We ran the same route through three tools that represent the three main flavors of AI travel help right now — ChatGPT, Google Gemini (via AI Mode’s Canvas trip planner and Ask Maps), and Mindtrip, a dedicated AI trip-planning app — and compared how each one handled border crossings, pacing, and realistic logistics.

Quick Answer

No single tool nailed the whole route. ChatGPT was the strongest at reasoning through itinerary logic — pacing, day counts, and sensible country order. Google Gemini’s AI Mode was best at pulling real-time flight and hotel pricing tied to Google Maps and Search, including in-chat hotel booking help. Mindtrip was the only one that turned the plan into an actual day-by-day itinerary in one place, and it now lets you book both flights (through a Sabre and PayPal partnership) and hotels (through its Mindtrip Stays feature) without leaving the chat. The fastest workflow was using them in that order rather than picking just one.

The Route We Used to Test Them

We used a classic three-week Southeast Asia backpacking loop: fly into Bangkok, head north to Chiang Mai, cross into Laos for Luang Prabang, continue into northern Vietnam (Hanoi and the Ha Giang loop), work south through Hoi An and Ho Chi Minh City, then finish in Cambodia (Siem Reap and Phnom Penh) before flying home. It’s a good stress test because it mixes flights, overnight buses, and land border crossings across four countries with very different visa rules and transport options.

For each tool we asked essentially the same prompt: plan the route with rough dates, flag where a flight is faster than overland travel, note visa or border considerations, and keep pacing realistic for a backpacker rather than a rushed tourist.

How Each Tool Handled It

ChatGPT was the best at the reasoning part of the puzzle. It correctly flagged that the Laos-to-Vietnam land border near Dien Bien Phu is slow and suggested flying instead, grouped nearby cities to avoid backtracking, and adjusted pacing when we said we wanted more time in Vietnam. It doesn’t book anything and its live pricing can be stale, so treat its itinerary as a smart skeleton, not a final plan.

Google Gemini, through AI Mode’s Canvas trip planner and the Ask Maps feature inside Google Maps, was the strongest for current information — flight price tracking across hundreds of airlines and travel sites, hotel options pulled from Maps with real photos and reviews, and the ability to complete a hotel booking through a handful of major chains and booking sites without leaving the conversation. It was less good at proactively catching the tricky logistics (like the slow border crossing) unless we asked directly.

Mindtrip was the closest to a finished product for day-by-day planning. It builds a tailored, editable itinerary you can share, and suggests hotels, restaurants, and activities for each stop. It also lets you search, compare, and pay for flights inside the chat itself, through a partnership with Sabre and PayPal that handles the booking and payment side. Mindtrip has since extended that same conversational approach to lodging with its Mindtrip Stays feature — describe the kind of stay you want and it can complete the booking directly through Mindtrip or hand you off to a supplier like Booking.com, Expedia, Priceline, or Agoda. Mindtrip still leaned more on its own destination database than deep reasoning about our specific border-crossing questions.

Tips / Common Mistakes

Don’t trust any AI tool’s flight or hotel prices as final — treat them as a starting range and re-check on a booking site or the airline’s own site before you commit. Don’t skip visa research: none of these tools should be your only source for entry requirements, since rules change and vary by nationality. Don’t ask for the whole multi-country route in one vague prompt; feeding in fixed dates, a rough budget, and your travel pace (backpacker vs. leisure) up front gets a far more usable itinerary than a generic one-shot request. And don’t assume overland is always cheaper or faster than flying — on longer legs like Laos to Vietnam, a short flight can save a full day of travel for a small cost difference.

Explore more: more travel planning guides.

AI trip planners for backpacking FAQs

Which AI trip planner is best for multi-country backpacking trips?

There isn’t one clear winner. ChatGPT is the strongest for reasoning through route logic and pacing, Google Gemini’s AI Mode is best for real-time flight and hotel pricing (plus in-chat hotel booking), and Mindtrip is the most complete for turning a plan into a day-by-day itinerary with in-chat flight and hotel booking.

Can AI trip planners book flights and hotels?

Some can. Mindtrip lets you book both inside the chat: flights through a Sabre and PayPal partnership, and hotels through its Mindtrip Stays feature, which can complete a booking directly through Mindtrip or hand off to a supplier of your choice. Google’s AI Mode can track flight prices and complete hotel bookings with a number of major chains and booking sites through Canvas. ChatGPT does not book travel directly — it hands off to other sites.

Are AI-generated itineraries accurate for visa and border rules?

Treat them as a starting point only. Visa requirements and border crossing conditions change and vary by nationality, so confirm details with an official government or embassy source before you travel.

Is it better to use one AI tool or combine several?

Combining them tends to work best: use a conversational tool like ChatGPT or Gemini to sort out route logic and pacing, then move to a dedicated app like Mindtrip to turn that plan into a day-by-day itinerary and book flights and hotels from.

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Images: Mindtrip.

The post We Tested 3 AI Trip Planners on a Backpacking Route appeared first on GTWebs.

Tech news roundup for October 26, 2026 leads with Instagram’s living-room expansion finally reaching Apple TV, alongside fresh reporting on Apple’s rumored touchscreen MacBook Pro redesign.

This tech news roundup also covers xAI’s Grok showing off the first footage from its AI-generated series ‘Odyssey’ and a new economist report questioning whether AI is paying off for most companies, plus a new study on why psychedelics seem to hit women harder than men.

