Amazon Joins the Year of Smart Glasses - DTNS 5131

And AWS explains exactly what took down the internet on Monday.

Starring Tom Merritt, Huyen Tue Dao, and Andy Beach.

TOM: This is the Daily Tech News for Thursday, October 23, 2025. We tell you what you need to know, follow up on the context of those stories and help each other understand.

HUYEN: Today, the year of smart glasses shapes up with Amazon making its delivery drivers wear them. And Andy Beach tells us why Reddit is suing data brokers for using Google Search. [22:58]

I’m Tom Merritt,

I’m Huyen Tue Dao.

TOM: Let’s start with what you need to know with the big story.

[[BIG STORY]] [[SOLO story of the day. Basic details, monitor commentary and sound when possible.]]

Amazon unveils AI smart glasses for its delivery drivers | TechCrunch

TOM: As I continue to believe that 2026 will be the year of the smart glasses, we get yet another entrant into the race. This time on the enterprise side.

Amazon announced Wednesday that it is testing smart glasses for its North American delivery drivers. They look like normal glasses but have a monochromatic heads-up display in one lens, speakers and a camera. A wireless controller with buttons and a swappable battery sits in the driver's vest.

The glasses activate automatically when the delivery driver parks. It can highlight the package in the truck and scan it to confirm it's the right one. It can then provide walking directions to the address, including in places like multi-unit apartment and business complexes. You can also use them to take the proof of delivery photo.

The glasses can use prescription and transitional lenses.

All of this speeds things up by helping delivery drivers find the right package faster, get to the delivery location faster and keep their hands free the whole time.

Future versions could add alerts for hazards like a loose pet or dropping off at the wrong address.

[[DISCUSS]]

TOM: Amazon also announced two new tools at its warehouse. A robotic arm called "Blue Jay" that works alongside humans to pick items off shelves. And a tool called Eluna to provide operational insights.

HUYEN: DTNS is made possible by you the listener. Thanks to (ALo) Adam L Philip Less Howard Yermish New Patron: Jeff [[BREAK]] [[PAUSE]]

TOM: There’s more we need to know today, let’s get to the briefs.

[[BRIEFS]] [[3-5 more solo reads with sound to complete the day in tech news. These are informational with minor commentary.]]

Sora update to bring AI videos of your pets, new social features, and soon, an Android version | TechCrunch (21) Bill Peebles on X: "sora roadmap update: in the spirit of building this app openly, here's what we're landing soon. first, more creation tools. character cameos are coming in the next few days: you'll be able to cameo your dog, guinea pig, favorite stuffed toy, and pretty much anything else you https://t.co/GX7CJXWRcZ" / X OpenAI teases ChatGPT Atlas tabs, profiles, ad blocker, and other fixes for its new AI-powered browser | The Verge (21) Adam Fry on X: "@0xtuba profiles coming! command + . (or command + >) opens ask chatgpt sidebar!" / X (21) DANΞ on X: "Yesterday we launched ChatGPT Atlas, our new web browser. In Atlas, ChatGPT agent can get things done for you. We’re excited to see how this feature makes work and day-to-day life more efficient and effective for people. ChatGPT agent is powerful and helpful, and designed to be" / X OpenAI Acquires AI Startup Founded by Former Apple Employees - Bloomberg

HUYEN: We have some follow-ups on OpenAI news. First, the head of Sora, Bill Peebles, posted on X that in the next few days, the app will let you scan in pets and objects, like a stuffie toy, that you can animate in videos. He also mentioned adding editing tools, including the ability to stitch clips together.

Next, OpenAI's head of the Atlas browser, Adam Fry, posted on X that profiles are coming to the browser along with tab groups, an ad blocker, and more.

And OpenAI's CISO posted on X about mitigations to security risks that arise from prompt injections, where an attacker could hide malicious instructions in a website or email and trick you into scanning it with ChatGPT or its Agent. He recommends running most tasks in logged-out mode. Also, the Agent will pause if you move away from a tab that is handling sensitive info.

And OpenAI has acquired Software Applications, a startup that makes Sky, an AI assistant for Mac desktops. The team will be rolled into the ChatGPT team.

