Ford teased the prospect of 3D-printing your own accessories when it unveiled the Maverick hybrid pickup truck, and it's acting on that promise. According to 3D Printing Industry and Newsweek, the brand has released CAD files to help you 3D-print add-ons compatible with the Ford Integrated Tether System (FITS) slots behind the center console and under-seat storage bins. You can build a cupholder that fits your favorite drink, or a phone mount tailored to your latest handset.

You could say Ford is late. Enthusiasts have already designed FITS accessories in the months since the Maverick's launch. You can even find unofficial FITS slots for the dashboard cubby and non-Ford vehicles. The official files should make it that much easier to create add-ons, though, and it won't be surprising if there's a surge in user-made designs.

Ford

The company is still happy to sell pre-made FITS accessories. As design manager Scott Anderson told Newsweek, however, the 3D printing support represents a "pretty big shift" in Ford's attitude toward users. It's an acknowledgment do-it-yourself accessory making is on the rise, and that customizing a vehicle can include more than just performance tuning or cosmetics. What Ford loses in accessory sales it might gain in loyal fans who buy the brand's vehicles again.

Fisker is at last ready to share more about Project PEAR. The automaker has started taking reservations for the Pear, a five-passenger "urban EV" that will start at $29,900 before incentives and taxes. That's less than Tesla's originally quoted $35,000 for the Model 3, and well below the $37,499 price of Fisker's Ocean SUV. You'll have to place a $250 deposit ($100 for a second reservation) and wait until 2024 to receive your car, but it might prove tempting if you're not willing to wait for Tesla's fabled $25,000 car and aren't fond of Chevy's upcoming Equinox EV.

The Pear (PEAR originally stood for Personal Electric Automotive Revolution) is the result of a collaboration with Foxconn where the manufacturing capability is as important as the technology. Fisker is shy on details besides promises of sportier driving characteristics, an intuitive interface, smart storage and a "focus on industry firsts." However, the Pear will be built in Ohio with a production rate of at least 250,000 vehicles per year — Fisker and Foxconn are evidently counting on economies of scale to reach that lower-than-usual price point.

There are more than a few risks involved. The revived Fisker doesn't start producing the Ocean, its first EV, until November 2022. It's unclear whether that initial model will foster enough demand to justify the Pear's production levels. Range, performance and quality are still unknowns. Fisker will also have some competition by the time the Pear arrives, and it won't be surprising if more direct rivals surface between now and 2024. All the same, the Pear might be welcome as a sign that EVs are becoming more affordable.

Microsoft is finally ready to reopen key offices after two years of pandemic-related closures and numerous delays. The company now plans to enter the "final stage" of its Washington state return-to-work plan starting Feb 28th, at which point facilities (including the company's Redmond headquarters) and services will be completely open to workers and visitors alike. From that day forward, staff will have 30 days to adjust to whatever work routine they and their managers have chosen, whether it's in-person, remote or hybrid.

Offices in California's San Francisco Bay Area will also open starting February 28th. Other US offices would follow "as conditions allow," according to Microsoft.

The Windows creator justified the move by pointing to high vaccination rates in its home county as well as falling hospitalizations and deaths. Local testing and compliance with government guidance were also part of the strategy, Microsoft said.

The schedule is more aggressive than the timelines seen at some of Microsoft's peers. Meta is currently aiming for March 28th, while Apple and others have indefinite delays. Amazon is dropping mask mandates for fully vaccinated warehouse workers, but it's also ending paid leave for unvaccinated workers who develop COVID-19. The company also loosened its in-person work requirements for office employees.

Microsoft's decision signals confidence that the worst of COVID-19 and the Omicron variant surge are behind the company. However, they also reflect changed expectations — remote work is more practical, in part through Microsoft tools like Teams and Viva. The firm is also preparing for a future where Mesh enables mixed reality collaboration. There just isn't as much pressure to return to the office as there was in 2020, and those who do return may see more sparsely-populated buildings — at least, for now.

US regulators are making it clear crypto companies must follow conventional rules. Crypto lender BlockFi has settled with the Securities and Exchange Commission over charges the company allegedly offered interest accounts without registering them under the Securities Act. The company will pay $100 million in penalties, including $50 million to settle charges from 32 states.

