Panasonic reviews plans for investment in Gigafactory battery plant with Tesla April 11, 2019 Panasonic is reviewing further investments in battery manufacturing at its Tesla Gigafactory site amid fears of declining demand for the high-performance electric cars. The move comes after local media reports stated the two companies had frozen plans to expand capacity at the Gigafactory 1 site in Nevada by a further 50 per cent. Read more: [...]
DEBATE: Are MPs right that the UK needs an independent watchdog to regulate internet sites? April 11, 2019 Are MPs right that the UK needs an independent watchdog to regulate internet sites? Ruth Manielevitch, vice president of global business development at Taptica, says YES. At a time when concerns over our data, privacy, and wellbeing on the internet are growing at a rapid rate, this new regulation would reassure millions of UK consumers [...]
Banking’s data revolution needs ethics as well as innovation April 11, 2019 With 2.5 quintillion bytes of data created every day, the exchange of information has become integral to the way we live. The opportunities data analytics can create for consumers are vast – as is the commercial potential. There are now more than 4,000 data brokers worldwide. Governments across the world are grappling with questions over [...]
The Economist branches out with new Birmingham tech hub April 11, 2019 The Economist is set to launch a new technology innovation unit in Birmingham as it looks to boost in-house support for its digital services. The new hub, which will be the company’s first UK site outside London, will house roughly 45 members of staff focused on development and support for the magazine’s website, mobile apps [...]
Startups eye bigger slices of the pie as venture deals scale up April 11, 2019 Venture capital investment into UK startups in the first three months of 2019 was around the same level as last year, as investors turned their focus to later-stage deals. More than £1.2bn has been invested since the start of the year across 161 deals, according to data published today by KPMG. Comparatively Germany was hit [...]
Cryptocurrency platform Coinbase launches Visa debit card April 11, 2019 Cryptocurrency platform Coinbase has launched a Visa debit card that allows customers to spend their digital currency in stores and online. When customers use the card, which is only available in the UK, Coinbase will convert the cryptocurrency into pounds, and transaction summaries and receipts will be recorded within a new app, which has also [...]
Softbank’s spinoff AI fund injects £1m into London identity startup Pixelpin April 11, 2019 Japanese investor SBI has led a pre-series A funding round into London startup Pixelpin through its artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain fund. SBI has plugged £1m into the Shoreditch-based startup while angel investors rounded out the investment with an additional £500,000. The financial services firm span off from mega investor Softbank in 2006. Read more: Softbank unveils $500m [...]
Fintech unicorn N26 under scrutiny from German banking regulator April 11, 2019 Digital banking starlet N26 is under scrutiny from German banking regulator Bafin, after reports emerged of fraudulent transactions and problems with the bank’s communications structure. Concerns about N26 were first reported in October by German newspaper Handelsblatt, before further inquiries by Bafin were said to have revealed numerous deficiencies at the fintech startup. N26, which counts Monzo, [...]
Lyft shares hit new lows on reports of record $100bn Uber float April 10, 2019 Shares in ride-hailing app Lyft fell to record lows today following reports the float of arch-rival Uber could be one of the largest in history. Lyft’s shares plunged as much as seven per cent to $62.91, well below its opening price of $72. Read more: Uber IPO 'seeks to sell $10bn of shares' The fall [...]
Kantar hires Microsoft executive as North America boss April 10, 2019 Market research firm Kantar has appointed Microsoft executive Reed Cundiff as its new chief executive for North America. Read more: Kantar boss suffered punctured lung in Kew stabbing attack Cundiff is taking over from Wayne Levings, who will return to the UK to continue in his role as head of global clients. “Reed understands what [...]
