Mashable

Some advertisements make you want to buy the product. Others make the entire internet ask, "Who on Earth approved this?"

A promotional video from golf equipment giant Callaway and popular YouTube brand Good Good Golf has landed firmly in the latter category. The since-deleted ad showed the brand's co-founder Garrett Clark charging toward female golfer Alexis Miestowski, shoving her to the ground, and standing over her before warning, "Do not touch my new driver."

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

The clip was apparently intended to be part of a horror-inspired story about Clark becoming dangerously obsessed with the new Good Good-branded Callaway Quantum driver. Instead, viewers saw a man knock a woman down over a golf club — and reacted accordingly.

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

"This is a generationally stupid ad," one X user wrote. "Absolutely incredible that no one in the room said 'guys hold on,'" Golf Digest reporter Christopher Powers added.

Powers' disbelief reflected a defining response to the commercial. People were not only upset by what appeared onscreen, but baffled by how many people must have encountered the idea before it reached them.

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

Good Good and Callaway removed the video from their social media accounts on Aug. 21, but, as brands repeatedly learn, deleting something does not make it disappear from the internet. Copies continued circulating, bringing the ad to an even larger and increasingly incredulous audience.

"This is so much worse than I thought it was going to be," one X user wrote. Another asked whether any women had been involved in pitching, approving, or producing it.

Over in the r/golf subreddit, where a discussion of the controversy attracted more than 1,000 upvotes and hundreds of comments, golf fans were equally unimpressed. "The ad had a school project production value and lacked any real humor," one commenter wrote. "How this passed by anyone at Callaway with the slightest bit of media proficiency or common sense is mind boggling."

"The way to normally do these things as 'jokes' is to make it so over the top that it’s clearly not intended to be serious," one user explained. "What you don’t do is have them realistically tackle a woman and then stand over them aggressively and deliver the line."

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

For some viewers, especially women, the ad represented more than one spectacularly misguided creative decision, but embodied the exclusionary "golf bro" culture that the sport has spent years attempting to move beyond.

"As a female golfer, I already feel excluded from the golf world in some ways. They crossed the line,” one Reddit user commented. Another TikTok commenter said they were tired of the "bro culture" and "frat boy mentality" surrounding golf both online and on the course.

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

Women working within golf pushed back, too. "They didn’t just create an ad that makes golf non-inclusive to women, but it endorses violence against women in the scariest and most threatening way," Skratch social media director Nicole Rae said, calling the video "wildly disappointing."

CNN Living Golf host Jasmine Sanders, known online as The Jazzy Golfer, pointed to the contradiction between the industry’s stated goals and what two of its prominent brands had approved: "Golf keeps talking about making the game more welcoming to women," Sanders said in a LinkedIn video. "You can’t say that matters and then make violence towards a woman the punchline."

Golfer and former Real Housewives of Orange County cast member Katie Ginella said she was "in shock" after watching the ad. Ginella, who has spoken publicly about her own experience with domestic violence, said she would no longer support Good Good or Callaway.

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

None of these women aren't wrong — there is a large contradiction in the sport of golf. Women and girls have accounted for 60 percent of the growth in on-course golf participation since 2019, yet much of golf’s most prominent internet content remains built around groups of men, competitive challenges, and rowdy banter. Good Good itself was founded by male creators and only launched a separate women’s channel in late 2025.

Ironically, by partnering with Good Good to make golf feel younger and more internet-native, Callaway — one of golf's biggest institutions — ended up legitimizing the very "golf bro" culture that makes women feel unwelcome in the sport in the first place.

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

Founded as a YouTube channel in 2020, Good Good has grown into a major golf media and merchandise business with more than 2 million YouTube subscribers. Callaway partnered with the group back in 2023, and the brand is now the title sponsor of a PGA Tour tournament scheduled for November.

In an apology posted to X, Good Good said the video "ultimately depicted actions that are not aligned with our values as a brand." Good Good CEO Matt Kendrick also issued a longer statement on LinkedIn, saying the commercial was intended to parody a scene from the horror movie Obsession but that its execution "missed the mark." "Regardless of what we intended, we are responsible for what we put into the world and how it is received," Kendrick wrote. "We got this one wrong."

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

Callaway CEO Chip Brewer, on the other hand, said it was "disappointed by the content that was posted" and thanked Good Good for addressing it (language that appeared to place the responsibility primarily on its partner.)

He also admitted that although Good Good produced the video, Callaway had approved it before publication: "That approval should never have happened," Brewer wrote. "Mistakes were made, and we are taking the matter very seriously." Brewer added that Callaway was conducting internal and external investigations, and announced changes to the company’s approval processes.

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

Yet, many viewers — and brand partners — were not satisfied with that explanation. Even the Golf Channel postponed the Aug. 25 premiere of Big Break x Good Good until Sept. 1, saying it needed time to make "necessary production updates" after a sponsor requested that its branding be removed from the series (rumored to be retailer "Golf Galaxy").

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

Dick’s Sporting Goods also removed Good Good merchandise from their websites and store floors, along with Target and several PGA Tour Superstore locations. Callaway, meanwhile, removed the Good Good Quantum driver from its own website, although the club remained available directly through Good Good.

Even competitors saw an opening: Golf club brand PXG posted a video of professional golfers Olivia Cowan, Gina Kim, and Auston Kim with the caption, "Our drivers play nice with everyone."

View this post on Instagram

The uproar surrounding this ad did not happen in a vacuum. In 2021 alone, an estimated 34 percent of murdered women were killed by an intimate partner. The CDC also reports that nearly one in four women has experienced physical violence from an intimate partner, and that more than half of female homicide victims are killed by a current or former male partner.

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

In that light, pushing a woman to the ground and standing over her is far too familiar an image to land as a harmless punchline.

If the ad was supposed to show that Callaway’s new driver was worth fighting over, it failed. Instead, it showed how easily violence against women could survive pitching, filming, editing, and corporate approval — all to sell a driver.

If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, help is available. Call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233), text “START” to 88788, or visit TheHotline.org to chat with an advocate. Support is free, confidential, and available 24/7.

Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri is investigating Flock Safety, the maker of the now-ubiquitous AI-powered Flock cameras, demanding answers from the company about how it captures and retains data on millions of Americans.

