Friday, April 30, 2021

Ahead of the Epic vs. Apple trial, which starts on Monday, a look at what is at stake, how the trial will work, key witnesses who will testify, and more (David Pierce/Protocol)

David Pierce / Protocol:
Ahead of the Epic vs. Apple trial, which starts on Monday, a look at what is at stake, how the trial will work, key witnesses who will testify, and more  —  On Monday, Apple and Epic Games will meet in court to decide one of the most consequential antitrust arguments in the history of the tech industry.



Why virtual desktop infrastructure has taken off during the pandemic

Over the past several months, we have brought to you stories about the massive movement of companies to the public cloud following the pandemic. When vast numbers of employees and customers needed to suddenly be serviced remotely, the public cloud seemed to be the way to go, given its scalability and agility. https://ift.tt/3t9EFWg

Indian developers rushing to learn quantum applications

In quantum computing, the hardware steals the thunder because it is super cool physics. But the software developer community has also quietly made significant strides in building impressive stacks of open source quantum software. https://ift.tt/3nCCnxP

EU Court to Rule May 12 on Amazon Appeal of Order to Pay EUR 250 Million

Europe's second-highest court will rule on May 12 on Amazon's appeal of an EU order to pay about EUR 250 million (roughly Rs. 2,230 crores) in back taxes to Luxembourg. https://ift.tt/3t3WK8d

Highlight Text in Your Videos in Just a Couple of Steps

Premiere Pro how to highlight text in your videos: Highlighting text in your videos when you are showcasing a screenshot or an image can grab your viewers' attention. https://ift.tt/33i612l

SpaceX Asked by NASA to Halt Lunar Lander Work Pending Contract Challenges

NASA has told Elon Musk's SpaceX to halt work under a contract it won to develop a lunar spacecraft, pending the outcome of challenges by rival bidders at the US Government Accountability Office, the... https://ift.tt/3e4ZwWK

Moto G40 Fusion to Go on Sale in India Today: All the Details

Moto G40 Fusion is set to go on sale in India today via Flipkart at 12pm (noon). The Motorola phone comes with a 120Hz display and a Qualcomm Snapdragon 732G SoC. https://ift.tt/3t5A2wx

CA appellate court rules Amazon is responsible for the safety of third-party products it sells, rejecting Amazon's claim of merely connecting buyers and sellers (David Lazarus/Los Angeles Times)

David Lazarus / Los Angeles Times:
CA appellate court rules Amazon is responsible for the safety of third-party products it sells, rejecting Amazon's claim of merely connecting buyers and sellers  —  Should Amazon, which accounts for roughly half of all online sales, be legally and financially responsible for the safety …



Gauri Puri: medical doctor to BPM leader

At an age when children would shudder at the sight of blood, 10-year-old Gauri Puri would remain calm. When her friend fell and hurt his leg badly, Gauri promptly cleaned his wound and stopped the bleeding before taking him back to school. https://ift.tt/3e8Nmfr

How India is building products for the world, without travel

The Indian IT services business has required employees to travel overseas, and even live there for extended periods – to understand client requirements, and to implement projects. Now, India is also building products for the world’s consumers. The Mercedes-Benz R&D centre in India creates features for its cars that are used by its buyers globally. The Walmart centre here builds platforms that are improving the buying experience for US and Mexican consumers. Goldman Sachs’s facility here has played a central role in building its new consumer digital bank Marcus. https://ift.tt/3xFTGTx

These two young entrepreneurs have great stories to tell

We had two young, utterly fascinating entrepreneurs – Dhruv Agrawal and Anupama Engineer – on our webinar last week. Both are building deep tech ventures in healthcare. We would urge you to listen to the webinar on the Times Techies Facebook page if you want to be a deep tech entrepreneur. https://ift.tt/3xFVpYG

Bosch's India engineers are revolutionising cars globally

The age of the traditional car is over. The car is getting digital, connected, and intelligent. And Robert Bosch's India engineers – about 20,000 of them – are playing a central role in developing this rolling smart device for the world. https://ift.tt/2PCUnvt

Sibanjan's books feature in several varsity libraries

As an eighth-grader, Sibanjan Das repaired a computer in the electrical department in Baripada, Odisha, and was given Rs 50 in appreciation. “I remember going there in my school uniform. But once I was home, my father rode me back on his scooter and told me to return the money. I got a good scolding for accepting it in the first place,” laughs Sibanjan. https://ift.tt/3nBW60E

Facebook to roll out vaccine finder tool in India

The social media giant had, earlier this week, announced a $10 million grant for emergency response efforts for Covid-19 situation in the country https://ift.tt/2QMfvjp

TikTok names ByteDance CFO Shouzi Chew as new CEO

Chew, who is based in Singapore and was named CFO of TikTok parent company ByteDance in March this year, will continue in that role https://ift.tt/2PI8TSS

Jio Braves COVID-19 Challenges to Post 47.5 Percent Net Profit Jump in Q4

Reliance Jio has recorded a 47.5 percent YoY net profit in Q4 2021, recording a jump to Rs. 3,508 crores. The company said in a statement that despite COVID-19 related challenged, Jio closed its first... https://ift.tt/3e58R0H

China says 33 apps, including apps made by Baidu and Tencent, violate rules in gathering personal information, which must be rectified within 10 working days (Bloomberg)

