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☆ Embattled AI firm Appen loses more executives, months after Alphabet cut ties
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-22 | by ( Hayden Field | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Appen, the embattled artificial intelligence firm that once helped train AI models for tech giants including Microsoft , Nvidia and Google , has lost its executives in charge of revenue and marketing. The departures follow Alphabet 's announcement in January that it was cutting all contractual ties with Appen, which once helped train Google's chatbot and other AI products. Two weeks after that decision, Appen CEO Armughan Ahmad left after just 12 months on the job. After a "strategic review process," Alphabet notified Appen in January of the termination, which went into effect March 19, according to a filing from Appen. Companies are spending far more on processors from Nvidia and less on external AI training from companies like Appen.

Persons: Andrew Ettinger, Alicia Hale, Ryan Kolln, Google's, Armughan Ahmad, Appen's, Kolln, OpenAI's ChatGPT, Appen didn't Organizations: Microsoft, Nvidia, Google, CNBC, Apple, Amazon, Appen, Australian Securities Exchange Locations: Australian

☆ Under Relentless Russian Assault, Ukraine Adopts a Defensive Crouch
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-22 | by ( Andrew E. Kramer | Finbarr O Reilly | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

At a high point for Ukraine in its war against Russia, when its army was sweeping Russian forces from the country’s northeast, a small-town police chief proudly hung a Ukrainian flag on his newly liberated city hall. A year and a half later, the policeman, Oleksiy Kharkivskyi, was dashing into the burning ruins of the same town, Vovchansk, last week to evacuate its few remaining residents as Russian forces closed in. “Everywhere they come is just razed to the ground,” Mr. Kharkivskyi said of the advance of the Russian troops, who have returned to the region with a scorched-earth ferocity, setting in motion one of the largest displacements of people since the first months of the war. Russian troops punched across the border between Russia and Ukraine this month and pushed toward Ukraine’s second-largest city, Kharkiv, which has a population of about a million people. Military analysts say Russia lacks the troops to capture the city but could advance to within artillery range, touching off a larger flow of refugees.

Persons: Oleksiy Kharkivskyi, Mr, Kharkivskyi Organizations: Ukrainian, Military Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Vovchansk, Kharkiv

☆ ‘What’s the Problem?’ Zelensky Challenges West Over Hesitations.
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-21 | by ( Andrew E. Kramer | Daniel Berehulak | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

With his army struggling to fend off fierce Russian advances all across the front, President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine urged the United States and Europe to do more to defend his nation, dismissing fears of nuclear escalation and proposing that NATO planes shoot down Russian missiles in Ukrainian airspace. Mr. Zelensky said he had also appealed to U.S. officials to allow Ukraine to fire American missiles and other weaponry at military targets inside Russia — a tactic the United States continues to oppose. The inability to do so, he insisted, gave Russia a “huge advantage” in cross-border warfare that it is exploiting with assaults in Ukraine’s northeast.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky, Zelensky Organizations: NATO Locations: Ukraine, United States, Europe, Russia, Ukraine’s

The future of Tesla Supercharging is uncertain following CEO Elon Musk's disbanding of the Supercharging team as part of a broader restructuring. The roughly 500 layoffs included senior director of EV charging Rebecca Tinucci and Daniel Ho, director of vehicle programs. "I would describe the Supercharger network as one of the crown jewels of Tesla," said Andres Pinter, co-CEO of Bullet EV Charging Solutions. "Instead of doing victory laps and building the Supercharger network and reaping the benefits of this asset, suddenly there's this pause." Musk said in a post that Tesla still plans to grow the Supercharger network, just at a slower pace.

Persons: Elon Musk's, Rebecca Tinucci, Daniel Ho, Tesla, Andres Pinter, It's, Musk, Matt Teske Organizations: EV, Solutions, Bloomberg, Tesla, Ford Motor, General Motors Locations: North America

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailHow Tesla may have just killed its most important product — SuperchargersTesla's Supercharging network faces uncertainty following Elon Musk's recent decision to disband the entire Supercharging team. The move coincides with broader restructuring due to falling sales and increased competition, resulting in a 32% drop in the stock price this year. Since the charging network's beginning in 2012, Tesla has built 6,000 stations and 55,000 Superchargers globally. But whether Tesla can maintain its advantage without the team remains to be seen.

Persons: Elon Musk's, Tesla

☆ All the looks Meghan Markle wore on her trip to Nigeria, ranked
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-13 | by ( Samantha Grindell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Ruffles on the hem of Meghan's red dress for a Women in Leadership panel made it stand out. Meghan Markle speaks at a Women in Leadership event co-hosted with Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala in Nigeria in May 2024. Andrew Esiebo/Getty Images for The Archewell FoundationMeghan's $275 midi dress was made by Orire, a Nigerian designer. The hem of the dress was lined with large ruffles, adding a touch of glamour to the simple silhouette. According to InStyle, Meghan said during the panel that she donned the colorful dress at the encouragement of people she met in Nigeria.

