News Editor
Rowan Cheng
A TIDEZINE editorial byline covering fast-moving news in technology, entertainment and blockchain.
Latest Stories
Alex G Reunites with Schoenbrun for New Score, This Time Bringing in The Blue Nile's Frontman
Alex G scores a Jane Schoenbrun film for the third time, with new track "Pain Is The Heart Of Love" featuring The Blue Nile's Paul Buchanan as a guest vocalist. The soundtrack drops August 21, with the full score following on September 11.
Claude Fires Its First Human Employee, But It Was a Human Manager's Leading Question That Really Pulled the Trigger
Andon Market, a physical store in San Francisco, is run entirely by Claude. In July, it fired its first human employee—but internal records show it originally just wanted to reassure the person, or at most issue a warning, until a human manager asked one leading question.
A Photo Captioned "5." — Fontaines D.C. Announce New Album With Two Unfinished Demos
The Dublin band posted a black-and-white photo on Instagram with just "5." as the caption. Just before that, they'd debuted two wildly different new songs at their comeback show in Cádiz.
The Bluetooth Audio Ceiling: Beyond the Spec Sheet, Your Phone Is the Real Bottleneck
From SBC to LDAC, a Bluetooth codec's bit rate, bit depth, and sample rate determine the upper limit of your headphones' sound quality — but Apple devices only recognize AAC and SBC, meaning no matter how high-end your headphones are, you can't tap into it. Android users, on the other hand, can actually switch codecs themselves.
Prosecutors Sought 20 Years, Court Gave 15: South Korea's Delio CEO Crypto Fraud Case Not Fully Upheld
A South Korean court has sentenced Delio CEO Jeong to 15 years in prison over a $50 million crypto fraud case, five years short of the 20-year sentence prosecutors had sought. The gap came down to one key charge the judge dismissed.
Fake Google Ad Costs Hyperliquid User $550K
Security experts confirm a Hyperliquid user lost $550,000 after clicking a phishing link disguised as a Google ad. Back in April, SEAL had already blocked 356 similar malicious ad URLs.
After First-Ever KPMG Audit, Tether CEO's Only Response: "Honestly, I Don't Care"
Tether has completed its first KPMG audit, but when questioned by outsiders, the CEO simply replied, "Honestly, I don't care." A source familiar with the matter revealed that the privately held company has no plans to make the audited financial statements public.
PayPal's Market Cap Got Cut in Half, Then Someone Offered $5.3B to Buy It — And PayPal Still Said "Not Enough"
Stripe and private equity firm Advent reportedly offered $60.50 per share for PayPal back in July, valuing it at $5.3 billion — and got turned down. Now word is the two sides are negotiating a higher price, with a deal possibly coming together within weeks.
Wolverine Forced by Deadpool to Film "Job Application," Marvel Plays the Same Doomsday Teaser Twice
Hugh Jackman looked visibly reluctant in front of the D23 cameras, with Deadpool behind him forcing him to "beg Marvel for a job." This marks the second major event in a row where Marvel has joked about the pair's involvement—without ever actually confirming it.
Before Becoming Zelda, Bo Bragason Wanted to Be That "Bit of a Mess" British Girl First
22-year-old Bo Bragason is about to go global with the live-action Legend of Zelda movie, but first she's playing a British girl who's made a bit of a mess of her life in Megan Park's new Prime Video series, Sterling Point.
EMF Keyboardist Derry Brownson Dies at 55: New Album Was Only Half Recorded
EMF founding keyboardist Derran Brownson has died suddenly of a brain tumor at 55. He had only returned to the stage with the band a few months prior, and this summer the band revealed they were wrapping up a new 14-track album.
In 1965, David Bowie Was Still "Davie Jones" — But This Demo Already Sounds Like Him
"Today" is a heartbreak ballad David Bowie recorded before he changed his name, now surfacing as part of the "1965 Shel Talmy Recordings" album. The chord progressions and melodic direction already hint at the David Bowie he would become.
He Wrote a Reply But Never Sent It—Elliott Smith's Handwritten Letter Finally Read 23 Years Later
A fan letter from 2000 was read and answered by Elliott Smith—but the reply was never mailed. 23 years later, thanks to a biographer's unexpected discovery, the letter has finally reached its intended recipient.
Is Hikaru Actually a Player? "Delinquent Squad's Search for Love 2" Exposes a Gender Gap in How Viewers Read Her
23-year-old hostess club worker Hikaru kept multiple guys on the hook at once, earning her the "green tea bitch" label from Taiwanese netizens—but male viewers apparently didn't catch on at all. This controversy isn't really about her. It's about who's watching.
Trying to Block Teens from Social Media, France's Top Court Blocks the Whole Nation's Verification Problem First
France's Constitutional Council struck down the under-18 social media ban over "unclear verification mechanisms." Macron has already asked the PM to rewrite the bill—this legislative tug-of-war is far from over.
