Nine months later, the Trump phone still doesn’t exist
Nine months later, the Trump phone still doesn’t exist

Where’s the Trump phone? We’re going to keep talking about it every week. We’ve reached out, as usual, to ask about the Trump phone’s whereabouts. Once again, we’re waiting for a response. It’s been more than a month since two Trump Mobile executives showed me what they claimed was the T1 Phone, and in the […]

‘Work from home,’ encourages the world’s energy watchdog
‘Work from home,’ encourages the world’s energy watchdog

Many organizations have called employees back to offices following covid-related lockdowns, but the Iran war and ensuing energy crisis may quickly see workers returning to work from home. The International Energy Agency (IEA) – an energy watchdog established to help safeguard global power supplies following the 1970s oil crisis – is pushing for governments, businesses, […]

Prediction markets are trying to lure journalists with partnership deals
Prediction markets are trying to lure journalists with partnership deals

Prediction markets are working to ingratiate themselves with mainstream news and culture: The Golden Globes broadcast in January was plastered with Polymarket odds, the AP is licensing election data to Kalshi, and a partnership between Polymarket and Substack means more prediction market data in newsletters. Some prediction market exchanges are now attempting to strike deals […]

Lina Khan was right
Lina Khan was right

In 2021, the virtual world was the future of the internet. The pandemic had sequestered everyone indoors, heightening the appeal of digital communities. Facebook rebranded to Meta – a sign of the tech giant’s investment in and commitment to the metaverse as the future of the internet. Despite losing billions in VR, Meta released an […]

Trump is threatening international students, and a new bill could help stop him
Trump is threatening international students, and a new bill could help stop him

A bipartisan duo is pushing back on President Donald Trump’s attempts to end a program that lets hundreds of thousands of foreign students work in the US for a year after graduation. Reps. Sam Liccardo (D-CA) and Jay Obernolte (R-CA) introduced a bill that would codify Optional Practical Training (OPT), which allows international students to […]

The FBI is buying Americans’ location data
The FBI is buying Americans’ location data

FBI director Kash Patel admitted that the agency is buying location data that can be used to track people’s movements. Unlike information obtained from cellphone providers, this data can be accessed without a warrant – and used to track anyone. “We do purchase commercially available information that’s consistent with the Constitution and the laws under […]

Congress considers blowing up internet law
Congress considers blowing up internet law

Internet platforms’ liability shield Section 230 faced another round of attack at a Senate Commerce Committee hearing on Wednesday, this time with two distinct undercurrents complicating the conversation. One was an unprecedented wave of ongoing legal challenges to the law’s scope, and the second was a heightened bipartisan concern over government censorship. “Section 230 is […]

David Sacks’ big Iran warning gets big time ignored
David Sacks’ big Iran warning gets big time ignored

Hello and welcome to Regulator, a newsletter for Verge subscribers about the politics of technology and the technology of politics – now landing in your inbox on Wednesdays! If someone has forwarded this email to you, and you’re not a Verge subscriber yet, you should sign up right here, and not just because it would […]

Oh, you think the government will regulate Kalshi and Polymarket? Wanna bet?
Oh, you think the government will regulate Kalshi and Polymarket? Wanna bet?

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has a problem: It’s not very good at policing insider trading. And insider trading has become a pressing concern for prediction markets. Even Kalshi’s recently publicized fines for insider trading – levied against a politician and an employee of YouTube influencer MrBeast – were effectively self-policing. The exchange says it’s […]

The great EV pullback: all the obstacles, cancellations, and delays
The great EV pullback: all the obstacles, cancellations, and delays

The auto industry bet big on electric vehicles, but now those ambitious goals are falling apart. Demand was already slowing down when Donald Trump took office and took an ax to pro-EV policy: the elimination of the federal EV tax credit, kneecapping clean energy, and bulldozing emissions rules. Tariffs have been taking their toll as […]