Just as Apple inches closer to winning EU approval for its latest App Store changes, Spain’s competition watchdog is expanding its own investigation, citing “new evidence” related to Apple’s developer pricing rules. Here are the details.

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A fourth Apple artificial intelligence expert has left the company to join Meta, reports Bloomberg. Bowen Zhang, who was on Apple's foundation models team, is the latest employee to abandon Apple for Meta.


The leader of Apple's foundation models group, Ruoming Pang, was one of the first Apple AI researchers to join Meta. Since then, several employees who worked under him have also left for Meta. Meta is aggressively hiring for its Superintelligence Labs, an AI division that's building advanced AI systems capable of performing at or beyond human-level intelligence.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been offering AI engineers massive compensation packages to lure them from other companies, and Pang reportedly received over $200 million. Pay from Meta reportedly includes a high base salary, a signing bonus, and stock awards, and the money offered to Pang exceeds the compensation of almost all Apple employees except for executives. Presumably, the other AI engineers that left Apple have also received offers that Apple isn't willing to match.

Last month, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said that Meta had been offering signing bonuses as high as $100 million. Meta has hired engineers and AI experts from Apple, OpenAI, and Anthropic. Bloomberg says Apple is "marginally increasing" the pay of its foundation models team, but is not paying at the level that Meta is.

With Apple losing key employees to Meta, it could continue to struggle to catch up in the AI race. Competitors like Google and Samsung have much more advanced AI features already, and this year, Apple was forced to delay promised Apple Intelligence Siri features until 2026.

Apple has been restructuring its AI teams, with AI efforts now overseen by Apple software chief Craig Federighi and Mike Rockwell, who led Apple Vision Pro development. Rumors suggest that Apple is considering using technology from Anthropic or OpenAI for future AI features, including an LLM version of ‌Siri‌, rather than its own models.

Apple's discussions to rely on third-party AI technology have reportedly led to falling morale on the foundation models team that is now losing employees to Meta. Multiple engineers are reportedly actively interviewing for jobs at other AI companies, while Apple executives are aiming to reassure team members that it remains committed to in-house AI development.
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Apple today filed a response to the antitrust lawsuit it is facing from the United States Department of Justice, sharing rebuttals to the DoJ's claims and pointing out perceived flaws in the accusations outlined in the complaint.


According to Apple, the DoJ's lawsuit has the potential to "set a dangerous precedent" that would allow the government to dictate the design and function of technology, plus it threatens "the very principles that set the iPhone apart" from competing devices.

As a recap, the DoJ filed an antitrust lawsuit against Apple in March 2024, accusing Apple of an illegal monopoly in the smartphone market. To back up its accusation, the DOJ provided five examples of instances where Apple's decisions stifled competition and locked consumers into the ‌iPhone‌ ecosystem.

• Super apps - The DoJ claims that Apple blocks apps that offer "broad functionality," like WeChat or apps that offer mini games and other multi-app features.


• Cloud streaming - Apple has been accused of suppressing cloud streaming games by preventing them from being available on the App Store.


• Messaging apps - The DoJ took issue with the lack of an iMessage app for Android, the green bubble vs. blue bubble separation, and Apple's delayed support for RCS. The DoJ also believes that third-party apps should be able to send and receive SMS messages in lieu of the Messages app.


• Smartwatches - Apple is accused of restricting key functions from third-party smartwatches, preventing ‌iPhone‌ users from getting Apple Watch-like functionality from watches with "better user interfaces and services." The DoJ has also complained about the Apple Watch not being compatible with Android devices.


• Digital Wallets - The DoJ took issue with Apple's refusal to allow banking apps and other digital payment providers to access the NFC chip in the ‌iPhone‌ for payment purposes.

Many of the DoJ's claims have been weakened or are no longer relevant, because Apple has addressed them. With iOS 17.4, for example, Apple eliminated restrictions on cloud streaming apps and apps offering mini games on iOS, and super apps are and have been supported.

Apple adopted ‌RCS‌ since the DoJ's filing, improving messaging interoperability between Android and ‌iPhone‌ devices, though messaging apps cannot receive SMS or ‌RCS‌ messages instead of the Messages app. Apple opened up access to NFC in iOS 18.1, adding support for contactless NFC payments through third-party payment apps.

