#35 The Weekend Download – Catching Up on What Matters
Essential insights you need to stay ahead
📩 Issue #35 – 18/10/2025
⚡ Quick Hits – What You Need to Know
📱 Instagram’s PG-13 Overhaul
After intense criticism over teen safety, Instagram is rolling out new restrictions to make its app experience more like a PG-13 movie — limiting access to sexualized and adult content.
Read More (NBC News)
🤖 California Regulates AI Companions
California becomes the first US state to set transparency and safety rules for AI “companion” chatbots — a new frontier in tech regulation.
Read More (TechCrunch)
🎙️ Netflix x Spotify: Video Podcasts Arrive
A new partnership brings Netflix video podcasts to Spotify, starting with sports and true-crime series.
Read More (Tubefilter)
🎵 Spotify’s ‘Responsible AI’ Push
Spotify is teaming up with major labels like Sony, Universal, and Warner to develop AI music tools that “put artists first.” The company says it aims to protect copyrights, though critics warn it could still hurt human creators’ revenue.
Read More (BBC)
🧠 ChatGPT Loosens Its Boundaries
Sam Altman says OpenAI will allow more mental health conversations — and even erotica — as part of a new openness push.
Read More (Forbes)
🔥 Top Insights
⚙️ The Best Inventions of 2025
From sustainable materials to AI breakthroughs, this year’s most inventive ideas reveal where the future is being built.
Read More (TIME)
📺 YouTube Redefines Prime Time
From sports to late-night comedy, YouTube is taking over TV’s cultural turf — and advertisers are following.
Read More (Hollywood Reporter)
📊 Movements to Watch
🚫 Most Americans Support Social Media Bans for Kids
A growing majority believes children should stay off social platforms entirely, reshaping how we think about digital childhood.
Read More (Visual Capitalist)
📚 Gen Alpha May Grow Up in Screen-Free Schools
More parents and educators are pushing for classrooms without screens — a reversal of two decades of edtech hype.
Read More (Morning Consult)
👖 Denim That Captures Carbon
Fashion designer Stella McCartney introduces denim embedded with tech that absorbs CO₂, VOCs and NOₓ — a bold step toward garments that actively clean the air.
Read More (Sustainability Mag)
💡 Something to Think About
🧬 The Pizzly Bears and Grue Jays of Tomorrow
Climate change is blurring species boundaries, giving rise to surprising new hybrids in nature.
Read More (Nautilus)
🦾 AI Learns to See Disability
After months of trying, former Paralympic swimmer Jess Smith finally got ChatGPT’s image generator to portray her accurately — as a woman with one arm. The update marks a quiet but significant step for inclusion in AI design.
Read More (BBC)
👩🎓 Pupils Fear AI Is Eroding Their Study Ability
A new study finds 62% of UK students believe AI tools are harming their learning — making schoolwork “too easy” and limiting creativity.
Read More (The Guardian)
🌀 Offbeat & Unexpected
💸 MrBeast Launches a Finance App
YouTube’s biggest star is expanding his empire with a financial platform aimed at his massive Gen Z audience.
Read More (Rolling Stone)
📷 When Face Recognition Doesn’t Know Your Face Is a Face
Facial-recognition systems are failing large numbers of people with facial differences — because their training data lacks diversity and understanding of what a “face” can be.
Read More (WIRED)
🌺 Scent That Makes Us Social
Ingredients giant DSM-Firmenich has unveiled a patent-pending “emotionally intelligent” fragrance called emotiOn™ that aims to boost real-world social connection through scent.
Read More (TrendWatching)
🖊️ The Pen That Gamifies Adult Learning
Japanese stationery company Kokuyo’s “Adult Motivation Pen” turns handwriting into a habit-building game, using a smart clip sensor and app to visualise progress and community.
Read More (TrendWatching)