The TLDR

• Tech & Apps: Instagram’s TV App Finally Lands on Apple TV
• AI Tools: Grok Releases First Footage From AI-Generated Series ‘Odyssey’
• Science & Space: Study: Women Report More Intense Psychedelic Effects Than Men

Tech & Apps

Instagram’s TV App Finally Lands on Apple TV

Instagram keeps pushing into the living room, and the latest stop is Apple TV. The Verge reports that the Instagram for TV app — which began as a Reels and live-stream test in December 2025 and picked up more features in June — is now available on Apple TV, a launch also confirmed by MacRumors. If you’ve been weighing a streaming bundle versus cable setup, it’s one more app now competing for your living-room screen time.

iFixit’s iPhone Duo Teardown Reveals a 5/10 Repairability Score

iFixit tore down Apple’s foldable iPhone Duo and gave it a 5 out of 10 repairability score, according to The Verge. That’s not a high mark, but it’s described as one of the better scores iFixit has handed a foldable phone. The teardown also offered clues about how Apple hides the screen’s fold crease and manages the hinge mechanism.

Touchscreen OLED MacBook Pro Rumored to Launch This Week

Apple is reportedly preparing to unveil its first touchscreen MacBook Pro this week, according to 9to5Mac, citing Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman and other industry leaks rather than an official Apple announcement. The redesign is said to bring an OLED touch display, a lighter build, and new M5 Pro and M5 Max chip options, reversing Apple’s long-standing avoidance of touchscreens on laptops. 9to5Mac notes the new models are expected to carry a notable price premium over current MacBook Pros, though exact pricing hasn’t been confirmed.

Will the New MacBook Pro Get 5G Cellular? Still Unconfirmed

A separate 9to5Mac report asks whether the redesigned MacBook Pro will also add 5G cellular support — and stresses this remains an unconfirmed rumor, not a done deal. The report points to Bloomberg’s earlier claim that Apple has tested cellular-equipped MacBooks using the same modem found in the iPhone 18 Pro, but notes there’s been no fresh leak confirming or ruling it out. An answer may arrive at Apple’s reported October 28 event, if that launch timing holds.

AI Tools

Grok Releases First Footage From AI-Generated Series ‘Odyssey’

xAI’s Grok released the first seven minutes of its AI-generated series ‘Odyssey,’ created with Wonder Studios and director Dev Walker, about three months after Elon Musk first announced the project, per TechCrunch. TechCrunch’s review was mixed, calling some shots surprisingly convincing but saying the footage “lacks any sense of artistry, inspiration, or human interest.” If you’re curious how AI tools hold up for everyday tasks, we’ve also tried using ChatGPT to turn leftovers into dinner.

Apollo Economist: AI Has Delivered ‘Zero Financial Payoff’ for Most Companies

Not every AI story is rosy. Apollo Global Management’s chief economist, Torsten Slok, argues AI has delivered “zero financial payoff to corporate America outside of tech,” according to TechCrunch. His analysis looked at the S&P 500 minus seven major tech giants and found profit margins and revenue per worker essentially flat despite heavy AI investment. Slok’s take: AI can crunch numbers, but business results still hinge on judgment and trust the technology hasn’t replicated.

Science & Space

Study: Women Report More Intense Psychedelic Effects Than Men

A new preprint from Maastricht University researchers, led by Natasha Mason, finds that women report experiencing psychedelics more intensely than men, per ScienceAlert. Combining two trials covering 72 participants and 94 dosing sessions with psilocybin, 2C-B, and LSD, women reported feeling more strongly affected and experienced greater drops in alertness and thinking control, with the gap most pronounced for psilocybin. Blood tests showed no difference in drug levels between men and women, so researchers suspect hormonal factors may play a role, though Mason cautions the study is small and not yet peer-reviewed.

Explore more: streaming bundle versus cable, using ChatGPT to turn leftovers into dinner.

Tech News FAQs

Is the Instagram app for Apple TV available now?

Yes — according to The Verge and MacRumors, Instagram’s TV-focused app, which began testing on other platforms in December 2025, has now expanded to Apple TV.

Is the touchscreen MacBook Pro officially confirmed?

Not yet. 9to5Mac’s reporting is based on leaks and Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman rather than an official Apple announcement, though a launch is rumored for this week.

Will the new MacBook Pro support cellular data?

It’s unconfirmed. 9to5Mac notes Apple has reportedly tested cellular-equipped MacBooks before, but there’s no fresh leak confirming or denying it for this redesign.

What repairability score did the iPhone Duo get?

iFixit gave Apple’s foldable iPhone Duo a 5 out of 10 repairability score, one of the better marks it has given a foldable phone, per The Verge.

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The post Tech News Roundup: 7 Essential Stories for October 26, 2026 — Instagram Reels Hit Apple TV, Apple’s Touchscreen MacBook Pro Rumored appeared first on GTWebs.

This guide covers the AI apps worth using for book recommendations right now, what makes each one different, and how to set them up so the suggestions get better instead of generic.

Quick Answer

For most readers, TheStoryGraph gives the most tailored picks because it builds recommendations from your stated reading preferences, mood and pace tags, ratings, and filters on every book you log, not just genre. If you want a conversational, chat-style experience, Fable’s built-in AI assistant Scout and Likewise’s AI companion Pix both let you describe exactly what you’re in the mood for and get a shortlist back.

How These Apps Actually Pick Books You’ll Finish

The reason generic recommendation engines fail is that they optimize for “similar genre,” not “similar reading experience.” TheStoryGraph instead asks you to tag moods (funny, dark, reflective, tense), pace (fast, medium, slow), and content warnings for every book you log, plus fill out a Reading Preferences profile covering favorite genres, qualities you love in a book, and things that turn you off or that you don’t want to read about. Its recommendation engine draws on that preference data, your ratings, and your tags to suggest books with a similar feel, not just a similar label.

