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- CES 2022 latest news
- CES 2022: LG
- CES 2022: Samsung
- CES 2022: Sony
- CES 2022: Nvidia
- CES 2022: AMD
- CES 2022: TVs
- CES 2022: Laptops
- CES 2022: Smart home
- CES 2022: Wearables
- CES 2022: EVs
- CES 2022: Smartphones
- CES 2022 dates and schedule
- CES 2022 registration
- CES 2022 exhibitors
- CES 2022 keynotes and press conferences
- CES 2022 vaccination and safety protocols
- CES 2022: Trends and what we expect
CES 2022 is just about over, and while it took an unusual hybrid format of in-person and online briefings this year, we still saw a huge amount of exciting technology, both stuff that's ready for market and things to look forward to in the coming years.
The stuff we've liked so far? Well there's some sensible choices like the beefed-up Dell XPS 13 Plus or the stunning-looking Samsung Odyssey Neo G8 monitor. There are also some weirder ones like the Alienware Concept Nyx gaming system and a novel smart bathtub. But there's plenty more besides these and many in between these choices too.
Be sure to check out the Tom's Guide CES 2022 Award winners for all of the products we thought were the most interesting and innovative. And after you're done with that, be sure to read what we thought were the weirdest and wackiest gadgets of CES.
While CES 2022 wasn't expected to be as big as those in pre-pandemic years — which saw as many as 170,000 attendees descending on Las Vegas — due to the Omicron variant, in the weeks leading up to CES, a number of companies switched to a virtual, rather than a physical presence, and the CTA has implemented some additional safety measures for those who are attending. Event organizers have also scrapped the last day of the conference in reaction to Covid concerns.
Here’s all the latest news, plus everything you need to know about CES 2022, including how to register, health and safety protocols, show dates, and more.
CES 2022 latest news
- Sony announces Vision-S electric SUV in challenge to Tesla
- CES 2022: HyperX's new wireless gaming headset runs for 300 hours
- This new Wi-Fi 6E router has rotating antennas that follow you around
- Dell XPS 13 Plus hands-on review: A risky departure
- Sony’s new TV webcam will tell you when you're sitting too close to the screen
- Look out, Nvidia and AMD — Intel’s Arc GPUs now shipping to PC makers
- Intel unveils Alder Lake laptop chips — with power to rival Apple M1 Max
- Nvidia CES 2022 live blog recap: RTX 3090 Ti, GeForce Now on Samsung TVs and more
- LG just announced the smallest OLED TV yet — and it's a big deal
- OnePlus 10 Pro design officially revealed
- This smart light bulb monitors your health — but it's a little creepy
- Alienware Concept Nyx just redefined gaming for the home — here's how
- Samsung 2022 TVs revealed — 89-inch microLED, Neo QLED and more
- This portable air purifier doubles as noise-cancelling headphones
- Jabra Elite 4 Active offers ANC, IP57 waterproofing for low price
- LG’s immersive exercise bike with flexible OLED panels looks amazing
- This smart door at CES 2022 has a Ring doorbell and smart lock built in
- Netgear Nighthawk RAXE300 router makes Wi-Fi 6E speed more affordable
- Run a perfect bath every time with the voice-controlled Kohler PerfectFill
- CES 2022: 5 trends we’re expecting as the show goes on
CES 2022: LG
Known for its class-leading displays, LG's announced several different new TVs during CES. The LG G2 with OLED evo G is the new top performer, touting improved brightness and heat dissipation for more impressive images with a lower risk of burn-in.
A new 42-inch LG C2 puts the company's OLED expertise to work in its smallest frame yet. It offers all the same premium features you get on LG's other C-series TVs, except it's a more convenient size.
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Lower down the tiers we have new A2 and B2 OLED TVs for users with less money available, plus a new range of smaller QNED mini-LED TVs. LG's WebOS has also received updates, with the new version 22 offering benefits for user profiles, a new "Always Ready" ambient mode and fresh options in the Game Optimizer menu.
LG's also put its screen tech to work in the Virtual Ride, an immersive exercise bike that will let you ride through different environments while pedaling away at home.
We saw a fair amount of time in the LG CES 2022 keynote talking about robots. The CLOi family come in three different iterations, designed for deliveries, service and guiding duties. They're apparently durable enough to use outdoors as well as inside.
Alongside these 'bots, we also got a glimpse at the LG Vision Omnipod concept vehicle, a self-driving car with a configurable interior, room for appliances and an AI assistant, and the PuriCare Aero Tower purifying fan, to help you cool and clean the air around your house.
CES 2022: Samsung
Samsung's big announcements have mostly revolved around TVs also. This includes a new anti-glare coating for the revised The Frame TV 2022 and an 89-inch micro-LED TV that points the way for the next generation of screen technology. There's also revisions to its Neo QLED line of TVs if you're interested in something new that's also more affordable, which you can read more about in our Samsung CES 2022 TVs guide.
Even the clicker got some attention from Samsung. Its Eco Remote doesn't use batteries to charge itself up, but instead runs on energy it gets from your Wi-Fi network.
The headliner for Samsung's monitor launches is the Samsung Odyssey Neo G8, a 34-inch curved monitor that combines 4K resolution and 240Hz refresh rate in a display for the first time. It also uses mini-LED backlighting for enhanced contrast over a regular LCD display.
That was joined by the Smart Monitor M8, which combines a 4K display with a smart TV and a webcam, and the High Resolution Monitor S8, a 4K work monitor that's been apparently certified "Glare Free". This will be available in 27-inch and 32-inch flavors.
While not technically a CES announcement, we've also seen the reveal of the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE, the company's latest phone. Sitting below the regular S21 in terms of price, the similar specs offer a tempting entry-level flagship experience. However with the Galaxy S22 likely close to launch, it may be too late for Samsung to really get the public excited about this one.
CES 2022: Sony
The Sony 2022 TV line-up has been announced, offering welcome enhancements to Sony's already excellent image processing. The XR processor has been updated for better image quality, which will be seen on the new A95 QD-OLED line. Meanwhile Sony's also been working on mini-LED management for the new Master Series Z9K and Premium X95K, to avoid the blocky look you can sometimes get from images on these panels.
Sony also talked about how it's introducing Netflix Adaptive Calibrated Mode alongside Google TV and Apple AirPlay to its upcoming TVs. Plus if you want more accessories, there's the Bravia Cam that helps adjust the picture depending on where you're sitting in the room, and a new remote with a smaller, less button-heavy design.
CES 2022: Nvidia
During a virtual presentation, Nvidia had a few treats to share. The biggest one was the RTX 3090 Ti graphics card, the new range-topper for desktop computers. We also saw a new low-end option in the form of the RTX 3050, and laptop versions of the existing RTX 3070 and 3080 Ti.
GeForce Now, Nvidia's game streaming service, will soon have a wider audience thanks to its introduction to Samsung smart TVs in a few months. We also found out about Drive Hyperion and Drive Chauffeur, the company's new sensor and self-driving system for autonomous cars.
CES 2022: AMD
AMD's CES offering focusses on both mobile devices and GPUs. We've got new Ryzen 6000 processors that promise faster and more efficient performance and full support for Windows 11 via Microsoft's Pluton security chip. Joining those were Radeon 6000 mobile GPUs, split into two different lines. The 6000M series are the more muscular ones, aimed at gaming. The 6000S models are meant to instead help power lighter laptops, at the expense of a little performance.
CES 2022: TVs
TCL has shown up the competition with its XL TV, a 96-inch monster. It's also bringing out a new generation of its 85-inch 8K QLED X925 Pro with the third iteration of TCL's mini-LED tech. Existing TVs will see software updates that offer TrueCut Motion for better movie watching, and a continued focus on Google TV software.
Panasonic's LZ2000 TV has enhancements focussing on the audio side of TV watching. The speakers now offer beam-forming tech, similar to a soundbar, to help bring the sound directly to where you are in the room.
A piece of tech that any TV or display owner may be interested in is the introduction of HDMI 2.1. This modest upgrade to the current standard introduces Source-Based Tone Mapping, which will let your screen and your source device (games console, Blu-Ray player etc.) calibrate the display's colors automatically depending on what's being shown. You'll like see new TVs and displays show off this new capability in the near future, but it won't be an enforced HDMI standard. So pay close attention to the specs sheets.
CES 2022: Laptops
The big laptop makers are starting to unveil their new products and innovations, and there's plenty for laptop users to be keeping an eye on if they plan to shop for their next device in the near future.
First off, we've got the Dell XPS 13 Plus, which aims to stuff even more power into Dell's premium laptop, by allowing for higher powered 28W processors. The keyboard's also been enlarged (although the function keys are now capacitive rather than physical switches), and the display can still be specced to have a 4K touch panel.
Meanwhile over at Lenovo, the Lenovo ThinkPad Z13 combines power with some eco-friendly credentials. The former comes from Ryzen Pro CPUs, an FHD webcam and dual mics housed in a protruding Communications Bar, an OLED touchscreen with up to WQXGA resolution. The latter is delivered by recycled aluminum construction, an option for a recycled vegan leather trim and sustainable packaging made of bamboo and sugarcane. And if the 13-inch version is too small for you, then there's the Z16 which offers the same spec selection in a 16-inch body, plus the option for a discrete GPU.
Intel's CES 2022 keynote revolved around its first Alder Lake chips for laptops. However we also heard about how the first Arc GPUs are on their way to PC builders, with the first "Alchemist" cards still slated to go on sale for consumers in the first half of this year.
The new Acer Chromebook Spin 513 refreshes the 2-in-1 Chromebook by switching the processor to a new MediaTek Kompanion 1380, and making the display about 20% larger. Once again this seems like a versatile device suitable for light work projects or personal use. users wanting something bigger may like the sound of Acer's Chromebook 314 and Chromebook 315, which have also seen revisions.
The Razer Blade 17 gaming laptop is getting a refresh, appropriately named the Razer Blade 17 2022. It offers up to an RTX 3080 Ti GPU, 32GB RAM and 4TB storage, in a big body featuring FHD or QHD resolution displays, THX Spatial audio and more ports than you'll likely ever need.
Meanwhile over at Acer's gaming division, the Predator Helios 300 (2022) is a new iteration of its flagship gaming laptop. It boasts a 12th-gen Intel CPU, a 165Hz QHD panel, and either RTX 3070 or RTX 3080 graphics
If you're a laptop user, chances are you'll be using it over WiFi most of the time. If you need a new router, perhaps you'll be interested in the Netgear Nighthawk RAXE300. This mid-range router still looks like a stealth fighter jet, and works with the latest WiFi 6E standard for the fastest possible download speeds.
Another WiFi 6E-ready router was shown off by TP-Link. The Archer AXE200 Omni has an extra trick up its sleeve though in the form of motorized antennas that can move to improve your signal quality as you and your devices move around.
If you're looking for something more interesting than a regular laptop, then take a look at Alienware's Concept Nyx. It's a more local version of cloud gaming that lets you play games anywhere and on any smart screen in your home via a central media hub-style unit. It's nowhere near retail for now, but it's functional and quite impressive.
CES 2022: Smart home
Gadgets for around your house is another huge area of interest at CES, and already we're seeing some interesting twists on products you may already be familiar with.
