Morning Brief

1. Tianya Community Announces Its Return
2. Discord will enable Youth Mode by default for all accounts.
3. Linux Kernel 6.19 Official Release
4. Intel Abandons Hardware-Based Paid Unlock Model
5. WeChat Platform Launches Pilot Program for Graded Classification of Staged Content
6. EU Warns Meta That Blocking Third-Party AI Assistants May Constitute Monopoly Practices
7. Apple Swift Student Challenge Opens for Applications
8. Inter-Ministerial Office for Coordinated Regulation of New Transportation Business Models Summons Amap Ride-Hailing
9. Rumors You Can Just Glance At

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Tianya Community Announces Its Return

According to an announcement released on February 6 by the WeChat public account “Tianya Guest,” Tianya Community has announced that it will relaunch after being shut down for nearly three years, with plans to restore access on June 1. The announcement stated that liquidity difficulties led Tianya Community to suspend access starting April 1, 2023, due to unpaid telecom IDC fees, putting Tianya’s data at risk of permanent loss. In 2024, a new investment entity, “Chengdu Tianya Guest Network Technology Co., Ltd.,” was established specifically for this purpose and has become the core force behind the platform’s relaunch and the construction of the new Tianya. The company has already invested millions of yuan to support the preservation of Tianya Community’s data. With the consent of Tianya Community Co., it has also launched the “New Tianya Founding Members Product Service Package,” recruiting 9,999 founding members to become co-builders of the new Tianya and participants in the platform’s revival. The service package includes a Tianya Relauncher digital badge, a Tianya Guest premium membership gift box, 10 years of free access to the official Tianya Classic Threads paid section, Tianya Metaspace, preferential discounts for a 10-year Tianya Guest premium membership, and 1,999 Tianya Gold Beans. The package is limited to 9,999 units and priced at RMB 1,999 per unit, with all proceeds to be used for data preservation, restoration of access, and the implementation of subsequent New Tianya plans. Source

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Discord will enable Youth Mode by default for all accounts.

On February 9, Discord announced that it will strengthen protections for teenagers worldwide. Starting in March, Discord will gradually roll out age verification processes for both new and existing users, including methods such as on-device video-based age estimation. Users who do not complete adult age verification will have Minor Mode enabled by default. This mode includes restrictions on accessing age-restricted channels and content, filtering one-on-one direct messages from strangers, warnings for friend requests from unknown users, and disabling speaking privileges in Stage channels. At the same time, Discord will recruit a Discord Teen Council, working with 10 to 12 teenagers to discuss future features and improve the experience for younger users. Source

It is worth noting that these measures quickly sparked dissatisfaction within the gaming community. In October last year, an age verification service provider partnered with Discord suffered a data breach, during which hackers stole identity document information belonging to more than 70,000 users in the United Kingdom and Australia. Source

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Linux Kernel 6.19 Official Release

Linus Torvalds recently announced the official release of Linux Kernel 6.19, while also opening the merge window for Linux Kernel 7.0—meaning Linux Kernel 6.19 is the final release in the Linux Kernel 6.x series. This update brings changes across multiple areas of the kernel, including low-level security architecture, network protocols, file systems, and the graphics pipeline.

On the security side, additions include linear address space isolation, PCIe link encryption and authentication, Arm MPAM, and user-space UML multiprocessor support. In terms of hardware support, the kernel adds native management support for USB-C ports on Apple Macs powered by M-series chips, early support for Intel Nova Lake desktop and mobile processors as well as Intel Xe3-LPG GPUs, official support for the LoongArch32 sub-architecture, new support for the Logitech G13 gaming keypad and the G PRO X Superlight 2 receiver, and GPU support for Adreno 612 and Mali-G1. For users of Linux distributions, these updates will arrive once maintainers complete their adaptations. Advanced users can also choose to compile the new kernel themselves. Source

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Intel Abandons Hardware-Based Paid Unlock Model

Recently, some media outlets noticed that Intel’s SDSi GitHub project has been archived, indicating that the feature has been officially abandoned. Related pages have also been removed from Intel’s official website, with only a few older PDF documents still accessible. In 2021, Intel introduced a feature called Software Defined Silicon (SDSi), which was designed to activate additional licensed hardware capabilities. Subsequently, development and support for Software Defined Silicon continued and was eventually released under the name Intel On Demand. Its core concept was that users could pay to unlock additional accelerator features that were already integrated into certain processor models but disabled by default, primarily targeting Xeon processors. From the moment it was introduced, this model drew widespread criticism, and Intel has since refrained from publicly discussing On Demand–related updates. Source

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WeChat Platform Launches Pilot Program for Graded Classification of Staged Content

On February 9, WeChat Coral Security released a phased governance announcement regarding staged and misleading videos, stating that the platform has launched a pilot program for the graded and categorized management of staged content that is not labeled as “scripted dramatization.” As part of this effort, supplementary labeling prompts have been added to more than 30,000 existing videos. The scope of this governance initiative primarily covers life tips, safety knowledge (such as anti-fraud demonstrations), as well as fictional story scenarios involving comedy, emotional themes, and workplace settings. At the same time, the platform has officially implemented a graded classification and labeling system for “scripted dramatization,” proactively reminding more than 50,000 creators to standardize their labeling practices and improve content transparency. Source