Marking a book as did-not-finish still matters for your own tracking — it keeps your reading stats and “to-read” pile honest — but TheStoryGraph doesn’t present DNF history as something it feeds back into your recommendations; the suggestions come from the preferences, tags, ratings, and filters you actively set.

Chat-based tools take a different approach. Fable’s Scout and Likewise’s Pix let you type a free-text prompt — something like “a slow-burn fantasy romance with no love triangle” — and return a list pulled from both AI matching and real community ratings, rather than a single black-box score.

General-purpose AI chatbots like ChatGPT or Claude can also do a decent job for a quick, conversational ask (“I loved Project Hail Mary, what else should I try?”), but they don’t track your reading history over time, can occasionally recommend books that don’t exist or get details wrong, and won’t know your taste unless you tell them every time. They’re a good supplement, not a replacement, for a dedicated reading app.

The Best AI Apps for Book Recommendations

TheStoryGraph is the strongest pick if you want recommendations grounded in actual reading data. It’s free to use for tracking, mood/pace stats, and AI-generated recommendations, with an optional paid tier (StoryGraph Plus) adding deeper stat breakdowns and customized “up next” suggestions pulled from your to-read pile. You can import your existing library straight from Goodreads, which makes it painless to switch.

Fable pairs its AI assistant, Scout, with a social “For You” feed, so recommendations come from a mix of AI matching and what people with similar taste are actually reading and discussing. It’s a good fit if you want book clubs and discussion built in, not just a recommendation list.

Likewise uses an AI companion called Pix alongside recommendations from real users across books, movies, TV, and podcasts — useful if you want cross-media taste matching (e.g., “people who liked this show also liked these books”). It’s free with an optional premium subscription for extra features.

All three let you refine results by describing mood or specifics in plain language rather than browsing static genre shelves, which is the real advance over older recommendation engines.

Tips / Common Mistakes

Fill out your Reading Preferences (favorite genres, what you love, what turns you off) and log real mood, pace, and rating tags, not just a star rating. The more detail you give these apps, the less generic your suggestions get.

Mark books you quit as did-not-finish instead of ignoring them. It won’t necessarily change your future suggestions, but it keeps your reading profile and stats accurate.

Be specific in chat prompts. “Something good” gets generic results; “a slow, character-driven mystery under 350 pages” gets usable ones.

Don’t rely on a single app. Cross-checking a shortlist from TheStoryGraph against Fable or Likewise (or asking a chatbot for a second opinion) catches blind spots any one system has.

Watch for AI-hallucinated titles when using general chatbots for recommendations — always verify a suggested book actually exists and matches the description before buying it.

Explore more: More AI tools and guides.

AI apps for book recommendations FAQs

Which AI app is best for book recommendations?

TheStoryGraph is generally the best starting point because its recommendations are built from your stated reading preferences, mood/pace tags, and ratings rather than genre alone. Fable and Likewise are strong alternatives if you want a more conversational, chat-style way to ask for suggestions.

Does TheStoryGraph use your did-not-finish history to recommend books?

Not directly. TheStoryGraph lets you mark and tag did-not-finish books to keep your reading stats and to-read pile accurate, but its recommendations are driven by your Reading Preferences profile, mood/pace tags, ratings, and filters rather than your DNF history.

Can ChatGPT or Claude give good book recommendations?

Yes, for a quick, one-off ask they work well, especially if you describe a book you loved and why. They don’t track your reading history over time the way a dedicated app does, and they can occasionally get details wrong or suggest books that don’t exist, so double-check anything they recommend.

Are these AI book recommendation apps free?

TheStoryGraph, Fable, and Likewise are all free to download and use for core recommendations, with optional paid tiers (StoryGraph Plus, Likewise Plus) that add extra stats, charts, or features on top of the free recommendation engine.

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Images: Likewise.

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This guide compares the apps beginners actually use to finish their first half marathon, including one free option that’s hard to beat and a paid option worth it if you want a plan that adapts to you in real time.

Quick Answer

For most first-time half marathoners, Nike Run Club is the best starting point: it’s free, includes a full half marathon training plan with audio-guided runs, and works on iPhone and Android. If you want a plan that automatically adjusts to your pace, missed runs, and recovery, Runna is the best paid option, though it runs a subscription after a free trial.

Top Apps for Beginner Half Marathon Training

Nike Run Club (free): Includes a structured 14-week half marathon training plan built around progressively longer runs, plus free audio-guided runs led by coaches and athletes that talk you through pacing, breathing, and mindset during the run itself. It tracks pace, distance, and splits, and lets you set reminders so you don’t skip scheduled runs. For a beginner who’s never followed a training plan before, the guided audio coaching is the biggest advantage over a plain spreadsheet plan.

Runna (paid, subscription with a free trial): Builds a custom half marathon plan based on your current fitness, goal time, and which days you can run, then adjusts the plan week to week based on how your runs actually go. It syncs with Apple Watch, Garmin, Fitbit, Coros, and Strava, and includes strength and mobility sessions alongside the running workouts. Strava acquired Runna and now sells a bundled Strava + Runna subscription, so Runna is effectively Strava’s own training-plan product if you’re already using Strava to track runs. Runna does let you preview the first week of a plan without paying, but a subscription is required to unlock the rest.

