Suno launches its AI music generation app for iOS, revolutionizing music creation while facing legal challenges from major record labels over copyright concerns.
China’s BYD is catching up with Tesla in sales
China’s leading EV manufacturer, BYD, is catching up with Tesla in sales, according to sales figures published by Reuters. The company posted a 21 percent increase in electric vehicle sales throughout the second quarter. This totals 426,039 EVs from April to June, which is just 12,000 fewer vehicles than Tesla’s estimated deliveries for the same time period. This places BYD in a good position to become the world’s leading vendor.
Tesla just reported a five percent drop in deliveries for the most recent quarter, which is the first time the company has ever experienced two straight quarters of decline. It produced 410,831 units and delivered 443,956 EVs in Q2. Production decreased by over 20,000 units compared to quarter one. Analysts like Barclays predicted an even steeper drop, so this is (sort of) good news for the company.
There are a lot of factors playing into Tesla’s decline, but the biggest one is likely the fact that it seems to have abandoned budget-friendly models in favor of robotaxis and dystopian stainless steel beasts. BYD’s cars are fantastically cheap, with the recently-released Seagull starting at just $10,000. Of course, the company doesn’t have much of a presence in the US yet and tariffs on imported Chinese vehicles hope to keep it that way. The EU has taken a similar approach to curb the influx of inexpensive Chinese EVs.
BYD is part of China’s industrial strategy to topple US carmakers, though there’s one sure-fire way to stem the tide. Automakers should manufacture cheaper electric vehicles. BYD is becoming a global phenomenon because it makes budget-friendly EVs that aren’t pieces of junk. Some manufacturers have taken note. Look at the Nissan Leaf, for instance, or the Hyundai Kona. One company that seems to have ignored the memo entirely? Tesla.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/chinas-byd-is-catching-up-with-tesla-in-sales-153900131.html?src=rss
Figma disables its AI design feature that appeared to be ripping off Apple’s Weather app
Figma CEO Dylan Field says the company will temporarily disable its “Make Design” AI feature that was said to be ripping off the designs of Apple’s own Weather app. The problem was first spotted by Andy Allen, the founder of NotBoring Software, which makes a suite of apps that includes a popular, skinnable Weather app
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Tesla delivered fewer vehicles to customers for the second quarter in a row
Photo by John Thys / AFP via Getty Images
On the heels of Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s massive payday, the company released its latest quarterly production and delivery report, showing drops from last year in both production and deliveries.
Tesla reported producing 410,831 vehicles over the three-month period that ended in June, a 14 percent drop compared to the second quarter of 2023. Tesla reported delivering 443,956 vehicles to customers during Q2 of 2024, a 4.76 percent drop from the 466,140 vehicles it delivered in Q2 2023.
This continues a trend that began earlier this year in which Tesla reported its first year-over-year sales drop since 2020. The company is continuing to struggle with demand as customers have more choices than ever when shopping for an electric vehicle. It did turn around last quarter’s sequential drop in deliveries, with an increase of 14.8 percent compared to Q1.
Tesla has also been dealing with some real struggles that have affected its production, like the ramp-up of the newly refreshed Model 3 at its factory in Fremont, California, and shutdowns related to supply chain issues at its Gigafactory in Berlin.
But production woes can’t totally explain the drop in customer deliveries. Tesla’s market share has shrunk as legacy automakers continue to release new models. It’s now hovering at around 50 percent of the market, down from 80 percent share in 2020. And while other automakers are reporting double-digit growth in EV sales, Tesla’s sales continue to drop.
There’s a litany of reasons for this: Musk’s online antics, gaps in the company’s vehicle lineup, and increasing competition. The vast majority of Tesla’s sales — over 90 percent — come from just two models: the Model 3 and Model Y. The Cybertruck, the company’s great stainless steel hope, is extremely polarizing and perennially recalled.
Tesla doesn’t break out its numbers regionally, so it’s impossible to pinpoint the company’s major weaknesses. Registration trackers indicate Europe is a growing problem. But China, Tesla’s most important market, may be looking up thanks to lowered interest rates and new incentives.
