Month: February 2023
Alibaba, Tencent and other Chinese tech giants to release post-covid-19 earnings
Alibaba, Tencent and Baidu are among the Chinese tech giants preparing to announce their first quarterly results since Beijing abruptly abandoned its zero-COVID policy in late December. Analysts expect fourth-quarter revenue to be muted for many of China’s big tech companies due to the effects of the government’s strict COVID measures. Other holdings are also
Rocket booster fails to ignite in Japan
The inaugural launch, which had already been delayed three times this week due primarily to the weather, was aborted shortly after the main engine ignited, dealing a blow to Japan’s space and national security programs, as well as its ambitions of expanding in the commercial launch market. The launch of Japan’s H3 rocket was called
Lenovo sales recover
PC market leader Lenovo has been hit by falling sales of the device, which had enjoyed a pandemic boost. Lenovo Group’s Chairman and Chief Executive Yang Yuanqing said Friday that the slumping market for personal computers could pick itself up as early as the second half of this year, after weak demand dragged the Chinese
Japanese flying cars makes flight flight
OITA, Japan — A flying car achieved the first manned outdoor flight in Japan on Friday morning in a trial by a local consortium of aviation and automobile businesses, a big step for a technology seen as serving remote islands and mountainous regions that lack transportation. The two-seater flying car performed the successful test on
Meta monthly subscription service
Meta Platforms on Sunday announced that it is testing a monthly subscription service, called Meta Verified, which will let users verify their accounts using a government ID and get a blue badge, as it looks to help content creators grow and build communities. The subscription bundle for Instagram and Facebook, to be launched later this
Hungary pledges to keep relations with Russia
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said cutting off relations with Russia would not be in the country’s national interest. Hungary is heavily reliant on Russia for its energy needs. Going against the European Union’s resolution of maintaining a united front against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban vowed to maintain
Israel Envoy expelled from African Union Summit
Israel accused arch-foe Iran of orchestrating the ejection of one of its senior diplomats from the African Union summit on Saturday, with the help of Algeria and South Africa. A video circulating on social media shows guards escorting Israel’s deputy director general for Africa, Sharon Bar-li, out of the AU assembly, which opened on Saturday
AI poses ‘serious risk’ for human rights
The united nations warned that recent advances in artificial intelligence posed a grave threat to human rights and called for safeguards to prevent violations. There have been increasing concerns over things such as AI-guided drones, ‘slaughterbots’ that can kill with no human intervention and the risk that artificial intelligence could escalate a military conflict. Artificial
Two Somalia soldiers executed
In the past, the Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Somalia’s military court proceedings “fall short of international fair trial standards”. The basic standard helps to protect defendants from being coerced or tortured into confessing. The Somali military court announced on Saturday the execution of two government soldiers convicted of civilian shooting on 10th January 2023.
Russia of ‘crimes against humanity’ in Ukraine
US Vice President Kamala Harris on Saturday accused Russia of committing “crimes against humanity” in Ukraine, saying Moscow’s forces had conducted “widespread and systemic” attacks on the country’s civilian population. Harris levelled a list of allegations at Moscow’s troops — “gruesome acts of murder, torture, rape and deportation, execution-style killings, beatings and electrocution”. Do you