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☆ Google backs a startup that aims to bring mixed reality to any car windshield or plane cockpit
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-26 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Distance TechnologiesDistance Technologies, a Finnish startup that aims to bring mixed-reality technology to any car windshield or plane cockpit, has raised 10 million euros ($11.1 million) of funding from GV, the venture capital arm of Alphabet and other investors. Distance raised the cash injection in a seed round led by GV, with existing investors FOV Ventures and Maki.vc also stumping up more cash for the startup, the company told CNBC on Thursday. Konttori was formerly chief technology officer of Varjo, another Helsinki-based mixed-reality firm. "The main difference here is that we are driven by the software," Mäkinen told CNBC. For now, Distance has had to use simple optics and normal LCD displays to demonstrate its technology to prospective partners and investors.

Persons: Maki.vc, Konttori, Roni Hiranand, Meta, Jussi Mäkinen, Mäkinen, he's Organizations: Technologies, GV, FOV Ventures, CNBC, Helsinki, Google Ventures, Companies, Huawei, Bosch, Continental, Panasonic, Distance Technologies Locations: Finnish, Helsinki, China

☆ Trump spent the weekend flying around America on a plane previously owned by Jeffrey Epstein
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-12 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | Graham Rapier | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Read previewDonald Trump took several trips over the weekend on a private jet once owned by Jeffrey Epstein. That Gulfstream jet also once carried Jeffrey Epstein, who used the tail number N212JE while he owned it, up until his death in 2019. AdvertisementAccording to public flight records, the Gulfstream jet flew on Friday afternoon from Ontario International Airport in Canada to an airport in Bozeman. It's unclear whether Trump or anyone on his campaign knew the plane was once owned by Epstein. Epstein owned at least five different private planes before his death.

Persons: —, Donald Trump, Jeffrey Epstein, Jackson, Epstein, Trump hasn't, Mitch Williamson, Trump, didn't, James L, Williamson, Anna Moneymaker, Prince Andrew, Bill Clinton, Kevin Spacey, Naomi Campbell, Marla Maples, Eric, Tiffany Trump Organizations: Service, Gulfstream, Trump, Trump Force, Business, Federal Aviation Administration, JetBlue, International Air Transport Agency, FAA, Boeing, Gulfstream G550, US, Ontario International Airport, Gulfstream GV, Frontier Enterprises, Republican, Federal, Commission, Miami Herald, N550GP, Aviation Group, Aviation, Hawker Siddeley HS, British Aerospace, Daily Mail, Trump Organization, Records Locations: Aspen, Paris, New, Teterboro, WN, Billings , Montana, Bozeman, Canada, Wyoming, Colorado, Ontario, Manhattan, Palm, California, Palm Beach and New York City

☆ An ex-Googler reveals why she's selling her construction startup to a Saudi company with still a year of runway in the bank
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-02 | by ( Melia Russell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

She's now selling her startup to WakeCap, a Saudi Arabia-based company that has contracts with many of the kingdom's construction megaprojects such as "desert cities." Instead, Eisnor exited early, selling her startup to help it scale faster. WakeCapBuilt toughFor nine years, Eisnor had a front-row seat at a tech rocketship, Waze, the Israeli-born maps and navigation company. "There is a reality in construction software that a lot of the names that you might know, they're going to be hovering around, say, $10 million in ARR. Eisnor is staying on as chief strategy officer, and Crews by Core's chief technology officer, Gene Gutnik, now leads tech for the combined company.

Persons: Ann Eisnor, Crews, Eisnor, I'm, Caterina Fake's, Hassan Albalawi, Albalawi, Kajima, —, WakeCap's Albalawi, they're, Gene Gutnik, WakeCap Organizations: Service, Business, NFX, GV, Google, McKinsey & Company, Autodesk, Core, Core's Locations: Saudi Arabia, United States, Saudi, Silicon, Silicon Valley, Israeli, hyperscale, WeWork

☆ How former Slack and Twitter executive April Underwood used angel investing to create a career in venture capital
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-06 | by ( Leena Rao | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

That entrepreneurial, technology-focused spirit has driven Underwood to an illustrious career at some of the industry's biggest companies, including Google, X, Slack, and Intel. As she built products at these tech giants, Underwood quietly invested in over 50 startups, including the genetics-testing unicorn Color and the cap-table giant Carta. Underwood began investing while at X, then called Twitter, where she was the company's director of product. Shortly after, #Angels was born, the investment collective cofounded by Underwood, Verrilli, Jana Messerschmidt, Chloe Sladden, Katie Stanton, and Vijaya Gadde. Since 2015, the group has backed over 100 startups, including Forward, Clubhouse, Instacart, Material Security, and Airtable.

