz Is Burning Through Cash and Scaring Wall Street

NYT Technology - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 18:11
Amazon on Thursday became the latest tech company to to announce swelling investments in A.I. amid stumbling share prices.

Ive lived the dream of Wicker 4DX, and it was phenomenal

Mashable - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 18:00

What is it like to be fucked by a Wicker Husband who looks and sounds like Alexander Skarsgård? Wicker the movie gives audiences a look at this fairy tale experience by following the story of an ostracized but good-humored Fisherwoman (Olivia Colman). Wicker 4DX gives audiences as close to a simulated experience as you get without breaking decency laws. 

It started as a joke. Eager fans popped off on social media about how distributor Black Bear should make a 4DX release happen. Sure, this motion-enhanced format is reserved for action movies like The Odyssey and Godzilla Minus Zero or horror movies like Other Mommy and Resident Evil. But how might this amusement-park-ride-like experience, which includes atmospheric effects like fog, scents, and spritzes of water, enhance Wicker? Well, for one night only, some lucky moviegoers found out. 

SEE ALSO: ‘Wicker’ is getting a 4DX screening. The internet’s imagination is running wild.

I was there. I couldn't resist. And what I got for the ticket price was one of the best theatrical experiences of my life. 

What's Wicker about?  Alexander Skarsgard and Olivia Colman star as Wicker Husband and Fisherwoman in "Wicker." Credit: Black Bear

Written and directed by married couple Alex Huston Fischer and Eleanor Wilson, Wicker is a fairy tale about love, sex, and marriage. Inspired by Ursula Wills' short story "The Wicker Husband," the film centers on a medieval village where men are named by their professions, and women after their men. So, there's the Butcher, the Baker, and the Tailor's Wife (Elizabeth Debicki). Then, there's the Fisherwoman (Olivia Colman), an old maid mocked for being unmarried and smelling of her trade. 

That is, until she asks the ingenious Basket Weaver (Peter Dinklage) to make her a husband out of wicker. And boy, does he! Meeting her at the chapel on a sunny morning, the Wicker Husband (Alexander Skarsgård) is dapper and kind, and on their wedding night he is hard and soft in all the right ways.

As Mashable's Shannon Connellan noted in her review, Wicker makes a gleeful mockery of the constraints of gender norms, while advocating for making a marriage that suits its partners. So, as Fisherwoman and her Wicker Husband learn to love each other, they become a fascination of the other villagers, who envy or loathe them to dramatic results.

Slight spoilers ahead for Wicker. 

Wicker 4DX is for the girlies.  Olivia Colman and Alexander Skarsgard star as Fisherwoman and Wicker Husband in "Wicker." Credit: Black Bear

At a 10:30 p.m. showtime on a Wednesday, a female colleague and I entered a theater full of women, along with a couple of men who seemed to be on the arms of their respective girlfriends. There was a giddiness in the air as the audience saddled up in the 4DX seats, which are elevated and robust. 

I hadn't been to a 4DX screening since 2017's Geostorm. And full disclosure, I went hungover, which was a poor choice for 4DX experience, especially for a movie about every natural disaster hitting simultaneously. So, it was with trepidation that I stepped back into these seats. 

Before long the trailers began, and most were an odd pick for this presentation, including two decidedly unsexy Johnny Depp movies (Day Drinker and Ebenezer). The audience grew audibly restless, as jeers and annoyed groans could be heard. Then, the seats tittered. A ripple of laughter traveled across the theater as we all felt it. 

Next came two trailers fitted for 4DX. They were for upcoming action movies, Dune: Part Three and Avengers: Doomsday. In the latter especially, the bucking of the seats was so wild that I couldn't tell you what was happening in the trailer, because I was cackling like a madwoman. 

Then came a flutter of concern. I'd not yet seen Wicker. If the 4DX was this rowdy for the movie as it was for these trailers, would I get to enjoy the movie for what it is? Or would I be distracted by this gimmick? That would not be a problem. The 4DX for Wicker was thoughtfully integrated, and, dare I say, brilliantly so. 

The Wicker sex scenes are wild in 4DX.  Alexander Skarsgard and Olivia Colman star as Wicker Husband and Fisherwoman in "Wicker." Credit: Black Bear

As teased above, there are love scenes between Fisherwoman and Wicker Husband. How does the 4DX handle these scenes? The seats vibrated and bucked, yes, in rhythm with the Wicker Husband's thrusting. It was not just a physically thrilling experience, but a joyfully communal one! 

