Disclosure: Our goal is to feature products and services that we think you’ll find interesting and useful. If you purchase them, Entrepreneur may get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners.
Running a business on outdated tech can slow everything down—from juggling spreadsheets to handling client presentations. But before you shell out for new machines, here’s a smarter move: upgrade to Microsoft Windows 11 Pro for just $12.97 (MSRP: $199).
This operating system upgrade can breathe new life into your existing hardware, while providing access to the latest tools designed for modern work.
Why business leaders should care
Windows 11 Pro isn’t just a little refresh. It was designed with professionals in mind. Think of features like Snap Layouts and multiple desktops, which help you organize your workflow when you’re bouncing between accounting, marketing decks, and Zoom calls. Security gets a serious boost, too, with BitLocker encryption, Smart App Control, and biometrics logins—critical if your business handles sensitive data.
Pull insights from spreadsheets without getting lost in formulas
Adjust system settings hands-free while presenting
In short, it’s like having a digital assistant ready to save you time every single day.
Many people assume laggy performance means it’s time to buy new hardware. But, as long as your device is compatible, installing a modern operating system such as Windows 11 Pro can keep your existing setup running smoothly for years to come.
Running a business on outdated tech can slow everything down—from juggling spreadsheets to handling client presentations. But before you shell out for new machines, here’s a smarter move: upgrade to Microsoft Windows 11 Pro for just $12.97 (MSRP: $199).
This operating system upgrade can breathe new life into your existing hardware, while providing access to the latest tools designed for modern work.
If you’re switching from an iPhone, you may want to install Google’s Android Switch app or the Google Drive app. With the Switch app, you can follow the onscreen prompts, but if you opt for the Google Drive app, here’s what to do:
Open the Google Drive app on your iPhone.
Go to Settings and Backup.
Choose everything you want to save and move across to your new phone.
You should also go to your iPhone Settings, head to Messages, toggle off iMessage, and go to Settings,FaceTime to toggle it off so you don’t miss calls and texts on your new phone.
Folks with any two-factor authentication (2FA) apps, like Google Authenticator, should check the apps’ instructions for transferring accounts (do not wipe your old phone until you have done this!) If you use any messaging apps, like WhatsApp, back up your chats on your old phone by going to Settings, Chats, and Chat backup.
Setting Up Your New Android Phone
Put your SIM card in your new phone (skip this step if you’re using an eSIM) and hold down the power button to turn it on. (You can also insert your SIM card after you’ve set up your device.) You’ll be greeted with a series of setup chores, starting with selecting your language and region preferences.
Depending on your new Android phone, you may be able to copy data from your old device directly. While you can do this via Wi-Fi, connecting the two phones with a cable is the fastest, easiest, and usually the most comprehensive way to copy your old data (especially photos and videos), so we recommend doing that if you’re given the option.
If you are switching from an iPhone to an Android phone, for example, you can transfer contacts, photos, videos, and calendar events via Wi-Fi, but you must use a cable if you want to transfer messages (SMS, iMessage, WhatsApp), apps (assuming they are available in the Play Store), music (non-DRM only), and notes. There is a handy Android website with more details about how to switch.
Disclosure: Our goal is to feature products and services that we think you’ll find interesting and useful. If you purchase them, Entrepreneur may get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners.
Speed and flexibility can mean the difference between closing a deal and missing the opportunity. That’s where Shells Personal Cloud Computer Pro Plan earns its keep. For just $194.99 (MSRP: $479.40) for a 1-year subscription, you can launch a full virtual desktop in less than five minutes — and use it from almost any device you own.
Think of it as your Mac or Windows powerhouse in your pocket. Whether you’re coding from a Chromebook, designing on your tablet, reviewing spreadsheets from your phone, or pitching a presentation on your smart TV, Shells gives you the performance of a high-spec desktop without the hardware limitations.
And if you’re wondering why it might matter for business leaders, there are a handful of good reasons. First, you get to work from wherever you are without juggling devices or worrying about compatibility. You can also expect streamlined workflows, which means you can start on one device and pick up instantly on another. And with the security baked in, Firewalls and end-to-end encryption keep sensitive data safe, whether you’re at the office, home, or airport lounge.
Pro Plan perks that pack a punch
4 processors for smooth multitasking
160 GB of cloud storage
8 GB memory for running multiple apps
Automatic backups so nothing gets lost
Unlimited use for the entire year
For entrepreneurs, remote teams, developers, and digital creatives, Shells is like having an IT department in the cloud — without the overhead. It’s not just a subscription; it’s an upgrade to how you work, store, and share.
Speed and flexibility can mean the difference between closing a deal and missing the opportunity. That’s where Shells Personal Cloud Computer Pro Plan earns its keep. For just $194.99 (MSRP: $479.40) for a 1-year subscription, you can launch a full virtual desktop in less than five minutes — and use it from almost any device you own.
Think of it as your Mac or Windows powerhouse in your pocket. Whether you’re coding from a Chromebook, designing on your tablet, reviewing spreadsheets from your phone, or pitching a presentation on your smart TV, Shells gives you the performance of a high-spec desktop without the hardware limitations.
And if you’re wondering why it might matter for business leaders, there are a handful of good reasons. First, you get to work from wherever you are without juggling devices or worrying about compatibility. You can also expect streamlined workflows, which means you can start on one device and pick up instantly on another. And with the security baked in, Firewalls and end-to-end encryption keep sensitive data safe, whether you’re at the office, home, or airport lounge.
Disclosure: Our goal is to feature products and services that we think you’ll find interesting and useful. If you purchase them, Entrepreneur may get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners.