Apple does not believe that the DoJ fairly portrayed Apple's market position. The DoJ uses revenue as its metric for calculating market share instead of unit sales, which Apple says is "unreasonable." The DoJ also suggested that "performance smartphones" are a separate category from standard smartphones, even though that is not a recognized device category. Apple also argues that the U.S. numbers are not an accurate reflection of the global competition that it faces.

Apple points out that the complaints that led to the Department of Justice's lawsuit did not come from ‌iPhone‌ customers, but rather from a small number of developers that happen to include "some of Apple's largest and best-funded competitors." Apple claims that meeting the DoJ's demands would degrade the ‌iPhone‌ experience for consumers.

The antitrust laws do not impose upon Apple a duty to design its own product in a way that would better suit its rivals at the expense of consumers whose devices might be less secure, less private, and less intuitive as a result.

Ultimately this case is not about the millions of satisfied iPhone users or even the hundreds of thousands of iOS developers that enjoy economic success, it's predominantly about a few large companies free-riding on Apple's technology and innovation. The complaint is a misguided plea for a judicial redesign of one of the most popular and innovative consumer products of all time, under the guise of an antitrust case.

Much of Apple's response features Apple denying the DoJ's claims, one by one, which is standard for this type of filing. The legal dispute will now enter the discovery phase, with Apple aiming to prove that the DoJ's allegations are inaccurate. From there, a summary judgment will be handed down, which could lead to a trial and appeals. The entire process will span years.

The ‌App Store‌ ecosystem is changing rapidly enough that the DoJ's claims may not be applicable at all in the future. In the last year, Apple changed multiple ‌App Store‌ rules, both voluntarily and involuntarily. Apple's legal dispute with Epic Games, for example, resulted in Apple permitting developers to direct customers to third-party purchase options on the web with in-app links and no associated fees. Similar changes could further nullify the DoJ's allegations, so it should be interesting to see how the dispute plays out.
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The US Department of Justice formally sued Apple in March 2024, accusing the company of having a “smartphone monopoly.”

Apple has voiced its opposition to the case many times over the last year. Now, it has officially filed its answer to the DOJ’s antitrust complaint, pushing back forcefully against the DOJ’s allegations.

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We're just six weeks away from the launch of new iPhone models, and rumors are ramping up as September creeps closer. We've heard plenty of details about the prospective colors for the iPhone 17 lineup, but leaker Sonny Dickson today shared ‌iPhone 17‌ dummy models that supposedly feature the shades that Apple has picked.


Dickson's images feature the iPhone 17 Pro models in black, white, dark blue, and orange. The orange shade is particularly bright and not typically in line with what Apple chooses for the Pro models. Apple's colors are often more muted, but it could be an issue of angle or lighting. Prior leaks suggested that the orange could be more of a copper color than a true orange, so we'll have to wait to see how closely the dummy model matches with the final color.


The dark blue shade is more of what we'd expect for an ‌iPhone 17 Pro‌, though even it isn't quite as subdued as what Apple usually chooses. It's worth noting that rumors have suggested the 17 Pro models could also be available in a gray color, which is missing here. There were also rumors of a color shifting shade that appears white but changes color with light, which also doesn't seem to be depicted.

As for the iPhone 17 Air, the dummy models are depicted in black, white, gold, and a light blue, similar to the light blue of the MacBook Air. Those are all four colors that we've seen rumored for the ‌iPhone 17 Air‌.

The ‌iPhone 17‌ models are shown in black, white, blue, and a purple that looks more like a pink. Rumors have suggested the ‌iPhone 17‌ could come in black, white, steel gray, purple, and light blue. The blues for the ‌iPhone 17‌ and ‌iPhone 17 Air‌ are similar, but not identical.

Dummy model designs are often accurate, but the colors the dummy models come in don't always provide the clearest picture of what an ‌iPhone‌ will actually look like. Differences in lighting, sheen, and material often mean that the final version of the ‌iPhone‌ looks a lot better than what leaks.
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For the past few weeks, there have been leaks left and right about the upcoming iPhone 17 lineup, particularly when it comes to color options for the Pro models.

Now, leaker Sonny Dickson has shared what may be our clearest look yet at the full lineup.

