Boston, United States | AFP | Smartphones are revolutionizing the diagnosis and treatment of illnesses, thanks to add-ons and apps that make their ubiquitous small screens into medical devices, researchers say. “If you look at the camera, the flash, the microphone… they all are getting better and better,” said Shwetak …
Read More »Dubai aims to launch hover-taxi by July
Dubai, United Arab Emirates | AFP | Dubai has tested a Chinese prototype of a self-driving hover-taxi, its transport authority said on Monday, with the aim of introducing the aerial vehicle in the emirate by July. The test of the one-man electric vehicle comes as the city state in the …
Read More »Algorithms: the managers of our digital lives
Paris, France | AFP | Algorithms are a crucial cog in the mechanics of our digital world, but also a nosy minder of our personal lives and a subtle, even insidious influence on our behaviour. They have also come to symbolise the risks of a computerised world conditioned by commercial …
Read More »Report indicates WhatsApp is vulnerable to snooping
London, United Kingdom | AFP | The Facebook-owned mobile messaging service WhatsApp is vulnerable to interception, the Guardian newspaper reported on Friday, sparking concern over an app advertised as putting an emphasis on privacy. The report said that WhatsApp messages could be read without its billion-plus users knowing due to …
Read More »Facebook faces fines for ‘misleading’ information in WhatsApp buyout
Brussels, Belgium | AFP | The EU charged Facebook on Tuesday with providing “misleading” information when it sought approval for its blockbuster $22-billon buyout of the WhatsApp mobile messaging service. The commission said the EU’s greenlight of the buyout, announced in October 2014, was not put back into question but …
Read More »Chinese firm scraps German tech deal after US block
Beijing, China | AFP | A Chinese company has scrapped plans to purchase German semiconductor equipment maker Aixtron after US President Obama blocked the deal, the company said Thursday. The Chinese government-backed Grand Chip Investment said its offer could no longer be fulfilled after Washington rejected the inclusion of Aixtron’s …
Read More »America to copy Rwanda drone delivery system
When the Rwanda government, in partnership with the American company Zipline launched an emergency medical supplies system on Oct.13, nobody could have anticipated the interest it would generate, writes The Independent Correspondent. The latest information is that the American government now wants to copy the Rwanda system and use it to …
Read More »Silicon Valley: Trump would be a disaster for innovation
San Francisco, United States | AFP | Silicon Valley, the hub of the US tech industry, is traditionally a Democratic political stronghold. But that has perhaps never more been more true than in this election year, with a presidential contest featuring a Republican nominee seen here as more interested in …
Read More »Medical delivery drones take flight over Rwanda
Muhanga, Rwanda | AFP | “Three, two, one, launch!” And with that, catapulted from a ramp, the small fixed-wing drone buzzes into the air towards its pre-programmed destination, the Kabgayi hospital two kilometres away. On Friday Rwanda inaugurated a drone operation that its backers hope will kickstart a revolution in …
Read More »Facebook launches intra-office ‘Workplace’ network
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Social network giant Facebook on Monday launched new global product Workplace, a platform that it hopes will replace intranet, mailbox and other internal communication tools used by businesses worldwide. It is intended to compete with similar office communication products including Microsoft’s Yammer, Salesforce’s Chatter …
Read More »