Tech news roundup for August 22, 2026 leads with Walmart finally confirming it will accept Apple Pay and Google Pay at its stores, with a phased rollout starting August 24.
Table of Contents
Also in today’s tech news roundup: Apple is trimming its Vision Pro and Siri teams, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2 has a release date, and Apple TV has a packed lineup of new shows arriving soon. Elsewhere, researchers used a buried fiber-optic cable to detect thunderstorm seismic waves, and Nvidia is backing a data center developer.
The TLDR
- Walmart & Mobile Pay: Apple Pay and Google Pay support begins at select Walmart and Sam’s Club stores on August 24, expanding chainwide by year’s end.
- Apple Layoffs: Apple cut more than 200 jobs from its Vision Pro and Siri teams, largely closing the Vision Pro gaming group as it reworks Siri’s AI.
- Apple TV Lineup: Dark Matter season 2, the film Mayday, and Slow Horses season 6 all hit Apple TV between August 28 and September 16.
- Thunderquake Science: A buried fiber-optic cable at Penn State picked up seismic waves from thunderstorms, offering a cheaper way to image what’s underground.
- Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2: The new Cyberpunk anime sequel premieres on Netflix October 20 with an entirely new cast.
- Nvidia & Data Centers: Nvidia is investing in data center developer Cloverleaf, reportedly for a minority stake worth hundreds of millions.
Tech & Apps
Walmart will finally accept Apple Pay and Google Pay
Walmart announced on August 21 that tap-to-pay support — including Apple Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Wallet, and contactless cards — is coming to select Walmart and Sam’s Club locations starting August 24, according to The Verge. The retailer plans to expand tap-to-pay to all its US stores and clubs by the end of 2026, with gas stations following in mid-2027. Walmart Pay and Scan & Go will still work alongside the new options, making this one of the standout items in this tech news roundup.
Apple cuts more than 200 jobs from Vision Pro and Siri teams
Apple laid off more than 200 employees across its Vision Pro and Siri divisions, according to Bloomberg reporting cited by The Verge on August 21. The cuts largely shut down the Vision Pro gaming team and reduced the group building immersive content, while also thinning Siri-related software staff as Apple reworks the assistant’s AI. Apple said the changes are part of evolving its business, that new roles will also be created, and that Vision Pro itself isn’t being discontinued.
Apple TV’s next few weeks are packed
9to5Mac rounded up three shows and films headed to Apple TV in the coming weeks: sci-fi thriller Dark Matter returns for season 2 on August 28, the Ryan Reynolds/Kenneth Branagh film Mayday arrives September 4, and spy drama Slow Horses starts its sixth season September 16, according to 9to5Mac. All three join Ted Lasso’s already-airing fourth season on the service.
A fiber-optic cable can now “hear” thunderstorms to map what’s underground
Researchers led by Penn State published a study in Science Advances on August 21 showing that a 2.5-mile fiber-optic telecom cable already buried under the university’s campus could detect the faint seismic waves — nicknamed “thunderquakes” — that thunderstorms send through the ground, Ars Technica reported. Using laser-based sensing on existing cable, rather than dedicated seismometers, could make it cheaper to image what’s underground in regions like the central and eastern US that don’t get many earthquakes.
Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2 gets an October release date
CD Projekt Red and Netflix revealed that Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2 — a new 10-episode anime series with an entirely new cast — will start streaming October 20, alongside a new trailer, Engadget reported. It’s produced again by Studio Trigger and follows a new group of edgerunners rather than continuing the story of the original series’ cast.
AI Tools
Nvidia backs data center developer Cloverleaf
Nvidia is investing in Cloverleaf, a company that helps line up power and site infrastructure for data centers, in a deal announced August 21, TechCrunch reported. Reports pegged the investment at several hundred million dollars for a minority stake, though neither company has confirmed exact terms. It’s the latest in a string of Nvidia bets on the power and infrastructure needed to keep AI data centers running.
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Tech News FAQs
What’s the biggest story in today’s tech news roundup?
Walmart confirmed it will finally accept Apple Pay and Google Pay, with tap-to-pay rolling out to select Walmart and Sam’s Club stores on August 24, 2026, and to all US locations by the end of the year.
How many Apple employees were laid off from the Vision Pro and Siri teams?
More than 200 employees were cut, according to Bloomberg reporting. The cuts largely shut down the Vision Pro gaming team and reduced the immersive-content team, while also thinning Siri-related software staff.
When does Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2 premiere?
Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2 starts streaming on Netflix on October 20, 2026. It’s a new 10-episode series with an entirely new cast, produced again by Studio Trigger.
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Originally published at gtwebs.com.
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