Facebook-Backed Indian Social Commerce Platform Meesho Raises $570Million

Meesho, an Indian 'social commerce' platform invested in by Facebook and Softbank, has raised $570 million (roughly Rs. 4,230 crores) in its latest funding round, the company has announced. https://ift.tt/3uu6pYi

Delhi-based EV ride-hailing and charging startup BluSmart raises $25M Series A led by BP to expand its network to five new Indian cities (The Economic Times)

The Economic Times:
Delhi-based EV ride-hailing and charging startup BluSmart raises $25M Series A led by BP to expand its network to five new Indian cities  —  New Delhi: BP Ventures has made its first direct investment in India by pumping in $13 million in integrated EV ride-hailing and charging company BluSmart.

SoftBank says Alphabet's Loon moonshot has transferred about 200 patents to it; Alphabet says it also handed over patents to partner Raven Industries (Pavel Alpeyev/Bloomberg)

Pavel Alpeyev / Bloomberg:
SoftBank says Alphabet's Loon moonshot has transferred about 200 patents to it; Alphabet says it also handed over patents to partner Raven Industries  —  - SoftBank paid $125 million for a stake in Loon project in 2019  — Google closed the high-altitude internet initiative this year

Israel-based Speedata, which is developing custom chips for data analytics processing, emerges from stealth with $55M Series A and $15M seed (Ingrid Lunden/TechCrunch)

Ingrid Lunden / TechCrunch:
Israel-based Speedata, which is developing custom chips for data analytics processing, emerges from stealth with $55M Series A and $15M seed  —  Datacenters are taking on ever-more specialized chips to handle different kinds of workloads, moving away from CPUs and adopting GPUs and other kinds …

Modular phone maker Fairphone, which uses ethically sourced materials, announces Fairphone 4 with a 6.3-inch display, 5G, and up to 256GB, starting at €579 (Jon Porter/The Verge)

Jon Porter / The Verge:
Modular phone maker Fairphone, which uses ethically sourced materials, announces Fairphone 4 with a 6.3-inch display, 5G, and up to 256GB, starting at €579  —  The Fairphone 4's software support should stretch until 2025  —  Fairphone, the manufacturer focused on making easy …

Researchers: a flaw in Apple Pay lets attackers make a Visa payment with a locked iPhone in Express Transit mode; Apple calls it "a concern with a Visa system" (BBC)

BBC:
Researchers: a flaw in Apple Pay lets attackers make a Visa payment with a locked iPhone in Express Transit mode; Apple calls it “a concern with a Visa system”  —  Large unauthorised contactless payments can be made on locked iPhones by exploiting how an Apple Pay feature designed …

El Salvador's bitcoin 'experiment' leaves digital poor on the sidelines

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Facebook could face hefty fine in Russia over banned content, report says

State communications regulator Roskomnadzor said Facebook's repeated violations could see it fined 5% or 10% of its annual Russian turnover. Moscow has increased pressure on foreign tech companies over the last year as part of a long-running push to assert greater sovereignty over its segment of the internet. https://ift.tt/3us3OOc

Flipkart to deploy over 2,000 electric vehicles in delivery fleet ahead of festive season

Walmart-owned Flipkart on Wednesday said it will deploy over 2,000 electric vehicles in its delivery fleet prior to the festive season and the Big Billion Days. https://ift.tt/3olVQVS

Popular Premium Smartwatches to Check Out

Premium smartwatches are feature-loaded and equipped with various sensors to generate accurate data. If you are looking to invest in a premium smartwatch, here are some options for you. https://ift.tt/3omtAT1

Vivo X70 Pro, Vivo X70 Pro+ With Quad Rear Cameras Launched in India

Vivo X70 Pro and Vivo X70 Pro+ were launched in India on Thursday. The new Vivo phones come with quad rear cameras that are backed by the company's proprietary image stabilisation (OIS) technology... https://ift.tt/39QLBR9

Google Maps Makes It Easy to See Wildfires, Green Cover With New Update

Google Maps has introduced three new features that will help users understand wildfires, track tree canopy, and get to locations without proper addresses. With the Address Maker app, people can create... https://ift.tt/2ZJoOF8

ContractPodAI, which offers AI contract management tools, raises $115M Series C led by Vision Fund 2, bringing total funding to $170M+ (Kyle Wiggers/VentureBeat)

Kyle Wiggers / VentureBeat:
ContractPodAI, which offers AI contract management tools, raises $115M Series C led by Vision Fund 2, bringing total funding to $170M+  —  The Transform Technology Summits start October 13th with Low-Code/No Code: Enabling Enterprise Agility.  Register now!

