Technology

A bellwether trial opens in Los Angeles County after a 19-year-old plaintiff alleges Meta, TikTok and YouTube products contributed to her depression and suicidal thoughts. Mark Zuckerberg is expected to testify and Snap has settled the case.

A three-hour hands-on demo ahead of the February 27 release showed two distinct playstyles: action-oriented sequences with Leon and slower, survival-focused segments with Grace.

Paris men's Fashion Week closed with a focus on long coats, reworked tailoring and construction meant to extend a garment's life, highlighted by shows from Hermès, Sacai, Junya Watanabe and others.

A Nexus Mods release called "Witcher Online," created by modder rejuvenate7, adds multiplayer and social features to The Witcher 3 and is free to download.

Authorities say Ryan Wedding was taken into custody after about a decade as a fugitive, in a probe that investigators link to international drug trafficking and the killing of an FBI cooperating witness; several alleged associates have been arrested or face extradition.

Guelph Liberal MP Dominique O'Rourke said she will pause posting on X and removed constituent photos after reports that the platform's Grok tool was used to create sexualized deepfake images without consent; Canada's privacy commissioner is expanding an investigation into X Corp.

Nintendo has a new Talking Flower desktop toy modeled on a Super Mario Wonder character that speaks short quips, randomly announces the time, and supports multiple language settings.

Inya AI provides a no-code platform that lets organizations configure and deploy agentic generative AI through a visual interface, targeting use cases such as customer support, sales engagement, and multilingual communication.

Paris Hilton told lawmakers she was abused after a private intimate video was shared without her consent and endorsed the DEFIANCE Act to strengthen legal protections for survivors of AI-generated explicit deepfakes.

Senator Ed Markey urged Congress to investigate ByteDance’s newly finalized plan to place TikTok U.S. data and operations into a majority American‑owned joint venture, saying key details and whether the app’s algorithm is free of Chinese influence remain unclear; ByteDance says the venture will secure U.S. user data but has disclosed few specifics.

Archaeologists on the Indonesian island of Muna have found hand-stencil paintings initially dated to about 67,800 years old; the images include elongated fingers and come from a cave used as a gallery with later paintings up to about 35,000 years younger.

Hootsuite has pursued social-media monitoring work with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, including a US$95,000 pilot, and federal officials in Ottawa have drafted plans to ban social media for children under 14 as part of an online harms bill.

A long-term Canadian study finds fin, minke and humpback whales in the Gulf of St. Lawrence show increased signals of eating forage fish after a decline in Arctic krill; researchers analyzed tissue isotopes collected over 28 summers.

TikTok agreed to form a majority American-owned joint venture under the TikTok U.S. Data Security (USDS) organization, with ByteDance retaining a 19.9% minority stake while U.S. investors hold larger shares.

British Columbia-based General Fusion announced a planned transaction with Spring Valley Acquisition Corp. III to go public on Nasdaq; the article says the deal is expected to close in mid-2026 and would value the company at about US$1 billion.

Seneca Polytechnic signed a new multi-year commitment with Microsoft to introduce AI advancements for learning and to give students and employees early access to Microsoft's AI innovations, including continued work with Microsoft Foundry (formerly Azure AI Platform).

On December 18, 2025, NASA and The Aerospace Corporation launched four DiskSats on a Rocket Lab Electron rocket; all four were deployed and are communicating, confirming the thin, disk-shaped design functions in space.

The visualization ranks countries by electric vehicles per public charger using Benchmark Mineral Intelligence data as of Q3 2025, with the Netherlands leading at about five EVs per public charger.

Helen Peters died on Jan. 8 at age 83; she was a longtime academic and cultural supporter in Newfoundland and Labrador, known for editing The Plays of Codco and serving on arts boards.

TransLink and the City of Vancouver will adjust about a dozen No. 19 bus stop locations starting Feb. 2, 2026, and plan expanded curbside bus lanes and intersection restrictions later in 2026 to improve bus speed and reliability.

HONOR announced the Watch GS 5, a 44mm smartwatch with a sudden cardiac arrest screening feature that tracks trends over time and a battery life reported as up to 23 days depending on settings.

Queensland police said the body of a 19-year-old Canadian, identified as Piper James, was found on K'gari and had been in contact with a pack of dingoes; a post‑mortem is expected as investigators continue their inquiry.

Environment and Climate Change Canada issued a snowfall warning for Waterloo region and northern Wellington County with up to 20 cm expected Wednesday, and the alert says wind and lake-effect snow could make travel challenging.

Niagara Regional Police say the man charged in the 2024 Smithville homicide now faces multiple child‑exploitation and sexual‑offence counts; he remains in custody and is awaiting trial.

Some creators, including Olivia Yokubonis, post gentle interruptions that prompt viewers to pause or close apps, and researchers report that many people who say they are "addicted" often do not meet symptom-based criteria.

Steam has released MaSzyna, a long-running Polish train simulator now available for free on Steam and Epic Games; the project has been in development for over two decades and holds positive user reviews on Steam.

Queensland police say a 19-year-old Canadian woman was found dead on K'gari (Fraser Island) and her body was reported as being surrounded by a pack of dingoes; a crime scene has been established and investigations are ongoing.

An 87-year-old Toronto resident nearly lost $3,000 to a convincing 'bank investigation' phone scam, and federal data show seniors accounted for nearly 40% of money lost to fraud in Canada in 2024.

Steam added six free-to-keep indie games to its Featured page the week of January 19, 2026; the list includes Heartopia, A Song of Sunlight, EmuDevz, War of Dots, Giant Snake Girl Wants The Burger!, and Party Party Anxiety.

EverWorker offers a no-code platform for configurable agentic AI agents that connect to existing data sources while respecting governance, and the company positions deployments as incremental and clearly scoped.