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☆ China beats SpaceX and Blue Origin to reach orbit with a methane-fueled rocket, edging ahead of the US in the space race
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

China pulled ahead in the space exploration race by reaching orbit with a methalox rocket first. The fuel, based on methane, is coveted by companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin. SpaceX's own methalox-fueled rocket Starship exploded before reaching this milestone in April. Chinese firm LandSpace launched their Zhuque-2 rocket from the Gobi Desert on Tuesday, reaching orbit shortly after. Meanwhile, the future of New Glenn, Blue Origin's methalox rocket, is uncertain after its BE-4 engine exploded during testing in June, per Space.com.

Persons: LandSpace, Jonathan McDowell, Relativity, New Glenn, Blue, Jonathan Newton Organizations: SpaceX, Service, Privacy, China, US Space Force, Washington, Getty, Reuters Locations: China, Wall, Silicon, New, Starbase, Jiuquan, Gansu Province

☆ A Headspace therapist says he was laid off a day after one of his patients came out for the first time. Now the patient can't contact him.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( Sonam Sheth | Rebecca Torrence | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A Headspace therapist told the LA Times he was laid off one day after a patient came out to him. The patient now has no way of contacting him, the therapist said, because he was booted from Headspace's patient care system immediately after being laid off. "I'm the first person they've ever talked to about it," the therapist told the LA Times. But by handling the layoffs the way it did, Headspace "just really screwed over their entire client base," the therapist told the Times. Thirty-three of those employees were therapists, a company spokesperson told Insider.

Persons: they've, Headspace, They're Organizations: LA Times, Headspace Health, Los Angeles Times, Times

☆ Factbox: Flurry of US-India deals on AI, defense as Biden, Modi meet
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( Jarrett Renshaw | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The following is a roundup of the major announcements:VISASThe Biden administration will make it easier for Indians to live and work in the United States. The United States intends to open new consulates in Bengaluru and Ahmedabad. India is opening a new consulate in Seattle this year and will soon announce two new consulates in the United States. The MQ-9Bs will be assembled in India, a joint statement said, and U.S. manufacturer General Atomics will also establish new facility in India. ADVANCED COMPUTINGIndia and the United States established a Joint Indo-U.S. Quantum Coordination Mechanism to facilitate joint research between the public and private sectors across both countries.

Persons: Narendra Modi, Joe Biden, Biden, Katherine Tai, Vikram Solar, Electric's, General Atomics, Atomics, Jarrett Renshaw, Heather Timmons, Grant McCool Organizations: Indian, U.S, The State Department, United, INDIA, Micron Technology, Micron, United States Trade, World Trade Organization, Minerals Security Partnership, European Union, India’s Epsilon Carbon, VSK Energy, JETS, Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd, Indian Air Force, GE Aerospace's, Tejas, GE, Reuters, SPACE, Artemis Accords, NASA, International Space Station, Thomson Locations: Washington, United States, U.S, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, India, Seattle, Gujarat, US, Colorado, China, SPACE India

☆ GE to jointly produce fighter jet engines in India
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Indian Air Force (IAF) LCA Tejas performs an aerobatic display during the Aero India 2023 air show at Yelahanka air base in Bengaluru, India, February 13, 2023. REUTERS/Samuel Rajkumar/File PhotoJune 22 (Reuters) - General Electric's (GE.N) aerospace unit said on Thursday it has signed an agreement with India's state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HIAE.NS) to make fighter jet engines for the Indian Air Force. The agreement includes the potential joint production of GE Aerospace's F414 engines in India and the engines will be used to power Tejas fighter jets, GE said. Reuters reported in May the Biden administration was poised to sign off on a deal that would allow GE to produce jet engines powering Indian military aircraft. GE first began working with Hindustan Aeronautics and the Aeronautical Development Agency in 1986 to support the development of India's light combat aircraft with F404 engines.