During the Doomsday trailer, the audience collectively laughed as we kind of calibrated to the 4DX seat-shaking that is its central element. During the sex scenes, there was giggles, guffaws, and gasps. And when the scene climaxed, the audience broke out into cheers and applause. 

More sex scenes would follow. Some between this couple, some between others. When it comes to the more fumbling pairings, the seat act was intentionally more clumsy or jolting, spurring cackles (from myself and others). 

Will Wicker make you wet?

Yes. There's a small bar with holes in it that sits before each seat and sprays a bit of water at certain moments. This happened when it rains in the movie and when a character chucks out a bucket of urine. 

Wait, is Wicker 4DX gross? Peter Dinklage is the Basket Weaver. Credit: Black Bear

No. Yes, the urine gag was a bit gag-worthy. But it's just a bit of cool water, not a stream. And while 4DX has scents, none of them were noticeably foul. There was no odor of urine. And as much as the villagers comment on the fishy smell of the heroine, that is not a scent 4DX chose to share. 

How else does Wicker use 4DX?

What you do smell are things like a swampy forest or a burning fire. These elements are subtle but impactful. As Fisherwoman walks through the forest, the scent of wet grass and a gentle breeze hit you, enhancing the feeling of walking alongside her. 

Likewise, a foggy day is enhanced by a fog machine under the screen. And in a winter scene, a bit of "snow" fell from the theater's ceiling, glittery in the light of the projector. And it was beautiful. 

Otherwise, there's seat jostles for all kinds of action, like a carriage thunking along a dirt road, or a bully getting decked by a wicker basket. 

Wicker 4DX was a wonderful time at the movies.  Alexander Skarsgard and Olivia Colman star as Wicker Husband and Fisherwoman in "Wicker." Credit: Black Bear

First and foremost, this is because Fischer and Wilson have made a moving, funny, and bawdy film that doesn't shy away from social commentary or sex appeal. It attracted a female audience that hungers for romance, and not just sex scenes (though yes, also sex scenes). 

Walking into that theater, it was exciting to see a theater full of women. It was thrilling to hear our laughter rise together. It was cathartic, too. This is a movie about a misfit, judged for her love life (or lack thereof), and how she builds her own brand of happiness, haters be damned. It's a story many of us can relate to. And in joining Fisherwoman on a more immersive level, we were encouraged to react louder than we might otherwise. And there's magic in hearing others in the theater echo your emotions. Even in the dark among strangers, you can feel you are not alone. 

As a film critic, I've seen hundreds of movies in theaters, with all kinds of audiences. Recently, I had the pleasure of experiencing You Can See Everything at the New York Film Festival premiere, where the audience roared with laughter, gasped in shock, and shouted back at the screen as if Nathan, Liz, and Billy could hear us. I get wistful about revival screenings, like when I saw Lawrence of Arabia on 70mm, and the film burned before our eyes! The night would have been ruined, were it not for an editor in the audience who rose to the occasion. And now, Wicker 4DX will nest among these treasured memories.

Wicker 4DX became a wondrous celebration of female desire, enhanced by shaking seats, but made memorable by the community of women who came out together to relish in romance. 

Pokémon TCG Delta Reign Booster Bundle preorders are 25% off at Amazon — save nearly $20 ahead of launch

Mashable - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 18:00

TL;DR: The Pokémon TCG Mega Evolution Delta Reign Booster Bundle is on sale for $56.35 at Amazon, down from its $74.99 typical price.

Opens in a new window Credit: The Pokémon Company Pokémon TCG Mega Evolution Delta Reign Booster Bundle $56.35 at Walmart
$74.99 Save $18.64   Preorder at Walmart

The Pokémon TCG's Delta Reign expansion is launching next week, and Amazon has once again dropped preorder prices for its six-pack Booster Bundle below $60.

As of Oct. 29, the Pokémon TCG Mega Evolution Delta Reign Booster Bundle is available to preorder for just $56.35 at Amazon, with $18.64 knocked off the standard $74.99 list price. This 25% discount works out to $9.39 per booster pack. This deal comes from third-party seller Kings Games, which has a 98% positive feedback rating over the past year.

Keep in mind that while shipping is free, delivery isn’t estimated until Nov. 14 — meaning you likely won’t get yours until around eight days after release. 

SEE ALSO: The Pokémon TCG Prismatic Evolutions Elite Trainer Box is below market price on Amazon — save $130 with rare deal

You’re getting both a faster delivery time and a lower price than Walmart — where preorders are going for $62.99 for the same box. On the other hand, TCGplayer listings are less costly than listings on both Amazon and Walmart, with prices as low as $43.93, undercutting the $43.94 market price.

