DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Geely, Renault strike deal to develop gasoline engines, hybrid technology
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] The Geely logo is seen at a car dealership in Shanghai, China August 17, 2021. REUTERS/Aly SongJuly 11 (Reuters) - China's Geely Automobile Holdings (0175.HK) and French car maker Renault SA (RENA.PA) on Tuesday said they will invest up to 7 billion euros ($7.71 billion) in a new equally held joint venture to develop gasoline engines and hybrid technology for automobiles. The JV aims to have an annual production capacity of up to five million internal combustion, hybrid and plug-in hybrid engines and transmissions, Renault added. Saudi Aramco (2222.SE), which signed a letter of intent with Renault and Geely in March, is evaluating a strategic investment in the new company, Renault said. Big oil firms have worked with automakers to develop sustainable fuels and hydrogen engines in recent years.

Persons: Aly Song, Eric Li, Harish Sridharan, Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Eileen Soreng Organizations: REUTERS, Geely Automobile Holdings, HK, Renault SA, Geely Holding, Renault, Volvo, Proton, Nissan, Mitsubishi Motors, Torino, JV, Reuters, Saudi Aramco, Geely, Aramco, Thomson Locations: Shanghai, China, Saudi, Bengaluru

☆ Meta's new Twitter rival, a 'text-based conversation app' called Threads, is available to pre-download in the US
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( Sydney Bradley | Amanda Perelli | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Instagram's new Twitter-like app, called Threads, is now available for pre-order in the US. The app is expected to officially drop July 6, according to its App Store description. The app, called Threads, is expected to officially drop July 6, according to its App Store description. Over the weekend, several people spotted that the new app was listed on the Google Play app store for Android. The app description currently reads:"Say more with Threads — Instagram's text-based conversation appThreads is where communities come together to discuss everything from the topics you care about today to what'll be trending tomorrow.

Persons: Alessandro Paluzzi, Alex Heath, Chris Cox, Jack Dorsey, Instagram, Sydney Organizations: Instagram, Morning, Google, Android, Twitter, Sydney Bradley Locations: Italian

☆ Instagram's new Twitter rival 'Threads' appears to be showing up on the European Google Play app store
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-03 | by ( Sydney Bradley | Marta Biino | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Now the Threads app has been spotted on the Google Play app store in Europe. After months of rumors, Instagram's Twitter rival may be hitting the app store soon. Over the weekend, several people spotted that a new app called "Threads" was listed on the Google Play app store for Android. A link to the desktop version of the Google Play app store appears to only be available in European countries, such as Italy, France, Spain, and Germany. The Threads app is currently listed on the Google Play app store in European countries.

Persons: Instagram, Alessandro Paluzzi, Alex Heath, Chris Cox, Oprah, Mark Zuckerberg, Adam Mosseri, Eric Wei, We've, Wei, Daniel Morgan, Sydney, Marta Biino Organizations: Instagram, Google, Morning, Twitter, Android, Meta, Synovus, Sydney Bradley Locations: Europe, Italian, Italy, France, Spain, Germany, Meta

☆ Martina Navratilova: Tennis great tweets that she is ‘all clear’ after cancer treatment
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( Kevin Dotson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —Tennis great Martina Navratilova said Tuesday that she is “all clear” after undergoing treatments for throat and breast cancer. “After a day full of tests at Sloan Kettering, I got the all clear! “That’s just not an option for me … quitting is just not in my DNA.”The 66-year-old Navratilova shared in an interview in March that her “prognosis is excellent.”Navratilova enjoyed a long playing career in which she won 18 grand slam singles titles, 31 grand slam doubles titles and 10 grand slam mixed doubles titles. After retiring from singles in 1994 at the age of 38, she continued playing doubles – and winning titles – into her 40s. She has remained involved in the sport as a coach, broadcaster, and ambassador for the WTA Tour, highlighting the importance of preventive checkups to combat specific diseases such as breast cancer.

