♣️ Hackers, hustlers and high rollers

Welcome to your Sunday, {{first_name | friend}}. If you thought the Bible was just for quiet pews and gold leaf edges, it turns out it also moonlights as a tech trailblazer. Long before TikTok dances or smart coffee makers, it was actually one of the first books to go fully digital. 

📖 Can you guess what major tech milestone the Bible helped pioneer? Was it the: A) first book translated by AI, B) first full book digitized on the internet, C) first text printed on a laser printer or D) first book sold as an eBook? Keep reading, because the answer awaits at the end.

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📺 Tired of scrolling for something worth watching? Head to my YouTube channel! It’s packed with smart tips, real laughs and tech talk that actually matters. Click now and enjoy screen time that’s finally worth it. — Kim

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Here’s a business success I bet you didn’t see coming, I know I didn’t. Chess. Yes, the game that’s been around for about 1,500 years is the center of a billion-dollar empire.

With everyone stuck at home, chess made a surprise comeback. 

Twitch tournaments like “PogChamps” pulled in hundreds of thousands of viewers. A game that used to be old and niche? Suddenly, it was pop culture.

In 2022 alone, subscriptions brought in more than $150 million. Then came their checkmate move. They bought Play Magnus Group, the startup founded by world champion Magnus Carlsen, for $83 million. That gave them a treasure trove of content, training tools and more control of the chess world. 

They didn’t just build a platform, they built the entire ecosystem. Today, they’ve got over 200 million users in over 60 countries. Wow.

So next time someone says, “That idea’s already been done, forget it,” so was chess. And now it’s worth a billion dollars. Bravo! Remember, if you ever forget the rules of chess, you’re allowed to check. (lol)

Amazon’s cloud crashed and took half the internet with it. Snapchat, Ring, Venmo, even banks went dark. I’ll break down what happens when the web’s backbone fails. Then I talk to one business owner who caught scammers stealing her online brand. Plus, the Louvre heist, a New Jersey “UFO” update and a smart ChatGPT trick.

Listen on Komando.com →

♣️ Hackers, hustlers and high rollers: This is nuts. The feds unsealed an indictment straight out of Ocean’s Eleven, full of poker tables with hidden cameras, hacked Deckmate shufflers, even contact lenses that read cards. 30+ people, including the NBA’s Chauncey Billups, Damon Jones and Terry Rozier, were charged in a $7 million poker scam tied to Mafia families. The FBI says players were lured into exclusive games, thinking they were lucky to be invited. Maybe your uncle blaming the game for being “rigged” was actually onto something. Then again, maybe he’s just bad at poker. 

GPT-5’s office gossip: OpenAI dropped a ChatGPT update called “company knowledge,” and it’s like giving your AI an all-access pass to Slack, Google Drive and GitHub. It reads everything, finds what you need and even cites sources. Ask it, “What are 2026’s goals?” and it begins rummaging internal sources. You have to turn on “company knowledge” manually when starting a chat, so it won’t snoop unless you let it. 

AWS eats its own: Here’s the cloud tea, Amazon says this week’s massive AWS outage wasn’t a hack but a software glitch so bad it fought itself. That’s right, a mini-tech civil war. Two automation systems tried to update network records at once and triggered a global domino crash. A chunk of the internet went briefly offline, even some people’s smart beds. 

🔫 Artificial unintelligence: After football practice, a Maryland teen got swarmed by armed police because an AI gun detector thought his Doritos bag was a pistol. In other words, a weapon of nacho destruction. Turns out, the system flagged the way he held the bag as “gun-like.” The teen was cuffed, searched and cleared. Put your hands up and the chips where I can see them!

It’s a sign: A Kenyan engineer built what’s basically Google Translate for sign language. His app, Terp 360, listens to speech and uses AI-powered 3D avatars to sign in real time. It’s built with motion-capture tech (sensors track actual signers’ movements), and it already knows thousands of words. I’ve always wanted to learn ASL. 

Hold the phone: Do you love talking to robots on the phone? Have I got good news for you! Yelp's rolling out two talking bots. A Host AI for restaurant bookings and Receptionist for business calls. They’ll handle everything from wait lists to “do you take dogs?” for about $99 a month per restaurant. Next up, a suggested 25% tip.

💰 Save smart, not less: Big wireless promises “free phones” but hides the cost in sky-high monthly plans. I chose Consumer Cellular instead. Two unlimited lines for only $30 per line, with reliable nationwide coverage and top-rated U.S. support. Use the code KIM25 to save $25 today.*

Russia and China are using romance to steal secrets. Their newest spy tactic? Seduction over software.

Listen on Komando.com →

A few upgrades can take the edge off your morning routine (literally).

