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Sam Altman’s ‘human verification’ company thinks its eye-scanning orbs could solve ticket scalping

,Among them, is a new tool called Concert Kit that could help bands and artists fight back against ticket scalping bots.

The new feature relies on the revamped World ID, the orb-based verification system that scans users eyeballs and faces to create a “proof of human” signature that lives on users’ mobile devices. “It’s basically like a little human passport for the internet that lets you prove on apps and websites that you are a real and unique human without revealing anything about yourself,” Tools for Humanity Chief Product Officer Tiago Sada tells Engadget.

Now, as more apps and services are starting to support World ID, that “human passport” can unlock some new abilities. Coupled with Concert Kit, it allows artists to designate a specific pool of tickets for “verified” humans only. The concept is a bit like how pre-sales currently work, with artists (or their teams) setting aside a specific number of tickets for people who have set up a World ID. Those folks can then use their World ID to get ticket codes for Ticketmaster, Eventbrite, AXS or other major ticketing platforms.

Because World ID is limited to actual, “verified,” humans the system won’t be susceptible to the same tactics that have enabled bots to ruin the ticket-buying process for so many, Tools for Humanity says. Artists are also in control of what level of verification they want to require from their fans. (The new World ID app will also allow people to set up an account with a selfie check if they don’t have ready access to an orb.)

Just how much of a dent Concert Kit will be able to make in the massive scalping bot problem that plagues the concert industry is less clear. So far, Bruno Mars is slated to use the solution on his upcoming world tour — no word on just how many of his tickets will be reserved for World ID-verified humans, though — and Concert Kit is available to other artists starting today.

Concert Kit is one of several new integrations and updates to World ID that Tools for Humanity announced at an event in San Francisco Friday. Tinder, which earlier this year started testing World ID as an age verification solution in Japan, will be rolling out support worldwide. In the US, Tinder’s integration won’t be for age verification, though. Instead, it will indicate whether there is an actual “verified” human behind a given profile.

Tinder profiles that verify with World ID will get a badge as an extra signal of authenticity. (Tools for Humanity)

On the enterprise side, Zoom and DocuSign are also adding support for World ID to help businesses verify that there is an actual person (and not a deepfake or bot) joining their video calls or signing important documents. Tools for Humanity is also introducing a standalone app for World ID that separates its identity verification tools from its existing crypto wallet app.

The updates are Tools for Humanity’s latest attempt to make their orb-based verification system, which has been widely mocked, more mainstream and perhaps a little less dystopian. (Elsewhere, orbs have begun appearing in some new places like a San Francisco Gap.)

On their part, Tools for Humanity seems aware that a lot of people aren’t ready to scan their faces at a bunch of orbs controlled by Altman just to “prove” they are humans. I asked Sada, Tools for Humanity’s Chief Product Officer, what he would say to people who think that the company is solving for the wrong problem: that really it should be up to ticketing platforms and dating apps and other services to strengthen their security and bot-fighting tools, rather than rely on their users to “prove” their humanness.

He said it was a “completely understandable question” and compared it to some people’s initial discomfort with things like Apple’s TouchID or FaceID. “Not everyone has to do it upfront, and that’s important,” he said. “It’s optional. If you want to have a World ID, you get access to that enhanced experience.”

April 17, 2026
Analyst Says “Onchain Data is Giving a Signal!”, Warns About XRP!

Bitcoin (BTC) surged above $77,000 following news from the US-Iran front. While the price subsequently fell back to around $76,000, one analyst suggests a significant rise in $XRP is possible.

Darkfost, a CryptoQuant analyst, stated that the funding rate for $XRP is negative.

The analyst noted that the funding rate for $XRP perpetual futures on Binance has remained consistently negative this year, indicating an extreme bearish trend.

This indicates that $XRP investors on Binance are gradually shifting towards a general bearish sentiment and are now approaching a market-wide consensus.

The analyst also noted that the $XRP correction is currently around -60%, with investors continuing to position themselves for further declines rather than expecting a recovery.

“Historically, these kinds of extreme emotional dynamics haven’t always been well-timed signals for following consensus.”

He recalled that after a similar situation was last observed, $XRP triggered a strong upward momentum, rising from approximately $1.6 to $3.6, showing an increase of about 127%.

However, the analyst noted that the overall market environment remains challenging, especially for altcoins, and therefore caution should be exercised in position strategies.

*This is not investment advice.

April 17, 2026
HOT MOMENTS: Bitcoin Soars Following Donald Trump’s Comments

A critical development regarding the Strait of Hormuz has occurred within the ongoing negotiations between the US and Iran.

