Author: ashton

Facebook will hire 1,000 employees to control adverts amid Russia investigation

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Facebook will hire 1,000 new employees over the next year to control adverts that are shown to the platform’s two billion users. The move, which also includes further investment in software to automatically take down adverts abusing the company’s terms, was announced on October 2.

Facebook is currently part of an official investigation into Russia’s involvement in the US election campaign.

“For the ways my work was used to divide people rather than bring us together, I ask forgiveness and I will work to do better,” Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote in a post on September 30, without naming a specific issue.

Facebook, together with other technology companies, has been under increasing pressure from federal investigators and Congress, as it is believed to have played a part in Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election.

Since Facebook’s involvement in the investigation, it has introduced various measures to improve its advertising system.

The high volume of adverts Facebook hosts has forced the firm to increase the amount of staff working on ad reviews

The information Facebook shared with Congress estimated that 10 million people in the US saw a total of 3,000 ads coming from 470 inauthentic accounts in the run up to the election, according to a statement signed by Facebook Vice President of Policy and Communications, Elliot Schrage, released on October 2.

The amount spent from accounts backed by Russian entities reached $100,000.

The adverts, which mainly addressed issues such as immigration, race and LGBT rights, were considered politically divisive. However, Facebook said “it may not have uncovered all malicious activity that attempted to interfere in the American political process”, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Facebook said it reviews millions of ads each week and, in addition, about eight million people report ads to the company every day. This high volume has forced the firm to increase the amount of staff working on ad reviews, along with other measures needed to control adverts on the platform.

In May, the company announced that it would hire 3,000 more people to remove videos showing or promoting violence.

Nonetheless, Facebook made clear that controls wouldn’t affect its position on freedom of expression. In its latest statement about the Russian ads, it clarified: “Many of these ads did not violate our content policies. That means that for most of them, if they had been run by authentic individuals, anywhere, they could have remained on the platform.”

Panasonic accelerates battery drive with new production line

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On September 29, electronics firm Panasonic announced it would begin manufacturing automotive lithium-ion batteries at its television screen factory in Himeji, Japan. Production should begin by 2020.

The move is part of the company’s strategy to increase its market share in the automobile industry.

Although Panasonic’s investment in the plant has not been confirmed, it is likely to run into the tens of millions of dollars, as the company has committed to installing innovative vertically integrated production lines.

The factory revamp will enable the firm to boost both domestic and international production.

Panasonic already lays claim to five lithium-ion production plants in Japan and is the exclusive battery supplier for the Tesla Model 3.

Panasonic is aiming to double revenue from its automotive business to $22m by March 2022

In a statement, the company renewed its commitment to traditional electronics, such as LCD screens, but noted that environmental trends have greatly increased demand for battery technology.

“The global market for eco-conscious vehicles has been growing in response to stricter worldwide environmental regulations on automobiles as well as a variety of incentive measures for promoting eco-conscious vehicles,” the statement read. “The world market for automotive batteries, which are essentially required for eco-conscious vehicles, is also growing rapidly, with increasing expectations from auto manufacturers on Panasonic.”

Sales of electric vehicles have grown rapidly in recent times, accelerating past the two million mark last year. Not to be left out, Panasonic is aiming to double revenue from its automotive business to $22m by March 2022.

Environmental regulations will help drive consumers towards electric cars, but a huge question mark remains over whether the technical infrastructure is in place to facilitate higher numbers of electric vehicles on the road.

As well as increased battery capacity from producers like Panasonic, the existing charging network will need to undergo significant expansion.

IKEA takes first step into gig economy by acquiring TaskRabbit

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On September 28, the Swedish home goods giant IKEA announced an agreement to acquire TaskRabbit, a US start-up aimed at connecting people with freelancers willing to run errands and do housework.

The deal is the furniture company’s first move into the gig economy, and is consistent with retailers’ increasing efforts to fight against digital competitors by providing new services.

“In a fast-changing retail environment, we continuously strive to develop new and improved products and services to make our customers’ lives a little bit easier. Entering the on-demand sharing economy enables us to support that,” said Jesper Brodin, President and CEO of IKEA Group, in a statement.