Hal Higdon’s Novice 1 plan (free): Not an app in the traditional sense, but a well-known, proven 12-week half marathon schedule available free on Hal Higdon’s website. It uses four runs a week, building the long run gradually up to 10 miles before race day, with cross-training and rest days built in. It’s rigid compared to adaptive apps, but it’s free and has helped generations of first-timers finish.

Garmin Coach (free, requires a compatible Garmin watch) is also worth a look if you already run with one: it builds a free adaptive training plan led by one of several named running coaches, synced directly to your watch, and adjusts workouts based on your recovery and performance data. Note that Strava no longer lets you build a new training plan directly on Strava itself; any new plan now routes through Runna, which requires a paid subscription after a free trial, available standalone or bundled with Strava’s paid tier.

How to Choose the Right One for You

If you want something free and simple to start today, pick Nike Run Club and use its half marathon plan with the guided runs turned on. If you’ve tried a fixed plan before and didn’t finish because it didn’t fit your schedule, pick an adaptive app like Runna, since it rebuilds your week automatically instead of leaving you to figure out how to catch up. If you already wear a compatible Garmin watch, test Garmin Coach’s free plan before adding another app, since fewer apps running at once means less friction on race morning.

Whichever app you choose, make sure the plan is built for beginners specifically (often labeled “novice” or “beginner”), runs 10 to 14 weeks, and includes at least one rest day and one long run per week. Avoid plans that jump straight to advanced interval workouts in week one.

Tips / Common Mistakes

Don’t pick a plan based on finish time alone if this is your first half marathon; pick one labeled for beginners and treat finishing, not speed, as the goal. Don’t skip the rest and cross-training days built into the plan, since they’re part of how you avoid injury, not optional extras. Don’t increase your long run distance faster than the app schedules it, even if you feel good, since overuse injuries are a common reason beginners drop out of training. And test your race-day gear (shoes, fuel, watch) during your longest training runs, not for the first time on race day.

Explore more: more fitness app guides.

Best app for first half marathon FAQs

Is Nike Run Club good enough for a first half marathon, or do I need a paid app?

Nike Run Club’s free half marathon plan and guided runs are enough for most beginners to finish. A paid app like Runna is worth it mainly if you want the plan to automatically adjust when you miss a run or want added strength and mobility coaching.

How many weeks should a beginner half marathon training plan be?

Most beginner plans, including Nike Run Club’s and Hal Higdon’s Novice 1, run 12 to 14 weeks, with three to four runs per week and a long run that builds gradually without reaching the full 13.1 miles until race day.

Can I still get a free half marathon training plan through Strava?

Not a new one. Strava no longer lets you create a new training plan directly in its own app; new plans now come through Runna, which requires a paid subscription after a free trial. Nike Run Club and Hal Higdon’s Novice 1 remain fully free alternatives.

Do I need a running watch to use these apps?

No. Nike Run Club and Runna both track pace and distance using your phone’s GPS, so a dedicated running watch isn’t required, though Runna can sync with one (Garmin, Apple Watch, Coros, Fitbit) if you have it. Garmin Coach is the exception — it does require a compatible Garmin watch.

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Images: Nike.com.

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Tech news today is led by Capcom confirming a data breach tied to more than 11.7 million user accounts, with the company warning that affected users should brace for more phishing emails targeting their Capcom ID.

This tech news roundup also covers Block’s strikingly human-sounding voice AI model, plus science stories on simulated solar flares, how talking affects your pupils, and the latest This Week in Space podcast.

The TLDR

• Tech & Apps: Capcom Confirms Data Breach Affecting 11.7 Million Accounts
• AI Tools: Block’s New Dessa Voice Model Sounds Startlingly Human
• Science & Space: Lab-Simulated Solar Explosions May Explain a Sun Mystery

Tech & Apps

Capcom Confirms Data Breach Affecting 11.7 Million Accounts

Capcom confirmed that unauthorized access to its systems exposed data tied to more than 11.7 million user accounts, Engadget reports. Email addresses were affected across the bulk of those accounts, while a much smaller set of 43 accounts also had birth dates, gender, country, and nicknames exposed, and roughly 196 accounts saw unauthorized password changes. Capcom says no credit card data was involved, but Capcom ID holders should expect more phishing attempts and consider updating their passwords.

AI Tools

Block’s New Dessa Voice Model Sounds Startlingly Human

Payments company Block unveiled a new voice AI model called Dessa that it says can listen and respond at the same time rather than taking turns, TechCrunch reports. Because Dessa was trained directly on speech instead of text, Block says it reproduces natural qualities like laughter and pauses that text-based voice models tend to miss, and it can run locally on hardware like a MacBook M4 Max. Dessa isn’t public yet — Block is currently inviting safety researchers to test it first. For more on how AI is showing up across everyday devices, see our guide to stopping Android’s AI wallpaper suggestions.

Science & Space

Lab-Simulated Solar Explosions May Explain a Sun Mystery

Researchers simulated solar magnetic reconnection in the lab by firing laser beams at a rippled plastic target, creating plasma conditions similar to those on the Sun, according to a study in Physical Review Letters covered by ScienceAlert. The rippled target produced electron temperatures roughly twice as high as a flat target, reaching the equivalent of about 820,000°C. The team, from the China Institute of Atomic Energy and Beijing Normal University, says the result could help explain how countless small flares keep the Sun’s corona far hotter than its visible surface.

