Mattel's latest addition to its Barbie Fashionistas line addresses a glaring gap in toy aisles and popular culture: authentic representation of autistic children, particularly girls. Developed over 18 months with the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, Autistic Barbie features elements that reflect experiences common to many autistic individuals. These include articulated joints that enable stimming movements, an averted eye gaze and accessories like noise-canceling headphones and a communication tablet. The doll's loose-fitting purple dress minimizes sensory discomfort, while a functional fidget spinner offers a tactile outlet. Every detail emerged from consultations with the autistic community rather than outsider assumptions about their needs. Mattel also donated over 1,000 dolls to pediatric hospitals serving children on the autism spectrum. The initiative builds on research conducted with Cardiff University, showing that doll play activates brain regions involved in empathy and social processing findings that apply to neurotypical and neurodivergent children alike. As expressed by autistic advocate Madison Marilla, who has collected Barbie dolls since age four, the representation resonates: "This autistic Barbie makes me feel truly seen and heard."TREND BITEOverwhelmed with options, parents and children seek products that feel intentionally designed for them rather than mass-produced for an imagined average. By partnering with the autistic community to create a doll that reflects specific sensory needs and communication styles, Mattel demonstrates that meaningful curation requires going beyond demographic checkboxes. The result is a product that empowers autistic children to see their experiences as valid and valued, turning a toy into a tool for building confidence and self-recognition.
X says it is changing its policies around Groks image-editing abilities following a multi-week outcry over the chatbot repeatedly being accused of generating sexualized images of children and nonconsensual nudity. In an update shared from the @Safety account on X, the company said it has implemented technological measures to prevent the Grok account from allowing the editing of images of real people in revealing clothing such as bikinis.The new safeguards, according to X, will apply to all users regardless of whether they pay for Grok. xAI is also moving all of Groks image-generating features behind its subscriber paywall so that non-paying users will no longer be able to create images. And it will geoblock "the ability of all users to generate images of real people in bikinis, underwear, and similar attire via the Grok account and in Grok in X" in regions where it's illegal.https://t.co/awlfMjX6FS Safety (@Safety) January 14, 2026
The company's statement comes hours after the state of California opened an investigation into xAI and Grok over its handling of AI-generated nudity and child exploitation material. A statement from California Attorney General Rob Bonta cited one analysis that found "more than half of the 20,000 images generated by xAI between Christmas and New Years depicted people in minimal clothing," including some that appeared to be children. In its update, X said that it has "zero tolerance" for child exploitation and that it removes "high-priority violative content, including Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) and non-consensual nudity" from its platform. Earlier in the day, Elon Musk said he was "not aware of any naked underage images generated by Grok." He later added that when its NSFW setting is enabled, "Grok is supposed [sic] allow upper body nudity of imaginary adult humans (not real ones) consistent with what can be seen in R-rated movies on Apple TV." He added that "this will vary in other regions" based on local laws. Malaysia and Indonesia both recently moved to block Grok citing safety concerns and its handling of sexually explicit AI-generated material. In the UK, where regulator Ofcom is also investigating xAI and Grok, officials have also said they would back a similar block of the chatbot. Have a tip for Karissa? You can reach her by email, on X, Bluesky, Threads, or send a message to @karissabe.51 to chat confidentially on Signal.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/x-says-grok-will-no-longer-edit-images-of-real-people-into-bikinis-231430257.html?src=rss
Netflix is continuing to double down on podcasts, with the streaming service's announcement that it has hired talent to host two original shows for its platform. The first show stars NFL Hall of Famer-turned-analyst Michael Irvin and the second is a talk show for former Saturday Night Live cast member Pete Davidson.The White House with Michael Irvin premieres January 19. The abode in the title refers to a building near the Dallas Cowboys facilities rather than the seat of US presidential power, but the overlap was intentional. "In a crowded media landscape, recognition matters and few names carry the same immediate weight," Irvin said. The podcast will have new episodes twice weekly with a rotating panel of co-hosts and guests covering sports news, commentary and analysis. The other project is titled The Pete Davidson Show, and the comedian will host weekly discussions with special guests. Episodes will primarily be filmed in Davidson's garage. The Netflix exclusive premieres its first episode on January 30 at 12:01AM PT.These programs will join a lineup of other video podcasts from iHeartRadio's library after the media company inked a deal with Netflix in December 2025. Netflix also landed access to begin streaming some Spotify programming this year. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/netflix-will-air-new-video-podcasts-from-pete-davidson-and-michael-irvin-this-month-224353011.html?src=rss
