Apple is reportedly shifting into the world of home robots after the wheels came off its electric car. According to a new report from Bloomberg, a team of several hundred is working on its potential first product: a robotic arm with an “iPad-like” display attached. The home product would take a page out of Amazon’s dynamic Echo Show 10 and one of Meta’s bygone Portal devices.The product has reportedly been in the works for around two years, though the team has ramped up efforts far more recently. Apple isn’ ...

The Commission is seeking more information from Meta following its decision to deprecate its CrowdTangle transparency tool. The latest EU request for information (RFI) on Meta has been made under the bloc’s Digital Services Act (DSA) — an online governance framework which empowers enforcers to punish non-compliance with fines of up to 6% of global annual turnover. Back in April the Commission opened formal DSA infringement proceedings against Meta, citing a range of election security concerns — including it ...

Meta’s X rival Threads announced a number of new features today, including the ability to store multiple drafts, a way to rearrange columns on the desktop, and insights into the user’s audience. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg also mentioned that the company plans to add a post-scheduling feature soon.The company noted that these new features mark the first anniversary of Threads launching its web version in August 2023. Threads initially began testing drafts in February this year and rolled it out to all users w ...

After much back and forth earlier this year, Spotify on Wednesday says it’s now received approval from Apple to display pricing information in its iOS app for users in the EU. The company is not opting into Apple’s new business rules under the EU’s Digital Markets Act, but rather is taking advantage of new antitrust guidelines imposed by the EU specifically for music streaming apps.Apple in March was fined by European regulators €1.84 billion (nearly $2 billion USD) for breaching antitrust rules in the mark ...

Texas filed a lawsuit Tuesday against GM over years of alleged abuse of customers’ data and trust. New car owners were presented with a “confusing and highly misleading” process that was implied to be for their safety, but “was no more than a deceptively designed sales flow” that surrendered their data for GM to sell. The suit contends that at no point was selling driving data ever even suggested as a possibility, putting GM in violation of the state’s consumer protection laws.Texas Attorney General Ken Pax ...

Pixel Phones dominated Tuesday’s Made by Google 2024 event. In addition to a full refresh for the Pixel 9 line, the company unveiled the successor to its first foldable, the Pixel Fold. Google rejiggered its numbering scheme this time out, jumping to Pixel 9 Pro Fold for what is its second take on the category.The new name puts the device in line with the rest of Google’s mobile portfolio. Time will tell whether the new “Pro” bit presages the arrival of a lower cost foldable, or if it’s simply a nod to the ...

Waymo plans to start testing its fully autonomous vehicles with no human safety driver on freeways in the San Francisco Bay Area this week. Its employees will be the first guinea pigs. For those who didn’t already know, Waymo got the approval from California regulators to charge for autonomous rides on the freeway back in March, so this is a step towards achieving that. The move comes as Waymo – flush with an additional $5 billion investment from Alphabet – pushes to expand in SF. Last week, Waymo added ano ...

Google has announced the rollout of its locally produced Pixel 8 devices in India, nearly 10 months after revealing its domestic manufacturing plans for the devices, and immediately ahead of the expected Pixel 9 unveiling later this week.The Android maker confirmed to TechCrunch that the local manufacturing is currently limited to the Pixel 8 and does not include the Pixel 8 Pro and Pixel 8a. In October, Google announced plans to assemble the Pixel smartphone lineup in India to expand its presence in the I ...

“Founders – whether it’s Deepinder, Aadit, or Vidit or the team at Flipkart – have out-executed the management team of Amazon,” an analyst said.About two years ago, a VC firm was evaluating an investment in a quick-commerce startup in India. The company’s instant delivery model was showing signs of success in the South Asian market, even as many startups in the space were struggling in developed markets.But the firm was wary: Could Amazon swoop in and dominate this nascent sector with its heft, scale and re ...

Core Viewpoint - Apple faces criticism from Spotify and Epic Games regarding its revised compliance plan for the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA), which includes new fees and perceived non-compliance with DMA requirements [1][3]. Fee Structure Changes - Apple introduced two new fees: an "Initial Acquisition Fee" for connecting users with apps through the App Store during the first 12 months, and a "Store Services Fee" that applies on a fixed basis for ongoing purchases of digital goods and services [2]. - The new fees replace the previously proposed "Core Technology Fee," but developers still incur costs even if they opt out of Apple's DMA rules [2]. Industry Reactions - Spotify criticized the new fee structure, claiming it could demand up to a 25% fee for basic user communication, which contradicts DMA requirements [3]. - Epic Games' CEO Tim Sweeney labeled the new fees as "malicious compliance" and illegal, particularly highlighting a 15% fee imposed on users migrating to competing app stores [4].