With over 120,000 cameras in 49 states, Flock has been under scrutiny from the American public for weeks, with some vigilantes destroying the automated license plate readers (ALPR). Now, the Atlanta-based company has to contend with a Senate investigation demanding troves of documentation on its policies, as well as details on how some of the data it captured has been misused. 

In his letter to Flock, Hawley pointed out that its cameras conduct more than 20 billion vehicle scans monthly, while "the overwhelming majority of the Americans captured in those records did nothing wrong" and all that information is searchable in a national database for Flock’s customers.

Hawley also laid out numerous cases of misuse of Flock’s data, including police officers using the database for stalking rather than crime investigation.

SEE ALSO: Have you been Flocked? This website lets you find out

The letter also highlighted cases of Flock cameras providing incorrect information on cars its surveilled; mistakes that have led to people being wrongfully imprisoned.

"A Florida woman spent 13 days in jail and faced eight felony counts, including three counts of vehicular homicide, after investigators arrested an owner based on their search of Flock’s network for a vehicle description,” Hawley wrote. "Prosecutors dismissed the charges seven months later when law enforcement discovered the error and arrested a different person. One California police department found that a staggering 71% of its alerts were wrong, and the Los Angeles Police Department dropped its Flock contract after an audit showed officers had stopped 161 vehicles incorrectly flagged as stolen in the space of two months."

Hawley also wants clarity on how Flock handles the data it captures.

"Flock’s $8.3 billion valuation comes with enormous pressure to find new commercial applications," Hawley wrote. "Americans demand a full accounting for how their driver data is stored or sold."

Hawley wants Flock to provide answers on:

• Which customers are allowed to conduct statewide or nationwide searches of vehicle or driver data

• The retention period of its data

• All the times Flock cameras have been misused, and whether Flock caught the misuse itself

• What a Flock user has to do to justify a search on another person’s vehicle

• What restrictions exist on vehicle searches, and whether those restrictions can be circumvented

• What are Flock’s own measures of accuracy when it comes to capturing vehicle information

• Specifics on how Flock captures data, e.g., photos, videos, audio, wireless signals

• Details on whether Flock ever linked captured data to an external source, like a data broker

• Whether vehicle searches require multi-factor authentication and, if Flock is not currently requiring it, when it will

• "Describe in detail whether Flock has the capability to biometrically track individuals"

Hawley wants Flock to answer all its questions by Sept. 8.

SAVE $160: As of Aug. 26, the Lenovo Legion Tab Gen 5 (8.8-inch, Snapdragon) is down to $689.99. That's an 18% discount.

Opens in a new window Credit: Lenovo Lenovo Legion Tab Gen 5 $689.99 at Lenovo
$849.99 Save $160   Get Deal

The Lenovo Legion Tab Gen 5 just dropped to $689.99 at Lenovo, down from $849.99 — an 18% discount that knocks $160 off Lenovo's gaming-focused tablet. The Legion Tab Gen 5 packs a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 processor, 12GB of memory, and 256GB of storage, wrapped in a 3K display that hits 800 nits of brightness.

It runs Android 16 and lasts over 12 hours on a charge, which is a lot for a tablet built to handle gaming. Mashable recently tested this one, giving it a 4.5 out of 5 and a Mashable Choice Award. Reviewer Samantha Mangino was impressed by its processing power, noting its Geekbench 6 scores put it "into the leagues of a MacBook."

At 8.8 inches, it's smaller and more portable than the standard 11-inch iPad, which makes a difference for handheld gaming sessions. Mangino also called out its two USB-C ports as a standout feature, letting gamers plug in a controller or headphones while the tablet charges, something most tablets don't offer.

Battery life held up too, lasting over 12 hours in testing, and it handled livestreaming without any stuttering or slowdown, even during a WNBA game. Overall, Mangino called the tablet worth it for anyone who wants a gaming-specific tablet.

Snag the Legion Tab Gen 5 before the memory crisis pushes the price right back up.

When Dolly Parton died Tuesday, her family asked for something other than flowers in her memory. Instead, they requested donations to Parton's Imagination Library.

Though Parton was known around the world as an icon of music and movies, her beloved literacy program cemented her legacy as a humanitarian.

SEE ALSO: The internet mourns Dolly Parton, country music’s brightest light How Imagination Library started

Parton founded Imagination Library in 1995 to encourage a love for reading and learning among the children of Sevier County, Tennessee, where she was raised. She famously dedicated Imagination Library to her father, who grew up in rural poverty and never attended school.

"Daddy was a really smart man ... but he was ashamed that he couldn't read and write," Parton told Oprah in 2020, "That always bothered me that he felt like he couldn't learn after he was grown. I remember thinking, 'I need to do something about that. I can. I'm in a position now where I can do something.'"

What Imagination Library does

Parton asked her father to help with the initiative, which delivers free, age-appropriate books to children every month from birth to age 5.

By the time a child finishes the program, they've received 60 books, according to Imagination Library.

The Dollywood Foundation covers some costs and negotiates book pricing. Its local partners help pay for mailing costs and the books themselves. Families that participate in Imagination Library pay nothing.

View this post on Instagram

The Imagination Library says it has registered 3.2 million to participate in the program and given away 332 million books since its founding. Imagination Library now operates throughout the U.S, as well as in Canada, Australia, the Republic of Ireland, and the United Kingdom.

In 2018, Parton donated her 100 millionth book to the U.S. Library of Congress.

Upon Parton's passing, the Dollywood Foundation said in a statement that her legacy will continue "when a child opens a book addressed especially to them; when a parent and child read a favorite story together; and when a young person begins to imagine a future bigger than the circumstances into which they were born."

How you can support Imagination Library

The Imagination Library accepts online donations via its website.

The program posted on Instagram that it would steadfastly continue its work.

"For decades, Dolly and the team at The Dollywood Foundation — home of Dolly Parton's Imagination Library — worked to build something that would last for generations. So it will," the post said.

In her 2020 conversation with Oprah, Parton said that her father got to see the Imagination Library's success before he died in 2000.

"My daddy got to live long enough to see that doing really well," she said. "So I just always know he's up there somewhere thinking, 'You go, girl. You done good.'"

