Technology

Bird’s UK chief departs after e-scooters remain banned

Bloomberg E-scooter startup Bird Rides Inc has lost its UK and Ireland boss, Richard Corbett, who left the company after two years at the helm. Since launching in London in 2018, the venture capital-backed startup has struggled to deploy its scooter-rental business as a result of tight regulation, which Corbett says was made impossible to overcome while lawmakers focussed on ...

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Cut back on email if you want to fight global warming

Bloomberg Everyone has seen the warning. At the bottom of the email, it says: “Please consider the environment before printing.” But for those who care about global warming, you might want to consider not writing so many emails in the first place. More and more, people rely on their electronic mailboxes as a life organiser. Old emails, photos, and files ...

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Toyota makes new $394mn bet on flying taxis

Toyota Motor is making a $394 million investment in Joby Aviation, one of the handful of companies with the seemingly implausible goal of making electric air taxis that shuttle people over gridlocked highways and city streets. Toyota is the lead investor in Joby’s $590 million Series C funding, alongside Baillie Gifford and Global Oryx and prior backers Intel Capital, Capricorn ...

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Apple acquires AI firm Xnor.ai

Bloomberg Apple Inc acquired Seattle-based artificial intelligence (AI) company Xnor.ai, bringing on more talent in a key area of technology. The company, founded in 2016, had raised millions of dollars to build tools that help AI algorithms run on devices rather than remote data centres. In recent years, Apple has pushed to run this type of software on its devices ...

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Smart speakers likely to come under new scrutiny in UK

Bloomberg Smart speakers such as those made by Amazon.com Inc are to come under new scrutiny by the UK government when it publishes the results of a consultation into the security features of connected consumer devices. UK digital secretary Nicky Morgan said the results of the public inquiry, which concluded in June, will be released within the next “month or ...

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Apple stole tech for watch, Masimo claims in patent suit

Bloomberg Apple Inc is accused of stealing trade secrets and improperly using Masimo Corp inventions related to health monitoring in its Apple Watch. Masimo, which develops signal processing technology for healthcare monitors, and its spinoff, Cercacor Laboratories Inc, claim in a lawsuit that Apple got secret information under the guise of a working relationship and then hired away key employees, ...

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Roomba maker’s new robot ‘with arms’ can do dishes

Bloomberg IRobot Corp, maker of the disc-shaped Roomba robotic vacuum cleaner, said it’s working on a household helper that will have arms that could load dishes, pick up clothes, or bring food from kitchen to table. The Bedford, Massachusetts-based company won’t start selling such a product for at least five years. But prototypes of the arms exist inside its research ...

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Zagg develops charger to rival Apple

Bloomberg Zagg Inc said it is developing a wireless charger with capabilities that Apple Inc has so far failed to master with its cancelled AirPower. The new accessory will power iPhones and other mobile devices regardless of where they are placed on the charging mat, Zagg said. This feature has been a challenging goal of several technology companies in recent ...

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Apple shares top $300 amid optimism about holiday sales

Bloomberg Apple Inc shares surpassed $300 amid predictions for a robust holiday quarter, demand for wearables such as AirPods and planned services including streaming TV. Shares of the iPhone maker rose 2.3% to close at a record $300.35, topping the $300 mark for the first time on a split-adjusted basis. The latest gain was in stark contrast to the dismal ...

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Amazon, Google to hit CES with digital assistants in tow

Bloomberg The world’s biggest technology companies are heading to Las Vegas for the annual CES trade show next week, with even Apple Inc making a rare official appearance. But don’t expect any breakthrough new hardware. Amazon.com Inc and Google will promote existing digital-assistant technology through their own internet-connected gadgets and similar products made by other firms. There should also be ...

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