According to reports in the US press, the Iranian government announced that the Strait of Hormuz will remain “fully open” to all commercial vessels during the ceasefire. This step is considered an important signal regarding the security of global energy and trade flows.

US President Donald Trump announced that Iran had pledged not to close the waterway again. However, Trump emphasized that the US naval blockade in the region would continue until a comprehensive agreement is reached. The Washington administration appears inclined to maintain military and strategic pressure while awaiting a final agreement.

Related News Analysis Company Claims “Bullish Signs” May Have Begun to Emerge in an Altcoin That Has Been Stagnant for a Long Time

While progress has been reported in negotiations between the parties, there are hopes that an agreement could be reached by the end of the week. However, disagreements on critical issues are said to persist. It is claimed that the US is considering releasing approximately $20 billion worth of Iranian assets as part of the negotiations, while the Trump administration maintains that they plan to take over Iran’s enriched uranium and that “no money transfers will take place” in this process.

Meanwhile, on the Lebanese front, another aspect of the tension in the region, the 10-day ceasefire is reportedly being largely maintained. Israel has stated it will not withdraw from southern Lebanon, while Iranian-backed Hezbollah has indicated it will only abide by the ceasefire if Israeli attacks cease completely. This delicate balance in Lebanon remains a crucial bargaining chip in the comprehensive peace talks with Iran.

Following these developments, the price of Bitcoin experienced a significant increase.

A chart showing the recent rise in BTC price.

*This is not investment advice.

April 17, 2026
N.C. woman’s family tradition inspires $1.2 million lottery win

April 17, 2026
Meet a Hollywood Advocate for Animal Welfare

Days removed from a 10-song Coachella DJ set that may have earned him a new audience, Moby revealed on April 16 that he was donating all profits from the festival gig to animal rights organizations, including non-profit Mercy For Animals. The move was in keeping with the artist’s longstanding advocacy, his vegan lifestyle may be the one thing that people know about him aside from singles like “Porcelain” and “Natural Blues.”

For Mercy for Animals it was another PR win as the organization, which has long had close ties to Hollywood through its star-studded galas, cultivates industry talent to marshal for its causes. That includes promoting undercover videos showing the perils of factory farming, sometimes with narrators or amplifiers like Joaquin Phoenix, Alicia Silverstone, Pamela Anderson and Woody Harrelson.

The manager who deals with stars, their publicists and activists at the group is Nik Tyler, who has spent nearly a decade with the org building ties between the entertainment industry and connecting artists to its campaigns. He spoke with The Hollywood Reporter about how that process works.

How did you get involved with this type of advocacy?

I started working as a child actor when I was six and went on to work on Broadway and in TV as a kid, and I grew up in New York. So I was around the entertainment industry and grew up on sets, and was very involved as an actor. Then I took a hiatus from acting, and went to NYU for film school, and I was studying to be a filmmaker and I decided to return to acting after college, and I moved out to Los Angeles for a pilot season.

It was at that time that I was introduced to someone out there who had just written a New York Times bestselling book about these issues of factory farming and plant-based living, and the impact on the environment and people and animals. I was really inspired by the concept of people being able to be artists in the entertainment industry, and then to also use their platform to shine a spotlight onto these issues that were important to them.

What sort of projects do you work on with talent at the non-profit?

I’m constantly looking for opportunities to engage and connect multiple people for the cause and the movement and unify public figures to raise awareness about the issues that we champion. Moby, Diane Warren, Tom Scholz, these are people that are deeply connected to our work and have been ambassadors for the organization, have been involved in our PSAs and our video work. A big part of our work is undercover investigations, it’s what put us onto the map, undercover investigations into factory farming.

The undercover investigators are not activists, but there are celebrity ambassadors that will be a part of an undercover investigation in terms of sharing the footage. So in the past, people like Pamela Anderson and Joaquin Phoenix, they’ve narrated videos. We’ve had a lot of celebrities that will lend their name and their voice and their time to sharing that critical footage, which is very intense footage to reveal, but there are some really incredible actors and public figures who are ardent activists, it’s so close to their heart. They are very happy to shine their spotlight onto the hidden atrocities within factory farming.

What are the areas the non-profit focuses on?

The core areas of work that we focus on is reducing suffering. So that’s work that we’ll do with governments and leaders in the food industry, to be more mindful to incorporate animal welfare policies and to diminish the suffering of farm animals. A big focus of ours is addressing cage confinement and inspiring and educating regarding plant-based food options, whether that’s in restaurants or in your shopping cart.

Do you see Hollywood support trend toward or away depending on the political environment?

