Innholdsfortegnelse for #502 i Techlife News

Startup commercial electric vehicle maker Lordstown Motors says it may not be in business a year from now as it tries to secure funding to start full production of an electric pickup truck. In a quarterly regulatory filing Tuesday, Lordstown said the $587 million it had on hand as of March 31 isn’t enough to start commercial production and begin selling the full-size pickup, called the Endurance. “These conditions raise substantial doubt regarding our ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least one year,” the company said in the filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Shares of the company, which is set up in a now-closed General Motors plant east of Cleveland, fell 16.2% to close Tuesday at $11.22. The lost another 3% in…

Luxury sports carmaker Ferrari has tapped Benedetto Vigna, an Italian executive at Europe’s largest semiconductor chipmaker, as its new CEO, the company announced this week. Vigna, 52, will join Ferrari in September from Geneva-based STMicroelectronics, where he has worked for 26 years, most recently running the most profitable operating business, its analog, micro-electromechanical systems and sensors group. The appointment signals Ferrari’s focus on new technologies shaping an automotive world in transition, as the importance of electric powertrains, autonomous driving technologies and in-car connectivity is growing. Ferrari has announced that its first fully electric supercar will be launched in 2025. Ferrari said Vigna’s knowledge of the semiconductor industry “will accelerate Ferrari’s ability to pioneer the application of next-generation technologies.” Vigna will be the third CEO at the company in three years,…

China’s Ministry of Commerce said that a U.S. move to revoke the Trump administration’s executive orders intended to ban apps like TikTok and WeChat was a “positive step,” amid strained relations between the two countries. “We hope that the US will treat Chinese companies fairly and avoid politicizing economic and trade issues,” ministry spokesperson Gao Feng said at a regular news briefing Thursday. Gao said the U.S. move to revoke previous government actions against apps such as TikTok and WeChat was a “positive step in the right direction.” The White House on Wednesday revoked some blanket-style orders made under former President Donald Trump against Chinese apps including the messenging app WeChat, short video app TikTok and the Alipay payments app. A new executive order from President Joe Biden said the…

An outage at a little-known firm that speeds up access to websites knocked a lot of top internet destinations offline this week, disrupting business and leisure for untold millions globally. The problem was quickly resolved. The company, Fastly, blamed a configuration error in its technology. But the incident — Fastly’s traffic dropped 75% for about an hour just as the U.S. East Coast was beginning to stir —raises questions about how vulnerable the global internet is to more serious disruption. WHAT’S A FASTLY? WHY DID ITS TECHNICAL PROBLEMS LEAD TO SO MANY OUTAGES? San Francisco-based Fastly isn’t a household name, but its “edge server” computing technology is used by many of the world’s most popular websites, such as The New York Times, Shopify, the Guardian, Ticketmaster, Pinterest, Etsy, Wayfair and…

Outdoing his fellow billionaires in daredevilry, Jeff Bezos will blast into space next month when his Blue Origin company makes its first flight with a crew. The 57-year-old Amazon founder and richest person in the world by Forbes’ estimate will become the first person to ride his own rocket to space. Bezos announced his intentions and, in an even bolder show of confidence, said he will share the adventure with his younger brother and best friend, Mark, an investor and volunteer firefighter. He said that will make it more meaningful. Blue Origin’s debut flight with people aboard — after 15 successful test flights of its reusable New Shepard rockets — will take place on July 20, a date selected because it is the 52nd anniversary of the first moon landing…

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm called for more public-private cooperation on cyber defenses and said U.S. adversaries already are capable of using cyber intrusions to shut down the U.S. power grid. “I think that there are very malign actors who are trying,” she said. She added: “Even as we speak, there are thousands of attacks on all aspects of the energy sector and the private sector generally.” Granholm noted, without mentioning the company by name, that Colonial Pipeline Co. was hit in May with a crippling cyberattack by a ransomware group. Colonial temporarily shut down its gasoline distribution networks in the South before paying $4.4 million to the hackers. She urged energy companies to resist paying ransom. “The bottom line is, people, whether you’re private sector, public sector, whatever, you shouldn’t…

