This reading list is courtesy of Vivaldi browser, who pay me decent money to fight for a better web and don’t moan at me for reading all this stuff. We’ve just released a Vivaldi desktop snapshot, with a new onboarding step for people who have visual impairments, require keyboard-only access or use assistive technologies. Feedback would be most welcome.

• Link o’ the week: Request for developer feedback: focusgroup – “The focusgroup HTML attribute is a proposed declarative way to add keyboard arrow-key navigation to composite widgets such as toolbars, tablists, menus, listboxes, etc. without writing any roving-tabindex JavaScript. One attribute replaces hundreds of lines of boilerplate.” – This is exciting,so kudos to the Microsoft Edge team and the Open UI Group for their work on this. Darwin knows, I give Microsoft a lot of grief for their management’s antics, but I have a whole lotta love for their web platform team.
• The Enshittificator – a short Norwegian documentary about the life of an Enshittificator, and how the Internet and AI has enhanced his productivity.
• Claude is an Electron App because we’ve lost native – “API-wise, native apps lost to web apps a long time ago. Native APIs are terrible to use, and OS vendors use everything in their power to make you not want to develop native apps for their platform”. (Ignore the reference to everyone’s favourite way to target 100 Iranian schoolgirls for shredding.)
• They Hacked the CSS: Inside Chrome’s First Zero-Day of 2026 (CVE-2026–2441) – “For years, security researchers have joked about the complexity of the web stack, but the hyperbolic nightmare has become reality: The CSS has been compromised.”
• Historic Zuckerberg Testimony Exposes The Truth: Meta CEO Knew Kids Were Being Hurt and He Covered It Up
• How to stop Stalker Ads – from Open Rights Group, for civilians
• The Internet Isn’t Facebook: How Openness Changes Everything by Mark Nottingham
• DHS Orders Tech Giants to Unmask Anti-ICE Accounts – “Free speech advocates warn the subpoenas threaten long-standing protections for anonymous speech.”
• I Verified My LinkedIn Identity. Here’s What I Actually Handed Over. – basically, everything (to a server outside EU rules)
• US orders diplomats to fight data sovereignty initiatives – Reuters reports some twat named Rubio wants to interfere in other nation’s sovereignty.
• Leave big tech behind! How to replace Amazon, Google, X, Meta, Apple – and more – nothing you didn’t know here, but notable that this discourse is now in mainstream press
• Palantir Sues Swiss Magazine For Accurately Reporting That The Swiss Government Didn’t Want Palantir – “from the surveillance-streisand dept”
• Hackers Expose Age-Verification Software Powering Surveillance Web – “Three hacktivists tried to find a workaround to Discord’s age-verification software. Instead, they found its frontend exposed to the open internet”. Cool, cool.
• AI Added ‘Basically Zero’ to US Economic Growth Last Year, Goldman Sachs Says
• The Government Uses Targeted Advertising to Track Your Location. Here’s What We Need to Do. – just in case the link between surveillance capitalism and tradition jackbooted fascism wasn’t already clear
• Mike Little: the British co-founder of WordPress you’ve probably never heard of (but should)…
• The Big Tech Lobby Playbook: How Big Tech’s power has rewritten digital rules globally – in-depth reports.
• The world wants to ban children from social media, but there will be grave consequences for us all – “Age-verification systems require collecting sensitive data to support the biometric information. In no time, the internet will become a fully surveilled digital panopticon”

Hello Windows Insiders, today we are releasing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 28020.1685 to the Canary Channel. (KB 5079381)

What’s new in Canary Build 28020.1685

Changes and Improvements gradually being rolled out with toggle on*

[Storage]

• Improved reliability of removing Windows Update files / windows.old files via Settings > System > Storage.

[File Explorer]

• You can now use voice typing (Windows key plus H) when renaming files in File Explorer.

Reminders for Windows Insiders in the Canary Channel

• These builds can be unstable and may be released with limited documentation. Join Windows Insider – Get early access to Windows 11 features & updates

• Many features in the Canary Channel are rolled out using Control Feature Rollout technology, starting with a subset of Insiders and ramping up over time as we monitor feedback to see how they land before pushing them out to everyone in this channel.
• The desktop watermark shown at the lower right corner of the desktop is normal for Windows Insider pre-release builds.
• Some features may show up in the Dev and Beta Channels first before showing up in the Canary Channel.
• Some features in active development we preview with Windows Insiders may not be fully localized and localization will happen over time as features are finalized. As you see issues with localization in your language, please report those issues to us via Feedback Hub.
• To get off the Canary Channel, a clean install of Windows 11 will be required. As a reminder - Insiders can’t switch to a channel that is receiving builds with lower build numbers without doing a clean installation of Windows 11 due to technical setup requirements.

