Here's your firmware update for August 22, 2026
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This week, the GTA 6 leak rocked the internet, and Meta entered a $1.4 trillion lawsuit that could reshape social media as we know it.
To catch up on both of these events and more, scroll down to read our recap of the week’s seven biggest tech news stories.
Before that, test your memory of last week’s biggest news with our quiz (and check out our previous recap for a refresh if you need it).
A Kindle Oasis update has ruined the ereader for many, thanks to a change that has frustrated users.
The first change applies stricter DRM (Digital Rights Management) to books on the device, meaning most DRM-removal tools won’t work anymore. While DRM can help fight piracy, it also makes it harder to share the book with non-Kindle ereaders (or ereaders without the Kindle app) if you ever want to take your library with you when you change devices. This update isn’t new, but the Oasis was one of the last few to not have it.
The other change means you can’t keep reading a Libby book beyond its due date by turning airplane mode on. The workaround let users hold onto borrowed books, but now the app requires an internet connection to read your titles.
Plug-in solar kits are a hot topic in both the US and the UK, with the latter planning to legalize the low-cost home energy helpers on August 27. Ahead of that date next week, we’ve started to see the first kits get the regulatory green light.
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UKSOL makes some of those kits and this week revealed that its first two offerings (a 460W one consisting of a single solar panel, and an 890W dual-panel setup) will go on sale from August 27, with pricing starting at £699. Not exactly cheap, but a lot more affordable than a full solar installation.
Expect plug-in solar to be all over the news next week in the UK — and with 30 US states also planning to legalize the tech, the DIY energy boom could soon become a global story.
With impressive comic timing, Tesla’s Robotaxi was this week filmed plowing through some plastic traffic posts in Texas before carrying on with its journey — just weeks after Tesla had been crowing about its “impeccable safety record” with “zero notable incidents”.
Okay, the video shot by the Robotaxi’s distressed passenger doesn’t exactly show a GTA 6-style pile-up, but the timing is poor, with Tesla also reportedly planning to trial its fully autonomous Cybercab on public roads this month. We might carry on taking those human-driven cabs for a little while longer.
The most hotly anticipated game of 2026 was due to get a major reveal via a Netflix special next week, but Christmas has come early, so to speak, as several major leaks came out this week — including GTA 6’s map, new gameplay, and cutscenes.
