Even 60 years after the US and Russia put the first humans into space, new spins on those sorts of missions can still grab our attention and fire our imagination. That’s happened twice now in just the last few weeks, first with the flight to the edge of space by Richard Branson and his Virgin Galactic crew, followed by Jeff Bezos and Blue Origin‘s brief fling with weightlessness.

But were these just joyrides, or is there a bigger purpose behind the rocket launches and the safe, swift return to Earth? That’s something these ventures will have to prove in the coming months, as will fellow space enthusiast Elon Musk and his various SpaceX undertakings. We dive into that here.

Those are among the many in-depth features and thought-provoking commentaries that appeared on CNET this week. So here you go. These are the stories you don’t want to miss:

Bezos called it “the first step of something big.”

Blue Origin

Commentary: Do we really want the likes of SpaceX and Blue Origin authoring our future in space?

Blue Origin

In an exclusive interview ahead of Nothing’s first product launch, OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei talks about his new venture and the Ear 1 earbuds.

Nothing

The newly appointed antitrust regulator has Silicon Valley in her sights.

Getty Images

This addictive kid’s cartoon symbolizes the dilemma of screens in the pandemic era.

Matthew Knight/Getty

The actor and tech entrepreneur shares his thoughts on the dilemma behind some of the ugly online discourse, and how a simple addition could make a big impact.

Richard Peterson/CNET

Nintendo’s history makes a Switch Pro seem unlikely.

Nintendo

We left with jaws dropped and expectations high.

Chiabella James

Activists and researchers found the Israeli company’s software targeting the smartphones of activists, journalists and executives.

Angela Lang/CNET