Tech companies ramp up hiring as London moves past lockdown September 8, 2020 Tech companies in the UK’s capital have accelerated their hiring plans over the summer as businesses get ready to go back to work, with digital roles jumping by more than a third. Advertising for vacancies in the digital tech sector rose 36 per cent in the last two months, according to data collated by Tech [...]
Amazon beefs up UK team for delivery robot Scout September 8, 2020 Amazon has today revealed a boost to its UK research and development arm with the creation of a new team dedicated to Scout, the e-commerce giant’s on-street delivery robot. Amazon said it would be hiring for more engineers to develop its fully-electric and autonomous delivery robot, based at its Cambridge research and development hub. The [...]
Italy launches probes into Apple, Google and Dropbox’s cloud storage services September 7, 2020 Italy’s competition regulator has today launched six investigations into the cloud storage services of Apple, Google and Dropbox, over concerns of misuse of data. The country’s Competition and Markets Authority said it had received several complaints about allegedly unfair commercial practices by Apple’s iCloud, Google Drive and Dropbox. The authority said in a statement that [...]
Amazon fined by UK watchdog over late documents in Deliveroo probe September 7, 2020 Amazon has earned a slap on the wrist from UK regulators after it failed to meet a deadline for vital documents, as part of a long-running probe into its stake in Deliveroo. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) today fined Amazon £55,000, after it was forced to delay its investigation of Amazon’s purchase of a [...]
Softbank shares fall seven per cent on rising tech bets September 7, 2020 Shares in tech giant Softbank fell seven per cent as markets closed in Asia this morning, as investors were concerned by the group’s rising exposure to risky tech bets. Softbank has plugged billions of dollars into buying shares in major tech companies on the Nasdaq, after it sold off a swath of assets over the [...]
Samsung wins $6.6bn US 5G tech deal as Huawei tensions simmer September 7, 2020 Samsung Electronics today said it has won a $6.6bn deal with telecoms giant Verizon to provide wireless communications equipment for 5G in the US. The South Korean electronics magnate is benefiting from a gap in the market left by Chinese rival Huawei, analysts have said, which is banned from working with US companies by the [...]
Adobe rival Figma sets up international base in London September 7, 2020 Silicon Valley software starlet Figma has selected London as the site of its new international headquarters, opting to go ahead with the move despite the increase in remote working. London will be Figma’s new base for the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region, currently playing host to a staff of 14 working from home. [...]
DEBATE: Is criticism of the government plan for digital ID cards justified? September 7, 2020 Is criticism of the government plan to spend money on digital ID cards justified? Silkie Carlo, director of privacy campaign group Big Brother Watch, says YES. When Theresa May scrapped Blairite plans for national ID cards in 2010, she warned that they would “increase state control over law abiding people”. And yet, this is what the Johnson [...]
We’ve spent months on Zoom, but we mustn’t forget to “zoom out” September 7, 2020 When threatened, human beings automatically focus intently on the danger. This amazing ability to “zoom in” is why you’re here. It kept your ancestors alive while others weren’t so lucky. In hunter-gatherer tribes, threats were short-lived but lethal. When a rival clan runs out from the trees, being focused pays off. However, what kept our [...]
The future of the construction industry is digital September 4, 2020 The double-whammy of a pandemic and a recession has made 2020 one of the most challenging and disrupted years in living memory. But the bright spot, in an otherwise battered economy, is construction, which forms a major part of Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s ”Build Back Better” campaign. Britain’s construction industry grew at the fastest rate in almost [...]