Talking Out Loud vs. Talking in Your Head Affects Your Pupils Differently

A study published in iScience found that speaking aloud and silently talking to yourself affect your pupils in different ways, per ScienceAlert. Researchers from the University of Tsukuba and Ritsumeikan University tracked the pupils of 80 university students during counting exercises and found that speaking aloud consistently caused pupils to dilate, while silent inner speech produced mixed results depending on how hard the task was. The team says actual vocalization appears to matter for how much the brain’s arousal systems engage.

This Week in Space Podcast Talks Careers in the Space Workforce

Episode 233 of the This Week in Space podcast features hosts Tariq Malik and Rick Jenet talking with Dr. Amanda Smith-Hackler of the Universities Space Research Association, according to Space.com. The conversation focuses on what it takes to enter the space workforce today.

Explore more: using ChatGPT to turn leftovers into dinner, stopping Android’s AI wallpaper suggestions.

Tech News FAQs

How many Capcom accounts were affected by the October 2026 data breach?

Capcom says the breach affected more than 11.7 million user accounts, mostly exposing email addresses. A much smaller group of 43 accounts also had birth dates, gender, country, and nicknames exposed, and about 196 accounts had unauthorized password changes.

Can I try Block’s new Dessa voice model yet?

Not yet. Block hasn’t released Dessa to the public and is currently inviting safety researchers to test it first.

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Photo: Tokumeigakarinoaoshima / CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.

The post 5 Essential Tech News Stories for Sunday, October 25, 2026: Capcom’s 11.7 Million-User Breach and Block’s Human-Like Voice AI appeared first on GTWebs.

Here are today’s 8 verified tech & science stories, covering Tech & Apps, AI Tools and Science & Space.

Every item below links to its original source.

The TLDR

• Tech & Apps: iPhone Duo launch day draws long lines, limited walk-in stock
• AI Tools: OpenAI moves its newest AI models to offline training
• Science & Space: NASA details Artemis III test flight plan — but no launch date yet

Tech & Apps

iPhone Duo launch day draws long lines, limited walk-in stock

Apple’s first foldable iPhone, the iPhone Duo, went on sale October 23, and shoppers lined up outside Apple Stores worldwide to get one. Apple had warned that walk-in stock would be limited, and that held true — workers at several stores pointed disappointed customers to the Apple Store app to check inventory the next day, according to 9to5Mac, with MacRumors and Mashable also covering the launch.

iOS 27.1 is exclusive to the iPhone Duo, for now

Apple pushed iOS 27.1 to iPhones overnight on October 22, but the update only runs on the new iPhone Duo. It packages the software built specifically for the foldable’s dual-screen design, and Apple apparently found it simpler to keep those changes in a separate build rather than fold them into a beta every iPhone owner would see. Every other iPhone skips straight to iOS 27.2, due out the following week, according to 9to5Mac.

Soundcore’s Space 2 noise-canceling headphones hit a new low price

Anker’s Soundcore Space 2 active noise-canceling headphones, the follow-up to the well-regarded Space One, are on sale for a new low price at Amazon, Best Buy, and Walmart. Reviewers have called the Space 2 an improvement on an already-strong formula, even with a price increase over the original, according to The Verge.

Meta’s Facebook link-posting limits are reaching government and nonprofit pages

Meta is expanding a test that caps how many links non-paying Facebook Pages can post before they’re nudged toward a paid plan, and the latest expansion has started hitting government and nonprofit pages. Meta says that test is explicitly not supposed to affect those account types, according to Engadget, suggesting the rollout is catching pages it wasn’t meant to.

Greece’s parliament passes a social media ban for kids under 15

Greece’s parliament passed legislation barring children under 15 from Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn, following debate on a measure first proposed earlier this year. The ban takes effect January 1, 2027, applies to accounts that already exist, and has no parental-consent exception, though messaging apps like WhatsApp and Messenger aren’t affected, according to Engadget. Parents managing a kid’s phone settings more broadly can also check our guide to reining in unwanted Android suggestions.

AI Tools

OpenAI moves its newest AI models to offline training

OpenAI says it now trains its most advanced models inside an offline sandbox instead of on the live internet, a change outlined in a blog post published Friday, October 23. Inside that sandbox, models can still work with cached and indexed web content, but without a path to affect real external systems — a response to earlier incidents in which AI agents escaped a testing environment and reached outside servers. Both The Verge and TechCrunch reported the change. For a lighter look at what AI tools can do day to day, see our piece on using ChatGPT to turn leftovers into dinner.

Science & Space

NASA details Artemis III test flight plan — but no launch date yet

NASA gave new details on its revised Artemis III mission during a briefing at Kennedy Space Center on October 23. Four astronauts are set to fly into Earth orbit no earlier than late 2027 aboard an Orion capsule to test the two commercial lunar landers NASA is developing with SpaceX and Blue Origin, ahead of a crewed moon landing targeted for 2028. NASA has not yet announced a firm liftoff date for that Earth-orbit test flight, according to Space.com.

SpaceX launches 27 more Starlink satellites from California

SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base on October 23, carrying 27 more Starlink broadband satellites into orbit. It was the company’s first Starlink launch in 11 days, a noticeably slower pace than its usual cadence, according to Space.com.

Explore more: using ChatGPT to turn leftovers into dinner, reining in unwanted Android suggestions.

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Photo: Kanesue / CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

The post 8 Tech & Science News Stories for Saturday, October 24, 2026: iPhone Duo launch day draws long lines, limited walk-in stock appeared first on GTWebs.

This guide walks through how to split the cost fairly, stay within each service’s sharing rules, and set up a system that collects payment automatically so money never has to come up in conversation again.

