Rocket Report: SpaceX completes launch triple-header; Rocket Lab nets big contract

Artificial Intelligence

Excerpt: The opening of an article from Ars Technica. Read the original for the full story.

Ars Technica •
Stephen Clark
• October 2, 2026

This week, SpaceX celebrated the first orbital launch of its new Starship rocket. I’m not sure many people, at least those outside of SpaceX, expected it to take 14 flights of Starship before it technically reached low-Earth orbit, but Monday morning’s launch finally added that to SpaceX’s list of accomplishments with its new super-heavy rocket.

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The 7-year-old Nvidia Shield TV is now $100 more expensive due to AI

Artificial Intelligence

Excerpt: The opening of an article from Ars Technica. Read the original for the full story.

Ars Technica •
Ryan Whitwam
• October 2, 2026

The era of generative AI has upended technology supply chains, and there is one ironclad rule in 2026: If it has memory or storage, it’s getting more expensive. Even devices with years-old tech inside are still apparently subject to that unwritten rule. Nvidia has just announced that the Shield TV Pro is getting $100 more expensive, effective immediately.

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Cybertruck sales in free fall as Tesla reports mediocre sales for Q3

Artificial Intelligence

Excerpt: The opening of an article from Ars Technica. Read the original for the full story.

Ars Technica •
Jonathan M. Gitlin
• October 2, 2026

Tesla sold 486,532 electric vehicles during the third quarter of 2026. That’s a 2.1 percent decrease on the same quarter in 2025, when the company found homes for 497,099 EVs, and one might think that would be bad news for a company valued on the premise of near-constant growth.

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How I kept cool with NYC’s free battery program for window AC units

Artificial Intelligence

Excerpt: The opening of an article from Ars Technica. Read the original for the full story.

Ars Technica •
Jeremy Hsu
• October 2, 2026

My family has spent four summers participating in demand response programs whereby utility companies pay customers to reduce energy use on the hottest summer days. Most summers have involved carefully precooling our New York City apartment before switching off the air conditioners and sweating it out during the designated demand response periods.

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The 2008 economic crisis changed the US’s relationship with energy

Artificial Intelligence

Excerpt: The opening of an article from Ars Technica. Read the original for the full story.

Ars Technica •
John Timmer
• October 2, 2026

One argument that often comes up about climate change is that fossil fuels are good because they powered economic growth that has left most people better off overall. And, to an extent, that has been true, but it’s also an extremely limited perspective.

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Lyft settles landmark driver misclassification lawsuit for $272.5M

Artificial Intelligence

Excerpt: The opening of an article from Ars Technica. Read the original for the full story.

Ars Technica •
Cyrus Farivar
• October 2, 2026

California’s attorney general and three city attorneys announced a $272.5 million settlement with Lyft after allegations that the company “committed wage theft by misclassifying drivers as independent contractors rather than employees” between 2016 and 2020, according to a Thursday statement .

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Patient-zero drill put health facilities to the test—40% of them failed

Artificial Intelligence

Excerpt: The opening of an article from Ars Technica. Read the original for the full story.

Ars Technica •
Beth Mole
• October 2, 2026

COVID-19 made the weaknesses in our pandemic preparedness at national and global levels painfully clear. But a new study highlights that even at the first, local steps of an outbreak with pandemic-potential, we are worryingly underprepared.

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