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  • Iran Scammers Demand Bitcoin, USDT for Transit Through Strait of Hormuz: Report

    Iran Scammers Demand Bitcoin, USDT for Transit Through Strait of Hormuz: Report

    In brief

    • Scammers impersonating Iran are demanding payment in BTC or USDT from vessels stranded at Hormuz.
    • MARISKS believes at least one vessel fired at on Saturday had paid the fraudulent fee.
    • Experts warn any crypto transit payment carries sanctions liability, regardless of recipient.

    Scammers impersonating Iranian authorities are reportedly targeting shipping companies with fraudulent payment demands to be made through Bitcoin and Tether’s USDT stablecoin, promising safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz.

    Greek maritime risk firm MARISKS warned Monday via Reuters that unknown actors impersonating Iranian authorities had sent shipping companies messages demanding cryptocurrency payments for transit clearance in the passage, which has become a flashpoint in the ongoing conflict between Iran and the United States.

    “After providing the documents and assessing your eligibility by the Iranian Security Services, we will be able to determine the fee to be ⁠paid in cryptocurrency (BTC or USDT). Only then will your vessel be able to transit the strait unimpeded at the pre-agreed time,” the message from the unknown actors reads, as cited by MARISKS.

    MARISKS said it believes at least one vessel fired on by Iranian boats Saturday, while attempting to exit the strait during a brief reopening, had paid the fraudulent fee.

    Decrypt has reached out to the firm for comment and will update this article should they respond.

    No safe harbor

    The alert comes weeks after Iranian officials began requiring tolls for passage to be made in Bitcoin, to ensure the fees “can’t be traced or confiscated due to sanctions.”

    But whether Iran’s crypto toll system ever actually operated at scale remains disputed.

    Days into the state’s announcement, blockchain forensics firm TRM Labs told Decrypt that no on-chain data indicating crypto was being used for Hormuz transit fees have been seen.

    In this case, the lack of on-chain evidence has not made the threat any less real for stranded vessels.

    “Iran-linked actors have a well-documented history of using cryptocurrency to circumvent traditional financial controls,” Isabella Chase, head of policy for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa at TRM Labs, told Decrypt.

    Any wallet addresses associated with these demands “should be treated as high-risk until independently verified through blockchain intelligence,” she added.

    Even an unwitting payment to a sanctioned entity carries legal liability under OFAC regulations, and “crypto payments offer no safe harbour” from that exposure, Chase warned. Shipping companies should run blockchain intelligence checks on any wallet before transferring funds and consult sanctions experts before acting on any payment demand, she added.

    So far, tanker traffic through Hormuz remains below 5% of pre-war volumes after Iran reimposed restrictions on April 18, with Polymarket users placing roughly 28% odds on normal shipping resuming with the month. On prediction market Myriad, owned by Decrypt‘s parent company Dastan, users are more optimistic, putting a 64% chance on the average number of ships transiting the Strait above 15 before May.

    “Whether the recipient is genuinely Iranian or not, the intent to transact with a sanctioned regime is present,” Xue Yin Peh, head of investigative strategy and collection at on-chain intelligence firm Chainalysis, told Decrypt.

    If the payment reaches Iran, the exposure becomes “straightforward,” Peh explained, noting that any payment to an Iranian government entity or anyone acting on its behalf would likely constitute a sanctions violation under OFAC, EU, and UK rules.

    Paying a scammer instead of actual Iranian authorities does not automatically eliminate sanctions exposure, Peh said, adding that regulators could still scrutinize a company’s intent to pay what it believed was a sanctioned regime.

    “Beyond sanctions, the company remains a victim of fraud, and the funds may still end up with actors who are sanctioned, designated, or involved in other illicit activity, even if they are not part of the Iranian regime,” she added.

    With little public information on how Iran is actually administering crypto toll payments, Peh advised that standard anti-scam practices remain the strongest defense: verify demands through official channels, consult maritime security advisers, and treat urgent payment pressure as a red flag.

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  • ‘Southern Bastards’ Hulu Pilot Adds Jonathan Tucker, Amin Joseph, Ethan Suplee, Derek Luke, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor

    ‘Southern Bastards’ Hulu Pilot Adds Jonathan Tucker, Amin Joseph, Ethan Suplee, Derek Luke, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor

    The “Southern Bastards” pilot at Hulu is rounding out its cast with five new additions.

