The 2026 Oscar race is heating up, and this year’s nominations have brought both historic milestones and a fiercely competitive field. Here’s what you need to know about the frontrunners, surprises, and standout achievements in this year’s Academy Awards.

🎬 ‘Sinners’ Makes History

Ryan Coogler’s Sinners is leading the pack with a record-breaking 16 Oscar nominations, more than any other film in history, including Titanic and La La Land. The film received nods in major categories such as Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor for Michael B. Jordan. Read more about ‘Sinners’.

🌟 Historic Individual Achievements

• Ruth E. Carter became the most-nominated Black woman in Oscar history with a nomination for Sinners in Costume Design. Learn more
• Emma Stone earned her seventh Oscar nomination for Bugonia, making her the youngest performer to reach this milestone at 37. See details

🏆 Best Picture Contenders

While Sinners leads in nominations, the Best Picture race includes multiple strong films:

• One Battle After Another – 13 nominations and strong awards season momentum. More info
• Marty Supreme – Major contender, especially for Timothée Chalamet in Best Actor. Check predictions
• Hamnet, Frankenstein, Sentimental Value, Bugonia – Also strong contenders throughout predictions. Read more

🎖️ Precursors & Predictions

Awards from critics groups and guilds have set the stage for the Oscars, often predicting momentum:

• Best Picture: Sinners, One Battle After Another, and Hamnet are frontrunners. Full predictions
• Best Actor: Timothée Chalamet (*Marty Supreme*) is leading, with strong competition from Leonardo DiCaprio and others. See odds
• Supporting Categories: Competitive fields may bring surprises. Variety predictions

📅 Dates & Viewing

The 98th Academy Awards will be held on March 15, 2026, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. Conan O’Brien is returning as host. The ceremony will air on ABC and stream on Hulu. Learn more.

🔍 Key Takeaways

• Sinners leads the race with historic nominations.
• Best Picture and acting races remain highly competitive.
• Historic milestones for Ruth E. Carter and Emma Stone highlight the season.
• Keep an eye on precursor awards and critics’ picks—they often indicate the likely winners.

Stay tuned to STM Daily News for live Oscar updates, winner announcements, and expert analysis as the 2026 Academy Awards approach.

LUMISTAR wrapped up its CES 2026 debut in Las Vegas with record-level attention, as live demos of its AI-powered sports training systems consistently drew full crowds throughout the show, according to the company.

The sports-focused AI brand showcased TERO, its AI tennis training system, and CARRY, its AI basketball training system—both described by attendees as “game changers” for how training can be delivered, measured, and scaled.

Why the Booth Stayed Packed

Across multiple days of hands-on demonstrations, LUMISTAR’s booth became a focal point for athletes, coaches, club operators, and sports technology professionals. Visitors repeatedly pointed to one key difference: the systems don’t just record results—they actively participate in training.

That’s a major break from the standard model in sports tech, where:

• traditional ball machines run pre-set drills, and
• wearables/video tools analyze performance after a session ends.

Training That Adapts in Real Time

LUMISTAR says both TERO and CARRY combine real-time computer vision, adaptive decision-making, and on-court execution to respond instantly to athlete behavior—adjusting difficulty, tempo, and training logic shot by shot.

Attendees noted that this turns practice from repetition into something closer to competition—an evolving back-and-forth between athlete and system.

“This is not an incremental improvement—it’s a complete rethink of what training equipment should do,” one professional coach attending CES said in the release. “For the first time, the machine is reacting to the athlete, not the other way around.”

From Data Collection to Action

Another standout point from CES feedback: the platform’s focus on turning performance data into immediate training outcomes.

LUMISTAR’s approach emphasizes:

• continuous data retention across sessions
• real-time performance interpretation
• clear visualization of progress and training efficiency

Coaches and athletes highlighted that this could reduce wasted training time and accelerate skill development by making each session measurable and comparable.