Bloomberg:
China says 33 apps, including apps made by Baidu and Tencent, violate rules in gathering personal information, which must be rectified within 10 working days  —  - Violators include software provided by Baidu and Tencent  —  China said thirty-three applications, including map navigation software provided …



ICICI Bank shares tips to stay financially safe and secure during the pandemic

Covid-19 pandemic has hit us all very hard. It has become important more than ever to take necessary precautions in order to ensure the safety of our families. While taking care of physical health, one also needs to be financially sound. ICICI Bank has shared a checklist that can help one stay safe and secure during the pandemic. https://ift.tt/3aRcdCm

These are the top 10 smartphone brands in the world

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Watching Trees to Understand Climate Change

SeasonWatch is a citizen science project aimed at understanding the seasonality of trees, and the effects of climate change on this seasonality, across India. Students from more than 1200 schools and... https://ift.tt/3nK1lM0

IDC: global tablet shipments grew 55.2% YoY, most since 2013, to reach 39.9M units in Q1; Apple led with 12.7M shipments, up 64.3% YoY; Samsung 8M, up 60.8% YoY (Mike Peterson/AppleInsider)

Mike Peterson / AppleInsider:
IDC: global tablet shipments grew 55.2% YoY, most since 2013, to reach 39.9M units in Q1; Apple led with 12.7M shipments, up 64.3% YoY; Samsung 8M, up 60.8% YoY  —  Apple's iPad retained the dominant share of the tablet industry in the first quarter of 2021 as the product segment grew more than 50% year-over-year.



Thursday, April 29, 2021

IBM to Acquire Software Provider Turbonomic for Over $1.5 Billion

IBM said it has agreed to acquire Turbonomic, a provider of software that helps companies monitor the performance of their business applications, the latest in a series of cloud computing acquisitions... https://ift.tt/3nylgxf

Microsoft to Take Smaller Cut From Video Game Developers: Report

Microsoft will cut its charges for video game developers who publish games in its online store, starting August, the New York Times reported. https://ift.tt/3e5axal

Experts detail how Apple AirTags can be used by an abuser to discreetly track a partner despite built-in protections, especially when victims are not iOS users (Mark Wilson/Fast Company)

Mark Wilson / Fast Company:
Experts detail how Apple AirTags can be used by an abuser to discreetly track a partner despite built-in protections, especially when victims are not iOS users  —  AirTags are powerful surveillance technology.  And the National Network to End Domestic Violence believes Apple has more work to do to fix them.



Google Meet and Google Chat may come pre-installed on future Chrome OS devices

Android apps of both Google Chat and Google Meet are already available on the Play Store and can easily be downloaded. With the latest move, Google is said opting to install the web apps onto Chrome OS to help prevent storage bloat. https://ift.tt/3u4P4UA

Audio-only Live feature is Instagram’s answer to Clubhouse

Through its official Twitter account, the company announced that it is adding the support to allow users to mute their audio or video when they are hosting a Live. Instagram spokesperson said that this support will provide the “hosts more flexibility during their livestream experiences, as they can decrease the pressure to look or sound a certain way while broadcasting live,” which is similar to the functionality Clubhouse offers. https://ift.tt/3aQovLb

NASA Postpones Mars Ingenuity Helicopter's Fourth Flight

NASA's Mars Ingenuity helicopter missed its fourth scheduled flight on Thursday, with the space agency blaming a software glitch and vowing to try again the next day. https://ift.tt/3aTcF3c

Twitter Warns of Rising Costs, Slow User Growth as Pandemic Boost Fizzles

Twitter posted revenues and user numbers mostly in line with analyst estimates in stark contrast to the better performing digital ad firms like Facebook and Alphabet. https://ift.tt/3aQnz9S

Apple iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Mini Purple colour variants; Apple AirTag goes on sale in India: Price, specs and more

Last week Apple unveiled various products at its Spring Loaded event. The company introduced new iPads, Apple TV, Macs and more. Along with this, the event also saw the launch of the company's most affordable device AirTag and a new Purple colour variant of iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini. All these three devices are up for grabs in India today. https://ift.tt/3gMoNXv

US government probes VPN hack within federal agencies, races to find clues

The new government breaches involve a popular virtual private network (VPN) known as Pulse Connect Secure, which hackers were able to break into as customers used it. https://ift.tt/3vAz0dL

US will launch $3.2 billion temporary broadband subsidy on May 12

The FCC said on Thursday it had approved 747 companies, including AT&T Inc, Verizon Communications Inc, T-Mobile Inc and Comcast Corp - to participate. https://ift.tt/3nwm8T6

Blocking Google class action would deny justice, UK court told

Blocking a proposed British class action against Google, that alleges it secretly tracked millions of iPhone users a decade ago, risks allowing big firms to behave with impunity, a lawyer told the Supreme Court. https://ift.tt/3eNUdKy

Facebook to pay $5 million to local journalists in newsletter push

Facebook Inc said it will give $5 million to pay local journalists in multi-year deals as part of its new publishing platform to help independent writers attract an audience and make money through the social media network. https://ift.tt/3e55YNf

Microsoft to take smaller cut from video game developers: Report

The move comes at a time when Apple Inc is battling a lawsuit filed last year by Fortnite creator Epic Games alleging that the iPhone maker has abused its dominance in the market for mobile apps. https://ift.tt/3vu3duT