Persons: Samuel Rajkumar, Electric's, Narendra Modi, Biden, Aishwarya Nair, Varun, Shounak Organizations: Indian Air Force, IAF, LCA Tejas, Aero, REUTERS, Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd, Indian, GE Aerospace's, Tejas, GE, Hindustan Aeronautics, Reuters, Aeronautical Development Agency, Thomson Locations: Aero India, Bengaluru, India, United States, Washington

☆ Russian ultranationalists think Putin's response to the Moscow drone attacks and border raids shows he's 'out of touch with reality'
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russian ultranationalists say Putin's response to recent attacks shows he's "out of touch with reality." The ISW says responses to the drone attacks and cross-border raids haven't satisfied war-hawks. To the ultranationalists Russia allows to criticize the war, it is evidence that Russian leader Vladimir Putin is "out of touch with reality." Former Russian officer and ultranationalist Igor Girkin said Putin was "out of touch with reality" and criticized "an absence of an honest conversation with" Russian society. According to ISW, both Girkin and other ultranationalists also criticized Putin's response to recent border raid attacks in the Belgorod and Kursk oblasts of Russia.

Persons: he's, Putin, —, Vladimir Putin, Igor Girkin, Girkin, ISW Organizations: Service, Institute, Twitter, Kremlin Locations: Moscow, Belgorod, Ukraine, Russia, Russian, Kyiv, Kursk

☆ Spain's PLD Space calls off test rocket launch citing high altitude winds
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PLD Space's test is set to be its first step in the race to put small satellites into space and capture a slice of a potential trillion-dollar market. The launch from a military aerospace research centre in Huelva, southern Spain, would have been the first in Western Europe by a private company. Europe's efforts to develop capabilities to send small satellites into space are in focus after a failed orbital rocket launch by Virgin Orbit from Britain in January. PLD Space's "Miura 1" rocket, named after a breed of fighting bulls, is as tall as a three-storey building and has a 100-kg (220-lb) cargo capacity. Reporting by Jon Nazca and Inti Landauro Editing by Emma Pinedo and Mark PotterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Miura, Read, Jon Nazca, Emma Pinedo, Mark Potter Organizations: Virgin Orbit, Inti, Thomson Locations: Spanish, El, Almonte, Huelva, Spain, HUELVA, Western Europe, Britain, French Guiana

☆ VC firm Sequoia is pulling out all the stops to dominate AI, insiders say. The firm is using everything from 'speed dating' to star studded summits to woo founders.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Stephanie Palazzolo | Ben Bergman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

It's just one move of many the VC firm has taken to cement its position in the white-hot AI space. Huang and Grady wrote a public blog post on Sequoia's website inviting AI founders to email them their ideas and pitches directly. But the firm has been louder where it counts, investing in splashy AI startups like Harvey and LangChain. Every member of the firm, from managing partner Roleof Botha on down, has made AI a top priority, with Grady, Huang, and Buhler most prominently involved. Both Huang and Buhler now spend over 90% of their time researching AI companies, versus 50% in previous years, they said.

☆ Rocket builder Firefly takes on high-speed Space Force mission for crucial next launch
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-06 | by ( Michael Sheetz | In Michaeljsheetz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

The Alpha rocket for the Space Force's Victus Nox mission stands on the launchpad at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. The mission for the military's Los Angeles-based Space Safari team calls for flying a Millennium Space Systems-built satellite on Firefly Aerospace's Alpha rocket — on remarkably short notice. The Alpha rocket for the Space Force's Victus Nox mission stands on the launchpad at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. Space Force selected Firefly and Millennium for the Victus Nox contract in October, setting off a chain of events starting with the build phase. Firefly's opportunitywatch nowFirefly originally planned to fly a NASA mission on its third Alpha rocket launch, after the company reached space with its second launch in October.

