Tech News Digest: Friday, 17 July 2026

Today in tech, we’re seeing a significant shift in how we interact with our apps and how regulators are pushing back against the industry's biggest players. From AI-generated avatars for your work meetings to landmark legal rulings on mobile software, the digital landscape is evolving at a breakneck pace.

UK police dismantle 'Scattered Spider' hacking cell

Two young hackers from the notorious 'Scattered Spider' group have been sentenced to over five years in prison following a successful operation by UK authorities. This is a massive win for domestic cybersecurity, as the group was infamous for high-profile attacks that disrupted global services and targeted major corporate entities.

Google Vids lets you star in your own AI-generated videos

Google is adding personalized AI avatars to its Vids platform, allowing you to create digital versions of yourself to narrate presentations and demos. It is a clever bit of kit for boosting productivity, though it certainly brings us closer to a future where we might never actually need to show up on camera for a team meeting again.

Order your Friday takeaway from the command line

In a move that will delight developers across the country, DoorDash has launched a beta for a command-line tool called dd-cli. This allows coders and AI agents to browse menus and place orders without ever leaving their terminal, proving that the future of food delivery is now as much about scripts as it is about snacks.

Linus Torvalds gives short shrift to AI coding critics

The creator of Linux has told critics of AI-generated code to either 'fork it' or walk away, signaling his pragmatic acceptance of machine learning in software development. For the UK’s developer community, it is a clear message from the industry's most influential figure: AI is becoming an essential part of the workflow, regardless of the purists' concerns.

EU forces Google to open up search and AI on Android

The European Union has officially ruled that Google must share its search data and allow more competition for AI services on the Android platform. While the UK is no longer in the bloc, these rulings usually set the standard for how tech giants operate across the whole of Europe, likely giving us all more choice in the AI assistants we use on our phones.

Have a brilliant weekend, and try to spend at least some of it away from your screens!