Author: Geek Planet

The presence of leading executives, including Alphabet and Google CEO Sundar Pichai, at President Donald Trump’s 2025 inauguration led many to believe that Big Tech would have a smooth course in the coming years, especially in any antitrust trial.  So, when it emerged that Google met Justice Department execs, encouraging them to roll back earlier proposed remedies, including the divestiture of web browser Chrome, in its search antitrust trial, many assumed its political influence would win out.  However, developments later in the week suggest those efforts — Bloomberg claimed last week that Google’s arguments centered on maintaining the tech hegemony…

Samsung’s next generation of foldable phones could bring some changes to charging, though not all of them might be what fans are hoping for. According to recent certification listings spotted via SammyGuru, upcoming devices like the Galaxy Z Fold 8 and a new “Wide Fold” variant have appeared on China’s 3C database, hinting at potential updates to charging capabilities. These listings typically reveal wired charging specs ahead of launch, making them an early indicator of what to expect. But here’s the catch: the “upgrade” might not be as big as it sounds. What do the leaks actually reveal? Two upcoming…

These days, everything is getting quieter. Employees check out in silence — quiet quitting. Companies nudge them out just as discreetly — quiet firing. And now, even the high-stakes theater of ad agency reviews has been muted. Advertisers are ditching the bloated pageantry of requests for proposals in favor of something more understated: no press, no pomp, just quiet deals behind closed doors.Look at Coca-Cola. Its North America media review unfolded in near silence. Publicis Media secured the win, and only then did word get out. Now, Coca-Cola is ironing out the transition from GroupM, according to a source with…

While Samsung has added a ton of camera improvements to the Galaxy S26 series, there’s one that most of us missed out on first. As highlighted by Android Authority, the Galaxy S26 series also supports a native USB webcam mode, allowing users to connect their phone to a computer and use its camera as a webcam. This isn’t entirely new to Android, though. Google first introduced this feature with Android 14 QPR1 on Pixel devices, and Samsung is now bringing it to its flagship lineup. How does it actually work? It’s refreshingly simple. All you need to do is plug…

After weeks of leaks and teasers, Samsung has officially confirmed the launch date for its next generation of Galaxy A-series smartphones. The Galaxy A37 and Galaxy A57 will make their official debut on March 25th, 2026, in India at 5:30 PM IST. That’s roughly 8 AM ET / 5 AM PT for those watching globally. While Samsung hasn’t explicitly mentioned the devices in its teasers, every detail in the teaser points to the upcoming mid-range duo. What to expect While the full specs and features will be revealed at launch, earlier leaks have already revealed plenty of details of what’s…

On Saturday, amid cozy velvet couches and a large taxidermied cheetah behind the bar at the Austin, Texas speakeasy Powder Room, some 50 or so creators and brand marketers gathered for a mixer hosted by YouTube. There was some deliberate networking — or “forced fun” to use a term that popped up at Vox’s Sunday night event to spotlight its podcast talent — where marketers and creators were asked to make cocktails (one with milk infused with Skittles and two kinds of rum), personalize cowboy hats and, presumably, swap info. for future brand deals.Four creators told Digiday that the advertising and…

OpenAI is reportedly preparing to bring its highly acclaimed AI video generator directly into ChatGPT, potentially giving more users a way to create short videos with simple text prompts directly in the chat interface. According to The Information, people familiar with OpenAI’s plans say the company intends to launch Sora within ChatGPT in the near future. The move would mark a significant step toward integrating more advanced multimodal capabilities into the company’s flagship AI assistant. Sora is OpenAI’s text-to-video generation tool that allows users to create short video clips from simple text prompts. It can produce realistic and stylized scenes…

With so many creators making their livelihoods across social platforms, players like shopping app LTK and creators virtually have no control over how those algorithms shift and prioritize content.More importantly, this leaves creators vulnerable if their affiliate businesses are built on social media, like TikTok and Instagram. LTK hopes to give back control to creators with a revamp of its consumer app that began in late February. LTK (LiketoKnow.it) might be best known for finding deals and trendy influencers, but the company is now overhauling its consumer experience to focus on more entertainment and social media features, like direct messages,…

Apple may be preparing a major upgrade for the iPhone’s camera, and this time, it’s not just about hardware. According to The Information, Apple explored acquiring Lux Optics, the studio behind the popular Halide camera app, as part of its efforts to improve the iPhone 18 Pro’s camera experience. The talks reportedly took place in 2025 but didn’t result in a deal. Still, the intent is clear: Apple wants its default Camera app to catch up with pro-level tools, especially as its hardware continues to improve. Why is Apple suddenly focusing on camera software? Let’s be real, hardware alone isn’t…

Executive dysfunction behind the scenes at brand advertisers is making it harder for them to track and direct retail media investments.The segment is one of the fastest growing areas of investment (accounting for over $140 billion of global ad spend, per eMarketer) and has provided a new stream of revenue for major retailers in the U.S., U.K. and Europe. In Target’s latest earnings report, for example, strong performance at its retail media unit ($649 million in annual revenue, a 25% increase over 2023) offset gloomy net revenues across the rest of its business. Walmart’s retail media ad business tells a…