Nerd News

Even with Lockdown Mode, ChatGPT could be still vulnerable to prompt injections, but the goal is to reduce the likelihood that sensitive data gets shared in the process.

Krishnan is reportedly starting a new institution to continue shaping Trump's AI policy.

President Donald Trump said he's discussing deals "where the American people can benefit from the success of AI."

These newer social apps offer alternatives to Big Tech’s feeds, focusing on interests, creativity, and community.

Calling all crewmates! A couple of years ago, we learned that an Among Us animated series was on the way via CBS. We even got some casting news and a small teaser trailer in the coming months, but nothing super consistent. Now, there’s finally an official first trailer for the Among Us animated series as well as a release date for its Paramount+ premiere, which is June 5. That’s right, all ten episodes of Among Us are now available to stream right now. 

The announcement was made on stage by series stars Yvette Nicole Brown and Liv Hewson during the global livestream event. Among Us follows a group of eccentric, monochromatic Crewmates of a ship transporting junk across the galaxy who must root out an Impostor in their midst before they fall victim to its villainous designs. Of course, this show is based on the popular game series. The Among Us animated trailer is great and boasts some very familiar voices, thanks to its all-star cast. Those names include the following: 

• Ashley Johnson as Purple, Chief of Security
• Elijah Wood as Green, Unpaid Intern
• Randall Park as Red, Captain of The Skeld
• Yvette Nicole Brown as Orange, HR
• Dan Stevens as Blue, Doctor
• Liv Hewson as Black, Geologist
• Kimiko Glenn as Cyan, Gemologist

Paramount+

The cast will also include Patton Oswalt, Debra Winger, Wayne Knight, and Phil Lamarr. We totally love to hear it. So, get to streaming Among Us and get into the action right now!

The post AMONG US Series Drops Trailer and All Episodes on Paramount+ appeared first on Nerdist.

After a very profitable decade on Microsoft's board, Reid Hoffman is stepping down to focus on his AI drug discovery startup Manus.

A massive viral conversation sharing VC horror stories has taken place this week on X. Some are weird. Some are infuriating.

IBM and two of its subsidiary companies were allegedly breached during the mid-2010s, which a lawsuit filed by a former cybersecurity executive accuses IBM of not disclosing and actively covering up.

Applications for Startup Battlefield 200 officially close on June 8, 11:59 p.m. PT. Now’s not the time to wait any longer. Secure your shot at competing on the Disrupt Stage at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 this October at San Francisco's Moscone West.

The companies announced the deal on Friday, just one week ahead of SpaceX's historic IPO.

⚡ Quick Take

• The anime adaptation of the popular Capcom game series Devil May Cry will officially get a third and final season on Netflix.

These days, if a Netflix series makes it to three seasons, we have to consider that a win. And it looks like the Netflix anime series Devil May Cry will indeed make it to three seasons, and then call it a day. The news comes via Polygon. The adult urban-fantasy anime series, based on the popular Capcom video game franchise, premiered its first season in 2025, with a second season dropping this year. The final season will hit the streaming giant probably in 2027. The series follows a mercenary demon hunter named Dante as he tries to stop a demonic invasion of Earth. Series showrunner Adi Shankar had this to say in a statement about Devil May Cry coming to an end:

For those of you who have been paying attention to the episode names, I have been showing you the structure the entire time. This was always Dante’s Divine Comedy with guns and a red coat. Season 1 was ‘Inferno.’ Season 2 was ‘Purgatorio.’ Season 3 will be ‘Paradiso.’ These three seasons make up ‘The Force Edge Saga.’ Since inception, ‘The Force Edge Saga’ was designed as a movie trilogy disguised as a television series.

Netflix

The Devil May Cry series has attracted a sizable viewership on Netflix since it came out last year. But if they always designed it as a three-season arc, it’s best to let it end on the creator’s terms. Big hit for Netflix or not, the series was not without controversy. A character on the show was allegedly based on right-wing streamer Zack “Asmongold” Hoyt, who was banned from Twitch.

Netflix

This was not the first Devil May Cry animated series, of course. A previous anime series came out in 2007, and ran for 12 episodes. The video games first appeared back in 2001. Capcom credited the show’s popularity with helping the game Devil May Cry 5 surpass 10 million in sales. Johnny Yong Bosch will return for season three to voice Dante, with Robbie Daymond returning as Vergil, and Scout Taylor-Compton as Lady. An exact premiere date for season three is still unknown.

The post DEVIL MAY CRY Series Gets a Third and Final Netflix Season appeared first on Nerdist.

⚡ Quick Take

• Paramount Skydance has condensed Skydance Interactive and Skydance New Media into one video game studio, Paramount Games Studio.

First Paramount merged with Skydance. Then Paramount Skydance bought Warner Bros. Discovery (though technically it’s still pending). WBD itself is a merged uber company. Now the mega corp is at it again. It is condensing its own video game studios into a single entity known as Paramount Games Studio.

