ROCm 7.2.3 Brings Minor Updates, ROCm XIO Documentation
Less than one month after releasing ROCm 7.2.2, the ROCm 7.2.3 is now available with some minor improvements to this open-source AMD GPU compute and AI stack… ⌘ Read more

Newegg Promo Code: 10% Off in May 2026
Enjoy up to 10% off your entire order with today’s Newegg promo code and discount codes. Save with the latest deals for gaming PCs, laptops, and computer parts. ⌘ Read more

Convicted Former Harvard Scientist Rebuilds Brain Computer Lab In China
Reuters reports that Charles Lieber, the former Harvard scientist convicted of lying to U.S. authorities about payments and ties to China, is now leading China’s state-funded i-BRAIN lab in Shenzhen, where he has access to advanced nanofabrication tools and primate research facilities for brain-computer interface work. From the re … ⌘ Read more

Remembering Seth Nickell
LWN has received the sad news that Seth Nickell passed away, on
April 16, from his father, Eric Nickell:

Many of you knew Seth from his work in the GNOME Usability Project, but his
roots in that community trace back to his high school years. As a father of
a high school junior, I remember being terrified when he flashed the hard
drive of a computer he purchased for himself with this weird “Linux” thing.
And I was a bit awed by the college application essay he wrote about open
source and Linus Tor … ⌘ Read more

Get Ready for More Brain-Scanning Consumer Gadgets
Neurable, which makes noninvasive brain-computer interfaces, is licensing its technology and promises a “flood” of new third-party hardware this year and next. ⌘ Read more

The Hottest Anti-AI Gadget Is a Cyberdeck
On TikTok, young women are going viral for crafting whimsical homemade computers inside purses. ⌘ Read more

A Brain Implant for Depression Is About to Be Tested in Humans
While many brain-computer interface companies are focused on helping paralyzed people communicate, Motif Neurotech is targeting mental health disorders. ⌘ Read more

Privacy Advocate Accuses US Government of Investing in AI-Powered Mass Surveillance
The Conversation published this warning from privacy/tech law/electronic surveillance attorney Anne Toomey McKenna (also an affiliated faculty member at Penn State’s Institute for Computational and Data Sciences). The U.S. government “is able to purchase Americans’ sensitive data because the information it buy … ⌘ Read more

Google To Invest Up To $40 Billion In Anthropic
Google plans to invest up to $40 billion more in Anthropic, starting with $10 billion now and another $30 billion tied to performance milestones. CNBC reports: Anthropic said the agreement expands on a longstanding partnership between the two companies. Earlier this month, Anthropic secured 5 gigawatts worth of computing capacity as part of an announcement with Google and Broadcom … ⌘ Read more

OpenAI Says Its New GPT-5.5 Model Is More Efficient and Better At Coding
OpenAI released its new GPT-5.5 model today, which the company calls its “smartest and most intuitive to use model yet, and the next step toward a new way of getting work done on a computer.” The Verge reports: OpenAI just released GPT-5.4 last month, but says that the new GPT-5.5 “excels” at tasks like writing and debugging code, doing … ⌘ Read more

Ubuntu 26.04 Allows “sudo apt install rocm” But It’s Months Out-Of-Date
Canonical announced last year that in collaboration with AMD they would be bringing the ROCm software libraries into the Ubuntu archive for Ubuntu 26.04 LTS. The plan has been to ship AMD ROCm AI/ML and HPC libraries in the Ubuntu archive so it would be as easy as sudo apt install rocm for getting started with AMD’s open-source GPU compute stack. With today being the Ubuntu 26.04 LTS release day, I decided to revisit the topic… ⌘ Read more

Firefox: The zero-days are numbered
This\
Firefox blog post reports that the Firefox 150 release includes
fixes for 271 vulnerabilities found by the Claude Mythos preview.

Elite security researchers find bugs that fuzzers can’t largely by
reasoning through the source code. This is effective, but
time-consuming and bottlenecked on scarce human
expertise. Computers were completely incapable of doing this a few
months ago, and now they excel at i … ⌘ Read more

Meta To Start Capturing Employee Mouse Movements, Keystrokes For AI Training Data
Reuters reports that Meta plans to start collecting U.S.-based employees’ mouse movements, clicks, keystrokes, and occasional screen snapshots to train AI agents that can better learn how humans use computers. The tool, called Model Capability Initiative (MCI), will reportedly “not be used for performance assessme … ⌘ Read more

