AppleMagazine #542

U.S. chipmaker Intel unveiled plans this week to invest up to 80 billion euros ($88 billion) across Europe as part of an ambitious expansion aimed at evening out imbalances in the global semiconductor industry that have led to big chip shortages. CEO Pat Gelsinger said Intel was investing the money over the next decade “along the entire semiconductor value chain.” The company plans to spend tens of billions of dollars setting up or expanding chip production sites and establishing research and development or design centers in Germany, Ireland, France and Italy. “Why are we doing this? Because the world has an insatiable demand for semiconductors, or chips,” Gelsinger said in a webcast. Intel said it’s bringing its most advanced technology to Europe to address the need for a “more balanced and resilient”semiconductor supply chain. European…

Ford says it will have three new electric passenger vehicles and four new electric commercial vehicles in Europe by 2024, part of the automaker’s continued push to grow its presence in the EV market. Ford Motor Co. said that it plans to sell more than 600,000 electric vehicles in the Europe by 2026. It anticipates producing 1.2 million electric vehicles in Cologne, Germany over six years. Ford will start production of an all-new electric passenger vehicle, a medium-sized crossover, in Cologne next year. A second electric vehicle will be added to the Cologne production line-up in 2024. An electric version of the Ford Puma will be made in Craiova, Romania beginning in 2024. For commercial vehicles, the Transit will include four new electric models – the Transit Custom one-tonne van and Tourneo Custom…

For years Americans have been told autonomous technology was improving and that driverless vehicles were just around the corner. Finally they’re here, but to catch a glimpse of them, you’ll need to go to a farm rather than look along city streets. Beginning this fall, green 14-ton tractors that can plow day or night with no one sitting in the cab, or even watching nearby, will come off the John Deere factory assembly line in Waterloo, Iowa, harkening the age of autonomous farming. The development follows more than a decade-long effort by the world’s largest farm equipment manufacturer, and marks a milestone for automation advocates, who for years have been explaining why driverless cars aren’t quite ready for prime time. “I’m glad to see they’re coming out and will stimulate the other technologies,” said…

Companies critical to U.S. national interests will now have to report when they’re hacked or they pay ransomware, according to new rules approved by Congress. The rules are part of a broader effort by the Biden administration and Congress to shore up the nation’s cyberdefenses after a series of high-profile digital espionage campaigns and disruptive ransomware attacks. The reporting will give the federal government much greater visibility into hacking efforts that target private companies, which often have skipped going to the FBI or other agencies for help. “It’s clear we must take bold action to improve our online defenses,” Sen. Gary Peters, a Michigan Democrat who leads the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee and wrote the legislation, said in a statement. The reporting requirement legislation was approved by the House and…

At Apple’s Peek Performance event, held virtually this March, the company lifted the lid on its next-generation iPad Air, bringing some of the high-spec features from the iPad Pro to the consumer-focused tablet. The direct-from-Mac M1 chip and super-fast5G connectivity make the latest iPad Air even more of a compelling offer for students, families, and professionals. A FIFTH-GENERATION DEVICE On November 1, 2013, Apple introduced the iPad Air to the world, designed to serve as a premium version of the iPad. Fast-forward nine years, and the iPad Air is now one of the most important products in Apple’s line-up, serving as a more cost-effective version of the iPad Pro, and giving consumers and professionals the tablet they need for modern life. At its March event, Apple lifted the lid on the fifth…

Amazon said it will spend more than $120 million to build affordable-housing units close to transit stations near Seattle and Washington, D.C, the latest example of a tech company trying to address the affordable housing crisis critics say the industry has exacerbated. Amazon said it is working with Sound Transit and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority to construct a total of 1,060 homes near four public transit sites. The Washington state sites are in SeaTac and Bellevue. The other sites are Maryland in the cities of New Carrollton and College Park. Amazon is building out another corporate hub in Arlington, Virginia, and is expanding operations in Bellevue, near its Seattle headquarters. “We know that our investment in these areas brings many economic opportunities for residents in the region, but we also acknowledge…