Welcome to the September issue of The Highlight

A fledgling “loneliness economy” is booming on the back of warnings about just how bad loneliness can be for us — “comparable to smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day,” as one often-cited comparison puts it. But can we really spend our way out of loneliness? In t…

• 2 days ago

Ex-Pakistan coach Gillespie tells Aaqib Javed to 'look in the mirror' over cricket team sackings

Australia’s Gillespie, who led the side for eight months in 2024, including a 2-1 Test series win against England, said it was sad to see

• 2 days ago

Meta suddenly cares about kids

For years, parents across the country have been calling on Congress to do something about social media’s harmful effects on children. And typically, when something does happen, it follows a familiar pattern.  The billionaire tech CEOs are summoned to Congress…

• 2 days ago

How freaked out should you be about Trump’s plot to disrupt mail voting?

On Tuesday, Sen. Richard Blumenthal’s office published an alarming report from an anonymous whistleblower about the USPS’s role in the 2026 midterms. The report suggests the US Postal Service is rushing to implement a ballot-vetting system for the midterms th…

• 2 days ago

What happens when a blue state votes on trans sports?

Republicans have been turning transgender athletes into a wedge issue since Idaho passed the first state ban in 2020. This year, it’s already playing a major role in midterm ads, with Democrats in competitive races almost always on the defensive. At this poin…

• 2 days ago

The amazing USB-C gadgets that play old Nintendo cartridges

Last week, I powered on a 26-year-old copy of Pokémon Pinball, one of the best Game Boy games ever made. My save file was no more. The Charmander I'd caught for my daughter, the high scores we'd set together… gone. Before flash memory, Nintendo cartridges use…

• 2 days ago

Acer’s new MacBook Air rival is nearly a pound lighter than Apple’s laptop

Acer is announcing a new laptop poised to rival the MacBook Air's thinness and lightness - and in the process, it cops another laptop's name. The Acer Swift Blade 14 (not to be confused with the Razer Blade 14) is a productivity machine weighing just 1.76 pou…

• 2 days ago

Google Pics is like Canva, but with even more AI

Google has a new suite of creative design tools for Workspace users called Google Pics, which aims to make editing and generating "professional-grade" AI images less cumbersome for businesses. Built around Gemini and the Nano Banana generative AI model, Googl…

• 2 days ago

Sony’s new party speakers have more bass, more LEDs, and more connectivity

Sony announced three new tower-style party speakers that will now be the largest options in its ULT Power Sound lineup. The new ULT Tower Max, ULT Tower 7, and ULT Tower 5 all feature expanded connectivity including USB-C, RCA, and XLR ports for connecting to…

• 2 days ago

Gujrat’s Suthra Punjab drive emerges as a model for sustainable cleanliness

More than 280,000 tonnes of waste removed as technology-led monitoring, multi-shift operations and a new special cleaning campaign reshape sanitation across 84 union councils

• 3 days ago

The surprising reason food recalls are getting worse

Summer is supposed to be the best time for fresh produce. Corn on the cob at the cookout. Berries plucked right from the vine. Salads on the cafe patio while you take an extra long lunch break because the weather and the food is that good.  But this year, sum…

• 3 days ago

The plot to disrupt mail-in voting

This story appeared in Today, Explained, a daily newsletter that helps you understand the most compelling news and stories of the day. Subscribe here. It took the US government two years to roll out HealthCare.gov, nine months to pilot a direct tax-filing too…

• 3 days ago

ROMO TO SEEK HELP... | | Admits dependence on medication, alcohol... | | Found guilty after no contest plea...

• 3 days ago

TP-Link’s first Wi-Fi 8 router is almost here

The Wi-Fi 8 standard is far from finalized, but TP-Link is almost ready to release its first hardware targeting the next-gen spec. It unveiled the Archer 8 Ultra tri-band router and Deco 8 Ultra mesh system at IFA 2026, which utilize the upcoming IEEE 802.11b…

• 3 days ago

The weird coalition taking on Flock

This story appeared in Today, Explained, a daily newsletter that helps you understand the most compelling news and stories of the day. Subscribe here. I passed five Flock cameras on my drive to work today, entirely without realizing it. The AI-powered license…

• 4 days ago