At first glance, the Masonite M-Pwr Smart Door doesn't offer anything we haven't seen before in terms of features: it contains a Ring video doorbell and a Yale smartlock. What's new though is that it integrates these all into a single door, which offers both mains and battery power to keep your tech running.
For the inside of your home, there's the Sengled Smart Health Monitoring Light. HAs the name suggests, it's a remote-controlled bulb that can also track your sleep and a few other health parameters by sensing you across a network of bulbs around your house. It's one of the biggest things to happen to smart bulbs in a long time, but it sounds a bit scary to some of us at TG.
The Kohler PerfectFill is a novel smart home product that wants to add some brains to the so-far neglected bathtub. Using your voice or a smartphone app (or regular controls), you can get the PerfectFill to draw you a bath at your preferred temperature on command, and keep it there by controlling the water coming from the faucet and the water leaving through the drain. It'll be a tempting product for bath fans, but it's got a heft pricetag of $2,700.
CES 2022: Wearables
The Jabra Elite 4 Active is a new pair of wireless earbuds that offers a cheaper alternative to Jabra's Elite 7 Active. Despite the lower price, you still get active noise cancelation, IP57 water resistance and 7 hours of battery life, or 28 when factoring in the charging case.
The Ible Airvida E1 are a pair of wireless neckband earbuds, but it's also a portable air purifier. It'll apparently last 8 hours when you're listening to music and have the ionizing purification system enabled, but you can also use the two modes separately, including as a desktop purifier using an included stand.
Meanwhile over in the smartwatch/fitness tracker side of the wearables world, Garmin's attempting to shed its sports-focussed image with the introduction of the stylish Vivomove Sport and Venu 2 Plus, both of which we've just reviewed. The Vivomove is a cheaper fitness tracker but it still contains advanced features like blood oxygen tracking. The Venu 2 Plus is a modest upgrade on the Venu 2, adding better support for voice assistants and notifications.
CES 2022: EVs
A rapidly growing part of the show, electric vehicle announcements at CES gives us a glimpse into the future of automobiles. A glimpse that gets ever more important as more countries set aggressive targets for getting traditionally-fuelled cars off of the road.
Range anxiety is one of the biggest problems facing EVs right now. If the Mercedes Visions EQXX Concept ever makes it to reality, then its 620-mile range would crush the competition. Plus with this being a Mercedes, the concept also offers premium design and features inside and out to make sure you feel right at home.
After astonishing the tech world by showing off a car at CES 2020, Sony's Vision-S electric car has returned with a new SUV body and some other upgrades. The first production of the company's new Sony Mobility division, the Vision-S 2 apparently features 40 sensors all around the vehicle for safety monitoring, 5G connectivity and a fully equipped entertainment system.
CES 2022: Smartphones
Normally, we don't see much in the way of new phones at CES. This year however, phone makers seem to have made a pact to try and grab our attention away from the expect announcements.
As mentioned above under Samsung's section, the Galaxy S21 FE just launched, giving users a revised version of the Galaxy S21 but for slightly less.
While not physically at CES, OnePlus is delighting smartphone fans from afar with teasers for its upcoming OnePlus 10 Pro handset, launching in China next week and arriving in Europe and the U.S. at a later date. Among its top-quality specs, its 120Hz LTPO 2.0 adaptive refresh rate, its second-gen Hasselblad-tuned cameras and 80W wired fast charging are particularly impressive ones.
CES 2022 dates and schedule
CES 2022 will be held from January 5-7 in Las Vegas, NV. Media days will be January 3 and 4. The opening CES 2022 keynote address will be on January 5 at 8:30 a.m PST/11:30 a.m. EST.
On January 5th, the CES show floor will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. PST. On January 6 and January 7, the show floor will be open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Originally, CES 2022 was to run through January 8, but organizers dropped that day as an additional safety measure in the wake of ongoing coronavirus cases.
ShowStoppers will be in held in person at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas on Wednesday, Jan. 5th. As with CES, ShowStoppers will require all in-person attendees, exhibitors and staff to provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination.
Here is a complete schedule of events.
CES 2022 registration
Anyone 18 years or older and affiliated with the consumer technology industry is eligible to register for CES. In order to register, you must show proof of your affiliation. Here’s how to register for CES.
CES 2022 exhibitors
Currently, there are roughly 2,100 exhibitors scheduled to appear at CES. However, because of the Omicron variant, a number of high-profile exhibitors have switched from a physical to a virtual presence.
As of January 3, the companies who have all announced that they will no longer have a physical presence at CES, citing health and safety concerns include: Amazon, AMD, AT&T, Facebook, GM, Google, iHeartRadio, Intel, Lenovo, Microsoft, MSI, OnePlus, Pinterest, Ring, T-Mobile, Twitter, and Waymo.
Hisense said it will still have a physical presence, but has made its keynote virtual, according to the Verge.
In addition, major tech media publications including Tom's Guide, Tom's Hardware, The Verge, CNet, Engadget, Gizmodo, and TechRadar, have all announced that they would not send reporters to the event.
Here is a complete CES 2022 exhibitor directory so far.
CES 2022 keynotes and press conferences
Mary Barra, the Chair CEO of GM, is set to deliver the opening keynote address at CES 2022. Other keynote speakers include:
- Pete Buttigieg, U.S. U.S. Secretary of Transportation
- Robert Ford, CEO and president of Abbott, a health technology company
- Stacy Brown-Philpot, Former CEO, Board Director, Advisor of TaskRabbit
- Jenny Abramson, Founder & Managing Partner of Rethink Impact
- Carmichael Roberts, Investment Committee Co-lead, Breakthrough Energy Ventures Founder and Managing Partner, Material Impact
- Jong-Hee (JH) Han, Vice Chairman & CEO, Samsung Electronics
- Tariq Hassan, Chief Marketing and Digital Customer Experience Officer, McDonalds
- Cara Sylvester, Chief Marketing and Digital Officer, Target
Mike Sievert, CEO and president of T-Mobile, was originally scheduled to deliver a keynote address, but will also not be attending the show due to concerns about the Omicron variant.
Here is a complete list of all CES 2022 keynote speakers, which will be updated as we get closer to the show.
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CES 2022 vaccination and safety protocols
In order to attend CES 2022 in person, you must show proof of Covid-19 vaccination when you pick up your badge. If you do not show proof, a badge will not be issued.
Because of the Omicron variant, all attendees are encouraged to take a COVID test prior to departing for Las Vegas. In addition, CES will distribute one complimentary Abbott BinaxNOW COVID-19 Self Test kit to each attendee upon retrieving their badge.
U.S.-based residents will need to use the CLEAR app to show proof of vaccination. Here’s how to show your Covid vaccination status on your phone. Non-U.S. residents will be required to use a third-party app to show proof of vaccination; full instructions can be found here. CES will accept all vaccines approved by the FDA or WHO.
As per state and local guidelines, masks are currently required in all public, indoor spaces in Las Vegas. This includes exhibit booths, indoor exhibit facilities, conference and keynote rooms, and CES shuttle buses.
In terms of safety protocols, CES will increase the width of the aisles; chairs will be set to allow for social distancing; and hand sanitization stations will be placed throughout CES venues.
CES will also offer testing for those experiencing COVID-19 symptoms while at a CES venue, and will provide free RT-PCR tests for attendees who are traveling back to their international destination and who require a test to travel.
CES 2022: Trends and what we expect
The automotive segment of CES 2022 is expected to be larger than ever. As Jean Foster noted in an interview with Tom’s Guide, all of the automakers will be in the new West Hall of CES. As with last year’s show, Mary Barra, GM’s CEO and Chair, will be delivering the opening keynote, and GM plans to unveil the Chevy Silverado E, which has a range of up to 400 miles.
Aside from GM, other carmakers already registered to attend the show include Hyundai, Toyota, Daimler, FCA (Fiat Chrysler), and Stellantis. However, other notable car companies, such as Ford, have yet to register.
CES is always a big show for TVs, and we don’t envision that changing for this year. In 2019, LG announced its show-stopping rollable TV, then followed that up in 2021 with a rollable phone. (Sadly, the rollable phone is a victim of LG's decision to exit the phone business.)
Samsung is also good for new TV technology, having debuted its new microLED TVs at least year’s show. But don’t sleep on lesser-known brands: TCL surprised us with an 8K Roku TV in 2021, and we expect a lot more super-high res sets to follow this year — even though there’s nothing to play on them.
In recent years, most of the major phone companies — namely Samsung — have saved their big phone launches for events other than CES. Instead, most phone announcements will come a month after CES at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, currently slated to begin on Feb. 28, 2022.
However, following the trend from last year, we won’t be surprised if more companies show off new folding phone concepts at CES, no matter how vapor-warish they might be. Remember the FlexPai?
Furthermore, a leaker has claimed that the OnePlus 10 Pro could be revealed early January at CES.
Impossible Foods has used the past few CESes to introduce its newest plant-based meat alternatives. In 2019, it was the Impossible Foods 2.0 burger, and in 2020, it was its ersatz pork product. The company has recently launched Impossible chicken nuggets, so we’ll be interested to see if it introduces any new meta-meat at CES. But Impossible Foods won’t the the only company in this space; CES announced that Food Tech would have its own category this year.
Spurred on in part by the pandemic, hands-free devices were one of the big themes among smart home devices at CES 2021, and we expect that trend to continue this year. Touchless refrigerators, faucets, toilets, and video doorbells will be among the devices we should see plenty more of in 2022.
Like smart home, we expect to see lots of Covid-related health tech at CES 2022. There were a handful of high-tech masks at CES 2021; plan to see a lot more of these, as well as other disinfecting tech, air purifiers, and other ways of mitigating the spread of infectious diseases. Notably, Robert Ford, the CEO and president of Abbott, will also be delivering a keynote at CES — the first for a health tech company.
This might be more of a curiosity this year, but for the first time, CES will have a dedicated area for space technology. As Jean Foster noted in her interview with Tom’s Guide, Sierra Nevada will be showing off its space plane, which is contracted to start flying cargo missions with NASA in 2022.
Michael A. Prospero is the U.S. Editor-in-Chief for Tom’s Guide. He oversees all evergreen content and oversees the Homes, Smart Home, and Fitness/Wearables categories for the site. In his spare time, he also tests out the latest drones, electric scooters, and smart home gadgets, such as video doorbells. Before his tenure at Tom's Guide, he was the Reviews Editor for Laptop Magazine, a reporter at Fast Company, the Times of Trenton, and, many eons back, an intern at George magazine. He received his undergraduate degree from Boston College, where he worked on the campus newspaper The Heights, and then attended the Columbia University school of Journalism. When he’s not testing out the latest running watch, electric scooter, or skiing or training for a marathon, he’s probably using the latest sous vide machine, smoker, or pizza oven, to the delight — or chagrin — of his family.


