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Why do SpaceX rockets keep exploding?

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Why do SpaceX rockets keep exploding?

With yet another failed Starship test this week, in which the ambitious heavy rocket exploded once again, you might reasonably suspect that luck has finally run out for SpaceX.

But this degree of failure during a development process isn’t actually unusual, according to Wendy Whitman Cobb, a space policy expert with the School of Advanced Air and Space Studies, especially when you’re testing new space technology as complex as a large rocket. However, the Starship tests are meaningfully different from the slow, steady pace of development that we’ve come to expect from the space sector.

“The reason a lot of people perceive this to be unusual is that this is not the typical way that we have historically tested rockets,” Whitman Cobb says.

Historically speaking, space agencies like NASA or legacy aerospace companies like United Launch Alliance (ULA) have taken their time with rocket development and have not tested until they were confident in a successful outcome. That’s still the case today with major NASA projects like the development of the Space Launch System (SLS), which has now dragged on for over a decade. “They will take as long as they need to to make sure that the rocket is going to work and that a launch is going to be successful,” Whitman Cobb says.

“This is not the typical way that we have historically tested rockets.”

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SpaceX has chosen a different path, in which it tests, fails, and iterates frequently. That process has been at the heart of its success, allowing the company to make developments like the reusable Falcon 9 rocket at a rapid pace. However, it also means frequent and very public failures, which have generated complaints about environmental damage in the local area around the launch site and have caused the company to butt heads with regulatory agencies. There are also significant concerns about the political ties of CEO Elon Musk to the Trump administration and his undemocratic influence over federal regulation of SpaceX’s work.

Even within the context of SpaceX’s move-fast-and-break-things approach, though, the development of the Starship has appeared chaotic. Compared to the development of the Falcon 9 rocket, which had plenty of failures but a generally clear forward path from failing often to failing less and less as time went on, Starship has a much more spotty record.

Previous development was more incremental, first demonstrating that the rocket was sound before moving onto more complex issues like reusability of the booster or first stage. The company didn’t even attempt to save the booster of a Falcon 9 and reuse it until several years into testing.

Starship isn’t like that. “They are trying to do everything at once with Starship,” Whitman Cobb says, as the company is trying to debut an entirely new rocket with new engines and make it reusable all at once. “It really is a very difficult engineering challenge.”

“They are trying to do everything at once with Starship.”

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The Raptor engines that power the Starship are a particularly tough engineering nut to crack, as there are a lot of them — 33 per Starship, all clustered together — and they need to be able to perform the tricky feat of reigniting in space. The relighting of engines has been successful on some of the previous Starship test flights, but it has also been a point of failure.

Why, then, is SpaceX pushing for so much, so fast? It’s because Musk is laser-focused on getting to Mars. And while it would theoretically be possible to send a mission to Mars using existing rockets like the Falcon 9, the sheer volume of equipment, supplies, and people needed for a Mars mission has a very large mass. To make Mars missions even remotely affordable, you need to be able to move a lot of mass in one launch — hence the need for a much larger rocket like the Starship or NASA’s SLS.

NASA has previously been hedging its bets by developing its own heavy launch rocket as well as supporting the development of Starship. But with recent funding cuts, it’s looking more and more likely that the SLS will get axed — leaving SpaceX as the only player in town to facilitate NASA’s Mars plans.

But there’s still an awful lot of work to do to get Starship to a place where serious plans for crewed missions can even be made.

“There’s no way that they’re putting people on that right now.”

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Will a Starship test to Mars happen by 2026, with a crewed test to follow as soon as 2028, as Musk said this week he’s aiming for? “I think it’s completely delusional,” Whitman Cobb says, pointing out that SpaceX has not appeared to be seriously considering issues like adding life support to the Starship or making concrete plans for Mars habitats, launch and landing pads, or infrastructure.

“I don’t see SpaceX as putting its money where its mouth is,” Whitman Cobb says. “If they do make the launch window next year, it’s going to be uncrewed. There’s no way that they’re putting people on that right now. And I seriously doubt whether they will make it.”

That doesn’t mean Starship will never make it to Mars, of course. “I believe SpaceX will engineer their way out of it. I believe their engineering is good enough that they will make Starship work,” Whitman Cobb says. But getting an uncrewed rocket to Mars within the next decade is a lot more realistic than next year.

Putting people on the rocket, though, is another matter entirely. “If they’re looking to build a large-scale human settlement? That’s decades,” Whitman Cobb says. “I don’t know that I will live to see that.”

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Netflix is raising prices again

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Netflix is raising prices again

Netflix’s prices just went up, with its cheapest, ad-supported tier now reaching $8.99 / month (up from $7.99 / month), according to an updated support page spotted earlier by Android Authority. The standard and premium plans are also getting a hike, going from $17.99 to $19.99 / month and $24.99 to $26.99 / month, respectively.

