Walmart’s Drones Are Taking Over the Skies
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It’s wild out there, Tech Insiders!
Digital chaos is hitting from every angle: Walmart’s drones are invading 100 new stores, Perplexity is gunning for Chrome’s crown, BADBOX 2.0 is hacking millions, and Amazon is handing out more pink slips.
Brace yourselves. This tech storm is fully loaded and ready to drop.
📰 Here’s what you need to know today
Walmart’s Sky Drop Squad Is Coming: Drones Set to Invade Five More Cities
If the sky’s falling… it might just be your toilet paper delivery.
Drone-powered deliveries are going mainstream. Alphabet’s Wing, in partnership with Walmart, is rolling out its drone delivery service to 100 new Walmart locations in five new U.S. cities over the next year, expanding from a two-year pilot in Dallas-Fort Worth.
Shoppers in Atlanta, Charlotte, Houston, Orlando, and Tampa will soon be able to order lightweight essentials, such as eggs and baby wipes, and have them delivered by drone in under 30 minutes. The move will make this the largest drone delivery network in the country.
Wing’s drone fleet—compact, fixed-wing flyers with five-foot wingspans—currently handles around 1,000 orders a day from 18 Dallas-area stores. With each drone capable of carrying up to five pounds, the system has been fine-tuned to serve urgent, small-item needs.
While a delivery typically costs $20, Walmart+ members get it free, and many items ordered through the Wing app also come with no delivery fee. For now, that app will be the only ordering method in the newly added markets.
Insider Intel
Perplexity Aims to Nuke Chrome with AI-Powered Comet Browser
Perplexity is riding a rocket of AI-fueled momentum, clocking 780 million queries in May and growing 20% month-over-month, according to CEO Aravind Srinivas.
At the Bloomberg Tech Summit, he threw shade at Chrome, calling it a relic, and teased Perplexity’s soon-to-launch agentic browser Comet, built to do more than search.
The new browser is slated to provide task completion, virtual meeting smarts, and full-blown transcription features. If growth continues, Srinivas says they’re on track to hit a billion weekly queries, a direct shot at Google’s empire and a wake-up call for anyone still clinging to their old-school tabs.
If Comet delivers, we might finally close those 47 open tabs.
Security Alerts
BADBOX 2.0 Turns Millions of Android Devices into Cybercrime Zombies
The FBI is sounding the alarm on BADBOX 2.0, a sprawling malware campaign that’s turned over a million household devices into silent accomplices in cybercrime.
Found primarily on low-cost, Chinese-made Android smart TVs, streaming boxes, and other Internet of Things (IoT) devices, the malware converts these gadgets into residential proxies, providing cybercriminals with covert access to home networks.
Pro tip: Ditch the bargain-bin tech, update religiously, and don’t let your toaster mingle with your laptop.
Microsoft Launches Free AI-Focused Cybersecurity Program for European Governments
In a bold move to counter rising AI-driven cyber threats, Microsoft is offering free cybersecurity support to European governments.
The new European Security Program builds on Microsoft's existing efforts, focusing on AI threat intelligence, partnerships with cyber researchers, and collaboration with law enforcement. Eligible nations include EU and EFTA members, the UK, Ukraine, and others.
Industry Shakeups
Amazon Puts the Book Down: Goodreads, Kindle Hit by Quiet Cuts
Amazon is quietly gutting roles in its Books division—including at Goodreads and Kindle—in yet another efficiency crusade led by CEO Andy Jassy.
The cuts follow recent reductions in other business units, such as Devices, Wondery, and Communications, signaling a broader effort to trim the workforce and flatten management layers.
While Amazon insists the cuts are aligning with its roadmap, the move adds to a growing pattern of surgical layoffs across the tech giant’s sprawling empire.