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The Detroit News reports that Dell is going to use Google Earth as a tool to enhanced their technical support services. The new tech support service, to be released today, is named "Platinum Plus." Platinum Plus subscribers will be given access to "Google Earth Pro to see in real-time how the Round Rock company is responding to technical support issues around the globe." Dell and Google have some recent past positive relationships this just adds to that list.
Meet Your Favorite Search Engine Watch Contributors
Many of SEW's leading expert contributors will be at ClickZ Live, the new online and digital marketing event kicking off in New York (March 31-April 3). Hear from the likes of: Thom Craver, Josh Braaten, Lisa Barone, Simon Heseltine, Josh McCoy, Lisa Raehsler, Greg Jarboe, Dan Cristo, Joseph Kerschbaum, John Gagnon, Eric Enge and more!

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EASYJET has launched a whopping 28-day holiday package – and it costs just £650pp.
The package has been launched as an ‘Escape the UK’ holiday that is cheaper than the average UK household’s monthly winter energy bills.
It’s all-inclusive, so your breakfast, lunch and dinner along with any poolside snacks and booze are included.
There is even complimentary WiFi as well so you can still work out there, and free TV streaming.
With return flights from the UK and airport transfers included, the deal works out to a bargain of just £23pp a day.
And you’ll even get better weather than the UK – Egypt’s Makadi Bay sits at around 20C in December.
Matt Callaghan, easyJet holidays’ Customer & Operations Director added: “With a growing number of Brits now searching online to see if they can escape abroad this winter, we knew we needed to try to provide consumers with a solution.
“We looked at everything an easyJet holidays package deal has to offer, and have been able to confirm that yes, comparably, our new 28-day winter escape is cheaper than staying at home this year.”
The deal goes on sale from 10am via the easyJet website here.
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Lynn Beattie, an ACMA management accountant, conducted research using data from ONS which found the holiday is £227 cheaper than staying in the UK.
She added: “While escaping abroad does not make all our financial commitments disappear, it’s startling to know that like for like, it’s cheaper to buy an all-inclusive holiday than stay in the UK this winter.”
It comes as the National Grid warned that there might not be enough power for the country if the energy crisis continues.
Power cuts could become a regular occurrence during the coldest nights of January and February if electricity generators run out of gas.
And energy bills are now predicted to hit as high as £5,000 in April.


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30 Billion Users Experience AI! Meta Introduces AI Features to Social Media Platforms and Launches the World's First MR Headset
On Wednesday, Meta held its annual Connect developer conference.
According to Zhītōng Finance, Meta Platforms (META.US) is introducing artificial intelligence features into its applications, providing a ChatGPT-like experience for its 3 billion users. On Wednesday, at the annual Connect developer conference, the company announced that Instagram, Messenger, and WhatsApp will launch custom sticker creation, image editing, and a range of celebrity chatbot characters, all incorporating generative AI. Meta also unveiled a development studio that allows brands to build their own AI tools for the company's messaging services, enabling them to chat with customers. This means that Meta's 3 billion users will have a similar experience to the OpenAI robot ChatGPT.
In his keynote speech, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said, "The progress of artificial intelligence allows us to create different AI characters to help us accomplish different things. Our view is that people will want to interact with a variety of AI to do different things they want to do."
This is an important announcement for Meta, as it demonstrates that it can also build AI-based technology that generates text and images based on simple prompts from users. Alphabet's Google (GOOGL.US), Snap (SNAP.US), and Microsoft (MSFT.US) have already launched various tools, capitalizing on public and investor interest in this emerging technology. Meta has been investing at record levels in building AI infrastructure behind the scenes, and Zuckerberg has mocked many consumer-focused ideas in an attempt to prove that the company is also a competitor in the AI race.
During the recent earnings conference call, the CEO emphasized that the social media company has been researching AI technology for years, although this is the first time that consumer services focused on generative AI have become the centerpiece of Meta's annual event. In the past, Connect has always focused on the virtual world.
Last year, viewers wearing Oculus headsets could watch the keynote speech in Meta's virtual reality space, Horizon Worlds, although this may have been a painful experience for first-time Oculus users. Most of the event was spent promoting Oculus' applications in the business environment, conducting virtual meetings, or serving as a gaming platform. AI was only mentioned when it was used to create redesigned virtual characters for users wearing the headsets.
For those who are quickly trying out generative AI features, the AI tools launched on Wednesday may seem more familiar, such as Snap's My AI chatbot or selfie software, as well as Adobe's Firefly image editing product.Meta AI is the latest text-based chatbot launched by this tech giant, running on its large language model Llama 2 and collaborating with Microsoft's Bing to use search information. The company defines it as a digital assistant that can answer questions about real-time information and can also be used to generate images.
The company has also launched 28 robots based on fantasy characters, including famous celebrities' facial video reactions, such as retired Super Bowl champion Tom Brady, whose robot engages in sports debates, and musician Snoop Dogg as the leader of the Dungeon Master adventure. The company stated that these upcoming robots will be limited to the topics they intend to discuss and will be based on information prior to 2023.
Meta's AI image editor has not been launched yet, which will allow users to input text prompts to modify existing images, such as applying visual styles or changing backgrounds. After making any changes, AI will be used to execute the instructions.
Also on Wednesday, the company officially released the Quest 3 headset, the latest version of the device that allows users to switch between virtual reality and mixed reality. The new generation headset Quest 3 starts at $499, which is $200 higher than the previous generation Quest 2 released in 2020, an increase of about 67%. The base model of Quest 3 comes with 128GB of memory, and the version with upgraded internal storage to 512GB is priced at $649.99.
Media reviews have stated that unlike its predecessor Quest 2, which was simply a virtual reality (VR) headset, Quest 3 is more like Apple's Vision Pro, a mixed reality (MR) headset that combines VR and augmented reality (AR). Some reviews also mentioned that Quest 3 marks Meta's transition from VR to MR.


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OFAC Designates Hydra the Largest Darknet Market and Third Russian Virtual Currency Exchange Darknets and Ransomware Hydra Garantex. A darknet market is a website that facilitates the sale and exchange of illicit goods and services on the dark web. On the 20th of April, I decided to try and flex my rusty data-science tool-set by scraping and analysing the contents of a dark-net market. One darknet market of the web's most notorious darknet markets was taken down by tracing its bitcoin transactions. But that doesn't mean others will. Anything you do on the Darknet is up to you. The links come from the markets and we do not vouch for any service. White House Market. A German-led police operation has taken down the "world's largest" darknet marketplace, whose Australian alleged operator used it to.
It's not anonymity, Bitcoins, or encryption that ensure the future success of darknet markets, writes Jamie Bartlett, author of The Dark Net. Police shut down darknet market's servers and seize bitcoin worth 25M. Germany Shuts Down Russian Darknet Marketplace Hydra. Darknet markets exist with the purpose to provide vendors and buyers with a platform to find each other and strike a mutually beneficial deal. The onion link. Following the closure of the dark web's largest illegal marketplace, DarkMarket, earlier this year, law enforcement in the US, Europe. Darknet Markets Darknet Market News, Reviews and Unbiased Information. List of Darknet Markets BEST NEWCOMER darknet market 2022 INCOGNITO MARKET Archetyp Market (EXIT SCAMMED) Dark0de Reborn (CLOSING DOWN) TORREZ Market.
At the same time, the admin announced plans for setting up a platform for darknet markets to liberty market set up shop with a strong focus on anonymity. By A Sutanrikulu Cited by 2 of Darknet market activity. In our work, we take a broader perspective by studying the. Darknet as a geographical, socio-economic and technological. The now-defunct Wall Street Market (WSM). Image: Dark Web Reviews. A complaint filed Wednesday in Los Angeles alleges that the three. More than 100 darknet market platforms have emerged over the past decade, An analysis of 103 darknet markets over the period 20222022 revealed that. The Dark Web's Top Drug Market, Evolution, Just Vanished. Evolution has simply, mysteriously vanishedwith rumors swirling that its own. The United States Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control has announced it will impose sanctions on darknet market Hydra.
Darknet markets are one of the more extreme outcomes of the futile, decades-long game of cat and mouse, in which new barriers and punitive. In court documents, the Justice Department estimated liberty market url that Hydra Market accounted for 80 percent of all cryptocurrency transactions on the dark. Chainalysis has released its 2022 report on the darknet markets. The blockchain analytics firm has discovered that in 2022. Darknet markets are hidden websites which cannot be accessible using regular browsers or search engines as they do not have an actual DNS name. More than 100 darknet market platforms have emerged over the past decade, An analysis of 103 darknet markets over the period 20222022 revealed that. Though not the first darknet market to operate, the Silk Road was by far the The Silk Road dominated the darknet until October 2022.
Darknet Market Sites
What i am suggesting, is making this information more accessible to Darknet market users. After creating huge controversies, arrests and sieges, the Silk Road, the original website was taken down but darknet market not soon after silk road 2. Proud to be contributing vouchers for all the golfers at this event. The sharing economy is often considered part of the informal economy. As the opening quote illustrates, the field of international marketing is facing a significant and growing amount of complexity as the realities of marketing and firm operations interact with international environmental factors. For ease of analysis, we have grouped our findings against the top 50 UK brands into four key types of organisations. Have been active on SR1 and EVO before they went down and are active on Alphabay. The MIT students' work on the project led to collaboration with DARPA to develop Tor. Nearly all dark web commerce sites conduct transactions in bitcoin or some variant, but that doesn’t mean it’s safe to do business there. Because it does not track users, people can darknet market use it to browse the dark web anonymously.
There, agents from the FBI, United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) found about 50 pounds of methamphetamine and bags and containers full of thousands of Adderall pills. So even if 1 BTC is worth $1M, it's not really a problem. And liberty market link drug listings have soared during the Covid pandemic - with a report liberty market link by cyber intelligence firm Sixgill finding the Dark Web drugs supply has surged by nearly 500 per cent in a matter of months. Organizations can remain compliant with the variety of regulatory obligations they face to protect employee data, customer data and other information they own or manage.