Persons: Underwood, she'd, Slack, Jessica Verrilli, who'd, Stewart Butterfield, Cal Henderson, Ev Williams, Jack Dorsey, Verrilli, Jana Messerschmidt, Chloe Sladden, Katie Stanton, Vijaya Gadde, you've, I've, they've Organizations: Amarillo College, Business, Google, Intel, GV, Cue, Twitter, Health, Security, Slack Locations: Amarillo , Texas, Amarillo, Termina, San Francisco

☆ Nvidia-backed startup Synthesia unveils AI avatars that can convey human emotions
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-25 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

U.K. tech startup Synthesia unveiled a new range of AI-generated avatars that can convey emotions like happiness, sadness, and frustration. Nvidia -backed artificial intelligence firm Synthesia on Thursday unveiled a new wave of AI-generated digital avatars that can convey human emotions using a user's text inputs. The company said its "Expressive Avatars" can blur the lines between the virtual world and real characters. In one demonstration, the company showed three lines of text being inserted into its platform — "I am happy. The company's technology is used by more than 55,000 businesses, including half of the Fortune 100, to make digital avatars for corporate presentations and training videos, according to Synthesia.

Persons: Synthesia, Kleiner Perkins Organizations: Nvidia, Fortune, Accel, GV, FirstMark, MMC Locations: London

☆ Responding to Pope, NATO Boss Says Ukraine Needs Weapons, Not White Flags
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-11 | by ( March | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - NATO boss Jens Stoltenberg made clear on Monday that he disagreed with Pope Francis’s comments that Ukraine should have the "courage of the white flag" and negotiate an end to the war triggered by Russia’s invasion. Asked about the pope’s remarks, the secretary general of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization told Reuters: "If we want a negotiated peaceful lasting solution, the way to get there is to provide military support to Ukraine." In an interview at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Stoltenberg said "what happens around a negotiating table is inextricably linked to the strength on the battlefield". Asked if his reaction meant now was not the time to talk about a white flag, Stoltenberg said: "It's not the time to talk about surrender by the Ukrainians. The Latest Photos From Ukraine View All 96 Images(Reporting by Andrew Gray; Editing by GV De Clercq)Photos You Should See View All 60 Images

Persons: Jens Stoltenberg, Pope Francis’s, Stoltenberg, Andrew Gray Organizations: NATO, Atlantic Treaty Organization, Reuters, GV De Locations: BRUSSELS, Ukraine, Brussels

☆ France Pledges to Send up to 3 Billion Eur in Military Aid to Ukraine This Year - Elysee
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-16 | by ( Feb. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

PARIS (Reuters) - France and Ukraine on Friday signed a bilateral security agreement including pledges from Paris to deliver more arms, train soldiers and send up to 3 billion euros in military aid to Kivy this year to help the country in its war against Russia, the Elysee said. The French presidency said the accord, signed by Emmanuel Macron and his counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenksiy, includes the pledge by France to provide "up to" 3 billion euros ($3.24 billion) in additional military support to Ukraine in 2024. In the agreement, which followed similar deals Kiyv has reached with Britain and Germany, France also pledges to provide more military equipment, in particular for air defence. France, alongside other partners, will also help Ukraine make its defence capacities "increasingly interoperable with NATO", the Elysee said, adding: "This includes the development of a modern defence sector in Ukraine and a path to a future in NATO." The Latest Photos From Ukraine View All 91 Images($1 = 0.9271 euros)Photos You Should See View All 33 Images(Reporting by Tassilo Hummel, Michel Rose; Editing by GV De Clercq)

Persons: Emmanuel Macron, Volodymyr Zelenksiy, Kiyv, Tassilo Hummel, Michel Rose Organizations: PARIS, Friday, NATO, GV De Locations: France, Ukraine, Paris, Russia, Elysee, Britain, Germany

☆ France to Impose Travel Bans on Violent Israeli Settlers
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-13 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

PARIS (Reuters) - France will ban 28 Israeli settlers from entering the country, accusing them of attacking Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, its foreign ministry said on Tuesday. "These measures come as violence perpetrated by settlers against the Palestinian population has increased in recent months. France reaffirms its firm condemnation of this unacceptable violence," the ministry said in a statement. Photos You Should See View All 22 ImagesThe United States and Britain have expressed similar concerns and have already imposed sanctions on several settlers whom they say are responsible for violence. The European Union's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said in December that he would also propose similar measures.