Persons: Martina Navratilova, ” Navratilova, “ That’s, …, Navratilova, – Organizations: CNN, Tennis, Sloan Kettering, WTA

It comes as hydrogen technology is getting a boost from favourable legislation in the United States and Europe, which are both seeking to strengthen the technology to help carbon dioxide-heavy industries, including steel and chemicals, to decarbonise. "A potential IPO would enlarge the financial flexibility of Thyssenkrupp Nucera and raise its profile as a leading supplier of technology for the production of green hydrogen," he said. The listing, which is run by Citi (C.N) and Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE), will primarily consist of new shares, Thyssenkrupp Nucera said. First-half sales were up 74% at 306 million euros, while the group's earnings before interest and tax rose 87% to 13.3 million euros. "With our electrolysis technology we want to shape a new era of the energy transition," said Werner Ponikwar, chief executive of Thyssenkrupp Nucera.

Persons: Nora, Italy's De Nora, DNR.MI, Miguel Lopez, Thyssenkrupp, Thyssenkrupp Nucera, De Nora, Nora's, Norway's Nel, Werner Ponikwar, Christoph Steitz, Tom Kaeckenhoff, Francesca Landini, Miranda Murray, Clarence Fernandez, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Reuters, Citi, Deutsche Bank, Thyssenkrupp, Britain's ITM, Energy, U.S ., Thomson Locations: FRANKFURT, DUESSELDORF, Ukraine, United States, Europe, U.S

☆ Le Mans 24 Hours: Ferrari wins prestigious endurance race after 50-year absence
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Matias Grez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Victory was Ferrari’s 10th top level win at Le Mans and its first since 1965. Michael Fassbender pictured during the Test Day of the 24 Hours of Le Mans on June 4, 2023. Frédéric Le Floc'h/DPPI/ShutterstockFassbender made his Le Mans debut last year, crashing out twice during the race but eventually finishing a very respectable 51st out of 62 with Proton. “Car #911 is no longer running the Le Mans 24 race. “Le Mans was no[t] kind to us this year!”

Persons: CNN — Ferrari, Ferrari, Ferrari’s Antonio Fuocco, Antonio Giovinazzi, Alessandro Pier Guidi, James Calado, Alessandro it’s, ” Giovinazzi, ”, James Moy, Charles Leclerc, it’s, I’m, Michael Fassbender, Frédéric Le, Shutterstock Fassbender, Le, “ Le Organizations: CNN, Formula One, Le, Triple Crown, Monaco, Prix, Indianapolis, Toyota, Le Mans, AF Corse Ferrari 499P, James Moy Photography, Eurosport, “, Porsche, Germany’s Proton, Proton Locations: Formula, Italian, Le Mans

☆ How new lithium extraction technology could help us meet electric vehicle targets
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Katie Brigham | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Today, most lithium brine mining takes place in the Salar de Atacama, an expansive salt flat in northern Chile that contains the highest quality lithium brine in the world. EnergyXDoing things differentlyIn a world before electric vehicles, traditional methods of brine mining and hard rock mining more than sufficed to meet global lithium demand. It's the brine resources that are large enough to electrify the vehicle industry," Snydacker said. Lilac Solutions is developing a direct lithium extraction facility in Argentina in partnership with Australian lithium company Lake Resources. Lilac Solutions

Persons: Dave Snydacker, DLE, Amit Patwardhan, Robert Mintak, there's, Snydacker, EnergyX, It's Organizations: Lilac Solutions, Solutions, Bay, Resources Locations: Salar, Atacama, Chile, Arkansas, Salt, Argentina, Bolivia, California , Utah, China, Australian

[1/2] The logo of Chinese carmaker Geely Auto is pictured at the second media day for the Shanghai auto show in Shanghai, China April 17, 2019. Thailand's Board of Investment held discussions with five major Chinese EV makers including Geely during a roadshow to China in April, its Secretary-General Narit Therdsteerasukdi said. "All expressed keen interest in Thailand's policy to develop a regional EV production base and an integrated EV supply chain," Narit said, without providing more details of the talks with Geely. BYD and China's Great Wall Motor Co Ltd (601633.SS) are already working on building local EV production in Thailand. China's Great Wall Motor has said it is considering a research and development centre in Thailand that could work on battery-powered pickup trucks.