Amazon reports its biggest profit ever as shoppers rely on online platforms during pandemic

Amazon.com Inc on Thursday reported its biggest profit ever as consumers turned to the online retailer for their shopping needs and businesses paid it more to warehouse and advertise their products. https://ift.tt/3aQjgLv

Flipkart daily trivia quiz April 30, 2021: Get answers to these five questions to win gifts and discount vouchers

Only the first 50,000 participants will be eligible for the quiz prize. https://ift.tt/3eGyDY3

Amazon app quiz April 30, 2021: Get answers to these five questions to win Rs 20,000 in Amazon Pay balance

Results of today’s quiz will be announced on May 1. https://ift.tt/3u6q67r

Amazon Expects Sales Windfall as US Economy Reopens, Posts Record Profits

Amazon, one of the biggest winners of the pandemic, posted record profits and signalled that consumers would keep spending in a growing US economy and converts to online shopping are not likely to... https://ift.tt/2SgFRKY

Why Apple has chips for iPhones while Ford got caught short

Automakers and their suppliers, with "just-in-time" production lines that can more easily be spun up or changed to produce different varieties of parts, have not. Apple said Wednesday that it would lose $3 billion to $4 billion in sales in the current quarter due to limited supplies of certain older chips. https://ift.tt/3e1EFnc

Top 10 tech companies to work for in India

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Google saved over $1 billion with employees working from home, claims report

According to a report by Bloomberg, during the first quarter, Google parent company Alphabet saved $268 million in expenses “primarily as a result of COVID-19” compared to the same period a year earlier. This money is otherwise spent on promotions, travel and entertainment. https://ift.tt/2RcDpV6

Plus One Robotics, which makes computer vision software for robotics in logistics and warehouse settings, raises $33M Series B, bringing total raised to $40M+ (Brian Heater/TechCrunch)

Brian Heater / TechCrunch:
Plus One Robotics, which makes computer vision software for robotics in logistics and warehouse settings, raises $33M Series B, bringing total raised to $40M+  —  San Antonio-based Plus One Robotics today announced a $33 million Series B. The round follows an $8.3 million Series A announced …



Combined revenue of Amazon, Apple, Alphabet, Microsoft, and Facebook hit ~$1.2T this year, up 25% since March 2020, benefitting from a "perfect positive storm" (Shira Ovide/New York Times)

Shira Ovide / New York Times:
Combined revenue of Amazon, Apple, Alphabet, Microsoft, and Facebook hit ~$1.2T this year, up 25% since March 2020, benefitting from a “perfect positive storm”  —  The dictionary doesn't have enough superlatives to describe what's happening to the five biggest technology companies …



Telecom Italia looking to drop Huawei from Italy 5G network: Sources

Losing 5G work from Telecom Italia, one of Huawei's biggest clients in Europe, would be a blow to the Chinese technology giant, which has already lost some business to rivals Nokia and Ericsson. https://ift.tt/330AQs3

Wednesday, April 28, 2021

Samsung sees chip profits up, mobile sales down in Q2 on chip shortage

Samsung Electronics Co Ltd said it expects chip profits to increase but mobile profits to drop in the current quarter, as a global chip shortage affects its businesses in different ways. https://ift.tt/3eIDDLO

EBay forecasts profit below estimates on stiff competition, shares fall

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Watch the Trailer for Pixar's Luca, Out in June

Pixar's Luca gets a new trailer. Luca release date is June 18 on Disney+ and Disney+ Hotstar. Jacob Tremblay and Jack Dylan Grazer lead Luca voice cast. Enrico Casarosa directs. https://ift.tt/3vrFGuv

Vivo V21 5G to Launch in India Today: How to Watch Livestream

Vivo V21 5G is all set to launch in India today. The phone was unveiled in Malaysia just two days ago and now it is set to arrive to the Indian market. The launch event in India will be livestreamed... https://ift.tt/3t5c44u

Facebook Blocks #ResignModi Posts for Hours 'By Mistake'

Facebook blocked posts tagged #ResignModi before restoring them hours later, stoking a controversy that's erupted over government requests to remove social media content as India grapples with an... https://ift.tt/3gLmt2X

Apple Rides 5G iPhone Demand to Soar Past Sales, Profit Targets

Apple posted sales and profits ahead of Wall Street expectations fuelled by 5G iPhone upgrades but warned a global chip shortage could dent iPad and Mac sales by several billion dollars. https://ift.tt/2SeTkD1

After 526 days of its initial launch, Google finally gives users a way to search through Stadia's 172 games available on the service (Chaim Gartenberg/The Verge)

Chaim Gartenberg / The Verge:
After 526 days of its initial launch, Google finally gives users a way to search through Stadia's 172 games available on the service  —  If only Google knew anyone with experience building search engines  —  Stadia is an online game streaming service from Google, a company …



Google battles landmark UK class action over alleged iPhone tracking

The case, brought on behalf of more than four million Apple iPhone users, hinges on whether Google breached its duties as a data controller by clandestinely collecting browser-generated data and then offering it to advertisers in 2011 and 2012 https://ift.tt/2R3BLFo

Amazon is most desirable workplace in US: LinkedIn

Based on the company's ability to attract, develop and retain talent, Microsoft-owned professional networking platform LinkedIn on Wednesday named Amazon as the most desirable workplace in the US for 2021. https://ift.tt/3u6pKxx