Variety reports Paramount Skydance is condensing its two video games studios—Skydance Interactive and Skydance New Media—into one entity. The company’s Head of Corporate Strategy and Development, Tony Driscoll will lead Paramount Games Studio. He will remain in his current roll. Paramount told Variety that will allow Driscoll “to lead our integration planning effort for the Warner Bros. Discovery transaction.” The new singular studio will also develop its own games based on Paramount IP rather than licensing out to other studios.

In a statement Driscoll talked about what the company is hoping to achieve by bringing both studios under a singular umbrella:

This division launch marks a meaningful evolution in how we think about games – not as an extension of our business, but as a core pillar of our content strategy alongside film, television, and streaming. We are committed to creating exceptional games for every type of player, from casual to AAA, and building enduring experiences across our beloved Paramount IP and original worlds that deepen fan engagement and drive long-term growth.

Paramount Skydance

Skydance Interactive’s Dan Prigg is sticking around. He’ll serve as Executive Vice president, Head of Games for the new studio. Paramount has also named his colleague at Skydance Interactive, Shawn Kittelsen, as Senior Vice President, Head of Creative & Production.

This latest condensation is not expected to stop work on two big projects that were in development at Skydance New Media. It was working on both Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra and still-unnamed Star Wars game. Those will now continue at Paramount Games Studio. It’s also expected to announce a new AAA title as part of this initial rollout.

One of Skydance New Media’s two co-presidents is also staying on under the new banner. Amy Hennig will serve is as the new studio’s Creative Director. Meanwhile Julian Beak is leaving the company.

If history is any indicator we know what’s next for her. She’ll move on to a different company. Eventually it will merge with Paramount Skydance Warner Bros. Discovery Elizondo Mountain Dew Camacho.

The post Paramount Skydance Announces Paramount Games Studio appeared first on Nerdist.

GM wants to slash EV prices by deploying new battery tech up to a year earlier than planned. This building is key to making that happen.

⚡ Quick Take

• Valve has announced a massive new piece of hardware, with the Steam Machine coming in 2026, a PC/console hybrid 6x faster than Steam Deck.

With Microsoft effectively ceding the console wars to Sony and Nintendo, giving the competition access to once-proprietary Xbox games like Halo, it seemed like it’s a two-horse race. Will it be PlayStation or Nintendo Switch that reigns supreme. Well, don’t count Valve out of that battle. The company behind Steam has announced a massive new piece of hardware. (Via IGN.) While we don’t know the price yet for the next-gen Steam Machine and Steam Controller, we do know specs and size. According to Valve, the console/PC hybrid will have six times (that’s 6x!) more powerful than Steam Deck.

Valve also, after many delays, has confirmed the Steam Machine will drop at some point this summer.

Valve

The memory for the Steam Machine is pretty huge. Two models will be available in 2026. One will be 512GB and the other 2TB. It will ship both alone and in a bundle with Steam Controller. The Steam Machine, a follow-up to the previous 2015 version, will feature a semi-custom AMD Zen 4 6C / 12T CPU, a semi-Custom AMD RDNA3 GPU, and supports 4K gaming at 60 frames per second with FSR. Valve described the new Steam Machine as six times more powerful than Steam Deck, with 16GB DDR5 and 8GB GDDR6 VRAM.

Console gaming versus PC gaming has long been the dividing line, and if this is legitimately both, that really makes the next-gen Steam Machine an intriguing proposition for all parties. As a pure console player, I’ve missed out on a lot of PC-only titles. I’m sure it’s the same the other way for PC gamers. The versatility of such a powerful device will bring a lot of interest from either side. It will, of course, be dependent on the price. My guess? Quite high.

Gabe Newell, the head honcho of Valve, said the following: “We’ve been super happy with the success of Steam Deck, and PC gamers have continued asking for even more ways to play all the great titles in their Steam libraries. Our work over the years on other hardware and even more importantly on SteamOS has enabled Steam Controller, Steam Machine, and Steam Frame to do just that.”

If you’d like more info on particular specs, you can visit the Steam site.

Originally published November 12, 2025.

Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. He hosts the weekly pop culture deep-dive podcast Laser Focus. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Letterboxd.

The post Valve Confirms Steam Machine Will Drop This Summer appeared first on Nerdist.

Lectric, which says the U.S. market is ripe for competition and choice, has launched three new brands in the past six months.

While the AI fundraising machine keeps breaking its own records, some founders are building in the other direction.  Mirror founder Brynn Putnam just raised money for Board, a startup focused on bringing people together through in-person games and social experiences. Cyberdeck creators are going viral crafting whimsical DIY computers that literally encourage users to touch grass. Unlike the AI-free browser crowd, this doesn’t just feel like backlash, […]

⚡ Quick Take

• Anthony Stewart Head, best known for playing the Watcher Rupert Giles for 7 seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, has passed away at the age of 72.

Anthony Stewart Head, who played Buffy Summers’ Watcher, Rupert Giles, on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, has passed away at the age of 72 from complications due to pneumonia. The news comes from a report via the BBC. Apart from his iconic role on Buffy, Anthony Head also recently appeared in Ted Lasso, the musical Repo! The Genetic Opera, and the BBC’s Merlin. He also played Dr. Frank N. Furter in several different productions of The Rocky Horror Show over the years, and his version of “Sweet Transvestite” came out as a single in 1991. And he lent his speaking voice to many radio plays and voiceover projects. But for an entire generation, he’ll always be the wise, yet befuddled, Sunnydale High School Librarian.