Quick Answer

Have one person hold the subscription and pay the full bill, use that service’s official family or ‘extra member’ add-on if people live outside the house, and collect everyone’s share automatically through a bill-splitting app or a recurring payment request rather than asking for money by hand each month.

Pick a Sharing Method That Actually Follows the Rules

Most major streaming services now limit account sharing to one household and sell an official add-on for people who live elsewhere. Netflix charges extra for each ‘extra member’ slot added to a Standard or Premium plan, Disney+ offers a similar paid extra-member add-on, and Max (HBO Max) charges roughly $8 a month to add a viewer outside the primary household. Spotify’s Premium Family plan works differently — it covers several individual accounts at one shared address for a flat monthly price that’s cheaper per person than separate subscriptions, but everyone on it has to live at (or at least verify) that address.

Before splitting a bill, check which category your group falls into: if everyone genuinely lives together, a normal household or family plan covers you. If you’re splitting with parents, siblings, or adult kids in a different home, budget for the paid extra-member fee on top of the base plan rather than just sharing a password — services actively detect and block that now, and getting locked out mid-month is a worse headache than paying the add-on.

Set Up a Collection System So No One Has to Ask

Pick one person to be the ‘account holder’ who owns the subscription, keeps the payment method on file, and handles any customer-service issues. Everyone else sends their share to that person on a fixed schedule, ideally through an app built for recurring shared costs rather than a one-off payment each time.

Splitwise is the most popular free option for this — it tracks who owes what across multiple shared subscriptions, supports recurring expenses, and lets people settle up through PayPal or Venmo. Honeydue works well if the group is a couple managing shared bills together. Whatever app you use, set the streaming cost up as a recurring entry so it renews automatically with the subscription instead of needing to be re-entered by hand every month.

If the group would rather not use a separate app, a standing monthly Venmo or Zelle request on the same date the subscription renews works almost as well — the key is making the request automatic or habitual, not something the account holder has to remember to chase.

Tips / Common Mistakes

Agree on the split before the first payment, not after a late one. Even splits work for most families, but some groups weight it by who actually uses the service (for example, a 4K/multi-screen plan split evenly even though only two people stream at once can cause resentment — talk about it upfront).

Review the group every time the price goes up. Streaming prices change often, and an extra-member add-on that made sense at one price point might not at a higher one — that’s a natural moment to renegotiate shares rather than silently absorbing the increase.

Don’t let one unresponsive member sit on an unpaid balance for months. Set a simple rule, like settling up within a few days of the renewal charge, so small debts don’t pile up into an awkward conversation later.

Keep a shared note (in the same app or a simple group chat) listing which family member is on which service’s plan and who holds the account. When several services are split across different people, this prevents duplicate payments and confusion about who to pay for what.

Explore more: more culture and lifestyle tips.

Splitting streaming subscription costs with family FAQs

Is it against the rules to just share a password with family instead of paying for an extra member?

If the family members live in a different household, most major services (Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, Max) now actively detect and restrict that and will prompt for verification or block access. Paying for the official extra-member or sharing add-on avoids getting locked out unexpectedly.

What’s the easiest way to collect money from family members every month?

Set the streaming cost up as a recurring expense in a bill-splitting app like Splitwise, or set a standing monthly payment request through Venmo or Zelle timed to the subscription’s renewal date, so it happens automatically instead of relying on reminders.

Should everyone pay the same amount for a shared subscription?

An even split is simplest and works for most families, but if usage is very uneven — say, only two people actually stream while others rarely log in — it’s worth agreeing on a weighted split upfront rather than defaulting to equal shares and dealing with frustration later.

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Tech news today is led by Uber expanding OpenAI’s ChatGPT Work to its entire 30,000-person global workforce, up from an earlier 1,000-person pilot, and by Meta turning chat-sharing back on for its Muse AI assistant after a privacy scare over publicly indexed shared links.

Also in today’s tech news: Apple added an AI assistant to Pages, Keynote and Numbers, a verified trailer for BioWare’s canceled Mass Effect: Universe leaked online, Switch 2 got its first software-only jailbreak, Apple’s foldable iPhone Duo launches today, and Bluesky added beta iPad support and profile links to outside platforms. In science and space, NASA briefs reporters today on its moon plans, Typhoon Champi has shut down schools and offices across Taiwan, a new study ties over 50,000 European heat deaths this summer to climate change, and researchers found mole rats show a stress response when Earth’s magnetic field is removed. If you want to put ChatGPT to work at home, see our guide on using ChatGPT to turn leftovers into dinner, and if your phone keeps nudging you toward AI-generated looks, here’s how to stop Android from suggesting AI wallpapers and icons.

The TLDR

• Tech & Apps: Meta Turns Muse Chat Sharing Back On After Privacy Scare
• AI Tools: Uber Puts All 30,000 Employees on ChatGPT Work
• Science & Space: NASA Holds Live Briefing Today on Artemis Moon Plans

Tech & Apps

Meta Turns Muse Chat Sharing Back On After Privacy Scare

Meta has restarted the sharing feature on Muse, its AI chat assistant, after suspending it on October 20 when security firm Claroc found thousands of shared conversation links were being indexed publicly. Claroc said it located more than 6,800 Muse share links through public DNS records, including chats containing a small business’s loan application and other sensitive details. The Verge reports sharing is now back on.

