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EU Right to Repair Rules Force Companies to Fix Out-of-Warranty Devices

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The European Commission has waved through new ‘right to repair’ legislation that aims to make it easier for consumers to get their broken devices fixed, even if products are out of warranty.

European Commisssion
The EU already requires companies to offer a two-year minimum warranty on common household appliances and electronics, such as smartphones, TVs, washing machines, and vacuum cleaners, but the new rules impose additional requirements.

According to the legislation, if a consumer chooses to have their device repaired under warranty, the warranty must be extended by a year. Consumers may also borrow a device while theirs is being repaired, and if it cannot be fixed, they have the right to opt for a refurbished unit as an alternative.

When a product’s warranty expires, companies are still required to repair devices at a “reasonable price,” so as not to intentionally discourage consumers from repairing them. Manufacturers will also be prohibited from using “hardware or software related barriers to repair,” including preventing the use of second-hand, compatible, and 3D-printed spare parts by independent repairers as long as they conform to EU laws.

Additionally, manufacturers will be unable to refuse to repair a product solely for economic reasons or because it was previously repaired by someone else. Companies will be required to publish information about their repair services, including indicative prices of the most common repairs.

“Consumers’ right to repair products will now become a reality,” said EC rapporteur René Repasi. “It will be easier and cheaper to repair instead of purchase new, expensive items. This is a significant achievement for Parliament and its commitment to empower consumers in the fight against climate change. The new legislation extends legal guarantees by 12 months when opting for repair, gives better access to spare parts and ensures easier, cheaper and faster repair.”

The legislation will come into effect after formal approval by the Council, with the directive set to activate 20 days after its publication.

Europe’s Right to Repair group welcomed the legislation, calling it “a step in the right direction,” but said “the scope of products covered remains very narrow,” and would introduce loopholes. The coalition noted that the rules only cover consumer products, and not anything purchased by businesses or industrial goods. It also criticized the lack of guidance on what constituted a “reasonable price” for spare parts.

Apple is likely to be impacted by the legislation, especially with regard to its controversial “parts pairing” requirement that prevents third-party replacements of certain device components. Currently, if an iPhone part is replaced with a like-for-like replacement by an unofficial third party, it may not be recognised by the iPhone’s system software. The wording of the new EU rules suggests this will no longer be allowed.

Meanwhile in the U.S., more than two-dozen states are working on individual right-to-repair legislation. California’s Right to Repair Act will become law this July, requiring manufacturers to make repair materials available for all electronics and appliances that cost $50 or more.

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Browser Companies Criticize Apple’s EU Choice Screen in iOS 17.4

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Several third-party browser companies have experienced a spike in iPhone installs since Apple made major changes to iOS in order to comply with the Digital Markets Act in the European Union, but many are not happy with Apple’s implementation of its default browser choice screen.

alternative browser list eu
In iOS 17.4, released last month, Apple no longer limits EU users to the handful of browser options that iOS currently offers as alternatives in other parts of the world. Instead, users in the EU who open Safari for the first time are presented with a choice screen that allows them to opt for a new default browser from a list of popular alternatives in their country.

The change has led to a sharp increase in third-party browser usage, based on several reports. On Wednesday, Reuters reported that users of privacy-first browser Aloha had jumped 250% in March. The jump in users largely came in France, Belgium (3x growth), Germany, The Netherlands, Spain and Sweden (2.5x growth), and Denmark, Italy and Poland (2x growth).

Aloha browser markets itself as a privacy focused alternative to browsers that earns its money through paid subscriptions rather than selling ads by tracking users. The Cyprus-based company says it has 10 million monthly average users.

“Before, EU was our number four market, right now it’s number two,” Aloha CEO Andrew Frost Moroz said in an interview with Reuters.

Norway’s Vivaldi browser, Germany’s Ecosia and U.S.-based Brave have all seen user numbers rise following the new regulation. U.S.-based DuckDuckGo, which has about 100 million users, and its more popular rival, Norway-based Opera, have also reported substantial increases.

To be eligible for consideration in the alternative browsers list, companies must have the Default Browser Entitlement that is available to developers. Apple also requires that the app has been downloaded by at least 5,000 ‌iPhone‌ users‌ across all 27 EU countries in the prior calendar year. Apple selects up to 11 of these for the browser choice screen in addition to Safari, updating the list once per calendar year.

