7 Days: Windows XP-themed Wikipedia, Google paying users $135 million, and leaked games

A week filled with tea about Surface Duo 3, Meta slammed for ending top-tier encryption, several Gemini updates from Google, and leaked games.

7 Days is a weekly roundup of picks of what's been happening in the world of technology - written with a dash of humor, a hint of exasperation, and an endless supply of (black) coffee.

This week was filled with several new Google announcements, the leak of Forza Horizon 6, continuous BSOD reboots on Dell systems, Donald Trump's smartphone, and other drama from the tech world. Let's get started.

You can check out the recent issues of the 7 Days weekly roundup here.

This isn't Windows XP

Windows XP is gone, but its spirit keeps coming back in some form or another. A clever web project turns Wikipedia into a Windows XP-style desktop interface, which you can browse and customize. You'll find desktop icons such as Wikipedia, Media, Geofile Explorer, and Readme.txt., and browse Wikipedia like a filesystem.

Google paying back $135 million

Google finally agreed to pay $135 million to about 100 million Android users in the US as part of a lawsuit (Taylor v. Google LLC) alleging it collected user information without their consent over cellular data. You can claim your share if you're among the eligible users. Android users in the US who have had a cellular data plan since 2017 may be eligible to get a payout.

Workcation in China

The US President visited China and reportedly cleared the way for 10 Chinese firms, including Alibaba, Tencent, ByteDance, and JD.com, to buy NVIDIA H200 AI chips, allowing a few other companies to act as distributors for these chips within the country.

Surprisingly, it was reported that NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang wasn't invited to join the delegation alongside Tim Cook and Elon Musk, but got a seat on Air Force One later. The Chinese government, on the other hand, hasn't granted approval for local firms to purchase these chips yet.

While Trump and the delegation received several gifts, identification badges, and pins from China, they had to discard all of them, along with burner phones, before boarding Air Force One on the way home. These items were thrown in the bin next to the plane's stairs.

Surface Duo 3

No, it's not coming soon. Surface Duo 3 got canceled back in 2023, but a recently spotted patent filing suggests what it could have been. It describes a "spring-loaded" hinge mechanism supporting a button that would have made it easier to open the two displays with one hand, addressing a common complaint for devices of such form factor, because you need both hands.

BSOD reboot

A recent software update caused several Dell PCs to reboot repeatedly after a BSOD. Repeating history from 2024, Dell's SupportAssist software was identified as a culprit, and a quick solution could be to uninstall it from the device until the company releases a fix.

Smartphones

In smartphone news,

• The stylus is coming: Samsung is about to address one of the Galaxy Z Trifold's biggest drawbacks: the lack of an S Pen stylus despite a 10-inch screen. The second-generation Trifold is expected to feature an S Pen slot within the hinges to store and charge the stylus.
• Targeting premium: The new HONOR 600 Pro is trying to compete in the premium segment with an 8000 nits display, 200 MP night camera, and 7000mAh battery life.

Microsoft fires top exec over surveillance

It was reported that Microsoft kicked out its Israel head, Alon Haimovich, after an internal review over the misuse of its Azure infrastructure in the Israel-Palestine war. Previous reports alleged that cloud services hosted through Microsoft infrastructure were used to process large amounts of intercepted communications from Gaza.

In more security news:

• Wii U CEMU emulator compromised: Its development team revealed that CEMU's GitHub page offered compromised Linux downloads for almost a week. An advisory details who might be affected and how to ensure users are safe.
• New vulnerability on the market: GitHub user Nightmare-Eclipse has published two new vulnerabilities (YellowKey and GreenPlasma) targeting Windows 11 systems. The exploits were released the same day Microsoft released its latest Patch Tuesday.
• Turso ends bug bounty: The popular in-process SQL database ended its $1,000 bug bounty program due to a surge of AI slop submissions, which became a bigger burden than actual bugs.

The 'kick' of a black hole

Scientists figured out exactly how fast and in what direction a black hole gets a "kick" or recoil after crashing into another one. A huge step in mapping the universe: they used a detailed computer model and historical gravitational-wave data to clock the recoil at 50 km/s.

In more science news:

• CERN breakthrough: Scientists at CERN created the first antimatter quantum bit, successfully controlling a single antiproton for nearly a minute. This breakthrough will help researchers understand why the universe contains far more matter.
• Physical rules tested: Scientists found that light particles can scatter and interact in unexpected ways. This could help them test the established rules of modern physics.

Meta slammed for ending E2EE

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) called out Meta for ending Instagram's optional end-to-end encryption feature for direct messaging. While Meta is blaming the lack of enough users, the feature on Instagram requires several steps to turn on. EFF argued that it's wrong to blame users and that such features should be enabled by default.