I feel like the public figures that support us and have throughout the 26-year lifespan of the organization, they are so authentically passionate about it. They care so deeply about speaking up for animals, about speaking up for injustice against not just animals, but also factory farm workers. It’s so inherent to who they are, that I don’t think they’re ever deterred from sharing that information in an openhearted way.

You’re also producing short films for Mercy for Animals as a series.

The Voices of Hope series originated in 2024 when I reached out to partner with Jane Goodall’s Institute and to create Voices of Hope: Words of Wisdom by Jane Goodall, which is a short film crafted from decades of Jane Goodall’s public statements. I brought in 22 public figures to co-narrate as an ensemble her words of wisdom.

The second film, Voices of Hope: Words of Wisdom by Marlon Brando, which was in partnership with Marlon Brando’s trustees, was honoring his legacy of activism, his groundbreaking advocacy for social justice and environmentalism, and his affinity for animals. Similarly to Jane Goodall’s film, it also brought 22 public figures to co-narrate. Then this year for what would have been Ram Dass’ 95th birthday it completed the trilogy, with a short film honoring his legacy of spiritual wisdom and his compassionate heart.

When you’re looking to partner with a celebrity, what is the typical ask?

For me, talent involvement is about building relationships and inviting people into the community. Inviting public figures to the cause is something I do constantly — whether they’re attending a live or a virtual event as a guest or participating in a program like being a presenter at a gala or a music festival, or we’re honoring them at the gala with an award for their advocacy — I’m always looking for opportunities to invite everyone to participate at whatever stage of their advocacy journey they’re on.

They don’t need to be an ardent animal rights activist. They don’t need to be vegan or vegetarian. They just need to care about causes — whether it’s humanitarianism, environmental, children’s welfare, women’s welfare — when someone shows interest in advocacy and using their voice and platform for the greater good, I’m paying attention to that.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

April 17, 2026
Why Sundance Winner ‘Ricky’ Is Self-Distributing: “We Refuse for You Not to See It”

“Sometimes you’ve got to be bold about it,” Sheryl Lee Ralph says. The Emmy winner is among the first to log onto a Zoom conversation about her new film Ricky, and before all have even arrived, nicely sums up their movie’s journey of defying expectations.

Coming from first-time feature director Rashad Frett with a producing team including Sterling Brim, also making his film debut, Ricky premiered 16 months ago at Sundance to wide acclaim and won the festival competition’s directing prize. The drama, intricately focused on a 30-year-old man’s reintegration into society after being incarcerated since his teens, featured powerhouse performances from Ralph and If Beale Street Could Talk alum Stephan James. But in a challenged and changing indie film landscape, distributors didn’t bite as hoped — and the opportunity to get creative presented itself.

Bold, indeed.

With facilitation by Blue Harbor Entertainment, Ricky is being self-distributed, with filmmakers still holding the rights as they gear up for an April 24 theatrical release. A Kickstarter campaign also helped drive its targeted focus. “We wanted to make sure that people who are actually affected by recidivism and the imprisonment system could see this film,” Brim says. “I wanted to make sure that people in Chicago, people in Detroit and any of the big cities that you think about that have Black and brown people and marginalized groups could see this film.”

Sheryl Lee Ralph in Ricky.

Frett says he “grew up in the environment” of Ricky, absorbing many of the narratives and situations depicted in the film from when he was young. He’d been focused on documentaries before making an initial short of the same name. The film is marked by its verisimilitude: Frett maintains a rigorous focus on the realities of life after incarceration, the script hitting at times painfully realistic beats while the filmmaking embraces the chaos of life as it happens.

“I wanted to make this film as visceral and as real as possible, so I was telling my cinematographer, ‘Find the shots, find the frame,’” Frett says. “We were on the headset and I’m constantly in his ear: ‘Just follow the movement.’”

James, who plays the eponymous role, adds, “It felt like a film that was made with intention, with purpose. Every frame of that film was calculated…. You’re dealing with a 15-year-old boy entering adulthood for the first time [at 30]. As a character study, it was just so fascinating.” He spent extensive time with teenagers to observe the way they move through and process the world. “I had to get into the psychology of a 15-year-old boy,” he says. This is essentially where we meet Ricky no matter his literal age: “I took real pride in understanding the full picture.”

Ralph portrays Ricky’s parole officer Joanne, and was drawn to working with James as well as the story itself. “We don’t see a lot of stories about successful young Black men, marginalized young men coming out and having the life that they’ve dreamed of,” she says. “This script spoke so well about so many things that these young men face coming out of the system, and how they get involved in the system to begin with.”

The film’s success at Sundance did not yield much commercial interest — a larger issue for last year’s competition among American narrative features, many of which took around a year to find distribution. (Grand Jury Prize winner Atropia was acquired in October, 10 months after the festival.) “We navigated it as best as possible with the type of film this is,” Frett says.

