September/ October Technology News

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September/ October’s Tech Updates

  1. Amazon’s surveillance can boost output and possibly limit unions: study
  2. Bermuda Dives Deeper Into Crypto With Stimulus Coin Test Program
  3. EU to introduce crypto-assets regime by 2024, EU documents say
  4. Tesla to acquire German battery assembly maker
  5. Musk’s SpaceX wins Pentagon award for missile tracking satellites
  6. Microsoft takes action to resolve 365 services accessibility issues
  7. Twilio Set To Acquire Cloud Customer Data Startup Segment For $3.2 Billion
  8. Trends Continue to Push Processing to the Edge for AI
  9. Google reveals Mineral crop-inspecting robots
  10. U.S. government agencies to use AI to cull and cut outdated regulations
  11. Mysterious ‘Robin Hood’ hackers donating stolen money
  12. WhatsApp to offer in-app purchases, cloud hosting services
  13. Police are using facial recognition for minor crimes
  14. Biggest global deals in the fast-growing chip industry

[September 1st, 2020]

Amazon’s surveillance can boost output and possibly limit unions: study

  • Who: Amazon
  • What: Through an increasing surveillance, the company aims to boost employee output and potentially limit unionization efforts around the United State.
  • Why: To track employees and maintain a healthy workforce, and also to track time they spend working as more people telecommute. In addition, amazon uses the data to support people who are not performing to the levels expected with dedicated coaching to help them improve.
  • How:
    • Amazon uses such tools as navigation software, item scanners, wristbands, thermal cameras, security cameras and recorded footage to surveil its workforce in warehouses and stores.
    • The data creates heat maps and uses data such as team-member sentiment and a diversity index to figure out which of its stores may have a higher risk of unionizing.
  • So?:
    • This can have an impact on workers’ ability to advocate for better working conditions and push for collective action.
    • However, the director of enforcement strategy at the Open Markets Institute (OMI) claims that company should prohibit extensive surveillance, and if they have to, they need to obtain approval from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
  • Link to the article

[September 2nd, 2020]

Bermuda Dives Deeper Into Crypto With Stimulus Coin Test Program

  • Who: British overseas territory, Bermuda
  • What:
    • Is testing a stimulus stablecoin to embrace cryptocurrencies, which can be used to buy food and other essentials.
    • The stimulus token is a so-called stablecoin, which aims to keep its value from fluctuating much and is backed by bank deposits - It is completely backed by fiat and comply with its regulations.
  • When: The pilot program started in July, and is still an ongoing project.
  • Why:
    • The coin, created by the Stablehouse coin clearing firm, was designed to be used by businesses the government wants to help.
    • Bermuda is an ideal test bed, as it has a population of more than 71,000 and is seeking ways to provide financial services to residents, some of whom don’t have bank accounts, but carry smartphones.
  • How: The country is accepting tax payments and fees in another stablecoin, along the basic shopping - it is seeking to expand the usage within the country.
  • So?: It’s also looking at using so-called decentralized finance applications to provide easier access to loans for its residents.
  • Link to the article

[September 21st, 2020]

EU to introduce crypto-assets regime by 2024, EU documents say

  • Who: The European Union
  • What: They will introduce new rules within four years to make cross-border payments quicker and cheaper through the use of blockchain and crypto assets like stablecoins.
    • A comprehensive framework will be introduced, including the methods and risks associated with it.
  • When: Within four years - by 2024.
  • Why:
    • To encourage a greater use of digital finance.
    • Also because the EU wnats a rapid shift to ‘instant’ payments as the pandemic lockdowns showed the growing importance of cashless payment.
    • TO make it easier to share data within the financial sector.
  • How: The EU executive will present a draft law to clarify how existing rules apply to crypto assets and set out new rules where there are gaps.
  • So?: With the ease of one-stop shop licensing, instant payment systems should become the “new normal” by the end of 2021.
  • Link to the article

[October 5th, 2020]

Tesla to acquire German battery assembly maker

  • Who: Tesla Incorporation and ATW Automation
  • What: The company has agreed to acquire the German assembler ATW Automation - a supplier assembling battery modules and packs for the auto industry.
  • When: On September 25th
  • Why: Since electric cars are on the spotlight, a fast-charging, high-capacity battery is one of the major hurdles to clear. ATW was on the brink of liquidation due to a slump in orders, hence the mergers and acquisitions (M&A).
  • How: The company is currently building its third vehicle manufacturing facility near Berlin, which will also include a battery plant, and aims to start construction on a new vehicle factory in Texas this year.
  • So?: Tesla plans to ramp up battery production significantly in the coming years and sharply reduce the cost of battery packs within the next three years.
  • Link to the article

[October 6th, 2020]