For the past week, a mystery leaker calling themselves Cyberleek has been busy posting gameplay clips from the unreleased video game Grand Theft Auto VI, one of the most highly anticipated video games of all time.

So far, the leaker has shared only brief, spoiler-free glimpses of cutscenes or gameplay footage showing the game's world and mechanics, but on Wednesday, that changed. Shortly after Rockstar Games issued a statement about the leaks, Cyberleek made good on a threat to release clips of the game's prologue featuring the playable character Lucia Caminos. Cyberleek posted four and a half minutes of the Lucia prologue in a Telegram channel and promised to release more footage featuring Lucia soon.

The video shows a flashback featuring Caminos in prison, which isn't itself a spoiler. The original GTA 6 trailer, released two years ago, showed Caminos in an orange jumpsuit, as did an official image released by Rockstar Games. However, Cyberleek's latest video goes further by revealing plot details about the character's experiences in and out of prison.

This official still shows the character Lucia in an orange prison jumpsuit. Credit: Rockstar Games

That's all we're going to say about that particular clip, as we don't want to spoil the game for anyone. However, official details about the game were also revealed today by Dazed magazine, providing even more information about how Lucia fits into GTA 6.

The exclusive preview feature in Dazed reveals that players will be able to switch seamlessly between the protagonists Jason Duval and Caminos, who is described as "a fighter fresh out of prison." Dazed reported that players can have the characters act independently or as a couple.

For gamers trying to avoid GTA 6 spoilers, consider this your warning: Cyberleek has stepped up their campaign and is actively sharing spoilers.

For an official, Rockstar-approved preview of the upcoming game, tune into the extended look that premieres on Netflix tomorrow.

Apple has finally sent out invitations for its next hardware event, titled "Surprise and shine," set for Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. PT at the Steve Jobs Theater in Apple Park.

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

This year's keynote carries extra weight beyond the usual hardware reveal as it will be John Ternus' first Apple product event as CEO, following Tim Cook's planned exit from the top job. Ternus is set to take over on Sept. 1, and given his background in running hardware engineering, some reports suggest Apple's industrial design group is being pulled closer to the center of decision-making under his leadership.

SEE ALSO: Meet incoming Apple CEO John Ternus: Everything to know

For the hardware itself, all signs point to a narrower lineup than usual, with the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max all expected to headline, alongside Apple's first foldable phone, widely rumored to be called the iPhone Ultra. Missing the event, however, will likely be the standard iPhone 18, 18e, and next-gen iPhone Air, which are reportedly being pushed to a spring 2027 event instead. New Apple Watches are also expected to make an appearance.

Here's everything we know heading into the keynote.

iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max

Per Mashable's ongoing iPhone 18 coverage, Apple is expected to keep this launch focused on its Pro model iPhones.

In terms of design, the Pro models aren't expected to stray far from last year's look. In Mashable's rumors thread, leaks suggest a couple of tweaks rather than a full overhaul, including a smaller Dynamic Island cutout and a more unified, single-tone back glass in place of last year's two-tone finish.

Color-wise, Apple will mix up this year's finishes to include a silver, dark gray, light blue, and a new shade called "dark cherry."

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

Under the hood, the Pro models are expected to move to Apple's A20 and A20 Pro chips, paired with a new C2 modem that could bring 5G satellite support and an N2 chip aimed at improving WiFi and AirDrop reliability. Korean outlet The Bell has also reported that Apple plans to standardize RAM across the Pro lineup at 12GB, doing away with the base-versus-Pro memory split that's defined recent generations. Battery life should get a boost too, with capacity expected to land around 5,000mAh, which will appear the norm for the lineup.

The "biggest" change is within the camera. Several rumors have called the changes among the most significant camera hardware upgrades in the iPhone's history, due in part to a larger telephoto aperture and the introduction of variable aperture. That said, leaker Ice Universe has suggested the variable-aperture system might be exclusive to the Pro Max, leaving the standard Pro without it.

The Pro Max is also rumored to be very slightly larger and heavier than its predecessor, a tradeoff tied to fitting in a bigger battery.

iPhone Ultra A hypothetical rendering of the iPhone Ultra. Credit: Mashable / Zain bin Awais

The event's biggest wildcard is Apple's first foldable phone, widely expected to be called the iPhone Ultra (previously referred to in our reporting as the iPhone Fold). In our rumors guide on the Ultra, we noted that while Apple hasn't confirmed the device, code references in the iOS 27 beta, including strings tied to fold angles and screen states, plus macOS 27 features for resizing iPhone-mirroring windows, have made its existence something of an open secret.

Early testers cited by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reportedly liked the device's hinge quality and more iPad-like interface, though they were less impressed by the missing telephoto camera.

Expected specs, based on analyst and supply-chain reporting:

• A book-style design with a roughly 7.8-inch inner OLED display and a 5.5-inch outer display

• Touch ID rather than Face ID

• Four cameras total — two rear, one inner, one front-facing — though without a telephoto lens

• A liquid-metal hinge intended to improve durability

• A price above $2,000, with some estimates around $2,399

• A battery of at least 5,088mAh

Analysts, leakers, and even Gurman have been going back and forth for weeks about when the Ultra will actually release. Some reports say that the Ultra will be announced but won't hit shelves later, similar to the iPhone X. Others, like Gurman, have pushed back on this.

Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4

Rounding out the hardware slate are reports that the Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 are also expected in September, likely with new health and fitness features and fresh color and band options rather than a major redesign this cycle.

It'll be a more substantial overhaul that may include a return to ceramic cases. Apple is also exploring a screen-free model for the minimalist wearable market, targeting late 2026 or 2027, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

How to watch the iPhone 18 event

Apple's event kicks off Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. PT / 1:00 p.m. ET at the Steve Jobs Theater at Apple Park, with a livestream on Apple's website and YouTube channel for those not attending in person.

Mashable will be there on the ground, so look out for our coverage and hands-on impressions once the keynote wraps.

Apple has finally announced the date, time, and tagline for its annual iPhone launch event. The company said today that the "Surprise and shine" event will take place on Sept. 9 at 10 a.m. PT, and viewers will be able to watch the keynote live on YouTube, the Apple website, and Apple TV. At the event, Apple is widely expected to release the new iPhone 18 lineup, as well as a foldable smartphone, rumored to be called the iPhone Ultra.