“We’re trying to be creative with this industry changing and finding out new ways to get quality independent films out there — and being a young producer, you don’t want to watch anything that you make die,” Brim adds. “For these people involved, I just knew we had to make sure this lived and that it could live amongst the people that it needed to live amongst.”

So that’s exactly what the Ricky filmmakers started doing. Various screenings have taken place over the past year aimed at direct community engagement. Ralph attended one at the men’s prison San Quentin Rehabilitation Center that included a Q&A, and remains deeply moved by the memory of it.

“We were in a room with men who were very much like the character in the movie — some of them had aged up, but they had still been that character; some of them were that character right at that moment,” Ralph says. “There were moments when the movie was screening, you could hear a pin drop…. Their response was so, ‘Whoa.’ And there were moments in the film where they started talking back to the film…. It was a moment to be a human being with other human beings trying to figure out what the next step would be, even if they were in their 20s and they wouldn’t be out for another 50 years. I’ve never experienced anything like that.”

“People are going to see this film and say, ‘Wow, I’m seeing myself in a way I’ve never seen myself,’” James says. “‘People are looking at me, I’m being seen.’ That’s really the greatest testament in being able to make a film like this.”

There will be a learning curve as the theatrical launch looms for this group of artists, all embarking on this kind of independent release for the first time. Frett teaches directing at Brooklyn College and admits even the promotional aspects of Ricky have been a little daunting. Brim came into Ricky following his longtime stint as a cohost of the comedy clip show Ridiculousness, and with his fellow producers has not taken the easy — or safe — rollout path. But no one involved seems to be second-guessing the choice, no matter how new it all feels. In their eyes, this was the right, even obvious move; they barely feel the need to explain it.

Leave it to Ralph, though, to do just that.

“The offers didn’t come — or they were late to come, or slow to come — and people didn’t know if they wanted to touch this subject. That happens so often when it’s an independent film that has something to say about people who so often get marginalized — whether they’re in prison, out of prison — just because of who and what they are,” Ralph says. “So it is bold to say, ‘You know what? If you’re not going to open up the door for me here, I think enough about the work that I have created to go out and say we’re going to do it ourselves. We’re four-walling this thing ourselves because we refuse for you not to see it.’”

April 17, 2026
Starting 5: SoFi Play-In Tournament finales await
Down by 13 in the 4th, Steph Curry’s flurry propels the Warriors to a Play-In win, setting up a duel with Phoenix for the 8th seed.

Hornets. Magic. Warriors. Suns. Two spots – everything on the line.

In tonight’s SoFi Play-In Tournament finales, it’s win-or-go-home for the Playoffs’ No. 8 seeds.
- 7:30 ET, Prime: Charlotte at Orlando
- 10 ET, Prime: Golden State at Phoenix
It’s elimination basketball, in a Play-In that’s already setting records for tight finishes. Buckle up.

5 STORIES IN TODAY’S EDITION 🏀

Play-In Spectacular: A wild first four games sets up two decisive finales tonight

Warriors at Suns: Can the Dubs channel greatness again, or will the Suns secure the West’s No. 8 seed?

Hornets at Magic: Charlotte surges into Orlando to decide the East’s No. 8 seed

Saturday Look-Ahead: First impressions of the four Game 1’s tipping off the 2026 Playoffs

NBA Mailbag: Jamal Crawford provides a player’s perspective on postseason ball

BUT FIRST … ⏰

The SoFi NBA Play-In Tournament concludes tonight on Prime with two elimination games for the final two Playoff spots. In the East, the Magic host the Hornets (7:30 ET | Tap To Watch). In the West, the Warriors visit the Suns (10 ET | Tap To Watch).

The NBA Playoffs start Saturday with four First Round Game 1s across Prime & ABC, before four more Sunday across ABC & NBC/Peacock:
- 1 ET, Prime: No. 5 Raptors at No. 4 Cavaliers (East)
- 3:30 ET, Prime: No. 6 Wolves at No. 3 Nuggets (West)
- 6 ET, Prime: No. 6 Hawks at No. 3 Knicks (East)
- 8:30 ET, ABC: No. 5 Rockets at No. 4 Lakers (West)
Powell’s Kia MVP Ladder: Get a first look at Shaun Powell’s final Kia MVP Ladder of the season.

Cade, Luka Eligible: The NBA & NBPA announced that both players are qualified for 2025-26 awards under the CBA’s extraordinary circumstances provision

1. PLAY-IN SPECTACULAR & WHAT’S AT STAKE TONIGHT

LaMelo Ball’s OT winner. Deni Avdija’s go-ahead and-one. Tyrese Maxey’s takeover. And Steph Curry’s banger 3 – capping an electric Warriors rally.

