At a glance…
Amazon cuts hundreds of roles at AWS
Amazon Web Services announced plans to axe hundreds of jobs across sales, marketing and global services. The plans were revealed in an email sent to staff, as executives said the cloud company was to shift its focus to self-serve digital training and training programs run by external partners.
AWS senior vice president Matt Garman said, “The changes we are making are preparing the organisation for the future, aligning with our strategy and priorities, and reducing duplication and inefficiency.”
Amazon also announced it would be ditching AI-powered checkouts in the US.
Meta released its AI service, Llama, to the public
Meta released Llama 3, an advanced AI model that claimed to be more powerful than OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini. It featured significant upgrades, including reasoning abilities, multilingual support, and multimodal potential, driven by its 8B and 70B parameter models—seven times larger than its predecessor, Llama 2.
Integrated with Meta AI, it became accessible on Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp in the US. In the same month, OpenAI released its voice engine to select partners.
UK Space Agency awards grant to grow food in space
The UK Space Agency granted agritech firm Vertical Future (VF) £1.5 million to advance its mission of taking vertical farms into outer space.
VF, a UK-based specialist in vertical farming technology, initiated the second phase of its Autonomous Agriculture for Space Exploration project. It is adapting its Earth-based controlled-environment agriculture (CEA) systems for Low Earth Orbit (LEO), which is expected to launch in 2026.
VF’s project, part of the UK Space Agency’s £20 million International Bilateral Fund, aimed to expand its CEA systems to the Moon and Mars in the 2030s.
Chip plant evacuations follow strong Taiwan earthquake
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), a key supplier for Apple and Nvidia, evacuated several fabrication plants following a powerful 7.2-magnitude earthquake in Taiwan. The quake, the strongest in 25 years, struck the eastern province of Hualien, claiming seven lives, injuring 700, and leaving 77 trapped in tunnels.
Taiwan, responsible for producing 60% of the world’s semiconductors, faced significant global supply chain risks when its fabs were affected, as seen during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the same month, just across the East China Sea, South Korea pledged to invest $7 billion in AI to retain its edge in chip manufacturing.
Moments That Mattered: Haptic Tech and 5G Transforming Sports for Deaf Fans
Football, a sport driven by passion and unity, has long been a challenge for deaf fans unable to hear the crowd’s roar. To bridge this gap, Saudi Arabian company Sela, in partnership with Newcastle United and the Royal National Institute of Deaf People (RNID), launched the #UnsilenceTheCrowd campaign.
The initiative debuted during a Newcastle match against Tottenham Hotspur, introducing haptic shirts that convert crowd noise into vibrations.
Developed with wearable-tech brand CuteCircuit, the “Sound Shirts” feature motors linked to mics around the stadium. Real-time crowd noise is transformed into digital data, triggering vibrations that mirror cheers, claps, and goal celebrations. The shirts allow deaf fans to feel the game’s atmosphere.
This technology enhances inclusivity in football and sets a precedent for other sports and events. Newcastle fan Ryan Gregson noted, “We felt fully involved. What a day. What a game. What a shirt.”
An ad agency boss was the target of a deepfake scam
Mark Read, CEO of advertising giant WPP, was targeted in a sophisticated deepfake scam. Scammers used a fake WhatsApp account with Read’s publicly available image to initiate a Microsoft Teams meeting with a senior WPP executive.
During the call, they employed a voice clone and YouTube footage of Read, impersonating him in real-time to request sensitive information and financial actions.
The attempt failed due to the vigilance of WPP staff. In an email, Read warned employees about evolving cyber threats and urged them to be cautious of suspicious requests involving money, passports, or “secret” transactions.
Expedia unveiled a travel buddy AI app for US customers
Expedia has unveiled Romie, an AI-powered travel assistant, along with additional features at its Explore event in Las Vegas.
Romie’s capabilities include learning travellers’ preferences for activities, food, and accommodations, integrating into group trip planning chats, summarising discussions, and making suggestions. The app also extracts travel details from emails and recommends nearby restaurants or activities during trips.
Expedia also extended AI-powered tools to partners, including personalised itineraries, price comparison tools, and guest review summaries for app users in the US.
UK Ministry of Defence hit by major cyber-attack
The UK Ministry of Defence’s payroll system, managed by SSCL, was hacked, exposing sensitive data of 270,000 armed forces personnel, including names, bank details, and addresses. While Whitehall sources suggested Chinese involvement, the government did not officially name a perpetrator, and China denied any role.