Each Booster Bundle contains six packs of ten trading cards, alongside a Basic Energy and Pokémon TCG Live code card per pack. Delta Reign features over 135 cards to collect, with Mega Rayquaza ex leading the expansion alongside other big-name Mega Mevolutions: Mega Golurk ex, Mega Malamar ex, and Mega Golisopod ex.

Intel’s Shares Plunge 20% as A.I. Hinders Some Parts of Its Business

NYT Technology - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 17:17
The chipmaker, whose largest investor is the U.S. government, reported that the A.I. boom’s domino effect had hurt sales to personal computer makers.

South Park shows new GTA 6 gameplay footage, and its a turd

Mashable - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 16:25

Grand Theft Auto VI is said to take up more than 200GB of space on your PS5 or Xbox hard drive. Thanks to South Park, we now know where some of that data is going.

Matt Stone and Trey Parker's animated sitcom, which is somewhat amazingly still airing new episodes in 2026, took its ripped-from-the-headlines comedic stylings back into the gaming world on Wednesday night. In a scene from the newest episode, the kids learn about GTA 6, which actually includes some new gameplay footage we haven't seen before, not even courtesy of Cyberleek.

Because it's South Park, though, the footage consists entirely of a dog pooping, the protagonist Jason picking up the poop, and Jason hitting an NPC in the face with it.

SEE ALSO: 'GTA 6' soundtrack: Every song, artist, and celebrity DJ we know about so far This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Yes, that is all they showed. As a bonus, it's narrated by Tish Hicks, a voice actress who narrated a gameplay trailer for GTA 5 many years ago, per IGN. According to IGN, Rockstar had previously confirmed that you could use dog poop in this way in GTA 6, and we have seen Jason petting a dog in an earlier clip, but this is the first time we've actually seen this particular mechanic in action.

We reached out to Rockstar to confirm if the dog poop clip was legit, and we'll update this story if the company responds. However, the episode's credits include a Rockstar callout, which suggests the clip is authentic. A snapshot of the credits circulating online includes this message: "Special thanks: Grand Theft Auto VI footage courtesy of Rockstar Games, Inc."

This is far from the first or only time South Park has waded into the zeitgeist around a major video game. There have been plenty of references to gaming on the show over the years, perhaps most prominently in the 2006 episode Make Love, Not Warcraft, which took place largely inside World of Warcraft during the peak of that game's popularity. Maybe Parker and Stone can make a GTA 6 equivalent whenever that game's online mode launches.

In the meantime, you still have time to preorder GTA 6 ahead of its Nov. 19 release.

Want to learn more about getting the best out of your tech? Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories and Deals newsletters or get Mashable push alerts today. 

AO3 could be down for a month. Fanfiction readers are not OK.

Mashable - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 16:00

There are few things more terrifying to a fanfiction reader than opening Archive of Our Own (AO3) and discovering that the site is down. Except, perhaps, discovering that it could stay down for an entire month.

That's the nightmare scenario currently facing fans and fanfiction connoisseurs after AO3 announced that restoring the site could take anywhere from two to four weeks. And during the final days of Kinktober, no less. The cruelty of it all.

"We estimate that service restoration for #AO3 will take around 2 weeks, but it could be up to 4 weeks," the fan-run archive posted to its status account on X. "We are hopeful that we will be able to bring the site back up in a degraded state sooner."

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

In other words, there's a chance AO3 could return sooner with limited functionality. But there's also a chance readers could spend the next month without access to their favorite fics. A month. Without AO3.

Naturally, fans are handling this news with all the grace and composure you'd expect. Which is to say, people are freaking out.

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For the uninitiated, AO3 is a nonprofit, fan-run archive where users can publish and read fanfiction about everything from popular television shows and movies to books, anime, and video games. For many readers, it's also an essential part of their daily routines. It's where they go to unwind after work, escape into a favorite fictional universe, or read one more chapter before bed. (And then another.)

SEE ALSO: Here's where to get your fanfiction fix while AO3 is down

So the prospect of losing access for several weeks isn't exactly being met with enthusiasm. But while some fans are mourning their temporarily inaccessible reading lists, others are springing into action.

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The Heated Rivalry fandom, for example, is already mobilizing. Fans are sharing Google Drive archives of fanfiction, ensuring that readers can still get their fix of Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov even if AO3 remains inaccessible. And honestly, I'd expect nothing less from a fandom where people are reading upwards of 14 million words of fanfiction in a single year.