Four games in, the 2026 SoFi NBA Play-In Tournament has produced four can’t-miss finishes, including a few instant classics.

The Play-In has a history of delivering drama, with 16 of its 35 games decided by less than six points or going to overtime.

But this year, it’s hit a whole new level.
- Photo Finishes: This is the first time in Play-In history that three of the first four games have been decided by five points or fewer
- Clutch Chaos: All three of those games saw lead changes in the final minute – the most ever in a single Play-In Tournament
And we still have two more games – both win-or-go-home.

Tonight on Prime, the Play-In peaks with its decisive finale games to determine each conference’s No. 8 seed in the Playoffs.
- 7:30 ET, Prime: No. 9 Hornets at No. 8 Magic (East)
- 10 ET, Prime: No. 10 Warriors at No. 7 Suns (West)
Win, and you’re in.

Lose, and your season is over.

Before we break down each matchup, let’s spin through some early trends of the Play-In’s previous finales and other elimination scenarios:
- 7th Heaven: Since the Play-In’s inception in 2020, No. 7 seeds have only been to two elimination Game 3s. In those games, they’re 2-0 — with Phoenix looking to make that 3-0 tonight
- Good To Be Home: Home teams (the higher seed) are 6-4 in Play-In finales, which bodes well for Orlando, a team that’s 25-15 in its own building versus 19-20 on the road
- But Look Out: No. 9 seeds have the most elimination game wins of any Play-In seed (10), with Charlotte coming into its matchup with Orlando having already survived one elimination game this Tournament — when it rallied back against Miami
- Ten Again? Only one team has ever advanced through the Play-In as a No. 10 seed: the Heat last season. Tonight, the Warriors look to become the second
2. WIN OR GO HOME: WARRIORS VISIT SUNS FOR WEST NO. 8 SEED

Four titles over an eight-year span.

A 73-win season.

The modern dynasty – now out to add some Play-In history to its legacy.

After an electric 4th-quarter road rally to stun a Clippers team that finished the regular season five games ahead of them, Steph Curry and the Warriors face elimination again, in the Valley against Devin Booker’s Suns.

Golden State looks to become just the second 10-seed – and first in the West – to advance out of the SoFi Play-In Tournament.

Coming off yet another display of big-game heroics, Curry looks to guide the Warriors through the Play-In for a second straight year – this time, with two road wins.
- 2nd-Half Steph: Curry’s 27 points after halftime Wednesday were the most 2nd-half points in any Play-In game since 2023
- Strength In Vets: A trio of veteran champs supported – and marveled at – Steph, with Al Horford’s four timely 3s, Kristaps Porziņģis’ (20 pts) highest-scoring game alongside Curry, and Draymond Green’s two final-minute thefts of Kawhi Leonard
- “It was just a beautiful display of competitive will,” Steve Kerr said. “For one night, we’re us. We’re champions again. I know that may sound crazy … I don’t care. Just absolutely beautiful to watch.”
Now, Steph & Co. will face off against Devin Booker & Phoenix, with Book ranking as a top-5 scorer in March and April after netting 25+ points in 15 of the season’s last 20 games.
- Top 10 For 10: Booker and Curry both sit among the NBA’s 10 best scorers of the last 10 seasons with his 17,072 points scored since 2016-17 ranking as 5th-most
- When It Matters Most: Curry and Book are also both top-25 in clutch points this season, despite Steph playing in just 17 clutch games. Booker’s 101 such points are the season’s 12th-most
- Elimination Level-Up: Suns fans can recall Booker’s last win-or-go-home performance, a 49-point outburst in Game 4 of their 2024 First Round series against the Wolves
These two foes of similar make-ups are both anchored by two of the game’s best defensive spark plugs and emotional leaders: Draymond Green and Dillon Brooks.
- Green was called many things after Wednesday’s win: A “Hall-of-Fame defender.” “A force of nature.” “The best defender” Kerr’s ever seen in his life
- His play left Steph speechless: “I don’t know what to say about Draymond … Draymond on defense, on Kawhi all night, two big steals, that’s what I love to see.”
- Steal-For-Steal: The physical Brooks sets the tone defensively for a Phoenix team that joined Golden State (9.7) in the top-5 for steals this season, averaging 9.5 per game
While the Warriors took the season series from the Suns 3-1, Phoenix has a blueprint after limiting Curry to his 3rd-worst shooting night this season (23.1 FG%) in its win.

