Here is the daily technology #threadcast for 4/14/24. The goal is to make this a technology "reddit".
Drop all question, comments, and articles relating to #technology and the future. The goal is make it a technology center.
Here is the daily technology #threadcast for 4/14/24. The goal is to make this a technology "reddit".
Drop all question, comments, and articles relating to #technology and the future. The goal is make it a technology center.
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Global financial and currency markets have been volatile since U.S. President Donald Trump announced so-called "reciprocal tariffs" on more than 180 countries earlier this month. Since then, Trump has reduced some levies to allow time for negotiations and has exempted certain products, like smartphones.
Serkan Toto, CEO of Tokyo-based games consultancy Kantan Games, said its likely Sony will also raise PS5 prices in the U.S.
"I would be very surprised if Sony was able to keep the PlayStation prices in the US stable. Now is the 'right' time for the company to hike prices because user backlash would be comparably limited," Toto told CNBC on Monday.
"I was sitting in the crowd wanting to get into the space and really build something new and build something novel," Suman recalled.
What happened instead was the beginning of a professional pivot: he struck up a conversation with a developer after a talk at the Commons, and was introduced to other coders who were winding down a project called Mutiny. Within a few months, Suman handed in his notice at Apple and with the developers he'd met, pivoted into something bigger — co-founding Open Secret, a startup reimagining how user data is stored in the cloud. Instead of relying on centralized databases, the company encrypts data to each individual user — even after it’s uploaded. So if there's a breach, there's nothing to steal, Suman explained. No honeypot.
"Bitcoin is the most important technological innovation in any of our lifetimes, and it needs its due," said Parker Lewis, one of the stewards of the Commons and the author of a new book on bitcoin called "Gradually, Then Suddenly."
"And so while bitcoin has no CEO and no marketing team, we here at the Bitcoin Commons and Bitcoiners all over the world help educate people about bitcoin, why it's important, what's being built, and present a vision for the future," continued Lewis.
"The vibe, it's always high signal," said Dan Lawrence, CEO of OBM, which manages energy use for industrial-scale mining farms. Lawrence said he was "thankful" that the U.S. government had become a little more pro-bitcoin under the new administration, but added, "No matter what happens anywhere, everybody here is always going to bleed bitcoin."
Suman says he feels Trump has delivered on his promises to the crypto community for the most part. Still, he remains cautious. "I am not one who embraces politicians," Suman said. "I'm kind of apolitical as far as which side. So I only trust them until I see how it's actually playing out in our life. So far, I think it's going well, but it could really change."
Austin's "Bitcoin Commons" draws in an eclectic mix of people, including venture capitalists, bitcoin miners, and coders.
A surge of new funding is also reshaping bitcoin's builder economy.
Venture investment in bitcoin-related startups soared in 2024 alongside the crypto market's rally. The number of pre-seed deals in the space climbed 50% last year, according to research from Trammell Venture Partners, an Austin-based VC firm focused on bitcoin-native startups. Across all early-stage funding rounds, nearly $1.2 billion has been invested in bitcoin companies since 2021.
The renewed interest comes after years of technical upgrades to the bitcoin protocol and growing confidence in its long-term resilience.
!summarize #bond #money #china #edyardeni #tariffs #currency
!summarize #shopify #employees #datacenters #ai #workplace
The administration's latest executive orders loosen environmental restrictions and encourage more fossil fuel development — a boon for oilfield miners like Barbour, even as critics warn it could come at a steep climate cost.
"I'm extremely optimistic and bullish on Trump's administration," Barbour said. "The EPA finally came out with a new stance on all these things they've been doing to just destroy the energy sector in America, which has affected us very negatively. I'm seeing a lot of things going the right way now with the decisions the Trump administration is making, and clearly they're trying to attract investment in America and manufacturing."
Zaprite's Parker Lewis shares policy insights at the Commons, calling for federal legislation like the proposed Bitcoin Act to cement regulatory clarity.
Zaprite's Lewis, one of the Commons' most vocal policy thinkers, agrees that things are moving in the right direction — particularly around the government's decision to establish a formal national bitcoin reserve.
