Features
Buzzy AI Startup for Generating 3D Models Used Cheap Human Labor
Kaedim's founder was recently in a Forbes 30 Under 30 list for the company's 2D to 3D image conversion. In some cases artists produced the work wholecloth, one source said.
FOIA
Florida Demands Thousands of Dollars for Public Records About Ron DeSantis's Culture War in Schools
$7,741 to search emails about AP Psychology. $2,416 for details about why a substitute teacher was fired after posting video of empty library bookshelves. $360.20 for documents a school district first claimed didn't exist.
News
Tesla, Which Has Fought Repair Constantly: ‘Tesla’s History of Supporting Right to Repair Is Well-Documented’
Documentation of Tesla's support of right to repair is difficult to find. Documentation of all the things it's done to make Teslas harder to repair is not.
Good Enough
How to Get Into Film Photography (And Why You Should)
Shooting film is expensive, slow, and incredibly inconvenient. That's what makes it so magical.
News
Scientologists Ask Federal Government to Restrict Right to Repair
A group representing L. Ron Hubbard asked the Copyright Office to alter a repair exemption that makes it legal to hack Scientology's E-Meter—and lots of other electronics, too.
News
iFixit Tears Down McDonald's McFlurry Machine, Petitions Government for Right to Hack Them
iFixit tears down a notoriously unreliable McDonald’s ice cream machine: “The error codes are nonsensical, counterintuitive, and seemingly random.”
FOIA
‘Clear as Mud:’ Internal Emails Show Superintendents Struggling to Comply With ‘Don't Say Gay' Law
Documents obtained by 404 Media show Florida educators held emergency meetings to figure out if schools could teach AP Psychology without breaking the law.
News
Chess Cheating Saga Ends: Hans Niemann Will Be Allowed Back on Chess.com
Niemann has dropped a $100 million lawsuit against Chess.com and Magnus Carlsen, will be allowed to compete again.
News
'The Wallet Event': Crypto Startup Bankrupt After Losing Password to $38.9 Million Physical Crypto Wallet
“The Company remains unable to access the 98f Wallet. The investigation continues.”
News
Instagram Throttles 404 Media Investigation Into Drug Ads on Instagram, Continues to Let People Advertise Drugs
Instagram continues to collect money from ads for illegal content, limits the reach of posts about the problem.
FOIA
‘Sparkle’: Internal Emails Reveal the Codename for Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour
No artist name. Only one person approved to make promotional graphics. Public records obtained by 404 Media show the steps taken to keep the Eras Tour secret during the planning stages.
News
'We're Winning': Apple Formally Endorses Right to Repair Legislation After Spending Millions Fighting It
In a letter from its lobbyist, Apple 'urges' California lawmakers to pass the strongest right-to-repair law in the country.