The Rundown is reporting that SpaceX's Starship reached orbit for the first time Monday, delivering 26 next-generation Starlink satellites on the megarocket's 14th flight. It said the Sept. 28 launch from Starbase, Texas, marked the first time the vehicle flew a full orbital trajectory after 13 previous suborbital tests. An engine shut down prematurely after separation from the Super Heavy booster, prompting SpaceX to shorten the planned 10-hour mission to about three hours. The Rundown said SpaceX's new Starlink V3 satellites can handle 10 times as much data as the V2 Mini satellites launched aboard Falcon 9. Starship returned to the Pacific, touched down upright, then tipped over and caught fire; SpaceX had not planned to recover the vehicle. The Rundown said SpaceX needs a fully reusable Starship to make its planned 100,000-satellite Starlink V3 network affordable to launch, and that NASA's crewed Moon landing depends on a Starship-based lander that must first prove it can refuel in orbit.
The Rundown is reporting that a San Diego jury ordered Apple to pay $5.7 billion after finding that the Taptic Engine behind iPhone taps and Apple Watch alerts infringes two patents held by haptics firm Taction. It said Taction sued in 2021, accusing Apple of reverse-engineering technology from two Kannon gaming headsets and using its patented inventions without a license. The Sept. 25 verdict found Apple infringed both patents and rejected its invalidity defense. The jury also ruled the infringement was not willful, so Taction cannot seek enhanced damages that could have reached triple the award. The Rundown said Apple denies using Taction's technology, maintains its Taptic Engine is fundamentally different, and plans to appeal. It said litigation funder Burford Capital and its investment funds could collect $1.4 billion if the award is paid in full, though Burford warns the parties could settle for considerably less.
The Rundown is reporting that Bose has returned to wired earbuds with a $99 USB-C pair that draws power from a phone to run active noise cancellation, requiring no Bluetooth pairing, internal battery or charging case. It said four microphones power the noise cancellation, with Quiet, Aware and ANC Off modes. The cable carries lossless audio fixed at 24-bit/48kHz with near-zero latency, and an IPX4 rating adds splash protection. Preorders are open through Bose and Best Buy, with shipping set for Oct. 15. The Rundown said wired headphones returned to growth in 2025 after five years of decline, with revenue rising 20 percent in the first six weeks of 2026, according to Circana.
The Rundown is reporting that Flock's surveillance network drew scrutiny after a researcher published a map of its device records and received a takedown demand, while some cities dropping Flock are turning to rival Axon to keep tracking vehicles. It said researcher Joshua Michael's map, built from Flock's own device records, counts more than 170,000 cameras and 130,000 supporting devices, including roughly 27,000 acoustic sensors. The Intercept reported that a company calling itself Doppel, saying it represented Flock, filed a trademark complaint seeking the map's removal. The Rundown said Flock, facing Senate scrutiny, says it is standardizing the reasons users must give for searches and will require police case numbers by year-end. Denver approved replacing Flock with Axon, retaining plate tracking while tightening access and shortening its previous 30-day retention period to 21 days.