GM announces Ultifi, a software platform for its cars that will enable OTA updates, in-car subscription services, and more, rolling out in 2023 (Andrew J. Hawkins/The Verge)

Andrew J. Hawkins / The Verge:
GM announces Ultifi, a software platform for its cars that will enable OTA updates, in-car subscription services, and more, rolling out in 2023  —  Ultifi will start rolling out to GM vehicles in 2023  —  General Motors announced a new “end-to-end” software platform for its cars called …

US and EU will cooperate across various tech areas, including AI, semiconductors, and supply chain security, to ensure sensitive technologies are not misused (Campbell Kwan/ZDNet)

Campbell Kwan / ZDNet:
US and EU will cooperate across various tech areas, including AI, semiconductors, and supply chain security, to ensure sensitive technologies are not misused  —  The new US-EU Trade and Technology Council aims to keep an eye on how sensitive technologies are used.

Amazon settles with two former employee activists, Emily Cunningham and Maren Costa, over accusations it illegally fired them for organizing (Karen Weise/New York Times)

Karen Weise / New York Times:
Amazon settles with two former employee activists, Emily Cunningham and Maren Costa, over accusations it illegally fired them for organizing  —  Amazon has settled with two of its most prominent internal critics, staving off a public hearing over accusations that the company illegally fired the pair …

iOS 15: How to find your lost or stolen iPhone even it is turned off

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Moto Tab G20 Tablet With 8-Inch HD+ Display, Android 11 Launched in India

Motorola has forayed into the tablet market with the launch of the new Moto Tab G20. The tablet comes in a single Platinum Grey colour option and will go on pre-order via Flipkart from October 2. It... https://ift.tt/2ZJJ35z

Samsung Galaxy A33 to Reportedly Launch in 2022

Samsung Galaxy A33 is reportedly in the process of development. It is said to launch sometime in 2022 along with Galaxy A13, Galaxy A53, and Galaxy A73 smartphones. Not much information is available... https://ift.tt/3ihhg2U

Elon Musk Says Cryptocurrencies Can't be Destroyed, Growth Can Be Curbed

Elon Musk believes that governments that have reservations against regulating cryptocurrencies can simply "do nothing" and perhaps, slow down crypto expansion. https://ift.tt/3oi6ZXN

Realme Handheld Vacuum Cleaner, Robot Vacuum-Mop, Air Purifier Launched in India

Realme has launched three new products under its Techlife banner - Handheld Vacuum Cleaner, Robot Vacuum Cleaner, and Air Purifier. The new products bring Realme into the rapidly growing IoT and... https://ift.tt/39NaBZA

You Cannot Sue Your Way to the Moon: Elon Musk Tells Jeff Bezos

Elon Musk in a recent interview took a fresh dig at Jeff Bezos saying that he should focus on reaching the orbit rather than filing lawsuits. Musk's comments were about Bezos' Blue Origin filing a... https://ift.tt/3urzh3p

Dropbox's Capture, Replay, Shop Features Can Ease Remote Working: Here's How

Dropbox has announced new features to make remote working easier. The file-hosting platform has introduced an all-in-one visual communication tool named Capture, a video collaboration tool called... https://ift.tt/3kSK7MI

Russia Dares YouTube After It Removes RT's Channels Over Misinformation

Russia has responded with a threat to block YouTube after the video-sharing platform removed state-backed RT's German-language channels over COVID-19 misinformation. https://ift.tt/3iijKOq

The Office and Seinfeld Are Coming to Netflix India in October

The Office (US) and Seinfeld - all 18 seasons and 381 episodes of it - are coming to Netflix India on October 23 and October 1, respectively. Seinfeld will be exclusive to Netflix India, but no... https://ift.tt/3F1TP7n

How Groww Saw 206 Percent Growth in First-Time Investors in COVID-Hit 2020

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/3kOkjRA

Battlefield 2042 Open Beta Early Access on October 6: All the Details

Battlefield 2042 will be releasing globally on November 19. The developers have announced that the game will be available in open beta on October 8 and October 9. However, players who have pre-ordered... https://ift.tt/3uoSFhu

As sanctions derail Huawei's traditional business, it is turning to areas less dependent on foreign chips, such as cloud services and software for smart cars (Financial Times)

Financial Times:
As sanctions derail Huawei's traditional business, it is turning to areas less dependent on foreign chips, such as cloud services and software for smart cars  —  When Meng Wanzhou returned home to China at the weekend, the presumed heiress of technology group Huawei pledged to harness …