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A couple years ago, Apple introduced a new feature for Apple Mail users called Mail Privacy Protection. It isn’t on by default, though you might’ve seen a prompt to enable it upon launching the Mail app for the first time. That said, you might not know what it actually does. We’ll be breaking down Mail Privacy Protection and its benefits right here.

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Adobe today announced several new and enhanced AI tools for Photoshop, with the additions aimed at making it easier for creators to tweak and clean up their images.


With Harmonize, Photoshop users can add a new object into an image or composition, and the app will analyze the surrounding content to automatically adjust color, lighting, shadows, and visual tone so that the object seamlessly fits in. Adobe says that the feature streamlines the creation of composite images and reduces the time needed for manual adjustments. Harmonize is available across Photoshop for desktop, the web, and mobile devices.

Generative Upscale provides resolution enhancements up to eight megapixels without impacting image clarity. The feature is able to improve image quality for print, or to boost the resolution of older files. Generative Upscale can be used on desktop and the web.

Adobe improved the Remove tool in Photoshop, and it now uses the latest Adobe Firefly Image Model. The updated Remove tool is able to more precisely erase unwanted objects from images, filling the gaps with realistic content. Edits will have fewer artifacts for a cleaner end result. The improved Remove tool is available for desktop and the web.

In Photoshop for the desktop, there's a new Projects option for managing and organizing creative work. Assets are aggregated into a shared, organized space, eliminating issues with collaboration and communication. Projects is designed to allow Photoshop users to share entire collections at once to cut down on versioning issues.

More information on the new features can be found on Adobe's website.
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Apple has lost ground in this year’s edition of the Fortune Global 500, mirroring a similar slip in the U.S.-centric Fortune 500 list released last month. Here are the details.

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If you’re a soccer fan, it’s gonna be a fun month. The Leagues Cup returns today, and every match of the tournament will stream live on MLS Season Pass via the Apple TV app. Here’s how to follow along.

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As Apple prepares to unveil the iPhone 17 lineup in a few weeks, investor attention is already shifting to what could be a much more significant update in 2026, with the introduction of a foldable iPhone.

That includes JPMorgan, which just released new predictions on what to expect.

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This fall, tvOS 26 will bring a variety of new features to Apple TV 4K users, and one of the highlights for me is a screen saver feature that I’ve always wanted.

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Apple today released the Safari 26 beta, allowing macOS Sequoia and macOS Sonoma users to download the browser and get the new Safari 26 features.


Safari 26 adds support for HDR images, SVG icon support, additional tracking protection, and more, with some of the most interesting new features listed below.

• HDR image support


• SVG icon support


• Support for reporting a website compatibility issue


• Option for preventing fingerprinting for known tracking scripts


• Filters out tracking parameters for links in regular browsing mode


• Option for showing extension keyboard shortcuts in Settings and support for customization


• WebGPU support

More on everything that's new in Safari 26 can be found on Apple's website.

If you are beta testing iOS 26, iPadOS 26, visionOS 26, or macOS Tahoe, you already have Safari 26 as it is included with the updates.
This article, "Safari 26 Beta Now Available for macOS Sequoia and macOS Sonoma" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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Today the Apple TV app kicked off the first of a planned 14-day ‘Summer Deal of the Day’ promo, offering steep discounts on featured titles. Here are the details.

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The Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) has issued a press release confirming that trading in shares of Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd. (better known internationally as Foxconn) will be suspended starting July 30, 2025. Here’s why the timing is interesting.

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Apple has released brand new firmware for AirPods beta testers with iOS 26 feature support, here are the details on the latest update.

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Apple is running a Summer Deal of the Day promotion in its Apple TV app, offering discounts on movie bundles through the Apple TV Store.


Today is the first day of the promotion, and Apple is selling The Hangover trilogy for $9.99. The movies are normally priced between $12.99 and $14.99 each.

The initial Deal of the Day is number 1 of 14, so Apple will presumably be offering a different discounted bundle every day for the next two weeks. The Summer Deal of the Day packages can be purchased from the Store section of the Apple TV app on any platform where the app is available.

