NewsBytes Briefing: Germans are making a flying Tesla, and more
What's better than an electric car? An electric aircraft, of course. German aviation start-up Volocopter is about to give a whole new dimension to range anxiety with its electric-powered rotorcraft capable of vertical takeoff and landing. If you're concerned about the batteries running out, don't worry because it automatically lands at a speed of 9.8m/s when the batteries run out of juice mid-flight.
Snapchat's parent company embraces sweeping changes to fight climate change
Speaking of green technologies, Snap Inc. claims to not just have achieved carbon neutrality, but it has also worked some green magic to offset carbon emissions generated since its inception in 2011. The company put out a blog post explaining how it is making changes to its operations to go green, while also ensuring humane working conditions for its workers. Are you listening, Apple?
Google seems jealous of Microsoft giving away Teams for free
Microsoft is another carbon-neutral tech company, but it has gone further and launched a free version of its Teams app, which is an alternative to existing telecommuting options such as Zoom and Google Meet. While Microsoft is doing its bit to make telecommuting easier during the pandemic, it's quite pathetic to witness Google slyly undermine its rival by curating some saucy search results.
Twitter begins gaslighting iOS users into surrendering their privacy
Since we've broached the topic of Big Tech being evil, Twitter is doing its part by gaslighting iOS users into surrendering their privacy. The new iOS 14.5 mandates all apps to seek user permission before tracking them, which is bad for their advertising revenue model. Whatever you do, don't fall for Twitter's propaganda about app tracking being done for your benefit. That's a lie.
Meanwhile, Samsung shows off futuristic screen tech at Display Week
Changing course to non-evil tech news, Samsung has been making the most of Display Week, a symposium where technology firms flex their display muscle. And Samsung has been showing off all sorts of foldable, rollable, slidable, and other advanced displays. Samsung provided quite a glimpse at cutting edge display advancements that will make their way into its consumer devices in the near future.