While a crypto executive order is an important first step, "codifying it with law will help drive further regulatory clarity that the U.S. is open for bitcoin," Lewis said. "It will also be good for the country ... the biggest priority would be for the regulatory clarity piece, pushing Sen. Lummis' Bitcoin Act to codify and make permanent."
In addition to DARPA and Blue Water, companies like Anduril, Blue Halo, and others are investing in such capabilities for the US Navy.
With such unmanned capability growth, ventures like Eclipse, Riot, and Impatient have invested $14 million in Blue Water Autonomy.
Founded in 2024 by leaders formerly of Amazon Robotics, iRobot, and the US Navy, Blue Water Autonomy has developed a full-stack autonomy suite, commenced salt-water testing, and developed concept ship designs in under a year.
With this seed funding, the company will expand its engineering team, accelerate ship testing, and integrate different payloads onto its platform.
!summarize #china #tesla #trade #xi #optimus
“Autonomous ships are critical to enable the Navy to continue securing deterrence given the threat of China and Russia and the importance of shipping lanes in the Pacific. We previously backed Rylan at 6 River Systems and have seen first-hand his ability to scale a full stack technology company from concept to exit. No other company is tackling this problem at the ship level like Blue Water. The team is a rare combination of roboticists and Navy veterans that positions them to be a critical partner to the Navy, the entire Department of Defense, and will have a major impact on the maritime industry.”
NVIDIA shifts AI supercomputer production to America in historic $500 billion move
In a major supply chain shift, NVIDIA will partner with companies like TSMC, Foxconn, and Wistron to build AI factories in the U.S
Just days after NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang attended a high-profile dinner at Mar-a-Lago hosted by former President Donald Trump, a dramatic shift in U.S. trade policy appears to have set the stage for a major development.
Huang, who reportedly paid $1 million to attend the exclusive event, had been facing looming export restrictions on NVIDIA’s AI powerhouse H20 chip.
But in a surprising turn, the Trump administration paused the planned controls following the gathering, suggesting a recalibration of its trade approach.
Now, NVIDIA is moving swiftly to reshape its manufacturing future — on American soil.
AI supercomputers to be built in the US for the first time
On Monday, NVIDIA announced that it will begin producing AI supercomputers entirely in the United States for the first time, working with major global partners to establish a massive domestic manufacturing presence.
The company has commissioned over a million square feet of factory space, and plans to produce up to $500 billion worth of AI infrastructure in the U.S. over the next four years.
NVIDIA Blackwell chips, the next-generation processors behind the company’s AI computing power, have already started production at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) facilities in Phoenix, Arizona.
In addition to chip production, the company is building supercomputer factories in Texas, teaming up with Foxconn in Houston and Wistron in Dallas. NVIDIA expects both sites to reach mass production within 12 to 15 months.
“Together with leading manufacturing partners, the company has commissioned more than a million square feet of manufacturing space to build and test NVIDIA Blackwell chips in Arizona and AI supercomputers in Texas,” the company said in its official announcement.
These collaborations with industry leaders TSMC, Foxconn, Wistron, Amkor, and SPIL mark a strategic investment in domestic production capabilities that NVIDIA says will create hundreds of thousands of jobs.
Big bets on AI factories and digital twins
The company isn’t just relying on traditional manufacturing methods. NVIDIA plans to use its own AI, robotics, and digital twin technologies to design and operate its factories.
Using platforms like NVIDIA Omniverse and NVIDIA Isaac GR00T, the company will simulate and automate complex production processes inside its new U.S.-based facilities.
Blue Origin’s all-female spaceflight
Blue Origin’s NS-31 – the name denotes the suborbital class rocket New Shepard’s 31st mission – took off from Blue Origin’s launch site in West Texas today, April 14, at 9:30 am EDT (1330 GMT; 8:30 am local Texas time).
NS-31 was the first all-female spaceflight since June 16, 1963, when the Soviet Union’s Valentina Tereshkova orbited Earth for three days. During that historic mission, cosmonaut Tereshkova flew alone aboard a Vostok 6 rocket, becoming the first woman to reach space.