Persons: Josep Borrell, John Irish, Sudip Kar Organizations: PARIS, West Bank, GV De Locations: France, Israel, Gaza, United States, Britain

☆ Conversational AI startup Vocode entered Y Combinator without a business plan. Now, it's raised $3.25 million without a pitch deck.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-08 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Vocode, a conversational AI startup, has raised $3.25 million in seed funding. Founded in 2023, by Ajay Raj and Kian Hooshmand, Vocode raised funding at Y Combinator without a formal pitch deck. Vocode's founders are friends from high school who made it into Y Combinator despite opting against pitching their original business plan. With 10 weeks until demo day, the team began interviewing teams across fintech, healthcare, and climate, searching for ideas before landing on conversational AI. The company began making waves in online hacker communities before its demo day pitch session in front of investors.

Persons: Ajay Raj, Kian, Vocode, PrankGPT, Hooshmand, Y Organizations: Business Locations: San Francisco, fintech

☆ EU Leaders to Pledge Continued Military Support to Ukraine at Summit - Draft Text
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union leaders will restate their determination to continue to provide "timely, predictable and sustainable military support" to Ukraine at a summit on Thursday, according to draft conclusions of the meeting. "The European Council also reiterates the urgent need to accelerate the delivery of ammunition and missiles," the draft text, seen by Reuters, also says. The draft summit conclusions leave open whether the leaders will also pledge to put another 5 billion euros for Ukraine aid into a fund called the European Peace Facility, which has been used to bankroll donations of weapons to Kyiv. EU members have been wrangling for months over the future of the fund's role in military aid to Ukraine, with Germany suggesting the focus should now be on bilateral aid from individual EU countries. The idea of pledging a further 5 billion euros is included in the draft text in square brackets - indicating it is still a matter of discussion.

Persons: Andrew Gray Organizations: Union, European, Reuters, Peace, EU, GV De Locations: BRUSSELS, Ukraine, Kyiv, Germany, Brussels, Hungary

☆ Belgian Farmers to Block Zeebrugge Port as French Protests Spill Over - Reports
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Belgian farmers outraged over rising costs, European Union environmental policies and cheap food imports plan to block access roads to the Zeebrugge container port in Belgium, financial daily De Tijd reported on Tuesday. Farmers also disrupted traffic close to the Dutch border on the E19 highway on Tuesday morning, with a tractor convoy heading towards port city Antwerp, state broadcaster RTBF said. Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo is set to meet with farmers' associations on Tuesday. In recent weeks, farmers across Europe including Germany, Poland and Romania have demonstrated over what they call excessive red tape, high fuel costs and unfair competition resulting from liberal European Union trade policies. On Monday, Belgian farmers blocked highways in southern Belgium and parked tractors near to the EU Parliament in Brussels.

Persons: De Tijd, RTBF, Alexander De Croo, Emmanuel Macron, Tassilo Hummel Organizations: Reuters, Farmers, Belgian, European Union, European Commission, South America's Mercosur, GV De Locations: BRUSSELS, Union, Zeebrugge, Belgium, Antwerp, Europe, Germany, Poland, Romania, Belgian, France, Paris, Brussels

☆ Exclusive: VCs are circling Midi to give more money to the menopause care startup, just 4 months after its last funding round
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-19 | by ( Rebecca Torrence | Melia Russell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

At the White House, Jill Biden is leading a new initiative to boost federal government research into women's health. Most menopause care startups, including Midi, sell into enterprises to offer the service as a benefit to employees. US companies lose about $1.8 billion each year from workdays missed due to menopause symptoms, according to a Mayo Clinic estimate. While venture funding to women's health startups fell in 2023, according to CB Insights, startups tackling menopause symptoms surged ahead of the pack. Data shows these startups raised $230 million last year, making up a third of all funding to women's health startups.