A single DNS race condition brought AWS to its knees • The Register Summary of the Amazon DynamoDB Service Disruption in Northern Virginia (US-EAST-1) Region

TOM: AWS posted details about what caused the US-EAST-1 outage on Monday. Definitely read the postmortem if you want the full details. And good job, Amazon, for being this transparent. As we mentioned, the whole thing began with a defect in the DNS management for DynamoDB. That system has a DNS Planner that monitors load balance and creates DNS plans that are then applied by a DNS Enactor.

The defect meant one DNS Enactor experienced unusually high delays applying the changes. A second DNS Enactor was operating on time, and when the first DNS Enactor finally applied its changes, the second read them as stale and removed all of them, which left the system in a state that prevented any future updates.

This resulted in a Race Condition; basically, the system was trying to read a DNS record while it was being updated, meaning it was out-of-date immediately.

The DropletWorkflow Manager needs DynamoDB in order to fire up EC2 virtual machines on physical servers. Without DynamoDB working, it couldn't do this, and a big backlog built up. When DynamoDB DID get back up and running, a few hours after the problem was identified, the backlog was too much. That led to cascading failures with new virtual servers, delaying their launch, which then impaired other services like Lambda. Getting out from under that backlog and its consequences took the rest of the time of the outage. AWS has disabled the automation on the DNS until it can be sure it can prevent another race condition.

Amazon's revamped Luna streaming service is available now

HUYEN: Amazon is relaunching its Luna game service for Prime subscribers at no additional cost. The biggest change is the addition of Game Night. This lets multiple people play one game, using their phones as a controller. Games include The Jackbox Party Pack 9, Tetris Effect: Connected, Angry Birds, and an original game called Courtroom Chaos: Starring Snoop Dogg, hosted by an AI version of Snoop Dogg.

SpaceX disables 2,500 Starlink terminals allegedly used by Asian scam centers - Ars Technica

TOM: A huge number of online scams are operated by organizations set up in rural Myanmar near the border of Thailand, where they believe they have a chance of escaping prosecution because of the location and the government's current civil strife. However, Myanmar's military says it shut down one such operation and seized 30 Starlink Terminals. Starlink business operations head, Lauren Dreyer, said on X Wednesday that the company has disabled more than 2,500 Starlink terminals suspected of being used by scammers. Starlink may have discovered terminal ID numbers as a result of the seizure and shut those off.

Bad news keeps piling up for the Galaxy S26 series - Android Authority Exynos 2600 Is Considered ‘Premature’ To Be Used In All Galaxy S26 Models; Initial Production Volume Is Only 15,000 Wafers, Possibly Due To Poor Yields

HUYEN: Android Authority passes along info from a Leaker on Weibo that claims the release of the Samsung Galaxy S26 will not happen in January, as it has the past two years, but possibly move back closer to Mobile World Congress, in either February or March. Meanwhile, Dealsite poured some cold water on the previous report that the Exynos 2600 might be used in the majority of S26 models. Dealsite's sources say yields are only large enough for the processor to be used in about 30% of S26 shipments, leaving the rest with the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. This is probably not a big deal for consumers, but it's bad news for those hoping for a Samsung chip comeback.

BT wiring fault led to three falsely accused of child abuse image

TOM: Thanks to Joelfreak for posting this one on our subreddit. It has been determined that three people were wrongly accused of downloading child abuse images in Wales in 2016, due to a broadband wiring error by BT. Two wires in a street cabinet had been crossed, meaning the IP addresses were associated with the wrong addresses. The Dyfed-Powys police eventually found and prosecuted the actual offender.

The end of Windows 10 has been a boon for one particular Linux distro - and I'm not surprised | ZDNET

HUYEN: After the end of support for Windows 10, a Linux distribution called ZorinOS says it saw a spike in downloads, 72% from Windows machines, of more than 100,000 over two days. That's a vanishingly small 100th of a percent of Windows 10 installs out there, but still, it's notable. It's also worth noting that a city in France has been switching its town hall computers to free and open source software, including ZorinOS.

TOM: And finally, some quick headlines that are just good to know if you want to understand the news in the future.