As with past events, Apple released artwork to promote the event, which shows the text "Surprise and shine" and the Apple logo with a glowing neon effect. The image evokes the white neon glow of the Siri AI beta announced earlier this year at WWDC 2026. Apple also uploaded a livestream link for the event to its YouTube channel, and the video description reads, "Join us for a special event on September 9 at 10 a.m. PT."

Guess what Apple will release in September in our Big Guessing Game: Apple edition. Enter now for a chance to win!

The company declined to provide any additional information on the "special event," and we didn't expect them to. But we do have some idea of what Apple's working on.

Siri AI, is that you? Credit: Apple

Apple traditionally hosts an event in early September to announce the new iPhone lineup and other products. At last year's September keynote, Apple announced the iPhone 17, the Apple Watch Series 12, and the AirPods Pro 3. However, we expect this year's event to be unique in several ways, as the tagline seemingly suggests.

First, long-time Apple CEO Tim Cook is scheduled to step aside on Sept. 1 to make way for incoming CEO John Ternus, who currently works as Apple's Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering. This will be Ternus's first keynote, and the world will be watching to see how he sets the tone for a new era at Apple Park.

Second, Apple could release the first-ever foldable iPhone, the biggest change to the iPhone in years. Apple's smartphone competitors have been making foldable phones for years, but Apple has so far left the market to Google and Samsung. However, that's not unusual for Apple. The company didn't release the first smartphone or MP3 player, but when it finally entered the market, the company crushed the competition.

SEE ALSO: Apple is reportedly preparing iPhone price hikes (because of course they are)

Finally, the Siri AI beta will take one step closer to a public release, bringing Apple into the AI era at last.

We will be very interested to see if history repeats itself with the folding iPhone, or if the device goes the way of the Vision Pro.

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

SAVE $90: Normally $199, the black Nothing Headphone (a) are on sale for just $119 at Amazon and Best Buy today (Aug. 26) — an unprecedented 45% savings.

Opens in a new window Credit: Nothing Nothing Headphone (a) $109 at Amazon
$199 Save $90   Get Deal Opens in a new window Credit: Nothing Nothing Headphone (a) $109 at Best Buy
$199 Save $90   Get Deal

Looking for a pair of noise-cancelling headphones that just won't quit? Earlier this month, Mashable's audio experts crowned the Nothing Headphone (a) their top pick for long battery life. They last up to 75 hours with their ANC on and 135 hours (!) without; most headphones we tested previously maxed out around 60 hours.

Your timing is excellent, by the way: There's never been a better time to buy the Headphone (a). Today, Aug. 26, Amazon and Best Buy are both running 24-hour deals that bring the black pair down to just $109 — nearly half off their usual price of $199. They've never been cheaper since launching in March.

The Headphone (a) have "that quintessentially Nothing retro-look," our reviewer said. Credit: Bethany Allard / Mashable

Battery life aside, Mashable's Bethany Allard loved the Headphone (a)'s "perfect" physical control buttons, unique retro design, and good sound quality. (You might just need to adjust their equalizer in the Nothing X mobile app. Allard said they can be a bit bass-heavy right out of the box.) Allard actually recommends them over the flagship Nothing Headphone (1), which sound a little more balanced but fit uncomfortably and cost more, she said.

"The Nothing Headphone (a) is the best pair of headphones from Nothing, and one of the best pairs of mid-range headphones available to get, thanks to their solid all-around performance and standout battery life," Allard wrote.

If you don't like the black colorway, you can pick up the Headphone (a) in white, yellow, or pink for $119 at Amazon and Best Buy today. That's still a solid 40% savings.

As anti-AI sentiment continues to spread, one tech industry leader is now floating an idea for how to deal with it.

In a 6,000-word essay posted on his Gates Notes website, billionaire and former Microsoft head Bill Gates explains his fears about artificial intelligence and offers a few proposals for addressing them. Gates also discussed his concerns in a wide-ranging interview with the New York Times.

One of the most notable ideas Gates proposes is a new tax on AI, which he calls the "token tax." 

As Gates explains, businesses pay payroll taxes on human employees. However, if AI replaces a worker's job, that same company gets to write the purchase off as a business expense.

"The tax system nudges you toward replacing people with machines," Gates says, explaining how his previously proposed robot tax would also play a role alongside the AI-specific tax.

SEE ALSO: Bernie Sanders proposes bill to give the public a 50% stake in AI companies

Gates says the tax would help slow the impact of AI's growth on labor and that the money it raises could be used for job retraining and building a stronger social safety net. He also says that the tax could be set up to avoid affecting "purely beneficial uses of AI," which he describes as "making medicine and education cheaper."

In addition to the tax, Gates also proposed "Human Reserved" jobs, which would be set aside specifically for human beings. Gates classified jobs that workers would have difficulty transitioning from as potential Human Reserved employment. He also proposed that jobs requiring a human touch, such as caregiving, should be Human Reserved.

We might set something aside as Human Reserved for economic reasons. For example, we may do it because allowing machines to take over a certain role will displace a large number of people who can’t easily change jobs. You can’t tell a 55-year-old who has worked in construction their whole career that they need to go work at an elder care facility and expect them to find it fulfilling.

Sometimes the decision to make something Human Reserved will be driven by other factors. In health, for example, imagine a robot giving you the awful news that you have an incurable disease. There’s no technical reason why it couldn’t. Yet it shouldn’t.

For years, executives within the AI industry have talked about how the technology will dramatically change the job market and put people out of work.

“Entire classes of jobs will go away and not come back,” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman previously stated.

"You should be worried about where the technology we're building is going," warned Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, who has said AI could "wipe out" half of all white-collar jobs.

A study found that tens of thousands of jobs were lost due to AI last year, and economists are warning that more AI job losses are on the way.

Now, many people are revolting against AI. Companies are facing backlash from consumers over "AI slop." Data centers are deeply unpopular on both sides of the aisle. Even some politicians are now taking stances against data center construction due to anti-AI sentiment among their constituents.

Some within the AI industry, such as Altman, are suddenly backtracking on their previous dire warnings about AI and jobs. It will be interesting to see how AI leaders like Altman and Amodei react to Gates's essay, and if proposals like this can make a dent in rising anti-AI sentiment.