💎 Shine on, you fancy thing: This ultrasonic cleaner (21% off) blasts away years of grime from jewelry, glasses or even your retainer.

Glow-getter: Olay’s face moisturizer (9% off) has the heavy hitters like hyaluronic acid, niacinamide and peptides. All work to hydrate and smooth.

🪒 Cut above the rest: Fellas, stock up on some Gillette razor refills (6% off, 12-pack). That’s enough cartridges to last almost a year.

Fuzz be gone: These gentle dermaplane razors (20% off) glide effortlessly to reveal smooth, glowing skin. Makeup goes on like silk afterward.

🛒 Running low? Click here to refill your stash and check if your daily drivers are marked down.

⚡️ 3-second tech genius: No need to poke your Echo. Say, “Alexa, volume up” or “volume down” to adjust the sound. For precision, say, “Alexa, set volume to seven.” The range goes from 1 to 10.

✋ Stop Google Photos auto backup: On Android, you can stop Google Photos from quietly uploading every picture you take. It saves some cloud space and keeps your private (or spicy) photos off the internet. Open Photos, tap your profile icon (top right) > Photos settings > Backup, and toggle it off.

🐶 Soothe your pup with tunes: Heading out and leaving your dog behind? Play soft music on your smart speaker before you go. It fills the silence, calms their nerves and helps block out street noise that might spook them. PSA: They like Snoop Dogg, not Cat Stevens.

📺 Cast your PC to a smart TV: On Windows 11, you can connect your desktop to your TV wirelessly if both are on the same network. If your PC doesn’t have Wi-Fi, get an adapter. Press Windows key + K to open the Cast menu, select your TV and choose how to display it.

💬 Comment anonymously on Facebook: Want to chime in without revealing your name? In the app, tap Menu > Groups and open the group you want. Find a post, tap Comment, then your profile icon. Switch it to Anonymous participant, type your comment. FYI: The group must have this feature enabled.

🔒 Stop home thieves before they strike: Imagine coming home to find your house sold on paper and loans in your name. It’s happening everywhere, and most homeowners don’t even know until it’s too late. That’s why I trust Home Title Lock. It scans your title daily, alerts you fast and helps you restore your rights if fraud ever hits. Get your free 14-day trial today and protect your biggest investment.*

Take me on a walk: Click to listen to my latest show.
Catch me now on Apple, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeart, Pandora or wherever you get your podcasts.

Play: Jeopardy! at home. Easy peasy with this free custom game maker.

👊 Contribute: Your own pics to Google Street View. Great way to promote a small business, just sayin’.

Feed your brain (and someone else): Answer trivia that donates rice (yes, really.) 

Eat: Salmon cooked my favorite way, on a salt block. So dang good and easy! Oh, and it’s on sale, too!

Watch: Wi-Fi can track your pulse.

To celebrate 50 years of the iconic F-150, Ford launched something straight out of cowboy tech fantasy: a belt buckle that unlocks your truck. Yep, meet the Truckle, a $200 handmade buckle that secretly holds your key fob.

Each one is forged and engraved by hand, stamped with “1975” to honor the year the F-series became America’s best-selling ride. It’s part throwback, part smart tech and a full-on power move. 

Because let’s be real, who wouldn’t want to unlock their truck with a hip swivel?

It works with any Ford key fob from 2018 or newer. Walk up and your truck unlocks. Walk away, it locks. No pocket fumbling required. I love it.

📚 The answer: B) The first full book digitized on the internet. Yep, back in 1971, before you could Google your symptoms or binge-watch Hulu, a University of Illinois student named Michael Hart typed the entire Bible into a computer system. This kicked off what became Project Gutenberg, the first major effort to digitize and freely distribute books online. Yup, as far as going digital? The Bible was first in line.

One for the road: Top Biblical experts have reached the conclusion that Adam and Eve were Soviet citizens. They had no clothes, one apple between the two of them and they thought they were in paradise. (lol)

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The #1 free tech newsletter in the U.S. is wishing you a lovely Sunday. Tomorrow, kids’ books, AI illustrations, and zero art skills are required. I’m showing you how to go from “I have a story” to “published author” with no crayons, tears or talent tantrums necessary.

☕ Sprinkle a little awesome everywhere you go. Tomorrow? We do it again. — Kim

📣 Don’t keep me a secret: Send your friends to GetKim.com

Photo credit(s): ChatGPT, Oral-B, Ford

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This newsletter and its content are intended for informational purposes only. They are provided without warranty of any kind. You shouldn’t construe anything provided here as legal, health, medical, technical, tax, investment, financial or any other kind of advice.

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