Although the terms of the deal were not disclosed, San Francisco-based TaskRabbit was valued at around $50m in a financing round in 2015, according to The Wall Street Journal. The deal is expected to be completed in October.

TaskRabbit is a marketplace where people can connect with freelancers who offer themselves for various tasks, such as running errands and doing household chores

TaskRabbit was founded in 2008 by Leah Busque and her husband Kevin. Essentially, TaskRabbit is a marketplace where people can connect with freelancers who offer themselves for various tasks, such as running errands and doing household chores.

Freelancers could now be hired to assemble IKEA’s famous flat-packed furniture.

In recent years, TaskRabbit has expanded to 40 cities across the US. Outside its home country, it chose London as its first international destination in 2013. Now, the acquisition by the world’s largest home furnishing retailer – which operates in 29 countries – could give it a platform to go global.

Despite this potential expansion, TaskRabbit will continue to operate as an independent firm.

IKEA’s latest moves have shown a proactive approach to adapting to change. The step in the gig economy also marks the beginning of a new phase under the group’s new CEO, Jesper Brodin. The company veteran took over command this month, replacing Peter Agnefjall, who had been leading IKEA since 2013.

In another move to include digital services, in August the Swedish firm launched IKEA Place, an augmented reality app, which allows people to virtually place furniture in their home.

IFR allays job fears as robotics industry reaches new heights

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On September 27, the publication of the World Robotics Report 2017 found that global robot sales are continuing to rise, achieving a new peak for the fourth year in a row. Sales increased 16 percent year-on-year during 2016, with growth shown across all major markets.

The electronics industry was found to be the main driving force behind the increased sales figures, with a jump of 41 percent last year. Total sales of 91,300 units meant that the sector almost achieved parity with the automotive industry (103,300 units), which has traditionally dominated global shipments. Sales were strong across the board and it is predicted that more than 1.7 million new industrial robots will be installed by 2020.

The threat posed by the robot market’s rapid growth is often overplayed

Commenting on the report’s release, President of the International Federation of Robotics (IFR), Joe Gemma, stated that the threat posed by the robot market’s rapid growth is often overplayed.

“Creating high paying and skilled jobs has been a wonderful side benefit of automation,” Gemma said. “In fact, there is no evidence to support the notion of robots as job killers. The robots might be coming – but they are not coming for our jobs. Instead, there is clear evidence that humans will remain central to effective automation strategies, which are key to improving productivity and economic growth.

It is also worth noting that the market for robot sales is not uniform across the globe. Five countries represented 74 percent of total sales in 2016: the US, Germany, Japan, South Korea and China. In China alone, robot shipments increased by 27 percent in 2016.

Despite the assurances of the IFR, the increasing proliferation of robots is likely to cause some anxiety in developed nations. Although robots do provide substantial efficiency benefits, governments are often slow to ensure that displaced employees are given the skills they need to thrive in a more technologically advanced workplace.

Total accelerates green energy drive with Eren and GreenFlex partnerships

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On September 19, French oil firm Total announced the purchase of a 23 percent stake in renewable energy company Eren, enhancing its position in the green energy sector. The deal is valued at €237.5m ($284.7m) and gives Total the opportunity to takeover Eren after a period of five years.

The purchase highlights Total’s acceptance of emerging environmentally friendly sources of energy. Although fossil fuels have dominated power generation for decades, the falling costs of solar, wind and hydroelectric energy have granted the green energy market a chance to compete with fossil fuels.

Eren, which will be renamed Total Eren after the transaction is complete, aims to possess a global installed energy capacity of more than 3GW by 2022. Speaking about the purchase, Total CEO Patrick Pouyanné said the partnership would have strategic rewards for both companies.

Eren, which will be renamed Total Eren after the transaction is complete, aims to possess a global installed energy capacity of more than 3GW by 2022

“Total integrates climate challenge into its strategy and is pursuing steady growth in low-carbon businesses, in particular in renewable energy,” Pouyanné explained. “By partnering with Eren, we are leveraging a team that has a proven track record in renewable power production, and we are investing in an additional asset to accelerate our profitable growth in this segment, in line with our ambition to become the responsible energy major.”