GLM-5.3 Claims to Be the Strongest Open-Source Coding Model — Its Own Benchmarks Say Otherwise
Z.ai has launched GLM-5.3, a 743B-parameter model, but its official blog's own benchmark scores show it losing to Claude Fable 5 — and even falling behind Chinese rival Kimi K3 on some tests. The so-called "open-weights" aren't even downloadable yet.
How Much Will App Store's External Payment Cut Cost? Apple's Proposal: 5% to 15%, Basically Just Half Off
Apple has submitted an external payment commission proposal to the court, with rates ranging from 5% to 15%. The numbers look like a concession, but do the math and it's the same old App Store in-app purchase logic in disguise.
Apple Breaks Its Own Rules in China: In-House AI Model, With Alibaba as Coach
In an exclusive Reuters report, Apple has trained a proprietary large language model for the Chinese market with support from Alibaba, potentially making it the first foreign company to get Beijing's green light to deploy its own AI model.
This Manchester band isn't rushing to prove itself — it's learning to be imperfect first
Fresh off winning Glastonbury's Emerging Talent competition and riding a wave of relentless buzz, Westside Cowboy's debut album *It Goes On* chooses to slow down, turning anxiety into song instead of rushing to deliver a flawless record.
New Model Every Three Weeks, Half-Price Through 2027: Gemini 3.7 Flash Puts the Price War on the Table
Just three weeks after its predecessor, Google rolls out Gemini 3.7 Flash with noticeably improved code and frontend generation—plus API pricing slashed in half through early 2027. For the developer community, it's not just about performance.
Fisherman's Son jo0ji: After Singing Death's Theme 〈I-BULL〉, His Dream Is a Solo Beachside Show in Taiwan
Ahead of his Zepp New Taipei performance, jo0ji sat down for an interview to discuss the Kisuke Urahara line behind 〈I-BULL〉, Tite Kubo's warmth in person, and his lingering memories of Jiufen's taro balls with tofu pudding and the Tottori coastline.
SEC's Tokenization Exemption Pulled Days Before Friday Press Event — White House and Wall Street Both Hit the Brakes
The "innovation exemption" that was supposed to be unveiled at Friday's open meeting has been abruptly shelved. This isn't the first time the SEC has stalled at the finish line — this time, the roadblocks are the White House and brokerage trade group SIFMA.
Gemini Posts $108M Loss, Shares Slide as Winklevoss Admits "Work to Do"
Gemini reported a $108 million loss and shares dropped on the news—but prediction market volume nearly doubled. One earnings report, two very different signals.
Hank Heaven's Wild NYC Sublet Saga: Blind Cats, a Jailed Landlord, and the New EP 'Welterweight'
From jazz guitar prodigy to folk storyteller, Hank Heaven weaves a gas leak, a landlord doing time, and two blind cats into the six tracks of the new EP 'Welterweight.'
81-Year-Old Guitar Legend Slides Into Ian Gillan's DMs Like a Neighbor Asking to Borrow Sugar — Deep Purple Reunites After 33 Years
Ritchie Blackmore returned to the Deep Purple stage for the first time in 33 years, just to play one song — "Smoke On The Water" — and quietly put an end to years of public tension with Ian Gillan along the way.
Spotify's AI Cover Tool Lands Another Licensing Deal, But Still No One's Heard It
Following Universal Music Group, Spotify has brought independent music publisher Kobalt on board for its AI cover and remix platform. Artists like Phoebe Bridgers and IDLES could be included, but pricing, launch date, and the actual sound of the finished product remain a total mystery.
Before You Ditch Spotify, Here's What You Really Need to Understand: The Payout System
From founder Daniel Ek's investment in military tech to the rollout of AI cover features, Spotify keeps stirring controversy — but before you switch platforms, you should really understand how each service actually pays artists. Apple, Deezer, Qobuz, Coda, Vocana — the pricing and payout logic are all different.
BLACKPINK's 10th Anniversary Fan Meet Takes Over a National Museum—40 Lucky Fans, One Government Investigation
YG scheduled BLACKPINK's 10th anniversary fan meeting inside the National Museum of Korea, but a rushed rollout, a mere 40-person cap, and restricted exhibition access sparked formal complaints—prompting Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to launch a review.
Looks Like Wear OS, Fakes Like a Knockoff: The Moto Watch 2026's Split Personality
Priced at $150 with a 47mm aluminum case and steel crown, it looks every bit like a Wear OS smartwatch — but underneath, it's running on a barebones RTOS system. Engadget's hands-on review exposes this watch's biggest flaw: it's a high-fidelity impersonation.
CFTC Invokes Emergency Powers to Keep Kalshi Running Amid New York Lawsuit
Prediction market platform Kalshi was sued in New York last month, prompting the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission to invoke emergency powers ordering the platform to keep operating. Details of the lawsuit and next legal steps have yet to be officially disclosed.