    Variety has learned that Jonathan Tucker (“Kingdom,” “Palm Trees and Power Lines”), Amin Joseph (“Snowfall,” “One of Them Days”), Ethan Suplee (“American History X,” “My Name Is Earl”) and Derek Luke (“Antwone Fisher,” “Friday Night Lights”) have all been cast in the pilot, with Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor (“King Richard,” “Justified: City Primeval”) set to guest star.

    The new additions will star alongside previously announced cast members Kevin Bacon as well as Erin Kellyman and Tim McGraw. Full character descriptions can be found below.

    “Southern Bastards” is based on the graphic novels of the same name. It was picked up to pilot at Hulu in October 2025. The official logline states that the show “follows a tenacious military vet (Kellyman) into Craw County, Alabama, in search of her estranged father (Bacon). What she finds is a murderous hornet’s nest of organized crime run by the winningest high school football coach in the South (McGraw).”

    Tucker is repped by Paradigm, Management 360, and Hansen, Jacobson, Teller. Joseph is repped by Entertainment 360, Gersh and Fox Rothschild. Suplee is repped by Paradigm, Nicole Garcia Management, and Hansen, Jacobson, Teller. Luke is repped by Gersh, LINK Entertainment and HillTop Entertainment. Ellis-Taylor is repped by CAA and TMT Entertainment Group.

    Bill Dubuque and Nia DaCosta share a co-story credit for “Southern Bastards,” with Dubuque writing the teleplay and executive producing. Matt Olmstead will serve as showrunner and executive producer. Reinaldo Marcus Green will direct and executive produce the pilot. Jason Aaron and Jason Latour, who created the graphic novels, will executive produce. Layne Eskridge of POV Entertainment also executive produces along with Ryan Coogler, Sev Ohanian, and Zinzi Coogler of Proximity Media and Green. Simone Harris of Proximity and Kate Berry of POV co-executive produce. Proximity Media’s creative executives Hannah Baker and D’Angelo Louis will also oversee the project. The series is produced in association with Fifth Season.

    Character Descriptions:

    Jonathan Tucker (“Esaw”) – Esaw Goings is muscled and linebacker lean. Vexed by undiagnosed CTE from his playing days. An Assistant Coach for Craw County High School’s football team, he’s also Coach Boss’s go-to enforcer— the “chief leg breaker” who does the dirty work that keeps Boss’s local empire afloat. Status-hungry and hot-headed, he’s ultimately an obedient foot soldier with absolute loyalty to Boss

    Amin Joseph (“Hardy”) – Hardy Whitworth is a former star football player whose blown knee kept him from fulfilling NFL dreams. He’s now the Sheriff of Craw County — though he mostly acts as a puppet playing the role that Coach Boss needs him to play. He’s capable of decency and has a professional and friendly demeanor — but he’s been morally corrupted by his willingness to cover up the violent crimes that occur under his watch. Hopes to one day recapture some version of his glory days

    Ethan Suplee (“Mater”) – Eugene “Materhead” Maples is a former offensive lineman. More of a sidekick than a mastermind, he is loyal to his fellow assistant football coach Esaw Goings, and also helps Esaw as an enforcer for Boss’s organized crime ring. He shows hints of a conscience, but for now he’s a true team player in this criminal enterprise

    Derek Luke (“Uncle Lou”) – Uncle Lou is sharp, charismatic, and singularly focused on monetizing his nephew and star football player Demetrius’ talent. A former tour manager with hustler instincts, he views football as both opportunity and business. Protective and pragmatic, he intends to control the money so his nephew can focus on the game, unfazed by Coach Boss’ stature.

    Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor (“Vernetta”) – Roberta’s assertive but worried mother. Indignant that the military would treat her daughter this way, she urges her to reach out to her father for help in her situation, unfazed by Roberta’s attempts to deflect. She succeeded in putting as much distance as she could between herself and Craw County, until her daughter’s journey of vengeance draws her back to her hometown.

  • The Hideaway Entertainment Options Johnathan Walton’s True-Crime Podcast ‘The Handyman of West Texas’

    Johnathan Walton Media has struck a deal with The Hideaway Entertainment to develop his latest true-crime podcast, “The Handyman of West Texas,” for the screen.