[[IF necessary. One sentence each]]

Microsoft Pushes Xbox Studios to Hit Higher Profit Margins - Bloomberg

HUYEN: Bloomberg's sources say Microsoft CFO Amy Hood has set a goal of 30% profit margins for its Xbox gaming division, leading to price rises, canceled products, and layoffs.

Alibaba prices AI glasses at $660 and launches ChatGPT rival

TOM: Alibaba announced its Quark AI Glasses, which include speakers a cameras, a mic, and a chatbot, will go up for preorder on October 24th for 4,699 Yuan, about $660, shipping in December.

Google says GPU driver updates are coming to the Pixel 10

HUYEN: Google told Android Authority that a GPU driver update is coming to the Pixel 10 line, but did not give enough details to determine if this will address complaints about GPU and gaming performance.

Report: Apple to Skip 'iPhone 19' Name for 'iPhone 20' - MacRumors

TOM: Research firm Omdia says Apple will launch the iPhone 18 in the first half of 2027, and in the second half, launch Pro model iPhones to be called the iPhone 20 in honor of the iPhone's 20th anniversary.

How China's DeepSeek Is Beating Out OpenAI and Google in Africa - Bloomberg

HUYEN: Bloomberg reports how ChatGPT and Gemini are struggling to get adoption in African countries like Nigeria and Kenya, while cheaper models like DeepSeek and Alibaba's Qwen advance because it is cheaper and easier to adapt to local languages.

Wyze’s budget-friendly video doorbell gets a six-month battery | The Verge

TOM: Wyze announced the Battery Video Doorbell with a claim of 6 months of battery life, for $66.

'Stranger Things 5' Series Finale to Play in Movie Theaters

HUYEN: The two-hour final episode of Netflix's Stranger Things will show in 350 movie theaters on December 31st and January 1st, along with the release on the Netflix service.

New Chinese Visas to Poach US Tech Talent, House Democrat Warns - Bloomberg

TOM: China released a new K Visa program earlier this month, making it easier for young tech workers from the US and elsewhere, to move to China, even without a job or sponsor.

China's unveils overview of its new 5-year economic plan | AP News

HUYEN: China's Communist Party released its latest five-year economic plan, which referenced technological self-reliance as a goal.

TOM: Those are the essentials for today. Let’s dive a little deeper.

[[SEGMENT A - FROM SCHEDULE]]

HUYEN: Reddit’s taking some lesser-known AI data brokers to court, accusing them of laundering its content through Google. Andy Beach explains why this might redraw the line between the open web and AI.

[[PROMO]] TOM: If you have feedback about anything that gets brought up on the show… Get in touch with us on the socials. @DTNSshow on X, Instagram, Threads!, Blue Sky, and Mastodon. For TikTok and YouTube, you can find us at Daily Tech News Show.

[[BREAK]] [[PAUSE]]

[[HELPING EACH OTHER UNDERSTAND]] [[Short missives from people with experience. Could be written email or pre-recorded from the person.]]

HUYEN: We end every episode of DTNS with some shared wisdom. Today Mike has an educated guess about what Apple is up to with Apple TV

TOM: Mike writes:

I was just pondering all of Apple's recent news and rumors concerning the rebranding of Apple TV+, Homepods, and renewed push into home automation. I had a thought... what if the replacement for the Apple TV box is a new Homepod. Rumors are that Apple is making a Homepod with a screen, which I think they will as well, but I bet they also make one without a screen that is designed to plug into the biggest screen in your house: your TV. Apple TV would be Apple's streaming service that is accessed through this new device that would also host your other streaming apps as well as a all their home automation plays. The current Apple TV already dabbles with this. It can run automations and view Homekit enabled security cameras.

If the Homepod is not just an audio first device, with a smart assistant built in, but rather the center of all of your home automations Apple make itself the center of your home's "operating system."

Just a thought, Mike

[[DISCUSS]]

HUYEN: What are you thinking about? Got some insight into a story? Share it with us feedback@dailytechnewsshow.com

TOM: Thanks to Andy Beach and Mike for contributing to today’s show. And thank YOU for being along for Daily Tech News Show. You can keep us in business by becoming a patron, at Patreon.com/dtns