Apple employees continue to fight against mandatory return to office, Sony faces a $6 billion lawsuit, and the U.K. government decides that manufacturers are responsible for vehicles in autonomous mode.
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That’s all the tech news that’s trending right now, welcome to Hashtag Trending. It’s Tuesday, August 23, and I’m your host, Samira Balsara.
Apple employees are pushing back against the company’s return to work policies with a new petition. The employees have banded under a group called Apple Together and said that they have produced exceptional work from home. Aside from just working comfort, flexible work from home arrangements also helps those with disabilities and care responsibilities. Additionally, the petition argued that Apple’s return-to-office policy does not consider the demands of different functions and diversity. The policy was even partially blamed for the exodus of Ian Goodfellow, Apple’s former machine learning director.
Sony is facing a $6 billion lawsuit for anti-competitive practices within the PlayStation Store. The class action lawsuit alleges that Sony abused its dominant position and overcharged consumers $6 billion in the past six years. For some background, Sony, and other online game distributors like Steam and Xbox store, take a 30 per cent cut of every purchase. People leading the lawsuit alleged that Sony dominated the distribution of PlayStation games and increased costs for those who can’t afford it. Whether this suit holds water is anyone’s guess as the plaintiffs will now have to prove that claim in court.
In a landmark decision, the U.K. government has decided that manufacturers, not drivers, will be liable for accidents when a vehicle is in autonomous driving mode. The decision was announced in the country’s roadmap for self-driving cars. Along with the new plan, the U.K. also announced a $119 million funding for electric vehicle projects and another $41 million for their safety and legislation development. The country values the autonomous vehicles industry to be around $50 billion and supply 38,000 jobs. Additionally, the U.K. remains committed to accelerate its plans on starting its commercial self-driving service, like shuttle pods in airports.
A Tesla car owner has put his car keys where he’ll never lose it–inside his hand. In addition to unlocking his Tesla, the two chip implants also store cryptocurrencies and unlock his home. The chips are coated in a biocompatible substance and are enveloped by body tissue after insertion. They can even be updated with new features wirelessly. And at $300 for the chips and $100 for installation, the procedure was also relatively affordable.
That’s all the tech news that’s trending right now. Hashtag Trending is a part of the ITWC Podcast network. Add us to your Alexa Flash briefings or your Google Home daily briefing. Make sure to sign up for our Daily IT Wire newsletter to get all the news that matters directly in your inbox every day. Also, catch the next episode of Hashtag Tendances, our weekly Hashtag Trending episode in French, which drops every Thursday morning. If you have a suggestion or a tip, drop us a line in the comments or via email. Thank you for listening, I’m Samira Balsara.