Amazon app quiz April 29, 2021: Get answers to these five questions and win LG washing machine for free

Results of today’s quiz will be announced on April 30. https://ift.tt/3nvlmFO

Zomato files for $1.11 billion IPO as food delivery surges in pandemic

In February, the company raised $250 million from five investors including hedge fund Tiger Global Management for a post-money valuation of $5.4 billion. https://ift.tt/330A7XI

Flipkart daily trivia quiz April 29, 2021: Get answers to these five questions to win gifts and discount vouchers

Only the first 50,000 participants will be eligible for the quiz prize. https://ift.tt/2PA4mlm

Airtel CEO has a 'warning’ for mobile phone users

Vittal affirmed the company's commitment to the safety and convenience of its customers, through contactless home delivery of SIMs and online payments. In the letter, he also highlighted security-related measures taken by the company amid a "massive increase in cyber frauds". https://ift.tt/2QEUkjo

Vivo V21 5G to launch in India today at 12 pm: How to watch live stream

Vivo V21 5G will be launched at 12pm today. The smartphone will offer a 44MP OIS front camera. https://ift.tt/2R9HmtW

Super, an Indonesian hyperlocal social commerce startup, raises $28M Series B led by SoftBank Ventures Asia, bringing its total raised to $36M+ (Catherine Shu/TechCrunch)

Catherine Shu / TechCrunch:
Super, an Indonesian hyperlocal social commerce startup, raises $28M Series B led by SoftBank Ventures Asia, bringing its total raised to $36M+  —  In Indonesia, daily necessities often cost more in smaller cities and rural areas.  Super co-founder and chief executive officer Steven Wongsoredjo …



Cryptocurrency derivatives exchange GlobeDX raises $18M seed from investors including Y Combinator, Pantera Capital, and Draper Dragon (NewsBTC)

NewsBTC:
Cryptocurrency derivatives exchange GlobeDX raises $18M seed from investors including Y Combinator, Pantera Capital, and Draper Dragon  —  Up-and-coming derivatives exchange GlobeDEX - or Globe as it's simply known - h as closed a private round worth $18 million.



Apple to replace these iPhone users’ battery for free: All the details

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Google is adding three new features to Google Assistant

Internet search giant Google has announced a series of new updates to its voice-based assistant. The company has announced that users will soon not only be able to teach Google Assistant how to recognise names, but also have accurate and contextual conversations. https://ift.tt/3aKJAqE

This is the most ‘popular’ iPhone model, says Apple CEO Tim Cook

From the iPhone, Apple earned about $47.9 billion — up almost 65% compared to last yeah when iPhone revenue was $28.96 billion. https://ift.tt/3vyBuJH

ElasticRun, which helps neighborhood stores in India secure capital and boost sales by working with e-commerce firms, raises $75M Series D (Manish Singh/TechCrunch)

Manish Singh / TechCrunch:
ElasticRun, which helps neighborhood stores in India secure capital and boost sales by working with e-commerce firms, raises $75M Series D  —  A startup that is helping over 125,000 neighborhood stores in India secure working capital, inventory from top brands, and work with e-commerce firms …



Google battles class action over alleged iPhone tracking

A proposed multi-billion pound British class action against Google, which alleges the internet giant secretly tracked millions of iPhone users, is not viable and should not be allowed to proceed, the Supreme Court was told on Wednesday. https://ift.tt/3e0FpZL

Tim Cook says supply shortages will likely impact the Mac and iPad lineups in Q3 due to "legacy node" chip production that uses older manufacturing methods (Chance Miller/9to5Mac)

Chance Miller / 9to5Mac:
Tim Cook says supply shortages will likely impact the Mac and iPad lineups in Q3 due to “legacy node” chip production that uses older manufacturing methods  —  Apple just reported record earnings for Q2 2021, but the company is also warning of supply shortages affecting the Mac and iPad lineups.



Google says it's rolling out an update for Assistant that allows a user to train Assistant how to pronounce and recognize uncommon names, at first in English (Igor Bonifacic/Engadget)

Igor Bonifacic / Engadget:
Google says it's rolling out an update for Assistant that allows a user to train Assistant how to pronounce and recognize uncommon names, at first in English  —  handful new updates that will make Assistant better at pronouncing tricky names and understanding the context of conversations you share with it.



Tuesday, April 27, 2021

Pinterest's user growth slows as pandemic curbs ease

With pandemic restrictions easing across the world, people are dialing down time spent on social media, but a boom in ad spending by companies helped soften the hit from tepid user growth. https://ift.tt/3vtdW8H

Google parent Alphabet reports record profit for the second consecutive quarter

Google ad sales jumped 32% in the first quarter compared with a year ago, above expectations of analysts tracked by Refinitiv. Cloud sales increased 45.7%, in line with estimates. https://ift.tt/2R5Vvbi

Regulation may be needed for Apple, Google app stores if changes not made: Australian regulator

The global dominance of Apple's App Store and Google's Play Store has been criticised by some app makers for mandatory revenue sharing payments and strict inclusive rules by both companies. https://ift.tt/3t0HLfn

Elon Musk trolls Bezos as space race between world's richest men heats up

The two billionaires, who have been trying to launch long-range orbital rockets, were competing for a coveted contract from the government to build a spaceship to deliver astronauts to the moon as early as 2024 https://ift.tt/3aLcbfk