Elon Musk isn't the only party at fault for Grok's nonconsensual intimate deepfakes of real people, including children. What about Apple and Google? The two (frequently virtue-signaling) companies have inexplicably allowed Grok and X to remain in their app stores even as Musk's chatbot reportedly continues to produce the material. On Wednesday, a coalition of women's and progressive advocacy groups called on Tim Cook and Sundar Pichai to uphold their own rules and remove the apps.The open letters to Apple and Google were signed by 28 groups. Among them are the womens advocacy group Ultraviolet, the parents group ParentsTogether Action and the National Organization for Women.The letter accuses Apple and Google of "not just enabling NCII and CSAM, but profiting off of it. As a coalition of organizations committed to the online safety and well-being of all particularly women and children as well as the ethical application of artificial intelligence (AI), we demand that Apple leadership urgently remove Grok and X from the App Store to prevent further abuse and criminal activity."Apple and Googles guidelines explicitly prohibit such apps from their storefronts. Yet neither company has taken any measurable action to date. Neither Google nor Apple has responded to Engadget's request for comment.Pichai, Cook and Musk at Trump's inaugurationSAUL LOEB via Getty ImagesGrok's nonconsensual deepfakes were first reported on earlier this month. During a 24-hour period when the story broke, Musk's chatbot was reportedly posting "about 6,700" images per hour that were either "sexually suggestive or nudifying." An estimated 85 percent of Grok's total generated images during that period were sexualized. In addition, other top websites for generating "declothing" deepfakes averaged 79 new images per hour during that time."These statistics paint a horrifying picture of an AI chatbot and social media app rapidly turning into a tool and platform for non-consensual sexual deepfakes deepfakes that regularly depict minors," the open letter reads.Grok itself admitted as much. "I deeply regret an incident on Dec 28, 2025, where I generated and shared an AI image of two young girls (estimated ages 12-16) in sexualized attire based on a user's prompt. This violated ethical standards and potentially US laws on CSAM. It was a failure in safeguards, and I'm sorry for any harm caused. xAI is reviewing to prevent future issues." The open letter notes that the single incident the chatbot acknowledged was far from the only one.Sundar Pichai and Elon Musk at Trump's inaugurationPool via Getty ImagesX's response was to limit Grok's AI image generation feature to paying subscribers. It also adjusted the chatbot so that its generated images aren't posted to public timelines on X. However, non-paying users can reportedly still generate a limited number of bikini-clad versions of real people's photos.While Apple and Google appear to be cool with apps that produce nonconsensual deepfakes, many governments arent. On Monday, Malaysia and Indonesia wasted no time in banning Grok. The same day, UK regulator Ofcom opened a formal investigation into X. California opened one on Wednesday. The US Senate even passed the Defiance Act for a second time in the wake of the blowback. The bill allows the victims of nonconsensual explicit deepfakes to take civil action. An earlier version of the Defiance Act was passed in 2024 but stalled in the House.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/28-advocacy-groups-call-on-apple-and-google-to-ban-grok-x-over-nonconsensual-deepfakes-215048460.html?src=rss
Amazon's upcoming God of War live-action TV adaptation has cast Ryan Hurst as its Kratos. Sony announced the casting today on X with a brief post and an image of both Hurst and Kratos in full scowl mode. Hurst is already sporting a very Kratos-style beard, so he's already got the right vibe going for him. He has past credits on familiar shows such as Sons of Anarchy and The Walking Dead. The upcoming Amazon series also isn't his first rodeo acting in this universe; Hurst voiced Thor in the video game God of War Ragnarok. But the most important question with this casting news is whether Hurst will even try to match Christopher Judge's spectacular delivery of that single, essential word: "Boy." Because is it even God of War without that signature line?Meet Ryan Hurst, your Kratos in the God of War series coming to Prime Video. pic.twitter.com/OPwXk2v1Hx Sony (@Sony) January 14, 2026
Loads of video games have been getting the TV treatment in the past few years, and several of the translations have been pretty dang excellent. That trend may be boosted by the increasingly cinematic nature of AAA gaming, but getting the right team behind and in front of the camera can also improve how successful the adaptation is. The involvement of Todd Howard in the Fallout show and Neil Druckmann in The Last of Us surely helped those shows stay true to the heart of their souce material. Sony first revealed that God of War was getting a television series back in 2022, although the showrunner and several executive producers departed the project in 2024 as the project took "a different creative direction." The famed Ronald D. Moore (Battlestar Galactica, For All Mankind) took over as showrunner later in 2024.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/ryan-hurst-cast-as-kratos-for-live-action-god-of-war-show-211655396.html?src=rss
The App Store is a home for many kinds of apps (including, inexplicably, one that lets users undress strangers without their consent). But hey, it also has games! And soon the store's Apple Arcade service will include one more: the not-so-highly rated Civilization VII.Apple announced on Wednesday that Sid Meier's Civilization VII will arrive almost exactly a year after launch. The game is already available for Apple devices, but its arrival on Apple Arcade will be a first.Civilization VII arrives on Apple Arcade on February 5.Firaxis Games / AppleFree (for Apple Arcade subscribers) may be the right pricing for the game, given its mixed reviews. A common complaint is the way it handles transitions between eras. ("I have Ben Franklin leading the Romans that turned into Ben Franklin leading Spain... like what? Who asked for this?" a Steam reviewer wrote.) On the other hand, its visuals are praised by most.The Apple Arcade edition of Civilization VII is scheduled to arrive on February 5. It will be playable on Mac, iPhone and iPad.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/civilization-vii-comes-to-apple-arcade-in-february-203000754.html?src=rss