Persons: hasn't, Semper, Joanna Strober, Sharon Meers, Goldman Sachs, It's, Drew Barrymore, Jennifer Aniston, tailwinds, Michelle Obama, Jill Biden, Biden, workdays Organizations: Business, Midi, GV, Google Ventures, Felicis, Houston, Hermann Health, CBS, McKinsey, White, Mayo Clinic Locations: Midi

☆ A formfitting blazer and Chelsea boots, or jeans and high-top sneakers? Here's how the 2023 rising stars of VC put together their 'power outfits.'
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-04 | by ( Madeline Renbarger | Ben Bergman | Darius Rafieyan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Many of this year's VC rising stars told Business Insider that their go-to power outfits included apparel like tailored sport coats or Chelsea boots, and more casual pieces like hoodies and well-fitting jeans. Very few investors are wearing collared shirts with their jackets, opting instead to pair it with a t- shirt and jeans. Nmachi Jidemna told Business Insider that for her everyday wear, her go-to was "usually a structured blazer with a relaxed pair of jeans." Lori Harvey (left) and Heidi Klum (right) wearing red outfits. Black flowy trousers, black turtleneck, and chunky black boots."

Persons: that's, Laura Bock, Nmachi Jidemna, Javier Grevely, Ralph Lauren, Tobi Coker, Janelle Teng, Patron's Amber Atherton, Jason Yeh, Ashley Paston, Justin Williams, VCs, Mahati Sridhar, Grady Dick, Michelle Farsi, Pear, Vivien Ho, Lori Harvey, Heidi Klum, Valentina Frugiuele, Bauer, Griffin, Luci Fonseca, RTFKT, Brandon Hoffman, JL, Sarah Wu, Emerson, Fiona Huang, Demi Obayomi, Natalie Borowski, Daisy Wolf, Andreessen Horowitz Organizations: Business, Wellington Management, Converse, Seae Ventures, Getty, GV, Nike, Sunset Ventures, Bain Capital Ventures Locations: London, Chelsea

☆ 20 women in venture capital who made partner or higher at firms like Khosla Ventures and GV in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( Samantha Stokes | Madeline Renbarger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

The venture capital industry is overwhelmingly male. But more firms made moves to close the gender gap in 2023 by hiring and promoting women to partners. Startups and venture capital are still overwhelmingly boy's clubs — but each year, more and female investors are claiming their seat at the table. Business Insider is recognizing the women in venture capital who made partner or general partner for the first time in 2023. You can read more about Europe's new female partners here.

Persons: Alice Brooks, Jennifer Campbell Organizations: Khosla Ventures, Business

☆ Alphabet-backed GoCardless considers takeovers as CEO expects a barrage of consolidation
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Hiroki Takeuchi, GoCardless chief executive, on the MoneyConf Stage, attends Web Summit 2021 in Lisbon, Portugal. Last year, GoCardless acquired the Latvian open banking startup Nordigen in its first major acquisition. Open banking is one thing and definitely something we think is really important." GoCardless' technology allows firms to collect direct debit payments from consumers. What is open banking?

Persons: Hiroki Takeuchi, Harry Murphy, We're, GoCardless, Takeuchi, Rapyd, they're, we've, Nordigen Organizations: Sportsfile, Getty, GV, CNBC, Tink, PayU GPO, GoCardless Locations: Lisbon, Portugal, British, Latvian, Britain, Statista, London

☆ Startup employees are reeling as they brace for back-to-back rounds of layoffs: 'When it happens again, you start to lose that confidence and faith in your leadership.'
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( Samantha Stokes | Madeline Renbarger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

For the startup employees interviewed by Insider, the constant threat of layoffs is having a detrimental effect on company morale. said one employee working at a growth stage startup that's conducted three rounds of layoffs this year. For Reay, the former Sendoso employee, constant rounds of layoffs gave him and his surviving colleagues "strategy whiplash." "When it happens again, you start to lose that confidence and faith in your leadership." Some startup employees are reconsidering their future in the industryAs startup employees brace for the potential of more job cuts, they say that the experience has them second-guessing whether to stay in the industry at all.

