We interviewed writer Jeff Parker about his new series with Disney and Dynamite, Zootopia, hitting in January 2025

Amazon has discontinued its secretive "Encore" project to develop an at-home fertility tracker, resulting in layoffs for around 100 employees. The project, part of Amazon's Grand Challenge division, aimed to launch a device and app that would predict fertility through saliva testing but was ultimately terminated to control costs. CNBC reports: The project was born out of the company's 2020 acquisition of Wisconsin-based startup bluDiagnostics, the sources said. BluDiagnostics was founded in 2015 by Weibel, Katie Brenner and Jodi Schroll, all of whom joined Grand Challenge. The startup had developed a thermometer-like device, called FertilityFinder, to help women track their fertility from home by testing their saliva and measuring two key hormones, estradiol and progesterone. The results of the test were viewable through a corresponding app. Business Insider reported on aspects of the fertility device in 2022, when its codename was Project Tiberius. The team was working to develop its own saliva collection device and mobile app, which could predict when a user might be in the fertile window. Users could also log their period symptoms, sexual activity and other data to assist with tracking their fertility. There are similar offerings on the market from companies including Inne, Oova, Ava and Mira, along with fertility and ovulation tracking apps such as Flo, Clue and Max Levchin's Glow. Amazon initially aimed to release the product this year, but the timing was pushed out after the team encountered technical issues with the device, one of the people said. It was a costly endeavor and required significant upfront investments for lab research and development, in addition to the high salaries for scientists and engineers, the sources said, adding that the team's weekly overhead was roughly $1.5 million. Amazon didn't comment on the figure. Only one project now remains active within Grand Challenge. Its focus is on health tech, the people said. "We regularly review our businesses to ensure we focus on areas where we can make the biggest difference for customers," said Amazon spokesperson Margaret Callahan. "Following a recent review, we've decided to discontinue this project within Grand Challenge, and we're working directly with employees whose roles are impacted to support them through the transition and help them find other opportunities within Amazon."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

1. Unrest over deaths of 10 ‘militants’ spills over to Assam, Mizoram; ‘extra-judicial killings’ by CRPF, sa  The Times of India
2. ​Manipur’s misery: On the need for the Centre to act  The Hindu
3. ‘Sleepless nights’: cop concerned about 6 missing family members  The Indian Express
4. Fresh gunfights, arson in Manipur amid shutdown  Hindustan Times
5. 'Completely charred': Autopsy fails to collect samples to prove claim of Hmar woman's rape in Manipur  Deccan Herald

Jeff Bezos just invested in a robot company called Physical Intelligence. Its robots can fold laundry and put eggs in a carton.

Xbox Game Pass has had a great run of games of late but Microsoft has not managed to snare a… Continue reading Is Lego Horizon Adventures on Game Pass?

The post Is Lego Horizon Adventures on Game Pass? appeared first on ReadWrite.

Like most Lego games that have come before it, Lego Horizon Adventure is at once a single-player game, but oodles… Continue reading Lego Horizon Adventures co-op explained – how to play locally and online with friends

The post Lego Horizon Adventures co-op explained – how to play locally and online with friends appeared first on ReadWrite.

One of the first places you might begin to come unstuck in Lego Horizon Adventures is when it is when… Continue reading Lego Horizon Adventures – how to get the Feasting Table

The post Lego Horizon Adventures – how to get the Feasting Table appeared first on ReadWrite.

Amazon Haul was unveiled Wednesday in beta form, designed to compete with Chinese retailers Temu and Shein on sales of ultra-low price products.

Amazon Haul was unveiled Wednesday in beta form, designed to compete with Chinese retailers Temu and Shein on sales of ultra-low price products.

Guerrilla Games’ latest Horizon title — the second one in two weeks — is a candy-coloured reinterpretation of Horizon Zero Dawn, which just got a remaster that dialled up the graphical presentation of the 2017 breakout PS4 hit. Lego Horizon Adventures, on the other hand, amps up the silliness.

Save over $200 on a Dell docking station with 130W Power Delivery and dual DisplayPorts.

Amazon Haul is a sub-$20 discount online store to compete with the likes of Temu and Shein.

Call of Duty Black Ops 6 is here, and players can start gearing up for a mammoth Season 1 drop that's free of charge. Here's when the action kicks off this week

Rep. Juan Ciscomani has been projected as the winner in the race for Arizona's 6th Congressional District, one of the most closely watched House races in the country.

Selling subscriptions to Prime Video with ads is more lucrative for Amazon.

The Amazon CEO reportedly told employees at an all-hands meeting that the company's five-day-a-week policy was aimed at improving company culture.