Persons: Meghan Markle, Ngozi, Andrew Esiebo, Orire, Aquazzura, InStyle, Meghan Locations: Iweala, Nigeria, Nigerian

Its towering smokestacks once puffed out clouds of steam. In gigantic machine rooms, turbines whirled around the clock. In the Soviet era, the Kurakhove Heating and Power Plant gave rise to the town around it in Ukraine’s east, driving the local economy and sustaining the community with wages and heating for homes. “Our plant is the heart of our city,” said Halyna Liubchenko, a retiree whose husband worked his entire career in nearby coal mines that fed the facility. That heart is barely beating now, partly destroyed by artillery.

Persons: ”, Halyna Liubchenko Organizations: Power Locations: Soviet, Ukraine’s, Ukraine’s Donbas

☆ In Ukraine’s West, Draft Dodgers Run, and Swim, to Avoid the War
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-13 | by ( Andrew E. Kramer | Nicole Tung | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The roiling water can be treacherous, the banks are steep and slick with mud, and the riverbed is covered in jagged, hidden boulders. Yet Ukrainian border guards often find their quarry — men seeking to escape the military draft — swimming in these hazardous conditions, trying to cross the Tysa River where it forms the border with Romania. Lt. Vladyslav Tonkoshtan recently detained a man on the bank, where he was preparing to cross the river in the hope of reuniting with his wife and children, whom he had not seen in two years since they fled to another country in Europe. That thousands of Ukrainian men have chosen to risk the swim rather than face the dangers as soldiers on the eastern front highlights the challenge for President Volodymyr Zelensky as he seeks to mobilize new troops after more than two years of bruising, bloody trench warfare with Russia.

Persons: Vladyslav Tonkoshtan, Volodymyr Zelensky Locations: Romania, Europe, Russia

400,000 Men at each age 200,000 Age: 15 25 35 45 55 65 75 85 95Can Ukraine Find New Soldiers Without Decimating a Whole Generation? Healthy men under age 30, the backbone of most militaries, are part of the smallest generation in Ukraine’s modern history. Mr. Zelensky’s decision to draft men starting at age 25 risks further diminishing this small generation of Ukrainians. But the lower draft age risks shrinking a small generation even more. And in occupied areas of the country Russia is conscripting Ukrainian men to fight against Ukraine, starting at age 18.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky, birthrates, thein, —, Oleksandr Gladun, it’s, ”, Serhiy Hrabsky, Gladun, “ Organizations: Boys, United Nations, Ptukha, Social Studies, European Union, Eurostat, Ukraine Locations: Ukraine, United States, Soviet Union, Russia, Europe

☆ Dwindling Ammunition Stocks Pose Grave Threat to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-05 | by ( Andrew E. Kramer | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The crew at an artillery position in eastern Ukraine had 33 shells in its ammunition bunker, stacked neatly like firewood against a wall. Twenty minutes later, smoke wafted around a howitzer and 17 shells were gone — more than half the crew’s ammunition. The rapidly depleted stack was emblematic of Ukraine’s dwindling supply of artillery munitions, even as Russian attacks persist. “Artillery decides battles,” said Capt. Vladyslav Slominsky, the artillery commander along this section of the front.

Persons: ”, Vladyslav Slominsky, Mike Johnson Organizations: “ Artillery, ”, U.S . Congress, Republicans Locations: Ukraine, Russia

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailHow Maersk is evolving to become a logistics powerhouseEach year about 90% of world trade is transported by ship. In addition to its fleet of 672 vessels, Maersk the world's second largest container shipping company and runs one of the globe's largest port terminal businesses with 64 terminals. To offset some of its risks the company is beefing up its end-to-end logistics business, investing in last mile delivery and air freight.

Organizations: Maersk

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailHere's how the fashion industry is embracing web3CNBC Crypto World explores how the fashion industry is embracing web3, which includes NFTs, blockchain technology as well as augmented and virtual reality.

Organizations: CNBC

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailThe rapid rise of Chinese electric vehicle maker BYDWarren Buffet-backed BYD dethroned Tesla in the fourth quarter of 2023 as the world's top electric vehicle maker, selling more battery-powered vehicles than its U.S. rival. The Chinese carmaker is showing no signs of slowing down, becoming the top brand in China and growing exports by 334% last year. CNBC explores whether BYD can sustain its relentless growth and if it may one day enter the U.S. market.