3. WIN OR GO HOME: MAGIC HOST HORNETS FOR EAST NO. 8 SEED

Thirteen seconds remained, and the Hornets were down three. Hosting its first postseason game in 10 years on Tuesday, Charlotte needed a hero to keep its season alive.

That’s when Coby White – a Goldsboro, North Carolina native – delivered. His turnaround, fallaway 3 off the inbound had just a 23.5% chance of going in, according to AWS statistics.

But it found nothing but net.

Five minutes later, down one with four seconds left in OT, it was LaMelo Ball’s turn, as he dropped in the game-winning layup to extend Charlotte’s season.

Once again, the Hornets had answered the bell.
- “It just shows the character of the team,” said coach Charles Lee postgame. “That’s where I’ve seen the most growth and maturity from our group – is just finding a way to respond.”
Growth has defined Charlotte all season.

When weighted by playing time, the Hornets are this year’s youngest postseason team, with an average age of 24.3 years old. Entering Tuesday, Ball and Miles Bridges were their only starters with postseason experience.

Yet the team continues to defy the odds.
- No Quit: The Hornets are the first team since 1997 to make the postseason after starting 11-22 or worse through 33 games – and just the fifth to do so in the last 50 years
- Never Out: They’re the first team in Play-In history to hit two game-tying or go-ahead shots in the final 12 seconds of regulation or OT in the same game
- On The Cusp: Now, Charlotte is one win shy of its first Playoff berth since 2016
- “We had such a great year,” said Bridges. “We started off badly, but we banded together and created a culture here. We want to win for our fans and for ourselves – and get a taste of Playoff basketball.”
Tonight (7:30 ET, Prime), Charlotte will look to do just that, facing an Orlando squad that knows what it takes.

A win for the Magic would mark their third straight Playoff berth – their longest streak since 2012, when they made it six years in a row (2007-12).

To get there, they’ll look to lean on their stars.
- Bounce-Back Banchero: After a cold shooting night in Wednesday’s loss to Philly, Paolo Banchero will look to respond – and he’s thrived in elimination games, averaging 28 pts and 11 reb in three outings
- Bane Time: Desmond Bane has been Orlando’s late-game answer, ranking 11th this season in clutch points (102), and will look to deliver again after dropping 34 vs. Philly
- The Equalizer: Orlando will also lean on its elite perimeter defense, which allows just 12.1 3s per game, to slow Charlotte’s league-best 3-point attack
- “Lay it all on the line,” said Bane on the Magic’s mindset tonight. “We have one game to make it matter … I’m excited for the challenge.”
4. UP NEXT, PLAYOFFS: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW FOR SATURDAY

After Friday’s Play-In finale completes this year’s field, the 2026 Playoffs are officially on.

Get set for Saturday’s four-game tip-off with the key storylines to know:

No. 5 Raptors at No. 4 Cavs (1 ET, Prime): One of the league’s most efficient offenses in Cleveland meets Toronto’s well-rounded and high-paced attack.
- Fast Raps: The league-leader in fastbreak points (18.9 ppg), Toronto swept all three games with Cleveland – all before Thanksgiving – winning the fastbreak battle 62-38
- A Changed Team: The Cavs closed the transition gap in the third meeting (22-21). Toronto also hasn’t seen James Harden’s effect on Cleveland, which tied for the league’s 6th-most wins (21) after his Feb. 7 arrival
No. 6 Wolves at No. 3 Nuggets (3:30 ET, Prime): Anthony Edwards vs. Nikola Jokić in the latest chapter of a years-old rivalry that flourished in 2024’s seven-game West Semis classic.
- Rivalry Of Runs: Minnesota took four straight from Denver following that Game 7 win, with the Nuggets responding to take three straight face-offs this season
- Pack Strength: The Wolves won the most recent meeting with seven of eight active players scoring 9+ points, to overpower Jokić (35/13/9) and Jamal Murray (25 pts)
No. 6 Hawks at No. 3 Knicks (6 ET, Prime): Two more familiar foes square off in Atlanta & New York, with the Hawks riding the emerging duo of Jalen Johnson & Nickeil Alexander-Walker to counter the Knicks’ star pair in Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns.
- Roadblock: New York edged out Atlanta 2-1 in the season series, ending the Hawks’ 13-game home win streak earlier this month – their longest since 1996-97
- Full Circle: That streak was part of an 18-2 stretch that propelled Atlanta to its first top-6 seed since 2021, when the Hawks beat the Knicks in the First Round
No. 5 Rockets at No. 4 Lakers (8:30 ET, ABC): Two of the game’s all-time greats in Kevin Durant and LeBron James square off in their fourth Playoff series. This is their first series since the 2018 Finals, which KD won with the Warriors.
- 30K vs. 30K: James and Durant are the first pair of active players in the 30,000-points club to ever face off in a playoff series
- Someone’s Scoring 18: L.A.’s won two straight in this matchup (2-1 this season). KD outscored LeBron 25-18 in Houston’s win, they both logged 18 points on March 16, and two days later, LeBron had 30 to KD’s – you guessed it – 18
5. JAMAL CRAWFORD MAILBAG: ANSWERING YOUR POSTSEASON QUESTIONS

Postseason basketball is different.