It’s looking like it will be a busy summer for Tesla. As it continues to sift through the wreckage of this year’s multiple rounds of layoffs, the company is expected to report its second quarter earnings later this month. And then, on August 8th, there’s the big robotaxi reveal, where Musk will make his most forceful pitch for Tesla’s future as an AI and robotics company.
That may be the future, but the present is still cars.
Beauty tech startup Boldhue raises capital to ship its at-home custom makeup dispenser
Boldhue’s device essentially scans your face and dispenses a customized foundation formula that matches your skin tone.
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Indian edtech Unacademy cuts another 250 jobs
Indian edtech giant Unacademy is laying off about 250 employees, the latest in a series of layoffs since the reopening of schools across the country after the pandemic. The Bengaluru-headquartered startup, valued at $3.4 billion in its last funding in 2021, is cutting 100 jobs in core roles (marketing, business and product) and 150 in
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Tubi is coming to the UK
While many streamers have a global subscriber base, some have stuck to North America. Tubi, the Fox Corporation’s free ad-supported streaming service, is no longer in that second camp with the streamer announcing it will launch in the United Kingdom.
Tubi will arrive with over 20,000 TV episodes and movies on-demand, from the likes of Disney and Sony Pictures Entertainment, along with Tubi Originals. “We are launching with one of the largest and most diverse content libraries in the UK, designed to indulge viewers in everything from blockbusters to original stories to hidden gems,” Anjali Sud, CEO of Tubi, stated in the company’s announcement. “Most importantly, we’re committed to listening to what resonates with UK fans, and bringing them more and more of what they love.” Tubi will offer UK users Hollywood films, British classics, Bollywoods, Nollywoods and Arthouse Cinema — to name a few.
The streamer claims to have nearly 80 million monthly active users and clearly hopes to grow that number significantly with a UK audience. It will be available on iOS and Android smartphones, major connected TV platforms and the web. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/tubi-is-coming-to-the-uk-103019398.html?src=rss
Apple adds support for new languages across lock screen, keyboard and search on iOS 18
Apple unveiled iOS 18 last month at its Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC). Since then, the company has released two developer betas in the last few weeks with extended support for multiple new languages across the lock screen, Siri, keyboard, and search on iOS 18. With the new update, you can now customize the lock screen
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David Hasselhoff joins Make Green Tuesday Moves to fight climate change with games
Hollywood icon David Hasselhoff has joined PlanetPlay’s global alliance of video games, influencers and more to fight climate change.
NFC Forum wants to bundle age verification and payment receipts in tap-to-pay
The NFC Forum, the non-profit org made up of big tech companies promoting the NFC standard, envisions a future wherein one tap is all you need for multiple actions at once. With a single tap, for instance, you could pay for your purchase, get points on your rewards account and receive a digital receipt on your phone. The organization released a document that can give you an overview of what the NFC multi-purpose tap capability is and how it can potentially be used.
It explains that the multi-purpose tap “leverages the capability of NFC devices to allow both reading and writing of data across a connection.” That enables several actions, which typically requires multiple stages, to be accomplished at one time. If you’re buying alcohol, tapping to pay for it would also verify your identity and your age. You could also get a product’s sustainability information, including ways its packaging can be recycled, on your phone the moment you pay for it.
For public transit, the technology could ensure you’re getting charged the correct fare, taxes and concessions every time. If the ride you’re taking requires a ticket that you’ll need to show a conductor, operators will be able to automatically issue you an e-ticket when you pay with the new multi-purpose tap experience.
As The Verge notes, the capability does raise some privacy concerns, seeing as it automates everything, including identity verification. In addition, it will allow companies to trigger targeted marketing communications that you’ll then get straight on your smartphone. Multi-purpose tap is still in its very early stages at the moment, though, and the NFC Forum is seeking contributions as it looks at market use cases for the technolog. The organization — which includes Apple, Google and Huawei, among other tech companies and manufacturers — still has to conduct tests to make sure the NFC technology is working as intended, as well, and to define standards to “enable mass market delivery.”This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/nfc-forum-wants-to-bundle-age-verification-and-payment-receipts-in-tap-to-pay-043046883.html?src=rss