Persons: Warren, BYD, Tesla Organizations: CNBC Locations: U.S, China

☆ How BYD grew from battery maker to electric vehicle juggernaut, overtaking Tesla
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-26 | by ( Andrew Evers | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

In the U.S., Tesla may be at the forefront of the electric vehicle revolution, but abroad, the carmaker has some serious competition. In the fourth quarter of 2023, BYD dethroned Tesla as the world's top EV maker, selling more battery-powered vehicles than its U.S. rival. "BYD has grown into this powerhouse in the new energy vehicle industry," CNBC's Beijing correspondent Evelyn Cheng said. By 2003, the company had pivoted to autos and has since become the top car brand in China, as well as a major producer of EV batteries. Watch the video to learn how BYD grew from battery maker to EV giant and what's next for the company.

Persons: Tesla, Warren, BYD, Evelyn Cheng, they're, Wang Chuanfu, Sam Abuelsamid, Michael Dunne, Dunne, They're Organizations: EV, Guidehouse, CNBC, U.S Locations: U.S, China, Beijing, Munich, United States, Europe, Hungary, Mexico

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailHow ESPN is trying to stay relevant as cable declinesESPN has been the most dominant sports channel for more than 40 years. It holds live sports rights including the NFL's Monday Night Football, the NBA and the WNBA. But as millions of Americans cancel their cable TV subscriptions and big tech companies like Amazon and YouTube bid on live sports, ESPN has had to adjust — or decline along with the pay-TV business. CNBC sat down with former and current executives to talk about the future of the sports juggernaut.

Organizations: ESPN, Football, NBA, Amazon, YouTube, CNBC

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailChairman Jimmy Pitaro on ESPN's uncertain futureESPN chairman James Pitaro sat down with CNBC to discuss the company's future as it faces serious cord cutting and competition from tech companies like Amazon and YouTube with deeper pockets than parent company Disney.

Persons: Jimmy Pitaro, James Pitaro Organizations: ESPN, CNBC, Amazon, Disney

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailFormer Disney CEO Bob Chapek on ESPN's futureBob Chapek, former Disney CEO, sat down with CNBC's Alex Sherman in his first public interview since leaving Disney to discuss his thoughts on ESPN's future.

Persons: Bob Chapek, CNBC's Alex Sherman Organizations: Former, Disney

☆ Rebellious Russians Stage Daring Attacks From Ukraine on Russian Soil
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-16 | by ( Andrew E. Kramer | Oleksandr Chubko | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Gathered in a Ukrainian farmhouse, soldiers checked their kits: rifles, machine guns, grenade launchers, spare batteries for radios, red and white flashlights, all that would be needed for a stealthy and daring night assault across the border into Russia. The soldiers are Russians who have turned against the government of their country’s president, Vladimir V. Putin, and are now fighting for the Ukrainian side by making incursions back into Russia. Their goal has been to break through a first line of Russian defenses, hoping to open a path for another unit to drive deeper into Russia with tanks and armored personnel carriers. “We will jump in their trench and hold it,” one of the soldiers, who declined to be identified for security reasons, explained. “Either we take them out, or they take us out.”

Persons: Vladimir V, Putin, ” Locations: Russia

A new sign went up a few miles from the front line recently on the main billboard of an occupied town in Ukraine’s Luhansk region. Together we’re strong,” read the sign in the white, blue and red colors of the Russian flag, according to Anastasiia, a resident. The message was clear to her: That the president was Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, not Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, and that Mr. Putin was the only choice in the Russian presidential vote taking place in the occupied parts of Ukraine over the past three weeks. Mr. Putin long ago transformed Russian elections into a predictable ritual meant to convey legitimacy to his rule. In the occupied territories, this practice has the additional goals of presenting the occupation as a fait accompli and identifying dissenters, said political analysts and Ukrainian officials.

Persons: ”, Vladimir V, Putin, Volodymyr Zelensky, Mr Locations: Ukraine’s Luhansk, Russia, Ukraine

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailHow Sony Playstation became the world's best-selling game consoleSony's PlayStation has won over the loyalty of millions of gamers worldwide, and industry experts cite its video game content library as one of the primary reasons why. Sony Interactive Entertainment is just one player in the $280+ billion gaming industry, but its PlayStation 2 hold's the industry's title for best-selling console ever. Watch the video to see how Sony built its gaming empire.

Organizations: Sony, Sony Interactive Entertainment

☆ Trump DA Fani Willis' credibility has been shot over messy testimony — but perjury charges are very unlikely: legal experts
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-06 | by ( Natalie Musumeci | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

DA Fani Willis' credibility has been damaged following a misconduct hearing, legal experts said. Willis' 'credibility is shot'Legal experts have long said that the hearing, and the relationship between Willis and Wade, doesn't look good for Willis. Rahmani said the distraction of it all is enough that Willis should recuse herself from the Trump case. On trips they took together, Willis and Wade testified that Willis paid Wade back for her portion in cash. Ms. Yeager heard District Attorney Willis tell Mr. Bradley: 'They are coming after us.

