boeing Boeing Teams Up With Tactical Robotics to Advance Enclosed-Rotor VTOL Aircraft Boeing partners with Israel's Tactical Robotics to develop and market vertical take-off and landing aircraft using unique enclosed ducted rotor technology. The collaboration initially focuses on the autonomous Cormorant vehicle for disaster response and other broad applications.
descartes labs Descartes Labs Unveils Self-Service Platform for Geospatial Data Analysis Descartes Labs launches a new platform that gives data scientists direct access to geospatial data and machine learning tools, reducing the need for costly consulting engagements.
disney Disney Sells FoxNext Games and Cold Iron Studios to Scopely Disney sells off mobile game studios FoxNext Games and Cold Iron Studios to Scopely, just months after acquiring them in the Fox deal. The transfer includes hit title MARVEL Strike Force while Disney keeps other Fox-licensed games.
netflix Netflix Rejects Ad-Supported Model Despite Investor Pressure Netflix CEO Reed Hastings firmly rejects an ad-supported tier, arguing that competing with Google, Facebook, and Amazon for online ad revenue is too difficult and not worth the privacy trade-offs.
two sigma Quantitative Hedge Fund Two Sigma Expands Venture Arm With $288M Fund Two Sigma Ventures raises $288 million from external investors to back data-driven startups across enterprise, consumer, and healthcare sectors.
uk UK Watchdog Releases Strict Privacy Design Code to Protect Children Online The UK Information Commissioner's Office publishes a 15-standard age appropriate design code that forces online services to default to high privacy for children. The broad rules apply to any internet service likely to be accessed by kids in the UK.
apple Apple Abandons iCloud Encryption Plan Following FBI Pushback Apple reportedly scraps plans for end-to-end encrypted iCloud backups after the FBI voices strong objections. The tech giant chooses to avoid further conflict rather than risk legal battles or new anti-encryption legislation.
cybersecurity Forensic Report Links Saudi Crown Prince Account to Jeff Bezos WhatsApp Hack A new Guardian report reveals that Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos had large amounts of data stolen from his phone via a malicious WhatsApp message sent from an account used by Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman.
netflix Netflix Downplays Rivals But Admits Slowing US Growth Netflix reports steady global subscriber growth for Q4 2019 despite new competition, but acknowledges a dramatic slowdown in the US market.
apple Apple Tests Ultra Wideband Toggle to Stop iPhone 11 Location Checks Apple introduces a new toggle in the iOS 13.3.1 beta that allows iPhone 11 users to disable ultra wideband location tracking. The switch addresses privacy concerns over the phone performing background location checks to comply with regional regulations.
eu European Commission Considers Five-Year Ban on Public Facial Recognition The European Commission proposes a temporary ban on facial recognition in public spaces to assess privacy risks under GDPR. The draft policy aims to balance AI innovation with strict citizen protections.
samsung Leaked Specs Reveal Major Upgrades for Galaxy S20 Ultra 5G A new spec leak details the differences between the Galaxy S20, S20+, and S20 Ultra 5G, showing how the Ultra model significantly outclasses its smaller siblings with superior cameras and storage.
mojo vision Startup Unveils Working Augmented Reality Display Inside a Contact Lens Mojo Vision reveals a functioning augmented reality contact lens featuring a tiny 14K resolution display. The device represents a major leap toward putting digital interfaces directly onto the human eye.
apple Apple Adds Dedicated Toggle to Fix iPhone 11 Location Privacy Concern Apple releases a new toggle in the iOS 13.3.1 beta that allows users to completely disable the iPhone 11's ultra-wideband chip to prevent background location tracking.
kite Kite Raises $17 Million for Local AI Coding Assistant Kite secures $17 million in Series A funding to expand its offline, AI-powered code completion tool for Python developers. The latest update runs entirely locally to provide faster suggestions without sending code to the cloud.