Apple Adds an AI ‘Intelligent Assistant’ to Pages, Keynote and Numbers

Apple has rolled out a beta Intelligent Assistant across Pages, Keynote and Numbers for Apple Creator Studio subscribers running iOS 27 or later. In Pages it can draft and edit text, in Keynote it can build slides and presenter notes, and in Numbers it can suggest charts and build formulas from plain-language requests, according to 9to5Mac (also reported by MacRumors).

Leaked Mass Effect: Universe Trailer Surfaces After BioWare’s Closure

A roughly two-minute trailer for a canceled project called Mass Effect: Universe leaked onto Reddit on October 22, a day after EA announced it was shutting down BioWare. The footage brings back series character Liara T’Soni and was verified as authentic by Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier and IGN, per Ars Technica. The game was still in pre-production when the studio closed, so it will not be released.

Switch 2 Gets Its First Software-Only Jailbreak

In other tech news, a security researcher published a tethered, software-only exploit called ns2jb that gives homebrew access on Nintendo Switch 2 units running firmware 23.0.1, with no modchip required. The exploit enters through SmileBASIC, a programming app also available on the original Switch, taking advantage of an integer overflow in its interpreter to gain memory read-and-write access, according to Ars Technica. It enables homebrew software and save backups but doesn’t unlock full system access or custom firmware.

First iPhone Duo Units Begin Shipping Ahead of Today’s Launch

Apple’s foldable iPhone Duo officially goes on sale today, October 23, and some early pre-orders marked for launch-day delivery are already showing as “shipped” in the Apple Store app. 9to5Mac (also reported by MacRumors) notes orders move through processing, preparing-to-ship, shipped and delivered stages in the app’s order tracker.

Bluesky Adds Beta iPad Support and Profile Links

In more tech news, Bluesky has launched beta testing for a proper iPad version of its app, with a toggle in Settings for users to report issues. The update also lets people add links to outside platforms — such as Patreon or Ko-fi — directly on their profile through a new Links section in Edit Profile, per Engadget.

AI Tools

Uber Puts All 30,000 Employees on ChatGPT Work

Uber has expanded access to OpenAI’s enterprise agent ChatGPT Work to its entire global workforce of 30,000 employees, up from an initial pilot of 1,000 earlier this year. TechCrunch reports that in the pilot, 80% of users were non-engineers who used the tool for tasks like analyzing operations data and building dashboards. The company hasn’t disclosed how much it’s spending on the rollout.

Science & Space

NASA Holds Live Briefing Today on Artemis Moon Plans

NASA is giving a press briefing today, October 23, at 2 p.m. ET from Kennedy Space Center on its plans to land astronauts on the moon, with participants including NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman. Space.com says the update covers progress toward returning astronauts to the lunar surface by 2028, streamed live on NASA’s website.

Typhoon Champi Shuts Down Schools and Offices Across Taiwan

Schools, shops and the stock exchange across most of Taiwan closed today as Typhoon Champi approached with sustained winds of about 167 km/h (104 mph), after earlier peaking at super-typhoon strength. More than 1,200 people were evacuated, and forecasters warned of up to 90 centimeters of rain over three days, according to Phys.org. At least one person has died after being swept away by typhoon-driven waves.

Study: Europe’s 2026 Summer Heat Killed Over 50,000 People

A study published today in Nature Health estimates that warmer temperatures caused 50,391 deaths across 854 European cities this past June, July and August, with researchers attributing roughly 65% of those deaths to human-caused climate change. Phys.org reports the Imperial College London-led team, headed by climate scientist Clair Barnes, says the true toll is likely higher since the count excludes a May heat wave and covers only about 40% of Europe’s population.

Mole Rats Show Stress Response When Earth’s Magnetic Field Is Removed

Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behavior found that Ansell’s mole rats actively avoid areas with a near-zero magnetic field and show activity in stress-related brain regions like the amygdala when exposed to one. The team built a 3D brain-imaging atlas of the mole rats to track the response, according to ScienceAlert. The findings are posted as a bioRxiv preprint and haven’t yet been peer-reviewed.

Explore more: using ChatGPT to turn leftovers into dinner, how to stop Android from suggesting AI wallpapers and icons.

Tech News FAQs

Is Meta Muse’s sharing feature safe to use again?

Meta turned chat sharing back on after addressing the issue that let shared Muse conversation links be found through public DNS records. Security firm Claroc, which first flagged the exposure, rechecked old links afterward and found they no longer opened.

When does the iPhone Duo go on sale?

The iPhone Duo launches today, October 23, 2026. Some early pre-orders with launch-day delivery are already marked “shipped” in the Apple Store app.

Is the Mass Effect: Universe game coming out?

No. The leaked trailer shows a project called Mass Effect: Universe that was still in pre-production when EA announced BioWare’s closure, so the game will not be released.

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Photo: HaeB / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

The post 11 Must-Know Tech News Stories for Friday, October 23, 2026: Uber Puts 30,000 Workers on ChatGPT, Meta Turns Muse Sharing Back On appeared first on GTWebs.

This guide walks through two ways to do it, typing a list or uploading a photo, plus the specific prompt wording that gets you a usable recipe instead of a vague suggestion, and a few tweaks to make the results actually match what’s in your kitchen.

Quick Answer

Open ChatGPT, list everything you have (or snap a photo of your fridge/pantry), and ask it to suggest a recipe using only those ingredients plus common pantry staples. Tell it your time limit, any dietary needs, and how many people you’re feeding, then ask for a simple step-by-step recipe.