Persons: Sean Reay, it's, Reay, SoftBank, Sendoso, what's, I'm, Raey, SchoolMint, I've, you'd, he's, Jackie Xu, Xu Talent, Kleiner Perkins, Xu, you've Organizations: Facebook, Meta, Twitter, Sendoso, GV, Google, Employees Locations: San Diego, That's, SPAC

☆ As Ozempic and Wegovy take off, this tech startup just raised $20 million to tackle weight loss with data
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( Ashley Capoot | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Weight loss has always been big business, but it's exploded of late due to surging demand for Ozempic, Wegovy and other new diabetes and obesity drugs. "Whether you have five pounds to lose or 100, we want to make sure we're able to help everybody," Sharam Fouladgar-Mercer, Signos' co-founder and CEO, told CNBC in an interview. Fouladgar-Mercer said he created the company in 2018 partly because of his own struggle to manage weight throughout his life. Users can also integrate sleep data, heart rate data, and exercise data from their Apple Watch to personalize their profile even more. Fouladgar-Mercer said Signos can work well alongside Ozempic and Wegovy from Novo Nordisk and other GLP-1 treatments.

Persons: Signos, Mercer, it's, It's, GLP Organizations: Cheyenne Ventures, GV, Google Ventures, Dexcom Ventures, CNBC, Signos, U.S . Food, Drug Administration, Apple Watch, Abbott Laboratories, U.S, Novo Nordisk, Nordisk's Locations: Mercer, Novo, Europe, Fouladgar, America

☆ Check out the pitch deck that helped Scope3, which helps companies measure the carbon impact of their ads, raise $20 million from investors like GV
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-13 | by ( Lara O'Reilly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Scope3, a startup that helps companies measure the carbon emissions generated by their advertising campaigns, this week said it raised $20 million in Series A investment, funds it plans to grow its team and expand into markets in Europe and APAC. By Scope3's count, the digital advertising industry is responsible for 7.2 million metric tons of carbon emissions each year, or the equivalent of powering 1.4 million US homes. Scope3 works with advertisers, agencies, adtech vendors, and publishers — which have included Insider — to help them measure their carbon impact and figure out where they can make efficiencies. The funding round, which values the company at $100 million and brings Scope3's total funding to $40 million, was led by Alphabet-backed GV. Check out the key slides from the pitch deck that helped Scope3 raise its $20 million Series B round.

Persons: Brian O'Kelley, Mike Freyberger, Anne Coghlan, Scope3, —, O'Kelley, Coghlan Organizations: Room40 Ventures, GV Locations: Europe, France, Germany, Japan

☆ 'Fast and Furious': Paris collector offers drives in famous movie cars
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-29 | by ( Noemie Olive | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A French car collector offers just that in a new car museum south of Paris. The Chevelle is not for hire, but Galiegue's Movie Cars Central operation offers paying visitors the chance to take a spin in more than 10 mostly U.S.-made vintage car models that have featured in movies. One of those cars for hire is a DeLorean, transformed to resemble the time-travel machine from the 1985 film "Back to the Future". He owns 12 cars from the Fast and Furious series, eight of which are originals. The museum will soon have three new cars including one from the 1987 RoboCop movie.

Persons: Olive, Herbie, Franck Galiegue, Ryan Gosling, Galiegue, Tim Burton, Hutch, Magnum's, Noemie Olive, David Holmes Organizations: DeLorean DMC, Pop Central, REUTERS, Rights, Volkswagen, Chevrolet, DeLorean, Ford Gran Torino, Magnum's Ferrari, GV De, Thomson Locations: Etrechy, Paris, France, Los Angeles

☆ France wants to replace gas, fuel heaters with heat pumps - minister
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsPARIS, Sept 26 (Reuters) - France wants to replace residential fuel and gas heaters with heat pumps and create an industry to make the device in a bid to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, French Environment Minister Christophe Bechu said on Tuesday. "Fighting climate change means first and foremost exiting from the use of fossil fuels, therefore we should have no more fuel heaters and much fewer gas heaters," Bechu said in an interview with franceinfo radio. France targets a 55% reduction in net greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, compared with 1990. Bechu said subsidies for heat pumps - which are more expensive than gas heaters - would be boosted so that for low-income families the net cost of buying a heat pump would be similar to a gas heater. Heat pumps use electricity to draw heat from the environment, and as France relies mainly on nuclear energy to generate electricity, heat pumps would generate virtually no emissions during use.