SAVE $100.01: The TCL Note A1 Nxtpaper Tablet is on sale at Amazon for $499.98, down from the normal price of $599.99. That's a 17% discount.

Opens in a new window Credit: TCL TCL Note A1 Nxtpaper Tablet + cover and stylus $499.98 at Amazon
$599.99 Save $100.01   Get Deal

In bad news for the week, Kindles saw price hikes to the tune of at least 25% pricier. That's not ideal if you had your eye on one of Amazon's e-readers. But in better news, we have a handful of worthy alternatives, and a particularly versatile model is on sale.

As of Aug. 26, the TCL Note A1 Nxtpaper Tablet is on sale at Amazon for $499.98, down from the normal price of $599.99. That's a 17% discount.

If you've been going back and forth between getting a new tablet or an e-reader, you don't have to decide. The TCL Note A1 Nxtpaper does both. It comes with TCL's Nxtpaper Pure display which is designed to mimic reading a physical book thanks to the reduces glare and enhanced clarity.

The TCL Note A1 has an 11.5-inch screen that's capable of displaying 16.7 million colors. TCL mentions that's a significant upgrade from the 60,000 colors on a standard color e-ink reader. But it does much more than serve as an e-reader.

SEE ALSO: Kindles just got more expensive, but the Kobo Clara Colour is on sale for under $160

The TCL has eight microphones for a 360-degree voice capture function that can give you AI meeting or lecture summaries. You can then easily share recordings or notes to Google Drive, Dropbox, or OneDrive. This model of the Nxtpaper comes with 256GB of storage and a 120Hz refresh rate.

On top of the tablet, this deal includes some great extras like a flip case, stylus, extra stylus tips, and a polishing cloth. Snag the TCL Note A1 Nextpaper Tablet bundle for under $500 at Amazon and get a tablet, e-reader, and AI notetaker all in one.

SAVE 23%: As of Aug. 26, you can get the Apple AirPods 4 for $99, down from $129, at Amazon. That's a 23% discount, or $30 in savings.

Apple AirPods 4 $99 at Amazon
$129 Save $30   Get Deal at Amazon Get Deal at Walmart Get Deal at Best Buy

I recently lost my AirPods, and I miss them so much. None of my backup headphones read my texts to me, which is a feature I desperately need back. If you're also in the market for a replacement, the Apple AirPods 4 are $99 at Amazon right now.

SEE ALSO: The 12 best headphones of 2026: We tested the top contenders from Sony, Apple, Bose, and Beats

That's right. As of Aug. 26, you can get the Apple AirPods 4 for $99, down from $129, at Amazon. That's a 23% discount, or $30 in savings. While this isn't the lowest price we've seen (they're usually $69 during Prime Day and Black Friday), it's still a really good deal.

The AirPods 4 have a shorter stem for a better fit, improved audio for phone calls, and a smaller USB-C charging case that gives you up to 30 hours of battery life. They're not noise-cancelling, but they do support Siri interactions, letting you respond by nodding "yes" or shaking "no."

SAVE 64%: Lovehoney's 2026 sex toy advent calendar lineup just went live. You get five countdown options (7, 12, or 24 days) starting at $129, with savings up to 64% on big-name toys like the Womanizer Starlet 3 and We-Vibe Moxie+.

OK, I'm usually pretty strict about not celebrating holidays early (looking at you, Starbucks — premature pumpkin-spicing is a crime). I won't put my tree up or even start shopping until after Thanksgiving, while my sister is out here buying presents in July. But when I saw that Lovehoney already dropped its 2026 advent calendars, I knew it was worth the early mention. You can't use a countdown calendar unless you buy it ahead of time, after all.

SEE ALSO: I've tested 100+ sex toys. Here are the 15 most mind-blowing toys I've ever owned.

This year, Lovehoney brought back five different boxes, ranging from seven-day teasers to full 24-day countdowns. Whether you're looking for a couples kit or a solo treat (honestly, buy the 24-day box for yourself — I def. support that!), these deals are way too good to pass up.

Each calendar saves you 56% to 64% off the retail price of the toys inside, so you'll get top-notch stuff from Womanizer, We-Vibe, and Arcwave for a fraction of the cost.

Here's a quick breakdown of what's in this year's lineup:

Lovehoney Romance Advent Calendar (7-Day) Opens in a new window Credit: Lovehoney Lovehoney Romance Advent Calendar (7 Day) $129 at Lovehoney
$291.91 Save $162.91   Get Deal

The Lovehoney Romance Advent Calendar (7-Day) has up to seven days' worth of goodies, including full-sized toys (like the We-Vibe Moxie+, which is worth $149 on its own!), games, and accessories. There's also a remote-controlled bullet with two interchangeable sleeves for couples' play.

This little box is ideal for couples who want to add a little ~spice~ to their bedroom routine without spending a fortune. If you don't like surprises, you can read the full product list on the Lovehoney site, but if you do, I'll keep the content list brief!

Lovehoney Indulge Advent Calendar (12-Day) Opens in a new window Credit: Lovehoney Lovehoney Indulge Advent Calendar (12-Day) $129 at Lovehoney
$191.87 Save $62.87   Get Deal

The Lovehoney Indulge Advent Calendar (12-Day) offers a bit more for the same price. But unlike the box above, this gift set is designed specifically for female pleasure.

You'll get 12 days' worth of fun, including a rechargeable mini wand vibrator, the Lovehoney Indulge (worth $89.99), and other cute add-ons like water-based lube and a crystal butt plug.

Lovehoney Enjoy Advent Calendar (24-Day) Opens in a new window Credit: Lovehoney Lovehoney Enjoy Advent Calendar (24-Day) $129 at Lovehoney
$216.77 Save $87.77   Get Deal

If you don't want to spend over $129, but you want a wider variety of toys, the Lovehoney Enjoy Advent Calendar (24-Day) is your best bet. Somehow, Lovehoney is letting this 24-day advent calendar go for $129.

It's filled with full-sized toys, like the Womanizer Starlet 3 (worth $85), and has a ton of kinky items, including nipple clamps, a feather tickler, a paddle, and bondage rope.