In further efforts to project a more conscientious image, Total has also committed to taking over energy efficiency firm GreenFlex, a global leader in the use of data science to manage energy consumption. Although the value of the deal remains unknown, GreenFlex currently boasts annual revenues in excess of €350m ($419.6m).

Evidently, Total is keeping up efforts to diversify its energy portfolio at a time when oil prices are depressed and environmental concerns are gathering pace. However, the company has not given up on its core offering and announced the $7.55bn purchase of oil production assets from Danish firm AP Moller-Maersk back in August.

Google launches Tez to target India’s mobile payment industry

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Google announced its first foray into Asia’s digital payments space on September 18, with the introduction of Tez. The mobile application is available in India across both Android and iOS operating systems from today, and will look to target the country’s 300 million smartphone users.

India’s mobile payments space has become particularly competitive in recent months, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi attempts to move towards a cashless society. Monetary policy has looked to combat fraud by reducing the amount of cash in circulation by as much as 86 percent, opening the country up to a number of digital finance solutions.

Tez, which comes from the Hindi word for ‘fast’, promises to support the country’s Unified Payments Interface

In order to be successful, Google will need to compete with the Alibaba-backed e-commerce tool Paytm, as well the expected emergence of Facebook as a digital payment provider. However, Caesar Sengupta, Vice President of Google’s Next Billion Users team, believes that Tez has what it takes to become an industry leader.

“Tez is available today on Google Play and the App Store, and we’re excited for you to try it,” he explained. “We hope you’ll like our fresh approach to digital payments and commerce and that Tez will help make your life a little bit easier. This is just one step in a long and important journey towards enabling a cashless India – a crucial component of a digital India.”

Tez, which comes from the Hindi word for ‘fast’, promises to support the country’s Unified Payments Interface and will offer 24-hour protection in the form of Tez Shield. It will also facilitate the growth of small businesses by giving firms their own verified business channel within the app.

The Indian Government will certainly be hoping that the app becomes a runaway success. A failure to make significant corruption arrests, coupled with an economic slowdown in emerging industries, has led many to criticise the government’s recent demonetisation policy.

Major Chinese bitcoin exchange stops trading

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Having hit record highs just weeks ago, bitcoin’s boom has since abated as the currency feels the heat from heightened regulatory attention. On September 14, BTCC, one of China’s biggest exchanges, announced that it is halting trade in response to a notice from Chinese regulators.

China’s National Internet Finance Association recently issued a warning regarding the role of cryptocurrencies in facilitating illegal fundraising and money laundering. BTCC said that its decision to stop trading came after “carefully considering” the warning.

According to Reuters, the regulator is preparing to double down on exchanges. Sources told the Chinese financial news outlet Yicai that the government plans to completely ban bitcoin exchanges by the end of the month.

Chinese bitcoin markets account for approximately 98 percent of total bitcoin trading volume worldwide

The stance of Chinese authorities could be pivotal for bitcoin’s future. Many estimates indicate that the vast majority of trade occurs through exchanges in the country. According to publically available data, approximately 95 percent of global exchanges from traditional fiat currency into bitcoin are from purchases in the Chinese renminbi.

What’s more, Chinese bitcoin markets account for approximately 98 percent of total bitcoin trading volume worldwide.

This said, due to difficulties in interpreting and accessing the full range of relevant data, it’s hard to pinpoint quite how dominant China is in the global market. An analysis published by CoinDesk placed the Chinese market share at around 85 percent. Others place it closer to 50 percent.

Even going by lower estimates, China’s regulatory decisions on the currency can be expected to cause substantial ripple effects that will be felt across global cryptocurrency markets.

Apple and Dell bid to acquire Toshiba’s memory chip business

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In a consortium led by private equity firm Bain Capital, Apple and Dell made a joint bid to acquire Toshiba’s memory chip business, Toshiba Memory Corporation, for about $19bn, according to The Wall Street Journal.

