Weekly Tech Updates (Jan 29, 2021)
Weekly Tech Updates is an easy and convenient way to keep up with all the happenings in the tech world. Stay tuned every Friday for all the latest updates.
New Launch / Release:
News:
1. iOS 14.4 Update
Apple releases update 14.4 which mainly addresses vulnerability attacks. The update also introduces enhancements to QR code scanning and Bluetooth pairing classifications.
2. Reddit vs Wallstreet
In light of the on-going pandemic, many businesses are struggling to pull through this difficult time. With that being said, many wall street investors have taken this opportunity to sell short and make some easy returns from these struggling listed businesses.
A team of subredditors under r/wallstreetbets have taken it upon themselves to defend these businesses by rallying together and pumping up the stock prices. Nokia, AMC and most notable, GameStop are amongst the targeted stocks. These target stocks have seen a spike in share prices over the past couple days.
With more and more trading apps available, the general public can easily invest personally without the need to go through large investment firms.
3. Goodbye Loon, Hello Starlink
Alphabet, Google’s parent company shuts down Loon Project after 9 years of operations. The Loon project was setup to explore the idea of using a fleet of balloons to beam highspeed internet in remote parts of the world.
Unable to develop a sustainable business model for this moonshot project, Alphabet finally made the decision to discontinue the project. Perhaps, another reason for Alphabet to pull the plug on this project is due to the rise of interest in Starlink.
Starlink is Elon Musk venture into the telecommunications industry under his SpaceX venture. As of January 20th 2021, SpaceX has launched over 1000 satellites into the orbit. Sharing a similar goal, Starlink hopes to connect the most rural parts of the world with high-speed satellite internet.
At current, Starlink’s services are priced at $99 a month, in addition to a $499 upfront cost to order the Starlink Kit, which includes a user terminal and Wi-Fi router to connect to the satellites. But with economies of scale in play, we do see this price being reduced in the near future.
4. Security Threats by Anonymous Malaysia
Over the past week, Anonymous Malaysia released two videos with the hashtag #opswakeup21. The videos touched mainly on the government’s lack of concern and action in the area of personal data security of fellow Malaysians.
In the recent video released this morning, Anonymous Malaysia further explains how the government’s complacency in handling data leak has given rise to scams and frauds. They further claim that personal data of Malaysians are being leaked and sold in the underground market.
Malaysia authorities have also responded saying that the threats and warnings will not be taken lightly.
Watch the original videos here:
- #OpsWakeup21 (29th Jan 2021)
- #OpsWakeup21 (25th Jan 2021)
5. NOTHING, a new brand to keep an eye out for.
OnePlus co-founder, Carl Pei, launches a new company called ‘NOTHING’. Little has been shared about the company in terms of its product line thus far. But the company describes itself as a London-based consumer technology company.
“Nothing’s mission is to remove barriers between people and technology to create a seamless digital future. We believe that the best technology is beautiful, yet natural and intuitive to use. When sufficiently advanced, it should fade into the background and feel like nothing.”
Carl Pei, 2021
What’s worth noting is the seed funders behind this startup. Consisting of Casey Neistat (Youtuber), Tony Fadell (inventor of iPod), Kevin Lin (Twitch co-founder) and Steve Huffman (Reddit CEO), we are certain that NOTHING will introduce a variety of innovative products to the market in the near future.
Follow NOTHING so you don’t miss out on their updates:
Website: https://nothing.tech
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nothing/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/nothing