Lovehoney Couple's Advent Calendar (24-Day) Opens in a new window Credit: Lovehoney Lovehoney Couple's Advent Calendar (24-Day) $219 at Lovehoney
$389.77 Save $170.77   Get Deal

For those of you who don't mind spending $200+, the Lovehoney Couple's Advent Calendar (24-Day) will get you two premium toys — the Womanizer Liberty 2 (worth $109) and the We-Vibe Sync Lite (worth $99) — along with a bunch of other goodies like an aluminum crystal butt plug (can't recommend a crystal butt plug enough, honestly), massage oil, a cock ring lasso, ankle and wrist cuffs, and more.

Lovehoney Luxury Advent Calendar (24- Day) Opens in a new window Credit: Lovehoney Lovehoney Luxury Advent Calendar (24- Day) $369 at Lovehoney
$539.75 Save $170.75   Get Deal

OK, last but certainly not least, we have the Lovehoney Luxury Advent Calendar (24-Day). This box is the most expensive of the bunch ($369), but it also includes top-dollar toys, like the Womanizer Enhance (worth $169) and Arcwave Zing (worth $149). One of my faves? The candy cane glass dildo — nothing says "festive" like a candy cane shoved up your ass.

You'll also get anal beads, a cock ring, tons of vibrators (like, more than four), and fun kinky items like a sex position card game and bed restraints.

Ever since launching its app in April, cruising platform Squirt (aka SQ Dating in the App Store) has been adding new features to entice Grindr and Sniffies users to hop on and get off.

Its latest update includes a brand-new feature called "Places." The feature lets you broadcast your current location or flag where you'll be within the next hour. You can tag yourself at public spots like the gym, a local bar, or the beach so guys know you're out and ready to hang. (It's kind of like if Grindr's "Right Now" and Sniffies "Share a Spot" feature had a baby.)

SEE ALSO: Gay dating app Sniffies just got $100 million from Match Group

Squirt also revamped its Cruiser Listings — a cornerstone feature that's been on the site for over two decades — with real-time check-ins. You can signal when you've arrived at a location, or flag that you're heading there later in the day. Every listing now pulls user-submitted data to display active check-ins within a 45-mile radius.

"Squirt has always been about making Real-Life meetups happen," Rob Fisher, Director of Product Development and Customer Success, said in a press release. "With our new check-in features, members can let guys know where they are or where they're headed, see who's nearby, and turn a little curiosity into something more. It's a faster, more spontaneous way to find where the action is and be part of it."

To kick things off, Squirt is being generous and giving all members unlimited access to view active check-ins across every Cruising Listing for a limited time.

Parents will soon be able to remotely access Uber drivers' phone cameras to monitor their teen riders.

The new safety feature, announced Aug. 25, expands on existing parental controls through the ride sharing giant's teen accounts. When available, parents can choose to "check in" on their teen's ride using the driver's on-device camera and mic. Both the teen rider and the Uber driver are notified when live streaming is turned on, according to the company, and streams end as soon as rides are completed.

SEE ALSO: New Zealand to ban social media for kids under 16

In a statement to Mashable, Uber further clarified that live video is only accessible if the Uber driver has turned on the company's Record My Ride feature and enabled live streaming. Apart from a front-facing camera and microphone, there are no specific device requirements for drivers eligible for teen rides choosing to activate live streaming. Drivers can opt out at any time by turning off live video on their account.

The app will notify a parent if live streaming is paused due to an unstable connection or technical error, Uber said. In addition, only linked accounts can view live streams during an active trip.

Teens have already had the option to turn on audio recording during their trips. Similar to the app's audio recording feature, Uber says live streams remain encrypted, so videos cannot be viewed by parents, teens, or drivers after a trip is complete.

Credit: Uber Credit: Uber

Uber launched teen accounts for riders aged 13-17 in 2023, offering default safety features and trip monitoring for guardians on family accounts. The company has partnered with the National PTA, Safe Kids Worldwide, and the live tracking app Life360. Family features later expanded to Uber Eats, allowing teens to request food deliveries through their supervised accounts.

Uber has faced accusations that the company has not done enough to prevent sexual assault and other violent incidents against riders, including a recent lawsuit that found the company liable for a woman's rape after the app's automatic safety provisions failed to flag the ride as dangerous. In June, the company announced it was instituting stricter background check requirements and permanent bans for offending drivers.

Live video is currently being piloted for riders in several cities, including Atlanta, Phoenix, Orlando, Raleigh-Durham, Portland, San Antonio, Cleveland, and El Paso. It will rollout to the rest of the U.S. over the coming weeks.

There is a new name for the coworker who responds to a simple question with seven paragraphs that very clearly came straight from ChatGPT: a "meat proxy."

You probably know the type. They paste a question into an AI chatbot, copy the answer into Slack, and consider their work complete. The response may be long, polished, and packed with suspiciously corporate phrases, but it contains very little evidence that the person sending it has actually read it.

Now (thanks to one software engineer), we finally have a term for that.

What is a meat proxy? This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

The term appears to have been coined, or at least popularized, by German software engineer Niklas Gruhn, who laid out the phenomenon in an Aug. 3 blog post.

Gruhn said it kept happening everywhere: He would ask a question in Slack, leave feedback on a code review, or argue with friends in a group chat, and someone would return with, "Claude said: [giant response verbatim]."

The problem was not simply that the answer came from AI; it was that the person sending it had apparently contributed nothing beyond a few copy-and-paste commands. Meanwhile, Gruhn still had to wade through a response that could be verbose, filled with jargon, and confidently wrong.

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

As an example, he shared one particularly impenetrable sentence Claude had given him about "NATS control-plane events" and "R3 quorum re-form." Gruhn said he had to look up nearly every word just to understand what it was trying to say.

His proposed rule was simple: Use AI all you want, but "read it, understand it, and validate it" before responding in your own words. That final step matters less for hiding AI use than for showing an actual human stands behind the answer. Otherwise, Gruhn argued, the person in the middle isn't really helping. They're simply serving as a fleshy delivery system — or "meat proxy" — for Claude.

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

Gruhn's post quickly took off on Hacker News, where it attracted more than 700 comments. Developers began sharing their own encounters with coworkers who generate enormous amounts of AI content and leave everyone else to sort through it.