    Walton is a popular true-crime podcast host who began building his own media firm after he produced a successful podcast series about his own devastating encounter with a scam artist. “The Handyman of West Texas” tells the steamy story of a male sex worker in Midland, Texas who serves an upper-crust female clientele in the oil boom town. The six-episode podcast series bowed in January.

    “Mickey,” as the sex worker is described in the series, makes house calls posing as a handyman hired to do odd jobs at the homes of successful oil executives. The series also explores the impact of Mickey’s day job, which is doing the muscle work of natural gas extraction, or fracking. On his days off, Mickey claims to have been hired by “hundreds” of women for sexual encounters in Midland and environs in recent years.

    “The podcast speaks for itself — the global audience it has built isn’t passive. They’re hooked and craving more. They’re drawn to Mickey and the contradictions of this world, and we see an opportunity to expand his story into something unique, ambitious and tastefully experiential for viewers to enjoy,” Hideaway’s Ryan Cassells said.

    Walton is working on the adaptation with Hideaway’s Cassells, Jonathan Gray and Jean-Luc De Fanti. Cassells brought the project in to company. Walton and his producing partner Evan Goldstein will executive producer for Johnathan Walton Media. The collaborators have yet to determine whether the adaptation will aim for a feature film or a multi-episode series.

    Walton is a local TV journalist (who worked in Houston and San Antonio) turned reality TV producer turned podcaster. He’s eager to expand his wings as a storyteller.

    Walton’s professional life took an unexpected turn following the release of 2021’s “Queen of the Con” podcast. Since then Walton has been a prolific producer of high-profile audio series, including “The Quarterback and the Con Artist,” “The Athlete Whisperer,” “The California Girls,” “The Unreal Housewife” and more. Last year, Walton published the memoir “Anatomy of a Con Artist,” which also serves as how-to guide for spotting con artists and avoiding manipulation.

    “I’ve always had an unintentional knack for uncovering and befriending fascinating characters, be they con artists, cocaine kingpins or oil-fracking sex workers,” Walton said. “I have learned that things are seldom ever what they first appear to be. And that the most compelling and original stories are always hiding in between the lines. And I always seem to find them by being stubbornly curious and asking tons of uncomfortable questions.”

    Hideaway has “the past and pedigree to turn ‘The Handyman of West Texas’ podcast into a rich and meaningful cultural touchstone on screen. I can’t wait for the world to watch what we create together,” Walton added.

    The Hideaway is currently in post-production on feature “Alone at Dawn,” directed by Ron Howard, and starring Anne Hathaway and Adam Driver, for Amazon MGM Studios and Imagine Entertainment. Hideaway was represented by Eisner’s Christian Simonds in the deal with Johnathan Walton Media.

  • Eating Avocado and Mango Daily May Improve Blood Pressure in Prediabetes

    Mango and avocado salad on light blue tableShare on Pinterest
    A recent study suggests a daily avocado-mango combo may offer heart health benefits, such as lowering blood pressure. Nadine Greeff/Stocksy
    • Eating one avocado and 1 cup of mango daily may improve blood vessel function in as little as 8 weeks, according to new research.
    • The avocado-mango combo was linked to better flow-mediated dilation in both men and women, with lower diastolic blood pressure more pronounced in men.
    • Researchers say the benefits likely come from a mix of fiber, potassium, vitamin C, and heart-healthy fats.
    • Experts stress that overall diet quality matters most, and mango and avocado work best as part of a balanced eating pattern.

    Eating one avocado and 1 cup of mango daily may help improve heart health in as little as 8 weeks, according to a recent study.

    Researchers at the Illinois Institute of Technology found that adults with prediabetes who followed this combination experienced improved blood vessel function and reductions in diastolic blood pressure.

    Participants who followed the avocado and mango diet showed a notable improvement in flow-mediated dilation (FMD), a measure of blood vessel function. Their FMD rose to 6.7%, whereas it fell to 4.6% in the control group, indicating better vascular health in those consuming the fruit combination.

    Diastolic blood pressure also improved in males. Those in the control group experienced an average increase in central blood pressure of 5 mmHg, while men in the avocado and mango group saw a reduction of around 1.9 mmHg.

    The researchers acknowledged that the study was funded by the National Mango Board and the Hass Avocado Board, which is important to consider when interpreting the findings.