It's an impressive display of fandom resourcefulness. When the digital library closes, apparently you build another one.

Of course, there's something genuinely sweet about the way fandom communities rally around one another during moments like these. Fanfiction has always thrived on community, whether through recommendations, shared reading lists, or the writers who spend countless hours creating stories for other fans to enjoy.

And while the collective panic is certainly hyperbolic, it also speaks to how deeply fanfiction has become embedded in people's everyday lives. AO3 isn't just a website where people read stories. For many, it's a place of comfort, creativity, and connection.

In the meantime, there's always the option of revisiting those downloaded EPUBs you've been hoarding. You have been downloading your favorite fics, right? Right?!

What is happening with Kalshi in Utah?

Mashable - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 15:19

Utah officials have brought felony criminal charges against prediction market Kalshi and its two co-founders for allegedly illegally offering gambling to the state's residents.

Tarek Mansour and Luana Lopes Lara each face one count of pattern of unlawful activity, a second-degree felony; 12 counts of online gambling promotion, a third-degree felony; and one count of general gambling promotion, a Class A misdemeanor. All gambling is illegal in Utah.

Utah also recently filed a civil lawsuit against Kalshi, seeking to prevent it from offering Utah residents betting opportunities on sports, elections, and other events.

A special agent with the Utah State Bureau of Investigations signed up for an account on Kalshi as a fictional Utah resident and says he was allowed to place bets on several football games.

SEE ALSO: Polymarket and Kalshi face possible regulation as Supreme Court 'monitors the situation'

"Gambling is illegal in Utah, whether you place the bet, run the game, or promote it. Calling it a 'prediction market' doesn’t change what it is, and being federally registered doesn’t put a company above the law,” Utah Attorney General Derek Brown said in a statement. "A federal court has already ruled that Utah’s gambling laws apply to Kalshi. Kalshi kept taking bets from Utahns anyway."

Kalshi officials responded to the criminal charges by calling them "a crazy overreach" and accused state officials of "playing politics."

Kalshi is facing lawsuits from other states, such as New York, but those involve Kalshi allegedly failing to comply with online gambling rules or failing to fulfill tax obligations, Isaac Rose-Berman, a gambling policy fellow at the American Institute for Boys and Men, told Salt Lake City’s ABC affiliate. Utah, on the other hand, bans all gambling and marketing of the practice outright.

Meanwhile, the federal government has joined the fray. The Trump administration is suing Utah for trying to ban Kalshi in the state; it’s the 10th state the administration has sued for regulating prediction markets. In its suit, the federal government argues that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission has authority to regulate prediction markets like Kalshi, rather than individual states.

Kalshi bills itself as a prediction market, not a gambling site, and allows people to wager money on everything from "Who will control the Senate?" to who will win the latest season of Dancing with the Stars. And, of course, Kalshi offers wagers on professional sports games, college sports, and even chess matches. Kalshi's website had nearly 20 million visits in September, according to Semrush.

Watch: Obsession director Curry Barker returns with unsettling short Mama Bear

Mashable - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 15:10

Just days before Halloween, Obsession director Curry Barker returns with a new project to spook us.

SEE ALSO: Watch: 'Obsession' cast talks about the creepy perfection of Nikki

Barker posted short film Mama Bear to his and collaborator Cooper Tomlinson's YouTube channel, that's a bad idea. The short was created in partnership with Windows.

Mama Bear stars Jon Lee Richardson as Floyd, a house cleaner who's fallen asleep on the job. When he wakes, he finds himself in a living nightmare, plagued by a series of distressing phone calls and doppelgängers. While the film has far less to hold onto than Obsession, it stills carries over some familiar elements from Barker's directorial debut. Think shadowy figures lurking in corners, along with a woman (Katie Sarife) in major distress. (No, the title Mama Bear does not appear to connect to Obsession's Bear, played by Michael Johnston.)

Mama Bear marks Barker's first post-Obsession project. His next feature, Anything But Ghosts, premieres in 2027. It stars himself and Tomlinson as a pair of fraudulent paranormal investigators who find themselves dealing with real ghosts.

Bryce Dallas Howard, Aaron Paul, Violet McGraw, and Chris Reinacher are also attached to star in Anything But Ghosts.

Avatar: Seven Havens finale: Pavi goes on the run in this exclusive clip

Mashable - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 15:00

It's Avatar: Seven Havens finale eve, and what better way to get ready than by checking out a sneak peek of what's to come?

