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☆ Germany — burned by overrelying on Russian gas — now vows to end dependence on trade with China
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-24 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Germany's dependence on Russian gas is sparking a rethink of Berlin's foreign policy. Germany, an industrial powerhouse and Europe's biggest economy, is reliant on piped natural gas from Russia which accounts for 35% of the country's fuel imports. Europe's largest economy has since been diversifying away from Russian natural gas by importing liquefied natural gas from other countries and is racing to build more essential infrastructure to hasten the shift. It has also learnt a lesson from its Russia policy. In particular, Berlin is working on a new trade policy with China to cut dependence on Chinese raw materials, batteries, and semiconductor chips, Reuters reported in September.

☆ Senate Banking Committee Chair Brown scrutinizes banking fees as consumers struggle with inflation
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs scrutinized predatory fees charged by banks and other financial institutions during a Tuesday oversight hearing of regulators. Committee Chairman Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, said the biggest banks and credit unions are doing well despite historic inflation and economic uncertainty. He said the overdraft fees charged by some credit unions "can be detrimental to members and inconsistent with the system's mission." Agency examiners are requesting audits of credit union overdraft programs, including information about overdraft policies and procedures. "Our financial regulators have answered that call, and I will continue to work with them to make sure our banking and credit union system works for everyone," Brown said.

☆ NY Democrat who lost his race criticizes AOC, saying she didn't campaign much and 'was nowhere to be found'
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

He said she didn't help the party enough, an allegation she denies. Moloney was asked by The New York Times on Thursday who was to blame for their party's poor performance. The Times' question related to criticism that Ocasio-Cortez gave of the New York Democratic party on Thursday, also to The Times. She also said the party was fractured there: "Not once has the New York State Democratic chair ever called me. Didn't do anything for our frontline candidates except give them money when they didn't want it from her."

☆ The World Is Falling Short of Its Climate Goals. Four Big Emitters Show Why.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Max Bearak | Nadja Popovich | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +10 min

Together, the four countries account for more than half of historical emissions of planet-warming gases, which include carbon dioxide and methane. ChinaThis is China’s current emissions track. Change in emissions by 2030 compared with last year On current track Range Paris pledge 1.5°C compatible –100% –75% –50% –25% +25% 0 This is China’s current emissions track. Because China’s emissions are so high, however, no other country will be more crucial in lowering global emissions. IndiaThis is India’s current emissions track.

☆ Tesla faces U.S. criminal probe over self-driving car claims, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

Such warnings could complicate any case the Justice Department might wish to bring, the sources said. A Justice Department spokesperson declined to comment. As part of the latest probe, Justice Department prosecutors in Washington and San Francisco are examining whether Tesla misled consumers, investors and regulators by making unsupported claims about its driver assistance technology’s capabilities, the sources said. The Justice Department’s Autopilot probe is far from recommending any action partly because it is competing with two other DOJ investigations involving Tesla, one of the sources said. The Justice Department may also face challenges in building its case, said the sources, because of Tesla’s warnings about overreliance on Autopilot.

☆ Tesla faces U.S. criminal probe over self-driving claims, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Mike Spector | Dan Levine | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Such warnings could complicate any case the Justice Department might wish to bring, the sources said. The Justice Department investigation potentially represents a more serious level of scrutiny because of the possibility of criminal charges against the company or individual executives, the people familiar with the inquiry said. As part of the latest probe, Justice Department prosecutors in Washington and San Francisco are examining whether Tesla misled consumers, investors and regulators by making unsupported claims about its driver assistance technology's capabilities, the sources said. The Justice Department's Autopilot probe is far from recommending any action partly because it is competing with two other DOJ investigations involving Tesla, one of the sources said. The Justice Department may also face challenges in building its case, said the sources, because of Tesla's warnings about overreliance on Autopilot.

Such warnings could complicate any case the Justice Department might wish to bring, the sources said. A Justice Department spokesperson declined to comment. The Justice Department investigation potentially represents a more serious level of scrutiny because of the possibility of criminal charges against the company or individual executives, the people familiar with the inquiry said. As part of the latest probe, Justice Department prosecutors in Washington and San Francisco are examining whether Tesla misled consumers, investors and regulators by making unsupported claims about its driver assistance technology's capabilities, the sources said. The Justice Department’s Autopilot probe is far from recommending any action partly because it is competing with two other DOJ investigations involving Tesla, one of the sources said.

