TECHNOLOGY

Anthropic's popular Claude AI chatbot faced a significant service disruption Monday, March 2, 2026, with thousands of users worldwide reporting inability to access the platform, login failures, elevated error rates and messages indicating temporary downtime.

Apple Inc. is gearing up for what CEO Tim Cook described as a "big week ahead," with product announcements set to begin Monday, March 2, 2026, and culminating in a special in-person "experience" for select media and guests on Wednesday, March 4, in New York, London and Shanghai.

Xiaomi unveiled its latest flagship smartphones, the Xiaomi 17 and Xiaomi 17 Ultra, to global markets on February 28, 2026, during a high-profile event in Barcelona ahead of Mobile World Congress 2026, marking the international rollout of devices first introduced in China late last year.

Elon Musk, the billionaire CEO of Tesla, SpaceX, xAI and Neuralink, has made a series of ambitious forecasts about technology, society and humanity's future, many targeting the end of this decade.

Samsung Electronics officially launched the Galaxy S26 series on February 25, 2026, at its Galaxy Unpacked event in San Francisco, introducing the Galaxy S26, S26+ and S26 Ultra as its most intuitive AI-focused smartphones yet.

President Donald Trump directed all U.S. federal agencies on February 27, 2026, to immediately cease using artificial intelligence technology developed by Anthropic, escalating a high-profile dispute with the San Francisco-based startup over safeguards on its Claude AI model for military applications.

The smartphone rivalry between Samsung and Apple reached new heights in early 2026 with the February release of the Galaxy S26 Ultra and the lingering dominance of Apple's iPhone 17 Pro Max, launched in September 2025.

Samsung Electronics unveiled the Galaxy S26 Ultra on February 25, 2026, during its Galaxy Unpacked event in San Francisco, positioning the device as the company's most advanced AI-focused smartphone yet.

Apple has begun late-stage production validation testing for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, signaling strong progress toward a September 2026 launch for the company's premium flagship smartphones.

Sony's latest flagship true wireless earbuds, the WF-1000XM6, hit the market Feb. 12, 2026, at $329.99, aiming to reclaim dominance in the premium noise-canceling segment with significant upgrades to active noise cancellation, sound quality, call performance and fit.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman pushed back against growing concerns over artificial intelligence's voracious electricity consumption during a recent interview in India, arguing that critics unfairly focus on the power needed to train large models while overlooking the resources required to develop human intelligence.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) shares traded in a narrow range Wednesday, closing at $49.23, down 1.26% on the day but remaining close to their 52-week high of around $50.48 reached earlier in February.

Apple is expected to unveil the iPhone 17e, a new entry-level model in its flagship lineup, at a special event on March 4, 2026, marking the company's first major hardware launch of the year and introducing an affordable 2026 iPhone positioned between the standard iPhone 17 and the previous-generation iPhone 16e.

Samsung Electronics kicked off pre-orders for its Galaxy S26 series on February 25, 2026, following the official unveiling at Galaxy Unpacked in San Francisco, where the company positioned the new flagships as its most intuitive AI-powered phones yet, featuring enhanced Galaxy AI experiences, a unified design, and powerful hardware tailored for everyday tasks and creative workflows.

As Apple prepares for its March 4, 2026, special event focused on lower-end devices and software updates, leaks about the iPhone 18 Pro Max—expected to launch in September 2026—have accelerated, with supply chain reports pointing to test production underway, a significantly smaller Dynamic Island, record-breaking battery capacity, and a striking deep red finish among the rumored upgrades.

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates admitted during a private town hall meeting with Gates Foundation staff on February 24, 2026, that he had two extramarital affairs with Russian women while married to ex-wife Melinda French Gates, describing the relationships as personal mistakes but insisting they did not involve victims of Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking network.

Apple Inc.'s stock has rebounded strongly in late February 2026, closing at $272.14 on February 24 after gaining 2.24%, as investors focus on the company's record fiscal first-quarter performance, accelerating App Store growth, and anticipation for the iPhone 17e announcement amid broader concerns over regulatory pressures and China demand.

Legendary venture capitalist Bill Gurley is sounding the alarm on career complacency, declaring that in today's fast-evolving tech landscape — especially amid rapid AI advancements — the single worst move professionals can make is to "play it safe."

SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet service is ramping up subscriber acquisition by slashing prices, offering free or heavily discounted hardware, and introducing low-cost tiers, a strategy Elon Musk says is aimed at making high-speed connectivity more accessible, especially in developing regions and underserved areas.

With Apple's iPhone 18 series on the horizon, rumors and leaks are pouring in about the flagship iPhone 18 Pro Max, expected to debut in September 2026 alongside the iPhone 18 Pro and possibly the first foldable iPhone.

Shares of Advanced Micro Devices Inc. surged as much as 14% in pre-market trading Tuesday after the chipmaker announced a landmark multi-year partnership with Meta Platforms Inc. to supply up to 6 gigawatts of AMD Instinct GPUs for the social media giant's next-generation AI infrastructure.

With Samsung's Galaxy Unpacked event set for Wednesday, February 25, 2026, in San Francisco, the Galaxy S26 Ultra stands poised as the flagship highlight of the 2026 lineup.

Apple is gearing up for its first major product reveal of 2026 with a "Special Experience" event scheduled for March 4 in New York, London and Shanghai, where the company is widely expected to unveil the iPhone 17e — the successor to last year's budget-friendly iPhone 16e — alongside refreshed MacBook models powered by the new M5 chip family.

Apple is poised to enter the foldable smartphone market with its first foldable iPhone potentially launching in late 2026, according to mounting industry reports and analyst predictions. The highly anticipated device, often referred to as the "iPhone Fold," is expected to feature a book-style folding mechanism similar to Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold series, offering a larger inner display for productivity while maintaining a compact form when closed.

Leaked promotional materials for the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra have surfaced online just days before the official unveiling at Galaxy Unpacked on Feb. 25, 2026, revealing that the flagship smartphone will likely retain the same 5,000mAh battery capacity and camera hardware as its predecessor, the Galaxy S25 Ultra.

SAN FRANCISCO — Samsung Electronics is set to host its first Galaxy Unpacked event of 2026 on Feb. 25 in San Francisco, where the company is widely expected to unveil the Galaxy S26 series, including the standard S26, S26 Plus and premium S26 Ultra models.

Apple is preparing one of its most significant iPhone transitions in years with the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, expected to debut in September 2026 alongside the company's first foldable iPhone.

Samsung is gearing up for its next flagship tablet lineup, with the Galaxy Tab S12 Ultra emerging as a highly anticipated refresh to the premium Android tablet segment. While the company has not officially announced the device, recent certifications, supply chain leaks and analyst reports point to a late 2026 debut, likely in the September–October window alongside other major product launches.

Apple appears poised to refresh its beloved iPad mini lineup in the coming months, with industry reports and supply chain leaks pointing to a potential announcement as early as March 2026.