The burrito chain has enlisted Palantir for a platform that monitors pest incidents, employee illnesses, and other factors. The partnership comes after a nightmare summer for food safety across the US.

The app is the best way to read, watch, and listen to WIRED’s journalism.

The bloc wants to curb Big Tech’s grip on children with its new EU Kids Act, but age checks, parental oversight, and privacy concerns could make its plan difficult to implement.

The US and China agree that advanced AI poses serious risks. But Beijing is deeply skeptical of a deal that prioritizes keeping US companies ahead.

The legal battle over whether prediction markets are a form of gambling has overshadowed something else entirely: They’re already a new form of media.

It’s the final call to recognize the Seattle area’s boldest innovators — nominations for GeekWire’s 2026 Uncommon Thinkers Awards close this Friday. Help us select individuals who challenge conventional thinking, push boundaries and make an impact across the region.

Now in its fourth year, and in partnership with Greater Seattle Partners, the program aims to honor inventors, scientists, technologists and entrepreneurs who are transforming industries and driving positive change throughout the world.

Community nominations will be accepted through Friday, Sept. 18 at 11 a.m. PT, after which a panel of judges will select honorees. They’ll be celebrated on stage during a VIP reception at the annual GeekWire Gala on Dec. 10. Early-bird tickets available here.

Honorees are selected based on innovation, creativity and leadership and should have a track record of introducing novel ideas, technologies, or solutions that challenge the status quo. Nominees should also demonstrate a measurable and meaningful impact on their respective fields or industries, contributing to the betterment of society.

Do you know an Uncommon Thinker deserving of recognition? Fill out the nomination form today.

Read the GeekWire profiles of last year’s Uncommon Thinkers honorees:

• Anindya Roy’s journey from rural India to turning science fiction into drug candidates
• Chet Kittleson’s Tin Can is a calling, and a way to foster deeper connections for kids
• Brian Pinkard looks for impact, from flipping rocks to destroying forever chemicals
• Portal Space’s Jeff Thornburg plans to harness the heat of the sun in the cold of space
• Kiana Ehsani thrives on scrappy persistence at AI startup Vercept and in the outdoors
• Bluesky’s Jay Graber is planting the seeds for a decentralized digital world

Thanks to First Tech Federal Credit Union, the title sponsor of this year’s GeekWire Gala. For a recap of last year’s event, head here.

A new WhatsApp Business MCP server lets developers use AI coding agents like Claude, Cursor, Codex, and ChatGPT to handle setup, messaging templates, testing, and troubleshooting.

LifetimeCloud gives your team 1TB of end-to-end encrypted cloud storage for a one-time fee, no renewals.

The post Drop the Monthly Cloud Bill and Own 1TB of Encrypted Storage appeared first on TechRepublic.

Is the current furore in mathematics the canary in the coalmine for experimental science and knowledge work? This post was originally published in Vanishing Gradients on September 11, 2026. It has been updated to address the subsequent declaration by 25 Fields Medalists and the debate about AI, mathematical progress, and research incentives. Science without understanding? […]

Following mass layoffs in 2022 and 2023, many tech workers turned against their employers. When liberal politicians also rallied against Silicon Valley, their backers turned to Donald Trump.

WIRED tested samples of four types of peptides. The results show how lightly regulated the industry is, even as popularity surges.

A new bipartisan effort in Congress to rein in automated license plate readers takes a page from the national drinking age: Comply, or risk losing federal highway funding.

Sam Altman and Elon Musk backed Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei’s weekend plea for regulation. The White House seems unlikely to oblige.

While the publishing industry frets over how authors are using AI, many readers are taking things into their own hands.

Less than 48 hours after Automattic's board placed Matt Mullenweg on leave, Mullenweg told employees he was back "in control" of the company and that the board was again in agreement. 404 Media cited Slack screenshots late Thursday evening where Mullenweg posted "Don't call it a comeback" and linked to LL Cool J's music video for "Mama Said Knock You Out." "Mullenweg's Slack profile picture currently shows him wearing a pirate hat and eyepatch," the report notes. From the report: "Happy to announce the board is back in agreement, and I'm in control of Automattic," Mullenweg wrote in the company-wide Announcements channel on Slack. "A lot happened in the past 48 hours that we need to sort out, and I hope much of it was a misunderstanding, because I have huge respect and regard for those involved." Mark Davies, Automattic's CFO who was set to act as interim CEO according to a statement from Automattic, had his Slack account deactivated as of at least Friday, sources told 404 Media and TechCrunch similarly reported. Davies, Mullenweg, and Automattic did not respond to 404 Media's requests for comment for this story. Techcrunch reported that Mullenweg told them a blog post is forthcoming. On Friday morning, Mullenweg published a blog post on his personal website, titled "Major Life Announcement." In it he announced he's buying a tugboat. "Anybody who's founded a company and had to find good stewards knows that no one will love a thing quite like the original owner, but sometimes you can find the perfect person to carry the torch," he wrote in the blog. He did not address the confusion surrounding his status at Automattic. The back-and-forth follows years of legal fights, layoffs, employee departures, and controversy surrounding Mullenweg's leadership.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

The agency that oversees prediction markets has investigated Polymarket trades on Biden pardons and the Iran war—and even more potential insider trading at Google, documents obtained by WIRED show.

Timnit Gebru argues that AI companies are stoking fears of extinction to avoid discussing actual harms, like autonomous weapons.

A combination of rapid advances, recursive self-improvement, and agentic swarms are genuinely “spooking people” inside big labs.

AI leaders worry antitrust law could stand in the way of what they view as an increasingly urgent push to coordinate a slowdown in AI development.

This week on “Uncanny Valley,” we dig into a former Anthropic researcher’s AI doomsday warning, the latest upgrades from Apple’s event, and the census report that claimed Trump won the 2020 election.