The Arizona Commerce Authority has announced 15 finalists for its 2024 Arizona Innovation Challenge. Read on to learn more about the participating companies.

Amazon is marking down a slew of its products for Black Friday and that includes its streaming devices. Currently, the Fire TV Stick 4K Max is down to $33 from $60 — a 45 percent discount that brings it to a new all-time low price. This device is Amazon's most powerful streaming stick, supporting a 4K Ultra HD display, with an enhanced Alexa Voice Remote and Wi-Fi 6E support. You can, of course, use it to access Amazon Prime Video, along with Netflix, Disney+ and all your favorite streamers. 

While the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max is a good option for streaming, we also use it for something a bit different: playing retro games. Our senior reporter Jeff Dunn bought one to play games from the PS1, Game Boy, Genesis, old arcade games and more. He finds it works much better than having to lug around any bigger devices. However, using your Fire TV Stick 4K Max to play old games requires a bit of setup so, if you're interested in trying it, may I direct you to Dunn's helpful guide here. 

Amazon's Fire TV Cube is also discounted as part of a larger sale on Fire TV devices for Black Friday. Right now, you can pick up the streaming device for 29 percent off, dropping to $100 from $140. The Cube is your pick if you want access to ethernet and hands-free use with Alexa. It's more powerful than the 4K Max, but, for the price difference, it's a tough call if it's worth it. 

Check out all of the latest Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals here.

Amazon Haul will be the ecommerce titan's new discount storefront designed to compete against Temu and Shein, CNBC reports. This new corner of Bezos's empire is mobile-only and promises items at “crazy low prices.”

Unlike Amazon Prime’s fast speeds, Amazon promises its Haul orders orders will arrive in less than two weeks. Previously, CNBC mentioned in a previous report that Amazon was exploring a storefront where goods would be sold to US customers directly from China, though now it seems the company itself is doing the importing and acting as an intermediary.

Speed isn't the only alteration to the typical Amazon arrangement customers will have to get used to. It seems, regardless of if they subscribe to Prime or not, buyers will have to purchase $25 of goods per order with Haul to get free shipping. For lesser orders, the shipping fee will be $3.99. Amazon also won't accept Haul returns if the value of the items is $3 or under.

If customers take to Haul, the new storefront could put Amazon in a favorable position in a seemingly crowded market. Both the US and EU have set their regulatory sights on Temu.

After a lengthy consideration, the National Labor Relations Board has ruled that Amazon’s “captive-audience meetings” are a violation of the National Labor Relations Act. These are mandatory meetings where an employer shares its stance on unionization.

“Ensuring that workers can make a truly free choice about whether they want union representation is one of the fundamental goals of the National Labor Relations Act. Captive audience meetings—which give employers near-unfettered freedom to force their message about unionization on workers under threat of discipline or discharge—undermine this important goal,” Chairman Lauren McFerran said of the ruling. “Today’s decision better protects workers’ freedom to make their own choices in exercising their rights under the Act, while ensuring that employers can convey their views about unionization in a noncoercive manner.”

The decision noted that employers may hold meetings about unionization as long as workers receive advanced notice about the topic, are told that attendance is voluntary and without consequences for opting not to participate, and that attendance records are not kept.

Today’s ruling centers on Amazon, which has a rocky history with its employees’ efforts to organize and with the NLRB. However, the decision could impact other big tech firms that have followed similar practices around unionization.

Three-month-old Roxie choked on her own vomit as fireworks were being set off across Edinburgh on Bonfire Night.

Set to Richard Ashcroft's Sonnet, this year's John Lewis TV advert is a "tear-jerker", experts say.

South Korea's oceans ministry plans to nearly double the size of its marine protected area by 2027 as part of efforts to proactively address climate change.

The government on Tuesday asked the e-commerce food business operators (FBOs) to adopt practices to ensure minimum shelf life of 30 per cent or 45 days before expiry at the time of delivery to the consumer, to strengthen food safety standards within the e-commerce sector.

1. NSE expands F&O segment with 45 new stocks, including Zomato, Jio Financial, LIC, DMart, and Paytm; check full list  Upstox
2. NSE to introduce futures and options contracts on 45 stocks from November 29, here's the full list  Moneycontrol
3. Jio Financial, Zomato potential Nifty inclusion candidates? Here is what analysts said  CNBCTV18
4. Exchanges make 45 new additions in the F&O following new eligibility norms | News on Markets  Business Standard
5. NSE adds 45 new stocks to F&O segment; Jio Financial, Zomato among notable entrants  The Economic Times

Arrival of hyenas, jackals, marsh crocodiles, and palm civets raise species count to 94