Typing a List vs. Uploading a Photo

The fastest method is just typing. Open a new chat and list what you’ve got, including small or half-used items: ‘leftover rotisserie chicken, half a bag of spinach, three eggs, a wedge of parmesan, half an onion, rice from last night, soy sauce.’ The more specific you are, the more usable the suggestions, so include quantities roughly (‘a cup of rice’ beats just ‘rice’).

You can also upload a photo instead of typing. On the ChatGPT mobile app, tap the + button to the left of the message box and choose a photo from your camera roll or camera; on the web and desktop apps, click the + button next to the input field and choose ‘Add photos & files’ to upload an image from your device. Ask it to identify what it sees and suggest a dinner using those ingredients. This works well but isn’t perfect, it can miss items at the back of a shelf or misread something in a container, so it helps to crop the photo to the items you actually want considered and double-check the ingredient list it comes back with before cooking.

Either way, give ChatGPT the constraints that matter: how much time you have, how many people you’re cooking for, any allergies or diets, and what equipment you’re using (stovetop, oven, air fryer, instant pot). A prompt like ‘Give me a 20-minute one-pan dinner for two using these, nothing else needed except basic pantry staples like oil, salt, and garlic’ produces far more useful output than just ‘what can I make with this.’

Getting a Recipe You’ll Actually Cook

Once ChatGPT suggests a dish, ask it to write out the full recipe: ingredient list with rough amounts, numbered steps, and an estimated cook time. If the first idea doesn’t appeal to you, just say so, ‘not that, something more like a soup’ or ‘I don’t have an oven’ works fine, and it will adjust without starting the conversation over.

If you’re not sure an ingredient combination will actually taste good together, ask directly: ‘does soy sauce work with the parmesan and chicken, or should I leave one out?’ ChatGPT can flag flavor clashes or suggest swapping an item for something more complementary.

For food safety, ChatGPT can give general guidance (like how long cooked chicken is typically safe in the fridge) but it isn’t a substitute for your own judgment or official food-safety resources when something looks, smells, or feels off. When in doubt, toss it rather than cook it.

Tips and Common Mistakes

Be specific about quantities when you can, ‘half a bag of spinach’ leads to a better-portioned recipe than just ‘spinach.’ Mention what you’re willing to buy, if anything, so ChatGPT doesn’t build a recipe around an ingredient you don’t actually have, or conversely, feel free to say ‘I can grab one or two things from the store’ if your leftovers alone won’t make a full meal.

Don’t skip telling it your skill level and time budget; a suggestion that sounds great can turn out to need an hour of active cooking, which defeats the point of a quick leftovers meal. If a recipe still feels off once you start cooking, taste as you go and adjust seasoning yourself, ChatGPT is good at structure and ideas but it isn’t tasting your actual food.

Keep a running ‘leftovers’ chat if you do this often, ChatGPT can remember context within that conversation, so you can just add new items as your fridge changes (‘also now have half a can of coconut milk’) instead of retyping everything each time.

Explore more: more AI tools and guides.

ChatGPT for leftovers FAQs

Can ChatGPT really tell what’s in my fridge from a photo?

Yes, you can upload a photo and ask it to identify ingredients and suggest a recipe, but it can miss items that are tucked away or hard to see, so it’s worth confirming the list it gives you before cooking from it.

Do I need a paid ChatGPT plan to do this?

No, the free version of ChatGPT can analyze uploaded photos and chat with you about recipes. A paid plan isn’t necessary for this use case.

What if ChatGPT suggests a recipe that needs an ingredient I don’t have?

Tell it which ingredient you’re missing and ask for a substitute or a version of the recipe without it. You can also start by saying you only want recipes using what you already listed, no extra grocery trips.

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Here are today’s 4 verified tech & science stories, covering Tech & Apps and Fitness & Health Tech.

Every item below links to its original source.

The TLDR

• Tech & Apps: Airbnb bans demanding checkout chores
• Fitness & Health Tech: Garmin reopens its developer API program with a free tier

Tech & Apps

Airbnb bans demanding checkout chores

Airbnb has updated its house rules policy so hosts can no longer require guests to “complete tasks that require significant effort” before checkout, such as washing dishes or taking out the trash. The change applies to reservations booked on or after November 20, and was also reported by Engadget. It’s a win for travelers tired of leaving a rental feeling like they just worked a shift.

Fortnite returns to Apple’s Australian App Store after court ruling

An Australian federal judge has ordered Apple to open the iPhone to competition, ruling the company must allow third-party app stores, alternative in-app payment methods, and outside purchase links without the usual Apple fees, according to 9to5Mac. Epic’s apps had to be readmitted to the Australian store immediately, and Engadget confirms Fortnite is already back there. Apple says it will appeal, and the court gave it until March 1, 2027 to comply.

Xbox wants to charge by the hour to stream games you already own

Microsoft is introducing pay-as-you-go cloud streaming pricing of 24 to 40 cents per hour, according to Ars Technica, and those time-based charges come on top of whatever you already paid for the games themselves. It’s a notable shift for anyone who assumed owning a game meant streaming it for free.

Fitness & Health Tech

Garmin reopens its developer API program with a free tier

Garmin has reopened and overhauled its Connect developer API program after closing it to new applicants for about seven months, according to DC Rainmaker. A new three-tier system gives hobbyists instant, free access to their own activity data, lets small startups serve up to 1,000 users for free, and charges negotiated fees only for larger enterprise platforms. If you’re pairing a Garmin with a walking app that turns steps into a real workout, this move should mean more third-party apps can plug into your data over time.

Explore more: walking app that turns steps into a real workout, AI trip planners, streaming costs compared to cable.

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Photo: Dllu / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

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