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5 things to know about Tesla's China plans
Electric vehicle producer Tesla Inc. says it will build its first factory outside the United States in Shanghai.
The step is logical for a company that looks to China as its No. 2 market. But Tesla faces growing competition from Chinese and foreign brands that are developing dozens of electric models. And its announcement said nothing about how it will pay for the venture.
Here are five things to know about Tesla's China plans:
The announcement comes amid an increasingly bitter U.S.-Chinese tariff battle. But the Palo Alto, California-based company has been talking with the Shanghai city government since last year about a possible factory. The timing appears to be driven by Beijing's April announcement that it would end restrictions that required foreign automakers to work through local partners. Other automakers including General Motors Co. and Nissan Motor Co. have been reluctant to bring electric car technology into China to avoid having to share it with potential future competitors in such joint ventures.
China is the No. 1 electric vehicle market, with total 2017 sales of 468,000, or more than double the U.S. level of 200,000. Beijing is promoting the technology with subsidies and a requirement for every automaker to sell electrics starting next year or buy credits from rivals that do. China already is Tesla's No. 2 market after the United States. Producing cars in China would eliminate risks from tariffs and other import controls. It also would help to develop a network of parts suppliers to support service and make Tesla more appealing to mainstream buyers.
WHO PAYS FOR THIS?
A make-or-break question for a startup in a capital-hungry industry. Tesla lost $710 million in its latest quarter, though it says it should turn profitable soon. The company's $5 billion Nevada battery factory was financed with help from a $1.6 billion investment by battery maker Panasonic Corp. Tesla has yet to give a price tag for the Shanghai factory, but the city government said it will be the biggest foreign investment there to date. Plans call for annual production capacity to eventually reach 500,000 cars.
WHAT ARE TESLA'S PROSPECTS IN CHINA?
Tesla's estimated 2017 sales of under 15,000 vehicles gave it a market share of under 3 percent. That gives it plenty of room to grow in a Chinese market that still is expanding, while U.S. and European demand is flat. Also, Tesla will vastly exceed Beijing's requirement that electrics make up at least 10 percent of every brand's sales next year. That might mean it earns credits it can sell to automakers that fail to meet their quotas.
WHAT ABOUT THE COMPETITION?
Fierce and growing. Local brands including BYD Auto already sell tens of thousands of hybrid and pure-electric sedans and SUVs annually. BAIC Group's EC line, starting at $22,000, sold 13,000 units in December, nearly matching Tesla's 2017 total. GM, Volkswagen AG and other global automakers are plowing billions of dollars into developing low-cost models with local partners. They are due to hit the market starting as early as this year, well before Tesla is up and running in Shanghai.
© 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.


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Residents of New Jersey and the Greater Philadelphia area who are in the market for a new car may want to be aware that some automakers are selling brand-new vehicles equipped with airbags that are known to have a potentially deadly defect. According to the author of a congressional report from June 2016, these vehicles must be recalled by the end of 2018. Despite this, dealers are not required to inform consumers that the vehicle will later be recalled.
At least 10 people have been killed and 100 more have been injured from defective Takata air bags, which can send shrapnel flying into passenger compartments. However, comments made by the senior editor of Kelley Blue Book indicate that the equipment is not believed to pose a threat of immediate danger within the first few years after production. As of the date of this writing, the airbag failures have been attributed to humidity, heat exposure, and age.
Regardless, congressional leaders are calling on automakers to inform the public as to which vehicles are making their way to dealer showrooms with the defective part. The only five defective models named in the congressional report are the 2016 Audi TT, 2017 Audi R8, 2016 Volkswagen CC, 2016 Mitsubishi i-MiEV, and 2017 Mitsubishi i-MiEV. Reports indicate that Mitsubishi, Fiat Chrysler, Volkswagen, and Toyota are continuing to equip new vehicles with the defective Takata air bag.
The planned recall of a product with a known defect may not absolve parties involved in the manufacture, distribution, or sale of that product from liability. Victims of airbag-related injuries may find it beneficial to contact a personal injury attorney, who may be able to help them pursue financial compensation from all responsible parties.
Source: Committee on Commerce, Science and transportation, “The Takata Recalls: Consumers Are Still Stuck in Neutral,” Bill Nelson, June 1, 2016


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Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has left the Ecuadorian embassy in London to purchase a bottle of milk.
The Australian journalist, who has been in asylum at the embassy since 2012, reportedly walked out the front door of the embassy and around the corner to a Tesco supermarket, where he purchased a two litre bottle of low-fat milk.
A representative from the Ecuadorian embassy confirmed that Assange had made the trip, citing a difference in dairy preferences as the reason for his decision.
“We had full cream, but he’s on one of those low-fat diet things where he can only have skim,” the representative said.
“The rest of us think skim tastes like water, but he seems to like it.”
Assange returned to the embassy and proceeded to make a banana smoothie.


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CHICAGO (Reuters) — Cargill reported a 36 percent increase in quarterly profits, supported by a bigger U.S. harvest last year that led to increased exports and improved meat profit margins.
The company had net earnings of $556 million for the second quarter ended Nov. 30, up from $409 million a year ago.
Revenues totalled $32.9 billion, down seven percent from a year ago.
“Earnings improved in three of our four segments,” said new Cargill chief executive officer David MacLennan, who took over to lead the multinational after Greg Page stepped down on Dec. 1.
The bigger harvest this crop year boosted handling, export prospects and grain processing volumes and also improved profits in its meat and ethanol businesses.
“The impact on supply and de-mand caused prices for agricultural commodities to come down from last year’s highs, providing relief to Cargill’s animal nutrition and protein segment,” the company said in a statement.
“Larger export volumes and in-creased operating efficiencies also contributed to stronger results, especially in beef processing.”
Last fiscal year the small U.S. cattle herd and high cattle prices hurt Cargill’s meat business.
Cargill, one of the world’s largest privately held corporations, had revenue of $136.7 billion for fiscal 2013, which would have placed it No. 10 on the Fortune 500 list of publicly held companies.
While Cargill’s quarterly results rose in three of its four business segments, its animal protein group showed the most improvement and its food ingredients and applications sector was the largest contributor to the quarter.
A pick up in demand for specific products, like cocoa powder and corn-based ethanol, added to earnings, the company said.
Cargill’s agricultural services division, which includes its grain sourcing, handling and processing, was the only sector with earnings below a year ago despite an improvement from North American operations.
“In certain markets, Argentina in particular, there has been a build up across the industry in oilseed crush capacity. So that was a negative affect on crush volumes,” said Cargill spokesperson Lisa Clemens.


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July 24 2019
Verizon Ventures’ Ajay Patel takes a closer look at Mary Meeker’s 2019 Internet Trends Report and 5G’s impact on mobile advertising, freemium models and beyond.
June 04 2019
Submissions for Verizon's 'Built On 5G' Challenge are open! Submit your idea for a product, service or application that will help bring 5G to life.
May 29 2019
How can entrepreneurs and businesses take advantage of 5G? We explore the eight currencies that are playing a huge role in 5G innovation.
May 23 2019
Verizon’s 5G Ultra Wideband network is a game-changer for consumers and businesses alike. Read about how our portfolio companies are already exploring ways to best leverage this 5G network in our latest blog post.
May 22 2019
We sat down with CEO Tomer Kashi of our newest investment VOOM to discuss the team’s micro-mobility insurance platform and recent Series A funding round.
April 15 2019
According to CB Insights, CVC deals and funding broke historic records in 2018. VZV Director Michelle McCarthy explores the rise of CVC and how Verizon Ventures fits in.
April 03 2019
How can companies use MR, AR and VR to build better solutions to modern problems? We explore the ways developers are tackling this question in our latest blog post.
March 29 2019
Another SXSW in the books! Check out our recap of Kristina Serafim's and Jeffrey Black's panel discussions which explored emerging trends in connected device, AI, and transportation tech.