EU to hit Apple with antitrust charge this week: Source

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Facebook reveals new features for creators to earn money from ecommerce sales

Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said the company will build new features for content creators to earn money from recommending products on the app and a marketplace to help connect brands with influencers. https://ift.tt/2R9mcw4

Samsung Galaxy M42 5G launch in India at 12pm today: What to expect

Samsung Galaxy M42 5G will be unveiled in India today at 12pm. The smartphone will be the company’s first 5G phone in the affordable M smartphone series. It will come powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 750G mobile processor. https://ift.tt/3vt47Ym

Samsung Galaxy M42 5G to Launch in India Today: All You Need to Know

Samsung Galaxy M42 5G is all set to launch in India today. The launch event is scheduled to begin at 12pm IST and the phone is already confirmed to be available via Amazon. Samsung Galaxy M42 5G is... https://ift.tt/2QuUEBm

Apple Fined $12 Million by Russia for Alleged App Market Abuse

Russia said it had fined Apple $12 million (roughly Rs. 90 crores) for alleged abuse of its dominance in the mobile applications market, in the latest dispute between Moscow and a Western technology... https://ift.tt/3aNiZJv

Google Parent Alphabet Rides Online Consumer Activity to Post Record Profit

Google owner Alphabet reported record profit for the second consecutive quarter and a $50-billion (Rs. 3,72,780 crores) share buyback but warned a surge in usage and advertising sales during the... https://ift.tt/2QvJiNs

Microsoft says revenue from LinkedIn's ads business, called LinkedIn Marketing Solutions, grew 60% YoY to more than $3B in the year ended March 31 (Megan Graham/CNBC)

Megan Graham / CNBC:
Microsoft says revenue from LinkedIn's ads business, called LinkedIn Marketing Solutions, grew 60% YoY to more than $3B in the year ended March 31  —  - Microsoft said Tuesday that LinkedIn Marketing Solutions has brought in more than $3 billion in revenue in the past 12 months.



Realme 8 5G to go on sale today at 12pm via Flipkart

Realme 8 5G is set to go on its first sale today. The smartphone is powered by MediaTek Dimensity 700 5G. The handset boasts of a smart 5G power saving mode that is said to help switch between 4G and 5G in order to reduce power consumption. https://ift.tt/32RYff1

Amazon app quiz April 28, 2021: Get answers to these five questions to win Rs 15,000 in Amazon Pay balance

Results of today’s quiz will be announced on April 29. https://ift.tt/3vuLxzn

Flipkart daily trivia quiz April 28, 2021: Get answers to these five questions to win gifts and discount vouchers

Only the first 50,000 participants will be eligible for the quiz prize. https://ift.tt/3tZBS3r

Hackers who tried to blackmail Apple and wanted $50 million did a ‘mysterious’ thing

Quanta Computer Inc, one of Apple’s Taiwan-based suppliers, suffered a massive cyberattack, as reported by Bloomberg. The hackers, part of a group “REvil”, claimed to have stolen the blueprints of various Apple gadgets and mounted the cyber offensive around the time Apple was busy with its product launches and announcements during the Spring Loaded event. https://ift.tt/3eAoAUC

Instagram to Create Marketplace to Connect Brands With Influencers

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the company will build new features starting with Instagram for content creators to earn money from recommending products on the app and a marketplace to help connect... https://ift.tt/2S5qQLP

How Dozee Is Helping Hospitals Build Makeshift ICU Beds During COVID-19 Crisis

With startup culture thriving in India and the need for 'going local' becoming increasingly popular, we take a look at all the hottest tech startups grabbing headlines in the country. Gadgets 360... https://ift.tt/32RTceP

IRS arrests a Russian-Swedish citizen in LA for laundering 1.2M+ bitcoins over 10 years when he allegedly ran Bitcoin Fog, which remains online after his arrest (Andy Greenberg/Wired)

Andy Greenberg / Wired:
IRS arrests a Russian-Swedish citizen in LA for laundering 1.2M+ bitcoins over 10 years when he allegedly ran Bitcoin Fog, which remains online after his arrest  —  The alleged administrator of Bitcoin Fog kept the dark web service running for 10 years before the IRS caught up with him.



These are the top 5 smartphone brands in India in Q1 2021

As per the report, the shipments grew 23% YoY (year-over-year) to reach over 38 million units in Q1 2021, which is the highest ever first-quarter shipments. The report cites new launches, promotions, financial schemes, as well as pent-up demand coming from 2020 as key reasons that contributed to this record shipment. https://ift.tt/3tYuO6Z

Covid-19 vaccine for everyone above 18: Here’s how to register for it

To put a halt to the spread, the government of India has expanded the Covid-19 vaccination drive for everyone who is 18 years old or above. This means you can now register for the vaccine online and get yourself vaccinated. If you are wondering how to registered for the vaccine, then follow our step-by-step guide: https://ift.tt/3nqD5OG

Realme 8 5G First Sale in India Today at 12 Noon: All Details

Realme 8 5G will go on sale for the first time in India today, April 28 via Flipkart, Realme.com, and other retailers. The smartphone was launched as an upgraded version of the Realme 8 a day after... https://ift.tt/3eDC8hY

Arm gives new details on data center chips

Arm Ltd, the British chip technology firm being acquired by Nvidia Corp in a $40 billion deal, on Tuesday gave new details about its next generation of data center technology and said Oracle Corp and Alibaba Group Holding will use the chips. https://ift.tt/2QFW6Rb

