GadgetFreak

I would love to see more companies like Artiphon in the world. Hardware startups with clever ideas and a knack for bringing them to market. Back in November 2020, I spent a good bit of time with the company’s handheld synth/sampler/instrument. It didn’t turn me into Wendy Carlos, but it helped pass a few dark pandemic hours by firing up some music-making neurons. The device’s strength lies in its extraordinarily low barrier of entry. No lessons or musical aptitude are required — just a free hand or two and the desire to noodle around with sound. Today the device is getting a sequel, in the form of the fittingly named Orba 2. The product looks identical to its predecessor, with a round base and eight touch-sensitive pads arranged in triangles like pizza slices. Image Credits: Artiphon The device largely functions the same as the Orba 1, as well, but features a revamped sound engine with new built-in audio samples. Those are augmented by built-in sensors, which let you modify the

Dean Takahashi / VentureBeat : Menlo Microsystems, which aims to make circuit breakers and electrical switches far more efficient, raises $150M, bringing its total raised to $225M   —  Menlo Microsystems unveiled its Ideal Switch recently and it also raised $150 million to shake up the electronics industry. from Techmeme https://ift.tt/nYwsFJh via IFTTT

DeLorean released fresh details and images of its Alpha 5 EV, a gull-winged electric vehicle that the company’s owners hope will resurrect the long defunct brand and possibly set the direction for more electric models. The company’s — and the EV’s — big public moment won’t come until later this summer at the Monterey Car Week. But the brand’s owners, anxious to capitalize on interest in EVs and perhaps spur a little momentum ahead of the event, released images and specs that reveal the Alpha 5 retains the gull-winged, two-door frame featured in the “Back to the Future” trilogy, but features a curvier, sleeker silhouette and room for four passengers. So far, the company’s intentions for reviving the DeLorean brand after a long hiatus — as well as how and where it will fund and built the Alpha 5 — are not clear. DeLorean CEO and former Karma Automotive executive Joost de Vries, who joined the company in December, is scheduled to speak Friday at the Electrify Expo EV festival in Long B

Tom Simonite / Wired : Sources claim fired senior Google AI researcher Satrajit Chatterjee spread misinfo on two AI researchers after they declined his request to manage their project   —  Google employees claim a senior researcher fired earlier this year sought to undermine two more junior AI researchers by suggesting … from Techmeme https://ift.tt/QXSszvU via IFTTT

Despite economic turmoil in the tech world, an Oakland-based startup shows that moonshots are still getting funded. Felt, co-founded by Sam Hashemi and Can Duruk , wants to disrupt the role of maps in society, and rethink how we think about the medium. The startup allows users to build a map with datasets integrated into it, and work with each other to showcase impact in a less static way than your average Google maps query. Despite a massive mission — proving that maps are a forgotten yet fundamental medium worth renovating — the co-founders cited proven business models from Figma and Notion, both valued in the billions, as reason to believe in their work. The aforementioned companies both succeeded in rolling out to users for personal use, then pivoting to the enterprise, a playbook that Felt wants to follow (and that VCs can certainly speak the language of). “That kind of business model and go to market is — I don’t want to say immune, but is a little bit removed from the kind o

The most wonderful time of the year is back and, with it, the ability to see Spotify Wrapped. Spotify users look forward to this annual wrap-up of their listening statistics every year. It’s a chance to showcase your unique musical tastes—and also provide Spotify with some not-so-subtle marketing. Let’s review how to see your Spotify Wrapped results! Read more:  Can you change your Spotify username? THE SHORT ANSWER  from Android Authority https://ift.tt/mzYCW7n via IFTTT

The year is 2012. Nokia is still on top of the smartphone world, but Apple is knocking on its door. Ice Cream Sandwich and its Holo design aesthetic have been making their (slow) way to some Android phones. The Android Market has just been rebranded to Google Play. 720p displays are hot, quad-core processors are at the bleeding edge, and a phone with a 5.3″ display is considered a “phablet.” The year is 2012 and Samsung is rising like a rocket in the mobile market by perfecting a strategy it established two years prior with the first Galaxy S phone. It’s building a flagship line that competes with Apple, runs Google’s platform and application store, offers the best specifications, and is available in as many countries and on as many carriers as possible like Nokia once was. After the decent success of the Galaxy S and the incredible rise of the Galaxy S2 which firmly established Samsung as a worldwide contender and not a one-hit-wonder, the Galaxy S3 had big shoes to fill when it