Persons: Christophe Bechu, Benoit Tessier, Emmanuel Macron, Bechu, Anil D'Silva Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, French, GV, Thomson Locations: Paris, France

☆ Air France-KLM says it plans to order 50 Airbus A350 jets
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] A logo is seen on the facade of Air France-KLM building during the presentation of the group's annual results in Paris, France, February 17, 2023. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsPARIS, Sept 25 (Reuters) - Air France-KLM (AIRF.PA) said on Monday it plans to order 50 Airbus (AIR.PA) A350 long-haul jets, together with purchase rights for an additional 40 aircraft. The provisional deal includes both the A350-900 and the larger A350-1000 models, and the aircraft will be delivered between 2026 and 2030, the airline group said in a statement. The planned order, which is not yet in the Airbus books pending a final contract, comes on top of an existing order for 41 Airbus A350-900s for the group's French network, Air France, of which 22 have so far been delivered. From Boeing it has outstanding order for five 787-10s jets.

Persons: Benoit Tessier, Tim Hepher, Mark Potter Organizations: Air France, KLM, REUTERS, Rights, Airbus, Boeing, Air, GV De Clercq, Thomson Locations: Air, Paris, France, Ukraine, Air France

☆ Thousands march in Brussels on anniversary of Mahsa Amini's death
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/3] People hold a placard with pictures of, as Iranian call them, martyrs, during a rally of Iranian diaspora in Europe, on the eve of the first anniversary of the death of Mahsa Amini, which prompted protests across their country, in Brussels, Belgium September 15, 2023. REUTERS/Yves Herman Acquire Licensing RightsBRUSSELS, Sept 15 (Reuters) - Iranian emigres marched in Brussels on Friday, the eve of the first anniversary of the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian woman whose death in the custody of Iran's morality police sparked months of anti-government protests. Thousands of demonstrators, holding up pictures of Amini and many others killed in the protests, called for the overthrow of Iran's theocracy and the establishment of a democratic republic. Organisers said they had also demanded a unified European Union policy to hold Iran's Shi'ite clerical rulers accountable for abuses. Over 500 people including 71 minors were killed, hundreds injured and thousands arrested, rights groups say, in unrest that was eventually crushed by security forces.

Persons: Mahsa, Yves Herman Acquire, Amini, Yves Herman, Kevin Liffey Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, European Union, GV, Thomson Locations: Europe, Brussels, Belgium, Rights BRUSSELS, European, Tehran, United States, Israel, Iran

☆ Belgium urges Apple to update iPhone 12 software across EU- minister
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

PARIS, Sept 15 (Reuters) - Belgium's state secretary for digitalisation said on Friday he had asked Apple to upgrade the iPhone 12 software across EU countries, adding however that based on a preliminary review by the Belgian regulator the handset presents no danger to users. Mathieu Michel said in a statement that while a review of the phone by the IBPT regulator was still underway, the first results were "reassuring" and there was no need for a recall of the phone in Belgium. Belgium said on Thursday it would review potential health risks linked to Apple's iPhone 12, raising the prospect that more European countries might ban the model after France ordered a halt to sales due to breaches of radiation exposure limits. Reporting by Tassilo Hummel, writing by GV De Clercq, editing by Silvia AloisiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: digitalisation, Mathieu Michel, Tassilo Hummel, Silvia Aloisi Organizations: Apple, GV, Thomson Locations: Belgian, Belgium, France

☆ France calls for release of French official in Niger
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PARIS, Sept 12 (Reuters) - France's foreign ministry on Tuesday called for the immediate release of a French official held by security forces in Niger. It said that an adviser to French nationals in Niger had been arrested by Niger security forces on September 8. The official is a "conseiller des Français de l’étranger" (adviser to French citizens abroad), who is an elected official who represents French expatriates and works closely with the country's embassies and consulates. According to the foreign ministry website, there are 442 such advisers worldwide. Their role is to help French expats with issues relating to work, schools, social security and other issues.

Persons: Tassilo Hummel, William Maclean Organizations: French, GV, Thomson Locations: Niger, France, Paris, Niamey, French

☆ Opel expects to offer electric vehicle for around 25,000 euros by 2026
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

MUNICH, Sept 4 (Reuters) - Stellantis-owned carmaker Opel will be able to offer an electric vehicle at a price of about 25,000 euros ($26,967) without incentives from around 2026, the brand's CEO said on Monday. "With purely electric platforms from Stellantis, we will be able to offer prices that will allow us to touch a far wider audience," Florian Huettl told reporters. ($1 = 0.9270 euros)Reporting by Gilles Guillaume Writing by GV De Clercq Editing by David GoodmanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Florian Huettl, Gilles Guillaume, David Goodman Organizations: Opel, GV, Thomson Locations: MUNICH, Stellantis

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