The universe of “The Conjuring” proves it may be reaching its spooky limits when a demon pops up in the latest film from, of all things, a waterbed. That such a well-worn punchline of ’80s suburban life could be home to Satan’s spawn might be played for camp in any other movie, but not here. This gentle franchise is all about timeless scary stuff — swing sets that mysteriously move, battery toys that suddenly turn on and doorknobs that rattle. So the waterbed was perhaps a step too far. What’s next? A demonic Frisbee? A bloody Rubik’s Cube? It’s a signal that while the franchise soldiers on unironically, the films may fail to keep up with the real world, where the algebra of fear is harder now. Almost 600,000 people…

In the jargon of the internet, Casey Hamilton is chaotic good. He is the human embodiment of “dance like no one’s watching,” with a disarming wholesomeness bred in his native Plant City. The 25-year-old dresses like a flamboyant 9-year-old with a credit card and no parental supervision, and makes it look good, right down to his trademark pink Crocs festooned with Jibbitz, the little cartoon charactershaped charms he adds to the rubber shoes’ ventilation holes. Hamilton is actually a lot like a pair of Crocs: comforting, immediately funny, utterly unpretentious, and actually pretty great if you can get over yourself. His TikTok account, @mrhamilton, has 5.6 million followers, and a lot of energy. He does voices. Maybe a spot-on Plankton from SpongeBob SquarePants, or the “how it feels to chew…

European Union and British regulators opened dual antitrust investigations into whether Facebook distorts competition in the classified advertising market by using data to compete unfairly against rival services. German officials, meanwhile, launched a fresh investigation of Google using stepped up powers to scrutinize digital giants. The multiple probes represent the latest escalation by European regulators in their battle to rein in the dominance of big American tech companies. The focus of the EU and U.K. investigations highlights a longstanding concern that the data the companies collect from people or businesses with their platforms is used to get an advantage over competitors, which could include those same businesses. “Facebook collects vast troves of data on the activities of users of its social network and beyond, enabling it to target specific customer…

A plump robin wearing a tiny metal backpack with an antenna hops around a suburban yard in Takoma Park, then plucks a cicada from the ground for a snack. Ecologist Emily Williams watches through binoculars from behind a bush. On this clear spring day, she’s snooping on his dating life. “Now I’m watching to see whether he’s found a mate,” she said, scrutinizing his interactions with another robin in a nearby tree. Once the bird moves on at season’s end, she’ll rely on the backpack to beam frequent location data to the Argos satellite, then back to Williams’ laptop, to track it. The goal is to unravel why some American robins migrate long distances, but others do not. With more precise information about nesting success and conditions in breeding and…

Germany on Thursday started rolling out a digital vaccination pass that can be used across Europe as the continent gets ready for the key summer travel season. The country’s health minister said starting this week vaccination centers, doctors practices and pharmacies will gradually start giving out digital passes to fully vaccinated people. The CovPass will let users download proof of their coronavirus vaccination status onto a smartphone app, allowing them easy access to restaurants, museums or other venues that require proof of immunization. The vaccination passport should be available to everyone in Germany who is fully vaccinated by the end of this month, Health Minister Jens Spahn said. “The goal is that this certificate can also be used in Helsinki, Amsterdam or Mallorca,” Spahn told reporters in Berlin. People who…

The nation’s largest automaker said Wednesday it can support greenhouse gas emissions limits that other car manufacturers negotiated with California — if they are achieved mostly by promoting sales of fully electric vehicles. It is a new stance for General Motors, which had supported the Trump administration’s efforts to end California’s ability to set its own limits. The shift brings GM closer to the 2019 California deal signed onto by five other automakers, offering hope for a breakthrough on an industrywide deal. But GM’s proposal of an accelerated transition to electric vehicles — in the last year, fully electric vehicles accounted for less than 2% of U.S. new vehicle sales — falls short of more strict emissions reductions for gas-powered vehicles being urged by a top Senate Democrat. Details of…

After making some significant leaps forward with iOS and iPadOS in 2020, it was only right that this year’s updates would be more understated, but it didn’t stop Apple from announcing some exciting new additions to its popular operating systems. From SharePlay and an Apple Maps overhaul to an all-new Weather app, attractive notifications, and iPad enhancements. LEAPING FURTHER FORWARD ON iOS As Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering took to the virtual stage at this year’s WWDC 2021, it was clear that he and his team had worked to develop exciting new features for the iPhone and iPad in what has been one of the most challenging years on record. Apple staff continue to work from home, though are expected to return to the office soon…