Some described receiving hundreds of lines of AI-generated analysis followed by a request to check whether any of it was correct. Others complained about sprawling internal documents that looked impressive until somebody actually read them. One commenter called these unsolicited blocks of AI text "slop grenades": Someone tosses a giant pile of chatbot output into the conversation, then walks away while everyone else deals with the mess.

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

The problem gets more serious when the AI output is not just an annoying Slack message but actual work someone else has to approve. Before new code is released, another programmer typically reviews it to make sure it works and will not break anything. But if someone submits a pile of AI-generated code they do not understand, the reviewer is suddenly stuck figuring out how it works, catching its mistakes, and essentially finishing the job for them. Software engineering consultant Michaela Greiler has a name for that, too: "code review exploitation."

Steve Mayne, CTO of tax platform Yonda, described exactly what that can look like in a LinkedIn post about meat proxies: "A pull request lands, it’s plausible, it’s large, but the person who ‘wrote’ it can’t explain line 40."

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

Maybe continues, writing that workplace review processes were designed for a time "when writing was expensive and reading was cheap." AI has flipped that on its head — producing an impressive amount of work can now take seconds.

That does not mean every sentence beginning with "Chat said..." is a workplace crime. Some people online argue that identifying an answer as AI-generated is useful because it tells the recipient where the information came from. And if someone has read the response, checked it, and decided it is worth sharing, quoting the chatbot is not necessarily the problem.

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

At the end of the day, use ChatGPT. Use Claude. Just make sure the answer passes through your brain before it enters the group chat. Otherwise, your coworkers now have the perfect term for you.

Best Govee lighting deals at a glance: Best outdoor deal Govee Permanent Outdoor Lights 2 (100 feet) $279.99 (save $50) Get Deal Best indoor deal Govee Floor Lamp 3 Lite $84.99 (save $35) Get Deal Best bedroom lighting deal Two Govee Lantern Floor Lamps $219.98 (save $40) Get Deal

When we consider home improvements, it often revolves are topics like new flooring, replacing the old bathroom tile, or giving the backyard patio a refresh. Those all give the home a new and fresh feel, but an easier way to change the vibe is to introduce better lighting.

Govee makes some of the best smart lighting options. I can vouch for the brand's incredible Govee Permanent Outdoor Lights Prism, and the Govee Lantern Floor Lamp is the coolest item I've added to my bedroom this year (more on that below).

If you've new to the world of Govee smart lighting, you're in for a real treat. The range of color options, customizations, and fun to be had in the app is something special that I can recommend for any home, apartment, or dorm room.

Lucky for us, Amazon has a ton of Govee lighting options on sale ahead of Labor Day. Here are some of our favorites if you're looking for simple home and room upgrades that make for a major improvement.

Best outdoor Govee deal Opens in a new window Credit: Govee Govee Permanent Outdoor Lights 2 $279.99 at Amazon
$329.99 Save $50   Get Deal Why we like it

If you or your partner dreads going up on the roof each year to hang the Christmas lights, consider going with the convenience of the Govee Permanent Outdoor Lights 2. Get them on the house once and you're done for about 13 years since each bulb is designed to last for about 50,000 hours of use.

In addition to being durable enough to weather rain, snow, heat, and sun, the Govee Permanent Outdoor Lights 2 give you the opportunity to celebrate every season, not just winter holidays. Consider the fun to be had with Halloween lights, Valentine's Day, 4th of July, and rooting for your favorite sports team in the form of house lights.

Best indoor lights deal Opens in a new window Credit: Govee Govee Floor Lamp 3 Lite $84.99 at Amazon
$119.99 Save $35   Get Deal Why we like it

Perfect for the living room, game room, or a dorm room, the Govee Floor Lamp 3 Lite is on sale for only $84.99 at Amazon. The corner lamp has over 105 scene modes in the Govee app and 12 music modes that will match the lighting to your current playlist. You also have control of the color temperature, with the ability to make it warm for calm evenings or bright for making rainy days feel more like summer.

Best bedroom lights deal Opens in a new window Credit: Govee Two Govee Lantern Floor Lamps $219.98 at Amazon
$259.98 Save $40.00   Get Deal Why we like it

The Govee Lantern Floor Lamp is my favorite lamp in the house. Thanks to Amazon's sale price, you can snag two lamps for $219.98, down from the normal price of $259.98 for two. The lantern is made with a soft-touch silicone which makes it shatter proof, and the Govee app gives plenty of customization options. During the day, I keep it bright, and come evening, I turn it to a candlelight mode. Plus, the Govee app updates often will new lighting options. Since the lantern sits on four detachable metal poles, you can choose your ideal height.

More Govee deals

• Govee RGBIC Floor Lamp Basic — $69.99 $99.99 (save $30)

• Govee Clear Bulb Outdoor String Lights (96 feet) — $109.99 $149.99 (save $40)

• Govee Outdoor Net Lights — $109.99 $149.99 (save $40)

• Govee Cube Wall Sconces — $109.99 $159.99 (save $50)

Mashable has interviewed a handful of high-earning OnlyFans creators, but just how many are bringing in literal millions on the platform?

According to OnlyFans, just over 5,000 (5,076, to be exact) creators made over $1 million from the platform, Variety and others reported. But there are over five million creator accounts on the platform, and 2.5 million were active in the most recent fiscal year. So, the reality is there is a small, small chance of raking in seven figures (0.1 percent of all registered creator accounts).

SEE ALSO: OnlyFans 'managers' take advantage of creators, BBC finds

Meanwhile, OnlyFans' parent company Fenix International paid now-deceased owner Leonid Radvinsky dividends of $535 million for the year ending Nov. 30, 2025, and further payments of $174 million through March 26, 2026, according to Variety. In March, Radvinsky died of cancer at the age of 43. His widow, Yekaterina "Katie" Chudnovsky, has taken control of the company, Variety reported.

In May, investment firm Architect Capital bought a 16 percent stake in OnlyFans, also for $535 million. Architect Capital founder James Sagan recently stated in an interview that AI can't "disrupt" the platform's creators.

OnlyFans had a net revenue of $1.55 million for the fiscal year that ended in Nov. 2025, which is a 10 percent increase.

"OnlyFans provides real opportunities to real people by creating a safe, regulated space where people can monetize their content with a global fan base," OnlyFans CEO Keily Blair said in a statement published in Variety.