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EU Warns Meta That Blocking Third-Party AI Assistants May Constitute Monopoly Practices

On February 9, the European Commission announced that it has sent a statement of objections to Meta. The statement指出 that Meta’s practice of blocking third-party AI assistants on WhatsApp—allowing only Meta AI—violates EU antitrust regulations. The Commission indicated that it may adopt interim measures to prevent the blocking from causing serious harm to the market, while still respecting Meta’s right to respond and defend itself. On October 15, 2025, Meta updated the terms of WhatsApp Business Solutions to completely ban third-party general-purpose AI assistants from the app. By January 15, 2026, the only AI assistant available on WhatsApp will be Meta’s own Meta AI. Source

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Apple Swift Student Challenge Opens for Applications

The Swift Student Challenge opened for applications on February 6, with a submission deadline of February 28, Pacific Time. The competition is open to students who are developing software development skills. Participants from mainland China must be aged 14 or above, be registered with Apple as a free Apple Developer or be a member of the Apple Developer Program, and meet one of the following requirements:

• Currently enrolled in, or having graduated within the past 90 days from, a recognized academic institution, an equivalent accredited homeschool, or an Apple Developer Academy;
• Currently enrolled in an educational program of a STEM organization; or
• Graduated from high school or an equivalent institution within the past six months and either awaiting admission to, or already admitted by, a recognized academic institution.

Participants are required to submit an App Playground that can be experienced within three minutes. For more details, see the source. Source

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Inter-Ministerial Office for Coordinated Regulation of New Transportation Business Models Summons Amap Ride-Hailing

On February 9, the Ministry of Transport announced that the Inter-Ministerial Joint Conference Office for Coordinated Regulation of New Transportation Business Models has organized a regulatory meeting with Amap Ride-Hailing. The meeting pointed out issues including inadequate management of partner ride-hailing platforms, fare suppression, and improper emergency response. The office required Amap Ride-Hailing to strengthen supervision and management of partner platforms, standardize platform operations, safeguard drivers’ legitimate rights and interests, enhance operational safety oversight, and improve care and support for drivers. Source

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Rumors You Can Just Glance At

• Earlier this month on the 5th, the DRM-free digital game distribution platform GOG held an AMA (“Ask Me Anything”) session on Reddit, responding to a series of questions from forum users. GOG’s current owner, Michał Kiciński (@Worth_Technology_415), officially confirmed information previously revealed in a job listing: GOG is hiring a senior engineer to help develop first-party native Linux support. The Linux support project is already underway and is expected to eventually launch on the platform. At the same time, GOG is porting games on its Dreamlist that previously supported only console platforms to PC, further improving its first-party launcher GOG Galaxy, and increasing transparency around game release plans on the GOG platform. Source
• Microsoft has issued further clarification regarding the recent official deprecation of legacy-architecture V3/V4 printer drivers in Windows 11. Printers using V3/V4 drivers will not stop working. For many years, Microsoft has been gradually discontinuing support for third-party V3/V4 drivers. After January 15, 2026, Microsoft will no longer distribute new V3/V4-based printer drivers via Windows Update for Windows 11 and later versions, as well as Windows Server 2025 and later. In other words, printers will continue to function normally if users manually install manufacturer-provided V3 or V4 drivers, but any security risks involved will be borne by the users themselves. Source
• The LibreOffice development organization, The Document Foundation (TDF), has once again published a statement criticizing Microsoft’s OOXML format as being designed entirely around Microsoft’s commercial interests. The organization argues that the specification is lengthy and complex, that Microsoft itself does not strictly adhere to its own standard in its products, and that the format is neither open nor neutral. Source
• Related reading: Is Microsoft deliberately undermining competition through Office file formats? | SSPAI Member π+Prime
• Image-sharing community Flickr has confirmed that, following an attack on email service Substack on February 5, Flickr experienced a data breach of undisclosed scope. Affected users may have had information such as names, usernames, email addresses, account IPs, and common locations exposed via phishing emails, but passwords and financial information were not involved. Flickr has advised users to remain vigilant against phishing emails. Source
• CNBC reports that companies including Microsoft and Google have offered as much as USD 400,000 to 600,000 in attempts to secure long-term promotional partnerships with social media creators for AI tools, but many creators declined due to strong audience backlash. Source
• YouTube Music has begun placing lyrics behind its Premium subscription, with non-subscribers able to view lyrics for only five songs. Source
• Ferrari has unveiled the interior and human–machine interface design of its first electric sports car, Luce. The design was created by Jony Ive, Marc Newson, and design firm LoveFrom. The interior does not rely on an all-touchscreen approach, instead retaining a large number of physical controls for ease of operation. Source