HeyWhatsNew: Video Game Scholarships, Unethical AI Training, and China’s Largest Vehicle Recall
Hey, Heyuppers! As tech evolves throughout the years, massive leaps can happen in just days. Today, we’ll be looking at some of the top stories making waves across tech, gaming, and innovation industries, starting from 24/08/2026.
London Students Could Be Paid to Play Video Games
The University of Roehampton in London is now offering esports scholarships to talented undergraduate and postgraduate students who show that they can balance academic progress and video-gaming excellence. The university became the first in the UK to launch an esports scholarship in 2018 when the award was worth £1,500 a year and has since increased the handout to £2,000 annually.
Mark Ellul, University of Roehampton registrar, stated that the scholarship is about recognising talent in a field that has a growing popularity both around the world and among our students." Scholars are expected to compete in weekly university tournaments as well as representing the university at in-person events. The university can also cover competition entry fees and travel costs, while scholars may also receive extra training and more work placement opportunities.
While applicants do not have to take a gaming-related degree, Roehampton requires minimum rankings in major games for the scholarship, but will consider applications from those close to the threshold who meet other criteria, such as having large followings on streaming platforms like Twitch. The university also offers a separate Women in Esports Scholarship, designed to encourage more women to enter the industry.
China Recalls 4.3 Million Vehicles Due to Safety Concerns
Several automakers, including Tesla, will be recalling a total of about 4.3 million vehicles in China’s largest auto recall campaign yet. This year, Beijing increased oversight of the EV industry, introducing tougher safety requirements. Most of the actions, which have been classified as product recalls under Chinese regulations, target emergency mechanical door-release handles that regulators say may be hard to locate or operate in a crash, a defect that has drawn scrutiny after several cases of passengers trapped inside burning vehicles.
China has also said it will ban concealed door handles from 2027, making it the first country to phase out a design popularised by Tesla and widely adopted by domestic Chinese EV makers. By itself, Tesla will be recalling 2.98 million vehicles. To remedy the situation, the automakers, including Tesla and Xiaomi, will install warning labels free of charge to identify the handles, while most will also deploy over-the-air, or remote, software updates.
Twitch and Amazon Hit with Lawsuit for Using Streamer Content to Train AI
Connecticut-based streamer, Warren Pandiscia, filed a class action lawsuit earlier this week accusing Twitch and Amazon of not obtaining licensing or permission before using his Twitch streams and videos as a "dataset necessary to fuel Amazon's AI products." The lawsuit claims that Twitch and Amazon committed a breach of contract when the companies decided to use its streamers as "free training stock for separate commercial AI products."
Twitch confirmed previously in an X post that its platform uses creators’ content for AI training but that it has an option to opt out of "having your channel content used to train generative AI content models across Amazon." However, Twitch channels are automatically opted in with the default settings set to allow content to be used for AI training until manually changed by the user. Either way, settings still apply by channel, so content from an opted-out user who engages on an opted-in channel may still be used.
The 37-page complaint also accused the two companies of benefitting from their streamers, who "lost money or property as a result of defendants' unlawful, unfair and fraudulent practices." Pandiscia said he had “no reason to believe” Twitch and Amazon would use his content to train generative AI products and is “opposed to such use of his original content.” He also stated that he had opted out immediately after learning of the setting and would have done so earlier had it been disclosed.
Following the company’s post about the opt-out setting, Mike Minton, Twitch’s chief product officer, defended the setting being opt-out instead of opt-in, saying, “If it was opt-in, nobody would opt-in. That’s honestly the answer.”
Vine-Inspired Divine App Officially Launches
In 2012, Vine was founded and quickly took off as a place to create and post short videos, even being acquired by Twitter a few months later for US$ 30 million. However, in 2016, the company decided to shut down the app, much to the chagrin of millions of users. Now, a platform inspired by Vine is eager to bring back the nostalgia.
Divine, which is not formally affiliated with Vine, was launched officially last week after nine months of development and beta testing. The app features a scrolling feed of six-second videos and allows users to create content on the app and view its archive of more than 2 million original Vine posts.
The app’s founder, who goes by Rabble, stated that Divine won’t allow users to post AI-generated content, unlike the rival video platforms that helped push the original app out of business. The app already has around 100,000 users and has recently announced its first brand partnership with Taco Bell.
New Zealand Might Ban Social Media for Children Under 16
In December, Australia became the world's first country to ban social media for children under 16, blocking them from platforms including TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook. Now, New Zealand’s Prime Minister, Christopher Luxon, stated that his party will introduce a bill in Parliament that seeks to ban children under 16 from using social media, proposing fines of up to 10% of a platform's global revenue for non-compliance.
According to Luxon, social media is exposing New Zealand’s youth to harmful content, addictive technology, and pressures that they are not equipped to deal with. He states that unchecked social media is affecting the family life, mental health, sleep and education of children.
If passed, the bill would require social media platforms to take reasonable steps to verify users' ages. This would include using existing account information, facial recognition technology, and digital identity documents.
However, support for the ban is not entirely widespread. One of Luxon's coalition partners, the New Zealand First party, maintains that it would not support it, stating that the proposed legislation introduces concerns about the direction and slippery slope that legislation like this will “inevitably” take.
Xiaomi Launches New Xring O3 Chip
In a volatile component market, Xiaomi is making big moves. The Chinese smartphone maker recently unveiled a new version of its in-house Xring handset processor just a year after its first iteration launched. The Xring O3 is made using TSMC's 3-nanometre process, according to sources, and is expected to power Xiaomi's upcoming flagship folding phone, with a shipment target of 200,000 to 300,000 units.
Ultimately, the move signifies deeper control over key components that will help strengthen Xiaomi’s supply chain and reduce reliance on external chip suppliers. This marks the latest step in the world's third-largest smartphone vendor's push to join rivals such as Apple, Samsung, and Huawei, who have also begun developing their own chips.
That’s all we have for you today, Heyuppers! Thanks for keeping up with us. We’ll be back next week with more breaking news and groundbreaking headlines!