Author: IQ TIMES MEDIA

OREM, Utah (AP) — It took two decades for Utah Valley University to evolve from a small community college into the state’s largest school, boasting of having one of the safest campuses in the nation.It took only seconds for that image to be shattered by the assassination of right wing activist Charlie Kirk.The sprawling campus of nearly 50,000 students beneath the Wasatch Mountains will be forever tethered to the events of Sept. 10, when a bullet took down the founder of Turning Point USA as he spoke to a large crowd at an outdoor amphitheater in the middle of campus.The…

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s vaccine recommendations committee on Friday wrapped two days of meetings that involved votes on a range of recommendations regarding COVID-19, measles and more.The recommendations panel, known as the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP, has undergone changes in recent months, with all new members picked by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.The ACIP’s recommendations are not the final say — they must be reviewed and approved by the CDC director to become official guidance, but CDC directors have almost always accepted the recommendations.Here are the key takeaways from the…

It looks like hiring H1-B visa workers is about to get a whole lot more expensive.President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Friday that includes changes to the H1-B visa program, which many tech companies use to hire thousands of skilled foreign workers every year.The order includes imposing an H1-B application fee of $100,000. The executive order said the fee would need to be paid in order for applications to be considered.Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who spoke alongside Trump in the Oval Office, said it would be a yearly fee for companies that hire H1-B workers. Officials said the…

Snorkel AI, a $1.3 billion startup spun out of Stanford that connects artificial intelligence companies to human “experts,” laid off about 13% of its employees this week, it confirmed to Business Insider.Snorkel AI is part of a boom in startups like Scale AI that help tech companies train their latest AI models, thanks in large part to human gig workers. Based in Silicon Valley, Snorkel announced it raised a $100 million Series D round this May at a $1.3 billion valuation and touts partners like Google and Anthropic on its website.31 out of 240 employees were cut on Wednesday, Snorkel…

NEW YORK (AP) — Brandon Sproat answered a question about Juan Soto with a question.“What is there not to be impressed about?” Sproat said Friday night of his superstar teammate, after Soto hit his career-high 42nd homer to cap a six-run fourth inning that vaulted the New York Mets to a 12-6 win over the Washington Nationals.Soto reached the milestone in the first year of his record $765 million contract with the Mets. Last year, he hit 41 homers in his lone season with the crosstown Yankees.Soto is the 12th player to hit 40 homers in consecutive seasons with different…

Apple’s walled garden approach poses problems not only for regulators and small developers, but tech giants, too.This week, Meta, at its annual Meta Connect, introduced several new products, including its second-generation Ray-Bans, a neural wristband, Meta Ray-Bans Display, and sports-centered glasses in collaboration with Oakley.There’s one key integration that the AI-powered glasses won’t be able to manage, however: sending iMessages.Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth said Apple’s tight controls of its API were to blame for that.”Right now it’s Messenger and WhatsApp, which obviously are, incredibly popular global messaging platforms. We’d love to expand and do more,” he said on Instagram on…

California’s state senate recently gave final approval to a new AI safety bill, SB 53, sending it to Governor Gavin Newsom to either sign or veto. If this all sounds familiar, that’s because Newsom vetoed another AI safety bill, also written by state senator Scott Wiener, last year. But SB 53 is narrower than Wiener’s previous SB 1047, with a focus on big AI companies making more than $500 million in annual revenue. I got the chance to discuss SB 53 with my colleagues Max Zeff and Kirsten Korosec on the latest episode of TechCrunch’s flagship podcast Equity. Max believes…

Finding product-market fit isn’t a milestone — it’s a messy, make-or-break journey. At TechCrunch Disrupt 2025 — taking place October 27–29 at Moscone West in San Francisco — Rajat Bhageria (Chef Robotics), Ann Bordetsky (NEA), and Murali Joshi (ICONIQ) break down how to navigate this critical phase. Register now. No more guessing — just growth Rajat Bhageria: Founder and CEO of Chef Robotics, scaling AI-powered automation that’s transforming food production. Ann Bordetsky: Partner at NEA, previously at Uber and Twitter, spotting scrappy ingenuity that drives breakout success. Murali Joshi: Partner at ICONIQ, Forbes Midas Brink List honoree, with over $2.5…

Healthy kids and adults looking for an updated Covid shot this fall may have a tougher time getting it.On Friday, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advisory panel unanimously recommended limiting the Covid shot to people 65 and older or those with underlying health conditions, based on an individual decision or with their doctor. The panel rejected a separate recommendation that the agency should encourage states to require a prescription.People under 65 are advised to consult with their doctor, the panel said, with “an emphasis that the risk-benefit of vaccination is most favorable for individuals who are at an…

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s vaccine advisory committee on Friday voted to abandon its recommendation for the COVID-19 vaccine, with the committee unanimously voting to recommend that Americans get the shot “based on individual-based decision-making,” meaning it’s a personal choice.It’s unclear what implications the vote will have for insurance coverage for Americans who want to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. Many major insurers have said they would continue to cover the cost of the vaccines through at least 2026 no matter how the committee voted this week.In a separate vote, members decided not to require a prescription for the…