Persons: Aly Song BANGKOK, Geely, Narit Therdsteerasukdi, JAC Motors, Narit, Aston Martin, China's, Devjyot Ghoshal, Zhang Yan, Jamie Freed Organizations: Shanghai, REUTERS, Reuters, of Investment, BYD Co, Chongqing Changan Automobile Co, Jiangling Motors Corp Ltd, EV, Wall Motor Co, Volvo, Aston, Malaysian carmaker Proton, Toyota Motor Corp, Isuzu Motors, Thomson Locations: Shanghai, China, Thailand, Chongqing, Geely, Swedish, Southeast Asia

☆ Chinese apps remain hugely popular in the U.S. despite efforts to ban TikTok
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Lauren Feiner | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +15 min

But while TikTok has been the one in the spotlight, other Chinese apps that present similar issues are also experiencing massive popularity in the U.S. Gorman said as the U.S. considers the threat posed by TikTok, it will also need to develop a framework for how to evaluate the relative risk of Chinese apps. But in the meantime, U.S. consumers continue to turn to Chinese apps. "And then of course, there's the early growth of Lemon8, which suggests that the appetite for Chinese apps in the U.S. is still growing." And some say the most effective long-term solution for curbing the use of Chinese apps may be fostering an environment for robust alternatives to grow.

☆ Exclusive: Malaysian tycoon weighs selling a stake in $2.7 bln port business -sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Yantoultra Ngui | Thomson Reuters | Yantoultra Ngui Is A Southeast Asia Deals Correspondent With Reuters In Singapore | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

His conglomerate MMC Corp may sell a stake of up to 30% in MMC Ports, said one of the people, adding that financial investors and companies have approached MMC Corp about their interest in the ports business. A sale could be a precursor to a potential MMC Ports listing on the Malaysian stock exchange in a few years, said the sources. MMC Corp and MMC Ports did not respond to requests seeking comment. MMC Ports has seven ports in Malaysia - Port of Tanjung Pelepas, Johor Port, Northport, Penang Port, Tanjung Bruas Port, SPT Services and Andaman Port, according to its website. MMC Corp also owns stakes in Malaysia's largest independent power producer Malakoff Corp (MALA.KL) and the country's only supplier of reticulated natural gas in Peninsular Malaysia, Gas Malaysia (GASM.KL).

☆ The Loneliness, and Danger, of Being a Young Woman in a New City
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Jenny Wu | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

It is also a window, onto the city’s antiwork culture, eclectic individualism and architectural sediments. Daphne’s eating disorder ornaments the 20-something’s “joyfully misspent” time abroad the way Hemingway’s hunger enhanced his visits to the art museum. But unlike Hemingway, Daphne must contend with the dangers of being a young woman living alone in a new city. “Berlin” shines when we leave Daphne’s head long enough to observe the humorous and tender behaviors of those around her. A look inside her mind reveals the force of danger thinly veiled behind the romantic glow of youth.

☆ Where Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon takes the corporate jet
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Dakin Campbell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +15 min

"The Board fully supports the use of the Goldman Sachs planes for travel, just as it supported the use of private aircraft by previous Goldman Sachs executives," said Tony Fratto, a company spokesman. "Executives at Goldman Sachs have been flying on private aircrafts for decades as it is proven to be the most secure, effective, and cost-efficient solution to meet the extensive travel obligations for CEOs of firms like Goldman Sachs — which is why all of our peer institutions also extensively use private aircraft." John Waldron, president of Goldman Sachs Reuters/Brendan McDermidOccasionally, Solomon and Waldron switch planes, particularly when Waldron flies overseas. Goldman Sachs has a sponsorship deal with pro golfer Patrick Cantlay. "These estimates wildly overstate the cost of such flights to Goldman Sachs and are not an accurate representation," he said.

☆ Check out the pitch deck identity management startup Lockr used to raise $2.5 million in pre-seed funding
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Lara O'Reilly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Identity and email management company Lockr raised $2.5 million in pre-seed funding this week. Check out the pitch deck that convinced investors like Mozilla Ventures to join the funding round. Lockr, a digital identity management startup, said this week it had raised $2.5 million in pre-seed funding, investment it plans to use to grow its team, scale its userbase, and add more features to its consumer product. For publishers and marketers, the company provides Lockr Identity. Investors in Lockr's pre-seed funding round included Mozilla Ventures, Junction Venture Partners, and Grit Capital Partners, as well as individual investors.