Netflix didn’t share its reasoning for the price hike this time around, as it last cited delivering “more value for our customers.” It’s also unclear when the price hike will go into effect for existing subscribers. The Verge reached out to Netflix with a request for comment but didn’t immediately hear back.

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Roblox is changing online safety with AI

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Roblox is changing online safety with AI

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If you’ve ever wondered how platforms keep up with millions of users at once, this is where things get real. Roblox has over 144 million daily users. That scale creates a massive challenge. Harmful content does not always show up in obvious ways. Sometimes, it is the combination of things that creates the problem. Now, the company is rolling out a new system designed to catch exactly that. But first, it helps to understand what Roblox actually is.

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MEXICAN ILLEGAL ALIEN ALLEGEDLY USED ROBLOX CURRENCY TO SOLICIT EXPLICIT CONTENT FROM KIDS UNDER 10
 

Roblox rolls out a new AI system that analyzes entire scenes in real time to detect harmful content across its platform. (Brent Lewin/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

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What is Roblox

Roblox is an online platform where people can create, share and play games built by other users. Instead of being a single game, it is a massive ecosystem of user-generated experiences that range from simple obstacle courses to complex virtual worlds.

What makes Roblox different is how much control users have. Players are not just consuming content. They are constantly creating it in real time through avatars, text and interactive environments. That constant creation is exactly what makes moderation more complex.

A smarter way to spot harmful content

Most moderation tools look at one thing at a time. A message. An image. An avatar. That approach can miss the bigger picture. Speaking exclusively with CyberGuy, Matt Kaufman, Roblox’s chief safety officer, explained the shift clearly:

“We already moderate all of the objects in a virtual world, but how they come together and interact has long been a challenge. Our new real-time multimodal moderation system looks at an entire scene simultaneously from the user’s point of view – including 3D objects, avatars, and text – capturing all of these elements together in a specific moment to assess whether the combination of content types breaks our rules.”

This is called multimodal moderation. Instead of analyzing pieces in isolation, it looks at everything together in real time.

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Why older systems were missing the problem

Here is the issue platforms have faced for years. Something can look harmless on its own. But when combined with other elements, it can become harmful or violate rules.

Kaufman puts it this way: “Traditional AI moderation systems, which moderate one object at a time, can lack context and miss combinations that could be problematic in ways that the individual items are not. This model understands the relationship between different objects and how they come together to catch nuanced violations that standard filters may miss.”

That missing context is exactly what bad actors have been exploiting.

What this new AI actually catches

This system focuses on scenarios that previously slipped through. Think about games where users can draw freely or customize avatars. A drawing alone might seem fine. An avatar alone might seem fine. But together, they could create something inappropriate.

Kaufman explains how the system handles that: “The system can detect combinations of objects that may violate our community standards. For example, some games allow free-form drawing. This real-time multimodal moderation system would look at the drawing, avatar, and 3D setting together and assess it holistically, in order to catch and shut down servers with violating content.” 

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Right now, the rollout is already targeting problematic avatars and inappropriate drawings.

LOUISIANA SUES ONLINE GAMING PLATFORM ROBLOX FOR ALLEGEDLY ENABLING CHILD PREDATORS
 

Roblox officials say the new system aims to proactively protect children while maintaining gameplay for compliant users. (Riccardo Milani/Hans Lucas/AFP via Getty Images)

The scale is bigger than you think

This is not a small tweak. It is operating at a massive scale. Roblox says it is already shutting down about 5,000 servers per day for violations.

Kaufman says that reflects the reality of the platform: “With 144 million users connecting and creating on Roblox every single day, our safety systems must be as agile and dynamic as our creators themselves.”

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He also adds an important reality check: “No system is foolproof against bad actors, so we are committed to doing our best to stay ahead of those attempting to bypass safety protocols, and we are working to scale this new multimodal system to capture and monitor 100% of playtime.”

What changes for everyday Roblox users

If you or your kids use Roblox, this system will likely work in the background without you noticing. But it changes how quickly harmful behavior gets stopped.

“When problematic behavior repeatedly occurs in a single game instance, this new system is designed to automatically detect and shut down those specific servers in real time, greatly reducing the number of users who might be exposed to that behavior.”

That last part matters. Instead of shutting down an entire game, it targets only the problem.

“By targeting only the violating server rather than the entire experience, we can help prevent violations from reaching more users while allowing well-intentioned players to continue their sessions uninterrupted.” 

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What this means for parents

For parents, this is a big shift toward proactive safety. Instead of waiting for reports, the system acts in real time.

Kaufman explains: “We want parents to know that we aren’t just reacting to reports – we are proactively building some of the most sophisticated AI moderation systems in the world to help protect their children in real time.”

There is also an important layer of protection during gameplay: “We can now evaluate a combination of problematic text, 3D drawings, or avatar movements in real-time and shut down that specific server immediately – often before a child ever encounters it.”