    Karen E. Todd, a registered dietitian nutritionist at The Supplement Dietitian, said that while the findings of the new study are promising, it doesn’t mean that a mango-avocado combination is a magic bullet. Todd wasn’t involved in the study.

    Rather, she said the research highlights how replacing lower-quality foods with nutrient-dense options can improve heart health markers over time.

    “The study fits with what we already know about diet quality and heart health. In this trial, adults with prediabetes who ate one avocado plus 1 cup of mango daily for 8 weeks had better flow-mediated dilation, a marker of blood vessel function, than the control group,” she told Healthline.

    “The intervention also increased intake of fruit, fiber, vitamin C, and monounsaturated fat, which are all consistent with a more heart-supportive eating pattern.”

    “Mango likely helps heart health through a combination of vitamin C, potassium, and fiber,” she said.

    “Vitamin C acts as an antioxidant and supports blood vessel integrity, potassium helps regulate blood pressure, and fiber supports cholesterol and blood sugar control. Together, these nutrients support both vascular function and overall cardiometabolic health.”

    Todd said the biggest heart-health advantage of avocados is their unsaturated fat profile, especially monounsaturated fats, along with fiber and potassium.

    “The added fiber and potassium further support heart health through cholesterol management and blood pressure regulation.”

    Of course, the study looked at the heart health benefits of eating these two foods together, not each food on its own.

    “Nutritionally, they complement each other well,” Todd said.

    “Mango provides vitamin C and carbohydrates, while avocado contributes healthy fats and fiber. Together, they create a more balanced, satisfying option that may support heart health more effectively than either food alone, particularly when they replace processed foods,” she explained.

    A significant finding of this study is that participants who added one avocado and 1 cup of mango to their daily diet showed measurable improvements in blood vessel function, along with reductions in diastolic blood pressure.

    Brett A. Sealove, MD, chair of cardiology at Hackensack Meridian Jersey Shore University Medical Center, and associate professor and vice chair of cardiology, Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine, said the new study warrants “serious consideration,” but noted some limitations. Sealove wasn’t involved in the research.

    “The sample size was relatively small, with 82 participants enrolled and 68 completing the protocol. And the study duration was only 8 weeks, which is brief given that vascular and metabolic remodeling typically occurs over several months,” he told Healthline.

    “The study was also partially controlled, as participants prepared some of their own meals, introducing variability.”

    Additionally, Sealove noted that the diastolic blood pressure benefit was observed primarily in males, limiting generalizability.

    The findings of the present study are promising and offer a somewhat simple strategy to support heart health.

    However, moderation is key, given that avocados are high in calories and fat, even though it’s “good” fat, and mangos are higher in natural sugars.

    “For most people, a practical intake would be about one-third to one-half of an avocado and half to 1 cup of mango, several times per week,” Todd said.

    “Whole fruit sugars are generally not a concern in moderate portions because they come with fiber, but avocado is calorie-dense, so portion awareness matters.

    “Overconsumption of either food can contribute excess calories, which may work against weight and metabolic goals,” Todd added.

    There are simple, practical ways to include mango and avocado as part of a heart-healthy, balanced diet.

    Todd said these nutritious foods can be incorporated into meals or eaten together as a snack.

    “Mangos and avocados work well in yogurt bowls with seeds, in salads with leafy greens and legumes, or as a topping for fish, like salmon,” she said.

    “Pairing them with foods like whole grains, nuts, seeds, beans, and other fruits and vegetables helps reinforce an overall heart-healthy eating pattern, which is where the biggest benefits come from,” she continued.

    If you’re looking for quick, no-fuss options, try blending mango and avocado with spinach and a source of protein, like Greek yogurt or protein powder.

    You could also mash avocado onto wholegrain toast and top it with fresh mango salsa for a balance of fiber, healthy fats, and natural sweetness.

    The key is to think of mango and avocado as versatile ingredients that can elevate everyday meals while supporting overall diet quality.

    Consistently building meals around whole, minimally processed foods is what makes the biggest difference for long-term heart health.