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Why Investors Can Brush Off the Auto Industry's 11-Year Low in Customer Satisfaction
Sales of full-size trucks, SUVs, and crossovers have been on fire in the U.S. market this year, and will likely break the 17 million-units-sold mark in 2015 for the first time since 2004. On the flip side, as sales continue to surge higher, it appears that U.S. customer satisfaction with automobiles has dropped to an 11-year low, according to The American Customer Satisfaction Index.
So what's going on here? And is declining customer satisfaction a concern for investors hoping the auto industry's sales remain around the 17 million unit mark annually over the next few years? Let's dig in.
Just the facts The American Customer Satisfaction Index'sauto industry score, based on a survey of nearly 4,300 people who evaluated their recent automotive purchase on quality and expectation, fell to 79 out of 100 in 2015. That score was a 3.7% decline from last year's score, and it was the third consecutive year the index recorded a decline.
At the top of the satisfaction list was Toyota's Lexus brand, with an individual score of 84, unchanged from the previous year. Following Lexus was a tie at 83 among Honda's Acura brand,Ford Motor Company's Lincoln brand, and Daimler's Mercedes-Benz. BMW completed the top five with a scores of 82.
Ford's namesake brand and General Motors' mainstream Chevrolet brand tied with a score of 79 to rank 14th and 15th. General Motors' first appearance on the list, however, was its Buick brand at No. 9 with a score of 80, followed by Cadillac in the No. 10 slot with an identical 80.
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles had a much less impressive showing. FCA's first brand on the list was, surprisingly, Dodge, which ranked 23rdwith a score of 76. Jeep, Chrysler, and Fiat respectively ranked at 26, 27, and 28, with scores of 75, 74, and 73.
What's driving the scores? Perhaps more important than the rankings themselves is explaining the overall decline in customer satisfaction. After all, if you're invested in the automotive industry, you'd prefer consumers be more satisfied with their purchase. There are two major factors fueling the decline in consumer satisfaction: higher prices and recent recalls.
It shouldn't surprise anyone that this year's customer satisfaction dipped to lows not seen since 2004, which had been the automotive industry's worst year for recalls in history until the record was nearly doubled with 64 million vehicles recalled last year.
Higher vehicle prices is the second major factor responsible for the decline in satisfaction. Average transaction prices in the U.S. are continuing to push higher as consumers continue to pack more technology features and premium options into their vehicles. Even with higher transaction prices, lower interest rates are enabling consumers to compensate for higher vehicle price tags with longer loan terms.
However, the higher pricing data needs some context, because the decline in satisfaction goes beyond just higher prices. Though vehicles cost only slightly more, consumers remember recent years when dealerships dished out large incentives to move the needle on vehicle sales. As an example, the highest consumer satisfaction score ever recorded came in 2009, when the government's Cash for Clunkers program made many car buyers very happy.
So when the headline reads that consumer satisfaction with automobiles declined again and hit an 11-year low, there are more factors than higher prices and recent recalls -- the fact is that the super deals on vehicles we've grown accustomed to in recent years were an oddity in the grand scheme of things.
For investors, this consumer satisfaction survey mostly confirms what we already know: Ford and General Motors remain in the middle of the pack, if not slightly higher, and are improving. Meanwhile, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles continues to struggle with quality and consumer satisfaction.
Furthermore, looking at the bigger picture, customer satisfaction doesn't mirror the surge in sales because as demand increases, so do prices, and incentives and deals move lower. All in all, investors in the automotive industry should be encouraged by the situation, because higher prices and lower incentives mean more bottom-line profits.
The article Why Investors Can Brush Off the Auto Industry's 11-Year Low in Customer Satisfaction originally appeared on Fool.com.
Daniel Miller owns shares of Ford and General Motors. The Motley Fool recommends Ford and General Motors. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Copyright 1995 - 2015 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.


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London (ap) — the catastrophic it failure at british airways that ruined travel plans for 75,000 people has raised questions about some older airlines' focus on costs to the detriment of. The events around one british airways flight in 1982 reveal the potential dangers of this sort of dust the passenger jet effectively turned into a glider when all four engines on the boeing 747 being flown by captain eric moody shut down at 37,000ft, he hadn't a clue why. British airways has been in the news for a number of reasons over the last couple of months and yougov's brand tracking data indicates that perception of the brand has been impacted as a result just last week, the airline announced it was to cut its free meals on short haul economy flights. British airways courier company limited - recd fraud e-mail  british airways - very poor ba experience  british airways - disgraceful customer service [3. Updated british airways ceo alex cruz has said the root cause of saturday's london flight-grounding it the power supply issue was a power surge that occurred at a ba data centre on saturday.
Alex cruz, british airways chief executive, has denied reports that the debilitating it glitch over the weekend was due to outsourcing of work to india, or a cost-cutting measure he also refused. The british airways swipe card debacle what is happening july 18, 2003 250 check-in employees strike for 24 hours 60 flights delayed cost the organization about 40 million euros. The british airways has a long history and airlines cover 133 countries include 373 airplanes the ba company includes 50,086 workers to be in the service, which is one of the largest employers and employees in the united kingdom. British airways always knew the incoming flight was going to venice so to say they handled it well is an understatement, blq is still delaying outbound flights and we should never have been told to go there today, i would have preferred a cancelled flight thus allowing me to make my own arrangements.
British airways ba meltdown: switching off and on again may have caused it crisis airline chief willie walsh admits communications were poor after incident that left 75,000 passengers stranded. Airlines, airports & routes - british airways - well originally ba thought it was an important enough route for development that they shipped a. Hundreds of thousands of british airways customers have had their financial and personal data stolen after a major hack the thefts occurred during a data breach that affected bookings made on the. All the latest breaking news on british airways browse the independent's complete collection of articles and commentary on british airways ba 'mistake fares' debacle shows airlines put the.
The british airways swipe card debacle the strike: on friday, july 18, 2003, british airways (ba) staff in terminals 1 and 4 at london's busy heathrow airport held a 24-hour wildcat strike. Full extent of british airways 'cheap tickets' debacle revealed more than 10,000 incorrectly priced british airways tickets for flights to the middle east may have inadvertently been sold through agencies due to a pricing glitch, a travel lawyer has claimed. British airways' summer of failure image: istock the news that british airways suffered an enormous data breach affecting almost 400,000 customers including personal and financial details is just the latest in a series of it chaos that has plagued the airline this summer. British airways ceo email address contact and telephone.
The british airways swipe card debacle in july of 2003, british airways introduced a swipe card system for employees to electronically swipe in and out of work at heathrow airport. Associated press british airways canceled all flights from london's heathrow and gatwick airports saturday as a global it failure caused severe disruption for travelers on a busy holiday weekend. British airways flight 9, sometimes referred to by its callsign speedbird 9 or as the jakarta incident, was a scheduled british airways flight from london heathrow to auckland, with stops in bombay, madras, kuala lumpur, perth, and melbourne. A link has been posted to your facebook feed london (ap) — the catastrophic it failure at british airways that ruined travel plans for 75,000 people has raised questions about some older.
On july 18, 2003, british airways (ba) staff held a 24-hour strike (palmer, dunford, & akin, 2009) this strike was in protest of a newly introduced system that would electronically record when staff started and fished work for the day. To qualify, the rental must either be pre-paid using a participating british airways co-brand finance card (via bacom, avisbacom, ba call centers or avis call centers) or if a pay-later reservation has been made, the rental must be paid for at the rental location when the car is returned using a participating british airways co-brand finance. British airways press centre 1 week we're delighted to announce that savile row tailoring expert, ozwald boateng obe, will be the next british designer to develop uniforms for our 32,000 customer facing employees.
British airways is the flag carrier airline for the united kingdom with its head quarters in waterside the main hub of british airline is at the heathrow airport of london its second hub is at gatwick airport and the third one is at london city airport which is served through ba cityflyer a fully owned subsidiary of british airways. Abstract in the case study, the british airways swipe card debacle, british airways (ba) introduced 'a system for electronic clocking in that would record when they [employees] started and finished work for the day which was a unilateral decision by ba to introduce the swipe card, and a lack of adequate consultation with affected staff (palmer, dunford, akin, 2009, pp 239 & 240.
British airways is the de facto flag carrier of great britain while there is some competition put forth by virgin atlantic, british airways is a truly global airline, with service to 183 destinations on six continents. Up to the minute information on all british airways flights (arrivals and departures) for yesterday, today and up to 10 days in advance check your flight status online. British airways flight 2276 was a scheduled international passenger service from las vegas to londonon 8 september 2015, the boeing 777 operating the flight suffered an uncontained engine failure and fire in the left ge90 engine during take-off from las vegas-mccarran international airport, prompting an aborted take-off and the evacuation of all passengers and crew. The british airways (ba) debacle occurred because the management team introduced a swipe card system which would allow management to use staff more efficiently and to record employees start and end time for each work day.


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The Chinese smartphone maker, Xiaomi, today has unveiled a new smartphone in India. The company has launched the Redmi 9i which is another new smartphone added to the Redmi 9 family. This is the company’s another entry-level phone after the Redmi 9 Prime. The newly launched device is powered by octa-core MediaTek Helio G25 chipset, an HD+ IPS LCD display and a single rear camera sensor and a selfie shooter.
Redmi 9i price and availability details
Redmi 9i has been launched in India today. The device will be in a configuration of 4GB of RAM with 64GB storage and 4GB of Ram with 128GB of onboard memory. The younger sibling has been priced at Rs 8,299 while the elder one comes with a price tag of Rs 9,299. The smartphone will be offered in three colour options Midnight Black, Sea Blue, and Nature Green. The device is scheduled to go on its first sale starting September 18. The sale will commence at 12 noon onwards via e-commerce website Flipkart, Mi.com and Mi Home stores and later on will be available via offline retailers also.
Redmi 9i specifications and features
Redmi 9i comes with a 6.53-inch HD+ display with 720×1,600 pixels of resolution with TÜV Rheinland Low Blue Light certification allowing better visibility in reading mode. The display panel features a 19.5:9 aspect ratio, 270 nits of peak brightness and 1,500:1 contrast ratio. Under the hood, there is an octa-core MediaTek Helio G25 chipset clocked at 2.0 GHz paired with 4GB of RAM and up to 128GB of storage options. It also has a dedicated microSD card slot allowing expansion up to 512GB. The device runs MIUI 12, based on top of Android 10 operating system.
In terms of imaging, Redmi 9i has a single 13-megapixel camera with f/2.2 aperture on its rear supported by AI Portrait mode, AI scene detection, document scanner and kaleidoscope for better photography. For taking selfies and video calling there is a 5-megapixel front-facing camera with AI portrait mode and helps with AI face unlock features.
Similar to its siblings this phone also packs a 5000mAh battery along with a 10W fast charger that comes inside the retail box. In terms of connectivity, there is VoWiFi, 4G, VoLTE, Bluetooth 5.0, GPS/ A-GPS, and a Micro-USB port. While the sensors on the phone include a gyro sensor, proximity sensor, ambient light sensor, and e-compass.
For the latest gadget and tech news, and gadget reviews, follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. For newest tech & gadget videos subscribe to our YouTube Channel. You can also stay up to date using the Gadget Bridge Android App.