Still, Roblox stresses that technology alone is not enough. “No system is perfect, and we encourage parents to talk to their children about online safety.”

Ways parents can help keep kids safe

Even with advanced AI moderation, a few simple steps can help you stay one step ahead and keep your child safer online.

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1) Talk about what your child is doing online

Ask what games they play and who they interact with so you stay involved.

2) Encourage reporting anything that feels off

Remind your child to report behavior that seems inappropriate or uncomfortable.

3) Check privacy and safety settings together

Review account settings to limit who can chat or interact with your child.

4) Set clear boundaries for gameplay

Agree on rules around screen time and which types of experiences are allowed.

ROBLOX CEO RESPONDS TO SCRUTINY OVER CHILD SAFETY: ESTABLISHING THE ‘GOLD STANDARD’ FOR SAFETY
 

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Roblox targets nuanced rule-breaking by analyzing avatars, text and environments together instead of in isolation. (JasonDoiy/Getty Images)

How Roblox avoids false positives

One concern with any AI system is getting it wrong. Roblox says it is actively working to improve accuracy over time.

“We have a continuous evaluation loop set up to measure false positives from the multimodal moderation system, and we are training the system with that feedback to help it catch those types of examples in the future.”

User feedback also plays a role. “Our creators and users are often the ones to spot new trends emerging… This type of reporting is the most effective way for users to help protect the community.”

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AI plus human oversight still matters

Even with automation, humans are still involved.”We already use a combination of AI and a team of safety experts to review content uploaded to the platform before it is ever shown to users.”

The new system adds another layer, not a replacement. “This real-time multimodal moderation system is an additional layer and is fully automated in its evaluation of the entire scene.”

What about privacy and fairness?

Any system this powerful raises questions about privacy and overreach. Roblox says it is limiting how data is used: “Our systems and processes are designed so that data collected for safety is used only for safety purposes.”

On fairness, the company points to ongoing training and transparency: “We are focused on ensuring our safety systems are both highly effective and fair.”

They are also giving creators more visibility: “We have introduced a new chart in the creator dashboard that allows developers to see exactly how many of their game’s servers have been shut down.”

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Where this is heading next

This system is just getting started. One future focus is detecting recreations of real-world events that may cross the line.

Kaufman explains why context matters here: “Standard filters might see a specific building or a line of text in isolation and not recognize a violation. However, real-time multimodal moderation can understand the relationship between an environment, the way avatars are interacting within it, and the accompanying chat.”

There is also a push to go beyond shutting down servers: “We’re working on ways to identify specific bad actors so we can remove them without disrupting the experience for the vast majority of our well-intentioned players.”

Kurt’s key takeaways

This is a major shift in how online platforms approach safety. Instead of reacting after something goes wrong, Roblox is trying to stop harmful behavior before most users ever see it. That is a big promise, especially at this scale. At the same time, it highlights a deeper question about the future of online spaces. As AI becomes more involved in moderating behavior, the balance between safety, fairness and freedom will only get more complicated.

So here is the question worth thinking about: If AI is now deciding what crosses the line in real time, how much control are we comfortable handing over to it?  Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com

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Intel and LG Display may have beaten Apple and Qualcomm with the best laptop battery life ever

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Intel and LG Display may have beaten Apple and Qualcomm with the best laptop battery life ever

Just how little power might it consume? Notebookcheck has tested a version of the laptop with that LG Display screen and a new Intel Panther Lake chip — and it appears to be the most efficient laptop that’s ever gone through its Wi-Fi web browsing test. At idle, the Core Ultra 325 laptop drew as little as 1.5 watts, and lasted nearly 27 hours of web browsing despite only housing a 70 watt-hour pack. That’s well shy of the 99.5Wh Dell has sometimes crammed into its 16-inch models.

That’s more battery life than Notebookcheck has gotten out of any MacBook or MacBook Pro, and apparently more than all but two other laptops since it started running this test in 2014. And of those two laptops, one relied on a Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus chip, a larger 84Wh battery, and a mere 60Hz screen — while the other had two batteries for a total of 149Wh and a 60Hz screen as well.

I should caution you that we typically see much less battery life in an actual workday than we do in fixed battery life tests. But compared to other laptops, this Dell + Intel + LG Display combo seems like the new battery life champ. Note that Dell also sells it with a higher-res tandem OLED screen, though. To get the best battery life, you’ll need to settle for 1920 x 1200, no OLED, and no touchscreen.

While Dell may deserve a lot of credit as the system integrator, this tech may not be exclusive to Dell for long. LG Display announced that it’s become the first in the world to mass-produce a 1–120Hz laptop LCD panel (which it’s branding as Oxide 1Hz), and plans to mass-produce an OLED version in 2027. Intel, too, isn’t just working with one display vendor: last October, it announced it was working with Chinese panel maker BOE on 1Hz refresh rate computers too.

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