☆ Exclusive: Hydrogen firm Thyssenkrupp Nucera says IRA spurring U.S. interest
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Christoph Steitz | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Thyssenkrupp Nucera held talks about several potential green hydrogen projects "with very concrete timelines" during a trip to the United States last week, Chief Executive Werner Ponikwar said in an interview. Green hydrogen, produced using renewable energy, is seen as key to decarbonising industry and so meeting climate targets. "We are gaining a new growth market," Ponikwar said. Ponikwar expects the U.S. hydrogen market to grow to a mid double-digit gigawatt (GW) amount by the end of the decade, from just a few hundred megawatts currently. While the IRA supports hydrogen production, it does not require makers of hydrogen equipment to produce locally, unlike other renewable technologies where that's a condition to qualify for credits.

☆ Suppliers for Spring say the creator merch startup has owed them money for months and they're in the dark on how to get paid
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Amanda Perelli | Sydney Bradley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Product vendors hired by Spring say the creator merch company owes them money. "There's two types of acquisitions," Michael Curtiss, partner and M&A advisory lead at WilliamsMarston, told Insider. "I think this will send a couple of suppliers broke," the second vendor added. By June 2022, the second vendor said they had noticed their business was not getting paid on time. "I just can't stand what they did," said one person who worked closely with Spring vendors.

☆ The Wild World Inside Your Gut
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Alice Callahan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +20 min

The Wild World Inside Your GutWe tackled everything from heartburn, stress, spicy foods and colon cleanses to antibiotics and more. So grab a kombucha, get comfortable and read on for everything you’ve wanted to know about the wild world inside your gut. 3 What are some simple things I can do to improve my gut health? That “really is going to have the strongest impact on our health, including gut health,” she said. (Though for general gut health, Dr. Rao said, most people living in the United States could benefit from eating fewer refined carbohydrates and more fiber.)

☆ Spotify joins media firms to urge EU action against Apple's 'unfair' practices
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 18 (Reuters) - Music streaming service Spotify Technology (SPOT.N), along with other media firms such as Deezer, urged the European Commission to take action against Apple Inc (AAPL.O) for anticompetitive and unfair practices, in a joint industry letter on Wednesday. The letter, addressed to the European Union antitrust regulator's Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager, demanded the Commission to act fast for the welfare of European consumers. Spotify has for years accused Apple of abusing its market position using its App Store rules to stifle competition. "We are writing to you to call for swift and decisive action by the European Commission against anticompetitive and unfair practices by certain global digital gatekeepers, and Apple in particular," read the letter, which was signed by chief executives of media firms Schibsted, Proton and Basecamp. Reporting by Chavi Mehta in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra EluriOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Creator merch company Spring has laid off staffers and closed its Kentucky production facility
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Amanda Perelli | Sydney Bradley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Spring recently laid off staffers and closed its Kentucky production facility. Software company Amaze announced in November that it had acquired the merch company, formerly known as Teespring. Around late October, Spring assured staff that the merger with Amaze wouldn't result in warehouse staffers losing their jobs, two former staffers said. At the beginning of December, the warehouse staffers lost their benefits, two former staffers said. At the time, several former staffers were already speculating that Spring would make an attempt to sell the Kentucky facility.

☆ This startup that makes green hydrogen more efficient and safer just raised $26 million. Check out the 20-slide pitch deck Hystar used to win over investors.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The company has developed technology to help create green hydrogen more efficiently and safely. A startup helping others make hydrogen more efficiently and safely just raised $26 million in a Series B funding round. The process is a chemical reaction that splits water into oxygen and hydrogen; hydrogen created this way is known as green hydrogen, in order to differentiate from other production methods. There is strong momentum for green hydrogen from both politicians and the public, Hystar CEO Fredrik Mowill told Insider. "Almost all of the losses in electrolyzers are a result of that resistance across that membrane," Mowill said.