Google has also updated its Pixel software to show alternative browser choices, and says that new Android devices made by other companies will also display the choice screen in the coming months.

Despite users increasingly choosing alternative options, browser companies have criticized Apple and Google for the slow rollout of the change, and believe it is hampering the migration away from Safari and Chrome. Mozilla, which owns Firefox, estimates that only around a fifth of ‌iPhone‌ users in the EU have received the iOS update, and claims that the rollout is much slower than Apple’s previous software updates.

Some alternative browser makers are also concerned that the design of choice screens is sub-optimal at best. For example, Vivaldi CEO Jon Stephenson von Tetzchner notes that Apple’s choice screen only appears when ‌iPhone‌ users open Safari, while the list of browsers provides no additional information.

“The process is just so convoluted that it’s easiest for (users) to select Safari or potentially some other known name,” he told Reuters.

Vivaldi is also unhappy with the design. The list of browsers does not show additional information and that does not help users to make a meaningful choice,” a company spokesperson told TechCrunch. “If the user has already selected a browser of their own choice, the choice screen can actively try to push them away from it, and may not even include it in the list that it presents to the user.”

Ecosia has also been critical, and says Apple’s implementation involves an “overly complex installation process” and keeps Safari front and center on the user’s ‌iPhone‌ Home screen.

The European Commission is currently investigating Apple’s choice screen design for suspected noncompliance. The problem is being conducted in consultation with browser companies, who are likely to encourage regulators to push for a stronger implementation to level the competitive playing field.

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Baldur’s Gate 3 publishing head reflects on recent industry layoffs, “it’s incorrect to believe huge companies are run necessarily by incredibly intelligent people”

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Micheal Douse, head of publishing at Baldur’s Gate 3 developer Larian Studios, has reflected candidly on the current state of the video game industry and described the ongoing wave of mass layoffs as “an avoidable f***-up.”

It comes in a recent interview with gaming newsletter Game File, where Douse said that “it’s incorrect to believe that huge companies are run necessarily by incredibly intelligent people that have the means to do the right thing all the time.”

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80 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions comes from just 57 companies

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A new Carbon Majors Database report, which examines carbon dioxide emissions, found that just 57 companies were responsible for 80 percent of the global carbon dioxide emissions between 2016 and 2022. ExxonMobil, which topped the list of United States companies, contributed 1.4 percent of all global carbon dioxide emissions. It has net zero emissions targets.

Nearly 200 parties adopted the 2015 Paris Agreement, committing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. However, 58 of the 100 state- and investor-owned companies in the Carbon Majors Database have since increased their production.

The International Energy Agency found coal consumption increased by eight percent over the seven years to 8.3 billion tons — a record high. State-owned Coal India is one of the top three carbon dioxide producers. Russia’s state-owned energy company Gazprom and state-owned oil firm Saudi Aramco rounded out the group.

— Mat Smith

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When you apply sports logic to a music festival.

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YouTube

YouTube is hyping its exclusive Coachella streaming coverage, which starts next week. The headlining feature is the platform’s multiview experience (already familiar to sports fans) — but who wants to watch up to four stages simultaneously, with audio for one of them. It’s… a music festival. Coachella runs from April 12 to 14 and April 19 to 21.

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If you want 4K 200Hz display, you’ll need an extra $1,700 and a bit of time.

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Razer

Finally, after a reveal at CES, the 2024 edition of the Razor Blade 18 arrives for $3,099. The base system has an i9-14900HX processor, 32GB of RAM, 1TB of SSD storage, Wi-Fi 7, a triple-fan cooling system and a six-speaker array with THX spatial audio support. You can equip the laptop with up to an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 (the base model has a 4070 graphics card). In what Razer claims is a first for a laptop, there’s Thunderbolt 5 connectivity, but only if you opt for a 4080 or 4090 GPU.

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Eight offices in Santa Clara, California were affected by the layoffs.

Over 700 people at Apple have recently lost their jobs, mostly from offices in Santa Clara. The location that dealt with the company’s electric vehicle projects has lost 371 people. There may not be enough space at that new home robot project.

