TechCapsules

A Utah teenager was rescued on November 1, 2026, after she used the online game Among Us to contact another child who alerted authorities. The 17‑year‑old had been missing since May 2025 and was allegedly held captive for more than 500 days by 39‑year‑old Adam Harmel, who abducted her from Utah, drove her to his Oregon home, and confined her in his basement. Harmel disposed of her phone in a river, but later gave her a device with Wi‑Fi only, allowing [...]

The Company Lab (CO.LAB) has opened its first CO.LAB Q cohort, a 12‑month quantum commercialization studio that begins in November 2026. Four startups—RidgeQuantum, Superquantum, esoteriq and Kottackal Business Solutions—will follow a structured roadmap that includes a commercialization readiness assessment, periodic advisory‑board reviews and direct access to regional quantum testbeds and potential customers in the Tennessee Valley. Founding partners such as EPB, Quantinuum, Davidson Technologies, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Middle Tennessee Electric, Quantum Machines and Classiq, together with [...]

Movie director Rian Johnson unveiled Chromagraph Camera, a $12.99 iPhone app that aims to deliver film‑like images without the heavy post‑processing typical of existing solutions. Johnson argues that Apple’s default camera produces over‑processed shots and that recent film‑grain options on the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone Duo are overly exaggerated. Chromagraph offers a point‑and‑shoot experience, applying subtle texture and color tweaks automatically, and avoids the crashes and delays users report with apps such as Adobe’s Project Indigo. After purchasing the app, Johnson [...]

On 7 November 1996 NASA launched the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) aboard a Delta II, marking the agency’s first Mars mission in nearly two decades since Viking. The orbiter served both as a scientific platform and a communications relay for later rovers, transmitting data from Sojourner, Spirit and Opportunity to Earth. MGS mapped the planet’s surface, discovering gullies that appear to have been carved by intermittent water flow and detecting hematite deposits—an iron oxide that forms in watery environments. Observations [...]

Democrats’ sweeping victory in the recent midterm elections is poised to reshape the tech landscape, as voters rejected dozens of local ballot measures that would have eased data‑center approvals and elected officials, such as Texas governor‑elect Gina Hinojosa, who campaigned on restricting such facilities. On TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, hosts discussed how the political shift undermines Elon Musk’s $500 million Republican donations, leaving his businesses in a newly “blue” Texas with heightened regulatory risk. They noted that while data‑center [...]

Tesla has released version 26.11.0 of its Robotaxi app, adding a vehicle‑selection screen that displays estimated arrival time, expected wait and current availability for both Cybercab and Model Y rides on a single view. The update lets riders compare the two options side‑by‑side before booking, a change from the previous flow where users selected a car first and learned wait times afterward. The feature builds on earlier builds that introduced seating‑capacity indicators and was first offered on September 3 when [...]

Former Rockstar Games technical director Obbe Vermeij suggests the studio could release GTA 6 on PC earlier than expected, potentially before March 2027, breaking its usual console-first pattern. Vermeij notes Rockstar’s historical PC-first approach and the current industry shift toward AI-generated ports, which could undermine sales if unauthorized PC versions circulate. He argues that a closer release window would mitigate risks from AI recompilations, though Rockstar has no confirmed plans and may avoid premature announcements to protect double-dip revenue. [...]

Nintendo’s series producer Eiji Aonuma confirmed that the Water Temple in the upcoming Switch 2 remake of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is finally satisfactory. He praised the streamlined item‑selection, single‑button boot usage, and improved camera control that resolve the original 1998 dungeon’s notorious menu navigation and spatial confusion. Aonuma noted that these changes allow players to focus on puzzle solving rather than technical interruptions, making this version the most polished yet.