Persons: Fani Willis, Willis, Donald Trump, —, Trump, Wade, it's, Rahmani, Ashleigh Merchant, Trump codefendant Mike Roman, Nathan Wade, Wade —, Daysha Young, Andrew Evans, Alex Slitz, doesn't, Sarah Krissoff, Cozen O'Connor, Krissoff, Scott McAfee, McAfee, Terrence Bradley, Merchant, Bradley, Manny Arora, Cindi Lee Yeager, Cobb County , Georgia —, Trump codefendant David Shafer, Yeager, John Bazemore, Elijah Nouvelage, Mr, Trump codefendant Cathleen Latham, Arora —, Kenneth Chesebro, Arora, Adam Abbate, Abbate Organizations: Service, Fulton, West, Trial, Trump codefendant, Trump, codefendants, Merchant, Wade, Business, USA, Network, Reuters, District Attorney, AP, Washington Post Locations: Georgia, Fulton County, California, Atlanta, Manhattan, Fulton, Cobb County , Georgia

☆ For Many Ukrainians, It’s Been a 10-Year War, Not a 2-Year One
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-23 | by ( Andrew E. Kramer | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

They were a ragtag army, fighting with baseball bats, Molotov cocktails and plywood shields. But for Ukrainians, the protesters who faced off with riot police on Kyiv’s main square a decade ago were the first soldiers in a war still raging today. Their portraits now adorn a wall of honor at St. Michael’s Golden-Domed Monastery in Kyiv. They are displayed first, ahead of portraits of soldiers killed in the simmering, eight-year conflict in Ukraine’s east that served as a prelude to Russia’s full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022. And a museum dedicated to the street uprising identifies those who died on the square as the first soldiers killed in the war with Russia.

Persons: Molotov, Viktor F, Yanukovych, Michael’s Organizations: St Locations: Europe, Ukraine, Moscow, Kyiv, Ukraine’s, Russia

☆ Aleksei Navalny, Putin Critic, Dies in Prison, Russian Authorities Say
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-16 | by ( Andrew E. Kramer | Valerie Hopkins | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Aleksei A. Navalny, an anticorruption activist who for more than a decade led the political opposition in President Vladimir V. Putin’s Russia, died Friday in a prison inside the Arctic Circle, according to Russian authorities. His death was announced by Russia’s Federal Penitentiary Service, which said that Mr. Navalny, 47, lost consciousness on Friday after taking a walk in the prison where he was moved late last year. He was last seen on Thursday, when he had appeared in a court hearing via video link, smiling behind the bars of a cell and making jokes.

Persons: Aleksei A, Vladimir V, Navalny Organizations: Russia’s Federal Penitentiary Service Locations: Russia

☆ Aleksei Navalny, Russian Opposition Leader, Dies in Prison at 47
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-16 | by ( Valerie Hopkins | Andrew E. Kramer | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Aleksei A. Navalny, an anticorruption activist who for more than a decade led the political opposition in President Vladimir V. Putin’s Russia while enduring arrests, assaults and a near-fatal poisoning, died Friday in a Russian prison, according to Russia’s Federal Penitentiary Service. The prison authorities said that Mr. Navalny lost consciousness on Friday after taking a walk in the Arctic penal colony where he was moved late last year. He was last seen on Thursday, when he had appeared in a court hearing via video link, smiling behind the bars of a cell and making jokes. Kira Yarmysh, Navalny’s press secretary, said in a live broadcast Friday that Navalny’s advisers were not yet able to issue an official confirmation of his death but believed that he had perished. Despite increasingly harsh conditions, including repeated stints in solitary confinement, he maintained a presence on social media, while members of his team continued to publish investigations into Russia’s corrupt elite from exile.

Persons: Aleksei A, Vladimir V, Navalny, Kira Yarmysh, Biden, “, Putin, ” Mr Organizations: Russia’s Federal, Service, White House Locations: Russia, Russia’s, United States

Glenn Youngkin’s policies on the treatment of transgender students and rule that school districts are not required to follow them. But opponents argue that the policies violate the law by codifying discrimination against transgender students. The lawsuits were filed on behalf of two transgender students: one, a high school student in York County, the other, a middle school student in Hanover County. Ralph Northam’s administration were praised by advocates for transgender students, but many school boards did not adopt them. Some school boards with conservative majorities have adopted the policies, while some liberal-leaning school boards, especially in northern Virginia, have resisted.

Persons: Glenn Youngkin’s, Youngkin, ” Andrew Ewalt, Ralph Northam’s, Jason Miyares, Macaulay Porter, Katherine Goff, Chris Whitley Organizations: —, of Education, Republican Gov, Democratic, York, Virginia Department of, Democratic Gov, Department of Education, Republican, York County School Division, Legislative Affairs, Hanover County Public Schools Locations: RICHMOND, Va, Virginia, York County, Hanover County, Hanover

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