Ars Technica Features

1. A senator tried to ban gambling on prediction markets—now she's a Kalshi lobbyist

   Sen. Blanche Lincoln wrote law that let US ban sports-event contracts. She lobbies for the other side now.

2. If you're looking, here's a "good deal" for NASA and the European Space Agency

   "We are in the era of people interested in having good deals, and LISA is a very good deal for the US."

3. Explaining Hall-effect, TMR, and other new types of "mechanical" switches

   Ars Technica's guide to new keyboard sensing technologies.

4. TCL is right to question Samsung’s use of the term “Mini LED”

   Can it be Mini LED without a FALD backlight?

5. NASA has a Dragon dilemma, and there appear to be no good answers

   So is SpaceX just being selfish or what?

6. Interview: Firefox's chief on why he hopes a redesign will help win users from Chrome

   Mozilla's Ajit Varma explains why a redesign suits the fight for the open web.

7. Microsoft goes quiet after church groups ask for 1% of data center costs

   “Microsoft claims to want to be a good neighbor, but the jury is still out."

8. Trump admin using AI to deny medical care for seniors in disastrous experiment

   Vendors rolling out AI have an "incentive to deny as many claims as possible."

9. Review: Apple's hyper-pricey M5 Ultra Mac Studio made me into a vibe coder

   Usable local AI is a lot of fun, but how much would you pay for it?

10. A new report from Europe raises serious alarms about orbital collisions

    "I think we are going to lose the ability to use certain orbits."

11. Apple Mac mini review: The new M6 impresses, but the price hike is rough

    The M4 Mac mini was one of Apple's best values. The $899 M6 mini, not so much.

12. macOS 27 Golden Gate: The Ars Technica review

    It's both a "Snow Leopard update" and a major leap for Apple Intelligence.

13. Steam Frame: The Ars Technica review

    Valve's new $1,059 VR hardware tries to revive an abandoned VR "revolution."

14. Could United Launch Alliance's money problems finally force its owners to sell?

    ULA is preparing to resume launching the Vulcan rocket in the coming weeks.

15. Man told ChatGPT he was feeling delusional. ChatGPT insisted he was Jesus.

    Man with bipolar disorder sued OpenAI after surviving ChatGPT-linked suicide attempt.

16. The complex corporate web behind a $3.2 billion AI data center

    When multiple companies are behind one project, who bears responsibility for problems?

17. Nearly impossible? How Fairphone built the ethical, repairable Fairphone Gen 6+

    Fairphone's CTO explains how and why the Dutch company builds a different kind of smartphone.

18. Meet the 2026 Ig Nobel Prize winners

    The annual award ceremony features miniature operas, scientific demos, and "24/7" lectures.

19. I rented a car, and within hours, my driver's license was for sale

    The FBI is reportedly investigating a massive data breach that is unfolding in real time.

20. Without new landers or rovers, it's helicopters or bust for NASA's Mars program

    NASA's cost estimate for SR-1 Freedom is $2.1 billion, but that doesn't include the helicopters.