Twentieth Century Television

Anthony Stewart Head’s daughters, Daisy and Emily, released this statement on their father, saying, “It will forever be an honor and a privilege to be his daughters, and to have witnessed firsthand the impact both he and his work have had on so many. We know how dearly he will be missed by friends, colleagues, and fans of the shows he was in. He loved his job very much, and he always considered himself incredibly lucky, to have been able to work alongside such exceptionally talented people, in such wonderful productions, across a career that spanned several decades.” Anthony Head’s wife, Sarah Fisher, passed away at age 61 in December, 2025.

Head came from a performing family. His older brother, Murray Head, originated the role of Judas in Jesus Christ Superstar, and had a huge pop hit in 1984 with “One Night in Bangkok.” Anthony actually first became famous in America in a soapy ongoing series of Nescafé commercials. All right before booking Buffy the Vampire Slayer. He was a series regular for the first five seasons, before moving back to the UK. However, he appeared in multiple episodes across seasons six and seven. Joss Whedon announced plans for a spin-off for his character Giles called Ripper for the BBC. But sadly, it never came to be. He’s now the third Buffy cast member to die prematurely within a year, after Michelle Trachtenberg and Nicholas Brendon. Our condolences go out to his family, friends, and many fans.

The post Anthony Stewart Head, BUFFY’S Rupert Giles, Has Died at 72 appeared first on Nerdist.

Supabase, an example of an open source project becoming a fast-growing company, has greatly benefited from AI tools like Claude, Codex, and other vibe-coding platforms.

⚡ Quick Take

• u003cliu003eThe Odyssey’s website allows you to watch the film’s trailer in several formats, including IMAX 70mm and Dolby Vision.u003c/liu003e

The Odyssey is coming to theaters in various formats, like IMAX 70mm and Dolby Vision. So it is only right that you’d be able to explore the trailer for Christopher Nolan’s upcoming summer film in those same formats, right? The Odyssey’s website allows you to do just that, with all of the film’s different formats available to experience this trailer in the accompanying aspect ratio. 

Universal Pictures

For those who are not filmmakers like Nolan or nerds about the process, each one has a written description about what it entails. And there are videos of several cast members who also break down the format for each version of The Odyssey trailer.

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Christopher Nolan’s THE ODYSSEY Will Be R-Rated

It’s quite cool to dive into and see exactly why people love IMAX or Dolby Vision. The Odyssey arrives in theaters on July 17.

The post Watch THE ODYSSEY Trailer in All of Its Theater Formats appeared first on Nerdist.

⚡ Quick Take

• Kristen Bell is taking a break from the kingdom of Arendelle and joining the cast of Sonic the Hedgehog 4 as Amy Rose.

The fourth Sonic the Hedgehog movie is gearing up to enter production, and they’ve just added a very notable name to the voice cast. Princess Anna from Frozen herself, Kristen Bell, has joined the cast of Sonic the Hedgehog 4 as the voice of Amy Rose. Fans of the classic Sega game will remember Amy Rose as the pink hedgehog who is Sonic’s girlfriend. Well, she thinks of herself as his girlfriend, anyway. Sonic star Ben Schwartz posted a photo of himself and Kristen Bell holding toys of their respective characters on social media, formally announcing her arrival in the upcoming Sonic sequel.

WE HAVE OUR AMY ROSE!!! And I could not be more excited!!! Please welcome the incredible Kristen Bell to the @SonicMovie family!!! 💙 pic.twitter.com/jcFLLoplqC

— Ben Schwartz (@rejectedjokes) February 18, 2026

The mid-credits scene of the previous Sonic movie introduced Amy Rose as she saved Sonic from the bad guys in Sonic the Hedgehog 3‘s last moments. However, that little tease didn’t feature a voice actor. It was just to let the fans know she was coming. The mid-credits teases of the Sonic the Hedgehog movies have each set up a new character from the games that will play a big role in the next movie. Idris Elba, who voices Knuckles, joined the franchise in Sonic the Hedgehog 2. And Keanu Reeves joined the cast of Sonic the Hedgehog 3 as Shadow. With each sequel, the voice cast gets more and more stacked with iconic names. And now, Kristen Bell will be joining Sonic the Hedgehog 4.

Bell shared an Instagram photo of her in the booth, and she’s so incredibly joyful.

Sega created Amy Rose for the Sonic games when the company’s licensing division wanted a female counterpart to the Sonic character. A “Minnie to his Mickey,” essentially. Although it seems she’s more the Ms. Pac-Man to his Pac-Man if you ask us. Sega decided that having Sonic have a traditional girlfriend would go against his personality.

NBC Universal/Paramount Pictures

The company then made Amy Rose a hedgehog with a one-sided crush and oodles of bubbly energy. Yup, this Sonic the Hedgehog 4 role sounds ideal for Kristen Bell. Sonic the Hedgehog 4 is once again directed by Jeff Fowler, who directed the previous three installments. Paramount will release Sonic 4 in theaters on December 22, 2027.

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