Thursday, September 14, 2023

How Instacart CEO Fidji Simo helped find new ways for the company to make money, including via expanding its ads and software, which made $406M in 2023 revenue (New York Times)

New York Times:
How Instacart CEO Fidji Simo helped find new ways for the company to make money, including via expanding its ads and software, which made $406M in 2023 revenue  —  As it prepares to go public next week, Instacart shows that one secret to making money as a gig economy company is to become an advertising company.



How to follow Indian Cricket Team on WhatsApp

WhatsApp has launched its Channels feature in India, allowing users to receive updates on topics of interest. Meta, the parent company of WhatsApp, aims to create a private broadcast service through this feature. Channels provide a one-way broadcast tool for admins to send text, photos, videos, stickers, and polls. The Indian Cricket Board (BCCI) has already joined WhatsApp Channels and created a channel named 'Indian Cricket Team' for updates on the upcoming Cricket World Cup. Users can follow the Indian Cricket Team channel to stay updated. https://ift.tt/tVedL3Q

On day two of the Google trial, an Apple lawyer protested two numbers the DOJ used in its opening statement, including Google paying Apple $4B-$7B for search (Washington Post)

Washington Post:
On day two of the Google trial, an Apple lawyer protested two numbers the DOJ used in its opening statement, including Google paying Apple $4B-$7B for search  —  Protection of trade secrets versus transparency has been a major debate between Google and activists in the case



A US judge says FTX can now sell, stake, and hedge its crypto holding, estimated to be worth $3.4B+, including $1.16B in solana, to repay creditors (Helene Braun/CoinDesk)

Helene Braun / CoinDesk:
A US judge says FTX can now sell, stake, and hedge its crypto holding, estimated to be worth $3.4B+, including $1.16B in solana, to repay creditors  —  Lawyers of FTX had submitted a filing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, asking for permission to sell …



Wednesday, September 13, 2023

Since releasing Final Fantasy XVI in June 2023 to mixed reviews, Tokyo-based Square Enix shed ~$2B in market value and its new CEO faces skepticism about growth (Bloomberg)

Bloomberg:
Since releasing Final Fantasy XVI in June 2023 to mixed reviews, Tokyo-based Square Enix shed ~$2B in market value and its new CEO faces skepticism about growth  —  - Square Enix is heavily reliant on hit series to drive sales  — New CEO faces skepticism about company's growth prospects



All the USB Type C accessories Apple launched at the Wonderlust event: Price and other details

Apple has launched its iPhone 15 series, which includes the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro, and iPhone 15 Pro Max. The new series features a USB Type C port instead of the Lightning port. Apple has also introduced various USB Type C accessories, including Thunderbolt 4 Pro cables, a 240W USB-C charge cable, and a 60W USB-C to USB-C cable. The accessories are available for purchase on the Apple Store. https://ift.tt/JhOeH5y

Huawei signs a global patent cross-licensing deal with Xiaomi, covering 5G and other communication tech; Chinese media reported in March that Huawei sued Xiaomi (Reuters)

Reuters:
Huawei signs a global patent cross-licensing deal with Xiaomi, covering 5G and other communication tech; Chinese media reported in March that Huawei sued Xiaomi  —  China's Huawei Technologies inked on Wednesday a global patent cross-licensing deal with Xiaomi Inc (1810.HK), according to a statement from Huawei.



Tuesday, September 12, 2023

Vivo T2 Pro 5G smartphone to launch in India soon, confirms company

Vivo is set to launch its new T-series smartphone, the Vivo T2 Pro 5G, in India. The teaser suggests that the phone will have a curved edge display with a punch-hole selfie camera. It will be available online on Flipkart and is expected to be priced around Rs 24,000. The leaked specifications reveal that the Vivo T2 Pro 5G will be powered by a MediaTek Dimensity 7200 chipset and come in two variants with 8GB of RAM. Vivo recently launched the Vivo V29e in India, which comes with a 6.78-inch full HD+ display and is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 chipset. https://ift.tt/oM8iVdp

UK digital bank Monzo launches Investments, letting users invest as little as £1 in BlackRock-picked funds, its first foray into the investment market (Ryan Browne/CNBC)

Ryan Browne / CNBC:
UK digital bank Monzo launches Investments, letting users invest as little as £1 in BlackRock-picked funds, its first foray into the investment market  —  - British digital bank Monzo has launched a feature that lets users invest with as little as £1.



How to translate emails in Gmail app: Step-by-step guide

Whether you receive emails in a language you don't understand or want to read emails in their original language, here’s a step-by-step guide to show how you can use the translation feature on both Android and iOS devices. https://ift.tt/XGNw6Vc

Sources: in a first, Apple plans to make the India-built iPhone 15 available in the country and some other regions on the global sales debut day (Sankalp Phartiyal/Bloomberg)

Sankalp Phartiyal / Bloomberg:
Sources: in a first, Apple plans to make the India-built iPhone 15 available in the country and some other regions on the global sales debut day  —  - Devices from India to debut at same time as China-made ones  — IPhone 15 marks a milestone for India's electronics ambitions



Sunday, September 10, 2023

Government issues new security warning for Android users, affected OS version and how to stay safe

India's cyber defense agency, CERT-In, has issued a warning about critical vulnerabilities in Android operating systems. The agency has classified these vulnerabilities as "high severity" and has identified flaws in Framework, System, Google Play system, Qualcomm components, and Qualcomm closed-source components. Android devices running on versions 11, 12, and 13 are said to be affected. Users are advised to update their devices and apply security patches provided by their device manufacturer to mitigate the risks. https://ift.tt/KzE5X8R

NewsWhip data on 300K influential X users suggests X is throttling posts linking to the NYT, with "weekly average shares per article" down ~75% from July's peak (Max Tani/Semafor)

Max Tani / Semafor:
NewsWhip data on 300K influential X users suggests X is throttling posts linking to the NYT, with “weekly average shares per article” down ~75% from July's peak  —  X, Elon Musk's social media platform formerly known as Twitter, appears to be attempting to limit its users' access to The New York Times.



Sources: Meta plans to begin training an LLM in Q1 2024 on its own infrastructure that it hopes will be roughly as capable as OpenAI's GPT-4 (Wall Street Journal)

Wall Street Journal:
Sources: Meta plans to begin training an LLM in Q1 2024 on its own infrastructure that it hopes will be roughly as capable as OpenAI's GPT-4  —  Parent of Facebook and Instagram wants artificial-intelligence system to be as capable as OpenAI's most advanced model  —  Platforms is setting its sights on OpenAI.



Sources: Instacart plans to target its IPO at roughly $8.6B to $9.3B valuation, well below the $39B valuation the company had in March 2021 (Wall Street Journal)

Wall Street Journal:
Sources: Instacart plans to target its IPO at roughly $8.6B to $9.3B valuation, well below the $39B valuation the company had in March 2021  —  The grocery-delivery company aims for $8.6 billion to $9.3 billion, down from $39 billion in 2021.



Disney, Fox, and WBD say they have agreed to discontinue their Venu Sports streaming joint venture and will focus on existing products and distribution channels (Alex Weprin/The Hollywood Reporter)

Alex Weprin / The Hollywood Reporter : Disney, Fox, and WBD say they have agreed to discontinue their Venu Sports streaming joint venture...