• Check out Flight Hub for a complete look at what build is in which Insider channel.

Thanks, Windows Insider Program Team

Hello Windows Insiders, today we are releasing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26220.7961 (KB 5079382) to the Beta Channel. Changes in Beta Channel builds and updates are documented in two buckets: new features, and improvements (including notable fixes) that are being gradually rolled out for Insiders who have turned on the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available (via Settings > Windows Update*) and then new features, and improvements (including notable fixes) rolling out to everyone in the Beta Channel. For more information, see the Reminders section at the bottom of this blog post.

New features gradually being rolled out with toggle on*

[Administrator Protection]

Administrator protection is being re-enabled and aims to protect free floating admin rights for administrator users, allowing them to still perform all admin functions with just-in-time admin privileges. This feature is OFF by default and can be enabled via OMA-URI in Intune or via group policy.

Changes and Improvements gradually being rolled out with toggle on*

[Sharing]

Based on feedback we’re making some refinements to drag tray, using a smaller peek view to reduce accidental invocation and make it easier to dismiss when interacting near the top of the screen.

[File Explorer]

• You can now use voice typing (Windows key plus H) when renaming files in File Explorer.
• Removed white flash when launching new File Explorer windows or tabs when File Explorer was set to open to This PC. Also removed white flashes when resizing elements of File Explorer.
• Improved reliability of unblocking files downloaded from the internet in order to preview them in File Explorer.

Reminders for Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel

• Updates are based on Windows 11, version 25H2 via an enablement package (Build 26220.7961).
• Many features are rolled out using Controlled Feature Rollout technology, starting with a subset of Insiders and ramping up over time as we monitor feedback to see how they land before pushing them out to everyone in this channel.
• The desktop watermark shown at the lower right corner of the desktop is normal for Windows Insider pre-release builds.
• For Windows Insiders who want to be the first to get features gradually rolled out to you, you can turn ON the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available via Settings > Windows Update*. Over time, we will increase the rollouts of features to everyone with the toggle turned on. Should you keep this toggle off, new features will gradually be rolled out to your PC over time once they are ready.
• Features and experiences included in these builds may never get released as we try out different concepts and get feedback. Features may change over time, be removed, or replaced and never get released beyond Windows Insiders. Some of these features and experiences could show up in future Windows releases when they’re ready.
• Some features in active development we preview with Windows Insiders may not be fully localized and localization will happen over time as features are finalized. As you see issues with localization in your language, please report those issues to us via Feedback Hub.
• Check out Flight Hub for a complete look at what build is in which Insider channel.

Thanks, Windows Insider Program Team

Hello Windows Insiders, today we are releasing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26300.7965 (KB 5079385) to the Dev Channel. Changes in Dev Channel builds and updates are documented in two buckets: new features, and improvements (including notable fixes) that are being gradually rolled out for Insiders who have turned on the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available (via Settings > Windows Update*) and then new features, and improvements (including notable fixes) rolling out to everyone in the Dev Channel. For more information, see the Reminders section at the bottom of this blog.

New features gradually being rolled out with toggle on*

[Administrator Protection]

Administrator protection is being re-enabled and aims to protect free floating admin rights for administrator users, allowing them to still perform all admin functions with just-in-time admin privileges. This feature is OFF by default and can be enabled via OMA-URI in Intune or via group policy.

Changes and Improvements gradually being rolled out with toggle on*

[Sharing]

Based on feedback we’re making some refinements to drag tray, using a smaller peek view to reduce accidental invocation and make it easier to dismiss when interacting near the top of the screen.

[File Explorer]

• You can now use voice typing (Windows key plus H) when renaming files in File Explorer.
• Removed white flash when launching new File Explorer windows or tabs when File Explorer was set to open to This PC. Also removed white flashes when resizing elements of File Explorer.
• Improved reliability of unblocking files downloaded from the internet in order to preview them in File Explorer.

Reminders for Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel

• Updates are based on Windows 11, version 25H2 via an enablement package (Build 26300.7965).
• Many features are rolled out using Controlled Feature Rollout technology, starting with a subset of Insiders and ramping up over time as we monitor feedback to see how they land before pushing them out to everyone in this channel.
• The desktop watermark shown at the lower right corner of the desktop is normal for Windows Insider pre-release builds.
• For Windows Insiders who want to be the first to get features gradually rolled out to you, you can turn ON the toggle to get the latest updates as they are available via Settings > Windows Update*. Over time, we will increase the rollouts of features to everyone with the toggle turned on. Should you keep this toggle off, new features will gradually be rolled out to your PC over time once they are ready.
• Features and experiences included in these builds may never get released as we try out different concepts and get feedback. Features may change over time, be removed, or replaced and never get released beyond Windows Insiders. Some of these features and experiences could show up in future Windows releases when they’re ready.
• Some features in active development we preview with Windows Insiders may not be fully localized and localization will happen over time as features are finalized. As you see issues with localization in your language, please report those issues to us via Feedback Hub.
• Check out Flight Hub for a complete look at what build is in which Insider channel.