  • Oppo announces the Find X9 Ultra with a 50MP 10x optical zoom telephoto camera

    Elbowing for attention alongside Vivo and Xiaomi, Oppo has finally launched its long-teased “ultra” version of its flagship smartphone. The Find X9 Ultra is another camera-first smartphone from Oppo, with an even more impressive spec sheet and a new array of accessories. We’re not even halfway through 2026 and we’ve been spoiled with choices, whether it’s the Galaxy S26 Ultra, the Xiaomi 17 Ultra (with or without Leica livery) or Vivo’s X300 Ultra.

    The Find X9 Pro was already a powerful, capable camera phone. So, what’s changed with the Ultra? We’ve had the base device for over a week, but we’re waiting on the upgraded telephoto converter kit to land before we tackle a more in-depth review.

    There are several design changes, starting with the two color options. Canyon Orange looks similar to Oppo’s recent flagship phones, with a subtle etched finish meant to replicate the Grand Canyon. Meanwhile, Hasselblad fans might prefer the other option: a woodland-themed Tundra Umber, inspired by the camera maker’s X2D. Oppo says this colorway channels “Scandinavian minimalism and the raw elegance of glaciers.” Together at last.

    Oppo Find X9 Ultra

    Image by Mat Smith for Engadget

    Perhaps due to all the camera hardware, it’s a big, thick phone with the camera unit protruding noticeably from the back. The camera array on the Ultra now has a subtle hexagonal design, apparently a nod to camera history — and that Hasselblad partnership. That area has a circular, metal frame, like many of Oppo’s rivals. The edges of the camera unit are knurled, which helps you to grip the device when taking photos. Unlike Xiaomi’s recent Ultra phone, the ring doesn’t act as a zoom control, but Oppo and Hasselblad’s “Earth Explorer Kit” for the Find X9 Ultra adds a very understated camera grip with a zoom lever.

    Putting last year’s Find X9 Pro next to the X9 Ultra, the Ultra model looks more modern, more advanced and more powerful. And it is. The Ultra has Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip, a notable step up from the MediaTek Dimensity 9500 chip found on last year’s Find 9 Pro.

    There’s also a 7,050mAh silicon-carbon battery that supports 100W SUPERVOOC charging. Oppo says it has included the “industry’s first” encapsulated thermal unit to keep temperatures under control when pushing the device hard, such as recording high-resolution video for extended periods. The display screams expensive Android flagship, too. The 6.82-inch 144Hz display can reach up to 3,600 nits of peak HDR brightness and drop to 1 nit in low-lit situations.

    Oppo Find X9 Ultra

    Image by Mat Smith for Engadget

    It’s all about the cameras, however. The Find X9 Ultra’s main camera is a 200-megapixel sensor. At 1/1.12 inches, Oppo says it’s the largest 200MP sensor in a phone yet. It has a low f/1.5 aperture, too. This was my ‘main’ camera when I first started taking the X9 Ultra out to shoot sample photos. After all, bigger sensors mean more detail, and more ability to crop for tighter zoomed shots. With a mixture of streetlights, neon signs and more, I was impressed by the color accuracy. Oppo has embedded a new True Color Camera into the Find X9 Ultra’s camera module, which works across stills and video. Still, if you’re demanding punchy, high-contrast images, there’s an array of Hasselblad filters and effects for playing with, too.

    Sample images from Oppo Find X9 Ultra

    Image by Mat Smith for Engadget

    There’s also a 3x Telephoto camera, with another (different!) 200MP sensor and f/2.2 aperture. This is the camera that the new teleconverter lens attaches to. There’s something appealing about having an instant 3x zoom camera, even though it gets a little lost among the cropped focal-length equivalents in the camera app. In fact, Oppo claims that the Find X9 Ultra offers the equivalent of eight focal lengths. Sadly, I noticed some differences in color temperature and light sensitivity as the Find X9 Ultra hopped between all those camera sensors while I tested different zoom levels.

    Sample images from Oppo Find X9 Ultra

    Images by Mat Smith for Engadget

    The next camera is another telephoto, with an impressive 10x zoom with a 50 megapixel sensor. We’ve seen 10x zoom on phones before, like the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, but never at such high resolution. Oppo added support for its Portrait mode here, even at full zoom. You can also crop in for a 20x zoom, but the results didn’t blow me away in early testing. At 10x zoom, though, I was impressed. That’s a lot of zoom before even thinking about attaching a teleconverter.