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Boris and Rishi roll out the wrong barrels: Chancellor and PM are left red-faced after posing with kegs which WON’T qualify for beer duty cut
Insiders claimed the Treasury was always expecting to revisit the move after talks with industry leaders over the next few months.
The Chancellor announced in his Budget on Wednesday a tax cut will only affect 40l kegs of beer and cider – not the 30l ones used by craft breweries.
Later in the day the PM and Mr Sunak visited a London beer factory to pose for pictures to promote the new relief.
But they were left red-faced when it was pointed out the barrels from Fourpure Brewery in Bermondsey were too small to classify.
Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak were left red-faced when it was pointed out the barrels from Fourpure Brewery in Bermondsey were too small to classify (pictured on Wednesday)
In addition to the beer duty cut, Rishi Sunak also announced a planned increase to the duty on lower-strength spirits, wine, cider and beer will be cancelled. The changes will see the tax take increase on some drinks and decrease on others
What are the main changes to the alcohol tax system?
– Duty rates for draught beer and cider will be cut by five per cent – taking three pence off a pint.
– Duty rate on draught fruit cider will be equalised with beer, cutting the rate on fruit cider by 20 per cent, taking 13 pence off a pint.
– All products will be taxed according to their Alcohol By Volume (ABV), cutting duty on lighter wines and cider. Tax on a 10.5% bottle of Rose will decrease by 23 pence per bottle. But the levy on white ciders and stronger still wines will go up.
– Sparkling wine will be taxed at the same rate as still wine, ending the 28 per cent premium currently applied to the product.
Sources told the Times the government always planned to negotiate the limit after a consultation with industry bosses ending in January.
The Treasury told the newspaper: ‘We intend for most draught beer for sale in pubs to qualify for the relief, including where it’s made by smaller or craft brewers.
‘We are consulting industry on the criteria to ensure that the relief supports pubs rather than supermarkets, given that smaller kegs are also sold for drinking at home.’
The FT reported the Treasury could change the size cap following pressure from pubs and breweries.
Industry leaders have rubbished the idea Britons will make a saving on beer and fizz as a result of the changes announced in the Budget.
Mr Sunak boasted of a ‘once in a generation’ reduction in the duty imposed on beer and cider sold on draught in pubs and bars.
It was suggested the reforms would deliver a saving of around 3p a pint and Mr Sunak argued this would provide a lifeline to community pubs.
But the changes are not due to come into effect until February 2023 and will be swamped by increases in costs that could add 25p-30p to the cost of a pint.
The brewing and hospitality industry has been hammered during the pandemic with repeated lockdowns. They are now wrestling with punishing increases in costs, such as energy, transport and labour.
The Budget included small print rules that will limit the benefit of the promised reduction in duty on draught beer and cider to drink sold in kegs and casks containing at least 40 litres.
Most small, craft brewers and the pubs they serve operate on smaller 30ltr containers, which means they miss out of the reduction
Boris Johnson is pictured on a visit to Fourpure Brewery in Bermondsey, London, after the Budget on Wednesday
The changes were a central plank of the Budget and both the teetotal Chancellor and Boris Johnson took park in a publicity stunt to highlight them at the Fourpure Brewing Company, in Bermondsey, London. However, they are now unravelling under the scrutiny of industry leaders.
Vice chairman of the Campaign for Pubs, Dawn Hopkins, the owner of the Rose Inn, Norwich, said: ‘There’s no way this will lead to a change in prices across the bar.
‘Prices are soaring and these changes won’t come in until 2023 anyway. It also discriminates against craft beer breweries by excluding smaller kegs.’
Director of the campaign, Gary Murphy, said it is ‘highly unlikely’ that the price of a pint will fall.
‘The idea that we’re going to get pints 3p cheaper is frankly ludicrous. The challenges are far greater than the crumbs that are being offered,’ he said.
The Chancellor announced in his Budget on Wednesday a tax cut will only affect 40l kegs of beer and cider – not the 30l ones used by craft breweries (pictured on Wednesday)
Jonathan Neame, chief executive of Shepherd Neame, said the company would pass on the 3p-a-pint duty cut on kegs it sells wholesale to landlords, but drinkers are unlikely to see the benefit.
He told Radio 4’s Today programme: ‘We will pass on the duty cut at a wholesale, but in all honesty, pubs are facing between 25 to 30p per pint inflation and this will do will take the top off that.
‘It will reduce the rate of increase, but there is roughly 14per cent inflation impacting most hospitality businesses. So, while I’d love to say the price of beer will come down, its very hard to see that because a lot of inflation is still coming down the track in terms of energy and food etc.’
The Chancellor also promised to abolish a super-tax that applies to sparkling wine, prosecco and champagne in a reform that will see tax based on alcohol strength.
In theory, this could reduce the price by around 53p a bottle, but again this is likely to be swamped by big increases in the cost of wine production, imports and hospitality industry costs.
The Government insists the reform of alcohol duties to base them on strength will deliver real reductions. Treasury documents put the value of these at £20m in 2022-23 and £115m the following year.


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Chipmaker Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) has overtaken Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) as the most traded stock on Wall Street, further solidifying its prominence after climbing to become the third most valuable U.S. company. This shift underscores the increasing significance of AI-related investments for investors.
The significant presence of Nvidia in daily stock trading suggests that investors could be more exposed if the chipmaker fails to meet its lofty revenue growth expectations. Such an outcome could potentially deflate the ongoing Wall Street rally, driven by enthusiasm surrounding artificial intelligence.
All eyes are on Nvidia’s quarterly report, scheduled for Wednesday, which is expected to be one of the most closely watched events of the week on Wall Street. Some analysts warn that anything less than stellar results could halt Nvidia’s remarkable stock surge of 47% in 2024.
Over the past 30 trading sessions, Nvidia has seen an average daily trading volume of about $30 billion, surpassing the volume for Elon Musk’s Tesla, which averaged around $22 billion per day during the same period.
Tesla has been dominating daily U.S. stock trading since 2020, according to data from LSEG, with trading volumes occasionally exceeding $35 billion in recent years.
On Friday, trading in Nvidia and Super Micro Computer (NASDAQ:SMCI), another AI beneficiary, accounted for over 40% of total turnover among the top 10 most traded U.S. stocks, including Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META), Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN), and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT).
Dennis Dick, a trader at Triple D Trading in Ontario, Canada, suggests that this trend indicates the emergence of a new era of trading, akin to the early days of the internet, with Nvidia leading the charge. However, Dick cautions that the high turnover in AI-related stocks may be driven more by retail investors and algorithmic traders chasing momentum rather than sound fundamentals.
Super Micro, a supplier of AI server components to Nvidia, has seen its market value triple to $45 billion in 2024. However, it experienced a 20% drop from its record highs on Friday following a cautious rating from Wells Fargo, which cited an already high valuation.
Nvidia currently dominates around 80% of the high-end AI chip market and recently surpassed the market capitalization of Amazon and Alphabet, making it the third most valuable company on Wall Street, behind Microsoft and Apple. Nvidia’s market value has surged from $540 billion to $1.8 trillion over the past year.
In contrast, Tesla’s stock has declined by 20% in 2024 amid concerns about sluggish demand for its electric vehicles and increasing competition.
Featured Image: Freepik


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Have you heard of Initiative Q yet? Perhaps your friends’ Facebook posts about it (or maybe you’ve posted about it yourself, asking your friends to sign up for this “payment system of the future”).
A quick Facebook search revealed several friends (and friends of friends) who had posted “invites” to join the effort to create to a new currency in the past couple months.
Most of these posts contained various iterations of the following description:
“Initiative Q is an attempt by ex-PayPal guys to create a new payment system instead of credit cards that were designed in the 1950s. The system uses its own currency, the Q, and to get people to start using the system once it’s ready they are allocating Qs for free to people that sign up now (the amount drops as more people join – so better to join early). Signing up is free and they only ask for your name and an email address. There’s nothing to lose but if this payment system becomes a world leading payment method your Qs can be worth a lot. If you missed getting bitcoin seven years ago, you wouldn’t want to miss this.”
These posts then included a signup link and a warning that the link would no longer work once the person who posted was “out of invites,” creating a sense of urgency for interested friends.
But what are people signing up for, exactly? The folks behind Initiative Q have explained the economic model behind the currency system, but for those of us who don’t hold an economics degree, here’s the gist:
The first thing to know is, it’s not a cryptocurrency. Second, despite accusations saying otherwise, it isn’t a pyramid scheme, according to Forbes. This is because a pyramid scheme needs money to operate, and — so far — no one who has joined has been asked to invest a single penny. Think of it as a global currency.
Founder Saar Wilf (whose payment security company was acquired by PayPal in 2008) told Forbes, “We want people to be able to pay for a meal like they would an Uber. To use artificial intelligence to allow families and businesses to share accounts. To have an international currency that can be traded and shared without the ill-equipped processes that are currently in place and cost so much time and money.”
The initiative has some skeptics, for course. Some see several hurdles in Q’s way, including meeting government regulations and requirements across multiple jurisdictions across the globe.
So, what’s ahead for Initiative Q? According to its road map, it will continue its membership drive through mid-2019, then begin work on developing an advanced payment network, with hopes of launching select Q locations in 2020.
Initiative Q is still in its infancy. Will it become the global success its creators hope it will? Or will it follow in the footsteps of the thousands of dead cryptocurrency and blockchain projects? Only time will tell.


