Sofia Elizabella Wyciślik-Wilson

Google is starting to experiment with new ways of giving users more control over their video watching experience. This time around, it is the feed feature which is getting something of an overhaul.

The main aim of the new ‘Your custom feed’ feature is to gives user greater control over the video recommendations they see. Although this new approach is still powered by an algorithm, there is at least some scope for tailoring how it works and – by extension – the content it throws up.

Microsoft has acknowledged a serious issue with Windows 11 24H2 which it says can cause “multiple symptoms”. The problem has been around for a number of months now, and occurs when provisioning systems with cumulative updates released from July 2025.

The list of potential issues caused by the bug includes problems with File Explorer, the Setting apps, the Start menu, the Taskbar and more besides. While it is good that Microsoft has now confirmed that it is aware of the issues that have been affecting people for so long, the company is yet to come up with a proper fix – only a workaround.

The writing has been on the wall for some time, but Google Assistant’s days are not only officially numbered, but we have a far better idea of when the once-revolutionary digital assistant will be vanishing.

The seemingly unstoppable wave of artificial intelligence means that Google Gemini has been long seen as being far more significant and useful than Google Assistant. Having made some vague suggestions about Assistant being upgraded with Gemini at some point in the future, Google has now revealed a bit more detail about the timeline.

Revolut, the London-based fintech, has completed a fundraising process which values the company at $75 billion. The fundraising involved a share sale which saw NVentures, NVIDIA’s venture capital arm, investing in the company.

Employees of Revolut were able to sell their shares if they wished to do so, making this the fifth time Revolut has afforded them this opportunity. The valuation and fundraising come as we near the end of a year in which the fintech gained banking authorization in Mexico, earned its banking incorporation licence in Colombia, and prepare to launch in another key market – India.

The president of Google EMEA, Debbie Weinstein, has called on governments in Europe to do more to help promote the adoption of AI across industry. Speaking at the Europe Business Summit in Brussels, she said that she sees massive potential for artificial intelligence in Europe.

There are, however, problems. Weinstein points to issues such as companies in the regions still working with older technologies but, more pressingly, the restrictive nature of EU regulations.

Instagram users are in line for a better Reels experience thanks to a number of newly unveiled camera experiences. There is quite a lot to explore here, but perhaps the most significant change is the option of posting videos up to 20 minutes in length.

The word “creator” is bandied about quite liberally in Instagram’s announcement, giving you a good idea of where the new improvements are to be found right from the start. That said, the new features and options are not really limited to that esteemed breed: the digital creator.

There has been a phase of tech companies releasing diversity reports each year, giving overviews of workforce makeups. Now Microsoft is bucking the trend.

Although the company has not said as much, the move is likely a direct response to pressure from the Trump administration. The US president has scrapped large numbers of diversity, equality and inclusion programs across government, and strongly suggested that private companies follow suit.

Microsoft continues to release the same preview builds of Windows 11 to Insider on the Beta and Dev channels, and has just pushed out Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26220.7271. While the company focuses on the introduction of the Xbox full screen experience for PC – and this is certainly a big addition – it may not be the highlight for most people.

Certainly more useful is the arrival of the recently announced Point-in-time restore for Windows, and the expansion of the resume across devices feature. Also of note is a significant redesign of the context menu for improved efficiency.

If you are a seasoned user of WhatsApp, brace yourself for a blast from the past. The company has just announced that it is bringing back one of its earliest features in a new and improved form.

What is returning is the About feature, a simple text field that can be used to share information about yourself, your availability, or anything else you can think of. It is not entirely dissimilar to the Notes feature of Instagram.

Out of the blue, Google has announced a significant change to the Quick Share feature of Android. The company says that – on a limited number of devices – Quick Share can now be used to share files and photos from Android to iPhone thank to newly added compatibility with Apple’s AirDrop.

The strange and sudden interoperability comes as good news, but it is not clear how many Android devices will ultimately be able to take advantage of this change, or when. It is also not clear quite what prompted the move from Google, although the company has quite a lot to say about what is involved.

Spotify has announced that it has acquired WhoSampled, a service which reveals information about the origins of musical components.

The company will use data from the WhoSampled community to power a new SongDNA feature. Available to paying subscribers, the feature provides a wealth of information about tracks including the source of samples used within songs.

If you have been waiting for Microsoft to make Windows 11’s taskbar flyout calendar useful, there is not much longer to wait. At Ignite, the company has provided details of a significant change that is coming in December.

The calendar flyout that appears when clicking the taskbar clock is in line for an upgrade. Now, in addition to displaying a quick-view calendar, there will be an agenda view.

We have reached the time of year when ‘best of’ roundups become increasingly difficult to avoid. Not wanting to buck the trend, Apple has released its list of finalists for the 2025 App Store Awards.

The list is not just about apps, but also includes games. Apple says that the aim is to recognize developers’ “achievements in innovation, user experience, and cultural impact”.

Microsoft’s Ignite developer conference is underway, and the company has used this as a platform to announce new recovery options for Windows 11. This is something which is being pushed not as an evolution of recovery, but a reinvention.

Having already released Quick Machine Recovery a few months ago, Microsoft is now switching focus. With Intune remote recovery via WinRE, the company enables admins to not only see the Intune console when a managed PC has entered recovery, but also perform recovery actions.

It is that time once again – there is a new version of PowerToys to install. Microsoft has just unleashed PowerToys v0.96.0 as part of a release cycle that focuses on “new features, stability, optimization improvements, and automation”.

First things first: are there any new modules here? Sadly not. But while there may not be any brand new utilities to play with, PowerToys v0.96.0 does see a number of significant changes and additions to the tools you already know and love – including Command Palette and Advanced Paste.