IBM’s Watson supercomputer to solve the mobility problem in tie-up with Volkswagen’s SEAT February 26, 2019 IBM and Volkswagen's Spanish unit SEAT have unveiled a standalone app that hopes to predict what mode of transport and route is best for urban users through artificial intelligence (AI). The app, called Mobility Advisor, will utilise the power of IBM's Watson supercomputer to present commuters with the best way to navigate cities, whether that's [...]
Amazon pledges to create 1,000 UK apprenticeships by 2021 February 26, 2019 Amazon today pledged to create more than 1,000 full-time apprenticeships in the UK over the next two years. Read more: Amazon's UK boss made a trustee of the National Gallery The apprenticeship programme will fill positions across Amazon’s UK operations – from software developers for Prime Video and Alexa's machine learning technology to warehouse workers [...]
DEBATE: With the Oscars success of Roma, has Netflix broken the dominance of the traditional film studios? February 26, 2019 With the Oscars success of Roma, has Netflix broken the dominance of the traditional film studios? Abbie Llewelyn, freelance writer and commentator, says YES. Just six years after Netflix started producing original content, it has scored 15 nominations and three wins at the Oscars. This is a huge breakthrough for streaming platforms, as up until [...]
How to stop worrying about being run over by a robot car February 26, 2019 Depending on who you ask, we are either very close or very far from having millions of autonomous vehicles on the roads. What few question is that we will eventually see widespread take-up; the opportunities for improved road safety are unparalleled. But driverless cars also offer a great exemplar of the wider automation debate, and the [...]
Ford links up with London startup What3words for a new way to map the world February 26, 2019 Ford is ramping up its innovation plans as the US car giant today announces a partnership with London startup What3words. The tie-up means drivers will be able to link the What3words app, which has mapped out the globe into 57 trillion 3m-by-3m squares using unique three-word addresses, with Ford's in-car navigation system. The technology will reduce address input errors [...]
Telecoms bosses warn of risks to 5G roll-out February 25, 2019 Top executives from Europe's major telecoms firms have identified multiple obstacles that could impede the roll-out of 5G across the continent. Speaking at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, BT consumer chief executive Marc Allera said that landlords across the UK were preventing the firm from constructing thousands of pieces of key infrastructure such as masts and [...]
Huawei boss pledges to be ‘more transparent’ on European cyber security February 25, 2019 Huawei's top executive in Europe has said the company needs to be "more transparent" in its cyber security practices, hours after Britain's spy agency voiced concerns about its tech. Vincent Peng told reporters at a trade event in Barcelona that the problems the firm is facing are "a technical challenge, not a political challenge". "I want to emphasise, [...]
Who wants a smartphone? Here’s how to sell the Nokia 3310 in 2019 February 25, 2019 "Hello? Yeah I’m on my mobile. Yeah I’m in the library. Nah I can’t talk right now. I’m in a library for Christ’s sake.” If you’re old enough to remember Trigger Happy TV, my apologies in advance for the earworming melody of the Nokia tune bouncing around your skull for the rest of the day. [...]
Facebook, social media and ads – when will marketers abandon the network? February 25, 2019 The Facebook-Google duopoly has a stranglehold over internet advertising. While the search engine dominates the pairing, Mark Zuckerberg’s creation is no slouch – last year, more than a fifth (21.8 per cent) of all US digital ad spending went to the social media network, equivalent to $28.2bn (£21.7bn). But the company is in hot water, [...]
An appetite for business: Deliveroo doubles down on corporate eating February 25, 2019 Late night dinners around the boardroom table have become something of a staple in modern City life, particularly for those working in demanding sectors. Food delivery startup Deliveroo is readying itself to take full advantage of that, with plans to double staff numbers in its business teams to 200 globally by the end of this year. [...]
