Innholdsfortegnelse for #659 i Techlife News

Social media platform X is now hiding your likes. In an update posted on the platform formerly known as Twitter earlier this week, X’s engineering team said it would be “making Likes private for everyone to better protect your privacy.”That means that users will still be able to see their own likes, but others will not — putting an end to a feature that many had long used. The change went into effect this week. As of the afternoon, the “Likes” tab appeared to only be available on users’ own profile page. But when visiting other accounts, that tab is no longer available. Users also received a pop-up notification that seemed to suggest the change would result in more user engagement. “Liking more posts will make your ‘For you’ feed…

Now that Europe has announced tariffs on Chinamade electric cars, the continent is bracing to see if the other shoe drops. Will China retaliate with tariffs on European cars, taking aim at Germany’s BMW and Mercedes? Would it put tariffs on agricultural products, targeting Europe’s politically influential farmers? Or luxury goods from Italy and France? Analysts warn that an escalating trade war could break out, raising prices for consumers and hurting exporters and their workers on both sides. Both are major markets for each other — China, a rising economy of more than 1-billion people, and Europe with its relatively well-off population of more than 400 million. “It’s a little bit like seeing a slow motion traffic accident unfolding,” Jens Eskelund, the president of the European Chamber of Commerce in…

It may have taken longer than many people had wanted, but Apple has finally launched Apple Intelligence, a groundbreaking personal intelligence system designed to revolutionize how users interact with their iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Deep AI integrations from Apple and third parties like ChatGPT make iOS, iPadOS, and macOS more potent than ever. INTRODUCING APPLE INTELLIGENCE At this year’s WWDC, Apple lifted the lid on a powerful suite of generative AI tools that integrate deeply into iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia, setting a new benchmark for privacy in the AI landscape. Apple Intelligence leverages the capabilities of Apple silicon to offer unprecedented language and image creation, context-aware actions across apps, and an enhanced user experience tailored to individual needs. This represents a significant leap in how personal technology…

Apple Inc. plans to add several new features to Apple Pay and Apple Wallet later this year that will more deeply integrate financing, rewards, and buy now, pay later options into the iPhone. The new features are part of Apple’s annual iOS update that will arrive in the fall, the company said. Apple revealed some of the features at WWDC its annual developer conference this week and released more details Tuesday. The biggest change for consumers will be ability for banks to offer multiple forms of financing to customers within Apple Pay, as well as the ability pay with rewards points or programs through an iPhone or other Apple device. iPhone users currently can use credit or debit cards to fund Apple Pay purchases. Apple will now give banks the…

“The Boys,” Amazon Prime Video’s epic superhero satire series, will end with its fifth season. The show’s creator and showrunner Eric Kripke announced “the end has begun” while promoting the series’ fourth season, which premieres on Prime Video. “Season 4 Premiere Week is a good time to announce: Season 5 will be the Final Season! Always my plan, I just had to be cagey till I got the final OK from Vought,” Kripke wrote on X, referencing the powerful company that manages the celebrity-like superheroes on the show. “Thrilled to bring the story to a gory, epic, moist climax.” To accompany the announcement, Kripke shared an image of what appears to be a redacted script for the final episode of the fourth season, with a profane message at the bottom…

A soaring demand for food delivered fast has spawned small armies of couriers — and increasing alarm — in big cities where scooters, motorcycles and mopeds zip in and out of traffic and hop onto pedestrian-filled sidewalks as their drivers race to drop off salads and sandwiches. Officials in Boston, New York and Washington, D.C., have started cracking down on delivery companies by issuing warning letters, seizing illegally registered or driven vehicles, and launching special street patrols to enforce speed limits. The pushback is not limited to the U.S.: There have also been a series of crackdowns in London and other British cities. For their part, the delivery companies have pledged to work with city officials to ensure that all of their drivers operate both legally and safely. In a…