Defence Secretary Grant Shapps announced an eight-point response plan, including system security measures, investigations, data monitoring, and a helpline for affected individuals. No operational data was compromised, but the breach raised concerns about supply chain vulnerabilities.
Global AI regulation efforts prompted US-China talks
The US and China convened in Geneva to discuss artificial intelligence’s risks and governance challenges, focusing on security and ethical concerns. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi addressed misunderstandings and explored global AI norms despite competitive tensions.
Experts emphasised the importance of cooperation, highlighting the need for privacy, fairness, and adherence to regulations for AI to succeed globally. However, trust issues and safeguarding strategic sectors like healthcare and energy remained critical barriers.
Did the FBI misidentify the leader of Lockbit?
The FBI and the UK’s National Crime Agency identified Dmitry Khoroshev as the leader of the ransomware gang LockBit following a cyberattack on the group earlier in the year. Khoroshev was sanctioned and banned from travelling to the US, UK, and Australia. He denied the allegations, claiming to have no connection to the gang.
LockBit dismissed the claims, offering a reward to confirm Khoroshev’s well-being. While experts were uncertain if the FBI correctly unmasked the leader, they believed Khoroshev was connected to the group.
Ricki’s Top Story of 2024: Poo-Powered Planes
Aviation, responsible for around 2.5% of global CO₂ emissions, significantly impacts climate change due to additional pollutants. Some estimates attribute 4% of global warming since pre-industrial times to the industry. Addressing this challenge, Firefly Green Fuels announced the development of a new method to convert sewage sludge into sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).
Using hydrothermal liquefaction, Firefly’s process mimics the natural creation of crude oil, transforming biosolids into bio-crude oil that can be refined into SAF. They said the innovation is scalable, affordable, and avoids competing with food production or deforestation.
The UK-based company announced plans to launch its first production facility in Harwich, Essex, which will be capable of producing 100,000 tonnes of SAF annually. Backed by key partners like Wizz Air and Anglian Water, Firefly’s initiative aimed to provide a circular economy solution and help the aviation industry achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.
Ransomware gang leak 400GB of NHS data from London hospital hack
Hackers from the Russian gang Qilin leaked nearly 400GB of sensitive patient data stolen during a ransomware attack on Synnovis, an NHS blood testing partner. The attack disrupted pathology services across London hospitals, delaying over 3,000 appointments and operations.
Despite demands for $50 million, Synnovis and NHS officials refused to pay. The leaked data reportedly included patient names, dates of birth, and blood test results.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX was hired to decommission the International Space Station
NASA awarded SpaceX a contract worth $843 million (£668 million) to safely decommission the International Space Station (ISS) early next decade. SpaceX will develop a de-orbit vehicle to guide the 430-tonne station into Earth’s atmosphere, ensuring a controlled descent to Point Nemo, a remote Pacific location.
Operational since 2000, the ISS remains structurally sound, but NASA aims to prevent uncontrolled re-entry. After the ISS’s retirement, the agency will focus on commercial space stations and the Lunar Gateway project, a moon-orbiting platform.
Nvidia was named the world’s most valuable listed company (again)
Nvidia leapfrogged Apple and Microsoft to become the world’s most valuable listed company, driven by the AI boom. The American chipmaker’s share price hit an all-time high, with the company valued at $3.34tn (£2.63tn) at the time — almost double the value at the start of 2024.
Apple partnered with ChatGPT for AI integration in iPhones
Apple unveiled “Apple Intelligence” at its Worldwide Developers Conference, integrating ChatGPT into Siri to enhance AI-driven features across iOS, iPad, and Mac devices. CEO Tim Cook emphasised privacy, with local AI processing and minimal data collection.
Siri gained improved context-aware capabilities, while new tools like “Rewrite” and “Proofread” refined text and tone. The event also highlighted the global rollout of the Vision Pro headset.
Waymo made its self-driving taxis available to everyone in San Francisco
Waymo, Alphabet’s autonomous driving company, made its self-driving taxi service available to everyone in San Francisco. After receiving approval from the California Public Utilities Commission, Waymo operated its commercial driverless service 24/7, despite earlier complaints about traffic disruptions.
Previously limited to a waitlist, the service became accessible via the Waymo app. Nearly 300,000 people signed up for rides as the company sought to build public trust in autonomous vehicles. Waymo operated around 300 self-driving taxis in San Francisco, with additional fleets in Phoenix and Los Angeles.
Continue reading — Q3 Wrapped Up: The Top Tech Stories of July to September
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