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Auto industry newcomers like Taiwan-based iPhone maker Foxconn and China’s Huawei Technologies are maneuvering to gain an edge in the electric vehicle sector, prompting automakers like Japan’s Nissan and Honda to announce plans to join forces against a flood of ambitious competitors. Also known as Hon Hai Precision Industry, Foxconn has been snapping up links in the automotive supply chain, one of a growing number of technology companies that are leveraging their knowhow in electronics and communications. Foxconn’s auto venture with Taiwan automaker and importer Yulon Motor Co., Foxtron, showcased its Model B, a sleek EV hatchback, as well as its automotive electronics, at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last week. Honda and Nissan announced in December that they plan to seek a merger, a move that reports…

Peeps trickle out of a soundproof chamber as its door opens. Female zebra finches are chattering away inside the microphone-lined box. The laboratory room sounds like a chorus of squeaky toys. “They’re probably talking about us a little bit,” says McGill University postdoctoral fellow Logan James. It’s unclear, of course, what they are saying. But James believes he is getting closer to deciphering their vocalizations through a partnership with the Earth Species Project. The nonprofit laboratory has drawn some of the technology industry’s wealthiest philanthropists — and they want to see more than just scientific progress. On top of breakthroughs in animal language, they expect improved interspecies understanding will foster greater appreciation for the planet in the face of climate change. The Earth Species Project hopes to decode other creatures’…

TikTok has cemented itself as a quintessential entertainment app, offering everything from funny skits and makeup tutorials to social commentary and news. The platform, though, could vanish from U.S. app stores by Jan. 19 if the Supreme Court does not step in to block a federal law that forces TikTok to cut ties with its China-based parent company or face a nation-wide ban. President-elect Donald Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, recently asked the court to put a pause on the law so he can work out a “political resolution” to the issue during his second term. If the Justices — who heard oral arguments over the law — grant his request, a potential ban on TikTok will be delayed even further. The Supreme Court is expected to issue…

The new year is always a good time to make a fresh start — including with your email inbox. To kick off 2025 with a clean slate, why not clear out all those unnecessary and unwanted messages? If you’re anything like me, you’ll have piles of messages that have been accumulating in your inbox: receipts, bank and credit card statements, mobile phone bills, plane tickets, restaurant bookings, reminders, security warnings, spam and more. Mixed in with all that administrative detritus might be some personal missives from friends and family that are worth keeping. There are several reasons to purge all that digital clutter. For one, it cuts the risk in case of a data breach. If hackers somehow gain access to your email, they won’t have any personal or financial…

The Los Angeles Rams defense appeared to be content to drop back in coverage and prevent San Francisco’s Brock Purdy from completing a Hail Mary on the final play of their Thursday night game on Dec. 12. The broadcast on Amazon Prime Video saw it differently, though. Before Purdy snapped the ball, a defensive alert appeared on the screen, indicating that Rams inside linebacker Christian Rozeboom could rush the quarterback. Sure enough, Rozeboom came in on a rush and sacked Purdy for a 6-yard loss to end the game. Besides the Rams celebrating, Prime Video’s “Prime Vision with Next Gen Stats” production crew were exchanging high fives. As Prime Video wraps up its third season doing NFL games with an AFC wild-card matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens…

The automotive industry stands on the brink of a radical transformation. From CES 2025’s eyeopening displays of cutting-edge tech to next-generation cars like Tesla’s revamped Model Y and the evolutionary leap in Apple’s CarPlay, the future of vehicles is brighter than ever. THE FUTURE OF CARS CES 2025 revealed an ecosystem where the boundaries between driving, entertainment, and living space blur. Automakers like Hyundai Mobis, BMW, Honda, and Sony Honda Mobility showcased many innovations aimed at redefining how we interact with vehicles. A dominant theme was the car’s interior evolving into a comfortable, adaptive living space, integrating AI, holographic displays, and personalized infotainment systems. Hyundai Mobis introduced a full-windshield holographic display technology that projects essential data and entertainment across the entire windshield. This futuristic concept envisions a driver’s view that…

During natural disasters like wildfires and floods, scammers often emerge to prey on victims. People in heightened emotional states in the wake of a catastrophic event should be extra careful of impersonators asking for identifying details, according to Karina Layugan, an attorney with the Federal Trade Commission based in Los Angeles, where firefighters in the region are battling blazes that have already destroyed thousands of homes and killed at least 24 people. Scammers sometimes pretend to be from the utility company or the Federal Emergency Management Agency and ask to “verify information.” If someone uses that phrase, ask why the individual needs that information and “always contact the company or agency directly,” she said. That’s information those organizations should already have. “It’s something that’s unfortunately very common,” Layugan said. “After…