Andela, which trains African programmers to work remotely for US companies, raises $200M Series E led by Vision Fund 2 at a $1.5B valuation (TechCrunch)

TechCrunch:
Andela, which trains African programmers to work remotely for US companies, raises $200M Series E led by Vision Fund 2 at a $1.5B valuation  —  Andela, a fully remote company that helps tech companies build remote engineering teams (initially from Africa but now a global market) …

Filings: General Catalyst is aiming to raise up to $300M for a fund to buy sales contracts from tech startups, one of the first and largest funds to do so (Miles Kruppa/Financial Times)

Miles Kruppa / Financial Times:
Filings: General Catalyst is aiming to raise up to $300M for a fund to buy sales contracts from tech startups, one of the first and largest funds to do so  —  One of Silicon Valley's largest venture capitalists gets into financial engineering  —  General Catalyst, one of the largest US venture capital firms …

Bangalore-based Vedantu, which offers an online tutoring service, raises $100M led by ABC World Asia at a $1B valuation, up from $600M last year (The Economic Times)

The Economic Times:
Bangalore-based Vedantu, which offers an online tutoring service, raises $100M led by ABC World Asia at a $1B valuation, up from $600M last year  —  Bengaluru: Edtech startup Vedantu has raised $100 million in a new funding round led by Temasek-backed impact investing fund ABC World Asia.

Samsung fined $47 million for price fixing in Netherlands

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WeChat blocks China Evergrande messaging groups, some users say

Tencent Holdings' WeChat platform has blocked at least eight instant messaging groups used by people in China owed money by cash-strapped property giant China Evergrande Group, group members said on Wednesday. https://ift.tt/3umhE4M

iPad mini 2021 Users Report of 'Jelly Scroll' Issue, Apple Says It's Normal

iPad mini 2021 was unveiled at Apple's California streaming event in mid-September. Early adopters have reported a slightly uneven scroll issue when using the device in portrait mode. It is also... https://ift.tt/3ujhwmI

iPhone 13 Pro Max Wins Best Smartphone Display Award From DisplayMate

iPhone 13 Pro Max has won the best smartphone display award from display testing firm DisplayMate. The firm said that the display of the latest iPhone flagship delivers close to textbook perfect... https://ift.tt/3ijPOkO

YouTube shuts German channels of Russian broadcaster RT

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China to Bring Algorithm Governance Rules Over Next 3 Years

China's cyberspace watchdog says it will set up governance rules for algorithms in the next three years, as Beijing seeks to tighten its grip on the algorithms technology companies use to attract... https://ift.tt/3F0wNO8

Hubble Telescope Suggests Wind Speed Increase in Jupiter's Great Red Spot

Data gathered by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope suggests an increase in the wind speed in Jupiter's Great Red Spot. https://ift.tt/3zTegPU

Totango, which offers subscription tools to track and improve customer engagement, raises $100M Series D led by Great Hill Partners (Christine Hall/TechCrunch)

Christine Hall / TechCrunch:
Totango, which offers subscription tools to track and improve customer engagement, raises $100M Series D led by Great Hill Partners  —  Totango, a company that helps SaaS companies track customer engagement to find and fix user flow errors and friction, announced Wednesday that it has raised $100 million …

Russia arrests Ilya Sachkov, the CEO of cybersecurity company Group-IB, on suspicion of treason and will hold him in custody for two months (Reuters)

Reuters:
Russia arrests Ilya Sachkov, the CEO of cybersecurity company Group-IB, on suspicion of treason and will hold him in custody for two months  —  Russia has arrested Ilya Sachkov, the chief executive of top Russian cybersecurity company Group IB, on suspicion of state treason and will hold …

China is increasingly using "anti-suit" injunctions, which prevent foreign companies from suing globally over patents, to protect Huawei, Xiaomi, and others (Josh Zumbrun/Wall Street Journal)

Josh Zumbrun / Wall Street Journal:
China is increasingly using “anti-suit” injunctions, which prevent foreign companies from suing globally over patents, to protect Huawei, Xiaomi, and others  —  A Delaware firm preparing to sue a Chinese smartphone maker for patent infringement was beaten to the punch with anti-suit injunction

Xiaomi Beard Trimmer 2, Mi Power Bank Hypersonic Launched: All the Details

Xiaomi Beard Trimmer 2 has been launched in India and the Mi Power Bank Hypersonic is now available in open sale. The Xiaomi Beard Trimmer 2 has an IPX7 rating for water resistance, LED battery... https://ift.tt/39Ky5OS

Flipkart Curtain Raiser Deals Sale Goes Live Ahead of Big Billion Days: Top Deals