Meta wants to use data from users in privacy-conscious Europe to train its artificial intelligence models, the social media giant said this week as it faces concerns about data protection while battling to keep up with rivals like OpenAI and Google. The company, which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, said that in order to better reflect the “languages, geography and cultural references” of its users in Europe, it needs to use public data from those users to teach its Llama AI large language model. Meta’s AI training efforts are hampered by stringent European Union data privacy laws, which give people control over how their personal information is used. Vienna-based group NOYB, led by activist Max Schrems, complained last week to 11 national privacy watchdogs about Meta’s AI training plans and…

As a Delta Air Lines jet began roaring down a runway, an air traffic controller at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport suddenly blurted out an expletive, then ordered the pilots to stop their takeoff roll. The controller saw an American Airlines plane mistakenly crossing the same runway, into the path of the accelerating Delta jet. JFK is one of only 35 U.S. airports with the equipment to track planes and vehicles on the ground. The system alerted the airport control tower to the danger, possibly saving lives last year. The National Transportation Safety Board and many independent experts say pilots should get warnings without waiting precious seconds to get word from controllers. Just last week, the NTSB recommended that the Federal Aviation Administration collaborate with manufacturers to develop…

The bank’s latest outlook marks an increase from the 2.4% growth for 2024 it had predicted in January. And it would match the global economy’s 2.6% expansion in 2023. But the agency cautioned that global growth remains sluggish by past standards, that the poorest countries are struggling under the weight of heavy debts and high interest rates and that increased trade barriers endanger prosperity worldwide. The brutal wars in Ukraine and Gaza are inflicting further pressures on regional economies. Stronger-than-expected growth in the United States — the world’s biggest economy — accounted for 80% of the World Bank’s upgraded outlook. The agency now expects the U.S. economy to expand 2.5% in 2024, the same as in 2023 but up sharply from the 1.6% the bank had predicted in January. “U.S.…

It’s like Sephora or Starbucks now offered a checking account. After years of closing or mostly neglecting physical bank branches across the U.S., the nation’s largest banks are spending hundreds of millions of dollars on refurbishing old locations or building new ones, and in the process changing the look, feel and purpose of the local bank branch. Many of these branches are larger, airier, and meant to feel more comfortable for those walking in with difficult financial questions. Others are being designed as “third spaces” to allow local nonprofits or community representatives to hold workshops or seminars for customers or neighbors. They are a contrast to the marble-clad temples to finance built 50 or 75 years ago and the stale cookie-cutter branches that more recently cluttered suburban malls. “Coming into…

Bill Gates and his energy company are starting construction at their Wyoming site for a next-generation nuclear power plant he believes will “revolutionize” how power is generated. Gates was in the tiny community of Kemmerer this week to break ground on the project. The co-founder of Microsoft is chairman of TerraPower. The company applied to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in March for a construction permit for an advanced nuclear reactor that uses sodium, not water, for cooling. If approved, it would operate as a commercial nuclear power plant. The site is adjacent to PacifiCorp’s Naughton Power Plant, which will stop burning coal in 2026 and natural gas a decade later, the utility said. Nuclear reactors operate without emitting planet-warming greenhouse gases. PacifiCorp plans to get carbon-free power from the reactor…

Although its video streaming service sparkles with a Hollywood sheen, Netflix still taps its roots in Silicon Valley to stay a step ahead of traditional TV and movie studios. The Los Gatos, California, company, based more than 300 miles away from Hollywood, frequently reaches into its technological toolbox without viewers even realizing it. It often just uses few subtle twists on the knobs of viewer recommendations to help keep its 270 million worldwide subscribers satisfied at a time when most of its streaming rivals are seeing waves of cancellations from inflation-weary subscribers. Even when hit TV series like “The Crown” or “Bridgerton” have wide appeal, Netflix still tries to cater to the divergent tastes of its vast audience. One part of that recipe includes tailoring summaries and trailers about its…

