Apple releases new devices, U.S. tech companies banned from setting up advanced facilities in China, and Google’s acquisition of YouTube almost didn’t happen.
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That’s all the tech news that’s trending right now, welcome to Hashtag Trending. It’s Thursday September 8, and I’m your host, Samira Balsara.
Apple unveiled a whole host of new gadgets at its special event yesterday. Kicking off the show was the new Apple Watch Series 8, coming with a new lower powered mode, more fitness and safety features, and longer battery life. In parallel, Apple also introduced the rugged Apple Watch Ultra designed for extreme sports, coming with a titanium casing, advanced element resistance, and pathfinding features. Wrapping up the event was the anticipated iPhone 14 series. The iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus features a bigger display and a new camera sensor, but it was the iPhone 14 Pros that stole the show. They are not only equipped with Apple’s latest and fastest A16 Bionic chip, but also has a reimagined notification tray called Dynamic Island, as well as brighter displays and a 48MP main camera sensor.
U.S. technology companies that receive government funding will no longer be allowed to set up advanced technology facilities in China for at least 10 years. According to the Guardian, the announcement came straight from the Biden administration in another move to secure U.S. dominance as the world’s technology powerhouse. Tensions between China and the U.S. have been escalating amid a technology power struggle. To help foster innovation and secure its supply chain, the U.S. government has announced massive funding initiatives such as the Chips and Science Act. According to the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, the goal is to prevent companies that receive government funds from compromising national security.
Google’s acquisition of YouTube in 2006 almost didn’t happen when YouTube’s then CEO, Chad Hurley, found a Google employee sifting through YouTube’s revenue figures. According to Business Insider, Eric Schmidt, Google’s CEO at the time, had to personally step in to mediate the issue. His efforts of course worked, and YouTube ended up selling to Google for $1.65 billion. Today, the platform generates 15 times that in revenue. In 2021 alone, Youtube generated $29 billion in revenue.
Electric vehicles have been deemed a key part of the solution to address climate change. With almost all major vehicle manufacturers shifting their businesses to battery-powered cars, one expert is worried that lithium supply will struggle to keep up. Lithium is a critical metal in production of batteries used for most of today’s electric vehicles, as well as in smartphones and laptops. Keith Phillips, CEO of Piedmont Lithium, said that the world’s lithium production won’t be able to meet the aggressive transition. On average, an electric vehicle needs about 10kg of the metal. Currently, Australia, Chile and China are the world’s largest producers of lithium.
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.
