Facing a lawsuit, the Food and Drug Administration has decided to reconsider its decision to take popular weight-loss and diabetes drugs off of the national shortage list, which will allow compounding pharmacies to continue selling cheaper copycat versions—at least for now. A trade organization representing compounding pharmacies sued the agency last week over its October 2 announcement that there was no longer a shortage of tirzepatide drugs, branded as Mounjaro for diabetes and Zepbound for weight loss. The products, members of the extremely popular and effective class of GLP-1 drugs, had been on the shortage list since December 2022. Being on the list meant that compounding pharmacies were legally allowed to make "essentially copies" of the products; the only time these pharmacies—also called outsourcing facilities—can make imitation versions of approved drugs, such as tirzepatide, is when the products appear on the shortage list. So, with the FDA's announcement, compounders were immediately barred from making any more of the lucrative drugs and had 60 days to fulfill existing orders. Read full article

During Tesla’s much-hyped robotaxi reveal event last week, CEO Elon Musk said he expects Tesla to release an “unsupervised” version of FSD, the automaker’s advanced driver assistance system, in Texas and California in 2025 on certain Model 3 and Model Y vehicles.  He also said Tesla would begin production on its robotaxis – which are […]

The Federal Communications Commission is taking a closer look at how broadband data caps affect consumers, and is considering whether it has authority to regulate how Internet service providers impose such caps. Democrats are spearheading the effort over the opposition of the FCC's Republican minority. FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel floated a plan to open a formal inquiry into data caps in June 2023, and the FCC is finally moving ahead. A Notice of Inquiry announced today "explores how broadband data caps impact competition and consumers," the FCC said. "During the last year, nearly 3,000 people have gotten so aggravated by data caps on their Internet service that they have reached out the Federal Communications Commission to register their frustration," Rosenworcel said in a statement issued today. "We are listening. Today, we start an inquiry into the state of data caps. We want to shine a light on what they mean for Internet service for consumers across the country." Read full article

In just over two weeks, TechCrunch will gather some of the startup world’s leading companies at Disrupt in San Francisco. But our partners provide more than just financial support. Their presence at Disrupt gives startups at any stage the tools, knowledge, and community they need to be a success. We thank Meta for their support […]

If you like open-source, decentralized social networks that put the power in the hands of the people instead of billionaires, you can now support that cause…by buying toys. On Tuesday, Mastodon, a decentralized alternative to X, began selling its own merchandise in the form of cute, plushie mastodons – the proto-elephants with long tusks that […]

In the beginning, North Korean hackers compromised the banking infrastructure running AIX, IBM’s proprietary version of Unix. Next, they hacked infrastructure running Windows. Now, the state-backed bank robbers have expanded their repertoire to include Linux. The malware, tracked under the name FASTCash, is a remote access tool that gets installed on payment switches inside compromised networks that handle payment card transactions. The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency first warned of FASTCash in 2018 in an advisory that said the malware was infecting AIX-powered switches inside retail payment networks. In 2020, the agency updated its guidance to report FASTCash was now infecting switches running Windows as well. Besides embracing Windows, FASTCash had also expanded its net to include not just switches for retail payments but those handled by regional interbank payment processors as well. Over the weekend, a researcher reported finding two samples of FASTCash for switches running on Linux. One sample is compiled for Ubuntu Linux 20.04 and was likely developed sometime after April 21, 2022. The other sample was likely not used. As of the time this post went live, only four anti-malware engines detected each sample. The number of detections as of Sunday was zero. The Linux version was uploaded to VirusTotal in June 2023. Read full article

Amazon has seen massive adoption of passkeys since the company quietly rolled them out a year ago, announcing today that over 175 million customers use the security feature....

Amazon has seen massive adoption of passkeys since the company quietly rolled them out a year ago, announcing today that over 175 million customers use the security feature....

At the University of Toronto, just across the street from the football stadium, workers are putting up a 14-story building with space for classrooms and faculty offices. What’s unusual is how they’re building it — by bolting together giant beams, columns, and panels made of manufactured slabs of wood. As each wood element is delivered by flatbed, a tall crane lifts it into place and holds it in position while workers attach it with metal connectors. In its half-finished state, the building resembles flat-pack furniture in the process of being assembled. The tower uses a new technology called mass timber. In this kind of construction, massive, manufactured wood elements that can extend more than half the length of a football field replace steel beams and concrete. Though still relatively uncommon, it is growing in popularity and beginning to pop up in skylines around the world. Read full article