    Oppo isn’t going quite as hard on video as its rival (and distant corporate relative) Vivo, but the Find X9 Ultra can capture 4K 60 fps video with Dolby Vision. It’s also the first Oppo smartphone capable of recording 8K video at 30 fps. For those looking to dig into video detail, Oppo has launched a new log profile, O-Log2. The company says this will help reveal greater shadow detail and reduce image smearing — it’s something else I’m itching to try once the teleconverter lands.

    Sample images from Oppo Find X9 Ultra

    Images by Mat Smith for Engadget

    Like Vivo’s X300 Ultra, Oppo’s newest phone is certified for the Academy Color Encoding System (ACES), so videographers can integrate its footage into professional workflows. You can also load third-party LUTs (look-up tables) directly onto the device to monitor custom color grades in real time and see how they look in the on-device preview.

    As is often the case with Chinese phone makers, there’s a lavish accessory kit to build on the smartphone’s shooting talents. Oppo’s Hasselblad Explorer case adds a two-stage focus button and the aforementioned zoom controls. The case has the same muted black and clay colors as the Tundra Umber edition of the Find X9 Ultra. Then there’s the new Hasselblad 300mm Explorer Teleconverter. The magnification ratio of the teleconverter has been increased from 3.28x on Find X9 Pro to around 4.3x on the Find X9 Ultra. The lens mounts directly onto the 200-megapixel 3x telephoto lens, upgrading it to a heady 13x optical zoom.

    Oppo Find X9 Ultra

    Image by Mat Smith for Engadget

    This is also the biggest smartphone telephoto lens yet, dwarfing both the Find X9 Pro’s add-on and Vivo’s not-petite 400mm teleconverter. The companies chose different combinations of camera sensors and lenses, making spec sheet comparisons a little trickier, but Oppo’s latest accessory is certainly the largest thus far. I can’t wait to see how the Find X9 Ultra’s photos fare against images from the Vivo X300 Ultra, though. In the Find X9 Ultra’s favor, it has an iPhone 17 Pro-like touch-sensitive button for quickly launching the camera, something I missed on Vivo’s new flagship.

    Unfortunately, there is no cross-compatibility among previous Oppo teleconverters and phones. The company says this is to ensure optimal image quality, but it’ll disappoint faithful Oppo fans hoping to carry over the expensive camera accessories from previous years. The company has learned some lessons from the Find X9 Pro, with a new telephoto adapter that can be left mounted on the phone without obscuring the other camera lenses.

    On first impression, the Find X9 Ultra is shaping up to be another powerful camera phone, with another hard-to-actually-buy caveat. The Find X9 Ultra will arrive in parts of Asia and Europe. In the UK, it’s set to launch on May 8th, priced at £1,449 (roughly $1,959). While there’s no US release planned, we’ll update this story when we hear more details on the global launch. Once the telephoto add-on arrives, I’m excited to put it through its paces. I’ve got its rival from Vivo too, so it’s time for the battle of the teleconverters.

  • Silo’s season 3 trailer takes us back to how it all began

    The relatively long wait for the third season of Silo is nearly over. Apple TV just announced the dystopian sci-fi hit returns on July 3, with episodes airing each Friday until September 4. We have long championed this show, calling it “another gem” for the platform.

    The streamer has dropped a short teaser for the upcoming season and it confirms rumors of an increased focus on the “before times” via a storyline that was introduced in the finale of season two. The trailer depicts scenes from both time periods, as protagonist Juliette, played by Rebecca Ferguson, speaks in voiceover.

    “Before we can know why we’re here. Before we can know everything is as it is. Before we know how it all will end, we need to understand how it all began,” she says, alluding to the creation of the various bunkers littered throughout the post-apocalyptic wasteland.

    For the uninitiated, Silo is an adaptation of Hugh Howey’s Wool series of books. It’s primarily set in the titular silo, a society of around 10,000 people living deep underground. The show is sort of like Fallout, but without the radioactive monsters and nihilistic sense of humor.

    Silo stars Ferguson, along with Tim Robbins, Common and Steve Zahn. Cast members joining the show for season three include Colin Hanks, Jessica Henwick and Ashley Zukerman. The show has already been renewed for a fourth and final season.

