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Users of Microsoft apps are having a rough year. First, in May, the Windows maker shut down the popular VOIP calling app, Skype, for good. Microsoft said it was done so that the company could focus on its latest communications app darling, Microsoft Teams. Now, Microsoft has announced that it is nerfing one of its most popular mobile apps, too. While not shutting the app down completely, Microsoft Authenticator is about to go through a radical downgrade. The app previously acted as a password manager and authentication app, but starting this month, Microsoft has stripped Authenticator’s ability to autofill your saved passwords. And come August, Microsoft will delete all your saved passwords from Authenticator. This means that just as users of Skype needed to find a new VOIP app, those who use Microsoft Authenticator as a password manager will need to hurry up and find a new one. Heres why Microsoft is making its changes to Authenticator, and the alternative password managers you may want to migrate to before the August deadline. Why is Microsoft killing Authenticators password management feature? Microsoft first introduced Authenticator in 2016 as a stand-alone app used to manage two-factor authentication security codes. In 2020, it added password management support to Authenticator, making the app a one-stop shop for autofilling passwords and security codes on websites. However, in 2020, Microsoft also introduced its new Edge browser, and since then, Edge has become a top priority for the company. And Microsoft has now decided that Edge should act as a Microsoft users password manager of choice, partly due to the fact that the Edge browser supports multiple platforms: Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more, while Authenticator only supports iOS and Android. The logic here is that if Edge is now your password manager, all your passwords will be accessible on every device logged into Edge. To facilitate this transition, Microsoft will automatically transfer a users saved passwords from Authenticator to Edge before permanently deleting them from Authenticator next month. This move is great for people who dont mind a web browser serving as their password manager. However, many people prefer a dedicated password manager app because it is usually more versatile, offers advanced features like password sharing, and integrates seamlessly with various desktop and mobile browsers. If you are in that second group, youll want to export your passwords from Authenticator before they are deleted and import them into a new dedicated password manager appbut which one to use? Microsoft Authenticator password manager alternatives There is no shortage of dedicated password managers out there. However, if you are moving from Microsoft Authenticator, there are three in particular that you might want to consider: Apple Passwords: This is Apples designated password manager, which the company introduced last year. The biggest advantage of Apple Passwords is its clean, simple interface. It lets you store not only your passwords, but your passkeys and security codes, too. The Apple Passwords app is perfect if you operate primarily in Apples ecosystem, but the app also supports Windows PCs (via the iCloud app) and major browsers, including Chrome and Firefox. The app is also free to use. However, Apple Passwords does not support Android, so if you have a ‘droid, its best to consider using one of the two password managers below. 1Password: One of the most popular password managers on the planet is 1Password. Its also one of the most versatile. Not only does it support passwords, passkeys, and security codes, but you can also save identity and credit card information and even important documents. 1Password supports all major platforms, including Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, and Linux. One drawback, especially if you are used to Microsoft Authenticator, is that 1Password is a paid app. Individual plans start at $2.99 per month. Bitwarden: In addition to 1Password, there is another other cross-platform password manager champ: Bitwarden. Like all good password managers, it offers robust password management and passkey support. It also supports all the major platforms, including Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, and more. Best of all, Bitwarden offers a free tier of the app, allowing anyone to use its password management feature. However, if you want a password manager that also handles your security codes, like Authenticator does, youll need to upgrade to a Bitwarden plan, which starts at $10/year. Don’t forget to export your passwords from Microsoft Authenticator If you do switch to one of the above apps, youll need to transfer your passwords from Microsoft Authenticator to the app you choose. Just do it quickly. Microsoft will delete all your passwords stored in Authenticator on August 1, 2025. From that date, youll need to download Microsoft Edge and export them from the companys web browser instead. To export your passwords from Authenticator before the August deadline, follow Microsofts instructions here.
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E-Commerce
Tech execs love popping supplements and infusing themselves with youthful young plasma to ward off Father Time, but new research shows that a substance humanity has been ingesting for a thousand years holds powerful anti-aging effects. A new study published in Nature Partner Journals Aging discovered that naturally occurring compounds in the modest psychedelic mushroom were able to slow aging in cells and even increase a mouses lifespan. The two-pronged study out of Emory University examined the effects of psilocybin, the psychoactive ingredient in magic mushrooms, on the micro level using human lung and skin cells, and the macro level using lab mice. Human fetal lung cells treated with psilocin, psilocybins active metabolite, showed a 29% boost to their cellular lifespans a number that rocketed to 57% when exposed to a much larger dosage. When the scientists repeated the study with human skin cells, the large psilocin dose increased the cells lifespan by 51%. Across the cellular experiments, exposure to the psychedelic reduced the oxidative stress that can lead to cell damage and preserved the length of telomeres, a part of the chromosome implicated in cancer and other age-related diseases. The scientists findings in living mice were even more impressive. When dosing older mice with psilocybin and comparing them to a control group, the research team found the aged mice lived 30% longer than their peers who werent subject to the same psychedelic journey. On top of that, the mice given psilocybin looked healthier, with better fur quality, hair regrowth and less graying on their coats. Psilocybin is an emerging frontier in mental health research, but it obviously holds some strong potential in the field of longevity too. The psychedelic substance has shown promise for everything from helping smokers and alcoholics quit to giving patients long-lasting relief from major depression. Our study opens new questions about what long-term treatments can do, senior study author and former Emory University associate professor Louise Hecker, PhD said. Additionally, even when the intervention is initiated late in life in mice, it still leads to improved survival, which is clinically relevant in healthy aging,
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E-Commerce
While tariffs threaten to whittle away profits for many businesses, those costs arent subtle when theyre tacked onto the price tag of an airplane. In an effort to preserve its bottom line, Delta Air Lines is getting creative. The Atlanta-based company has been pulling engines off new Airbus jets in Europe and bringing them stateside to get grounded U.S. planes up and flyingwithout paying costs associated with importing new planes and parts. Bloomberg reports that the company has a new practice of removing some U.S.-made Pratt & Whitney engines from new Airbus A321neo jets that were constructed in Europe and sending them to the U.S. in order to avoid import tariffs. Delta is then installing the engines on some of its older A320neo jets that arent currently flying due to engine problems. Because Delta is reportedly waiting for regulators to give its new set of jets the green light, the engine swapping doesnt mean grounding Europe-based planes that would otherwise be flying. Along with Boeing, Airbus is one of the two largest manufacturers of commercial aircraft in the world. Unlike U.S.-based Boeing, Airbus was founded in Europe and is co-owned by the governments of France, Germany, and Spain, among other investors. Under President Trumps current tariff rules, European-built aircraft incur a 10% tariff when imported into the U.S. Because airlines regularly pay Airbus and Boeing billions to bolster their fleets with modern jets, even a small percentage of additional cost stands to zap the airline industrys already notoriously thin margins. For Delta, one of the largest airlines in the U.S., coming to peace with trade chaos and paying Trumps tariffs isnt on the flight plan. We will not be paying tariffs on any aircraft deliveries, Delta CEO Ed Bastian said in an April earnings call. These times are pretty uncertain, and if you start to put a 20% incremental cost on top of an aircraft, it gets very difficult to make that math work.
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