Framework Computer Announces The Framework Laptop 13 Pro
At Framework Computer’s next-gen hardware launch event today they announced the Framework Laptop 13 Pro as a ground-up redesign of their 13-inch modular laptop… ⌘ Read more

Framework Previews The OCuLink Dev Kit
In addition to announcing the Framework Laptop 13 Pro today, Framework Computer at their next-gen hardware event also previewed the OCuLink Dev Kit for attaching high throughput peripherals like external GPUs (eGPUs) to Framework Laptops… ⌘ Read more

AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D2 Benchmarks: The Best Desktop Performance For Linux Developers, Creators
Today we can finally share performance benchmarks of the long-rumored AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D2 Dual Edition processor. This new halo product for the Ryzen 9000 series desktop line-up offers captivating performance for developers frequently compiling code, creators, technical computing workloads for students or hobbyists or those not able to afford a Threadripper / EPYC type workstation, or similar heavy computing use. With … ⌘ Read more

Allbirds’ Move To AI Has Echoes of the Dot-Com Frenzy
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Bloomberg, written by writer Austin Carr: Allbirds is pivoting to artificial intelligence. The San Francisco brand, whose wool running shoes were once the sneaker du jour among the tech crowd, announced last week that it was expanding into AI computing infrastructure. The bizarre strategic shift was immediately greeted with a surpris … ⌘ Read more

Intel Compute Runtime Promotes Support For Wildcat Lake, “Early” Crescent Island
Out today is the Intel Compute Runtime 26.14.37833.4 that now includes production support for the newly-launched Wildcat Lake cut-down Panther Lake SoCs that debuted last week as the Core Series 3… ⌘ Read more

A Lot Of Memory Management “MM” Improvements Merged For Linux 7.1
Andrew Morton recently sent out his various “MM” related pull requests for the ongoing Linux 7.1 kernel. There are a number of memory management optimizations in this next kernel version, which is always nice to see but all the more so these days with the inflated RAM pricing and other computer component prices… ⌘ Read more

Also, this really speaks to me (or maybe it speaks for me): https://neilzone.co.uk/2026/04/just-let-me-compute-in-peace/

Fewer US College Students Major in CS. More Choose Data Science, Engineering
“From 2008 to 2024, the number of four-year computer science degrees granted rose about fivefold…” reports the Washington Post. Then in 2025 CS suddenly dropped from the fourth-largest undergraduate major to sixth, they report (citing data from the nonprofit National Student Clearinghouse, which compiles numbers from … ⌘ Read more

[$] A more efficient implementation of Shor’s algorithm
Shor’s algorithm is the main practical example of an algorithm that runs more
quickly on a quantum computer than a classical computer — at least in theory.
Shor’s algorithm allows large numbers to be factored
into their component prime factors quickly.
In reality, existing quantum computers do not have nearly
enough memory to factor interesting numbers using Shor’s algorithm, despite
decades of research.
[A new paper](https://a … ⌘ Read more

Struggling Shoe Retailer Allbirds Pivots To AI, Stock Explodes More Than 700%
Allbirds made a surprise announcement this morning: it’s pivoting from sustainable shoes to AI compute infrastructure, rebranding as NewBird AI after selling its brand assets and closing its U.S. full-price stores. The move sent shares soaring more than 700%. CNBC reports: The move boosted shares of the miniscule market ca … ⌘ Read more

AMD ROCm 7.2.2 Brings Optimization Guide For Ryzen AI / RDNA 3.5 Hardware
ROCm 7.2.2 is out today as a small point release to this open-source AMD GPU compute stack. There are a few code changes but most notable is arguably on the documentation side… ⌘ Read more

LLM-Assisted Patches For Linux 7.1 May Have Negative Impact On 32-bit Systems
Code now merged for the Linux 7.1 kernel may provide some negative performance implications for those still running modern Linux kernels on 32-bit hardware. A fundamental change can present cache line alignment and slab sizing implications for 32-bit Linux OS users but will provide for cleaner code with modern 64-bit computing… ⌘ Read more

A New Computer Chip Could Finally Withstand The Hellscape of Venus
Researchers at the University of Southern California say they’ve developed a memristor memory device that continued operating at 700 degrees Celsius. “And crucially, 700 degrees was not the limit, it was simply as hot as their testing equipment could go,” adds ScienceAlert. “The device showed no signs of failing.” From the report: The devi … ⌘ Read more

Will Some Programmers Become ‘AI Babysitters’?
Will some programmers become “AI babysitters”? asks long-time Slashdot readertheodp. They share some thoughts from a founding member of Code.org and former Director of Education at Google:

“AI may allow anyone to generate code, but only a computer scientist can maintain a system,” explained Google.org Global Head Maggie Johnson in a LinkedIn post. So “As AI-generated code beco … ⌘ Read more

RISC-V BeagleV Ahead Single Board Computer To See Working HDMI With Linux 7.1
The BeagleV Ahead is an open-source RISC-V single board computer S(BC) built around the quad-core TH1520 SoC. With the Linux 7.1 mainline kernel there is HDMI display support coming now that the Device Tree bits have been added… ⌘ Read more

France’s Government Is Ditching Windows For Linux
France says it plans to move some government computers from Windows to Linux as part of a broader push for digital sovereignty and reduced dependence on U.S. technology. TechCrunch reports: In a statement, French minister David Amiel said (translated) that the effort was to “regain control of our digital destiny” by relying less on U.S. tech companies. Amiel said that the Fre … ⌘ Read more

AI Is Coming for Car Salesmen
An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Drive: An auto dealer software company is pitching AI-powered kiosks designed to replace car salesmen on showroom floors. Automotive News says the industry is “skeptical.” But be honest – would you really rather deal with the average car lot shark than a computer?

Epikar, a South Korean company that cooks up digital management solutions for car dealers, has named its n … ⌘ Read more

Framework Computer To Announce Their Next-Gen Hardware Later This Month
Linux-friendly hardware vendor Framework Computer sent out a notice this morning that they will be announcing their new 2026 hardware products later this month… ⌘ Read more

TUXEDO Laptops Will Enjoy More Features With The Upstream Linux 7.1 Kernel
TUXEDO Computers’ laptops received some heat in the past from upstream Linux kernel developers over their out-of-tree kernel drivers but fortunately that situation has been improving. The Uniwill driver premiered in the Linux 6.19 kernel with that OEM manufacturing many of the TUXEDO Computers laptop models. That Uniwill x86 platform driver enabled more functionality for TUXEDO hardware in the mainline kernel and has continued improvi … ⌘ Read more

FFmpeg Introduces Vulkan-Accelerated 360 Degree Video Conversion
Beyond the capabilities of just the Vulkan Video API, the FFmpeg multimedia library has made interesting Vulkan-accelerated adaptations using compute shaders. With Vulkan compute they’ve implemented Apple ProRes video acceleration, FFV1 decode, and other features. The newest Vulkan feature now in place for FFmpeg is 360 degree video conversion… ⌘ Read more

Anthropic Reveals $30 Billion Run Rate, Plans To Use 3.5GW of New Google AI Chips
Anthropic says its annualized revenue run rate has surpassed $30 billion and disclosed plans to secure roughly 3.5 gigawatts of next-generation Google TPU compute starting in 2027. Broadcom will supply the key chips and networking gear for the effort, the company announced. The Register reports: News of the two d … ⌘ Read more

Cloudflare Fast-Tracks Post-Quantum Rollout To 2029
Cloudflare is accelerating its post-quantum security plans and now aims to make its entire platform fully post-quantum secure by 2029. “The updated timeline follows new developments in quantum computing research that suggest current cryptographic standards could be broken sooner than previously expected,” reports SiliconANGLE. From the report: The decision by Cloudflare t … ⌘ Read more

Stanford Daily Ponders Fate of Bill Gates Namesake Building On April Fools’ Day
theodp writes: “Gates Computer Science Building renamed Peter Thiel Center for Panoptic Computing” reads the headline of an April Fools’ Day story that ran in the Humor section of The Stanford Daily (with the further disclaimer that “This article is purely satirical and fictitious”). The story begins: “Following revel … ⌘ Read more

Framework Reports More Memory Cost Increases, Some Good News For Framework 16
Framework Computer on Monday issued their latest update concerning the ongoing price increases for memory and solid state drives affecting the industry. There has been some more price increases, signs of some temporary reprieve, and then a bit of good news on pricing for select Framework hardware… ⌘ Read more

Germany Doxes ‘UNKN,’ Head of RU Ransomware Gangs REvil, GandCrab
An anonymous reader quotes a report from KrebsOnSecurity: An elusive hacker who went by the handle “UNKN” and ran the early Russian ransomware groups GandCrab and REvil now has a name and a face. Authorities in Germany say 31-year-old Russian Daniil Maksimovich Shchukin headed both cybercrime gangs and helped carry out at least 130 acts of computer … ⌘ Read more

