Matt Novak, Author at Gizmodo

Google Just Bought abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz.com

Google is now part of Alphabet, a parent company created to house all of the web giant’s diverse efforts. But unfortunately for Google, they couldn’t buy Alphabet.com, which was already taken. So they’ve done the next best thing. They bought the entire alphabet: abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz.com. Strangely enough, Alphabet.com is owned by BMW who, as the Financial…

Tech News Matt Novak Oct 9

9 Viral Images That Are Totally Fake

Some days it feels like everything on the internet is fake. And I’m here to tell you to trust that instinct. Would you believe that some of the internet’s fakery even comes from some of the world’s best news channels? You would? Then you’re way ahead of me. Today we have nine images you may…

Tech News Matt Novak Oct 8

The Pope’s Tablecloth Trick Was a Miracle! (of Modern Computer Graphics)

Step right up, ladies and gentlemen, for the fantastic feats of Chill Pope! Today, he’s showing off a classic: The old ‘yank a tablecloth, leaving everything else on the table undisturbed’ trick. It’s a miracle! Except that it’s totally fake. The video showing Pope Francis doing the second coolest thing you can ever do (the…

Tech News Matt Novak Oct 6

Will the World End on October 7th?

Chris McCann, the founder of the fringe Christian group eBible Fellowship, says the world is going to end on October 7, 2015. He confidently claims that the Earth will be completely “annihilated.” Could he be right? According to McCann, God “shut the door to heaven” on May 21, 2011. And ever since, He has just…

Tech News Matt Novak Oct 6

Pepsi Will Release a Limited Edition Back to the Future Bottle, Pepsi Perfect

People who grew up watching Back to the Future: Part II are still waiting on hoverboards, flying cars, and those self-lacing shoes. But there is one product that fans of the film will soon be able to buy: Pepsi Perfect. Yes, in the second movie of the trilogy, Marty McFly travels to the futuristic far-off…

Tech News Matt Novak Oct 5

Department of Defense Finally Requires Contractors To Report Major Cybersecurity Breaches

Today the Department of Defense announced that it will soon require all of its contractors to report any major cybersecurity breaches. And if your first question is, why in the hell didn’t they require that before?, that’s a great question. The move comes after a tough few months for US government officials and their data.…

Tech News Matt Novak Oct 2

Back to the Future Trilogy Will Stream Exclusively on Amazon Prime In October

Are you ready for October 21, 2015? That’s the date that Marty McFly arrives in the future — at least according to the second Back to the Future movie. But if you’re planning on watching the trilogy to celebrate, you’ll only have one streaming option: Amazon Prime. Starting October 1st, Amazon has the exclusive rights…

Tech News Matt Novak Sep 30

Remember EATR, the Military Robot That Was Supposed to Eat Humans?

“We completely understand the public’s concern about futuristic robots feeding on the human population, but that is not our mission,” Cyclone’s CEO Harry Schoell said in a press release in 2009. What could make the CEO of an alternative energy company issue such an insane statement? Well, Cyclone had a contract with DARPA for a…

Tech News Matt Novak Sep 29

Virgin Buries Time Capsule In Most Awkward Ceremony Ever

Virgin broke ground on a new hotel in New York on Friday and, as a courtesy to future generations, they buried a time capsule. That’s the capsule on the far left, and Richard Branson kissing the shoe of Melissa Hill from the U.S. Department of Commerce on the right. Why is Sir Richard Branson kissing…

Tech News Matt Novak Sep 28

Article from 1975: The World Will Be Out of Oil by 2015

The idea of peak oil has haunted us for decades. I say haunt because the concept that sooner or later we’d run out of the stuff has contributed to some terrible public policy in the United States. Environmentalists of the 20th century took solace in the fact that if we wouldn’t convert to renewable energy…

Tech News Matt Novak Sep 28

Report: The “Internet Room” In North Korea’s Airport Now Actually Has Internet

Back in August reports coming out of North Korea claimed that their new airport terminal had an “internet room” which, contrary to its name, didn’t have any actual connection to the internet. But that seems to have changed. NK News spotted this video from the Pyongyang Sunan airport: It’s notoriously difficult to get reliable news…

Tech News Matt Novak Sep 25

Enormous Time Capsule Opened, Sucks

Yesterday we told you about the John F. Kennedy Peace Capsule that was being dug up and opened in Michigan after 50 years of sitting in the ground. And just as we feared, everything inside was a wet mess. MLive has raw video of the time capsule opening from yesterday afternoon. And it’s not a…

Tech News Matt Novak Sep 25

Enormous Time Capsule Will Be Opened in Michigan Today, Will Probably Suck

A gigantic time capsule from 1965 is going to be opened this afternoon in Bay City, Michigan. And locals have been speculating about what could be inside. Will it be filled with old movie cameras and classic records? Priceless gems and bars of gold? Probably not. Frankly, the contents of most time capsules are pretty…

Tech News Matt Novak Sep 24

How the Vietnam War Brought High-Tech Border Surveillance to America

From 1968 until 1973, the US military spent about $1 billion a year on a new computer-powered initiative intended to end the war in Vietnam. It went by many names over the years — including Practice Nine, Muscle Shoals, Illinois City and Dye Marker. But today it’s most commonly known as Operation Igloo White. Despite…