SEE ALSO: 'Avatar: Seven Havens' finally shows us how Korra broke the world

In an exclusive clip from episode 10, titled "Ghosts and Spirits," viewers get to witness the fallout from Seven Havens' penultimate batch of episodes, in which Nisha (voiced by Aishu Devan) revealed herself to be the Avatar. Instead of being welcomed, the citizens of Ellora turned on her, and she fled into the Harshlands with her cat monkey Ruhi.

While Nisha has left Ellora, her twin sister and fellow Avatar Pavi (voiced by Saheli Khan) is still in the Haven. She has to keep a lower profile than ever, as wanted posters for Nisha have gone up all around the city. Security in Ellora has grown even harsher since Nisha's departure, with new checkpoints popping up around the city. Over loudspeaker, Chancellor Kayoko (voiced by Jennifer Sun Bell) urges citizens to stay indoors and report any suspicious activity, further proof of the fear and paranoia that now dominate Ellora.

Amidst this foreboding crackdown, Pavi still somehow manages to find hope. She reunites with crystal beetle Sang, whom she rescued at the very beginning of Avatar: Seven Havens. With a familiar face by her side, maybe she'll be able to seek out Nisha and learn the answers about their parents once and for all.

Avatar: Seven Havens is now streaming on Paramount+. Its final four episodes premiere Oct. 30.

The owner of Bugatti had his Bugatti stolen

Mashable - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 13:35

Would you feel comfortable leaving the keys to your car inside your vehicle unattended? Actually, let's rephrase that. Would you feel comfortable leaving the keys to your rare $3.3 million Bugatti inside your vehicle unattended?

Well, that's exactly what Mate Rimac, founder and CEO of Bugatti's parent company Rimac Group, did.

And his multimillion-dollar Bugatti Chiron was stolen as a result.

Mate Rimac shared a video on Facebook telling the story of what happened and how he eventually got his car back thanks to the vehicle's tracking system.

Rimac says the car was parked at the company factory in Croatia, where Rimac is based. According to Rimac, the country is so safe that he usually leaves the keys in the car.

However, on Wednesday, Oct. 29, the car went missing. Once Rimac and his employees realized the car had been stolen and wasn't being driven by someone at the company, they checked the car's telemetry data, which includes location, speed, fuel level, and more.

Rimac and the local police quickly found that this would become an international incident as the thief evaded them at a gas station and then drove from Croatia into Slovenia. With help from the police from both countries, the thief was eventually apprehended.

According to Rimac, the thief was a man in his mid-30s who said he discovered the keys inside the Bugatti on his way to visit Rimac Group's factory in hopeso f getting a job. The thief allegedly intended to drive to Germany for unknown reasons.

Rimac now has his Bugatti back, and he says he has learned a valuable lesson: He will no longer leave his keys in his car.

Tubi is turning TikTok creators into TV stars with 10 original series

Mashable - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 12:04

Some familiar faces from your For You page are getting their own TV shows.

Tubi and TikTok announced Oct. 27 that 12 creators will develop 10 original series through their Creatorverse Incubator, a partnership designed to help TikTok talent move into longer-form television. The lineup includes creators Sabrina Brier, Yasmine Sahid, and Marc Sebastian, with shows ranging from dating competitions and workplace comedies to animation and horror.

SEE ALSO: Sabrina Brier's comedy inspiration comes from her family

The Fox-owned free streamer calls the slate its biggest investment yet in original programming with digital creators. First announced in March, the partnership now has its first cohort — and some distinctly internet-friendly premises.

Which TikTok creators are getting Tubi shows?

Here’s a quick rundown: Comedian Kai Cameron, known for his videos learning to do things "like a straight man," puts three men through a different kind of test in Kai Picks the Guy. They arrive expecting to date a woman, only to find Cameron vetting them on dates himself. The romantic chaos continues in Never Have I Spent the Winter with the Romano Brothers, where Sahid brings her knack for parodying teen dramas to a love triangle of her own. Brier takes on the equally tricky business of friendship in Asking for a Friend, working through dilemmas with celebrity guests.

Elsewhere, Sebastian — the model and creator who documented a stint aboard TikTok's viral nine-month cruise — takes his travel adventures Down Under for A Great Australian Gay Sidequest. Back on the job, Madison Humphrey, known for her character sketches and parodies of viral videos, has more than vacant apartments to worry about in The Leasing Manager: Her character is juggling demanding tenants, a relentless rival, and a police investigation.

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As for horror fans, scary-story creator Christopher Kiely examines whether ordinary people could survive scary-movie scenarios in Would You Survive?. Allie Tran, who posts horror reviews and breakdowns as @chronicallyscary, visits filming locations in Scare Tours.