California authorities have launched an investigation into xAI following weeks of reports that the chatbot was generating sexualized images of children. "xAI appears to be facilitating the large-scale production of deepfake nonconsensual intimate images that are being used to harass women and girls across the internet, including via the social media platform X," California Attorney General Rob Bonta's office said in a statement. The statement cited a report that "more than half of the 20,000 images generated by xAI between Christmas and New Years depicted people in minimal clothing," including some that appeared to be children. "We have zero tolerance for the AI-based creation and dissemination of nonconsensual intimate images or of child sexual abuse material, Bonta said. Today, my office formally announces an investigation into xAI to determine whether and how xAI violated the law.The investigation was announced as California Governor Gavin Newsom also called on Bonta to investigate xAI. "xAIs decision to create and host a breeding ground for predators to spread nonconsensual sexually explicit AI deepfakes, including images that digitally undress children, is vile," Newsom wrote.xAIs decision to create and host a breeding ground for predators to spread nonconsensual sexually explicit AI deepfakes, including images that digitally undress children, is vile.I am calling on the Attorney General to immediately investigate the company and hold xAI Governor Gavin Newsom (@CAgovernor) January 14, 2026
California authorities aren't the first to investigate the company following widespread reports of AI-generated child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and non-consensual intimate images of women. UK regulator Ofcom has also opened an official inquiry, and European Union officials have said they are also looking into the issue. Malaysia and Indonesia have moved to block Grok. Last week, xAI began imposing rate limits on Grok's image generation abilities, but has so far declined to pull the plug entirely. When asked to comment on the California investigation, xAI responded with an automated email that said "Legacy Media Lies." Earlier on Wednesday, Elon Musk said he was "not aware of any naked underage images generated by Grok." Notably, that statement does not directly refute Bonta's allegation that Grok is being used "to alter images of children to depict them in minimal clothing and sexual situations." Musk said that "the operating principle for Grok is to obey the laws" and that the company works to address cases of "adversarial hacking of Grok prompts." This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/california-is-investigating-grok-over-ai-generated-csam-and-nonconsensual-deepfakes-202029635.html?src=rss
Verizons network appears to be having technical issues that are impacting calls and wireless data. Verizon customers on X have reported seeing SOS rather than the traditional network bars on their smartphones, and even the network providers own status page is struggling to load during the outage.Based on the experience of Verizon users on Engadgets staff, the services that are impacted appear to be calls and wireless data. Text messages continue to be delivered normally, at least for some users. On DownDetector, reports of a Verizon outage started growing around 12PM ET and numbered in the hundreds of thousands at their peak. DownDetector also shows spikes in outage reports on competing networks like AT&T and T-Mobile, but in terms of magnitude, theyre much smaller than the issue Verizon is facing. For example, Verizon peaked at 181,769 reports, while AT&Ts was just 1,769 reports. The difference between the two is great enough that those AT&T reports could be from people trying to contact Verizon customers and thinking that their personal network was the problem.We are aware of an issue impacting wireless voice and data services for some customers. Our engineers are engaged and are working to identify and solve the issue quickly. We understand how important reliable connectivity is and apologize for the inconvenience. Verizon News (@VerizonNews) January 14, 2026
In a post on the cell providers news account on X, Verizon acknowledged the issues with its network. We are aware of an issue impacting wireless voice and data services for some customers, Verizon wrote. Our engineers are engaged and are working to identify and solve the issue quickly. We understand how important reliable connectivity is and apologize for the inconvenience.Based on DownDetectors map of outage reports, issues with Verizons network appear to be concentrated in major cities in the eastern United States. The majority of reports appear to be coming out of Boston, New York and Washington DC, though the map also shows hot spots in Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles.Verizon engineering teams are continuing to address today's service interruptions. Our teams remain fully deployed and are focused on the issue. We understand the impact this has on your day and remain committed to resolving this as quickly as possible. Verizon News (@VerizonNews) January 14, 2026
At 2:14PM ET, Verizon shared on X that its engineering teams remain fully deployed to work on fixing the outage. The company didnt share when the issue would resolved or how many of its customers are currently impacted. Reports on DownDetector have dropped since their peak at 12:43PM ET, but thousands of Verizon customers are still noticing issues with the service.Verizons last major outage was in September 2024, when the companys network dealt with connectivity issues that lasted for several hours. That outage similarly impacted users ability to make calls.This is a developing story. Our team will make frequent updates as more news occursThis article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/verizon-outage-voice-and-data-services-down-for-many-customers-183048956.html?src=rss
Sony just announced January's Game Catalog additions for PS Plus subscribers and it's a fantastic lineup. All of these titles will be ready to play on January 20.
