Posts

Germany blocking sales of its chip companies is like putting a plaster on a decapitation

This bid came from Silex, a Swedish subsidiary of Chinas Sai Microelectronics. It’s free, every week, in your inbox. Of course, Germany is and will remain an open investment location, but we are not naive either. We only need to think about the pandemic-driven impact this has had on manufacturing. As global supply chains crumbled, the continent struggled to source any chips. This cost hundreds of billions, if not trillions, of eurosworth of economic damage....

What if a simple drug could make everyone less selfish?

And then they figured out how to turn those neurons on and off. Are we victims of our own neuronal activity? Is that something we can change? Their immediate findings were astounding. Essentially, they developed a map of mice neuronal activity associated with selfishness and prosocial behavior. Its important not to get ahead of the research here, as this is very early. Not to mention the fact that mice brains and human brains are not the same....

Spate of cyber attacks in Europe increases concerns about government defenses

A string ofcyber attacks inEuropehave amplified concerns about the threats to public sector targets. For a bad actor, 21st-century public sector systems are an attractive prospect, he said. Government can be an easier target. It’s free, every week, in your inbox. The strikes ranged from zero-day exploits of software vulnerabilities to AI-enabled disinformation attacks. The risk hasnt changed. As a result, the opportunities for online criminals have increased where the attack surface has massively grown....

Another promising European startup is devoured by Meta

Facebook and Instagram owner Meta has boughtAudio Analytic, a Cambridge-basedstartupbuilding AI-driven sound recognition software. This is all part of Zuckerbergs plan to make themetaversethe future of the internet. 40% off TNW Conference! Whats more, the companys anticipating further losses in the coming year. According toMetas Q3 Report, We do anticipate that Reality Labs operating losses in 2023 will grow significantly year-over-year. In other words, exactly the jot down of tech needed to improve our experience of the metaverse....

Anti-LGBTQ policies cost Europeans billions of dollars every year

Imagine watching the prime minister of the UK dump 53 billion Euros worth of taxpayer funds into a volcano. Think of all the good that money could do. If youre a citizen of the UK, think about how hard you work to pay those taxes. According to the World Bank, thats about how much queerphobia could be costing the Brits. Researchers set out to uncover thetruecost of queerphobia, but quickly found the task insurmountable....

How tech can help companies fast-track their sustainability goals

Content provided byIBMand TNW. 40% off TNW Conference! Thankfully, technology can help. Companies can extend the life of physical assets such as machinery, equipment or vehicle fleets. And often, these same technologies can also help with operational efficiency and costs. This same principle can be applied across many industries that rely on manufacturing operations and heavy machinery. Additionally, it can inform decisions to run equipment more efficiently with less energy usage....

Taiwan’s tiny investment into Lithuanian chip production is better than it sounds

It’s free, every week, in your inbox. Even mention of a European chip partnership with a powerhouse like Taiwan is remarkable. For Europe, this investment is good news. When it comes to semiconductor chip production,Europe is effectively non-existent. And there aresome argumentsthat these moves by the bloc are too little, too late. But there is cause for hope. Yes, Taiwans 10 million investment investment in Lithuania is a drop in the ocean....

Large language models like GPT-3 aren’t good enough for pharma and finance

Natural language processing(NLP) is among the most exciting subsets of machine learning. It lets us talk to computers like theyre people and vice versa. In todays AI landscape, smaller, targeted models trained on essential data are often better for business endeavors. However, there are massive NLP systems capable of incredible feats of communication. OpenAIsGPT-3, one of the most popular LLMs, is a mighty feat of engineering. But its also prone to outputting text thats subjective, inaccurate, or nonsensical....

Swiss scientists’ new see-through solar panels are sweet nectar for startups

As Europes transparent solar panel market swells, Swiss scientists have set a new efficiency record for the technology. This could lead the way to energy-generating windows that power up our homes and devices. The researchersdeveloped a way of improving the combination of two newly designed photosensitizer dye molecules. 40% off TNW Conference! For reference, commercial solar panels have an average efficiency between15% to 22%. How are DSCs already being used? Dye-sensitised solar cells are notonly transparent, but can also befabricated in multiple colors and for low cost....

Europe moves to protect WFH — as Musk does the reverse at Twitter

Elon Musk is causing consternation among his new employees. According toBloomberg News, Twitters new owner is set to cut around 3,700 jobs about half the companys workforce. Those who remain are also bracing for upheaval. Musk reportedly intends to scrap the platforms work-from-anywhere policy and mandate returns to offices from Monday. The U-turn has reignited calls for legal rights to work-from-home on both sides of the Atlantic. It’s free, every week, in your inbox....

Open-source fish robot starts collecting microplastics from local lakes in the UK

A robot fish that collects microplastics from waterways has been turned from an idea into a working prototype. The design was brought to life after it won the University of Surreys public competition, theNatural Robotics Contest. The winning design was subsequently turned into a functioning prototype. Named Gillbert, the gear consists of a flooded head unit and a watertight tail unit. It’s free, every week, in your inbox. Gillbert has already been tested in the lab and local lakes and it even glows in the dark....

The EU’s 8K TV ban will be a nightmare for startups

Whats behind the ban? EU legislation onenergy labellingaims to eliminate the least efficient products from the market. This introduces a maximum energy consumption which cannot be exceeded. It’s free, every week, in your inbox. Previously, 8k and microLED TVs enjoyed an exemption. High-end TVs offer brighter screens, resulting in increased energy consumption and resource-intensive image processing required. Currently, no 8K TVs meet the EUs energy efficiency levels. And only a few 4K models fall within limits....

TomTom wants to wrestle control of the digital map back from Silicon Valley

40% off TNW Conference! For this reason, businesses are also turning to open-source options likeOpen Street Map(OSM). The issue though is this comes with less coverage and lacks standardization. And that provides a significant opportunity for everyone to collaborate. The TomTom Maps Platform makes Open Street Map enterprise ready commercial grade. How does the map work? According to the company, this data will then be ingested, validated, and standardized. The employment of AI and machine learning will also deliver faster update cycles, and higher accuracy and detail....