Snapchat is adding new features meant to discourage teens from interacting with strangers on its app. The changes come after years of scrutiny on the app as lawmakers and other officials have questioned Snap’s ability to keep teens safe.

As with previous updates, the new restrictions primarily affect the accounts of 13- to 17-year-olds on the app. Last year, the company began limiting the visibility of teens’ accounts in its “Quick Add” recommendations to limit strangers’ ability to find young people in the app. Now, the company says it will make teens even harder to find in search and recommendations by increasing the number of mutual friends users must have in order to appear in search and suggested accounts.

And, in cases when teens are able to connect with people with whom they don’t share many mutual friends, Snap will surface warnings encouraging users to only interact with people they know. The warning will be accompanied by an option to block or report the user in question.

The company is also introducing a new strike system for accounts that share “age-inappropriate content” in public-facing parts of the app, like Stories and Spotlight. Under the new system, the app will remove posts that it deems age-inappropriate and dole out a strike to the offending account. Users who rack up too many strikes over a set period of time will have their accounts permanently disabled, according to the company.

Snap has also published a new section of its website aimed at parents who have potential concerns about their teens’ use of Snapchat. The site offers several explainers about the app, including guides on how to use its parental control features.

Apple just announced that nearly every iOS app will automatically publish the Vision Pro store by default, which the company says will give early adopters access to “hundreds of thousands of iPad and iPhone apps.” This will be in addition to whatever actual Vision Pro apps launch on the official store.

Most apps can easily run on Vision Pro, but you won’t get a full futuristic experience. Instead, you’ll see what you’d normally see on your phone or tablet, just blown up via a fake screen in front of you. Apple says that “app experiences can easily extend to Apple Vision Pro from day one — with no additional work required.”

This is slightly underwhelming when you consider the usual apps, like Facebook, but actually provides some real benefits. This means, for instance, that every streaming app will automatically be available at launch, so you can watch whatever you want on the headset’s virtual screen. Incidentally, the screen can occupy a relative width of 100 feet, so those lightsaber battles on Ahsoka will really pop. Marry that with the comfort-forward lightweight design and you’ve got yourself one heck of an entertainment machine, and that’s before uniquely-made streaming apps begin showing up.

On the developer side, there’s a forthcoming visionOS beta launching this fall so devs can test their apps to make sure they work. Additionally, this toolset will allow developers to make adjustments to maximize integration with the headset. It’ll also let you know if your app isn’t eligible for some reason, though most will be.

Now onto the why of this. The Apple Vision Pro is set to be a niche product for at least the first generation, due to the exorbitant price tag and limited use case scenarios, so exclusive apps could be scarce at launch. This allows Apple to sort of inflate the Vision Pro app store numbers to entice consumers. It could also pressure some of the larger developers out there, like Meta, to push through features exclusive to the headset. No matter the reason, one of the primary clarion calls whenever any new technology is announced is a cry for backwards compatibility, and well, this’ll do it.

For the uninitiated, the Apple Vision Pro is the company’s forthcoming mixed-reality headset. It boasts eye-tracking, so you can control apps via minute ocular movements, and an OLED screen on the exterior to display a digital recreation of your eyeballs for others to interact with. It’ll cost a whopping $3,500 when it launches next year, which is equatable to purchasing seven Meta Quest 3 VR headsets.

Duolingo is best known for its language learning app, but it recently branched into teaching math and will soon offer music learning, the company announced. Through a series of "hundreds of bite-sized lessons," users will be able to learn notes and how to play tunes from a library of over 200+ songs. Using the app's gamified learning experience, the Music course "teaches you to read and play music anytime, through interactive lessons," according to Duolingo. 

"We know math and music, much like language, transcend cultures and connect people," Duolingo cofounder and CTO Severin Hacker. "Soon you will be able to learn math and music in the same Duolingo app — all with the same fun, engaging, and effective experience you know from learning languages with us."

Duolingo

Several screenshots show musical notation paired with piano keys (above), along with games like "fill in the blanks" and "match the pairs." The app will appear alongside languages and math at the top of the main Duolingo screen. The math app is already available for iOS, with levels ranging from elementary to more advanced, all using interactive, gamified lessons. 

A job posting spotted earlier this year provided hints that the company was working on a music app. Duolingo didn't give many details other than a few screenshots, but did say that "the course is free, fun and effective. It plans to reveal the app fully at its Duocon conference on October 11th. 

