Facebook loses appeal over investigation into Giphy takeover May 13, 2021 Facebook has lost an appeal over the regulatory probe into its acquisition of Giphy. The social media giant announced plans to buy Giphy last May but the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) then said it was looking into whether it could cause a “substantial lessening of competition in any market or markets in the United [...]
The human genome project – From then to now May 12, 2021 | City Talk Around 64 years ago, a group of scientists took biology to the next level: the molecular level. This provided us with revelations about the structure of the DNA helix and how genetic information flows through cells. Thus, molecular biology came into being. Following this huge success, the early 1970s marked the emergence of two historical [...]
Are we working more than ever? May 12, 2021 | City Talk Furlough and working-from-home have dispersed workers into a diverse range of new working patterns. Social media is filled with anecdotes from workers who start their day late and finish early but still get more done by virtue of not having to commute to an office. There are those who have already returned to and embraced [...]
The promise of CRISPR for curing congenital eye disorders May 11, 2021 | City Talk Genome editing is emerging as a powerful tool with the potential to eliminate a range of genetic disorders. Now the CRISPR-cas9 gene-editing tool, which is adapted from the bacterial anti-viral defense system, has broken new scientific ground by being directly administered into the body of live patients for the first time, in an attempt to [...]
Queen’s speech: Anger over social media safety laws as online scams excluded May 11, 2021 Campaigners have hit out at the government’s decision not to include scams in new legislation aimed at stamping out online harms. Plans to hold tech firms liable for harmful material posted to their platforms moved forward today after the Online Safety Bill was confirmed in the Queen’s Speech. The draft laws will force companies such [...]
Regulating the robots – unpacking the EU’s new AI Regulation May 11, 2021 | City Talk The European Commission recently publish a first draft of its new Artificial Intelligence Regulation (AI Regulation). The AI Regulation covers both Providers (i.e. developers) and business Users of AI systems. Providers have a broad set of obligations owed to Users. Under the AI Regulation, AI systems are categorised as: – Prohibited: certain “manipulative” and “exploitative” uses of AI are outlawed [...]
Rhyme or treason: Chinese tech giant Meituan’s boss in hot water over ancient poem May 11, 2021 Shares in Chinese tech giant Meituan have dropped sharply after its chief executive posted an ancient poem on social media that was interpreted as a veiled criticism of President Xi Jinping. Wang Xing, the billionaire boss of the food delivery app, posted The Book Burning Pit by Zhang Jie on a Chinese social media platform [...]
Apple hit with £1.5bn UK lawsuit over ‘excessive’ app store charges May 11, 2021 Apple is being sued for £1.5bn in a landmark UK class action lawsuit that accuses the tech giant of charging “excessive and unlawful” fees on its App Store. The claim, which has been filed in the Competition Appeal Tribunal in London, alleges that Apple deliberately shuts out competition by forcing consumers to use its own [...]
Pandemic drives 15-fold rise in online scams, say UK cyber spooks May 10, 2021 UK spooks took down more online scams last year than in the previous three years combined as the Covid-19 pandemic fuelled an increase in cyber crime. Experts oversaw a huge 15-fold increase in the number of scams removed from the internet, the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) said today. It comes as unscrupulous hackers tried [...]
Elon Musk reveals he has Asperger’s in Saturday Night Live appearance May 9, 2021 Eccentric billionaire Elon Musk has revealed he has Asperger’s syndrome during an appearance on US sketch show series Saturday Night Live. The Tesla founder told viewers he was the “first person with Asperger’s” to host the show, “or at least the first person to admit it”. It is thought to be the first time the [...]
