Déraciné review: A virtual reality puzzler about haunting a boarding school November 30, 2018 From the studio that created Dark Souls, a twisted Gothic action RPG so infamously challenging that it’s become gaming shorthand for punishing difficulty, comes Deracine, a ponderous virtual reality puzzler set in a Victorian boarding school, in which you take on the role of a mischievous fairy playing tricks on the residents. Headset on, you [...]
Mike Lynch resigns from government advisory role following US criminal charges November 30, 2018 Tech billionaire Mike Lynch has stepped down from his role as an adviser to the UK government and as a fellow of the Royal Society after being hit with criminal charges by US authorities yesterday. Lynch was yesterday charged with fourteen counts of fraud and conspiracy which carry a maximum sentence of 20 years. The [...]
Christmas truce: Apple Music arrives on Amazon’s Echo device next month November 30, 2018 Silicon Valley rivals Apple and Amazon are cosying up next month to give customers an early Christmas present, by enabling Apple Music streaming on Amazon’s Echo speaker. In an apparent thawing of relations, Amazon announced this morning that Echo owners would be able to ask its voice-activated assistant Alexa to play songs, artists, albums and playlists [...]
Banking challenger Chetwood builds the world’s first dynamic loan as fintech startups look on November 30, 2018 Welsh banking challenger Chetwood Financial has today unveiled the world’s first so-called dynamic loan, where the interest rate falls as borrowers improve their credit score. Built in collaboration with credit rating firm Clearscore and launched under its brand Livelend, the loan uses technology to monitor a customer’s credit score and reduce its rate at three-month [...]
Alternative finance lender Oakam is trying to help the unbanked November 30, 2018 Payday loan companies get a bad rap. And it’s easy to see why, considering the predatory businesses practices and extortionate interest rates charged by lenders like Wonga, which collapsed into administration this year. High-interest, short-term loans were back in the news this week, with the announcement that the fintech startup Monzo is considering offering such [...]
AI means more jobs, not less November 30, 2018 The future of work is at the heart of every major socio-economic-political debate. In fact, reports from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) suggest that robots are set to replace 66m jobs in the coming years. All these discussions are rooted in the topic of the nature and distribution of work. Many are excited and [...]
Softbank sets indicative IPO price at £10.34 per share to value firm at nearly £50bn November 30, 2018 Softbank intends to sell shares for ¥1500 (£10.34) a piece in its initial public offering (IPO) next month, in the country’s biggest ever listing. The company didn’t give a price range, instead plumping for a single preliminary figure for the 2.41 trillion yen (£16.44bn) IPO, Reuters reported, showing the company is confident that demand will [...]
UK tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch charged in US over Autonomy deal November 30, 2018 Prominent UK tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch has been charged by US authorities with fraud over the sale of software company Autonomy to Hewlett Packard in 2011. The US Department of Justice filed charges against Lynch yesterday in a San Francisco court. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and include 14 [...]
Qualcomm unveils $100m AI startup fund as tech companies race to invest in sector November 29, 2018 US telecoms firm Qualcomm has launched a $100m (£78.3m) fund to invest in AI startups in a bid to promote new technology for self-driving cars and robots. The Qualcomm Ventures AI Fund will focus on firms that are developing “on-device AI”, as the telecoms company looks to spread the use of the new technology on [...]
Volkswagen is planning a new US plant for electric cars as it takes the fight to Tesla November 29, 2018 German car manufacturer Volkswagen is marking out spots for a future electric vehicle factory in North America, as major car firms gear up to face rival firm Tesla's impact on the market. The newly-appointed chief executive of Volkswagen's US arm said the firm is planning a new plant to build a car that has yet to [...]