Business and Technology
VAR Sparks Controversy over the Role of Technology in Sports
This year's world cup has seen the introduction of the Virtual Assistant Referee (VAR) to help officiate games, leading to a series of controversies and discourse around the role of technology in sports.
Unrest Over Covid Lockdowns Spread Following Protest Outside an iPhone Factory in China
On Wednesday, Nov. 23, workers at Foxconn's central China Apple manufacturing line, the world's largest iPhone factory in Zhengzhou, China, protested over contract disputes and coronavirus lockdown under Beijing's continuing “zero-Covid policy,” which led to rising nationwide unrest.
Apple's Chip Maker Relocated Engineers and Built a Factory in Arizona to Hedge against China
On Tues. Dec. 6, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, or TSMC, one of the world's largest chip makers, announced the construction of two labs with the capacity to manufacture N4 and 3nm technology in Arizona, representing the largest foreign direct investment in Arizona.
Crypto Companies Around the World Face Aftermath of FTX Collapse
The collapse of the crypto exchange FTX on November 11th sent shockwaves through the crypto industry.
Giant Offshore Wind Farms Show Potential to Replace Jobs and Revive Local Economies in Scotland
The United Kingdom plans to expand offshore wind energy within the next decade.
China Uses Sophisticated Surveillance Technology to Track Down and Intimidate Protestors
China’s pervasive technological surveillance system implicated numerous people present at last week’s widespread protests against Zero Covid policies. Methods of tracking protestors include facial recognition technology and tapping into and collecting data from iPhones present at protests.
EU Settled on Oil Price Cap to Limit Russian Revenue without Global Energy Shock
On Friday, Dec. 2nd, several officials and diplomats from the European Union agreed on an oil price cap of $60 per barrel for Russian cargoes, which aims to limit oil revenue that Putin has used to continue the Russo-Ukraine War while preventing a global energy shock.
USA's Newest Round of Trade Restrictions against China
As tensions continue to heighten between the US and China, the US has unleashed its latest restrictions on Chinese technology.
Oil Prices Slide Despite Casualty in Poland and Explosive Evidence at Nord Stream
On Friday, Nov. 18th, the U.S. oil benchmark, West Texas Intermediate, slid to $80 per barrel.
South Korea Emerges as a Major Arms Supplier to Poland
In recent months, Poland has undertaken an effort to modernize its military.
Apple Shifts iPhone Production to India Amid Concerns About China
As Apple looks to shift production away from China due to a series of economic and political misfortunes, they have begun to move larger amounts of iPhone production to India.
US Justice Department Finds Crypto Exchange Binance Facilitated Flow of $7.8 Billion from Iranian Firms
Last week a US Justice Department Investigation revealed that the leading crypto exchange, Binance, has helped trade almost $8 billion worth of transactions from Iranian firms since 2018.
German Chancellor Sided with China and Put Business First During Friday's Beijing Visit
On Friday, Nov. 4t, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and top executives visited Beijing to meet with President Xi Jinping, who assured mutual cooperation to speed up the approval process for the BioNTech vaccine in China in exchange for a green light for Chinese vaccines in the EU.
Elon Musk’s Twitter Must Abide by EU Rules to Continue Operating in Europe
This Friday, multi-billionaire tech mogul Elon Musk closed his $44 billion Twitter deal, prompting EU official Thierry Breton to warn Musk that Twitter must abide by EU standards regardless of Musk's ambitions for the platform.
Construction Begins On Saudi Arabia’s latest Mega-Project
In recent weeks, construction has begun on Saudi Arabia’s latest mega-project. As a part of grand visions for a post-oil world, Saudi Arabia has poured trillions into projects that often seem unrealistic and draw international criticism, with the latest project appearing unrealistic even by the country’s ambitious standards.
StabilityAI's Recent Fundraising In Context
Stability AI raised $101 million this month to fund greater computing capacity and various other operational costs. This funding will back the company's efforts to provide open-source generative AI models, such as the firm's recently successful Stable Diffusion text-to-image model.
World's Largest Chip Maker Suspends Production for Chinese Start-up Amid US Regulation
On Saturday, October 22nd, TSMC (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.) announced that it has suspended all production for China-based Biren Technology to comply with recent US regulations banning US-based companies from exporting semiconductors used for AI to China, according to Bloomberg.
Despite Twitter Controversy, Elon Musk’s SpaceX Will Continue to Fund Crucial Ukrainian Internet Service
Elon Musk, multi-billionaire CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, tweeted Saturday that he plans to continue funding SpaceX’s internet service, Starlink, “for free” for the Ukrainian government.
Why Is Japan Trying to Build a 6th Generation Fighter Jet?
Article 9 of the Japanese constitution imposed by the US after the Second World War limits Japan’s military strictly to defense.
China’s Quantum Computing Research Faces Sweeping Challenges from US Export Rules
The Biden administration announced extensive new export rules on the sale of semiconductor technologies to China on Friday, escalating tensions in the technology race between the US and China.
The new wave of rules bans companies from selling advanced computer chips used in AI or supercomputing produced using US technology or machinery to China. Additionally, US companies are now banned from selling chip-producing machinery to China without a license and shipment of chips used for supercomputer systems to China will be banned.