Hello and welcome back to Max Q. There is SO much news this week, so let’s dive in. In this issue: Astroforge’s asteroid mining ambitions Boeing’s Starliner comes home News from Virgin Orbit, Rocket Lab and more Don’t forget to sign up to get the free newsletter version of Max Q delivered to your inbox. Astroforge closes $13M seed plus round for asteroid mining plans  Although we’ve long understood that asteroids are not simply the rubble of the universe, but potentially profitable stores of precious minerals, humanity has never been able to unlock this value. Y Combinator startup  Astroforge wants to succeed where other companies have failed, by becoming the first to mine an asteroid and bring the material back to Earth — and it’s aiming to do so as early as the end of the decade. (Yes, that is not a typo — end of the decade!) To start, Astroforge will be conducting a tech demonstration mission sometime next year. The company’s already booked a spot on a SpaceX Falcon 9 ri

We’re just about two weeks away from our first foray into climate tech at TC Sessions: Climate & The Extreme Tech Challenge 2022 Global Finals on June 14 in Berkeley, California — with an online day to follow on June 16. It’s going to be an epic day all around for many reasons — did you know that Bill Gates is one of the featured speakers? Don’t miss this opportunity to hear from and engage with the new wave of climate-tech entrepreneurs, early-stage founders, CEOs, scientists, researchers, engineers and the VCs who fund them. You know what else you can’t afford to miss? Our 2-for-1 pass Memorial Day sale — it ends tonight at 11:59 pm (PT) . Buy your pass now and save! Pro Tip: Yes, TechCrunch editors will interview the leading voices in the fight against climate-change ( check out the event agenda ), but we’d be doing you a disservice if we didn’t remind you about our partner breakout sessions. These expert-led, topic-specific partner sessions give you time to lean in,

In the world of audio, few companies can compare with Bose . Bose headphones, in particular, are some of the highest-rated on the market. But, alas, they are also some of the most expensive. But we have some Bose deals today that could soften the blow! Right now, at Amazon , you can grab Bose true wireless earbuds at various discounts. The best discount is on the company’s well-received Bose QuietComfort Noise Cancelling earbuds, which land at 29% off the usual list price of $279. That nabs you a set of the ‘buds for just under $200 . from Android Authority https://ift.tt/GvPLuD0 via IFTTT

Credit: Xiaomi A new leak suggests there could be a Xiaomi Mi Band 7 Pro on the way. It is unclear what would make this model better than the regular Mi Band 7. It’s possible this could launch in July alongside the rumored Xiaomi 12 Ultra. Earlier this month, Xiaomi took the wraps off its latest budget-focused fitness tracker, the Mi Band 7 . As expected, this was yet another reliably cheap but fully featured tracker. However, it looks like Xiaomi could have an upgraded version in the works. As spotted by  GSM Arena , Xiaomi has listed — possibly accidentally — a Xiaomi Mi Band 7 Pro. The listing was found in a Xiaomi app. from Android Authority https://ift.tt/ST7xknl via IFTTT

Nature : Experts say that governments should create bespoke IP law and an international treaty to protect AI-generated inventions, rather than rework old patent laws   —  The patent system assumes that inventors are human.  Inventions devised by machines require their own intellectual property law and an international treaty. from Techmeme https://ift.tt/7Cl2e3c via IFTTT

India has withdrawn a warning that asked users to not share photocopies of their national biometric ID following a widespread uproar from users on social media, many of whom pointed that this is the first time they were hearing about such a possibility. A regional office of UIDAI, the body that oversees the national biometric ID system Aadhaar, warned users on Friday that “unlicensed private entities” such as hotels and theatre halls are “not permitted to collect or keep copies of Aadhaar,” a 12-digit unique number that ties an individual’s fingerprints and retina scan, and people should avoid sharing photocopies of their Aadhaar to prevent misuse. The warning prompted an immediate and wide backlash from individuals. “I might have stayed in almost 100 hotels who kept a copy of my Aadhaar! Now this,” an individual tweeted, summing up the dilemma of tens of millions of people in the country, if not more. UIDAI has now woken up after everyone's distributed photocopies of Aadhaar

Mike Masnick / Techdirt : Latest AICO Act revisions are carveouts for telcos and financial companies and do not fix real problems with the bill, like a disguised content moderation ban   —  Look: there are very real issues with the state of the internet today, including the amount of power a few companies have. from Techmeme https://ift.tt/F9xghcD via IFTTT

Sujith Somraaj / Decrypt : As Terra blockchain reboots, freshly minted new LUNA tokens started trading on a number of exchanges and swiftly plummeted about 70% from the opening price   —  After peaking at $19.54 earlier on Saturday, it's been mostly downhill.  —  Terraform Labs early Saturday launched a new version … from Techmeme https://ift.tt/A32CbPZ via IFTTT

It’s been two years since the original AirPods Pro launched. Needless to say, they are long overdue for a refresh. We’re calling Apple’s next pair of premium wireless earbuds the AirPods Pro 2, but Apple may end up naming them a bit differently, possibly “AirPods Pro 2nd generation.” Nevertheless, the TWS buds are not a complete mystery, thanks to multiple rumors, reports by industry insiders, and leaks. Here’s everything we know about the AirPods Pro 2. Will there be an Apple AirPods Pro 2? from Android Authority https://ift.tt/cp2iCFv via IFTTT