BlockFi has also agreed to register for the sale of a new product, Yield, and has promised to comply with SEC rules in the next 60 days. The company was reportedly selling unregistered crypto interest accounts from March 2019 until today, and made "false and misleading" claims about the risks from lending.

In a blog post, BlockFi cast the settlement as a form of victory. The company saw this as providing "increased regulatory clarity" that helped it and the industry move forward. US-based customers of its internet accounts won't be allowed to add new assets until BlockFi Yield is registered, at which point their accounts will switch over.

The charges and settlement are the SEC's first levelled against a crypto lender, and reflect a clear goal: the Commission is willing to accept these services as long as they honor rules deemed applicable. The move also comes in sync with a broader effort by American officials to clarify the legal status of crypto assets. BlockFi's fate, in that regard, might help other crypto businesses start on a better footing.

SpaceX won't just have launched first all-civilian spaceflight — it should soon be home to a full-fledged private space program. According to The Washington Post, Shift4 founder and Inspiration4 leader Jared Isaacman has unveiled a Polaris Program initiative that will include "up to" three crewed SpaceX flights. The first, Polaris Dawn, is planned for the fourth quarter of 2022 and should include the first commercial spacewalk. The effort will ideally end with the first human-occupied Starship flight. Sorry, Moon tourists.

The Polaris Dawn team will also aim for the highest-ever Earth orbit, conduct health research and test laser-based Starlink communication. Isaacman will return as mission commander, while Inspiration4 mission director and Air Force veteran Scott Poteet will serve as pilot. Two of SpaceX's lead operations engineers will also be aboard, including Anna Menon and Sarah Gillis. Menon's role is symbolic of the shift toward private spaceflight — her husband Anil was chosen to become a NASA astronaut, but she'll likely reach space before her spouse does.

The program hinges on SpaceX and partners solving a number of problems. SpaceX is developing spacesuits necessary for the spacewalk, and Isaacman's group hasn't yet decided how many crew members will step outside. Starship also carries some uncertainty. While there's been ample testing and plenty of progress, development of the next-gen rocket system hasn't always gone according to plan. Expect the Polaris Program to have a relatively loose schedule, and possibly a few setbacks.

Even so, this represents a further normalization of private spaceflight. While the Polaris Program continues a recent 'tradition' of civilian flights led by billionaires (Isaacman is no exception), it also promises to commercialize aspects that were still reserved for government astronauts, such as spacewalks and testing new spacecraft (NASA astronauts helmed SpaceX's Demo-2). Don't be shocked if private crews fulfill other roles in the near future.

Polestar is counting on a time-honored tactic to get noticed in an increasingly crowded electric car market: a brazen Super Bowl ad. Volvo's sibling brand aired a 30-second spot for the Polestar 2 during Super Bowl 2022 that took some not-so-subtle potshots at competitors and industry hypocrisy at large. The commercial was dominated by "nos" that included "no dieselgate" (hi VW), "no conquering Mars" (ahem, Elon) and "no greenwashing." The company wants you to see rivals as either distracted from their mission or using eco-friendly products as cover — a possible dig at oil companies that flaunt green credentials, among many other potential targets.

The ad came during a Super Bowl full of tech marketing, including a two-pronged strategy from GM that included a Sopranos-themed commercial for the Chevy Silverado EV as well as the return of Austin Powers' Dr. Evil to pitch GM's electrification strategy. Other tech promos came from Meta (pitching the Quest 2 and Horizon Worlds), Uber, Intuit and a host of cryptocurrency exchanges.

Whether or not the ad leads to a surge in demand is far from certain. Polestar may have the weight of Volvo (and joint parent Geely) behind it, but it's still a tiny newcomer compared to Tesla, VW and other incumbents. It's also not quite clear the Polestar 2 offers "no compromises" when it's not the fastest, longest-ranged or most capacious EV. Still, the Super Bowl ad might be effective if it at least gets customers to consider Polestar if they're planning to ditch gas-powered transportation.

The non-fungible token market is full of shady dealings, and British authorities hope to clean them up. BBC Newsreports HM Revenue and Customs has seized three NFTs as part of investigation into potential tax fraud. The suspects allegedly used 250 fake companies, false identities, prepaid phones, VPNs and other techniques to hide themselves as they sought to defraud the UK tax office of £1.4 million (nearly $1.9 million).