Google Pixel 4a, iPhone SE (2020) and the Poco X3 Pro phones are listed on Flipkart with discounted rates. The Samsung Galaxy Tab S7+ Wi-Fi only model is up for grabs for just Rs. 54,999. Flipkart has... https://ift.tt/2YdE1O6

Samsung Galaxy S21 Update Will Let Users Unlock Cars With Phones: Report

Samsung Galaxy S21 series devices are receiving an update in Germany, India, the Philippines, and South Korea. The update reportedly brings digital key support for Galaxy S21+ and Galaxy S21 Ultra... https://ift.tt/3uoqhf3

As Amazon's video game business lags, executives concede that its new, much-delayed PC-based MMO, New World, "has to be our breakthrough" (Kellen Browning/New York Times)

Kellen Browning / New York Times:
As Amazon's video game business lags, executives concede that its new, much-delayed PC-based MMO, New World, “has to be our breakthrough”  —  The tech giant has struggled to produce popular games, but a much-delayed title released this week could be the first step in a turnaround.

UK startup Multiverse, which finds diverse candidates to fill apprenticeship roles at organizations, raises $130M Series C, following $44M Series B in January (Ingrid Lunden/TechCrunch)

Ingrid Lunden / TechCrunch:
UK startup Multiverse, which finds diverse candidates to fill apprenticeship roles at organizations, raises $130M Series C, following $44M Series B in January  —  After rebranding from White Hat and raising $44 million earlier this year, tech apprenticeship startup Multiverse has raised another round of funding.

1Password partners with email host Fastmail to introduce Masked Email, which creates unique emails for logins (Igor Bonifacic/Engadget)

Igor Bonifacic / Engadget:
1Password partners with email host Fastmail to introduce Masked Email, which creates unique emails for logins  —  Sign in with Apple has allowed iPhone and Mac users to protect their privacy by allowing them to generate random email addresses when they need to access a new website, service or app.

Google Defends Android Phone Maker Deals, Denies Carrot-and-Stick Tactics

Google said deals with Android phone makers that landed it a record EUR 4.3-billion (roughly Rs. 37,230 crores) antitrust fine boosted competition and rejected EU charges they were a carrot-and-stick... https://ift.tt/3ibpbyI

Skype Adds New Calling Interface, Colourful Themes

Skype is all set to get a new update that will offer users a new experience. Microsoft in a blog post offered a peek at what's coming later this year on the video chat platform. Skype will get... https://ift.tt/2Y8z1KP

Kerala High Court sets aside state government order banning online rummy

The state government's decision to ban online rummy was on Monday set aside by the Kerala High Court which said the game would not amount to gambling, as claimed by the LDF government. Justice T R Ravi set aside the Kerala government's decision, saying it was arbitrary and unconstitutional. https://ift.tt/2ZIjfqB

Australian regulator aims to rein in Google's advertising power

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How 2022 may be the big year for Apple and Tesla in India

The two big-ticket investments in India this year -- Tesla and Apple -- which were set to lift the country as a brand on the world map and further end dependence on China-led investments in the tech and auto sectors, has somewhat been delayed owing to the pandemic and global chip shortage. Nonetheless, both the giants now aim to rewrite their India manufacturing story next year as Covid slows down. https://ift.tt/3ieFIBR

OnePlus Nord 2 5G Charger Allegedly Blows Up, Company Responds

OnePlus Nord 5G charger exploded when it was connected to a socket, a software developer from Kerala has reported on Twitter. OnePlus acknowledged the explosion but said that the blast had been caused... https://ift.tt/3uvZxcZ

UK Financial Watchdog Warns Social Media Over 'Dodgy' Ads That Fuel Fraud

Social media firms must do more to stop advertising "dodgy financial promotions" that fuel a surge in fraud or face action, Britain's Financial Conduct Authority said. https://ift.tt/2YaceOB

Redmi 9i Sport, Redmi 9A Sport Smartphones Launched in India

Xiaomi has quietly introduced three new phones in the Redmi 9 series in India. This includes the Redmi 9 Active, Redmi 9i Sport, and Redmi 9A Sport. The Sport models are identical to the Redmi 9i and... https://ift.tt/39KuXTe

Xiaomi NFC Pay Strap Teased to Launch Soon

Xiaomi has announced that it will soon be launching Xiaomi NFC Pay Strap. The NFC-enabled strap is said to be the "future of contactless payments." Xiaomi has partnered with payments merchant RuPay,... https://ift.tt/39Kp9ZW

Hands-on with an Android 12.1 build with support for foldable devices, including an updated taskbar, split-screen view, and more (Mishaal Rahman/XDA Developers)

Mishaal Rahman / XDA Developers:
Hands-on with an Android 12.1 build with support for foldable devices, including an updated taskbar, split-screen view, and more  —  Google is expected to release the next major update to Android, Android 12, next week, but ahead of its release, we're already hearing about Google's plans for a follow-up update.