During its I/O annual developer conference earlier this year, Google said it was giving users the ability to transition their first-generation Nest Cam Indoor and Nest Cam Outdoor devices from the old Nest app to its new Home application. Well, the time has come — for the indoor camera, at least. Google has just started rolling out the ability to manage the camera model through the public preview version of its Home app, and it will take a few weeks before it's done making its way to all users. 

Nest cameras used to have their own application before the company was acquired by Google. Over time, Google added support for all its smart home products to its Home app, but users of the the oldest Nest cameras had to stick to the original application to be able to manage their devices. With this update, and as long as the user is on public preview, people will be able to access their first-gen Nest Cam Indoor device through the Home app and enjoy its updated camera history experience. They'll also be able to add the camera to their Favorites tab, so that its feed shows up as soon as they open the app. 

When Google first announced the ability to add the old Nest cam models to the Home app, it said the transfer would take users around 10 minutes. After that, they'll no longer need the old application to see the camera's data and footage, enabling a single app experience for a lot of users. 

You now have an easier way to control your Tesla from your iPhone. Not a Tesla Appnotes the latest version of Tesla's iOS software now supports Shortcuts actions, making some common tasks available through Siri in addition to on-screen taps and widgets. You can use Apple's voice assistant for simple tasks like opening the trunks or windows through to special modes. If you've ever wanted to activate Bioweapon Defense Mode by talking to your phone, it's now an option.

Shortcuts also enable automations, so you can string together multiple tasks or perform those tasks on set schedules. You can create a panic mode that flashes lights, honks the horn and closes windows all at the same time, for instance, or automatically warm the cabin before your morning commute.

The available commands aren't comprehensive, and include features you probably aren't going to use – you don't really need a shortcut for an emissions test. This could still be significantly more convenient than wading through the Tesla app, however. It's also notable that there isn't any official integration with Alexa or Google Assistant as of this writing, so Android users will have to put in more work to go hands-free.

This app update doesn't give Tesla cars a built-in voice control system. You'll need to turn to cars from the likes of Mercedes or Volvo if you want to talk directly to your vehicle. It does bring voice into the equation, though, and may be appreciated if you'd rather not wade through the official app to handle common functions.

Google Keep, the company's note-taking app, is getting a long-overdue feature that unfortunately doesn't seem fully baked. Google is adding a version history function, which could save you from having to manually retype a lot of text that you mistakenly deleted.

The tool allows you to download a text file with previous versions of your notes and lists, according to a support page. The help document states that Google is gradually rolling out the feature to everyone, so it may not be live for you yet. When it is, you can access it on the Keep web app, by clicking on the three-dot menu at the bottom of a note.

As Android Police points out, Keep's version history is only available on the web for now — you won't be able to see previous versions of your notes on the Android or iOS apps just yet. What's more, it doesn't cover images, so if you deleted a photo from a note, you won't be able to recover it using this option.

This is a fairly basic feature and it's somewhat baffling that Google hasn't offered it in Keep until now. After all, the company has long offered similar functions in Google Drive apps. The implementation is odd too. Rather than seeing the version history in the app and being able to revert to a previous incarnation of a note with a tap (like you can do in apps like Docs), having to download a file and copy text back in manually seems like a strange choice. That said, this is a step in the right direction for Keep.

Epic Games has lost an attempt to force Apple to change its App Store payment practices sooner rather than later. The Fortnite maker asked the Supreme Court to overturn a US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that delayed an injunction against Apple over App Store rules. However, Justice Elena Kagan denied the request without providing an explanation, as Bloomberg reports.

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals originally upheld the injunction in April. However, it suspended the injunction in July so Apple could take the case to the Supreme Court. 

Following a blockbuster trial between Apple and Epic Games in 2021, a lower-court judge ruled that Apple violated California's Unfair Competition law by blocking third-party developers from directing users to alternative payment options. The judge issued the injunction to stop that practice.

For the last three years, the companies have been battling over the issue of in-app payments on iOS. Epic raised the ire of Apple (and Google) when it told mobile Fortnite players they'd get a discount on the in-game V-Bucks currency if they bypassed the iOS and Android payment systems. Apple and Google take up to a 30 percent cut of in-app transactions on iOS and Android.

The mobile platform holders swiftly yanked Fortnite from their respective app stores, Epic sued them both and the legal battles are still rumbling on. The Google case (in which Match Group is involved as a plaintiff) is set to go to trial this November.