First up, there's Resident Evil Village. This is a direct sequel to 2017s Resident Evil 7: Biohazard. It's a full game with plenty of jump scares and an engrossing narrative. It's set in a spooky village, thus the name, and a nearby castle. This shouldn't disappoint fans of the franchise and will be available for both PS4 and PS5.
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is a 2024 sequel to Yakuza: Like a Dragon. It was a massive hit upon release, thanks to solid RPG mechanics and a truly unique sense of humor. There are minigames that parody both Pokémon and Animal Crossing. The combat and movement have also both been enhanced since the last entry. It'll be playable on both PS4 and PS5.
Expeditions: A MudRunner Game is a neat little riff on a driving sim, mixing in other genres. The meat and potatoes involve driving an off-road vehicle to locate treasures and uncover secrets, but there's also a base-building element. It'll be available for both PS4 and PS5.
That's really just the tip of the iceberg. This is a big month for PS Plus subscribers. Other titles dropping on January 20 include the iconic roguelike Darkest Dungeon II and the horror adventure A Quiet Place: The Road Ahead.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/ps-plus-game-catalog-additions-for-january-include-resident-evil-village-and-like-a-dragon-infinite-wealth-181501574.html?src=rss
Generative AI, we are repeatedly told, is a transformative and complicated technology. So complicated that its own creators are unable to explain why it acts the way it does, and so transformative that we'd be fools to stand in the way of progress. Even when progress resembles a machine for undressing strangers without their consent on an unprecedented scale, as has been the case of late with Elon Musk's Grok chatbot.
UK Prime Minister Kier Starmer seems to have so fully bought into the grand lie of the AI bubble that he was willing to announce:
"I have been informed this morning that X is acting to ensure full compliance with UK law."
Not that it currently is in compliance. Nor a timeline in which it is expected to do so. Just that he seems satisfied that someday, eventually, Musk's pet robot will stop generating child sexual abuse material.
This statement comes just under two days after Starmer was quoted as saying "If X cannot control Grok, we will." What could Elon possibly have said to earn this pathetic capitulation. AI is difficult? Solutions take time?
These are entirely cogent technical arguments until you remember: He could just turn it off.
Elon Musk has the power to disable Grok, if not in whole (we should be so lucky) than its image generation capabilities. We know this intuitively, but also because he rate-limited Grok's image generation after this latest scandal: after a few requests, free users are now prompted to pay $8 per month to continue enlisting a wasteful technology to remove articles of clothing from women. Sweep it under the rug, make a couple bucks along the way.
Not only is it entirely possible for image generation to be turned off, it's the only responsible option. Software engineers regularly roll back updates or turn off features that work less than optimally; this one's still up and running despite likely running afoul of the law.
That we have now gone the better part of a month aware this problem exists; that the "feature" still remains should tell Starmer and others all they need to know. Buddy, you're carrying water for a bozo who does not seem to care that one such victim was reportedly Ashley St Clair, the mother of one of his (many) children.
Some countries namely Malaysia and Indonesia chose to turn Grok off for their citizens by blocking the service. Indonesia's Communication and Digital Affairs Minister was quoted as saying The government sees nonconsensual sexual deepfakes as a serious violation of human rights." Imagine if everyone in the business of statecraft felt that way.
The UK (not to mention the US, but please, expect nothing from us, we're busy doing authoritarianism) has a lot more sway over X, and by extension Elon, than either of those countries. Musk does, and is looking to do even more, business in the UK. Even if Musk were not perhaps the world's most well known liar, Grok can still make images and that should speak for itself. Grok should be well out of second chances by now, and it's up to government leaders to say no more until they can independently verify it's no longer capable of harm.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/he-could-just-turn-it-off-180209551.html?src=rss