There's also a robust animated lineup, including Feeling Super, about a man whose superpowers change daily, from animator Lynnell Jones Jr., known online as @felleanimated. Sketch comedian Kendria Bland brings a dysfunctional cockroach family to life in The Roach Chronicles, while horror and true-crime storyteller Sebastian Krahl follows a teenager obsessed with serial killers in Jamie Crow.

The Tubi exclusives are expected to start arriving in December, with roughly four to six episodes each. Episode counts and lengths will vary.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed. Tubi is betting fans will follow creators to TV

"The creators we’re working with have built a following, a point of view, and a body of work that people come back for," Kudzi Chikumbu, Tubi’s vice president of creator partnerships, said in a statement.

The lineup reflects how creators have become a source of stories as well as an audience draw. Recurring characters, comedy sketches, and dating formats can take shape on TikTok, where creators get an immediate sense of what viewers connect with. A streaming deal gives them room to develop those ideas into longer episodes, bigger fictional worlds, or a full season.

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Tubi outlined what it sees in that opportunity at VidCon earlier this year. As Mashable reported at VidCon, Jess Borison, the company’s senior manager of creator partnerships, said the streamer looks beyond follower counts.

"We’re not necessarily looking for a specific subscriber count. We’re more looking at portability. Will your audience travel to watch anything you do?" she said at the time.

SEE ALSO: Streaming services like Tubi are recruiting creators like Hollywood once recruited actors

That's much of the bet behind this slate: viewers have already connected with these creators' humor, characters, and perspectives.

There's also an opportunity to find new fans. At VidCon, Borison added that 30 percent of Tubi's audience isn’t on YouTube, giving creators access to viewers who might never encounter their work there.

Tubi has been laying the groundwork for that crossover. Since launching Tubi for Creators in June 2025, the company says it has added more than 35,000 episodes from over 700 creators. The incubator extends that effort into developing new original series.

The shift is already underway This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Other streamers have made similar bets on internet talent. Prime Video's Beast Games, created and hosted by YouTuber Jimmy Donaldson, better known as MrBeast, drew 50 million viewers in its first 25 days, according to Amazon. The company renewed the competition series for two more seasons in May 2025 after it became the service’s most-watched unscripted show.

Samsung TV Plus is also expanding into scripted programming with creator Dhar Mann, who built his following through online dramas with moral lessons. Following this summer's Unlikely Romances, the streamer commissioned Unlikely Families, a four-part anthology from Dhar Mann Studios about unexpected caregiving relationships, set to premiere in 2027.

For Tubi, recruiting TikTok creators fits into its focus on longer-form viewing. Speaking at a Paley Center event in March, CEO Anjali Sud said, "We are committed to long-form." At the time, she identified YouTube as Tubi's closest competitor and described helping creators make their own TV shows as one way to stand out. The new slate will test whether those familiar faces can keep fans coming back for another episode.

Polymarket and Kalshi Turn Midterm Elections Into a Multimillion Dollar Market

NYT Technology - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 10:59
Betting markets like Polymarket and Kalshi have transformed America’s democracy into a new kind of casino.

The Magic: The Gathering Marvels Spider-Man Play Booster Box is close to market price — save $15 at Amazon

Mashable - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 10:53

TL;DR: The Magic: The Gathering Marvel's Spider-Man Play Booster Box is on sale for $124.99 at Amazon, down from its $139.99 typical price.

Opens in a new window Credit: Magic: The Gathering Magic: The Gathering Marvel's Spider-Man - Play Booster Box (30 Packs) $124.99 at Amazon
$139.99 Save $15.00   Get Deal at Amazon

Another Marvel MTG expansion may be getting all the attention with Darkhold Destiny preorders going live, but there’s still plenty of mileage left in Magic: The Gathering’s Spider-Man crossover if you’re looking for an alternative superhero fix in the trading card game — now with a new $15 price drop hitting Amazon. 

As of Oct. 29, the Magic: The Gathering Marvel's Spider-Man Play Booster Box is available for just $124.99 on Amazon, down from its usual $139.99. That comes to an 11% discount, or approximately $4.17 per pack. 

For comparison, that’s $1.05 lower than what you can buy individual MTG Spider-Man Play Boosters for on TCGplayer (currently $5.22 at the lowest). With Amazon also handling the sale and shipping directly for this one, without a third-party seller, you can get quick delivery for as soon as Oct. 30 at the time of writing — if you’re a Prime member.