Tiny Corp Begins Accepting Pre-Orders For Their $10M Exabox
Open-source friendly company Tiny Corp that is behind the Tinygrad MIT-licensed neural network framework and developing a “sovereign” AMD GPU driver stack with their Tinybox hardware offerings has their sights on shipping the Exabox next year. The Tiny Corp’s Exabox is expected to retail for around $10M USD but offer immense AI compute power… ⌘ Read more

Vulkan 1.4.348 Ships Four New Extensions - Including One To Help OpenGL Emulation
Vulkan 1.4.348 released this morning as the latest routine update to this high performance graphics and compute API. With Vulkan 1.4.348 comes four new extensions… ⌘ Read more

KTransformers Adds AVX2 MoE Support For Viable Performance On CPUs Without AMX/AVX-512
KTransformers 0.5.3 released today for this framework for efficient inferencing and fine-tuning of large language models (LLMs) with a focus on CPU-GPU heterogeneous computing. With this release, KTransformers 0.5.3 is now more applicable for CPUs lacking Advanced Matrix Extensions (AMX) and AVX-512 in now providing some AVX2-only kernels too… ⌘ Read more

The Integrated ROCm Story For Ubuntu 26.04 Still Playing Out
Ubuntu 26.04 LTS is just three weeks out for release with many great features in tow from the GNOME 50 desktop to the very leading-edge Linux 7.0 kernel and many other package updates. One feature that many had been looking forward to is Canonical’s plans to ship AMD ROCm directly in the Ubuntu archive for a much cleaner experience for those wanting to make use of AMD’s open-source GPU compute stack. As a common question in recent weeks from readers, it … ⌘ Read more

AMD Improves GPU Support Under WSL With Production Open-Source ROCDXG
For those wanting to make use of Linux GPU compute software under Windows 11 by way of Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL2), AMD’s ROCDXG “librocdxg” library is now deemed production-ready for delivering open-source ROCm compatibility with WSL… ⌘ Read more

Apple’s Early Days: Massive Oral History Shares Stories About Young Wozniak and Jobs
Apple’s 50th anniversary is this week — and Fast Company’s Harry McCracken just published an 11,000-word oral history with some fun stories from Apple’s earliest days and the long and winding road to its very first home computers:

Steve Wozniak, cofounder, Apple: I told my dad when I was in high school, “I’ … ⌘ Read more

Do Emergency Microsoft, Oracle Patches Point to Wider Issues?
“Emergency out-of-band fixes issued by enterprise IT giants Microsoft and Oracle have shone a spotlight on issues around both update cycles and patching,” reports Computer Weekly:

Microsoft’s emergency update, KB5085516, addresses an issue that arose after installing the mandatory cumulative updates pushed live on Patch Tuesday earlier this month. Accordi … ⌘ Read more

IBM Quantum Computer Simulates Real Magnetic Materials and Matches Lab Data
“IBM says its quantum computer can now simulate real magnetic materials and match actual lab experiment results,” writes Slashdot reader BrianFagioli, “which is something people have been waiting years to see.”

Instead of just theoretical output, the system reproduced neutron scattering data from a known material, meaning it lin … ⌘ Read more

Google Moves Post-Quantum Encryption Timeline Up To 2029
Google has moved up its post-quantum encryption migration target to 2029. “This new timeline reflects migration needs for the PQC era in light of progress on quantum computing hardware development, quantum error correction, and quantum factoring resource estimates,” said vice president of security engineering Heather Adkins and senior staff cryptology engineer Sop … ⌘ Read more

Framework Computer Steps Up Their Support For KDE
Framework Computer as the company behind the modular Framework laptops and incredible Ryzen AI Max “Strix Halo” Framework Desktop has stepped up their support for the KDE community… ⌘ Read more

Intel Xe Driver In Linux 7.1 Enabling THP For Device Pages As A Big SVM Win
Sent out today was a new batch of “drm-xe-next” material of Intel Xe kernel graphics driver improvements ready for the upcoming Linux 7.1 kernel cycle. Standing out in this pull is enabling Transparent Hugepages (THP) support for drm_pagemap as a big win for those making use of Shared Virtual Memory (SVM) for GPU compute and the like… ⌘ Read more

AMD ROCm 7.2.1 Released With Ubuntu 24.04.4 LTS Support, Bug Fixes
Building off the release of ROCm 7.2 from January, ROCm 7.2.1 is now available with Ubuntu 24.04.4 LTS support as well as various bug fixes to this open-source AMD Radeon/Instinct GPU compute stack… ⌘ Read more