Musk’s SpaceX wins Pentagon award for missile tracking satellites

  • Who: SpaceX
  • What: They won a $149 million contract to build missile-tracking satellites for the Pentagon - the first government contract to build satellites.
  • When: The company is expected to deliver the satellites for launch by fall 2022.
  • Why: As the environmental issues are becoming more important, there is no reusable satellite yet - Hence SpaceX aims to develop further.
  • How: Under the SDA contract, SpaceX will use its Starlink assembly plant in Redmond, Washington, to build four satellites fitted with a wide-angle infrared missile-tracking sensor supplied by a subcontractor.
  • So?: If it goes to success, it will generate enough revenue to help fund SpaceX’s interplanetary goals. In addition, it will meet the ever-growing need of sustainability.
  • Link to the article

[October 8th, 2020]

Microsoft takes action to resolve 365 services accessibility issues

  • Who: Microsoft Corporation
  • What: They have reverted the update that has been made recently, as it caused accessibility issues with multiple 365 services.
  • When: Wednesday, 7th of October, 2020
  • Why: As the recent update caused a major outage to its 365 services - 18,000 incidents were reported involving Outlook. Earlier in the day, Microsoft tweeted that users may see impact to Microsoft Teams, Outlook, SharePoint Online, OneDrive for Business, and Outlook.com.
  • How: It rolled back to a previous version - it reverted the update to a previous working version.
  • So?: The company will be recovering from the update, and release further notice when its ready.
  • Link to the article

[October 12th, 2020]

Twilio Set To Acquire Cloud Customer Data Startup Segment For $3.2 Billion

  • Who: Cloud communications platform provider Twilio Inc.
  • What: They plan on buying customer data infrastructure company Segment for $3.2 billion.
  • When: 9th of October, 2020
  • Why: San Francisco-based Segment has recently been open to acquisition offers, according to the report. Two companies have obvious overlap with each other through its software tools, which also help clients connect with their customer base
  • How: Twilio will finalize its plans with Segment partially based on its stock. Twilio has been a beneficiary of pandemic-catalyzed digital transformation acceleration, as the demand for cloud companies have surged due to the switch to work from home.
  • So?: The deal is to be finalized and the growth for both companies are to be rising - Segment insiders set to receive Twilio shares might hope for a repeat of the history of the acquisition of the API provider SendGrid, which the stock value has risen up to $3 billion from its original $2 billion.
  • Link to the article

[October 14th, 2020]

  • Who: The technology markets
  • What: In recent years, edge computing architecture has moved to the fore, to accommodate the proliferation of data and devices as well as the velocity at which this data is moving. More tech giants are moving towards the edge computing market.
    • NVDIA plans to continue the push of AI being closer to the edge - with its new NVIDIA-Arm deal.
    • VMware annnounced a Project Monetary that involves partnership with several companies, including NVIDIA, to bolster infrastructure to support AI applications at the edge.
    • For the connected-things market, moving processing down the stack and into these distributed edge architectures will be a major boon for data-intensive processes that need rapid response times.
  • When: In the recent years
  • Why:
    • Device proliferation and data volumes now favor distributed computing models for speed, performance and data security reasons.
  • How: By offloading tasks to the edge processor, making more of the processing power the customer paid for available.
  • So?:
    • Many processes and industries will benefit from pushing processing to the edge, including Industrial IoT and consumer-based IoT.
    • The edge computing market is expected to grow from $3.6 billion in 2020 to $15.7 billion by 2025, according to MarketsandMarkets data.
  • Link to the article

[October 16th, 2020]

Google reveals Mineral crop-inspecting robots

  • Who: Google’s parent company, Alphabet
  • What: They have unveiled prototype robots that can inspect individual plants in a field, to help farmers improve crop yields.
  • When: The development is on the go, but there is no explicit timeline or plan to release the buggy as a commercial product.
  • Why: The team says its main goal is to address the world’s increasing need for food and the sustainability of growing it - but the current tools dont allow farmers to do so.
  • How:
    • The robot buggies roll through fields on upright pillars, gathering high quality images of each plant and counting and classifying crops. It can also record information such as plant height, leaf area and fruit size.
    • And all that data is plugged into a machine-learning system to try to spot patterns and insights useful to farmers.
  • So?: It will be able to collect huge amounts of data about how crops grow. But the data security is essential at every step, Ian Drew, a technology company founder and chairman said, “because the last thing you want to do is have somebody hijack your farm”.
  • Link to the article

[October 19th, 2020]