Olga Kharif / Bloomberg : Nansen: TerraUSD collapse wasn't a work of a single attacker but likely a result of investment decisions from a small number of large UST holders   —  The collapse of the TerraUSD (UST) stablecoin that sent shockwaves throughout the crypto ecosystem can't be attributed to a single attacker, according to researcher Nansen. from Techmeme https://ift.tt/3sguoU5 via IFTTT

Credit: Google Opinion post by Roger Fingas When the Pixel Tablet was first revealed, at Google I/O 2022 earlier in May, the understandable focus of most people was on how Google was planning to evolve Android’s lackluster tablet segment. While devices like the Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 have their fans, Android as a whole hasn’t had enough tablet-optimized apps, and aspects like multitasking have been in dire need of attention. Google’s announcements were promising. Those of us tracking the smart home world noticed some other unique things about the Pixel Tablet, ones which could tie into rumors about Google’s smart display plans. If that thinking proves correct, the Pixel Tablet could signal the future of the smart display industry. from Android Authority https://ift.tt/vqVK4LH via IFTTT

All is not well in smartphone land. The industry was headed for a slowdown well before SARS-CoV-2 entered the picture. The glory days of expanding markets and bi-annual upgrades are seemingly at an end, and things have only been exacerbated by two years of financial hardships and supply chain constraints. For all these reasons, it’s not surprising that manufacturers are pulling back on manufacturing. A new report from South Korea’s Maeil Business News has the world’s leading smartphone maker ramping production down by 30 million units for 2022. The news comes as sales are further hampered by the conflict in Ukraine. In March, the company followed fellow tech giants Microsoft and Apple by suspending sales in Russia . Apple, too, has been feeling the pain. Recent Bloomberg reports noted that the iPhone maker is throttling plans to manufacture an additional 20 million phones in 2022. Instead, its numbers are reportedly going to remain flat from 2021. Those reports follow several quar

Credit: Andy Walker / Android Authority Opinion post by Roger Fingas While some of its early hype has died down, the concept of gamification — rewarding mundane tasks by turning them into games — has not only survived, but thoroughly wedged itself into society. It’s especially commonplace when it comes to digital learning and fitness tracking, so much so that you probably don’t even think about it when you fire up an app like Google Fit or Duolingo . There are certainly benefits to gamification, but it may be no surprise that the push for it is actually backfiring in some cases, making people want to ignore these systems or quit the very things they’re encouraging us to do. I’m going to focus on fitness, since that’s my specialty, but it should be easy to recognize the problems I’m talking about in many other apps and platforms. from Android Authority https://ift.tt/jK5vyEn via IFTTT

Hey all. Welcome back to Week in Review, the newsletter where we recap some of the top stories to cross TC’s front page over the last 7 days. The most read story on our site this week was about Flowcarbon — a new company and “blockchain-based redemption story” (as Anita put it) launched by WeWork founder Adam Neumann. The goal, writes Anita, is to “sell tokenized carbon credits to companies looking to reduce their carbon footprint,” to which the only response I can think of is that Jennifer Lawrence “ok” gif . Why is it on the blockchain? What’s a “Goddess Nature Token”? Find out in Anita’s post here , then listen to Lucas and Anita go deep on the topic on this week’s Chain Reaction podcast. other stuff Here are some of the other most read TC stories from this week: Jack Dorsey steps down from Twitter’s board:  For the first time since its founding in 2006, co-founder Jack Dorsey is no longer officially involved in the operation of Twitter. Late last year, he stepped away from th

Washington Post : Some teens say French social networking app Yubo, which had 18M downloads in the US, ignored reports that the Uvalde shooter threatened violence on the app   —  Young people who met the alleged gunman online said he had threatened to kidnap, rape or kill.  But they said their reports … from Techmeme https://ift.tt/FVODgbI via IFTTT

Welcome back to This Week in Apps, the weekly TechCrunch series that recaps the latest in mobile OS news, mobile applications and the overall app economy. The app industry continues to grow, with a record number of downloads and consumer spending across both the iOS and Google Play stores combined in 2021, according to the latest year-end reports . Global spending across iOS, Google Play and third-party Android app stores in China grew 19% in 2021 to reach $170 billion. Downloads of apps also grew by 5%, reaching 230 billion in 2021, and mobile ad spend grew 23% year over year to reach $295 billion. Today’s consumers now spend more time in apps than ever before — even topping the time they spend watching TV, in some cases. The average American watches 3.1 hours of TV per day, for example, but in 2021, they spent 4.1 hours on their mobile device. And they’re not even the world’s heaviest mobile users. In markets like Brazil, Indonesia and South Korea, users surpassed five hours pe