Regardless of what happens in the US, Apple and Google are already being forced to open up their platforms to third-party payments systems in certain markets, such as South Korea and the Netherlands. It has also been reported that Apple plans to allow third-party app stores on the iPhone as soon as next year, in large part to comply with incoming European Union rules. Epic is already prepared for that, as its own mobile app store is ready to go.

Netflix’s push into video games continues, as the company just dropped a dedicated controller app for iOS devices. The app, simply called “Netflix Game Controller,” lets you use your phone or tablet as a gamepad once you pair the device with your TV. This will allow you to play games available through Netflix’s service on the TV, while controlling things from your mobile device.

Though the app is already available for download, further news remains scant. For instance, we don’t know what games it will support or any details surrounding the pairing process. We also don’t know if and when this will be followed up by an Android app. The app’s description just teases that the gamepad functionality is “coming soon to Netflix.”

This isn’t a huge surprise, given the company’s expanding growth as an indie game publisher. Netflix Games has published or hosted nearly 70 titles in the past two years, some of which are accessible via the regular Netflix streaming app with others available on mobile devices and gaming consoles. These aren’t throwaway titles, either, as games like Oxenfree II: Lost Signals released to critical acclaim. Oxenfree developer Night School has gone on to become Netflix’s first in-house studio.

Other titles coming to the Netflix platform in the coming months include indie standouts like Storytellers, Paper Trail and the Monument Valley series. There’s also an Assassin’s Creed game in the works, along with a port of the mobile title LEGO: Legacy Heroes Unboxed. It’s a safe assumption that you should be able to use the recently-launched controller app to play some of these games. Engadget reached out to Netflix to inquire about compatibility and the possibility of an Android release. A company spokesperson said that it isn't making comments at this time. 

Apple will soon start cracking down on Apps that collect data on users' devices in order to track them (aka "fingerprinting"), according to an article on its developer site spotted by 9to5Mac. Starting with the release of iOS 17, tvOS 17, watchOS 10 and macOS Sonoma, developers will be required to explain why they're using so-called required reason APIs. Apps failing to provide a valid reason will be rejected started in spring of 2024.  

"Some APIs... have the potential of being misused to access device signals to try to identify the device or user, also known as fingerprinting. Regardless of whether a user gives your app permission to track, fingerprinting is not allowed," Apple wrote. "To prevent the misuse of certain APIs that can be used to collect data about users’ devices through fingerprinting, you’ll need to declare the reasons for using these APIs in your app’s privacy manifest."

The new rules could increase the rate of app rejections, some developers told 9to5Mac. For instance, an API called UserDefaults falls into the "required reason" category, but since it stores user preferences, it's used by a lot of apps. At the same time, it sounds like Apple will basically need to take a developer's word for reason declarations. If those prove to be false, though, it would certainly have a paper trail for any potential penalties. 

Fingerprinting apps can use API calls to retrieve characteristics of your smartphone or PC, including the screen resolution, model, OS and more. It can then take all this information and create a unique "fingerprint," so it can identify you when you go to other apps or websites.

Apple effectively declared war on tracking when it released iOS 14.5 in 2021, requiring developers to ask users' permission before tracking them. Since that feature arrived, only 4 percent of US iPhone users have agreed to app tracking. Now, it's trying to stop fingerprinting (also called canvas fingerprinting), which first appeared in the digital zeitgeist a decade ago. Back in 2018, Apple said it would address fingerprinting on macOS by limiting the data that websites can access on its Safari browser, and now, it's addressing the issue with apps as well.

OpenAI was true to its word. As promised, the company has released a ChatGPT app for Android. Like the iOS version, you can talk to the generative AI to get advice, answers and other (hopefully) helpful responses. You can make voice requests using OpenAI's in-house speech recognition, sync your chat history across devices and export data — you'll mainly miss out on plugins.

ChatGPT Plus subscribers can also switch between standard (GPT-3.5) and GPT-4 language models at will. Regardless of the tier you're using, you'll need at least Android 6.0 to use the app.

The app could make ChatGPT more accessible, particularly in countries where Android dominates or PCs are less common. The software has been available for iPhone users since May, and was updated with iPad support afterward.

As with Bing Chat (based on GPT-4), Bard and other conversational AI systems, you won't want to completely rely on the results. The technology is prone to "hallucinations" that can lead to false claims, poor contextual logic and other output that isn't trustworthy. ChatGPT is sometimes more useful as a starting point than definitive answers. 

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.