Boeing delivered less than half the number of commercial aircraft to customers than its European rival in 2024 as the American aerospace giant’s output suffered under intensified government scrutiny and a factory workers’ strike, according to data released this week. Boeing said it supplied 348 jetliners during the year. That was more than a third fewer than the 528 the company finished for airlines and leasing outfits in 2023 and less than half the number of jetliners that Airbus delivered last year. Deliveries are an important source of cash for plane manufacturers since buyers typically pay a large portion of the purchase price when their orders are fulfilled. More than three-quarters of the planes that Boeing furnished were 737 Max jets, a stark reminder of how integral its best-selling airline…

Taking a shower. Grocery shopping. Moving around the kitchen. Getting dressed. The underappreciated link between these mundane activities is good balance, which geriatricians say is key to maintaining an independent lifestyle as we age. Lacking balance can be dangerous. In the U.S., 3 million older people seek medical care for fall-related injuries each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control. But falls are not inevitable, said Roopa Anmolsingh, a geriatrician who created the Cleveland Clinic’s balance classes. “Some people have a misconception that part of getting old is, you’re going to fall. That’s not true,” Anmolsingh said. “You can control how you fall, or if you fall.” To prevent falls, geriatricians say people should start asking themselves questions about their balance as early as 50 years old. DO I…

Elon Musk said a third person has received an implant from his brain-computer interface company Neuralink, one of many groups working to connect the nervous system to machines. “We’ve got ... three humans with Neuralinks and all are working well,” he said during a wide-ranging interview at a Las Vegas event streamed on his social media platform X. Since the first brain implant about a year ago, Musk said the company has upgraded the devices with more electrodes, higher bandwidth and longer battery life. Musk also said Neuralink hopes to implant the experimental devices in 20 to 30 more people this year. Musk didn’t provide any details about the latest patient, but there are updates on the previous ones. The second recipient — who has a spinal cord injury and…

The Supreme Court seemed likely to uphold a law that would ban TikTok in the United States beginning Jan. 19 unless the popular social media program is sold by its China-based parent company. Hearing arguments in a momentous clash of free speech and national security concerns, the justices seemed persuaded by arguments that the national security threat posed by the company’s connections to China override concerns about restricting the speech either of TikTok or its 170 million users in the United States. Early in arguments that lasted more than two and a half hours, Chief Justice John Roberts identified his main concern: TikTok’s ownership by China-based ByteDance and the parent company’s requirement to cooperate with the Chinese government’s intelligence operations. If left in place, the law passed by bipartisan majorities…

Credit card defaults are on the rise for Americans, reaching the highest level in 14 years. U.S. credit card defaults jumped to a record $46 billion from January through September 2024, according to the Financial Times, citing data analyzed by BankRegData. With high levels of credit card debt and high inflation, many consumers have found themselves unable to cover monthly payments, leading some to default. A borrower goes into default when they miss credit card payments for over 180 days, roughly six months. When there is a failure to pay over such a long period, banks generally take this as a sign that a borrower won’t pay the debt anymore, said Matt Sotir, financial advisor with Equitable Advisors based in New Hampshire. Defaulting on credit card debt can have serious…

Amazon is saying goodbye to “Try Before You Buy.” The service, which allowed Amazon’s Prime members to try on select clothing items, shoes and accessories at home before completing a purchase, is set to wind down in the coming weeks. The last day eligible customers can place orders using the subscriber benefit is Jan. 31, the company confirmed. Under the service, Prime members can order up to six select apparel items on a trial basis. Customers then have seven days after receiving the merchandise to return any unwanted items without being charged. In a statement, an Amazon spokesperson cited the program’s limited reach and the growing use of improve sizing recommendations powered by artificial intelligence on the e-commerce platform. “Given the combination of Try Before You Buy only scaling to…

Britain’s competition watchdog flexed new digital market powers for the first time with an investigation into Google’s search and search ad businesses. Under beefed-up rules that took effect this month designed to protect consumers and businesses from unfair practices by Big Tech companies, the Competition and Markets Authority said it would determine whether Google should be given “strategic market status” that would require imposing changes to the company’s behavior. The investigation adds to global scrutiny that the U.S. tech giant is facing. The Competition and Markets Authority said it will examine whether Google is using its position in the market to stifle innovation and block rivals. The regulator said it will look in particular at Google’s role in shaping the development of new artificial services and interfaces such as “answer…