Why so dominating?

The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is after the Redmond giant this time over its dominance in the software market. It wants to figure out how Microsoft's market dominance affects business owners and whether it offers seamless integration with other platforms.

Meanwhile, the UK regulator Ofcom said two porn websites are being investigated for failing to comply with age check rules. It also fined an online suicide forum £950,000 for still being available to UK users without a VPN.

GitHub repos on your phone

Mobile devices are replacing traditional computers, and GitHub's latest move is a new example of this. Its latest update lets you initiate new projects directly from your Android and iOS devices. You'll get options for templates, visibility controls, and README setup directly from the app.

Spotify x Apple Podcasts

While you might see them as rival platforms, things are going to change soon. Spotify is baking a new integration in collaboration with Apple to bring video content to Apple Podcasts. With support for Apple's HLS video technology, creators will be able to upload video podcasts on Spotify and distribute the same content on Apple's platform.

This week in Google News

Catch up on some of the latest Google news updates that arrived throughout the week:

• Android Show I/O Edition: Google hosted a small livestream ahead of the I/O conference to unveil Gemini Intelligence for Android, the new Googlebook powered by a unified operating system, next-gen Android Auto upgrades, new features in Chrome, Noto 3D set of emojis, and a feature to stop doomscrolling.
• Free storage comes at a cost: Some users are only getting 5GB storage with a new Google account, and they'll have to supply their phone number to get the extra 10GB. While Google didn't confirm the change, it said that "testing a new storage policy for new accounts created in select regions."
• Creator features on Android 17: The operating system will get several creator-focused features, including Screen Reactions, a better Instagram experience, exclusive features in the Edits app, Advanced Professional Video format, and support for Adobe Premiere Pro.
• Oh! Snap: Google Search encountered issues this week, which prevented it from completing user requests. While its status page reported "no incidents," the Search page suggested it was an internal server error.
• Google Finance: The search giant's AI-powered Finance platform expanded across Europe alongside full local language support. Google is introducing upgraded visualization tools to help investors better interpret market activity.

This week in Apple News

Catch up on some of the latest Apple news updates that arrived throughout the week:

• Upgraded RCS: Apple finally announced that it's rolling out cross-platform end-to-end encrypted RCS messages for iPhone users running iOS 26.5 beta. It will work with supported carriers and Android users on the latest version of Google Messages.
• No Touch ID: If you're among the people waiting for a Touch ID on Apple Watch, it might not happen soon. A leaker claimed that Apple is prioritizing larger batteries and more advanced health sensors over biometric authentication.
• Legal Battle: OpenAI is reportedly considering legal action against Apple after its partnership to integrate ChatGPT into the iPhone fell short and failed to meet expectations. The AI firm reportedly claims that Apple's implementation of ChatGPT confused users and made features harder to use.
• Bluey crossover: Apple Arcade is getting a massive, limited Bluey crossover across five games, including Crossy Road Castle, stitch., puffies., Suika Game+, and Disney Coloring World+.

This week in AI news

Catch up on the latest artificial intelligence news updates that arrived throughout the week:

• AI is the new normal: Linus Torvalds declared that AI-fueled code surges on Linux are the new normal as he released Linux 7.1-rc3 with a heavy 33% focus on networking, and other features.
• Learn to code: On the other hand, RPCS3 banned autonomous AI agents from the project to combat low-quality submissions. The emulator's updated rules say that contributors should fully own and understand any code they submit.
• OpenAI creates new company: The ChatGPT-maker announced a standalone initiative (OpenAI Deployment Company) to boost enterprise AI adoption, with initial funding of $4 billion. It also introduced the Daybreak cybersecurity initiative to integrate AI-assisted defense directly into software development. Moreover, its Codex AI agent is now integrated directly into the ChatGPT mobile app for Android and iOS.
• Alexa for Shopping: If you're looking for an AI chatbot to help with shopping, Amazon combined the likes of Rufus and Alexa+ to create a new assistant called Alexa for Shopping, which is currently available in the US.
• MDASH: It's a new multi-model agentic security system from Microsoft to rival OpenAI's Daybreak and Anthropic's Mythos. It helped researchers find 16 new vulnerabilities across Windows networking and authentication components.

What happened at Microsoft this week

For those wondering what happened under the Redmond giant's roof this week: After much backlash, Microsoft Edge is fixing the way it handles your passwords; it's laying off 5% of LinkedIn employees, but it has nothing to do with AI adoption.