Interviews with Basecamp staff on how a "funny" customer names list sparked an internal reckoning and spurred Basecamp's societal and political discussion ban (Casey Newton/Platformer)

Casey Newton / Platformer:
Interviews with Basecamp staff on how a “funny” customer names list sparked an internal reckoning and spurred Basecamp's societal and political discussion ban  —  How a list of “funny” customer names triggered an internal reckoning  —  I.  —  The controversy that embroiled …



Monday, April 26, 2021

Huawei in US court after being accused of improperly helping its CFO in Canada

U.S. prosecutors claim Huawei wrongly shared materials the government disclosed in the criminal case against the company with chief executive officer Meng Wanzhou, who also is charged but considered a fugitive. https://ift.tt/3gMY6C5

Impact of Apple ad tracking changes will hinge on app developers, executive says

Apple has started enforcing a rule introduced last year requiring developers to use a pop-up notification seeking permission to gather data that can be used to track users across third-party sites and apps. https://ift.tt/3sUAgqj

Blue Origin protests NASA's awarding of moon lander contract to SpaceX

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iOS 14.5 starts rolling out: How to update, things to keep in mind and more

​If you are planning to install the latest update on your iPhone, it is important to prepare your device for the update to avoid going anything wrong while updating. It will also help you restore your iPhone and all data in case something goes wrong. https://ift.tt/2RVSjzt

Tesla CEO Elon Musk qualifies for $11 billion options payout

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Bitcoin hit with record weekly outflow as rally ebbs: Data

Bitcoin posted a record weekly outflow, with overall sentiment on cryptocurrencies turning cautious as the digital asset's searing rally hit a wall, data from digital currency manager CoinShares showed. https://ift.tt/2R1Nvbg

Oppo A53s 5G phone to launch in India today at 12 pm

Oppo A53s 5G will be announced at 12pm today. The handset will be powered by MediaTek Dimensity 700 chipset. https://ift.tt/2Qxlit2

Samsung Galaxy M42 5G to launch today at 12pm: Expected specs and price

Samsung Galaxy M42 5G will be announced in India at 12pm. The phone will come powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 750G mobile processor https://ift.tt/3npK9eu

macOS 11.3 brings AirTag integration, new emojis, bug fixes and more

Cupertino-based tech giant Apple has rolled out a new software update for Mac users. The new software update brings the macOS Big Sur to v11.3. This update comes two months after the release of Big Sur 11.2 that was rolled out in February. This is the third major update of the macOS and it comes with few notable features. https://ift.tt/2RVRreb

Facebook in Process to Build Its Own In-App Podcast Player: Report

Facebook is building its own in-app podcast player, the company reportedly confirmed. According to The Verge, the new addition will be separate from its new in-app Spotify player. https://ift.tt/3tZfY00

Facebook Users Can Now Play Spotify Music, Podcasts on App

Spotify said it has partnered with Facebook to allow listeners to play music and podcasts directly from the social network's iOS and Android apps. https://ift.tt/3xubNLM

Redmi Note 10 Pro and Redmi Note 10 Pro Max with 108MP camera to go on sale today via Amazon

Redmi Note 10 Pro and Redmi Note 10 Pro Max will go on another flash sale today. The smartphones will be available on e-commerce site Amazon at 12pm. The handset can also be purchased via the company’s official website Mi.com. https://ift.tt/3aHAZVH

Tim Cook says Apple will donate to support Covid-19 fight in India

A day after Google CEO Sundar Pichai and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella expressed their concern over the effect of the Covid-19 in India, Apple CEO Tim Cook too has now come forward. Cook took to Twitter to announce that the company will also be to fight the devastating effect of the pandemic in the country. https://ift.tt/3dUa6j0

Amazon app quiz April 27, 2021: Get answers to these five questions and win GoPro Hero 9 action camera

Results of today’s quiz will be announced on April 28. https://ift.tt/3eCmSSm

Flipkart daily trivia quiz April 27, 2021: Get answers to these five questions to win discounts and gift vouchers

Only the first 50,000 participants will be eligible for the quiz prize. https://ift.tt/3dVUVWG

Moto G60 to Go on Sale in India Today: Check Offers, Price

Moto G60 sale in India today. The Motorola phone was launched alongside the Moto G40 Fusion last week. The Moto G60 comes with a 108-megapixel primary camera. https://ift.tt/3vkNFcF

DC Police confirm a data breach after a ransomware gang threatens to release files that expose police informants unless the department agrees to pay a ransom (Catalin Cimpanu/The Record)

Catalin Cimpanu / The Record:
DC Police confirm a data breach after a ransomware gang threatens to release files that expose police informants unless the department agrees to pay a ransom  —  A ransomware gang is threatening to leak sensitive police files that may expose police investigations and informants unless …



Apple rolls out ‘controversial’ feature with iOS 14.5: What you should know

App Tracking Transparency feature gives more control to iPhone users on whether or not they want to be tracked by advertisers online across apps. Privacy, as Apple likes to tell us, is a fundamental human right and it’s the user and not the developer who should decide what data they get or share. https://ift.tt/3tWRGnB

