Because being a geek is a good thing

A security researcher discovered that Microsoft Paint and the Photos app embed a server-issued GUID as an invisible watermark in every image generated with local artificial intelligence. The feature is independent of the visible Copilot logo and cannot be turned off from the settings.

UC San Diego announced it will test an experimental power technology to supply AI data centers. The initiative responds to the growing electricity demand required by large-scale AI model training and inference.

A developer used Claude Opus 5 to perform AI reverse engineering on five desktop peripherals. He found firmware without cryptographic signing in an ASUS monitor, and a hidden USB channel in an Insta360 webcam that allows disabling the recording LED.

A developer used Claude Opus 5 to perform AI-assisted reverse engineering on five desktop peripherals. In thirteen hours and ninety-eight prompts, he found that a webcam and a monitor’s firmware has no real cryptographic signature.

Writer T.R. Napper argues that the only non-negotiable rule for becoming a better writer is reading a lot, and reading widely. This article translates that idea into a programmer’s daily routine: reading other people’s code, documentation, and RFCs with the same discipline a novelist applies to reading fiction.