You can see it. You can feel it. But what about someone who’s lived it?

In the latest NBA Mailbag, 20-year NBA vet and NBC analyst Jamal Crawford breaks it down, answering your postseason questions on everything from emotions to execution:

What’s something about Playoff basketball that doesn’t show up on TV but changes everything for players on the court? – from Danijela in Germany

“The emotional burden that a player carries, whether winning or losing. When you win, you feel like you’re on top of the world and going to win the championship. When you lose, you want to stay away from your phone and everything. You feel drained. It’s so much more than the loss.

So balancing that emotional roller coaster is something that players carry regardless of the outcome…”

Given your experience as the greatest 6th man in NBA history, how do you see the role of the bench in the playoffs? Can the bench be just as impactful as the stars in deciding a series? – from Jake in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

“The bench absolutely can be just as impactful. I remember in 2011 when I was with the Hawks, and we played Orlando, I started the series with 4 straight games of 20-plus points off the bench, and I’m pretty sure it was a record at the time in the playoffs. So that definitely gave us a boost and I think it also relaxed the stars to know that even if they just played evenly with the other stars, then I was there to help swing the series.”

What does a team need most from its guards to make a real Playoff run? – from Sam in Great Neck, NY

“What teams need most is leadership, someone who can guide the ship. And then timely shot making. And it may not be just at the end of the game…” | Read More

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April 17, 2026
‘Wasteman’ Review: David Jonsson and Tom Blyth Add Character to a Brawny but Familiar Prison Drama

British actor David Jonsson is only five films into his career, but you’d already know his gaze anywhere: Even in a film as spry and bright as the 2023 romcom “Rye Lane,” those crinkly, softly drooping eyes bring an air of old-soul melancholy to proceedings. But they’ve never borne quite as much sorrow as they do in “Wasteman,” a coolly brutal prison drama that follows a pretty rusty narrative template — hardened inmate on the brink of parole struggles to stay on the straight and narrow — but finds more interest in the dueling masculine energies of its two principal stars. If Jonsson, as the nearly-free man in question, is all guarded regret and head-down resilience, Tom Blyth is his lethal opposite number: As a near-feral cellmate from hell, he’s the disruptive force that gives an otherwise predictable film a spark of erratic danger.

Though Jonsson and Blyth’s stealthily adversarial, hot-and-cold double act represents the chief selling point of “Wasteman” — which premiered at last year’s Toronto festival and hit screens in its native U.K. back in February — the film is most emphatically a calling card for first-time feature director Cal McMau, who picked up a surprise win for Best Debut Director at last year’s British Independent Film Awards (beating the more hotly tipped likes of Akinola Davies Jr. and Harry Lighton) en route to a nomination in the BAFTAs’ equivalent category. An artist turned commercials director, he handles proceedings here with equal parts grit and polish, smoothly integrating multiple shooting formats and implied points of view — with an emphasis on vertical cellphone footage that gives us a bristlingly immediate sense of life on the inside.

Slightly less persuasive, however, is the script by Hunter Andrews and Eoin Doran, also taking their first feature credit. Trading in starkly opposed male archetypes but scantly developed characters, it builds some claustrophobic drama around inmates’ jostling for alpha status within these bleak, blue-washed walls, though it’s only glancingly attentive to the systemic failures governing this sordid battle royal, or more specific, unspoken social and racial conflicts presumably coursing through a pressure-cooker microcosm of modern British manhood. (Give or take the flavorful accents, the tone of the drama here is most reminiscent of that decades-old HBO TV provocation “Oz.”)

Jonsson plays Taylor, a watchful, aged-beyond-his-years introvert who has spent 13 years behind bars on a manslaughter charge — missing almost the entire life of his teenage son Adam (Cole Martin), from whom the boy’s mother is determined to keep him estranged. He’s a quiet prisoner if not exactly a model one, with an opioid addiction he can’t kick, funded by his stoic work as a barber to his fellow inmates. When he’s informed that he’s soon to be up for parole — due less to his own good behavior than a need to free up prison space — he’s cautioned not to put a foot wrong; receding into himself is the safest course of action.

