What’s New In the Consumer Tech World Last Week? News That You Should Know (June 21-June 27, 2024) – Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO)

Chen Nanxiang, chairman of the China Semiconductor Industry Association (CSIA) and head of Yangtze Memory Technologies Corporation (YMTC), has predicted a significant surge in China’s chip industry within the next three to five years.

This week, the global tech outage wreaked havoc on U.S. air travel, with over 2,500 flights canceled for the third consecutive day, leading to thousands of passengers being stranded.

The flawed update from CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. CRWD, which led to a global IT outage, has attracted criticism from a leading U.S. cybersecurity official.

 In a LinkedIn post on Saturday, Jen Easterly, director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, labeled the faulty software update as a “serious mistake.”

Related: ‘If You’re A Lawyer For Crowdstrike, You’re Probably Not Going To Enjoy The Rest Of Your Summer’: Microsoft-Crowdstrike Outage Could Top $1B In Costs, Analyst Says

Roblox Corporation RBLX reported an increase in child exploitation incidents during 2023, with over 13,000 cases flagged to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), a significant rise from 3,000 the previous year.

Multiple courts in California experienced significant disruptions to their phone services due to a ransomware attack this week. The Superior Court of Los Angeles County, the largest trial court in the state, was the primary target of this attack.

Earnings Results

Apple Inc. AAPL reported second-quarter revenue of $84.742 billion, beating the consensus estimate of $84.202 billion. The tech giant reported quarterly earnings of $1.89 per share, beating analyst estimates of $1.85 per share.

Texas Instruments TXN reported second-quarter earnings of $1.22 per share, surpassing the analyst consensus estimate of $1.17 by 4.27%. The quarterly sales, which amounted to $3.82 billion, were in line with the analyst consensus estimate.

Technology

Amid criticism that the CrowdStrike issue wouldn’t have happened with Apple Inc. AAPL, Microsoft Corp. MSFT has clarified that a prior agreement with the European Commission it is legally unable to adopt the same security measures as Cupertino.

Nvidia Corp. NVDA is reportedly in the process of creating a new AI chip, designed to comply with U.S. export controls, specifically for the Chinese market.

Read: Is Corporate Ready For Microsoft’s AI-Assitant Copilot? Early Adopters Say AI Is Not ‘Pixie Dust’ To Sprinkle And Make Lives Easier

Nvidia has reportedly given the green light for the use of Samsung Electronics Co Ltd.’s SSNLF fourth-generation high bandwidth memory (HBM3) chips in its AI processors for the Chinese market.

Google is enhancing its Google Play Store on Android with a suite of new features aimed at enriching the user experience.

Read: Sundar Pichai Opens Up On Why Google Is Holding On To Cookies: ‘We Now Believe User Choice Is The Best Path Forward’

Popular workplace messaging app Slack, owned by Salesforce Inc. CRM, has introduced a new set of widgets for its iPhone app.

Gaming, Streaming Platforms & Others

Microsoft’s of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is debuting on Xbox Game Pass on July 24, according to Insider Gaming.

Sony PlayStation announced the release of a new PlayStation VR2 app on Steam, set to launch on Aug. 6, 2024.

Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc.’s WBD Warner Bros. Games has announced the acquisition of Player First Games, the studio behind the hit brawler MultiVersus.

Bethesda Game Studios has become the first Microsoft-owned game developer to fully unionize under the Communication Workers of America (CWA).

Netflix, Inc. NFLX announced plans to release a new game to subscribers every month starting in July 2024.

Camera giant Canon has launched its latest flagship camera, the EOS R1, as it looks to take on rival Sony.

Smartphones

Apple has extended a three-month trial to the owners of Sony Group Corp.’ Corp.’s: SONY) PlayStation models.

A week before the 2024 Summer Olympics commences, Apple announced significant updates to its Maps app and other features.

Read: Apple Drops From 3rd To 6th In China Amid Intensifying Competition, Huawei Shipments Surge 41% In Q2: Report

Apple is said to be planning to integrate its A18 chip into its upcoming entry-level iPhones and iPads in order to make them capable of running Apple Intelligence, the compancompany’s of AI features.

In a recent development, a settlement check from Apple related to the “batterygate” case has reportedly bounced due to insufficient funds.

Apple is reportedly planning to discontinue the iPhone 17 Plus model and introduce an ultra-slim variant in the second half of 2025.

Privacy executives at Apple have reiterated the tech giant’s commitment to user privacy, terming it as a “fundamental human right.”

Meta

The EU has put Meta Platforms Inc. META on notice over its “pay or consent” mode for Facebook and Instagram, citing potential violations of consumer protection laws.

Meta has dismissed rumors that his distinctive tan is a subtle hint about a new product from the company.

Read: Mark Zuckerberg Takes Aim At Elon Musk, Sam Altman With Big AI Aspirations Through Meta’sMeta’st Llama Model

Elon Musk

Over the weekend, Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk shared a video on X, formerly Twitter, that showcased an AI-generated fashion show featuring global powerhouses.  

Musk has announced the timeline for the chatbot models of his AI company xAI, which is scheduled to be released later this year.

Musk lauded the teams at his AI startup, X and Nvidia, for successfully initiating training for the Memphis Supercluster with 100,000 Nvidia H100 GPUs.

Read: Can Tesla Q2 Earnings Spark A Golden Cross? Here’sHere’sThe Charts Indicate

Musk initiated a poll on X, formerly Twitter, asking if the EV giant should invest $5 billion in his AI company and Grok-parent, xAI.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan stated that his government is formulating legislation aimed at augmenting domestic investment in AI and semiconductor production.

Elon Musk’s Grok AI chatbot is set to extend its profile analysis feature, available to X Premium subscribers, to iOS and Android platforms soon.

In a recent development, Broadcom Inc. AVGO is making significant strides in the AI stock market, posing a challenge to Nvidia.

In an interview on Tuesday, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg criticized Apple saying he wants to avoid the iPhone maker’s “rushing tactic” by releasing the largest open-source AI model ever.

In an interview published on Tuesday, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg expressed his admiration for Sam Altman while also pointing out an irony in his company, OpenAI’s approach to AI development.

Read: Elon Musk’s X, Mark Zuckerberg-Owned Facebook, And TikTok Face Stricter Regulations As Malaysia And Singapore Tighten Oversight On Social Media To Combat Online Scams

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