On September 13, the Japanese group announced it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Bain, aiming to close a deal no later than the end of this month. However, Toshiba made clear the agreement “does not eliminate the possibility of negotiations with other consortia”.

The Japanese manufacturer has been troubled by big losses at Westinghouse Electric, its US nuclear unit, which filed for bankruptcy in March.

At present, Toshiba is under pressure to close a deal in order to improve its finances. If it is unable to do so, its shares could be delisted from the Tokyo Stock Exchange in March 2018, the Financial Times reported.

The Japanese manufacturer has been troubled by big losses at Westinghouse Electric, its US nuclear unit, which filed for bankruptcy in March

As a strategic supplier in the tech industry, the memory chip maker has other potential buyers. Among them is Western Digital, the US computer data storage company and Toshiba’s partner in chip manufacturing, which expressed its discontent with the news. “We are disappointed that Toshiba would take this action despite Western Digital’s tireless efforts to reach a resolution that is in the best interests of all stakeholders,” the company said in a statement.

Last week, it became public knowledge that Toshiba was considering a proposal from Western Digital that included legal action. But later on it showed preference for the Bain-backed group, which is said to be discussing a $3bn stake in Toshiba’s memory chip unit.

Furthermore, there is a third offer in what Bloomberg called a “bidding war”. The last bidder includes Foxconn (also known as Hon Hai Precision Industry), the Taiwanese electronics contract manufacturer.

Toshiba’s urgency to sell is likely to accelerate the decision.

Google appeals record antitrust fine

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On September 11, Google appealed a €2.4bn ($2.87bn) fine issued by the European Commission in June. The fine was imposed after the commission suspected the company had abused its market dominance by prioritising content in its search engine to benefit its own businesses.

Specifically, the sanction was levied because Google had placed its comparison-shopping service at the top of search rankings, discriminating against rivals and thus violating EU antitrust rules.

Now, as it promised in June when the penalty it incurred became public, Google is challenging European regulators.

The court ruling gave Google 90 days to overhaul its search results, and if it doesn’t change the practices that cost it the fine, regulators could impose further penalties

However, the decision won’t relieve the company of the economic burden, according to The Wall Street Journal; Google will have to adapt its practices to conform with EU rules. The court ruling gave Google 90 days to overhaul its search results, and if it doesn’t change the practices that cost it the fine, regulators could impose further penalties.

European authorities are willing to fight in the tribunals. A European Commission spokesman said: “The commission will defend its decision in court.” But the legal battle could take “several years”, taking into account previous cases, according to Reuters.

Google’s appeal came days after Intel’s appeal of a similar antitrust case was granted.

The decision was made eight years after Intel appealed a €1bn ($1.2bn) fine for allegedly using illegal sale practices to encourage computer manufacturers to carry its chips.

On September 6, the European Court of Justice said the decision would have to be revised by a lower tribunal.

Intel’s triumph could be a landmark case which might increase Google’s chances of success.

Apple leak reveals company secrets about new iPhone X

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A leak on September 8 has revealed that the name of the latest iPhone will be iPhone X. Two more new models will be called iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 plus.

The leak has revealed several key details regarding new features, including 3D sensors, portrait lighting, improved facial biometric identification and some drastic design changes. The company has also developed ‘animojis,’ which use facial tracking to create animated emojis that mimic users’ facial expressions.

Leaks disclosing details of Apple’s upcoming products before their launch date are relatively common, but the scale of this latest revelation is unprecedented. According to John Gruber, a blogger known for his expertise in Apple: “More surprises were spoiled by this leak than any leak in Apple history.”

A leaked recording of an internal briefing about safeguarding secrecy at Apple makes working for Apple sound like working for the CIA

The leak will frustrate Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook, who has explicitly pushed secrecy as a priority since the beginning of his tenure. Soon after assuming leadership of the company in 2012, he spoke out about doubling down on concealment measures.