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Threat actors are offering for sale tens of databases on a hacker forum that contains roughly 550 million stolen user records.
Security experts from Cyble reported that a threat actor is attempting to sell twenty-nine databases on a hacker forum since May 7. Forum members could also buy each database individually. The archives allegedly contain a total of 550 million stolen user records.
Data appears to come from past data breaches, the oldest one dates back as 2012 while the latest one dates April 2020.
Another seller with *private* DBs (no they are not 100% private), but still a massive sale!#cyber #cybersecurity @BleepinComputer #malware pic.twitter.com/CtnppIyhxn— Cyble (@AuCyble) May 14, 2020The data could be used by crooks to launch credentials stuffing attacks against individuals and organizations.
Hackers are also offering for sale a separate database containing 47.1 million phone numbers that are part of Dubsmash data breach that occurred in 2018.
Below the list of databases, published by Bleepingcomputer, that are available for sale:
CompanyAmountData Breach DateEvite.com101 millionMarch 2019Tokopedia.com91 millionApril 2020piZap.com60.9 millionApril 2018Netlog.com (Twoo.com)57 millionNovember 2012Dubsmash.com Phone numbers47.1 millionDecember 2018Shein.com42 millionJune 2018Fotolog.com33.5 millionDecember 2018CafePress.com23.6 millionFebruary 2019Wanelo.com Customers23.2 millionDecember 2018OMGPop.com21.4 millionAugust 2019SinglesNet.com16.3 millionSeptember 2012Bukalapak.com13 millionFebruary 2018Bookmate.com8 millionJuly 2018ReverbNation.com7.9 millionJanuary 2014Wego.com6.5 millionN/AEatStreet.com6.4 millionMay 2019PumpUp.com6.4 millionN/ACoffeeMeetsBagel.com6.2 millionMay 2018Storybird.com4 millionDecember 2018Minube.net3.2 millionMay 2019Sephora.com3.2 millionJanuary 2017CafeMom.com2.6 millionApril 2014Coubic.com2.6 millionMarch 2019Roadtrippers.com2.5 millionMay 2019DailyBooth.com1.6 millionApril 2014ClassPass.com1.6 millionOctober 2017ModaOperandi.com1.3 millionApril 2019Rencanamu.id (Youthmanual.com)1.1 millionJanuary 2019StreetEasy.com1 millionMay 2018Yanolja.com1 millionMarch 2019Users can verify if their credentials are part of one of the above breaches querying the the Cyble’s amibreached.com data breach lookup service.
Those who have their account exposed in one of the above incidents are recommended to change their password.
The post Threat actors are offering for sale 550 million stolen user records appeared first on Security Affairs.


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The Oscars is one of the most anticipated nights of the year. Last February, the biggest stars came together to receive highly coveted awards in all areas of film.
Apart from the award winners, their fashion was also on display and was scrutinised by the audience.
Of course, we got immense enjoyment from seeing the various diamond jewellery designs that these actresses were adorned with.
In this article, we have compiled a list of some of the most special pieces we’ve seen and how you can achieve the same look as these stars.


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What will Microsoft unveil today? The buzz has been building since Microsoft sent an event announcement that promised a “major” unveiling at 6:30 p.m. ET. in Los Angeles.
What can it be?
“Speculation about the Los Angeles media event is that the company plans to unveil either a tablet computer or a system that uses an upcoming version of Windows to help people access TV shows and movies across a range of devices.
“A Microsoft-branded tablet wouldn’t come as a complete surprise. In April, Microsoft announced a $300 million, 17.6 percent stake in Barnes & Noble’s Nook e-book business.”
The reports are varied. Quoting unnamed sources, Tech Crunch reports that what’s on tap is “a tablet/e-reader built in conjunction with Barnes & Noble is on tap and that it will be entertainment driven.”
Tech Crunch adds that it would be “the first non-Xbox device to gain Xbox Live streaming capabilities.”
All Things D reports that Microsoft is “set to announce its own brand of tablets.”
In her analysis, Ina Fried reminds us that Microsoft has a history of trying its hand at hardware but with the exception of the Xbox, it has not succeeded.
“While it remains to be seen how this product compares to the competition, Microsoft finds itself in position similar to when it introduced the Zune. At that point, the company had been trying to compete against the iPod, with a series of hardware partners using its software.
“This time around, the stakes are much higher. We’re no longer talking about a peripheral, but rather the future of computing and the core of Microsoft’s business.”
We’ll keep an eye out on the announcement and update you once we know more.


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Microsoft’s Chief Executive, Steve Ballmer, announced Avatar Kinect for Xbox 360 In his keynote address at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES 2011) in Vegas.
Avatar Kinect uses Kinect’s camera and sensor to bring a player’s avatar to life. With Avatar Kinect, a player can invite up to seven friends to join them in one of 15 imaginative virtual environments, including a stage or a tailgate party.
Ballmer also announced that they managed to sell 8 million Kinect units in just 60 days since launch. Currently it is available to Xbox LIVE Gold members only, Avatar Kinect will be available as part of a new Xbox Dashboard update in Spring 2011, along with Netflix and Hulu Plus with Kinect support.


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Apple’s long-awaited credit card is finally here. Technically, it was here at the beginning of the month for select users. Now, however, it is available to all qualifying applicants in the United States.
Meanwhile, the full rollout also includes new cashback perks on purchases through Uber and Uber Eats. Apple says that more merchants will be added to the program in the coming months. With the shiny new card finally available, Apple lovers can get excited about all it has to offer.
Here at Last
Apple first introduced its branded credit card to the world in March of this year. After the five-month wait, users can finally get their hands on it. Like all Apple products, there will certainly be an influx of applicants hoping to swipe the trendiest card out there.
After thousands of Apple employees first had a chance to test the card, it has apparently succeeded with normal users too. Starting today, all iPhone users in the U.S. will be able to apply for the Apple Card. This can be done through the iOS Wallet app.
Jennifer Bailey, vice president of Apple Pay, is extremely happy about how it is doing so far following its limited debut at the beginning of August. She says, “We’re thrilled with the overwhelming interest in Apple Card and its positive reception. Customers have told us they love Apple Card’s simplicity and how it gives them a better view of their spending.”
The shiny metal card is accompanied by a digital version. It also features a unique number that will be used for Apple Pay purchases. Meanwhile, neither the physical or digital card comes with a true credit card number or CVV code. This means it will never expire.
Cash Back Galore
Previously, The Burn-In reported that Apple’s new credit card will come with plenty of opportunities for users to earn cashback. The Apple Card will reward users with two percent back for purchases made through Apple Pay and three percent on purchases at the Apple Store. That will include paying for a subscription to the company’s upcoming streaming service, Apple TV+.
Meanwhile, Apple announced today that its card will offer rewards for non-Apple purchases as well. People who use Uber and Uber Eats will get three percent cash back on purchases through Apple Pay within the respective apps.
The company also says that it plans to include more merchants and apps in this cashback tier as time goes on. A lot of this will likely depend on how fast the Apple Card catches on and how many users sign up for it.
This strategy may work well for Apple as it hopes to attract its trend-loving, current followers to the card. Not many credit cards reward users for shopping with specific merchants—especially ones that people use every day. Of course, the card wouldn’t be an Apple product if it didn’t go against the status quo.


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Graham Packaging blames net losses on one-off costs
Graham Packaging has reported a net loss of $11.5 million (€ 9.1
million) for the first quarter of this year, even though net sales
increased by 138 per cent and operating income rose by 28 per cent.
The net loss was mainly due to non-recurring charges of $7.4 million, project charges of $900,000 and impairment charges of $1.6 million, said the company's chief financial officer, John Hamilton. The company recorded a profit of $10.5 million in the first quarter of 2004.
Net sales amounted to $620.5 million in the first quarter of 2005, an increase of $360.2 million compared to the same period last year. Operating income was $42.5 million for the first quarter 2005, up $9.3 million. The figures include the non-recurring charges.
The sales and operating income increases were attributed mainly to the results from Owens-Illinois' plastic blow-moulded container unit, which Graham Packaging bought last November. Owens-Illinois has since changed its name to O-I. The acquired business accounted for $303.6 million of the net sales increase in first quarter net sales. Rising prices for resin accounted for the rest of the gains, the company said.
First-quarter sales in North America were up $324.1 million, including net sales of $283.7 million attributable to the O-I business. Net sales were up 80 per cent in Europe and 76 per cent in South America.
"This is now our second quarter as a combined company, and we are starting to see the results of our integration," said Hamilton.
Graham Packaging's chairman and chief executive officer, Philip Yates, said the integration of the O-I business with Graham Packaging should be completed within the next 18 months. The company estimates it will add about $70 million to its operating income and save about $100 million in costs when the integration is complete.
One-time costs to achieve the saving could eventually add up to about $160 million, according to company forecasts.
"The company believes that the cost savings will be partially offset by the expected sales run-offs in the acquired business, performance issues in the combined household category and continued softness in the overall automotive lubricants market," the company stated in a press release.
Graham Packaging is the operating subsidiary of Graham Holdings. Graham Packaging doubled in size as a result of the $1.2 billion acquisition of the O-I business last year. The company makes blow moulded plastic containers for the food and beverage, household, specialty containers and automotive lubricants markets.