☆ Rise of the 'Jeff Bots': Former Amazon leaders have infiltrated the tech industry and that's not always a good thing, leadership coaches warn
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( Rachel Durose | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

A Jeff Bot leader that joins a company and immediately implements Amazon's ways could be doing more harm than good. Former Amazon employees have called the company's culture a "penny-pinching, empathy-lacking corporate behemoth," Insider previously reported. "For organizations that want to adopt an Amazon culture, I would caution them to be careful what you ask for," he said. An infrastructure to support innovationIt's not impossible for startups to successfully copy Amazon's leadership style and principles. This lack of infrastructure was one reason Amazon's leadership style seemed to fall flat at the rapid-delivery company Gopuff, Insider previously reported.

☆ Wharton professor Jeremy Siegel warns the Fed will drive the economy into a depression if they wait for core inflation to fall back to 2%
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-13 | by ( Matthew Fox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Not even September's stubbornly high CPI report could change Jeremy Siegel's view that the Fed needs to stop hiking interest rates. "If the Fed waits for the core to get down to 2% year-over-year, it will drive the economy into a depression," Siegel warned. "If the Fed waits for the core [inflation] to get down to 2% year-over-year, it will drive the economy into a depression," Siegel told CNBC on Thursday. Housing, which is almost 50% of the core rate, is the most distorted of all," Siegel explained. Now they're over correcting with interest rate hikes as inflation is high, but is leading indicators show signs it is falling.

☆ IMF cuts global growth forecast for next year, warns ‘the worst is yet to come’
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-11 | by ( Hannah Ward-Glenton | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The International Monetary Fund predicts global growth will slow. The IMF anticipates global inflation will peak in late 2022, increasing from 4.7% in 2021 to 8.8%, and that it will "remain elevated for longer than previously expected." Global inflation will likely decrease to 6.5% in 2023 and to 4.1% by 2024, according to the IMF forecast. The agency noted the tightening of monetary policy across the world to combat inflation and the "powerful appreciation" of the U.S. dollar against other currencies. "Winter 2022 will be challenging for Europe, but winter 2023 will likely be worse," the IMF said.

☆ How an overreliance on BMI can stand between patients and treatment
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-08 | by ( Julie Appleby | Kaiser Health News | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +8 min

As a result, countries such as China and Japan have set lower BMI overweight and obesity thresholds for people of Asian descent. Experts generally agree that BMI should not be the only measure to assess patients’ health and weight. Instead of relying on BMI, physicians and patients should consider other factors in the weight equation. It incorporates various groups’ risk factors for conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol. “We do not plan to eliminate the BMI, but we plan to devise other strategies to evaluate the health associated with weight status,” said Stanford.

☆ Elon Musk faces skeptics as Tesla gets ready to unveil ‘Optimus’ robot
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-20 | by ( ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

Humanoid robots have been in development for decades by Honda Motor Co and Hyundai Motor‘s Boston Dynamics unit. And it’s the same way with humanoid robots to some extent,” the lead of NASA’s Dexterous Robotics Team, Shaun Azimi, told Reuters. Musk acknowledged that humanoid robots do not have enough intelligence to navigate the real world without being explicitly instructed. But he said Tesla can leverage its expertise in AI and key components to develop and produce smart, yet less expensive, humanoid robots at scale. Jonathan Hurst, chief technology officer at Agility Robotics, a humanoid robot firm founded in 2015 said the technology “is right now starting to turn the corner.”“Certainly, an important measure of success is do they make money from it,” he told Reuters, referring to Tesla’s humanoid robot efforts.

☆ Elon Musk faces skeptics as Tesla gets ready to unveil 'Optimus' robot
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-20 | by ( Hyunjoo Jin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

A humanoid robot developed by Tesla, known as Tesla Bot or Optimus, is shown in a frame grab from the live video of Tesla's AI Day streamed on August 20, 2022. Humanoid robots have been in development for decades by Honda Motor Co (7267.T) and Hyundai Motor Co (005380.KS)'s Boston Dynamics unit. And it's the same way with humanoid robots to some extent," the lead of NASA's Dexterous Robotics Team, Shaun Azimi, told Reuters. Musk acknowledged that humanoid robots do not have enough intelligence to navigate the real world without being explicitly instructed. "Certainly, an important measure of success is do they make money from it," he told Reuters, referring to Tesla's humanoid robot efforts.

☆ Science has figured out why Silicon Valley keeps forking over millions to charismatic screw-ups like WeWork founder Adam Neumann
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-07 | by ( Adam Rogers | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

And in and around Silicon Valley, they're the informational coin of the realm. Silicon Valley, after all, prides itself on being an ultrarational place for data-driven decisions, made by people with the brains and intestinal fortitude to identify disruptive winners. But the more solid research puts the lie to the idea of Silicon Valley as a utopia of empiricism. Its unfettered belief in freewheeling, big-ticket plays, in fact, is what sets Silicon Valley apart from other tech ecosystems. To the movers and shakers of Silicon Valley, a startup isn't merely a business.

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