As of 13:26 (UTC+7), 26 October 2026
Tech news for October 26, 2026: Apple’s foldable iPhone Duo is now in Apple Stores worldwide and is eSIM-only, with no physical SIM card support. A Northeastern University study found that smart TV tracking (ACR) opt-outs fully worked on only four of eight TV operating systems, and Moonshot AI says Kimi K3.1 Pro’s open weights will be released by November 4. Block also unveiled its Dessa voice AI, and PHP released 8.5.12, 8.4.27, 8.3.36 and 8.2.35 to fix two critical remote code execution flaws.
iPhone Duo hits Apple Stores worldwide as an eSIM-only phone with Dual eSIM and no SIM tray
What happened
Apple says iPhone Duo, its foldable iPhone, made its debut at Apple Store locations worldwide on Friday, 23 October 2026. In its launch announcement Apple listed a 5.4-inch outer display, the A20 Pro chip and iOS 27.
Apple’s spec page lists Dual eSIM, with two eSIMs active at once and eight or more stored, and says the phone does not support a physical SIM card.
Why it matters
For travellers, this is the detail to know before you buy. With no SIM tray, you cannot buy a local SIM card at the airport and pop it in. Local or travel data on the Duo has to come as an eSIM. If you are unsure what your current phone supports, our list of eSIM-compatible devices explains how to check, including whether your phone is unlocked.
Source: Apple Newsroom, 23 Oct; Apple Newsroom, 15 Oct; Apple iPhone Duo specs
Smart TV tracking study: ACR opt-out fully worked on only 4 of 8 TV systems, Northeastern finds
What happened
Researchers at Northeastern University published “Watching the Watchers”, a study of automatic content recognition (ACR): technology that captures audio or video snapshots of what is on screen. They tested 12 smart TVs running eight TV operating systems. They found that the ACR opt-out fully stopped ACR-related traffic on only four: LG’s webOS, Google TV on Sony, VIDAA OS and Fire TV OS.
According to Ars Technica, TVs running Samsung, Vizio and Roku systems kept sending data to ACR endpoints after users opted out. The researchers say most of this traffic is encrypted, so they cannot confirm what it contains.
Why it matters
The opt-out in the TV menu is the main privacy control most owners have. This research suggests that on some systems it may not do everything it appears to. If you own a smart TV, it is worth checking its privacy settings and following any response from the makers.
Source: Northeastern University study (project page and paper); Ars Technica, 21 Oct
Kimi K3.1 Pro: Moonshot AI’s 2.8T-parameter MoE model, open weights promised by Nov 4
What happened
Moonshot AI announced Kimi K3.1 Pro on 23 October. The company describes it as a mixture-of-experts model with 2.8 trillion total parameters (104 billion active) and a context window of 1 million tokens. It says the full model weights will be released by 4 November 2026.
On 25 October, Moonshot apologised to users for rate limits on the new model. It gave every subscriber a one-time reset that restores 25% of their monthly quota.
Why it matters
Once the weights are released, developers will be able to download and run the model themselves instead of only using Moonshot’s service. The apology also shows how quickly demand can outrun capacity when a new AI model launches. The next thing to watch is whether the weights arrive on schedule.
Source: Kimi (@Kimi_Moonshot) on X, 23 Oct; Kimi blog; Kimi on X, 25 Oct
Block Dessa: full-duplex speech-to-speech AI trained only on human conversation
What happened
Block unveiled Dessa on 23 October. It is a full-duplex speech-to-speech model, meaning it can listen and talk at the same time. Block says it was trained from scratch only on human conversation, with no text and no pretrained models. According to Block, Dessa runs locally on a MacBook Pro with an M4 Max chip or better.
It is not publicly available. Early access is going to a small group of AI safety researchers, and a waitlist is open.
Why it matters
Most voice assistants work with text somewhere along the way. A model built only from speech is a different approach, and running it on a laptop means it does not depend on a cloud service. For now, only a small group of safety researchers can try it.
Source: Block: Dessa; Block on X, 23 Oct
PHP 8.5.12, 8.4.27, 8.3.36 and 8.2.35 fix two critical remote code execution flaws
What happened
On 21 October the PHP project released PHP 8.5.12, 8.4.27, 8.3.36 and 8.2.35. The releases fix two critical vulnerabilities that can allow unauthenticated remote code execution, meaning an attacker could run code on a server without logging in. In a follow-up advisory on 23 October, PHP suggested setting session.upload_progress.enabled=0 until the next regular bugfix release.
Why it matters
PHP powers a huge number of websites, including every WordPress site. If you run a site, check that your host has updated PHP to one of these versions, or update it yourself. Then consider applying the suggested setting until the next release.
Source: PHP news archive; PHP security advisory GHSA-w8hw-w9fx-j79w
Frequently asked questions
Does the iPhone Duo have a SIM card slot?
No. Apple’s spec page says iPhone Duo does not support a physical SIM card. It uses Dual eSIM, with two active at once and eight or more stored, so local or travel data has to come as an eSIM.
Does turning off ACR stop smart TV tracking?
Not on every system. In the Northeastern University study, the opt-out fully stopped ACR-related traffic on only four of eight TV operating systems: webOS, Google TV on Sony, VIDAA OS and Fire TV OS. The researchers say they cannot confirm what the remaining encrypted traffic contains.
When will Kimi K3.1 Pro’s weights be released?
Moonshot AI says the full model weights will be released by 4 November 2026.
Which PHP versions fix the critical flaws?
PHP 8.5.12, 8.4.27, 8.3.36 and 8.2.35, released on 21 October 2026.
Sources checked on 26 October 2026 (UTC+7). Each story links to its official source or names the outlet that reported it.
TravelyData summarises public announcements and reports for general information. Product details and availability can change. Check the linked sources before you act.
