Software engineers love building new features but are spending more time on other things


A new survey of 1,200 software engineers and technology leaders finds that only 33 percent of engineers strongly agree that they spend the majority of their time on work that energizes them. They spend just 16 percent of their week building features, despite 93 percent saying it’s the most rewarding part of their jobs
The study from Chainguard looks at how friction from repetitive maintenance, fragmented tools, and burnout continues to weigh heavily on the developer experience, while also revealing how AI and automation ease workloads to give software engineers more time for meaningful work.
Qualcomm is acquiring Arduino to help speed up developer access to AI


Chipmaker Qualcomm has announced that it is acquiring Arduino. Best known for its Arduino boards, the Italian firm is getting a new owner for an undisclosed sum of money.
Qualcomm says that its own products will be combined with Arduino’s ecosystem, and has announced the launch of the new Arduino UNO Q, powered by the Qualcomm Dragonwing platform. This is being promoted as a joining of forces, as well as a way of speeding up developers’ access to key technologies.
Microsoft and Valve issue warning to gamers about Unity vulnerability


Both Microsoft and Valve have issued warnings about flaws in the Unity engine that could expose gamers to attack. A new version of Steam has been released to plug the security hole as well.
Tracked as CVE-2025-59489, the Unity Gaming Engine Editor vulnerability has a severity rating of 8.4. The nature of Unity is such that the flaw affects multiple platforms – Windows, Linux, macOS and Android. There is good news for some, however; Xbox consoles, Xbox Cloud Gaming, iOS and HoloLens all remain unaffected.
More than half of developers think AI codes better than humans


A survey of 800 senior developers has 75 percent of respondents saying they expect AI to significantly transform the industry within the next five years. What’s more 53 percent say they believe large language models can already code better than most humans.
The survey, from Clutch, reveals that AI has already become a daily tool for many software teams. 49 percent of senior developers and team leads say they use AI tools every day. Another 29 percent use them most days, meaning 78 percent rely on AI regularly.
Microsoft releases PowerToys v0.93.0 with a fresh new look


It is time for a new PowerToys update, and with the release of version 0.93.0 of the utility suite, Microsoft delivers a lot.
As well as fixing bugs and making improvements to a number of the modules, PowerToys v0.93.0 features a new dashboard UX. There are no new modules this time around but there are some impressive performance improvements.
Foxit streamlines PDF document workflows with new developer tools


Developers building browser-based PDF applications have traditionally faced challenges related to performance bottlenecks, limited form handling, cumbersome signing workflows, and inconsistent cross-browser experiences.
PDF software specialist Foxit is aiming to change that with the launch of a new SDK for Web v11, which with its WebAssembly-powered rendering engine, modular architecture, and deeply refactored core components, eliminates many of the long-standing problems.
iOS 26 beta 4 includes warning-laden Apple Intelligence news summaries


Apple has released the latest beta versions of its operating systems to developers – iOS 26, iPadOS 26, and macOS 26. Among the changes are the return of Apple Intelligence news summaries which was the subject of controversy several months ago.
With the first public (non-developer) beta versions expected to land in the next week or so, these developer previews give us a very good idea of what to expect. As such, the appearance of Apple Intelligence news summaries and tweaks to Liquid Glass are very much in line with what we’d expect at this stage.
Google launches Android Canary channel for beta testing early builds


Just as it did some years ago for its Chrome browser, Google has announced a new Canary channel for Android. Aimed at developers, the idea behind Android Canary is to provide early access to not only new features but also APIs.
Beta testing software is an exciting way to get to try out the latest features of a products faster, and it gives companies a way to try out new ideas and get feedback. While the availability of a new testing channel for Android is good news for many, there is something of a caveat.
How digital DNA can identify developers from their code [Q&A]


Recent high-profile attacks have placed increased emphasis on the software supply chain and the need to understand where code has originated.
A developer's coding style is as unique as their fingerprint and, thanks to artificial intelligence, it’s possible to identify an author based on a short code segment. Felix Mächtle, a researcher at the University of Lübeck and member of the AI Grid research network, has developed a tool that does just that. We spoke to him to learn more.
Microsoft super-charges Windows Update so it can keep all of your apps up to date


Microsoft has launched a preview version of the Windows Update orchestration platform. This is an update to Windows Update itself which opens it up for use by third-party developers.
This means that Windows Update could soon be able to update not only Windows, but also drivers, and third-party apps. So broad is the scope of what Microsoft is working on that it feels as though Windows Update will soon be a misnomer, and a rebranding may be in order.
Major changes are coming to the Microsoft Store -- including the ability to update Win32 apps


Using an app store to keep installed apps up to date is something that the likes of Apple’s App Store and Google Play brought to the mainstream, and it eventually moved to the desktop. Until now, the Microsoft Store has been limited in its capabilities, but Microsoft has announced some huge changes.
Perhaps the biggest change is support for updating Win32 apps directly in Microsoft Store, which is something users have been asking for for some time. But there are other changes too, including zero onboarding fees for developers, and an expanded set of Health Report insights.
Microsoft launches Edit, its new open-source command line text editor


Microsoft Build is usually about cutting edge development, but sometimes there are nods to the past. And this is precisely what is happening with the company’s new text editor.
Named -- uninspiringly -- Edit, this text editor is not only open-source, but it is a command line tool. While clearly not something that will be of interest to the majority of Windows 11 users, it is something that has strong developer appeal.
Docker introduces Hardened Images to boost supply chain security


Security of the enterprise software supply chain isn't solved with buzz or branding. It is solved with trust, scale, and seamless integration into real developer workflows.
To meet everyday software supply chain challenges Docker is launching Docker Hardened Images (DHI), a curated catalog of security-hardened, enterprise-grade container images.
Developers get more confident in security but are still spending too much time on it


New research shows increasing confidence among developers at large organizations with regards to knowledge gained from security training, but they are still spending a considerable amount of time on security-related tasks.
The study from Checkmarx looks at the current practices of development teams in large enterprises as they work toward more mature states of development, security and operations (DevSecOps).
You will soon be able to run Linux Terminal on your Android phone


While it is widely known that Android is based on Linux, it is not a typical Linux distro in many ways. There are a lot of standard features and components of Linux that are simply not available in Google’s mobile operating system.
This is starting to change. Developers -- or, indeed, anyone looking to tinker around a little -- will soon be able to use the Linux Terminal, opening up new and interesting worlds of possibility.
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