Unlike that mission, New Shepard’s suborbital flights don’t fly to orbit. Instead, they fly over the Kármán Line 100 km [62 miles] above Earth’s surface. The entire mission lasted roughly 10 minutes, with the crew experiencing microgravity for a few minutes.
Sony raises PlayStation 5 prices in Europe citing 'challenging' economic environment
Sony said it has made the "tough decision" to raise prices against the "backdrop of a challenging economic environment."
Sony hiked the price of its flagship PlayStation 5 console in Europe, Australia and New Zealand, citing a "challenging economic environment" behind its move.
In Europe, the PS5 Digital Edition will now cost 499.99 euros ($569.9), Sony said in a blog post on Sunday. That is up from a previous price of 449.99 euros. The company said the U.K. recommended retail price is £429.99, a rise from the previous price of £389.99.
Apple, Google, Cash App alums ditch Big Tech to build on bitcoin, fueled by VC money and friendly White House
In Austin, Apple, Google, and Cash App alums ditch big paychecks for bitcoin, backed by VCs, crypto friendly policy and belief that this time, it is different.
AUSTIN — On a Friday morning last spring, Mark Suman called out sick from his job as a senior engineering project manager at Apple and made his way downtown to a place called the Bitcoin Commons, a sort of clubhouse for enthusiasts of the world's largest cryptocurrency, situated a few blocks south of the Texas State Capitol.
At the time, Suman was, in his words, "an active hobbyist," tinkering with the technology in his spare time. "I actually played around with it a bit within Apple as well," he says. "There's not a lot I can say, other than we were always exploring new technologies, and so I was playing around with some of the open-source bitcoin tools within Apple and doing some exploratory work."
Suman was there for the annual 'Bitcoin Takeover' event. He had followed many of the speakers online and when he saw the gathering pop up on his feed, he took the day off to see it for himself.
!summarize #rivian #ceo #china #ev #quality
!summarize #spacex #energy #grid #electricity
!summarize #bitcoin #bonds #capital
US Navy veterans to develop 100-ton robot warship with thousands-of-mile range
The company aims to develop a mission-ready platform for strategic operations in contested maritime environments.
To improve the US Navy’s autonomous capabilities, Boston-based maritime technology startup Blue Water Autonomy has announced the development of a captainless and crewless vessel.
Founded less than a year ago by former US Navy officers and ex-tech executives, the company plans to develop a 100-foot autonomous vessel with thousands of nautical miles range.
The company aims to develop a mission-ready platform for strategic operations in contested maritime environments.
US Navy autonomous vessel
According to the company, its new unmanned surface vessel (USV) capability could have a 100-ton displacement platform engineered for long-endurance, autonomous deployment.
The vessel is envisaged to be multi-role, capable of transporting logistics payloads, conducting ISR (intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance) missions, or supporting naval munitions delivery without human oversight.
The US has been working towards the development of such USVs for a long. Recently, the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) completed the development of a prototype USV called the USX-1 Defiant.
The USV, measuring 180 feet and weighing 240 metric tons, is currently undergoing testing in dockside environments and on the open ocean.
Chinese battery makers to build two major US lithium plants in global power play
The partnership is aimed at tapping into the growing demand within the U.S. for off-road and recreational vehicle market.
US-listed Chinese firms Kandi Technologies and CBAK Energy are joining forces to set up two lithium battery production facilities in the United States.
The partnership is aimed at tapping into the growing demand within the U.S. for off-road and recreational vehicle market.
The two companies plan to deliver high energy density battery systems specifically engineered for off-road and powersports applications with the collaboration.
“This collaboration with Kandi reflects our shared vision to globalize advanced battery manufacturing while adapting to the evolving U.S. market,” Zhiguang Hu, CEO of CBAK Energy, said in a release.
“Our expertise in cell design and production will be key to establishing a reliable local supply for emerging off-road and recreational vehicle platforms.”
The collaboration comes at a time of escalating tensions between Washington and Beijing over trade tariffs, with China recently suspending exports of several critical minerals and magnets, in a move that threatens to disrupt global supply.