Coalition, which offers cybersecurity tools and insurance to 50,000+ customers, raises $205M Series E at a $3.5B+ valuation, bringing total funding to $500M+ (Carly Page/TechCrunch)

Carly Page / TechCrunch:
Coalition, which offers cybersecurity tools and insurance to 50,000+ customers, raises $205M Series E at a $3.5B+ valuation, bringing total funding to $500M+  —  Coalition, a San Francisco-based cybersecurity insurance company, has raised $205 million in Series E funding, valuing the pre-IPO company at more than $3.5 billion.

Video chat BlueJeans aims to bring virtual watercooler talk to remote workers

Verizon Communications Inc's video chat app BlueJeans announced on Monday that it will begin testing a feature called Spaces, or virtual rooms where people as 3D cartoonish avatars can hang out, overhear conversations and join them. https://ift.tt/3D7EwZd

Apple's Beats Studio 3 Wireless Headphones Get a Limited-Edition Model

Apple has brought new Beats Studio 3 wireless headphones called Beats Studio 3 Wireless - A-COLD-WALL Limited Edition. The headphones are designed in partnership with fashion brand A-COLD-WALL owned... https://ift.tt/3umyFMb

Xiaomi TWS 3 Pro Earphones Launched: All the Details

Xiaomi TWS 3 Pro have been launched in China on Monday. The earphones come with IP55-rated dust and water resistance, and adaptive active noise cancellation. The earphones come with a price tag of CNY... https://ift.tt/3ia0anm

Some bitcoin miners, including TeraWulf and Compass Mining, are partnering with nuclear power plant owners amid criticism from environmentalists (Jennifer Hiller/Wall Street Journal)

Jennifer Hiller / Wall Street Journal:
Some bitcoin miners, including TeraWulf and Compass Mining, are partnering with nuclear power plant owners amid criticism from environmentalists  —  Some cryptocurrency miners are striking deals with operators of struggling nuclear plants, which are carbon-free and have excess power capacity to spare

Image sharing service Imgur has been acquired by MediaLab, which owns Kik, Whisper, Genius, WorldStarHipHop, and other brands; Imgur says it has 300M users (James Vincent/The Verge)

James Vincent / The Verge:
Image sharing service Imgur has been acquired by MediaLab, which owns Kik, Whisper, Genius, WorldStarHipHop, and other brands; Imgur says it has 300M users  —  The image-hosting service started life as an adjunct to Reddit  —  Popular image-sharing site Imgur has been acquired by MediaLab …

Report: 22% of health care providers saw an increase in patient mortality following a cyberattack, driven by COVID-19 and third-party vendor security gaps (Jessica Davis/SC Media)

Jessica Davis / SC Media:
Report: 22% of health care providers saw an increase in patient mortality following a cyberattack, driven by COVID-19 and third-party vendor security gaps  —  A new report from the Ponemon Institute reinforces the patient safety risks posed by ransomware attacks: 22% of surveyed providers saw …

Nokia PureBook S14 Laptop, New Smart TV Range Launched in India by Flipkart

The new Nokia PureBook S14 laptop and Nokia Smart TV range has launched in India. The Nokia Smart TV QLED models will come in 50-inch and 55-inch display sizes. Nokia Smart TV will also come in a... https://ift.tt/39MgwOx

Tajikistan Developing Its Own Blockchain-Based Digital Currency

Fantom Foundation has said it has been enlisted by one of Tajikistan's largest banks to develop a central bank digital currency (CBDC), which will eventually be deployed across the central Asian... https://ift.tt/3ietJ7b

Sparkpool Shuts Down Ethereum Mining Pool in China

The company has backed its decision as a measure to ensure the safety of Chinese users' crypto assets. It will reach out to users with next steps. https://ift.tt/3AOLT6Y

UK cybersecurity startup SenseOn, which uses a "triangulation" approach to mitigate attacks, raises $20M Series A led by Eight Road Ventures (Ingrid Lunden/TechCrunch)

Ingrid Lunden / TechCrunch:
UK cybersecurity startup SenseOn, which uses a “triangulation” approach to mitigate attacks, raises $20M Series A led by Eight Road Ventures  —  As cybersecurity becomes a bigger and more complex problem for organizations, a startup aiming to increase its accuracy in fighting breaches …