The next Apple Pencil could get more ‘interesting’, here’s how

According to the patent, Apple plans to incorporate a sliding mechanism on the side of the Pencil that could be used to increase or decrease the thickness of the pen input on an iPad. It could also be used to change the opacity levels. Apple has included some diagrams in the patent filing to elucidate the new concept of the Pencil. https://ift.tt/3gHi2Gj

Apple rolls out important update for iPhones: 11 features you must know about

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Oppo A53s 5G Set to Launch in India Today, to Go on Sale via Flipkart

Oppo A53s 5G is set to launch in India today. It will be available for purchase via Flipkart at 12pm (noon). It will be priced under Rs. 15,000 and will be powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 700 SoC. https://ift.tt/3sUXbBJ

Mi 11X, Mi QLED TV 75 to Go on Sale in India Today

Mi 11X and Mi QLED TV 75 will go on sale in India today on Xiaomi's website starting 12pm. Both the products were launched in the country last week. Mi 11X features a 6.67-inch full-HD+ (1,080x2,400... https://ift.tt/3nsQDsX

Apple to establish new campus in North Carolina

Apple said it plans to spend $1 billion as it builds a new campus and engineering hub in the Research Triangle area of North Carolina, with most of the jobs expected to focus on machine learning, artificial intelligence, software engineering and other technology fields. It joins a $1 billion Austin, Texas campus announced in 2019. https://ift.tt/2PvF1sQ

Sunday, April 25, 2021

COVID Situation in India: Satya Nadela 'Heartbroken', Sundar Pichai 'Devastated'

The CEOs of Microsoft and Google said they would do whatever it takes to aid relief efforts in the country. https://ift.tt/2QYRTI4

upGrad, an online education startup focused on the post K-12 space, raises $120M from Singapore's sovereign fund Temasek, sources say at a $575M-$675M valuation (Kaavya Chandrasekaran/The Economic Times)

Kaavya Chandrasekaran / The Economic Times:
upGrad, an online education startup focused on the post K-12 space, raises $120M from Singapore's sovereign fund Temasek, sources say at a $575M-$675M valuation  —  Education technology startup upGrad, promoted by media entrepreneur Ronnie Screwvala, said it has raised $120 million …



WhatsApp may soon let users send messages that disappear after 24 hours

Instant messaging app WhatsApp currently has an option to send disapproving messages with 7 days as the only option. However, it is expected that the platform will soon roll out the option to make messages within 24 hours too as WABetaInfo, the website that tracks the upcoming features and changes has spotted it. https://ift.tt/3njRkVs

Google is planning to make Assistant smarter with this new feature

The tech giant has reportedly started an in-house testing of a new feature called Guacamole. This new feature will enable users to use the Google Assistant without saying the hotword 'Hey Google'. https://ift.tt/2QVCUPo

10 things to check when buying a refrigerator online on Flipkart, Amazon and other websites

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YouTube building its video-transcoding chip: Report

Google has developed a custom chip, Argos, for YouTube to process videos much more efficiently. Google's Jeff Calow said the Argos chip has brought "up to 20-33x improvements in computing efficiency compared to our previous optimised system, which was running software on traditional servers." https://ift.tt/3tSHb4E

Google Photos for Android rolling out new editing tools

Sharpen works to create a less blurry image, while Denoise often works to remove background grain. When applied to the max, the effect is very apparent and not too accurate in very brief testing. https://ift.tt/3vktgEC

Indian electronic repair market can create over 5million jobs: Report

The electronics repair market in India can help generate over five million direct jobs, with a potential to generate revenues of $20 billion per annum, a new report has emphasised. https://ift.tt/3vi8QfB

India to be top spender on security solutions in APAC in 2021: IDC

Overall, spending on security hardware, services, and software in Asia/Pacific is expected to reach $23.1 billion in 2021 an increase of 12.6 per cent over the previous year. https://ift.tt/2RZppyt

Twitter, Facebook and others remove nearly 100 posts after government order

Twitter and other social media platforms have removed about 100 posts and URLs after the government asked them to remove content that was critical of the handling of the current medical crisis or spreading fake news around the pandemic.​ https://ift.tt/32KGPRL

Global smartphone sales to rise 13% in 2021, highest in 6 years: Report

The report said that global smartphone sales volume will grow more than 7 per cent (YoY) at 1.4 billion units, and global smartphone wholesale average selling price (ASP) will grow more than 6 per cent to $294 in 2021, resulting in smartphone wholesale revenue exceeding $400 billion. https://ift.tt/3tSGLeA

ISRO to Launch Data Relay Satellite to Track Gaganyaan

The Indian Space Research Organisation will launch a data relay satellite that will help maintain contact with the Gaganyaan mission throughout after the launch, sources said. https://ift.tt/3tVPJHO

NASA's Mars Helicopter's Third Flight Goes Farther, Faster Than Before

NASA's mini helicopter Ingenuity on Sunday successfully completed its third flight on Mars, moving farther and faster than ever before, with a peak speed of 6.6 feet per second. https://ift.tt/3dT9wlU

Oscars Winners 2021 - the Full List

Oscars winners 2021: Netflix wins the most Oscars with seven, but Disney rules the top categories (Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Director for Nomadland). Anthony Hopkins won for Best Actor. https://ift.tt/32PkJxw

Facebook, Twitter Remove Nearly 100 Posts Critical of COVID-19 Response

Twitter and other social media platforms have removed about 100 posts and URLs after the government asked them to remove content that was critical of the handling of the current medical crisis or... https://ift.tt/3nkSFLG