The 2017 Tubbs Fire, which killed 22 people and destroyed 5,600 buildings, was already a stressful time at Alliance Medical Center’s clinic here, as workers who picked grapes in the nearby vineyards streamed into the nonprofit community health center with burns, symptoms of smoke inhalation, and other crises. Then, the power went out. Work at the center, about 70 miles north of San Francisco ground to a halt. Staff couldn’t access electronic health records or fill prescriptions. The refrigerators used to store medications stopped working, destroying $30,000 worth of vaccines. “We’d be fine if we never had to live through that again, but the reality is we will,” said Alliance CEO Sue Labbe. “But we’ll be prepared now.” In May, the clinic — which serves 13,000 patients per year, mostly…

For summer trips overseas, a smartphone is essential for most people. How else will you check Google Maps to find your Airbnb, post an Instagram video from the Eiffel Tower, or WhatsApp friends and family back home? Of course, if you’re using apps that gobble up data while traveling in a foreign country, there’s always a risk of racking up hefty roaming fees from your phone carrier. The solution? An international travel eSIM for your smartphone. How do you use this technology? Here are some tips. WHAT’S AN ESIM? If you’ve ever bought a new cellphone, you’re probably familiar with the SIM card. Short for subscriber identity module, the SIM is a little chip the size of a fingernail that fits into a slot on most phones. Without it, you…

Amazon is adding $1.4 billion to a fund it established three years ago for preserving or building more affordable housing in regions where the company has major corporate offices, CEO Andy Jassy announced this week. The Seattle-based company said the new sum would go on top of the $2.2 billion it had already invested to help create or preserve 21,000 affordable housing units in three areas: the Puget Sound in Washington state; Arlington, Virginia; and Nashville, Tennessee. When it launched its Housing Equity Fund in January 2021, Amazon said it aimed to fund 20,000 units over five years. The additional money will go to the same regions with a goal of building or maintaining 14,000 more homes through grants and below-market-rate loans. To date, most of the funding went to…

Apple announced a slew of new features for iOS 18 at Monday’s developers conference event, many of which are designed to enhance the Siri assistant and bring artificial intelligence tools to iPhone users. The AI-packed updates coming in the fall are meant to enable the billions of people who use the company’s devices to get more done in less time, while also giving them access to creative tools that could liven things up. For instance, Apple will deploy AI to allow people to create emojis, dubbed “Genmojis” on the fly to fit the vibe they are trying to convey. The full suite of upcoming AI features will only work on the recent iPhone 15 line because the functions require advanced processors. But there are still plenty of upgrades for all…

More than ever, buying a hybrid vehicle makes a lot of sense. The latest models are just as powerful — in some cases, more powerful — as related gas-only models and have such small price premiums that it’s easy to start saving money while reducing your vehicle-based carbon emissions. But what to choose, especially when you’re on a tight budget? Consider a hybrid sedan. Compared to an SUV, they typically get better mileage and have a lower starting price. Experts highlight six of the top new hybrid sedans on sale today for under $35,000. They are ordered below by price including the destination charge. 2024 HYUNDAI ELANTRA HYBRID Looking for great value? The 2024 Hyundai Elantra Hybrid has the lowest price tag in this category while also piling on a…

The European Union moved this week to hike tariffs, or import taxes, on electric vehicles made in China. EVs are the latest flash point in a broader trade dispute over Chinese government subsidies and the Asian nation’s burgeoning exports of green technology to the 27-nation bloc. Here are some basic facts about the EU’s planned tariffs: WHAT DID THE EUROPEAN UNION DO? The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, said the preliminary results of its ongoing investigation into Chinese EV subsidies show that the country’s battery electric vehicle “value chain” benefits from “unfair subsidization” that hurts EU rivals. It plans to impose provisional tariffs of up to 38.1% on electric vehicles shipped from China. That’s on top of the 10% duties for all imported EVs. The commission took aim at…