Taxi ride-sharing app Maaxi launches to join a crowded cab rank April 14, 2015 Maaxi, the black cab ride-sharing app will be launched today, joining the line-up in an already-competitive London taxi market. But founder and chief executive Gabriel Campos, former boss of online gaming website Pokerstars, insists the new offering is not just another taxi scheme, but rather “door-to-door public transport”. Campos, whose main backer is Nat [...]
Maaxi road test: The ride-sharing app turning black cabs into public transport April 14, 2015 It's a balmy London day and I’m sitting comfortably in a black cab, but, for the purposes of demonstrating his new ride sharing app, Maaxi boss Gabriel Campos wants me to envisage a more typical travel scenario. “Just imagine you’re waiting at the bus stop in the freezing cold and the next one’s not coming [...]
Borgen muse Margrethe Vestager tipped to finally shake up Google in anti-trust probe April 14, 2015 She is said to be the inspiration behind Birgitte Nyborg, the cool-headed Danish prime minister in the hit TV show Borgen. Today, European competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager is expected to live up to the go-getting reputation of her fictional counterpart by setting out a list of charges, known as a statement of objections (SO), against [...]
Should human-killing robots be allowed to exist? The UN is deciding once and for all April 14, 2015 They're terrifying machines – capable of operating without human control and built with a vicious streak that could steal the lives of thousands of humans in a split second. As artificial intelligence develops and improves, who's to say the killer robots we put together with our own hands won't one day cause serious devastation to [...]
IBM is creating a huge health data cloud with Apple, Johnson & Johnson and Medtronic April 14, 2015 IBM, Apple and Johnson & Johnson have formed an unlikely alliance to create a giant health data cloud in an attempt to drastically improve medical data analysis. The companies will contribute information gathered from millions of personal health monitoring technologies such as fitness trackers, implants and smartphones to the newly-formed Watson Health Unit. IBM, [...]
Traditional British fish and chips are about to get an exotic twist April 14, 2015 There's no easy way to say this, but global warming could be about to cause the death of traditional British fish and chips. According to a new study, as the temperature in the North Sea rises, "traditional" fish and chips fish such as cod, haddock and plaice will head north in search of cooler conditions. [...]
Amazon and HarperCollins agree publishing deal settling ebook pricing row April 14, 2015 Amazon and publisher HarperCollins have settled a long-running battle over the pricing of digital editions of its books. The NewsCorp-owned publisher and online retailing giant have agreed that HarperCollins can set its own prices for ebooks sold through Amazon although there will be incentives for it to set lower prices for consumers, the Wall Street [...]
Apple Watch sales figures: How many many were sold on the first weekend on pre-order? Here’s the first analyst estimates April 13, 2015 The first estimates of the Apple Watch sales are in – and they're not looking too shabby (despite reviews that can be summarised as "meh"). After opening for pre-order sales on Friday, one research firm has already pegged sales at almost one million. 957,000 if you want to be precise. Of course, Apple are keeping [...]
A history of human space travel: Here’s what we’ve achieved since the first trip into space April 13, 2015 Yesterday marked exactly 54 years since the very first human mission into space. On 12 April 1961, the Russian Soviet pilot and cosmonaut Yuri Gargarin boarded the Vostok 1 and shouted “Poyekhali!” – “let's go!” – as he headed for the stars. He didn't actually go that far – he spent 108 minutes orbiting Earth [...]
Hayfever season has arrived – here’s how you can protect yourself against the pollen April 13, 2015 With sunshine, blossoming flowers and every other pleasant thing that arrives with the warmer months, there's also pollen – the culprit of many a summer day spent in extreme discomfort. The hayfever season is upon us, and already sneezes and itchy eyes are causing irritation across the nation. The bad news is, as yet, [...]