If you're having second thoughts about Microsoft Teams, Usama penned down a piece about the five things that are wrong with Microsoft Teams. You can check out Taras's freshly baked Microsoft Weekly roundup to catch up on all the interesting stories this week.

Forza Horizon 6

Forza Horizon's biggest open-world driving adventure yet is coming on May 19 (for standard buyers), featuring landscapes of Japan and over 550 real-world cars. Playground Games said you can preload the racing game on supported platforms, including Steam, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. However, Forza Horizon 6 saw an unfortunate leak ahead of the launch, allowing pirates to crack the game. The long-anticipated game Subnautica 2 saw a similar fate.

Forza Horizon 6 is supported on the latest drivers, including Intel's 32.0.101.8801 non-WHQL and NVIDIA driver 596.49. It's also available in early access since May 15, and you can check out our Forza Horizon 6 review to know what you should expect after years of waiting.

Leaked Xbox controller

A fresh leak sheds light on an unreleased wireless controller for Xbox that appears to be built for cloud gaming and portability. It looks as if someone used a hydraulic press on the standard Xbox controller to make it slimmer and compact. It was reported that the cloud-based controller will connect directly to Microsoft's gaming servers to reduce latency, and it still includes almost all the buttons and sticks we are used to seeing.

Speaking of Xbox, Discord Nitro is getting an official Xbox Game Pass integration for free through a new partnership between the two companies.

New way to make money

World-building has been an overlooked domain when it comes to AI model training; there is a lack of high-quality, reliable training data. Origin Lab wants to be the middleman between video game companies and labs building world models. It wants to sell digital game assets to labs by converting them into a format for training AI models. For example, it could be multiple hours of walkthrough footage or a render that can be understood and fed as input to an AI model.

What else in gaming?

The latest issue of Pulasthi's Weekend PC Game Deals curates several exciting games on sale this week. Epic Games Store mystery giveaway returned with a double freebie: Telltale Batman Shadows Edition and Sunderfolk. Xbox Free Play Days kicked off again with a chance to dive into Battlefield 6, Bassmaster Fishing, and JDM: Japanese Drift Master.

That said, here are some more stories from the gaming world:

• Valve shows off Steam Community Market overhaul, wants your feedback
• Minecraft Java Edition is getting peer-to-peer multiplayer support from Mojang
• Xbox Insiders can now try the new startup sequence, tiered Gamerscore badges, and more
• Say goodbye to monthly Arc Raiders updates, studio moves to a bi-annual schedule
• Grand Theft Auto VI pre-orders begin next week according to Best Buy leak
• Star Citizen Alpha 4.8 lands showing off a large-scale, multi-phase rescue mission

From the review corner

In one of our hottest reviews of the week, Steven got his hands on the refreshed GEEKOM A9 Max 2026 Edition AI mini PC, featuring an AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 470 processor, AMD Radeon 890M GPU, a combined 86 TOPS NPU, 32GB DDR5 SODIMM, Bluetooth 5.4, HDMI 2.1, USB 4.0, and other features.

The $1799 mini PC features a premium all-metal build, excellent AI performance, and runs cool. On the other hand, it doesn't have a Type-C port on the front, internal SSD and memory are not easy to access, and its single DDR5 module hampers the performance.

Cuktech 30 Ultra charger

If you're looking for a desktop charging station that can deliver up to 300W of output, check out Taras' review of the Cuktech 30 Ultra, priced at $159.99. It comes with a Type-A port and three Type-C ports, 300W DC out, a big stats display, and nine adapters for different laptops. However, its display could have been better; there are too many Cuktech logos, and no 240W USB output.

Luna Ring Gen 2

Smart rings are the new fashion, and we got to review the Luna Ring Gen 2. It's a beautiful titanium ring in premium packaging, with rich health data tracking and a good-looking charging case, and it doesn't use a subscription model. The $329 price tag is on the expensive side, it's easy to scratch, and the sticking-out sensors could be irritating.

Serafim S3 controller

For those looking for a gaming controller for their smartphone, Serafim S3 is a compact option with Hall Effect sticks and triggers. It features great tactile buttons, MFi-certified, a 3.5mm audio jack, and supports pass-through charging. However, there are no rear buttons, button mapping, and carrying case. The cherry on top of all the problems is an optional companion app that requires a $35/year subscription to offer almost nothing you can't get for free.

Apart from these, you can also check out our review of the OneOdio Studio Max 2 Wireless DJ headphones, which come with 45mm drivers and ultra-low latency. Another upcoming title in the gaming world is Far Far West, currently available in early access.

Have a great weekend!

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Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Monday 18 May 2026 at 7:43 am AEST (my time).

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