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The next generation of footwear fashionistas took a step back in time to learn how well-heeled 15th century women displayed their social standing by showing off their shoes.
Footwear manufacturing apprentices at Northampton College were given a sneak peek at a pair of 12 inch platform shoes being created by a historical shoemaker to go on display at Northampton Museum & Art Gallery next year.
The Venetian chopines are currently being made by Andy Burke, thanks to funding from the Worshipful Company of Cordwainers. He unveiled them for the first time during a workshop and practical session held at Booth Lane, where he discussed his work and the historic and heritage elements of shoe making.
Rebecca Shawcross, senior shoe curator at Northampton Museum & Art Gallery, said: “Chopines are platform shoes that were worn by women in the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries. They were very popular in Venice and made with a very tall platform to protect the dress from mud and street dirt. The size of the chopines was made according to the status of the wearer – the higher the platform, the higher the social status.
“We have more than 15,000 shoes in our collection but we still have some significant gaps which are unlikely to be filled through donation or loan. Although the collection contains a 1960s reproduction of a low platform chopine, we don’t have an example that shows the amazing heights they could reach.”
Students currently undertaking apprenticeship with globally-renowned Northampton-based footwear brands Church’s and Loake Bros were able to examine the chopines at first hand and learn more about the techniques involved in recreating a style of shoe so popular more than 500 years ago.
Colin Needle, employee development executive at Northampton College, said: “Our apprentices are used to getting hands-on and understanding how shoes are made in the 21st century so being able to take a step back in time and learn more about the historical side of the industry is a really good experience for them.
“Discovering the heritage of shoemaking and seeing how styles have evolved over hundreds of years is vital. We’re thrilled to have been able to see these stunning chopines during their development stage and look forward to seeing the finished product.”
Councillor Anna King, cabinet member for community engagement, said: “We are extremely grateful to the Worshipful Company of Cordwainers for the grant of £1,200 which has allowed this project to take place and introduce an important new piece to the museum’s collection. The chopines will be on display in the history of shoe fashion cases in the new shoe gallery when the museum re-opens in spring 2020 after an extensive re-development project.”


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Rockstar are a company well known for holding games until the right moments. Even though the recent trilogy collection didn't go down too well, their last two outings have been met by some of the highest praise in the gaming world.
Rockstar's Tax Credit
As shown in this report by Tax Watch UK, Rockstar filed for £56,684,144 in VGTR, otherwise known as Video Games Tax Relief. This is a tax relief programme introduced by the UK government in 2014 in order to incentivise the growth of British games.
Companies can claim an extra percentage of qualifying expenditure, intended to incentivise spending. Essentially, the more Rockstar spends, the more they will benefit in their taxes, pushing for greater growth of the company.
The company is currently one year behind in their reporting of taxes, according to Tax Watch, so this is just what they claimed in 2020. Up until this point, it is the largest VGTR they have ever claimed, behind five times what they claimed in 2017.
Given Red Dead Redemption 2 launched in 2018 and that fund has only grown, this suggests the further development of other projects. In total, between 2016 to 2020, they have claimed £136,605,015 in VGTR - a monumental figure.
What does this mean for Grand Theft Auto 6?
Although this could mean nothing, it more than likely points to much bigger development costs. We know that Rockstar put out Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy - The Definitive Edition late last year but this doesn't account for that huge increase.
It seems much more likely that this is a sign the company is working on something big. With the release of Grand Theft Auto 5 being almost a decade ago, now is a pretty great time to come out with something new.
We have heard rumblings of a Bully remake or sequel, alongside some other smaller projects, but this seems like the safest option for the company to make.
There is tonnes of hype out there for Grand Theft Auto 6 out there and Rockstar knows it. Why not just show us what they're working on?
Why Rockstar may be holding out on us
The issue with having your business funded in the public eye is that public perception can kill your productivity and cash flow. One mediocre trailer could do tonnes of damage to the team and company.
This being said, holding out too long can also damage the company. People were very upset to see yet another reveal of Grand Theft Auto 5 and the rehashing of the trilogy was met by a lukewarm reception at best.
Although it makes sense for Rockstar to hold the trailer until they are really ready to show the game, just acknowledging it would be a great start.


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The outbreak of COVID-19 has caused severe supply chain issues, resulting in a huge spike in costs for both commodities and services. It may be argued that the global automotive industry has been affected the most by the pandemic which has led to a shortage of semiconductors that are vital to several modern vehicles, and a scarcity of containers, resulting in causing shipping delays and a steep increase in freight costs.
Freight costs are now 700 percent of the pre-pandemic tariff. Similarly, steel prices continue to surpass historical highs every few months now. Steel constitutes a major portion of the prices of vehicles and this has caused a huge cost increase for automobiles that automakers in Pakistan are also experiencing every month.
Thanks to the government’s recent intervention in the matter, car manufacturers are refraining from implementing massive price hikes. The government had stepped in on the basis of the reliefs provided to the automakers in Pakistan as a part of the Automotive Industry Development and Export Plan (AIDEP) 2021-26.
However, it is important to note that Pakistan has seen price hikes for vehicles yet again as a result of the more than 700 percent higher freight costs, as well as the recent depreciation of the rupee, skyrocketing prices of steel and resin.
Shortage in Motorcycle Industry
The motorcycle industry has already registered over four price revisions in just one year. Motorcycle retailers state that since the economy reopened after the lockdown during the first wave of COVID-19 last year, there has been a considerable increase in the demand for motorcycles.
According to sources, the motorcycle segment is having delivery issues for the first time in 20 years as the supply cannot fulfill the increasing demand. The sector also has a supply shortage due to the dearth of containers, with parts being delivered late, which was already a cause for concern since the onset of the pandemic.
Atlas Honda has raised its motorcycle pricing by three percent (up to Rs. 5,000) while Yamaha has increased its prices by nine percent (up to Rs. 13,000). Given the failing public transportation infrastructure and the ever-increasing prices of petrol, several assemblers predict that the demand for motorcycles will stay strong regardless of the price hikes.
|Motorcycle Price Increases in July 2021|
US Dollar and Steel Price Hike
Analysts project that the sector may conduct a pricing review in relation to the rupee-dollar parity. A six percent devaluation of the rupee has already occurred since the announcement of the budget.
The price of steel is likely to grow by at least 13 percent in the near future, according to the Chairman of the Pakistan Association of Automotive Parts and Accessories Manufacturers (PAAPAM). This is on top of the fact that local steel prices already rose by 50 to 60 percent last year.
The start of such a price increase has already been observed in the case of cars. Honda Atlas has increased the price of the new Honda City by Rs. 300,000 as compared to the previous generation. It was previously priced at about Rs. 100,000 below the comparable Yaris models. However, now its price is Rs. 275,000 more expensive than a Yaris.
A careful analysis reveals that the price increase of the Honda City includes all the incremental manufacturing costs, in addition to some profit adjustments. It may be assumed that Toyota will follow suit and will revise the prices of the Yaris by the same amount to account for the cost increases.
Considering the record-shattering prices of steel, freight costs, the shortage of the semiconductor chip, and the turbulent value of the local currency, the car industry can be expected to imitate motorcycle manufacturers by increasing the prices by nine percent due to the similar nature of manufacturing materials and supply chain issues.
|Vehicles||Jul-21 (Price Revision)||9% Price Revision||Difference|
|Honda Civic 1.8 Oriel||3,864,000||4,211,000||347,000|
|Honda Civic 1.5 Turbo RS||4,564,000||4,974,000||410,000|
|Honda BRV S||3,374,000||3,677,000||303,000|
|Hyundai Tucson GLS||4,979,000||5,427,000||448,000|
|Hyundai Tucson Ultimate||5,469,000||5,961,000||492,000|
|Hyundai Elantra GLS||3,899,000||4,249,000||350,000|
|Toyota Corolla 1.6 MT||3,109,000||3,388,000||279,000|
|Toyota Corolla 1.6 AT||3,249,000||3,541,000||292,000|
|Toyota Corolla 1.8 CVT||3,579,000||3,901,000||322,000|
|Toyota Corolla Grande 1.8 CVT||3,889,000||4,239,000||350,000|
|Fortuner Sigma 4 4×4||9,269,000||10,103,000||834,000|
|Fortuner V 4×4||8,899,000||9,699,000||800,000|
|Fortuner G 4×2||7,649,000||8,337,000||688,000|
|Yaris 1.3 GLI MT||2,409,000||2,625,000||216,000|
|Yaris 1.3 GLI CVT||2,589,000||2,822,000||233,000|
|Yaris 1.3 Ativ MT||2,519,000||2,745,000||226,000|
|Yaris 1.3 Ativ CVT||2,669,000||2,909,000||240,000|
|Yaris 1.5 Ativ X MT||2,719,000||2,963,000||244,000|
|Yaris 1.5 Ativ X CVT||2,899,000||3,159,000||260,000|
|Changan Karvaan Plus||1,539,000||1,677,000||138,000|
|Changan Alsvin Comfort MT||2,149,000||2,342,000||193,000|
|Changan Alsvin Comfort DCT||2,399,000||2,614,000||215,000|
|Changan Alsvin Lumiere||2,589,000||2,822,000||233,000|
|Suzuki Alto VX||1,113,000||1,213,000||100,000|
|Suzuki Alto VXR||1,335,000||1,455,000||120,000|
|Suzuki Alto VXL AGS||1,521,000||1,657,000||136,000|
|Suzuki Cultus VXR||1,655,000||1,803,000||148,000|
|Suzuki Cultus VXL AGS||1,975,000||2,152,000||177,000|
|Suzuki Wagon R VXR||1,530,000||1,667,000||137,000|
|Suzuki Wagon R VXL||1,610,000||1,754,000||144,000|
|Suzuki Wagon R VXL AGS||1,760,000||1,918,000||158,000|
|KIA Picanto MT||1,781,000||1,941,000||160,000|
|KIA Picanto AT||1,922,000||2,094,000||172,000|
|KIA Sportage Alpha||4,294,000||4,680,000||386,000|
|KIA Sportage FWD||4,782,000||5,212,000||430,000|
|KIA Sportage AWD||5,270,000||5,744,000||474,000|
|KIA Sorento 2.4L FWD||6,836,000||7,451,000||615,000|
|KIA Sorento 2.4L AWD||7,812,000||8,515,000||703,000|
|KIA Sorento 3.4L FWD||8,203,000||8,941,000||738,000|
While it is sincerely hoped that the effects of the pandemic end soon and the cost of manufacturing becomes more feasible, this price increase might be inevitable unless the government intervenes. However, your dream car is still slightly within your reach.
With the government focusing on car financing programs, and manufacturers working on reducing lead time, it is expected that the actual affordability will not be majorly affected. The market will have a reduction in car premiums or ‘on money’ and easier availability of auto financing. This will help maintain the affordability of cars at existing levels.
Author: Usman Sohail