    This is a busy summer for sci-fi on Apple TV. The second season of Dark Matter premieres on August 28, which is uncharted territory as the first season was based on a book that doesn’t have a sequel. Star City, a spinoff of For All Mankind, premieres on May 29. This is the same day that For All Mankind concludes its fifth and penultimate season.

  • Bitcoin regains $76K as Coinbase-driven demand sustains recovery

    Bitcoin regains $76K as Coinbase-driven demand sustains recovery

  • Revolut targets a $200 billion IPO just months after its $75 billion share sale

    Revolut targets a $200 billion IPO just months after its $75 billion share sale

    British crypto-friendly fintech firm Revolut notified investors that it was targeting a valuation of up ​to $200 billion in its stock market listing, the ‌Financial Times reported on Tuesday.

    Europe’s largest fintech firm recently said ⁠it would not seek a listing before 2028 ​and that it had not laid out any formal ​valuation targets, following a share sale in November last year which valued the company at $75 billion.

    Revolut had ​discussed a potential valuation of $150 billion to $200 billion in ‌ ⁠a future initial public offering (IPO) with investors, according to the FT’s report, citing sources familiar with the matter.

    Media reports have also said that Revolut, which received a full U.K. banking license in March, is preparing for a secondary share sale in ​the second half ​of 2026, ⁠with expectations of a $100 billion valuation post sale.

    Co-founder Nik Storonsky said in December that his ​stake ⁠would be worth about $80 billion in the company if it reached a $200 billion valuation.

    In 2025, Revolut’s pre-tax profit ⁠surged ​57% to 1.7 billion pounds ($2.3 ​billion), a smaller gain than the previous year’s nearly 150% increase.

    In March, Revolut also applied for a banking licence with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), which, if approved, would allow the London-based fintech to operate more like a traditional bank in the world’s largest economy.

    While Revolut is targeting a record-breaking IPO, a source close to fintech said no formal valuation has yet been decided, according to FT.

    Revolut did not immediately respond to a CoinDesk request for confirmation.

  • Large lizard found napping between pallets of bar fridges

    Large lizard found napping between pallets of bar fridges

    Odd News // 3 weeks ago

    Maryland woman wins $50,000 lottery prize on her birthday

    March 25 (UPI) — A Maryland woman celebrated her birthday by purchasing a Fast Play High Roller Jackpot lottery ticket that earned her a $50,000 prize.

  • Alex Cooper’s Workplace Is (Reportedly) Unwell

    Alex Cooper’s Workplace Is (Reportedly) Unwell

    Call Her Daddy host Alex Cooper is facing another bad headline. 

    According to a new report in Bloomberg, there’s been employee turnover and uneasiness amongst the staff at Trending, a company which encompasses Cooper’s Unwell Network of podcasts as well as ACE Entertainment, the production company started by Cooper’s husband Matt Kaplan. 

    Per the report, staff have threatened to quit or walk off the job due to Kaplan allegedly yelling and berating crew and staff members. In one example, at Cooper’s Unwell Winter Games, a YouTube program in which influencers faced off against each other in physical activities and drinking games, Bloomberg wrote that Kaplan “berated the staff,” resulting in a number of formal complaints. 

    Cooper did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

    The report comes on the heels of an alleged feud between Cooper and Alix Earle, host of Hot Mess, one of the first podcasts to join the Unwell Network in 2023. Earle’s podcast left the network in February 2025, raising speculation about a feud between the two creators.

    The parting of ways was initially not addressed, but in an interview with the Wall Street Journal around that time, Earle said the departure was “behind the scenes, a little bit of a hot mess.”

    More recently, Earle reposted a video criticizing Cooper’s business sense and interviewing of subjects in times of vulnerability. 

    In an April 13 TikTok, Cooper responded saying she was “tired of waking up” and seeing Earle spreading “fake drama.” 

    “Hey girl, the passive aggressive reposts and the likes and the commenting on things — I’ve got to call you out here,” Cooper said in the video. “You’re going to need to get specific and just say what you’ve got to say about me. There’s no NDA. No one is stopping you. Stop hiding behind other people and just say it yourself.”

    Earle then responded on social media, “Okay on it!!”

    Cooper’s podcast, Call Her Daddy, was the fourth most popular podcast in the world in 2025, according to Spotify’s year-end list. She struck a $125 million multiyear deal in 2024 to bring her podcast and the network to SiriusXM from Spotify.