☆ Spotify CEO renews attack on Apple after Musk's salvo
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

loadingEk tagged a number of sympathetic business leaders in his 21-tweet thread, including Musk, Microsoft president Brad Smith, and Proton founder Andy Yen. Spotify has previously submitted antitrust complaints against Apple in various countries, alleging the 30% charge has forced Spotify to "artificially inflate" its own prices. Tim Sweeney, the CEO of "Fortnite" maker Epic Games, tweeted on Wednesday that fighting Apple's "monopoly" was "an American issue transcending party politics". Musk is expected to talk with European Commissioner Thierry Breton via videocall on Wednesday afternoon, though the agenda was unknown. The pair previously met in Texas in May, ahead of Musk's $44 billion purchase of Twitter, where they signaled broad agreement on EU tech regulation policy.

☆ Proton CEO Is Shutting Down India VPN Servers to Protest Cybersecurity Rules
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-22 | by ( Newley Purnell | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Proton is joining other VPN service providers in shutting down their servers in India to protest new government rules. The Swiss company behind well-known virtual-private-network service Proton VPN is pulling its servers from India, the latest provider to do so in response to new government rules that companies and rights groups say threaten users’ privacy. India’s agency overseeing computer security will effective Sunday require VPN operators in the country to collect information such as customers’ names, email addresses and the IP addresses they use to connect to the internet. The companies must maintain the data for at least five years and furnish it to authorities when asked.

☆ I quit my dream job at VMware just 10 days after Broadcom announced its $61 billion acquisition plan. Here's why I knew I had to leave.
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-20 | by ( Jacob E. Robbins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The cloud provider had given me a better offer financially, but I chose VMware because it offered me a dream job. It was an opportunity to work in a leadership role and VMware had a better culture from what I had seen. Ten days in, the news breaks about Broadcom buying VMware for $61 billion. This new role will be a great role, and it might be a steppingstone to another role within the company. Do you work at VMware or Broadcom and have an insight to share?

☆ Some VMware partners say they're optimistic about the $61 billion Broadcom buyout and see it as an opportunity to cozy up to customers who fear they'll get lost in the deal's fallout
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-01 | by ( Paayal Zaveri | Jessica Xing | Jacob E. Robbins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

But some partners say they're optimistic and see an opportunity to cozy up to VMware customers. In fact, several VMware partners view the seismic buyout as an opportunity and hope to use it to their advantage. Even those who weren't as optimistic about Broadcom's takeover told Insider the 24-year-old company was in need of a shake-up. Why VMware partners are optimisticBefore the acquisition announcement, Broadcom told investors the firm was "totally focused on the priorities" of 600 top strategic accounts. "Broadcom is where good software goes to die," an employee from a VMware partner told Insider.

☆ Broadcom CEO makes surprise appearance at VMware's big conference amid customer and employee concerns about the $61 billion takeover deal
▼ + stars: | 2022-08-30 | by ( Paayal Zaveri | Jessica Xing | Jacob E. Robbins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

VMware's conference for customers, employees, and partners kicked off this week in San Francisco. Broadcom CEO Hock Tan made a surprise appearance at VMware's big annual conference, VMware Explore, which kicked off this week in San Francisco. Prior to the acquisition announcement, Broadcom told investors the firm is "totally focused on the priorities" of 600 top strategic accounts. "What typically happens with acquisitions like this is that innovation stops," an IT professional for a smaller VMware customer in the oil industry told Insider at the conference. Several smaller customers told Insider they're worried that when the buyout closed, they may be forced to switch to bigger vendors like Microsoft, despite preferring VMware services.

☆ Leaked VMware memo reveals its global support VP is the latest exit in an employee exodus amid the Broadcom buyout
▼ + stars: | 2022-08-27 | by ( Jessica Xing | Jacob E. Robbins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Karen Egan, VMware's vice president of global support, is leaving the company after 15 years. Another high-level executive has announced their departure from cloud computing firm VMware. In her role as senior vice president of global support, Egan oversees critical customer accounts and support escalations for all VMware clients. Contact the reporter Jessica Xing via the encrypted messaging apps Signal or Telegram at +1 (551)-280-9140, encrypted email (jessica.xing@protonmail.com) or at jxing@insider.com. Contact the reporter Jacob E. Robbins via the encrypted messaging apps Signal or Telegram at +1 (413)-717-0171, encrypted email (jacoberobbins@proton.me), or Twitter DMs (@JacobERobbins).

Search resuls for: "Proton"

25 mentions found