☆ Russia digs in as Ukraine prepares to attack
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Tom Balmforth | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +9 min

And in the case of Polohy, Russia has constructed two distinct defensive lines, one to the north and one to the south. Musiyenko estimated that Ukraine would have a force of between 100,000-110,000 for an attack, including eight assault brigades with a total of 40,000 troops. Russia has not said how many troops it has in Ukraine, or within its borders ready to deploy. A leaked U.S. intelligence document dated Feb. 28 seen by Reuters said the West had committed 200 tanks to Ukraine. Army chief Valeriy Zaluzhnyi said in December he needed 300 to defeat Russia, along with other vehicles and artillery.

[1/6] Takeshi Hakamada, "ispace" 's founder and chief executive, is pictured at a venue to watch landing of the lander in HAKUTO-R lunar exploration program on the Moon, in Tokyo, Japan, April 26, 2023. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-HoonTOKYO, April 25 (Reuters) - Japanese startup ispace (9348.T) said its attempt to make the first private moon landing had failed on Tuesday after losing contact with its Hakuto-R Mission 1 (M1) lander, concluding it had most likely crashed on the lunar surface. The M1 lander appeared set to autonomously touch down about 12:40 p.m. Eastern time (1640 GMT Tuesday) after coming as close as 295 feet (90 meters) from the lunar surface, a live animation of the lander's telemetry showed. The company said in a statement Wednesday in Japan that it believes the spacecraft may have made a "hard landing" on the lunar surface. The M1 also carried an experimental solid-state battery made by NGK Spark Plug Co (5334.T), among other objects to gauge how they perform on the moon.

☆ The creepy secret behind online therapy
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Tanmoy Goswami | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +16 min

Crisis Text Line, now in its 10th year of operations, uses artificial intelligence to respond to people experiencing emotional abuse, self-harm, and suicidal thoughts. 'The vast majority of mental-health apps are exceptionally creepy'BetterHelp, a poster child of online therapy founded in 2013, calls itself "the world's largest therapy platform" and says it has over 2 million users. One of the first popular mental-health apps, PTSD Coach, was launched by the US Department of Veteran Affairs in 2011. But for mental-health companies these practices can undermine the very foundations of mental-health care: dignity, trust, and psychological safety. As Crisis Text Line wrote on its website extolling its deal with Loris: "Why sell T-shirts when you can sell what your organization does best?"

☆ Analysis: Rocket startups face adapt-or-die moment amid investment drought
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Joey Roulette | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Venture investment in space startups has dropped 50% year-over-year in 2022 to $21.9 billion, according to VC firm Space Capital. Astra Space (ASTR.O), which ditched its small Rocket 3.3 for a planned, larger Rocket 4 in the next few years, has struggled to bring its stock price above $1, facing delisting threats from Nasdaq. Despite the startups' struggles, launch demand has soared after sanctions following Russia's invasion of Ukraine cut off access to Russian rockets. Recent failures with Europe's Arianespace's Vega-C rocket have added to demand in the U.S., outstripping the number of available rockets. Private plans to deploy mega-constellations, vast swarms of satellites in low-Earth orbit, have also given launch startups hope for future demand.

☆ Elon Musk holds the keys to the moon because SpaceX's Starship megarocket launch is crucial to NASA's return
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-16 | by ( Marianne Guenot | Kate Duffy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

The rocket, which NASA has tagged for upcoming missions, is crucial to NASA's return to the moon. The highly anticipated Starship launch will determine whether NASA's Artemis moon program is on track for success. NASA's SLS relies on Starship for the moon landingA Starship prototype being launched. NASA's SLS rocket, by contrast, has a high price tag for the taxpayer: The project has cost $50 billion in development since the program's inception in 2006. All of this makes NASA's SLS a poor competitor to SpaceX's shiny new rocket.

☆ Lunar startup ispace's shares untraded in Tokyo debut amid glut of buy orders
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches the Hakuto-R Mission 1 from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Dec. 11, 2022 in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Shares of lunar transportation start-up ispace went untraded in their market debut in Tokyo early on Wednesday, as bids overwhelmed offers. Shares of ispace were bid at 436 yen as of the morning break on the Tokyo exchange's growth market, 72% above their IPO price of 254 yen. The stock has an upper price limit of 585 yen, according to the exchange. In December, its Hakuto-R Mission 1 lunar lander was launched aboard a SpaceX rocket that took off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, carrying two robotic rovers.