SEE ALSO: Magic: The Gathering's The Hobbit Play Booster Box is down to a new all-time low price — save nearly $70

Walmart is selling the same box for $111.99 via third-party seller Flipside Gaming. TCGplayer has listings as low as $116 after shipping, though that’s still $1.33 below the box’s estimated market price of $117.33. 

As for what's packed inside the Spider-Man Play Booster Box, you're getting 420 Magic cards altogether, split between 30 boosters containing 14 cards each. Every pack includes at least one Rare or higher-rarity card alongside a guaranteed Traditional Foil, while approximately one in five packs also features a foil Land.

Marvel fans can also look out for special Web-slinger frames and Borderless Panel cards that showcase Spider-Man's comic-book roots through alternative artwork. There's enough here to host a drafting session with friends, rather than simply opening everything for your collection.

The Pokémon TCG 30th Celebration Elite Trainer Box is way under market price at Amazon — buy for $59.99

Mashable - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 10:50

TL;DR: The Pokémon TCG 30th Celebration Elite Trainer Box is available for $59.99 at Amazon. That's way under market price.

Opens in a new window Credit: The Pokémon Company Pokémon TCG 30th Celebration Elite Trainer Box $59.99 at Amazon
  Shop Now at Amazon

For a brief period, Amazon's wild $59.99 deal on the Pokémon TCG 30th Celebration Elite Trainer Box ceased to exist. At the start of the week, we were seeing prices hovering around $175. The "request invite" had gone, but we were looking at paying well over market price. This was a tough time for everyone involved, but we're glad to see Amazon's generous offer has made a triumphant return.

For a limited time, the Pokémon TCG 30th Celebration Elite Trainer Box is on sale for just $59.99 on Amazon. Shipping and sales are handled directly by Amazon, but Amazon is still routing orders through its "request invite" system. These are selling fast, so collectors are clearly getting through.

Amazon’s price is way under TCGplayer’s $1117 market price. That's rare to see nowadays, so you know shoppers will jump on this.

The 30th Celebration Elite Trainer Box contains nine 30th Celebration booster packs, an exclusive full-art foil Nidorina promo card, 16 foil Basic Energy cards, 65 custom card sleeves, damage-counter dice, a condition marker, card dividers, a collector’s player guide, and a code card for Pokémon TCG Live.

Shop the Pokémon TCG 30th Celebration ETB for under $60 at Amazon.

Amazon has slashed Magic: The Gatherings Star Trek Play Booster Box to a record-low preorder price — save $70

Mashable - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 10:46

TL;DR: The Magic: The Gathering Star Trek Play Booster Box is on sale for $134.89 at Amazon, down from its $209.70 list price.

Opens in a new window Credit: Magic: The Gathering Magic: The Gathering Star Trek Play Booster Box $134.89 at Amazon
$209.70 Save $74.81 Preorder at Amazon

Amazon isn't letting up on its discounts for Magic: The Gathering's upcoming Star Trek expansion. After bringing the 30-pack Play Booster Box below $140 earlier this month, the retailer has unexpectedly knocked its preorder price down once again. 

As of Oct. 29, the Magic: The Gathering Star Trek Play Booster Box is available to preorder for only $134.89 at Amazon. With 36% off, that means you’re pocketing $74.81 in savings compared to its usual $209.70 price. For its 30 packs, the new record-low price (confirmed with price tracker camelcamelcamel) means you’re only paying around $4.50 per booster from the upcoming sci-fi crossover. 

With Amazon handling both the sale and shipping directly, the preorder price guarantee applies, meaning you'll automatically get its lowest eligible price between the time you order and the Nov. 13 release day. However, keep in mind that actual delivery is estimated for Nov. 16, and sales are final with no returns accepted. 

SEE ALSO: Magic: The Gathering's Marvel Darkhold Destiny Arcanum Bundle is way below market price on Amazon

If this deal goes out of stock, Walmart has also lowered its price to $134.89, courtesy of third-party seller Cataclysm Games, with free shipping estimated for Nov. 21.

As is usually the case, dedicated trading card marketplace TCGplayer has prices as low as $128.73. That’s $6.19 cheaper than Amazon’s deal and only 38 cents above the Star Trek Play Booster Box’s estimated $128.35 market price.

The Star Trek Play Booster Box contains 30 packs of 14 Magic cards, featuring familiar captains, spacecraft, and other characters from across the franchise's 60-year history. Each booster guarantees a Traditional Foil and between one and four rare or higher-rarity cards, with alternate-art and special-border versions also up for grabs.