Anyone whose virtual alter ego is wandering around the Roblox online game platform these days might run into other avatars sporting Gucci handbags, sunglasses or hats. The digital-only items were part of a limited Gucci collection for Roblox, a step by the fashion house that prides itself on Italian craftsmanship to enter an expanding virtual space where many of its youngest admirers already are at home. Players in the metaverse — where virtual worlds, augmented reality and the internet meet — say the big-name fashion collaboration represents a new era of virtual-real world interplay, a space in which smart product placement meets the desire of consumers to express their personalities in the virtual world. While the Gucci Garden space on Roblox was open for two weeks last month, the platform’s…

Foreign keyboard criminals with scant fear of repercussions have paralyzed U.S. schools and hospitals, leaked highly sensitive police files, triggered fuel shortages and, most recently, threatened global food supply chains. The escalating havoc caused by ransomware gangs raises an obvious question: Why has the United States, believed to have the world’s greatest cyber capabilities, looked so powerless to protect its citizens from these kind of criminals operating with near impunity out of Russia and allied countries? The answer is that there are numerous technological, legal and diplomatic hurdles to going after ransomware gangs. Until recently, it just hasn’t been a high priority for the U.S. government. That has changed as the problem has grown well beyond an economic nuisance. President Joe Biden intends to confront Russia’s leader, Vladimir Putin, about…

The Senate overwhelmingly approved a bill that aims to boost U.S. semiconductor production and the development of artificial intelligence and other technology in the face of growing international competition, most notably from China. The 68-32 vote for the bill demonstrates how confronting China economically is an issue that unites both parties in Congress. That’s a rarity in an era of division as pressure grows on Democrats to change Senate rules to push past Republican opposition and gridlock. The centerpiece of the bill is a $50 billion emergency allotment to the Commerce Department to stand up semiconductor development and manufacturing through research and incentive programs previously authorized by Congress. The bill’s overall cost would increase spending by about $250 billion with most of the spending occurring in the first five years.…

If the auto industry is to succeed in its bet that electric vehicles will soon dominate the roads, it will need to overcome a big reason why many people are still avoiding them: fear of running out of juice between Point A and Point B. Automakers have sought to quell those concerns by developing EVs that go farther per charge and fill up faster. Problem is, most public charging stations now fill cars much too slowly, requiring hours — not minutes — to provide enough electricity for an extended trip. Concerned that such prolonged waits could turn away potential EV buyers and keep them stuck on gas-burning vehicles, automakers are trying to cut charging times to something close to the five or 10 minutes of a conventional gasoline fill-up. “It’s…

NBCUniversal will present 7,000 hours of coverage of the upcoming Tokyo Olympics across eight networks and multiple digital platforms from July 20 to Aug. 8. The Tokyo Games will be NBCUniversal’s 11th consecutive Olympics production and ninth consecutive Summer Games — beginning with the 1988 Seoul Games. NBC’s first Olympics were in Tokyo in 1964. NBC is scheduled to air 250 hours across 17 days, headlined by its prime-time coverage. NBC also announced earlier this year that it would air live coverage of the opening ceremony at 6:55 a.m. EDT on July 23. Tokyo is 13 hours ahead of the Eastern time zone, meaning many of the marquee events will take place during prime time in the U.S. USA Network, CNBC, NBCSN, Olympic Channel and Golf Channel will combine for…

Small businesses that survived the COVID-19 pandemic still face a long road to recovery, but some of the innovations business owners adopted last year may outlast the pandemic itself. “If you make it through this, you ask, you learn, you adapt, and I think it only makes you stronger,” says Keith Hall, president and CEO of the National Association for the Self-Employed. Here are four ways small businesses adapted in response to the pandemic that may have long-lasting effects on future operations, according to industry experts and business owners themselves. 1. CREATIVE BUSINESS MODELS The pandemic forced businesses to find new ways to serve their customers — and quickly, says Meghan Cruz, director of grassroots advocacy at the National Retail Federation. Now, that small-business owners have built out new infrastructure,…

A nationwide search is underway for an administrator to guide New Mexico’s expansion of high-speed internet, with an appointment expected in July. Details of the talent search are part of a progress report by state information technology officials, scheduled for discussion Thursday at a legislative hearing. New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham expanded the search for a state director of broadband internet after vetting six candidates and holding a pair of interviews. She has tasked a retired Boeing engineer with outlining a statewide technology strategy for the future. The Legislature and governor recently approved $133 million in spending to expand high-speed internet access during the coming fiscal year that starts July 1. They also called for the creation of a new state office dedicated to improving internet access, attached to…