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Former PlayStation chairman sees exclusivity as ‘Achilles’ heel’ of industry, urges companies to ‘get that funnel wider’

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Former Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) chairman Shawn Layden addressed the challenges facing the modern games industry in a brand new interview, calling console exclusives the “Achilles’ heel” of the video games landscape. 

Speaking with VentureBeat, Layden stated: “When your costs for a game exceed $200 million, exclusivity is your Achilles’ heel. It reduced your addressable market. Particularly when you’re in the world of live-service gaming or free-to-play. Another platform is just another way of opening the funnel, [and] getting more people in. In a free-to-play world, as we know, 95% percent of those people will never spend a nickel. 

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OpenAI starts investing in robotics companies

OpenAI starts investing in robotics companies

OpenAI, a leading artificial intelligence research organization, has recently expanded its reach by investing in the robotics industry. This significant move is set to enhance the capabilities of robots, enabling them to perform a wide range of tasks that could match or even surpass human performance in various environments, including both workplaces and homes.

One of the startups that has benefited from OpenAI’s investment is 1X Robotics, formerly known as Lot Robotics. The company has secured a whopping $100 million in funding, with OpenAI’s startup fund contributing $23.5 million in Series A2 funding. This financial boost has positioned 1X Robotics at the forefront of android development, focusing on creating robots that can safely work alongside humans in different sectors. Brad Lightcap from OpenAI’s startup fund has recognized the potential of 1X Robotics’ technology to change the way we think about robots in the workplace.

In Moss, Norway, 1X robotics is breaking new ground by training androids using virtual reality (VR) and embodied learning. This method is a departure from traditional programming and allows robots to learn in a way that is similar to how humans do. The result is a new breed of androids that can adapt to a variety of tasks with remarkable efficiency.

OpenAI Robotics investments

Recently, 1X has further escalated its financial backing by securing an additional $100 million in a Series B funding round, bringing its total fundraising to $125 million. While OpenAI was a key investor in the earlier round, the latest funding was led by EQT Ventures, with OpenAI taking a less prominent role.

The centerpiece of 1X’s strategy is NEO, a humanoid robot designed to address global labor shortages. NEO is conceptualized on the premise that humanoid robots are ideally suited to operate in environments designed for humans. This approach, while logical, has its critics. Some argue that such systems are overly complex, and others believe that achieving true general-purpose functionality in humanoid robots is a more distant goal than companies are suggesting.

One of the standout creations from 1X Robotics is Neo, a bipedal humanoid robot designed for the consumer market. Neo is unique because of its human-like structure and ability to learn artificially. It’s built to help with household tasks and can be controlled remotely, which means it can navigate complex situations in a home setting.

NEO Robot current specifications
1.65 meters tall
30 kilograms in weight
4 kilometers/hour walk speed
12 kilometers/hour run speed
20 kilograms carry capacity
2-4 hour run time

Bill Gates and Sam Altman interview

Generative AI, like that developed by OpenAI, is expected to play a crucial role in overcoming these challenges, potentially accelerating the development of versatile and capable humanoid robots. The substantial funding acquired by 1X is poised to advance their project, with CEO Bernt Øivind Børnich acknowledging the importance of this financial support in rewarding and motivating their dedicated team, who have been instrumental in the company’s success.

While 1X Robotics has not disclosed specific growth figures, the company has already attracted clients such as CUS Hospital and Everon, which are using androids for security and other services. The impact of OpenAI’s investment in the robotics sector is being compared to the successes of major players like Google DeepMind and Tesla. As androids become more common in different industries, we can expect to see a shift in the job market, especially for blue-collar jobs.

Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, has emphasized that the key to successful robotics lies in intelligence and cognitive abilities, rather than just physical capabilities. OpenAI’s vision involves combining advanced AI models with robust robotics hardware to create androids that are not only focused on tasks but also capable of understanding and adapting to their surroundings.

OpenAI’s foray into robotics investment highlights the organization’s commitment to advancing AI and robotics. With companies like 1X Robotics leading the way, the integration of androids into our everyday lives is becoming more of a reality. As these technologies continue to develop, they have the potential to reshape the way we work, live, and interact with the world around us.

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