It’s a bad time, then, to be paired with a new cellmate, particularly an unholy terror like Dee (Blyth), a grinning, nihilistic thug with a taste for living large — which, in prison confines, amounts to an in-cell air fryer and a shelf for his impressive sneaker collection — and a steady supply of drugs that soon makes him the most popular dealer on the wing, to the consternation of former big dogs Gaz (Corin Silva) and Paul (Alex Hassell). Generous with his stash and with access to his phone — which Taylor uses to communicate with Adam on social media — Dee ropes the addict into his trade, though their tentative friendship is soon subsumed into the prison’s overriding culture of violence.

With his gangly, clammy physicality and strident delivery, Blyth is an electrifying hair-trigger antagonist, jump-starting each scene he’s in and even contributing some leering wit to an otherwise stern affair. “I don’t need to be careful,” he brags to the walking-on-eggshells Taylor: For Dee, being beyond redemption is a point of pride. The actor can’t, however, find much semblance of humanity in this flatly vicious figure, who ultimately serves to highlight the manifold vulnerabilities of our flawed but contrastingly soulful hero, played by Jonsson with a tight, walled-off reserve that seems liable to break at any given moment.

That palpable desperation is compounded by the sheer airlessness of Phoebe Platman’s production design and Lorenzo Levrini’s prowling cinematography, which permits only the odd, stray shaft of natural light into this dank, metallic-hued world. The most explosive setpieces here are the pummelling prison riots, which Levrini charges into with handheld gusto, but the film feels rawest and realest in recurring interludes where the aspect ratio narrows and McMau views prison life (some of it battering, some of it banal) through the grainy lens of the inmates’ devices. A more unusual, subversive work might have stuck to this conceit throughout, but “Wasteman” finds some relief in formal convention.

April 17, 2026
Reed Hastings is leaving Netflix after 29 years

Netflix co-founder and current chairman Reed Hastings is leaving the streaming company’s board in June to focus on “his philanthropy and other pursuits,” according to a shareholder letter released alongside Netflix’s Q1 earnings. Hastings has served as chairman of Netflix’s board since 2023, a role he assumed after stepping down as co-CEO and promoting Greg Peters in his place.

“Netflix changed my life in so many ways, and my all‑time favorite memory was January 2016, when we enabled nearly the entire planet to enjoy our service,” Hastings said in a statement. “My real contribution at Netflix wasn’t a single decision; it was a focus on member joy, building a culture that others could inherit and improve, and building a company that could be both beloved by members and wildly successful for generations to come. A special thanks to Greg and Ted, whose commitment to Netflix’s greatness is so strong that I can now focus on new things.”

Hastings founded Netflix in 1997 as a DVD-by-mail rental service with his co-founder and the company’s first CEO Marc Randolph. In 1999, Hastings became CEO, and eventually led the company through its transformation into a streaming service in 2007. Netflix started producing its own television series and movies in 2013, and in 2020, the company’s board named Ted Sarandos as Hasting’s co-CEO, in part to oversee its growing production business. Hastings stepped down as co-CEO in 2023 to become Netflix’s executive chairman, as then COO Greg Peters was promoted to co-CEO. Among his other contributions, Hasting is also the architect of Netflix’s infamous “culture memo,” which codified the company’s high-performance culture.

While he’ll no longer be on Netflix’s board, Hastings still has a seat on the board of AI startup Anthropic and media and financial software company Bloomberg. Netflix, for its part, is continuing to expand outside of the television and film business Hastings helped build, by offering a selection of curated party games, a growing library of video podcasts and live sports.

April 17, 2026
Bluesky blames DDoS attack for server outages

Bluesky is once again having a wobble. The platform said some of its systems are down and that it’s “investigating an incident with service in one of our reginos” (that’s Bluesky’s typo, not mine). The issue appears to have started at 1:42AM ET and was still persisting as of 11AM when this story was originally published. Since then, the site has been experiencing intermitent interuptions, including at times to its status page where users should be able to monitor outages.

At 7:47PM ET, the platform explained that it’s been attempting to mitigate “a sophisticated Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attack, which intensified throughout the day.” It said the attack had caused interruptions to users’ feeds, notifications, threads and search, all of which the Engadget team experienced first-hand at various points through the day. While DDoS attacks are frequently used as virtual smokescreens for hacks, Bluesky says it has “not seen any evidence of unauthorized access to private user data.” The social media service had another brief outage earlier this month.

The outage is ongoing, but due to its intermittent nature it’s more of a rolling blackout than a power outage. Bluesky says it will provide another update on the situation by 1PM ET on April 17.

Update, April 16, 8PM ET: This story was updated after publish with an of the outage from Bluesky.

April 17, 2026