Dozens of websites went down briefly around the globe Tuesday, including CNN, The New York Times and Britain’s government home page, after an outage at the cloud computing service Fastly, illustrating how vital a small number of behind-the-scenes companies have become to running the internet. The sites that could not be reached also included some Amazon pages, the Financial Times, Reddit, Twitch and The Guardian. San Francisco-based Fastly acknowledged a problem just before 6 a.m. Eastern. About an hour later, the company said: “The issue has been identified and a fix has been applied.” Most of the sites soon appeared to be back online. The company said in an emailed statement that it was a “technical issue” and “not related to a cyber attack.” Still, major futures markets in the…

Do you own an Amazon smart device? If so, odds are good that the company is already sharing your internet connection with your neighbors unless you’ve specifically told it not to. On Tuesday, the company launched a program that forces users of many Echo smart speakers and Ring security cameras to automatically share a small portion of their home wireless bandwidth with neighbors. The only way to stop it is to turn it off yourself. Amazon says the program, called Amazon Sidewalk, is a way to make sure lights, smart locks and other gadgets outside the home and out of reach of a Wi-Fi connection stay working. But some experts warn that the technology is so new that privacy and security risks remain unclear. And almost no one seems happy…

Whatever or whoever they are, they’re still out there. U.S. intelligence is after them, but its upcoming report won’t deliver any full or final truth about UFOs. The tantalizing prospect of top government intel finally weighing in — after decades of conspiracy theories, TV shows, movies and winking jokes by presidents — will instead yield a more mundane reality that’s not likely to change many minds on any side of the issue. Investigators have found no evidence the sightings are linked to aliens — but can’t deny a link either. Two officials briefed on the report due to Congress later this month say the U.S. government cannot give a definitive explanation of aerial phenomena spotted by military pilots. The report also doesn’t rule out that what pilots have seen may…

When the FBI dismantled an encrypted messaging service based in Canada in 2018, agents noticed users moving to other networks. Instead of following their tracks to rivals, investigators decided on a new tactic: creating their own service. ANOM, a secure-messaging service built by the FBI and other law enforcement agencies, launched in October 2019 and solidified its following after authorities took down another rival. Popularity spread by word of mouth. When ANOM was taken down, authorities had collected more than 27 million messages from about 12,000 devices in 45 languages — a vast body of evidence that fueled a global sting operation. Authorities revealed the operation known as Trojan Shield and announced that it had dealt an “unprecedented blow” to organized crime around the world. “Each and every device in…

The White House dropped Trump-era executive orders that attempted to ban the popular apps TikTok and WeChat and will conduct its own review aimed at identifying national security risks with software applications tied to China, officials said this week. A new executive order directs the Commerce Department to undertake what officials describe as an “evidence-based” analysis of transactions involving apps that are manufactured or supplied or controlled by China. Officials are particularly concerned about apps that collect users’ persona data or have connections to Chinese military or intelligence activities. The department also will make recommendations on how to further protect Americans’ genetic and personal health information, and will address the risks of certain software apps connected to China or other adversaries, according to senior administration officials. TikTok declined to comment.…

New and used car prices remain high as a global semiconductor chip shortage, combined with increased consumer demand, has caused a shortage of vehicles on dealer lots. The situation is expected to last many months, making it hard on people who are in need of a car today. “If you can’t find the truck or SUV of your dreams out there but still need to jump into a new vehicle, leasing is a great solution,” said Ivan Drury, Edmunds’ senior manager of insights. Leasing a car now provides a number of advantages over a traditional financed purchase. To start with, you don’t have to put as much money down. Additionally, the monthly payments are lower compared to those you’d have to make for the same vehicle but with a loan.…

The annual peak of global heat-trapping carbon dioxide in the air has reached another dangerous milestone: 50% higher than when the industrial age began. And the average rate of increase is faster than ever, scientists reported this week. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said the average carbon dioxide level for May was 419.13 parts per million. That’s 1.82 parts per million higher than May 2020 and 50% higher than the stable pre-industrial levels of 280 parts per million, said NOAA climate scientist Pieter Tans. Carbon dioxide levels peak every May just before plant life in the Northern Hemisphere blossoms, sucking some of that carbon out of the atmosphere and into flowers, leaves, seeds and stems. The reprieve is temporary, though, because emissions of carbon dioxide from burning coal, oil…