AirPods switch to USB-C ⚡, $20B Unity acquisition offer 🎮, Meta's new CFO 👩🏻

Daily Update 2022-08-10

5 data privacy pitfalls that will cost you—and how to avoid them (Sponsor)

It’s a tricky situation: You want to get your products to market ASAP. Data privacy and security concerns can slow you down, but ignoring them might be disastrous. Where can you take shortcuts, and where do you need to put data privacy first?

This quick guide covers the most common data privacy and security pitfalls that can cost companies a fortune to fix (such as failing to de-identify sensitive data). More importantly, you’ll learn how to avoid these mistakes with a privacy by design approach. Read the guide now

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Big Tech & Startups

AirPods to switch to USB-C for charging alongside iPhone 15 in 2023 (2 minute read)

Apple is planning to switch the iPhone to USB-C as soon as next year, according to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. It will launch a USB-C version of its other accessories, including AirPods, Magic Keyboard, Magic Trackpad, and Magic Mouse, along with the USB-C iPhone. Legislation in the EU requiring all smartphones and accessories to use USB-C by 2024 is likely driving the decision behind the switch.

AppLovin wants to buy video game maker Unity for $20 billion (2 minute read)

App growth and monetization agency AppLovin has submitted an unsolicited proposal to buy Unity in a deal worth $20 billion. Unity recently agreed to merge with ironSource. AppLovin's proposal would give Unity 55% of the merged company's shares representing 49% of voting rights. Unity recently struck a $1 billion deal to create a joint venture in China with ByteDance, Alibaba, and other companies to develop local versions of its products for game developers.

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Science & Futuristic Technology

New Wi-Fi Reflection Tech Could Send Signal Through Impenetrable Walls (2 minute read)

Austrian scientists have developed a technique to eliminate wave reflections caused by physical interference. The technique involves covering walls with an anti-reflective coating. Walls scatter waves in different ways, so the scientists had to measure how each wall reflected waves and then create a custom coating for every wall. The technology could help improve Wi-Fi, imaging processes, and mobile communication technology.

Scientists hid encryption key for Wizard of Oz text in plastic molecules (4 minute read)

Scientists from Austin, Texas were able to hide an encryption key within a special ink. They used sequence-defined polymers (SDPs), long chains of monomers that can carry a sequence of information, to store the encryption key. The SDPs were mixed with isopropanol, glycerol, and soot to create the special ink. Stored messages on SDPs can be decoded using depolymerization and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. The technique was able to successfully store 256 bits of data.

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Programming, Design & Data Science

Don’t call it a comeback: Why Java is still champ (13 minute read)

Despite how developers talk about Java, it has been among the top three languages since shortly after its launch in 1995. The language and its greater ecosystem has recently seen a bit of a revival. This article discusses Java, its history, and its recent comeback. The language is still being developed in preparation for the future of software development.

Astro 1.0 (5 minute read)

Astro is a web framework for building fast, content-focused websites. It features server-side rendering, image optimization, Markdown support, and a custom build engine. Version 1.0 was recently released.

Data Nerds rejoice! FutureStack by New Relic is hitting the road in APAC, AMER, and EMEA (Sponsor)

Time to up your observability game: New Relic is hosting FutureStack mini-conferences in multiple regions. Want to stay up-to-date with the latest innovations in containerization, cloud migration, machine learning, and serverless apps? Join now to learn from stellar keynotes, hands-on workshops, and technical deep-dives. Find and register for a FutureStack event near you

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Miscellaneous

What we know about Susan Li, the new CFO at Meta (2 minute read)

Susan Li will be taking over as CFO at Meta, replacing longtime CFO Dave Wehner, who will be moving into the CSO role. The shakeup is a sign that Mark Zuckerberg is shifting into wartime CEO mode. Li will be focused on rightsizing cost structures, selling the Metaverse narrative to Wall Street, and resource allocation. More details about Li, her career, and the implications of the appointment are available in the thread.

Google tries publicly shaming Apple into adopting RCS (3 minute read)

Google has launched a new website to pressure Apple into adopting RCS, a cross-platform messaging protocol. RCS provides features similar to Apple's iMessage, but it is usable across both iOS and Android. Apple has little reason to use the protocol. iMessage has a lock-in effect with its customers and it makes it easy for Apple users to identify Android users.

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Quick Links

Write UI tests faster with Testim—seriously, it’s not even close (Sponsor)

Testim's AI helps you write cross-browser UI tests that you can trust. Get started for free today.

A Biochemist’s View of Life’s Origin Reframes Cancer and Aging (13 minute read)

The biochemist thinks life first evolved in hydrothermal vents, where precursors of metabolism appeared before genetic information.

Recode (GitHub Repo)

Recode allows developers to run remote development environments on their own cloud.

Influit moves to commercialize its ultra-high density liquid batteries (5 minute read)

Influit Energy's rechargeable electrofuel batteries are non-flammable and fast-refueling and carry 23% more energy than lithium batteries at half the cost.

DNS Reaper (GitHub Repo)

DNS Reaper is a subdomain takeover tool that can be used as an attacker, defender, or bug hunting tool.

TikTok parent ByteDance just bought a hospital group in China (2 minute read)

ByteDance has acquired Amcare, a company that runs high-end children's and women's hospitals across China.

WhatsApp will soon let you slip out of group chats undetected (2 minute read)

The new feature, which will start rolling out to all users this month, will allow people to leave group chats without alerting other users.

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AirPods switch to USB-C ⚡, $20B Unity acquisition offer 🎮, Meta's new CFO 👩🏻

Daily Update 2022-08-10

Big Tech & Startups

Science & Futuristic Technology

Programming, Design & Data Science

Miscellaneous

Quick Links

What did you think of today's newsletter?

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Samsung Galaxy event📱, Google Fiber expands 🌐, how teens use social media 🧒

Google worldwide outage ⚡, SoftBank loses $21.6B 📉, what's the next big thing 💡

Amazon buys Roomba 🤖, Meta's AI chatbot 💬, advice for junior devs in current market 👨‍💻

SpaceX moon launch 🚀, organ harvesting startup 🫁, North Korean Gmail hackers 📧

Tesla's new solar roof ☀️, self hostable coding AI 👨‍💻, flying car FAA approved 🚗

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