Quick Task - Home

Wearable Technology

Oura Ring 4 Ceramic: Stylish and Functional Smart Ring

The Oura Ring 4 Ceramic offers a stylish alternative to traditional tech wearables, featuring a zirconia ceramic build for enhanced durability and aesthetics.

Available in Midnight, Cloud, Tide, and Petal colors, the Ceramic ring is slightly thicker and heavier than the titanium version but remains comfortable for daily wear.

The ring's color is derived from natural minerals, ensuring vibrancy over time, and it includes a polishing pad to address potential scuffs from softer metals.

Despite being water-resistant, it's advised to avoid contact with softer metals to prevent scuffing.

The Oura Ring 4 Ceramic effectively tracks heart health, sleep, and stress through the Oura app, providing users with a daily readiness score.

With a battery life of five to eight days, the choice between ceramic and titanium depends on aesthetic preferences and budget.

Artificial Intelligence

ChatGPT Learns to Ditch Em Dashes on Command

OpenAI has addressed ChatGPT's tendency to overuse em dashes. Users can now instruct ChatGPT not to use em dashes in custom instructions, giving them more control over the chatbot's punctuation. This update resolves a persistent issue where ChatGPT included em dashes even when explicitly asked not to, a trait that had become associated with AI-generated text.

Environmental Technology

Boeing Invests in Carbon Removal Startup Charm Industrial to Offset Emissions

Boeing has partnered with Charm Industrial to remove 100,000 metric tons of carbon from the atmosphere. Charm uses agricultural and forestry waste to create bio-oil, which is then injected underground for carbon sequestration. This deal allows Boeing to offset its carbon emissions, as the aviation industry struggles to reduce its carbon footprint. Carbon offsets are emerging as a cost-effective alternative to sustainable aviation fuels. Charm also produces biochar, which can improve soil productivity. The financial details of the Boeing-Charm deal were not disclosed.

Cybercrime

US Cracks Down on Aiding North Korean IT Scheme: Five Guilty Pleas

Five individuals have pleaded guilty to assisting North Koreans in defrauding U.S. companies by posing as remote IT workers, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

These facilitators provided identities and hosted laptops to create the illusion that the North Korean workers were local, impacting 136 U.S. companies and generating $2.2 million for North Korea.

The scheme involved U.S. nationals and a Ukrainian national, who provided fake identities and facilitated remote access to company resources.

The DOJ also seized over $15 million in cryptocurrency stolen by North Korean hackers, highlighting the ongoing efforts to combat North Korea's cybercrime activities.

Technology

WhatsApp Opens to Third-Party Chats in Europe

Meta is preparing to launch third-party chat integration on WhatsApp in Europe, complying with the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA).

Users in Europe will soon be able to chat with users of BirdyChat and Haiket directly via third-party chats.

This integration will allow sharing messages, images, voice messages, videos, and files. Group chats with third-party users will be enabled later.

Users can opt-in via the 'Settings' tab and can turn third-party chats on or off at any time. Integrations will be available on Android and iOS.

Meta's partnerships with BirdyChat and Haiket are the result of a three-year collaboration to comply with DMA requirements, ensuring end-to-end encryption and user understanding of chat differences.

Business & Finance

Google Faces €572M Penalty for Antitrust Breach in German Price Comparison Market

A German court has ruled that Google abused its market dominance in price comparison, ordering the company to pay €572 million in damages to Idealo (€465 million) and Producto (€107 million). Idealo initially sought €3.3 billion, citing Google's self-preferencing of its own shopping service, previously penalized by the European Court of Justice. Idealo intends to pursue further action. Google plans to appeal, asserting its 2017 changes are effective and that it treats rival comparison services fairly, operating Google Shopping as a separate business. This ruling follows an EU investigation into Google's spam policy and a prior €2.95 billion EU fine for favoring its own advertising services.

Mobile Technology

Pixel 10 Pro Fold: A Sturdier Foldable with AI Enhancements

The Pixel 10 Pro Fold focuses on durability with a new gearless hinge and IP68 rating, addressing user concerns about foldable longevity. It features a Tensor G5 processor, brighter screen, and a larger battery. Google has added AI features like Magic Cue, call translation and camera coach.

The camera setup is similar to last year's model, but not on par with the Pixel 10 Pro. The phone maintains a chunky design, prioritizing sturdiness over thinness. Priced at $1,799, it offers a fully-baked Google experience in a foldable form factor.

Finance

Pine Labs' Solid Market Debut Signals Confidence in Indian Fintech

Payment technology company Pine Labs, supported by PayPal and Mastercard, experienced a positive market reception on its IPO, closing 14% higher after reducing its valuation for the $440 million IPO.

The stock opened at ₹242, peaked at ₹284, and settled at ₹252, exceeding the issue price of ₹221. The company's market capitalization reached ₹289 billion (approximately $3.3 billion).

Pine Labs, founded in 1998, has grown beyond India and now operates in 20 markets. The company became profitable in the June quarter, reporting a net profit of ₹47.86 million (about $540,000). Revenue from operations rose 17.9% year-over-year to ₹6.16 billion (around $69 million).

Amrish Rau, CEO of Pine Labs, emphasized the company's continued startup mindset. The public listing included existing investors such as Peak XV Partners, Temasek Holdings, PayPal, and Mastercard selling portions of their holdings.

Pine Labs intends to expand its geographic presence and deepen its footprint in India with new products and services aimed at the growing consumer base.

Artificial Intelligence

Harvey's Ascent: From Legal AI Startup to Valley Darling

Harvey, a legal AI startup founded by Winston Weinberg, has rapidly gained prominence in Silicon Valley, attracting investments from top-tier venture capitalists like OpenAI Startup Fund, Sequoia Capital, and Andreessen Horowitz. Valued at $8 billion, the company's success is attributed to its ability to secure major law firms and corporate legal departments as clients.

Weinberg shared how a cold email to Sam Altman led to OpenAI's early investment. Harvey now boasts 235 clients across 63 countries and has surpassed $100 million in annual recurring revenue. The platform is designed as a 'multiplayer' system that facilitates collaboration between law firms and corporations, addressing challenges like ethical walls and data permissioning.

Lawyers primarily use Harvey for drafting, research (through a partnership with LexisNexis), and analyzing large volumes of documents for diligence or discovery. While some critics view Harvey as a wrapper for ChatGPT, Weinberg emphasizes the platform's unique ability to collect workflow data and create a multiplayer environment for legal service providers and consumers.

Harvey's business model is transitioning towards outcome-based pricing for specific workflows, while continuing to offer seat-based licenses. Weinberg also addressed the potential impact on junior lawyers, highlighting Harvey's role as a training tool and one-on-one tutor, enabling them to become partners more quickly.