Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge, Getty Images Thousands of delivery drivers who work for Amazon third-party contractors are now on strike, The New York Times reports. The workers are striking after “Amazon’s repeated refusal to follow the law and bargain with the thousands of Amazon workers who organized with the Teamsters,” according to a Teamsters press release. Workers are picketing at Amazon warehouses from Atlanta, New York City, San Francisco, Southern California, and Skokie, Ill., with other Amazon Teamsters “prepared to join them,” the Teamsters say. “Teamsters local unions are also putting up primary picket lines at hundreds of Amazon Fulfillment Centers nationwide.” The National Labor Relations Board issued a complaint against Amazon earlier this year, saying that Amazon and one of its third-party contractors are joint employers of delivery drivers and that it has “a legal duty to recognize and bargain with the Teamsters Union,” per another Teamsters press release. Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel shared the following statement with New York City’s WPIX and with The Verge: For more than a year now, the Teamsters have continued to intentionally mislead the public – claiming that they represent ‘thousands of Amazon employees and drivers’. They don’t, and this is another attempt to push a false narrative. The truth is that the Teamsters have actively threatened, intimidated, and attempted to coerce Amazon employees and third-party drivers to join them, which is illegal and is the subject of multiple pending unfair labor practice charges against the union. Amazon employees who have organized with the Teamsters voted last week to authorize a strike. Update, December 19th: Added that Amazon sent us a statement.

Image: The Verge In what seems to be a battle between Threads and Bluesky for the hearts and minds of ex-Twitterers, Threads has been adding some interesting new features. The latest is the ability to share photos and videos without including the original post — in other words, without quote posting. (There’s a similar feature in X for videos.) There has been some initial pushback on it. A photographer on Threads complained that “there will be a small watermark-like credit on the photo, but there won’t be a link back to your account.” Curious, I tried out the new feature, went to see if there was indeed no link back to the original post, and followed bryanhansel’s instructions for turning it off. Here’s what happened, and how you can use and adjust Threads’ new feature. (All of these instructions have been followed using the mobile app.) To share images alone Long-press on the image you want to share. A menu will pop up at the bottom of the screen. To share just the image, tap on Use media. The image will appear as a new thread, with space above it to add your own comment. Select Post when you’re ready. The new post will indeed have the image with only your comment and without the previous... Read the full story at The Verge.

Illustration: The Verge Google has introduced a new AI “reasoning” model capable of answering complex questions while also providing a rundown of its “thoughts,” as reported earlier by TechCrunch. The model, called Gemini 2.0 Flash Thinking, is still experimental and will likely compete with OpenAI’s o1 reasoning model. In a post on X, Google DeepMind chief scientist Jeff Dean says the model is “trained to use thoughts to strengthen its reasoning,” and also benefits from the speed that comes along with the faster Gemini Flash 2.0 model. The demo shared by Dean shows how Gemini 2.0 Flash Thinking goes about answering a physics problem by “thinking” through a series of steps before offering a solution. Want to see Gemini 2.0 Flash Thinking in action? Check out this demo where the model solves a physics problem and explains its reasoning. pic.twitter.com/Nl0hYj7ZFS— Jeff Dean (@JeffDean) December 19, 2024 This isn’t necessarily “reasoning” in the way humans perform it, but it means the machine breaks down instructions into smaller tasks that can produce stronger outcomes. Another example, posted by Google product lead Logan Kilpatrick, shows the model reasoning its way through a problem that involves both visual and textual elements. “This is just the first step in our reasoning journey,” Kilpatrick says. You can try out Gemini 2.0 Flash Thinking on Google’s AI Studio. There have been quite a few notable updates in the AI space as of late, with Google revealing its upgraded Gemini 2.0 model earlier this month as part of the company’s push into “agentic” AI. Meanwhile, OpenAI made the full version of its o1 reasoning model available to ChatGPT subscribers.

8BitDo’s new Mini Wired Xbox controller is smaller and lighter than its Ultimate C gamepad. | Image: 8BitDo 8BitDo has announced an alternate version of its Ultimate C wired Xbox controller that’s 20 percent smaller and 10 percent lighter while still featuring full-sized triggers, joysticks, and buttons. Although the new 8BitDo Ultimate Mini is designed for kids and teens, it will also appeal to any gamer with smaller hands who struggles with the size and weight of standard controllers. At 189.6 grams it’s lighter than the 287-gram Xbox Series S and X controllers (including batteries) and weighs less than half of “The Duke,” the 550-gram wired controllers the original Xbox shipped with. It’s available now in the US through Amazon for $34.99, as well as 8BitDo’s online store. Image: 8BitDo The joysticks and buttons on the Ultimate Mini are all closer to each other, but the same size as on a standard Xbox controller. The Ultimate Mini features the same layout as larger Xbox controllers but with action buttons, the directional pad, and its drift-resistant magnetic Hall effect joysticks all positioned closer together. There are also Hall effect triggers on the back, along with a pair of slightly smaller shoulder buttons. Image: 8BitDo A ring of LEDs surrounding each joystick offers different interactive lighting modes. It comes with a white, pink, or green translucent shell, which makes a ring of LEDs surrounding each joystick glow more prominently. Called the Fire Ring, there are different lighting modes that react to various button presses with flashes, cycle through different colors, or follow the direction each joystick is being pushed. The 8BitDo Ultimate Mini is compatible with the Xbox One, Xbox Series S and X, and PCs running Windows 10 or 11. There’s no wireless connectivity which helps keep the controller lightweight without batteries inside. But parents with kids who are prone to rage-quitting games and throwing their controllers may want to think twice about a gamepad that’s physically tethered to a console with no breakaway connector.

Image: Paramount Variety is reporting that Paramount Pictures is planning to extend the Sonic The Hedgehog trilogy by yet another movie. Sonic The Hedgehog 4 has been greenlit with a target release window of spring 2027. The news comes mere hours before Sonic The Hedgehog 3 releases in theaters on Friday December 19th. The movie once again stars Ben Schwartz as Sonic, Colleen O’Shaughnessey and Idris Elba as his friends Tails and Knuckles, with Jim Carey returning as their nemesis Dr. Ivo Robotnik. Sonic 3 will also feature the arrival of Keanu Reeves playing Sonic’s on-again off-again enemy-turned-friend Shadow The Hedgehog. With Sonic 3 anticipating tidy profits as North America prepares for the Christmas / New Year’s moviegoing season, developing a fourth movie makes sense. There are several rogue characters from the Sonic universe aiming for their silver screen debut. (See what I did there?) Neither Variety nor Paramount Pictures have confirmed any plot details or who might get their Sonic movie debut. We’ll probably get a hint though, in the post-credits for Sonic 3.