What’s Next: Pre-Orders and Kickstarter

LUMISTAR outlined a 2026 rollout plan following CES:

• TERO opens for pre-orders in March 2026, with full market availability beginning May 2026
• CARRY launches via Kickstarter in Q2 2026
• The company will continue private demonstrations and pilot programs with select training institutions worldwide ahead of commercial release

More information is available at https://www.lumistar.ai.

Source: PRNewswire press release from LUMISTAR (Jan. 11, 2026)

STM Daily News is tracking the biggest CES 2026 stories shaping entertainment, culture, and the tech that’s changing how we watch, play, train, and live—bringing you quick-hit updates, standout product debuts, and follow-up coverage as launches roll out in 2026. https://stmdailynews.com/entertainment/

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Last Updated on January 21, 2026 by Daily News Staff

Smart Gaming: How Parents Can Keep Kids Safe Online

(Family Features) Playing video games can be a fun, social experience. However, online gaming also poses real risks, especially for kids. As a parent, you don’t necessarily need to be a gamer yourself to help keep your children safe when the controller is in their hands.

Consider taking proactive steps like these to create a healthy online gaming environment for kids of all ages.

Check System Privacy Settings
As a first line of defense – before your child even starts gaming – spend some time in the device or console privacy settings. Here you can turn off sharing, disable location tracking, limit microphone and camera access and restrict how other users can interact with your child’s profile. Similarly, many games and platforms include built-in privacy settings that can be tailored to your child’s age and online experience. These settings may allow you to limit who can view your child’s profile or send a friend request, message or voice chat.

Research Games
Because not all games are created equal, look up game ratings through a service such as ESRB before buying or downloading to understand the maturity level of the game and determine if it’s appropriate for your child. To take it a step further, read reviews from other parents or watch gameplay videos to see if you deem not only the content but also the social interaction acceptable.

Use Facial Age Estimation
Online platforms are increasingly looking for ways to keep users safe, and that includes added levels of verification. As part of a multilayered approach to safety, Roblox is the first online gaming platform to require age checks for users of all ages to access chat features, enabling age-appropriate communication and limiting conversations between adults and minors. These secure age checks are designed to be fast, easy and secure using Facial Age Estimation technology directly within the app.

“Our commitment to safety is rooted in delivering the highest level of protection for our users,” said Matt Kaufman, chief safety officer at Roblox. “By building proactive, age-based barriers, we can empower users to create and connect in ways that are both safe and appropriate.”

Once age-checked, users are assigned to one of six age groups: under 9, 9-12, 13-15, 16-17, 18-20 or 21 and older, ensuring conversations are safe and age appropriate. Age checks are optional; however, features like chat will not be accessible unless an age check is completed. Chat is also turned off by default for children under age 9, unless a parent provides consent after an age check.

Keep Personal Information Private
It’s seldom a bad idea to be extra cautious when interacting with strangers online, even if they seem friendly enough while playing the game. Teach children what information not to share, including their full name, address, birthday, school name, phone number, email address, passwords or any photos that may contain any personal information (like a house number or school logo) in the background. Also encourage a screen name and generic avatar for added privacy.

Turn on Parental Controls
Designed to allow parents a supervisory role in their child’s online gaming experience, parental controls on many platforms include the ability to set schedules and limit playtime, restrict access to certain content or social features, require a password for purchases or set a spending limit.

Avoid Clicking Unfamiliar Links
Player profiles and in-game chats may include links to external sites, including those promising rewards or cheat codes. Because they can be used to gain access to personal information, remind your children to ask an adult before clicking any unfamiliar links while gaming so they can be verified as trustworthy.

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Employ Privacy and Security Tools
While system or console-specific settings allow parents to set content restrictions, approve downloads, manage friends lists and more, additional layers of security are sometimes necessary. Extra safeguards such as antivirus and internet security software, DNS (domain name system) filtering and two-factor authentication can also be enabled to help keep kids safe online.

For more tools to help parents make informed decisions and support their children’s gaming experience, visit corp.roblox.com/safety.

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock (father and daughter playing video game)

SOURCE:
Roblox

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