"In 2026, we continue to grow our offerings to both creators and fans, demonstrating and realizing the value, success and potential of the global creator economy across all verticals and genres." Mashable has also reached out to OnlyFans for comment.

Two days into a precedent-setting trial in which the tech giant was accused of designing addictive platforms, Meta has agreed to a mammoth $17 billion settlement.

In addition to the financial penalties — just a portion of the potential $200 billion payout from multiple lawsuits filed against the company — Meta has also committed to making platform changes intended to limit teens' time online. Such changes include one-hour daily limits, screen time features like night mode, and stronger age assurance measures.

SEE ALSO: TikTok to pay $400 million over child privacy lawsuit

The case was brought forth by 29 state attorneys general and represented claims from 47 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories as part of a federal multidistrict litigation (MDL). Meta will pay $12 billion to the 52 state attorneys general over 10 years, adding an additionsl $5 billion if other defendants, including Snap, TikTok, and YouTube, also agree to the settlement.

View this post on Instagram

"I’m pleased to announce that Meta has reached an agreement with a bipartisan group of state attorneys general from around the country on a new set of rules governing teens’ use of social media," wrote Meta chief legal officer C.J. Mahoney. "The framework we’ve negotiated will empower parents to easily manage how their children access our platforms. Our new Time Limit commitments, Night Mode features and usage limits during school hours set the right path forward for our whole industry, but this framework will only work if all our peers join us."

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

The trial was only the latest of a wave of litigation against the social media giant, including a recent standoff with New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez. Last month, Meta was ordered to pay $567 million to fund youth mental health services for teens harmed by Meta products, following a history-making guilty verdict that resulted in a $375 million payout for violating consumer protection laws.

In another instance, a teen plaintiff dropped their case against Meta after reaching settlement deals with Snapchat, TikTok, and YouTube. Competitor platforms are also weathering multiple individual and state-directed lawsuits over claims that their products are exacerbating the youth mental health crisis and stoking screen time addiction.

Several leaders at these companies, including Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Instagram head Adam Mosseri, have been directly named in the lawsuit for their roles in allegedly ignoring concerns about the effects of their products.

"We congratulate the state AGs for this historic settlement, a major step toward holding Meta accountable for the harm its platforms have caused young people," wrote co-lead plaintiffs’ counsel Lexi Hazam and settlement counsel Chris Seeger, who represent plaintiffs in school district and personal injury suits, in a statement following news of the settlement. "Thousands of young people and public school districts still have claims pending in the MDL against Meta, as well as TikTok, Snap and YouTube, and we stand ready to continue that fight. We will not rest until every one of these plaintiffs sees justice for the harms caused by all of the defendants’ platforms."

SAVE $26: As of Aug. 26, new and returning subscribers can lock in two months of Paramount+ Premium for just $0.99 per month by entering the code p2mcs26prem at checkout. Typically $13.99 per month, that's a total of $26 in savings.

Opens in a new window Credit: Paramount+ Paramount+ Premium $0.99/month for 2 months (save $26) with code p2mcs26prem Get Deal

More often than not, when you find a good streaming deal, it's only valid for ad-supported tiers. But Paramount+ has been steadily delivering some hefty discounts for those who prefer to watch ad-free. The latest is a secret code that'll unlock two months for 99 cents a pop.

As of Aug. 26, new and returning subscribers can secure two months of streaming on Paramount+ Premium for just $0.99 per month by entering the code p2mcs26prem at checkout. That's less than $2 for two full months. Typically $13.99 per month, you'll save $26 total. The code is actively working as of Aug. 26, but the end date is unspecified. So if you want to lock in the savings, do it ASAP.

After selecting the monthly Premium ad-free plan, click on "Have a promo code?" on the checkout page and enter p2mcs26prem. The discount will then automatically apply.

Paramount+ may not be as popular as Netflix or HBO, but it's still a surprisingly robust streaming service. NFL fans without cable will want to lock in a subscription for the season to watch live local AFC games. UFC fans, if you haven't signed up yet, what are you waiting for? Paramount+ is the exclusive home of UFC's marquee events as well as 30 Fight Nights. Beyond just sports, though, it's also the home of your local CBS Network live, the entirety of Showtime's catalog, Paramount Pictures films straight from the theater, nostalgic TV from Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, MTV, and more, and Paramount+ Originals like Criminal Minds: Evolution, Tulsa King, and Dutton Ranch.

It probably goes without saying, but once your two-month promotional period is up, the price will jump back up to $13.99 per month. Be sure to cancel before that if you want to avoid automatic charges.

SAVE $150: The Alienware 34 240Hz QD-OLED Curved Gaming Monitor (AW3425DW) is on sale for $649.99 on Amazon and Dell's website. That's 19% off its regular retail price of $799.99.

Opens in a new window Credit: Dell Alienware 34 240Hz QD-OLED Curved Gaming Monitor (AW3425DW) $649.99 at Amazon and Dell
$799.99 Save $150   Get Deal

It's been a rough few years for cash-strapped PC gamers: After dealing with the GPU shortage of the early 2020s, we're now in the thick of a global memory crisis. If you're in the unfortunate position of needing to upgrade your existing setup or build a new one, it's never been smarter to wait for sales before buying new hardware or peripherals.

Here's a solid monitor deal that the Mashable Shopping team spotted this week: Alienware's 34 240Hz QD-OLED Curved Gaming Monitor (AW3425DW) is currently marked down to $649.99 on Amazon and Dell's website. It typically retails for $799.99, so you wind up saving a cool $150. This is its lowest price outside of a short period in June when it fell to $615.

The AW3425DW is an immersive 34-inch ultrawide curved gaming monitor with a 1400p resolution, a 0.03ms response time, a silky-smooth 240Hz refresh rate, and a height-adjustable stand that can tilt and swivel. Dell's gaming brand released it last spring.

You may recall that even cheaper 240Hz QD-OLED Alienware gaming monitor debuted this April. However, it's not curved, not as wide, and dimmer than the AW3425DW, which hits 1,000 nits of peak brightness for HDR content. The pricier AW3425DW also adds a built-in USB hub and Nvidia G-SYNC compatibility.

Best Buy had the AW3425DW on sale at the time of writing, but it was only $50 off there.