Business Articles

Tesla has come up with a devious new tactic to comply with the latest US IRA tax incentive requirements. In order to get the full $7,500 tax incentive for both the Model Y and Model 3 Long Range AWD and Performance, Tesla has split Model Y and Model 3 cell production. Buyers eligible for the IRA tax incentive end up with a more expensive battery pack.

Bill Gates' company Molten Industries produces graphite, a key material for lithium-ion batteries, from natural gas in a cost-effective and CO2-free process. The new technology is designed to help decarbonise while supporting the development of EVs and the hydrogen economy.

The Optoma ZK810T and ZK810TST 4K UHD fixed lens laser projectors have been revealed. Designed for use in leisure spaces and conference rooms, the models can throw images up to 300 inches (~760 cm) wide and have a higher brightness level. Plus, the ZK810TST is said to be the first short-throw model of its kind.

Tesla's Model Y has declined starkly in popularity in Europe, despite recently claiming the top spot as the world's best-selling car. In May 2024, Model Y sales dropped by 49%. Regardless of the decline, the Model Y remains Europe's most popular EV.

Customizable mini PCs are becoming increasingly prominent among enterprises across a wide range of industries, such as IoT, digital signage, telemedicine, and much more. Mini PCs, which provide enterprises with greater customization options and the capacity to alter components, prove once more that size is no barrier to personalization.

The new compact Starlink Mini dish with integrated Wi-Fi router has been put to a satellite Internet speed test from a Cybertruck's bed.

Fans can expect many playable games, news on various games and other highlights at the Xbox stand at the upcoming Gamescom. According to the company, it will be the largest stand that Xbox Game Studios has ever had at the games fair.

Sony PlayStation VR 2 should be available for the PC from August. However, according to anonymous sources, Sony no longer seems to have high hopes for the VR headset.

A report from Bloomberg says Apple Intelligence, iPhone Mirroring and SharePlay Screen Sharing won't be available in the EU. Slated to launch later this year, these features will supposedly run afoul of EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA).

No laboratory value, no theoretical maximum: In Brandenburg, Germany, the production of high-performance solar modules using the tandem process begins.

BMW has officially cancelled its $2 billion battery contract with Swedish sodium-ion battery maker, Northvolt. BMW says that it would be better for Northvolt to focus on developing next-gen cells, instead of BMW's production demands.

SpaceX has entered an agreement with Walmart to start selling Starlink Standard Kits at its stores and online, and the Starlink dishes are already discounted.

Microsoft is removing the Win+C key combination to open Copilot, citing the further development of the AI tool as the reason. However, it is more likely that Microsoft is hoping to sell more Copilot+ PCs as a result.

The US Department of Commerce will ban Kaspersky in America beginning July 20, 2024. The ban under Information and Communications Technology and Services regulations will effectively prevent Kaspersky from selling and updating products such as its popular antivirus software to Americans.

Head Acoustics has developed the Head Visor VMA V acoustic camera to visually display sources of sound on a 7 inch touch display. The system uses up to 120 microphones to display sound sources over a real-world image. This allows users to pinpoint exact areas where noises are coming from in an object or room for further noise mitigation, soundproofing, or acoustic tuning.

A massive cyberattack has crippled over 15,000 North American auto dealerships that use the CDK dealership management system. The software-as-a-service can manage all aspects of a dealership from quotes to service to sales. Affected dealerships are forced to use pen and paper.

OLED has a challenger as an emerging type of high-tech TV in the form of panels that use mini-LED as a backlight. They confer potential advantages such as color-accuracy and dynamic range, and are as such now tipped to ship up to 1.8 million more units than OLED next year.

The new Mini dish weighs just 3 pounds and SpaceX has started a limited Mini Roam trial offer in the US for $30/month, but the Starlink Mini kit price is not what was expected.

Mercedes-Benz is investing $1 billion to scale up its Mercedes-Benz High-Power Charging network in North America with US partner Alpitronic. The 100% clean energy network will be built by local workers and US-made Alpitronic Hypercharger 400s, creating a more reliable EV charging network than current alternatives.

Supposed to be the debut title for Paradox Tectonic, a studio founded in early 2019, Life by You was teased in March 2023. Sadly, its early access went through three delays and never made it online because the game was canceled on June 17, ending Paradox Interactive's attempt at an alternative to The Sims.

Fisker Group, Inc. has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the District of Delaware and expects to sell off its assets. The company made cars including the Fisker Karma hybrid and Fisker Ocean EV. Fisker car trade-in values are effectively zero. The company was founded in 2016, but has never made a profit despite billions invested.

The recently refreshed Tesla Model 3 Long Range AWD price has dropped by another $3,750 for those eligible for the US federal tax incentive. The Highland refresh of the Model 3 LR previously did not qualify for the full $7,500 because of restrictions on battery material origin. After regaining the full $7,500 incentive, the Model 3 LR AWD can be had for $39,990.