According to news site The Outline, a leaked recording of an internal briefing about safeguarding secrecy at Apple “makes working for Apple sound like working for the CIA”.

In the briefing, Greg Joswiak, Apple’s Vice President of iPod, iPhone and iOS product marketing said, “This has become a big deal for Tim,” before later expressing: “I have faith deep in my soul that if we hire smart people they’re going to think about this, they’re going to understand this, and ultimately they’re going to do the right thing, and that’s to keep their mouth shut.”

The briefing further revealed that the company has tasked a global security team to protect Apple’s secrets, which comprises former members of the US National Security Agency, Secret Service and the FBI, according to The Outline.

Cook has also linked the prevalence of leaks to the success of iPhone sales, citing “earlier and much more frequent reports about future iPhones” as a factor in the sluggish sales data seen earlier this year.

Google Street View upgrade embraces artificial intelligence

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For the first time since 2009, Google has revamped its Street View cameras. As of last month, the new and improved cameras got to work capturing the streets of the world in high-resolution. The images are soon to be translated into more detailed and colourful Street View images.

The new camera design is not just geared at upgrading the Street View experience, however. Google is also looking to analyse the images using artificial intelligence.

By feeding more detail into its image recognition algorithms, Google will be able to generate a deeper dataset for its search tool, enabling it to answer much more complicated queries.

The aim is for the company’s search algorithms to be able to process queries that assume knowledge about the appearance of locations.

News of the upgrade was first published by Wired, who discussed the ins and outs of the new tech with Jen Fitzpatrick, Vice President of Engineering and Project Management at Google, who also leads the maps division.

“People are coming to us every day with harder and deeper questions,” she told Wired. The aim, according to Fitzpatrick, is for the company’s search algorithms to be able to process queries that assume knowledge about the appearance of locations.

For instance, one might search something like: “What’s the name of the pink store next to the church on the corner?” In order to do this, Google needs “richer and deeper information,” said Fitzpatrick.

Another idea use of artificial intelligence that Google is pursuing is its potential to identify and read information like signs and place names. The algorithms could learn to recognise information displayed in shop windows such as methods of payment and opening hours.

WhatsApp takes first step to monetise corporate users

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WhatsApp, the instant messaging platform used by more than 1 billion people around the world, will start charging companies to contact clients on the app. On Tuesday 5, the company’s COO, Matt Idema, revealed that two tools that are currently free for businesses will now come with a cost.

The announcement comes three years after the company was acquired by Facebook in a $22bn deal, and reflects an effort to make the most popular chat application worldwide profitable. According to Idema’s statements in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, WhatsApp will take a different path from its parent company, whose revenues come from advertising.

“We want to put a basic foundation in place to allow people to message businesses and for them to get the responses that they want,” WhatsApp’s COO said. “We do intend on charging businesses in the future,” Idema added, without giving any further details about how and when charges will be applied.

WhatsApp is being careful to take care of its users, making sure that companies can only get in touch with those who accept them to avoid spam messages

An expert in marketing and advertisement, Idema arrived at the firm in February with the aim of transforming it into a source of revenue. Earlier in his career, he was Yahoo’s vice president and then a senior executive at Facebook. Now, he is leading WhatsApp’s push towards monetisation.

The business tools that the new plan will charge for were introduced to a handful of companies in March. Since then, businesses from different sectors and sizes have been testing the features.

WhatsApp is being careful to take care of its users, making sure that companies can only get in touch with those who accept them to avoid spam messages.

Meanwhile, the chat app continues tests, according to a post on WhatsApp’s blog: “Connections are already taking place every day, whether it’s someone placing an order with a local bakery or looking at new styles from a clothing store. But the way this happens now on WhatsApp is pretty rudimentary.” The chat company added that it will be trialing new features in the coming months to try to solve these challenges.

In a previous attempt to make money, WhatsApp implemented a subscription model, charging users in some countries. But fees were scrapped after it was bought by Facebook and the messaging app made it clear it wouldn’t introduce third-party ads.

Under the fresh strategy, Facebook’s management expects WhatsApp to be profitable within five years.