MacBook Neo education discount reduced (again!)

Mashable - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 10:42

If you're a student looking to purchase the most affordable laptop from Apple, the MacBook Neo, unfortunately things just got a little…less affordable.

The price of the base MacBook Neo model in the Apple Education Store just went up by $50, as first noticed by Macworld. The price of a base model MacBook Neo with education pricing is now $649.

While a $50 increase may or may not sound that significant depending on your financial situation, it's actually the second time Apple slashed the discounted price of the MacBook Neo for students.

The MacBook Neo launched in March with a $599 price tag, making it the most affordable MacBook on the market. However, it was the education pricing that really made the MacBook Neo appealing. As Mashable reported at the time, Apple's student discount slashed the price by $100, bringing the brand-new MacBook Neo down to $499.

The MacBook Neo was a hit for Apple, and the incredible $499 education pricing, which technically anyone could take advantage of, may have played a role.

In May, just months after the MacBook Neo's release, however, Apple closed the loophole that provided the education discount to non-students. Then in June, Apple raised the prices for a slew of its products, bringing the retail price of the MacBook Neo to $699. While the education discount remained $100, the student price was now the same as the old retail price of $599.

With this latest $50 increase, the same base MacBook Neo model is now going for $150 more with education pricing than it did when it first came out almost eight months ago.

With that said, Mashable still thinks the MacBook Neo is worth it, even with the price increases.

Dune: Part Three popcorn bucket tops the NSFW original

Mashable - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 10:12

On Jan. 25, 2024, Dune: Part Two changed the world of moviegoing snacks forever.

That's the day that AMC Theatres released the first look at its sandworm-themed popcorn bucket, which immediately went viral for its intriguing appearance. The bucket spawned countless memes, a Saturday Night Live love song, and an arms race to create even more elaborate, upsetting popcorn buckets. (Looking at you, Deadpool and Wolverine.)

SEE ALSO: 'Dune: Part Three' final trailer: Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, and Florence Pugh return to Arrakis

But there can only be one king of absurd popcorn buckets, and today, Shai-Hulud reminded all its paltry imitators why it is the god-emperor of theatrical collectibles.

AMC Theatres unveiled its Dune: Part Three collectibles on social media, showcasing not one, but two popcorn buckets. Both are natural evolutions of the OG bucket, continuing the sandworm iconography, rubbery bristles and all.

The first bucket sees the sandworm jutting farther out of the sand than its predecessor, complete with a small thumper planted in the sand. Oh, and did we mention the thumper actually thumps? That's right: Purchase this popcorn bucket, and you, too, could feel your bucket vibrating with rhythmic pulses throughout your Dune: Part Three experience.

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The other sandworm bucket asks, "you know what's better than one sandworm? Two sandworms!" And you know what? It's right!

This bucket has two sandworms jumping out of the sand, making it the perfect popcorn bucket for a date night. You've never experienced romance until you and your partner have brushed hands through Shai-Hulud's maw. Alternatively, you could just double fist it by yourself. We won't judge.

AMC's collection doesn't stop there: They've also introduced a soda cup shaped like a Guild Navigator sarcophagus, perfect for traveling through the galaxy, plotting a coup against Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet), or just sipping a sweet treat. (Spice Melange not included.)

Not to be out-Duned, other theater chains have released collectibles of their own. Regal's popcorn bucket riffs on the Guild Navigator sarcophagus as well, with a door in the back for easy popcorn access.

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Cinemark opted for a sandworm-focused design for its copper bucket. The bucket's base carries a design drawn from a wall carving seen in Dune: Part One, in the palace at Arrakeen. Its topper sees a smaller sandworm bursting from the desert and curving up in the air, making it a perfect alternative for anyone who wants a sandworm-themed bucket without having to jam their hands down its throat.

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But let's be real. Shoving your hands into Shai-Hulud's inviting bristles is part of the fun — and, like it or not, an enduring part of Dune's legacy.

Dune: Part Three hits theaters Dec. 18.

Inde Navarrette channels Obsession for SNL promo

Mashable - Thu, 10/29/2026 - 09:11

Inde Navarrette is hosting SNL for the first time this weekend, joining Grace Reiter for a round of promos in the video above — and you probably won't be surprised to learn that Obsession crops up.

The promos above feature some jokes about Halloween and some (fairly impressive) singing, before Navarrette morphs into her infamous character when Reiter tries to tell her that Obsession isn't a rom-com.

"No," says Navarrette through clenched teeth. "No, no, no, don't do that." Eep.

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