SpaceX will be releasing a new, much cheaper compact Starlink Mini dish with integrated router that Elon Musk said will be half the price of the current $599 Standard Kit.

The slimmer model variant of the legendary Lenovo ThinkPad T14 is now on sale for just $544 as the Chinese PC maker has cut the price of a refurbished Core i7 configuration with 16GB RAM by more than 50%.

Even the humble bathroom scale has become smart in 2024, with many varieties capable of telling a user much more than how much they weigh. Their potential to help track often vital metrics such as body composition is now projected to drive their market's worth by more than $100 million over the next 4 years. Then again, that growth also faces challenges in the form of other smart devices.

UP.FIT has launched the world’s first Cybertruck Next-Gen Patrol vehicle along with other upfitted Tesla models for law enforcement departments nationwide. This gives departments quieter vehicles for stealth patrols and EV alternatives when making the move to electrification.

According to the latest market research, Hisense led the market for 100-inch TVs in terms of shipments during 2023 and the first quarter of 2024. The OEM was also found to have shipped the second most TVs worldwide in general. Meanwhile, one of its most advanced mini-LED screens is now the official TV of the UEFA EURO 2024 championship.

This time, Google admits that the latest YouTube update "may result in suboptimal viewing experiences for viewers with ad blockers installed" and urges viewers once again to support creators by allowing ads or trying YouTube Premium. Also, when accessing the website without logging in, a warning shows up asking the user to sign up.

Sonos has amended its T&Cs and deleted an important clause that prohibits the sale of customer data. Anyone who wants to continue using their Sonos devices is forced to accept the T&Cs.

In addition to various other functions, YouTube is currently testing a new AI function that could make life much easier for viewers in live streams.

After the European Union, Japan is stepping in by promoting a law that forces both Apple and Google to stop keeping third-party app stores out of their ecosystems. For now, some details are still sketchy, but a fine of 20% of the domestic revenue for the initial violation for a specific service is certain.

Valve is accused of manipulating the gaming market in the UK. The company is now being sued for 840 million US dollars. The hearing is due to take place this month.

Samsung Foundry has announced two new nodes: SF2Z and SF4U. The former will enter mass production in 2027 with backside power delivery and the latter sometime in 2025.

Mini has officially launched the latest iteration of its four-door sub-compact hatch, and unfortunately for those looking for a small, quirky, electric car, Mini will not be launching this update in an EV guise. This is despite Mini having data showing that many families are still shopping for EVs.

Despite substantial backlash after the Panasonic Lumix S9 announcement, it looks as though fans are eager enough to get their hands on the compact full-frame camera that they are causing delivery delays for Panasonic. Fujifilm's X100 series is infamous for its delivery delays and supply shortages — both of which just seem to create more hype around the camera.

Bill Gates’ TerraPower has started construction on its sodium-cooled Natrium nuclear power plant in Wyoming. Partnering with the US Dept. of Energy, the project reactor will provide 345-megawatts of electricity to help meet surging electricity demand from AI, EV, and cryptocurrency use. This clean energy alternative to solar and wind farms is not affected by changing sunlight and wind conditions.

Intel made several announcements in 2022, 2023 and 2024 detailing plans to build new research/manufacturing facilities (or expand existing ones) in Costa Rica, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Malaysia, Poland and of course the US. Now, it appears Israel just got crossed out which is supposedly not related in any way to the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

After detecting a software malfunction that could disable the stability control systems of the vehicles, Stellantis has decided to recall no less than 211,581 Chrysler vehicles in the US. The models affected by this problem are the 2022 Dodge Durano and the Ram 2500 along with the Ram 3500.

Apple recently announced its intention to work with OpenAI and integrate ChatGPT into iOS. Elon Musk then expressed major security concerns and announced that he would ban all Apple devices from his companies in the event of such a collaboration.

SpaceX has decided to offer cheaper Starlink standard kits with the new V4 dish to those living in certain areas in the US.

After teaming up last year with them to bring legacy Windows desktop apps to ChromeOS, Google is now acquiring Cameyo. This move will benefit all ChromeOS users who still rely on various Windows apps by taking installations and updates out of the picture. The financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed.

Although not even mentioned by Statcounter's desktop market reports, Brave is slowly but surely going up. In May, it broke its previous records with almost 79 million active users, as well as roughly 29 million daily active users. Brave Search also hit new peaks, exceeding 843 million monthly queries.

Activision has patented a new game function that automatically adjusts cutscenes or the number of opponents in games according to how much time players can invest. This should make it possible to have a satisfying gaming experience even with little time.

Rumors of Humane's search for a buyer continue, with recent speculation pinning HP as a prospective buyer of the floundering AI company. Citing people familiar with the matter, The New York Times reports that Humane is in talks to sell its company to HP for $1 billion.

Asus showed off the ExpertBook P5 at Computex 2024 based on Intel's upcoming Lunar Lake platform. According to Asus, the ExpertBook P5 is built on a triple AI foundation that also augments some of the security features of the laptop.