☆ Investing in Space: Deloitte formalizes its space consulting business, with an eye on growth
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Michael Sheetz | In Michaeljsheetz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

CNBC's Investing in Space newsletter offers a view into the business of space exploration and privatization, delivered straight to your inbox. The space industry keeps growing, and global consulting groups aren't ones to be left behind. This week saw Big 4 firm Deloitte formalize its space consulting services, even as other consulting giants like McKinsey, BCG and Bain compete for pieces of the space pie. Loubert breaks the space consulting opportunity into two areas: Space as a mission or business, and space as a growth opportunity. For more on consulting and space, I'll be sitting down on April 18 with McKinsey Senior Partner Ryan Brukardt at Space Symposium in Colorado.

☆ Extra Space to buy Life Storage for $12.7 bln in self-storage mega deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Pratyush Thakur | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 3 (Reuters) - Real estate investment trust Extra Space Storage (EXR.N) said on Monday it will acquire Life Storage (LSI.N) for $12.7 billion in a deal that will result in the combined company becoming the largest U.S. self-storage space operator by store count. Life Storage, which operates more than 1,150 storage facilities in 37 states and the District of Columbia, in February turned down a $11 billion all-stock takeover bid from Public Storage (PSA.N). Life Storage shares were up 3.5%, while Extra Space shares were down 5.1%. On deal close, Extra Space and Life Storage shareholders are expected to own about 65% and 35% of the combined company. The board of Extra Space will be expanded from 10 directors to 12 and consist of three directors from Life Storage.

☆ Relativity's debut rocket launch proves durability, fails in space
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( Joey Roulette | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, March 22 (Reuters) - Relativity Space's 3D-printed rocket lifted off for the first time on Wednesday, passing a key milestone to demonstrate the vehicle's in-flight strength before its second stage failed upon reaching space, a company live stream showed. The California-based company's 110-foot tall Terran 1 rocket, which is 85% made of 3D-printed parts, lifted off on its debut flight around 11:25 p.m. EDT (0325 GMT on Thursday) from a launchpad at Florida's Cape Canaveral Space Force Base. Upon reaching space, the rocket's second stage engine appeared to briefly ignite but failed to achieve thrust, ultimately failing to reach orbit. "While we didn't make it all the way today, we gathered enough data to show that flying 3D-printed rockets is possible," Relativity Test Program Manager Arwa Tizani Kelly said on the company's live video stream. Reporting by Joey Roulette; Editing by Christopher Cushing and Jamie FreedOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Relativity Space's 3D-printed rocket delivers stunning night launch but fails to reach orbit
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Jackie Wattles | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —Startup Relativity Space sent what it’s calling the “world’s first 3D-printed rocket” toward space on Wednesday, vaulting it into the upper reaches of the atmosphere. Relativity Space's Terran 1 rocket is seen during its third launch attempt of a mission called "GLHF" (Good Luck, Have Fun), from Launch Complex 16 in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on March 22, 2023. The company said computers automatically aborted the launch attempt because of a detected software issue. Still, the Terran 1 rocket that failed its first launch attempt on Wednesday may not end up being the company’s showcase product. But those deals are “overwhelmingly for our larger reusable rocket Terran R,” Ellis noted.

☆ Google got a pandemic boost for its Workspace software but blew it, insiders say. Now it plans to attack Microsoft with a new push in AI.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Rosalie Chan | Hugh Langley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian spent much of his time at a partner meeting talking about Workspace, tweeted Tony Safoian, CEO of Google Cloud partner SADA Systems. "Around the globe, more than nine million paying organizations, and more than three billion users rely on Google Workspace for communication and collaboration. Other major customers like Deutsche Bank use Google Cloud for cloud infrastructure, but Microsoft Office for collaboration software. Forty-four percent of software procurers whose organization plans to or currently uses Microsoft's collaboration software also use Google Workspace, according to the 2022 Forrester study. While Google Cloud is still unprofitable, it has decreased losses to $480 million, down from $890 million last year.

