It was another bizarre week in the tech world, with Apple buying out Dr. Dre and scientists working to build life from “alien” DNA. No word on whether those two stories could ultimately be related, but there was a host of tech news that you might have missed while imagining Tim Cook listening to The Chronic. It was a raucous month so far, with surveillance-busting face masks, killer robot cars, and YouTube clips of The Simpsons connected to the Syrian civil war. Here’s a rundown of nine tech stories from the first half of the month that you probably missed, but definitely shouldn’t have.
Michael Thomsen is Complex's tech columnist. He has written for Slate, The Atlantic, The New Inquiry, n+1, Billboard, and is author of Levitate the Primate: Handjobs, Internet Dating, and Other Issues for Men. He tweets often at @mike_thomsen.