HMRC obtained a court order to take the unvalued NFTs as well as crypto assets worth roughly £5,000 ($6,760). This is the first time UK law enforcement has seized NFTs, the authority said.

The investigation is still ongoing. However, economic crime deputy director Nick Sharp believed the seizures would "serve as a warning" to other would-be crypto fraud perpetrators.

The lack of regulations and other protections around NFTs has led to significant problems with fraud and scams, including self-sales to boost prices (aka wash trading) and fake or plagiarized tokens. Cent recently halted most transactions due to "rampant" sales of bogus tokens, while marketplace giant OpenSea has been scrambling to develop safeguards after 80 percent of NFTs minted through a free tool were discovered to be fakes, copies or spam. Don't be surprised if there are more seizures like this one, at least until NFT marketplace owners have more ways to discourage fraud and other harmful activities.

Amazon has shared more details of how it will integrate Comixology into its other services. The internet giant has posted an updated FAQ explaining key parts of the transition, including some timelines. Most notably, Comixology will no longer fulfill pre-orders for comic books released February 17th or later — you'll have to cancel them and re-order through Amazon. In that sense, the transition is clearly underway.

The primer also makes clear that series subscriptions will only be available through Amazon, and that a "small number" of series won't carry over. You'll be told if a favorite can't make the transition. Amazon also provides the usual tips, such as prepping for the new Comixology app (in short: merge your accounts) and shopping in Amazon's comics-focused section. As Amazon previously said, the existing Comixology app and web store will phase out sometime after the new portal arrives.

The timing in the FAQ lines up with Amazon's (delayed) early 2022 target for integration. The Comixology you once knew is going away very shortly, whether you like it or not. It's mainly a question of whether or not the name will survive for much longer.

Expect a big shake-up to Warzone in tandem with the next Call of Duty game. Activision has shared early details of its Call of Duty releases for 2022, and it's promising a "massive evolution" of Warzone designed in sync with the core CoD title. They'll both sport a new game engine, and Warzone will include both an "all-new playspace" and a familiar-sounding sandbox mode. The main game, meanwhile, is a sequel to 2019's Modern Warfare reboot.

Infinity Ward is leading development of both the new Call of Duty and Warzone. That's not surprising when the studio handled both the Modern Warfare revival and the current Warzone. It's not clear to what degree series veterans Raven, Sledgehammer or Treyarch will be involved, but they certainly won't take a leading role. Sledgehammer was responsible for 2021's Call of Duty: Vanguard, while Raven and Treyarch worked on 2020's Black Ops Cold War.

The teaser may be welcome if you're eager to see a franchise refresh. Even so, it's coming at a less-than-ideal moment for Activision. Raven staff have been pushing for unionization, and Microsoft's purchase of Activision briefly raised questions about the future of Call of Duty on PlayStation. That's not including the effects of the ongoing misconduct scandal at the publisher. Like it or not, the corporate turmoil might overshadowing the Call of Duty team's efforts at moments like this.

Disney's Netflix collaboration effectively ended years ago, but now the shows themselves are going away... for the moment, at least. As What's on Netflixnoticed, Netflix is warning viewers that Marvel's originals for the service will disappear on March 1st. If you haven't caught up on shows like Daredevil, Jessica Jones and The Punisher, you'd better act quickly.

Engadget has confirmed the shows are leaving Netflix now that the Marvel licensing has expired. The alerts (shown below) only seem to appear if you first watch a show on a given profile, and only on some devices. You don't currently see them when browsing the titles or using the mobile app.

Billy Steele/Engadget

It's not certain if or when the shows will return on a Disney-owned service. The withdrawal isn't exactly a shock, mind you. Disney signalled in 2017 that it would shun Netflix in favor of what would become Disney+, and the last shows were cancelled in 2019. Disney wants Marvel as a draw for its in-house services, and leaving originals on Netflix certainly wouldn't help achieve that goal.

Just where they're headed, if at all, is another story. The Netflix originals were notable as "adult" shows that didn't hold back on language or violence. That's somewhat out of line with the overall PG focus of Disney+ and suggests they might go to Hulu (the home of off-kilter shows like MODOK) instead. Whatever happens, this isn't the end for the superheroes. Characters from the shows made appearances in Hawkeye and Spider-Man: No Way Home, and it wouldn't be surprising to see more of the ex-Netflix crew in future productions.