☆ Google Workspace, its office software suite, hits 9 million paying organizations
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Rosalie Chan | Hugh Langley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Google Workspace, formerly known as G Suite, now has over 9 million paying organizations. Workspace announced Tuesday that it will start rolling out more generative AI features. Now, it's also rolling out new AI features across the Workspace suite. Workspace's biggest competitor is Microsoft Office, whose Office 365 product has 345 million paid commercial seats as of last year and has a stronghold among large enterprise customers. Workspace's latest push into generative AI, as well as its cloud-first products, could help give it an edge.

☆ Airbus' defence arm says Berlin delaying exports worth billions
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-19 | by ( Sabine Siebold | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] An Airbus A400M military transport aircraft of the German Air Force is pictured in the air during the ILA Berlin Air Show 2022, in Berlin, Germany June 22, 2022. REUTERS/Fabrizio BenschMUNICH, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Slow German government export approvals are holding up Airbus Defence & Space (AIR.PA) defence exports worth several billions of euros, the company's chief executive said on Sunday, urging Berlin to speed up the process. Unfortunately we are having difficulties to get the German export licences on time," Michael Schoellhorn told Reuters in an interview at the Munich Security Conference. "Our problem is that we haven't received any contracts yet from the Zeitenwende and important exports are not being approved. Asked whether in future space developments Europe will have to fall back on Elon Musk's SpaceX company following Airbus Defence & Space's loss of two satellites on a Vega C rocket, Schoellhorn said any such solution would be temporary.

BENGALURU, Feb 13 (Reuters) - India wants to more than triple annual defence exports to $5 billion by 2024/25 from $1.5 billion currently as it looks to ramp up domestic manufacturing, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday while inaugurating the Aero India show. "Today, India is not just a market for defence companies, it is also a potential defence partner," Modi said in his speech at the show. "I call on India's private sector to invest more and more in the country's defence sector." India, for decades one of the world's biggest importers of defence equipment, now exports to 75 countries, he added. India's airlines are also expanding, with Tata Group's Air India expected to announce a potentially record deal to buy nearly 500 jets from Airbus and Boeing, worth more than $100 billion at list prices.

☆ Super Bowl ads lean on stars, humor to grab attention
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Sheila Dang | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/3] Musician Ozzy Osbourne takes part in a Super Bowl ad for Workday, in this undated handout photo provided by Workday. Big-name celebrities are not uncommon in Super Bowl ads. A 30-second Super Bowl spot this year sold for a little over $7 million, according to a person familiar with the ad sales. “Advertisers want people talking about their brand, and not just during the 30 to 60 seconds of (Super Bowl) air time,” Rucker said. Some stars will poke fun at themselves or their careers in Super Bowl ads.

☆ Inside the 'Wormhole,' Relativity Space's monster factory 3D-printing reusable rockets
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-04 | by ( Michael Sheetz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The exterior of "The Wormhole" factory. The inside of "The Wormhole" factory in Long Beach, California. A closeup look at one of the company's "Reaper" printers at work. The scale of one of the Stargate "Reaper" printers. A pair of the company's "Reaper" 3D-printers.

☆ Taking a secret 'hush trip' could help with burnout — but might land your company a surprise tax bill
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Hannah Towey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

More remote workers are traveling without their employer's permission, also known as "hush trips." "Anybody loves the opportunity to be productive in paradise rather than in their home office," Pokora told Insider. "I think as long as remote work stays an option and working from home in general we're going to see more of this." Hush trips are the most recent addition to the growing lexicon at the intersection of work and travel, joining longtime favorites "bleisure," "workation" and "digital nomad." On the employer's side, hush trips can cause tax and legal headaches if they go on for too long, Courtney Leyes, a partner at the law firm Fisher Phillips, told Insider.

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