U.S. government agencies to use AI to cull and cut outdated regulations

  • Who: The White House Office of Management and Budget
  • What: They have stated that the federal agencies will use artificial intelligence to eliminate outdated, obsolete, and inconsistent requirements across government regulations.
    • Participating agencies include the Transportation Department, the Agriculture Department, the Labor Department and the Interior Department.
  • When: Friday, 16th of October, 2020
  • Why: The AI effort would help agencies “update a regulatory code marked by decades of neglect and lack of reform.”
  • How: The General Services Administration will assist agencies in identifying technology partners and facilitate contracts. The details of the technology will be consulted with the technology partners.
  • So?: Detecting outdated and obsolete codes across tens of thousands of pages of government regulations would be easier and faster using AI.
  • Link to the article

[October 21th, 2020]

Mysterious ‘Robin Hood’ hackers donating stolen money

  • Who: A hacking group
  • What: A hacking group is donating stolen money to charity in what is seen as a mysterious first for cyber-crime. In a post on the dark web, the gang posted receipts for $10,000 in Bitcoin donations to two charities - Children International an The Water Project
  • When: 13th of October, 2020
  • Why:
    • Darkside hackers claim to have extorted millions of dollars from companies, but say they now want to “make the world a better place”.
    • Cyber-security analysts say that the intention of the hacking is unclear - maybe to assuage their guilt, or perhaps they want to be perceived as Robin Hood-like characters.
  • How: The hackers claim they only target large profitable companies with their ransomware attacks. The attacks hold organisations’ IT systems hostage until a ransom is paid.
    • They have used a US-based service called The Giving Block, which provides tax incentives by accepting crypto-currency donations.
  • So?:
    • The charity, Children International has no intention of keeping the donation if it is linked to a hacker. Moreover, the Water Project, which works to improve access to clean water in sub-Saharan Africa, has not responded to requests for comment.
    • The Giving Block, which is also an advocate for crypto-currencies, added: “The fact they used crypto will make it easier, not harder, to catch them.”
  • Link to the article

[October 23rd, 2020]

WhatsApp to offer in-app purchases, cloud hosting services

  • Who: Facebook Incorporation’s WhatsApp
  • What: They would start to offer in-app purchases and hosing services
  • When: This year and 2021
  • Why: As the company moves to boost revenue from the app while knitting together e-commerce infrastructure across the company.
  • How:
    • WhatsApp will enable businesses sell products within the app via Facebook Shops - an online store.
    • It will also enter the cloud computing sector, offering firms who use its customer service messaging tools the ability to store those messages on FB servers. - This would be free to try out, then it would charge 0.5 cents to 9 cents per message delivered.
  • So?: The shopping tool would start rolling out this year, while message hosting would become available in 2021. The conversations are stored elsewhere and not protected by the app’s end-to-end encryption.
  • Link to the article

[October 26th, 2020]

Police are using facial recognition for minor crimes

  • Who: Cities all across the US
  • What: Facial recognition has different regulations across the cities in the US as there are no government measures. As facial recognition continues to grow, it’s being routinely deployed for everything from shoplifting to graffiti.
  • When: October 9th, 2020
  • Why:
    • Because of privacy and the intrusiveness of a facial recognition, there’s debate among technology companies, lawmakers and civil rights groups on where to draw the line.
    • However, when it’s able to be used without limits by police departments, the technology increases the chances of mistakes and threatens privacy.
  • How: Portland, Oregon are only limiting the use of facial recognition from police use, whereas police in New York have been able to use the technology for crimes like shoplifting.
  • So?: Some argue that there should be a full ban of the technology to prevent the potential false arrests, while some argues to limit facial recognition to serious felonies as it could damage people’s privacy in the long run.
  • Link to the article

[October 27th, 2020]

Biggest global deals in the fast-growing chip industry

  • Who: Multiple chipmaker companies
  • What: They are buying a rival chipmaker companies to seek a larger share of the lucrative data center chip market. The sector has seen at least 120 acquisitions with a minimum deal value of $1 billion in the last two decades, according to Refinitiv data.
    • Semiconductor companies design and/or manufacture computer chips and related components.
  • Why: As chipmakers stock up on ammunition to supply to an ever-growing Internet of Things, which connects everything from smart speakers to cars with processors.
  • How:
    • Nvidia Corp NVDA.O agreed to buy UK-based chip designer Arm from Japan’s Softbank Group Corp 9984.T for about $40 billion in September 2020.
    • Chip developer Avago Technologies Ltd AVGO.O bought semiconductor giant Broadcom Corp BRCM.O for $37 billion, a deal that was completed in February 2016.
    • Softbank Group 9984.T acquired UK-based chip designer Arm in 2016 for $30.75 billion.
    • Intel Corp INTC.O bought rival Altera Corp for $15.33 billion in 2015.
    • Germany’s Infineon Technologies IFXGn.DE completed its $10 billion acquisition of Cypress Semiconductor Corp in April.
  • So?: The chipmakers are stocking up on ammunition as the companies that manufacture semiconductors are prospering in connected era like now.
  • Link to the article

[October 29th, 2020]

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[October 25th, 2020]

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