Tech News Matt Novak Sep 24

Don’t Fall For The Facebook Dislike Button Scam

Take this survey and win a free iPad! Take this survey and win a never-ending pasta bowl! Take this survey and get Facebook’s Dislike button! Wait, what? Whenever a new product or service comes out, you can be certain that the scam artists will scurry out of the woodwork. One of their favorite tools are…

Social Media Matt Novak Sep 22

Volkswagen Ordered to Recall Half a Million Cars After It Cheated on Smog Checks

The Obama administration announced today that it was ordering Volkswagen to recall 482,000 cars sold between 2009 and 2015. The EPA alleges that the cars were designed to intentionally mislead smog emissions testing equipment, using special software installed in the cars. According to the EPA, almost half a million cars were equipped with a device…

Tech News Matt Novak Sep 18

Republican Candidates Holding Up Phones, Ranked

The phone is the political prop of the decade. Politicians hold them up during speeches to tell stories because it’s the ubiquitous little gadget that says, look, I’m just like you and I’m going to talk about Our Modern World™. Want to give a speech about tech innovation or the lack thereof in America? Hold…

Tech News Matt Novak Sep 16

Every Single Movie That Jimmy Carter Watched at the White House

What did Jimmy watch?

Tech News Matt Novak Sep 15

Cordcutters Rejoice! CNN’s Republican Debate on Wednesday Will Be Streaming Online

Remember the first Republican primary debate, co-hosted by Facebook? You couldn’t watch it online unless you had a cable subscription. Which made no sense at all! It was co-hosted by Facebook for Trump’s sake! But cordcutting fans of the political circus can now rejoice! Wednesday’s debate, hosted by CNN, will be available to anybody with…

Tech News Matt Novak Sep 15

Most Holidays Are Fake, and Here’s Why

Do you celebrate National Onion Rings Day? What about Be Kind to Animals Week? Do you know what you’re buying your significant other for Talk Like a Pirate Day? Time is running out! ThARRRRs just 9 shopping days left! It’s not just your imagination — there really are more unofficial holidays than ever before. And…

Tech News Matt Novak Sep 10

Matt Novak

Google Just Bought abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz.com

9 Viral Images That Are Totally Fake

The Pope’s Tablecloth Trick Was a Miracle! (of Modern Computer Graphics)

Will the World End on October 7th?

Pepsi Will Release a Limited Edition Back to the Future Bottle, Pepsi Perfect

Department of Defense Finally Requires Contractors To Report Major Cybersecurity Breaches

Back to the Future Trilogy Will Stream Exclusively on Amazon Prime In October

Remember EATR, the Military Robot That Was Supposed to Eat Humans?

Virgin Buries Time Capsule In Most Awkward Ceremony Ever

Article from 1975: The World Will Be Out of Oil by 2015

Report: The “Internet Room” In North Korea’s Airport Now Actually Has Internet

Enormous Time Capsule Opened, Sucks

Enormous Time Capsule Will Be Opened in Michigan Today, Will Probably Suck

How the Vietnam War Brought High-Tech Border Surveillance to America

Don’t Fall For The Facebook Dislike Button Scam

Volkswagen Ordered to Recall Half a Million Cars After It Cheated on Smog Checks

Republican Candidates Holding Up Phones, Ranked

Every Single Movie That Jimmy Carter Watched at the White House

Cordcutters Rejoice! CNN’s Republican Debate on Wednesday Will Be Streaming Online

Most Holidays Are Fake, and Here’s Why

Seagate NVMe SSD 2TB Hits Record Low, Making It the Cheapest and Smartest Way to Expand Xbox Storage

‘Dune: Part Three’ Begins Like a Sci-Fi ‘Saving Private Ryan’

First Statewide Data Center Ban Passed by Maine Legislature

FCC Exempts Netgear from Foreign-Made Router Ban for Some Reason

Jamie Dornan Is Your New Aragorn in ‘The Hunt for Gollum’

Trump’s Fed Pick Is Knee Deep in Tech and Crypto Investments

The First Trailer for ‘Godzilla Minus Zero’ Takes Terror Stateside

The Trump Phone Still Looks Like Total Trash

‘Masters of the Universe’ Really, Really Wants to Be the Next ‘Barbie’

Samsung’s Micro RGB TVs Provide So Much Color It May Be Too Much

Sony Inzone H6 Air Review: A Perfect Case for Open-Back Gaming Headsets

Anker’s EufyMake E1 Finally Brings Printers Out of the Dark Ages

The Soundboks Mix Is Going to Make You the Most Popular Guy at the Park

Asus Zenbook A16 Review: Start Considering Snapdragon on PC, for Real

Aqara Thermostat Hub W200 Review: Almost Better than My Ecobee

HP Omen Max 45L Review: 4K60 Gaming Has Never Been So Easy

Ecovacs Winbot W3 Omni Review: Window Cleaning Robots Have a Long Way to Go

AirPods Max 2 vs. Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen): Which ANC Headphones Win?

The Best Gadgets of March 2026

AirPods Max 2 Review: Still Ridiculously Expensive and Ridiculously Nice