Thanks, Windows Insider Program Team

Google is changing how developers distribute apps and collect payments on Android devices after settling with Epic Games that requires changes to Play Store policies. The company will reduce its long-standing commissions, introduce support for competing app stores through a certification program, and permit developers to use payment systems outside Google’s billing platform. The dispute that led to these changes began in August 2020 when Epic Games filed an antitrust lawsuit against Google over the structure of the Play Store. Epic, a North Carolina company known for the video game Fortnite, sought changes that would let alternative payment options compete… [Continue Reading]

OpenAI officially opened its new engineering office in downtown Bellevue, Wash., on Thursday, unveiling a retro-modern, wood-paneled space for its 250 employees in the region — with enough room in the tower to ultimately accommodate as many as 1,400 people.

It’s already the ChatGPT and Codex maker’s biggest office outside its San Francisco headquarters, and a sign of the AI industry’s impact on the Seattle area.

“This is a monumental day for OpenAI and Bellevue,” said Vijaye Raji, OpenAI’s CTO of applications, as he cut the ceremonial ribbon with Bellevue Mayor Mo Malakoutian.

The office puts OpenAI within close proximity of two of its biggest investors and partners: Microsoft in nearby Redmond and Amazon in Bellevue and Seattle. The opening comes less than a week after Amazon announced a $50 billion investment in the company.

It marks the latest milestone in OpenAI’s rapid expansion. The company first arrived in Bellevue in 2024, seeking to tap the region’s engineering talent pool. Last month, OpenAI scaled up, signing a lease to boost its footprint to nearly 300,000 square feet in City Center Plaza.

OpenAI currently occupies two floors with the ability to add 10 more as it grows.

The Bellevue office includes teams working on infrastructure, ChatGPT, research, and advertising, in addition to partnerships, an early sign of its expansion beyond engineering.

Statsig, the Bellevue startup Raji founded in 2021, forms the nucleus of the new office. OpenAI acquired the company for $1.1 billion last year, bringing Raji aboard as a key technical leader.

The space is built around a sweeping wood-clad central staircase connecting its two current floors, and lounge-like common areas designed for informal gatherings, including a library (yes, there are a few books) and a game room. Those were deliberate choices to encourage the kinds of connections that remote work can’t replicate, Raji said in an interview at the event.

Malakoutian, the Bellevue mayor, called the opening “a vote of confidence” in the city, which has specifically courted AI companies as part of a broader economic development push. 

In a recent interview with GeekWire, Malakoutian said companies are drawn to predictable permitting, modern infrastructure, and quality of life, offering a competitive edge in recruiting. A light rail line connecting the Eastside to Seattle across Lake Washington opens this month.

Elon Musk’s xAI is creating an engineering center a short walk away. Cloud and AI infrastructure company Crusoe opened a Bellevue office last year. Companies including Snap, Anduril, Shopify, Snowflake, Uber, and Databricks have signed new or expanded leases in the city.

Gov. Bob Ferguson, appearing via recorded video, noted that the region ranks among the top in the country for AI talent, saying it’s “very well-positioned to become a global hub for AI.”

Matt McIlwain, managing director at Madrona Venture Group, which was an early investor in Statsig, called the new office an example of a “virtuous cycle” of local founders building startups that attract larger employers. He credited Raji for pushing to build a critical mass for OpenAI in Bellevue, which has been “more on its front foot” than Seattle in courting tech companies.

But given ongoing tax debates in the state, in which McIlwain and others in the tech community have been vocal, he questioned whether lawmakers appreciate the dynamic.

“The folks in Olympia clearly do not understand that flywheel,” he said.

For Raji, the opening is the latest chapter in a larger story. The region has been his home for 23 years, starting when Microsoft recruited him to the area. He later joined Facebook’s Seattle office and helped it grow locally from a handful of employees to 5,000 as its regional leader. 

In that way, the OpenAI expansion is part of a familiar pattern.

“You can see the sequence,” Raji said, crediting the region’s talent pool and growth. “So it’s only natural that now, with all the AI investments, this area is again back in the center.”