Sundar Pichai says Google to contribute Rs 135 crore for Covid-19 fight in India

Google announced Rs 135 crore in new funding from India. This includes two grants from Google.org, Google’s philanthropic arm, totalling Rs 20 crore. The first is to non-profit organisation GiveIndia, which will provide cash assistance to families hit hardest by the crisis to help with their everyday expenses. https://ift.tt/3aDS1E1

HCL Tech moving some workload to other geographies to tackle Covid challenges

The IT services major is engaging closely with clients to prioritise work, and shifting some workload from India to other geographies to ensure business continuity as the country grappling with record-high Covid cases. https://ift.tt/3gAt7ch

Flipkart daily trivia quiz April 26, 2021: Get answers to these five questions and win gifts, discount coupons and Flipkart Super coins

Only the first 50,000 participants will be eligible for the quiz prize. https://ift.tt/2QzXG74

Amazon app quiz April 26, 2021: Get answers to these five questions to win Rs 10,000 in Amazon Pay balance

Results of today’s quiz will be announced on April 27. https://ift.tt/3aGeekN

iQoo 7 series launch in India today at 12 pm: How to watch live stream

iQoo 7 5G and iQoo 7 Legend 5G will be announced via an online event at 12pm. The upcoming iQoo 7 series are listed on e-commerce site Amazon. https://ift.tt/2S2xgeO

133 iPhone apps that you should be careful of before downloading

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Facebook's Oculus and EA win an Oscar, a first for FB and the videogame industry, for Colette, a documentary short for VR game Medal of Honor: Above and Beyond (Todd Spangler/Variety)

Todd Spangler / Variety:
Facebook's Oculus and EA win an Oscar, a first for FB and the videogame industry, for Colette, a documentary short for VR game Medal of Honor: Above and Beyond  —  Facebook just won its first Oscar.  —  “Colette,” from the social giant's Oculus VR group and EA's Respawn Entertainment …



Facebook says it has a policy letting any person initiate a takedown of a post containing an image of their residence, regardless of the post's newsworthiness (Ben Smith/New York Times)

Ben Smith / New York Times:
Facebook says it has a policy letting any person initiate a takedown of a post containing an image of their residence, regardless of the post's newsworthiness  —  The New York Post has complained that Facebook is blocking and downplaying its stories.  But the platform doesn't pay any special deference to journalists.



The Missing Basti Project: Indian website records slum lives, evictions to tackle housing crisis

A new website that records the lives and evictions of slum dwellers in the Indian city of Delhi will help address the chronic shortage in affordable and adequate housing across the country, urban experts said on Friday. https://ift.tt/3vhk2ZV

India's government says it ordered Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to take down dozens of posts critical of its handling of the pandemic; companies complied (New York Times)

New York Times:
India's government says it ordered Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to take down dozens of posts critical of its handling of the pandemic; companies complied  —  Aimed at Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, the move sets up a clash over free speech amid a widening political and public health crisis.



Apple's marketing head Greg Joswiak and hardware chief John Ternus on M1 chip in iPad Pro, Liquid Retina XDR display, Center Stage camera capability, and more (Matthew Panzarino/TechCrunch)

Matthew Panzarino / TechCrunch:
Apple's marketing head Greg Joswiak and hardware chief John Ternus on M1 chip in iPad Pro, Liquid Retina XDR display, Center Stage camera capability, and more  —  Apple SVPs chat about the iPad Pro, merging with the Mac and its new unified processor strategy



Affirm to acquire Returnly, a software startup that allows retailers to offer store credit before an item is returned, for $300M in a cash and equity deal (Anna Hensel/Modern Retail)

Anna Hensel / Modern Retail:
Affirm to acquire Returnly, a software startup that allows retailers to offer store credit before an item is returned, for $300M in a cash and equity deal  —  Buy now, pay later startup Affirm is looking to acquisitions to gain an edge over its competitors.



Rocket Lawyer, which offers online legal documents and virtual attorney meetings to businesses and individuals, raises $223M led by Vista Credit Partners (Aaron Pressman/Fortune)

Aaron Pressman / Fortune:
Rocket Lawyer, which offers online legal documents and virtual attorney meetings to businesses and individuals, raises $223M led by Vista Credit Partners  —  Our mission to make business better is fueled by readers like you.  To enjoy unlimited access to our journalism, subscribe today.



Silicon Labs to sell its auto and infrastructure business to Skyworks for $2.75B in a deal that includes Silicon Labs' power and isolation chips for EVs (Reuters)

Reuters:
Silicon Labs to sell its auto and infrastructure business to Skyworks for $2.75B in a deal that includes Silicon Labs' power and isolation chips for EVs  —  Silicon Laboratories Inc (SLAB.O) said on Thursday it would sell its infrastructure and automotive business to Skyworks Solutions Inc …



Apple Moving Forward on App Privacy Update Despite Pushback

Apple will begin requiring app makers to tell users what tracking information they want to gather and get permission to do so, displaying what have been referred to as "privacy nutrition labels." https://ift.tt/3xqvpAO

Google says it plans to counter Japan's FTC over claims that it hobbles rivals in search; a source says Japan's FTC sent a cease-and-desist order to Google (Bloomberg)

Bloomberg : Google says it plans to counter Japan's FTC over claims that it hobbles rivals in search; a source says Japan's FTC s...