Apple regularly offers discounted movie purchases and bundled deals that are more affordable than buying movies individually, but specific themed promotions are atypical.
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A few months ago, we reported that select scenes in the post-apocalyptic film "28 Years Later" were shot with a rig of up to 20 iPhones. Now, the film's director Danny Boyle has discussed this feat in a YouTube video uploaded to the Apple TV channel today.


Boyle said that using iPhones provided "the ability to work in remote places, very quickly, and very lightly, leaving a light footprint."

"We wanted our landscape to look like it hadn't been touched for 28 years by any human, so it was very advantageous for that," he added.

"Director Danny Boyle pushed the power of iPhone to new cinematic heights in select scenes of 28 Years Later," says Apple. "In fact, the portable and powerful form factor of iPhone enabled the production team to build a custom rig using a unique 20 camera setup. Discover how his crew's camerawork innovations immerse audiences into shocking scenes."


"28 Years Later" was released in June, with the film building upon the events of "28 Days Later" (2002) and "28 Weeks Later" (2007).

The film grossed an estimated $150 million worldwide.
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One of this summer’s Hollywood blockbusters, 28 Years Later, was largely shot on the iPhone. Today in a new behind-the-scenes video from Apple, we get an inside look at how that happened.

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Apple today provided beta testers with updated beta firmware for the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4, allowing them to test the new AirPods features in iOS 26, iPadOS 26, and macOS Tahoe. The firmware is only available to developers and public beta testers at the current time, and a device running ‌iOS 26‌, ‌iPadOS 26‌, or macOS 26 is required to install the update. The firmware has a build number of 8A5324b, up from 8A5308b.


The firmware adds several features that Apple is debuting alongside ‌iOS 26‌, ‌iPadOS 26‌, and macOS Tahoe.

The ‌AirPods Pro‌ 2 and ‌AirPods 4‌ support improved audio quality for phone calls and video calls, plus studio-quality audio recording for interviews, podcasts, and videos. There's also an option to use the AirPods as a camera remote with the Camera app to take photos or start a video recording.

With ‌iOS 26‌, ‌iPadOS 26‌, and macOS Tahoe, Apple added a beta firmware update installation option that's available from the AirPods settings interface when the AirPods are connected to an iPhone, iPad, or Mac, which facilitates the beta testing.
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Did you regret installing the iOS 26 beta or the iPadOS 26 beta? Here’s the step-by-step to downgrade your iPhone or iPad to a previous, non-beta version.

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The iOS 18.6, iPadOS 18.6, and macOS Sequoia 15.6 updates that Apple released today address dozens of vulnerabilities, according to Apple's security support documents. None of the vulnerabilities are known to have been actively exploited in the wild, but it's still a good idea to install the new updates right away.


There are over 20 vulnerability fixes in iOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.6. An issue with Accessibility could let a Passcode be read aloud by VoiceOver, and parsing maliciously crafted audio could lead to memory corruption.

The update includes eight WebKit-related fixes that could disclose sensitive user information, cause Safari to crash, and result in memory corruption. For iPad users unable to update to iPadOS 18.6, Apple released iPadOS 17.7.9 with a number of security fixes.

macOS Sequoia 15.6 patches over 80 vulnerabilities that could lead to crashes, leak sensitive user data, and more. There are fixes for the Dock, Find My, Notes, Safari, Spotlight, System Settings, and other apps and features.

There are also macOS Sonoma 14.7.7 and macOS Ventura 13.7.7 updates for those who have older Macs that can't run ‌macOS Sequoia‌ 15.6.

Apple's other updates released today, including visionOS 2.6, tvOS 18.6, and watchOS 11.6, include fixes for between 17 and 19 vulnerabilities.

Apple recommends keeping your devices up to date with the latest software to avoid issues caused by any of these security vulnerabilities. Apple says that updating software is one of the most important things that a user can do to maintain the security of Apple products.
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Introduced for Private Browsing sessions in Safari 17.0, Advanced Fingerprinting Protection was also optionally available for regular non-private sessions. With iOS 26, it will be enabled by default. Here’s what that means.

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Apple has just released iOS 18.6, the latest iPhone update for users. Though anyone hoping for big new features will have to wait for iOS 26 this fall, today’s new iOS 18.6 release does provide a host of important security fixes. Here are the full details.

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