With the clock ticking down on this exclusive deal, now is the time for business professionals to secure Windows 10 Pro for just $19.97—a massive savings from its regular $199 price tag. Available through November 3 only, this deal offers unbeatable value for business users who are looking for a stable, compatible, and familiar operating system without the hassle or cost of upgrading to other versions.
Windows 10 Pro is the go-to choice for those who need extensive software and hardware compatibility. For businesses relying on legacy software, hardware, or peripherals that aren’t yet compatible with Windows 11, Windows 10 Pro is a straightforward solution that keeps you connected without disruption.
Built on a stable, mature platform, Windows 10 Pro has been optimized over years of use. It is a secure, ideal choice for businesses that need uninterrupted workflows and data protection.
If you and your team are used to the Windows 10 interface, why change? Windows 10 Pro delivers a familiar environment, saving your team time and eliminating the learning curve that comes with a new operating system.
Packed with productivity and security tools, Windows 10 Pro provides business-ready functions like remote desktop access, Cortana voice assistant for task management, integrated cloud services, and the ability to switch between desktop and tablet modes on compatible devices. Security features such as encryption and data protection are built-in, adding peace of mind for teams handling sensitive information.
To make sure your devices are ready to run Windows 10 Pro seamlessly, there are system requirements to keep in mind, including a 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster processor.
Save on the cost of your planned upgrade with a Windows 10 Pro OS for just 19.97 (reg. $199) through November 3 at 11:59 p.m. PT.
Disclosure: Our goal is to feature products and services that we think you’ll find interesting and useful. If you purchase them, Entrepreneur may get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners.
With technology evolving every day, having the latest operating system can significantly impact your productivity and security. That’s why this one-day only offer on Microsoft Windows 11 Pro for just $17.97 (reg. $199) is an opportunity you can’t miss if you aren’t working on the most modern OS.
In 2023, businesses worldwide have increased their investment in digital infrastructure, with more than 60% of companies citing improved cybersecurity and operational efficiency as top priorities, according to Gartner. Windows 11 Pro is designed to meet these needs with cutting-edge features and advanced tools tailored for professionals.
Whether you’re running a small business, freelancing, or managing multiple clients, this is your chance to upgrade to an AI-integrated operating system at an unprecedented price.
Windows 11 Pro has a modern, user-friendly interface that simplifies multitasking. Features like snap windows and virtual desktops allow you to easily manage multiple projects, keeping your workflow organized and efficient.
With cyberattacks on the rise, Windows 11 Pro offers advanced security features like biometric login with Windows Hello, TPM 2.0 for hardware-based encryption, and Smart App Control to prevent untrusted applications from running. Plus, BitLocker ensures your data stays protected, even in the event of device theft.
Windows 11 Pro is packed with tools like voice typing for quick note-taking, an enhanced search function, and powerful snap layouts that allow you to work smarter, not harder.
It also features AI assistance. Copilot helps make your work life easier by helping you summarize long emails, analyze data quickly, and provide real-time suggestions based on the context of your tasks. It’s like having a personal assistant built into your OS.
Don’t miss the chance to use all of these features and many more to support your business.
Disclosure: Our goal is to feature products and services that we think you’ll find interesting and useful. If you purchase them, Entrepreneur may get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners.
The average company spends 3.28% of its revenue on technology, and that doesn’t include software or hardware renewals, according to a study conducted by Deloitte. Although your company’s tech equipment budget may be costly, you don’t have to spend hundreds on new devices each year to boost productivity.
Instead, you could make those you already have more efficient. First up is your PC. If it isn’t already running on Windows 10 Pro, you’re missing out on the latest productivity tools and innovative security measures. Through September 29, this operating system is on sale for $19.97 (reg. $199) for life.
Increased productivity for your PC
If you’ve noticed slower performance on your device, this operating system (OS) upgrade is designed to enhance your PC’s performance and efficiency. Thanks to its 64-bit computing architecture, business owners and their employees can multitask while crunching numbers on Excel, designing company graphics, and leading stakeholder meetings.
Windows 10 Pro is also designed to integrate seamlessly with Microsoft 365 (not included with your purchase). Companies using Microsoft 365 for access to Microsoft productivity apps will be able to edit Word documents, collaborate with colleagues on Teams, and more at any time.
Designed specifically for working professionals
As a solopreneur or working professional, you’ll benefit from the Pro side of Windows 10 (vs. Home, the free version).
Secure your PC’s hard drive with BitLocker device encryption, test software with Windows Sandbox, manage virtual machines with Hyper-V, and deploy specific policies for different devices, users, and groups with Group Policy management. This OS is designed to keep your data and devices protected from tampering and malware.
Entrepreneurs and their employees can also control their PC from any remote device with the Remote Desktop feature, allowing for access to their work files and colleagues wherever they are.
Intel Core i7-1455U is how a laptop manufacturer’s website might list the type of processor. Now that we know Core i7 means it’s one of the more powerful chips in the lineup, let’s break the rest of the numbers down. The first numbers (“14”) refer to the generation; in this case, it’s a 14th-generation chip (as of now, that’s the latest generation available for laptops). The i7-1355U would be a 13th-generation chip or one that’s probably a year or so older.
The next two or three numbers (“55”) are related to performance. The higher these numbers are, the more powerful the chip is. This is true within only that chip line, though. The Intel Core i7-1465U is slightly more powerful than the Intel Core i7-1455U, but much less powerful than the Intel Core i9-1435H. The i9 chip is always more powerful than the i7, the i7 more powerful than the i5, and the difference is greater than the difference between any two chips in the same chip line.
The letter at the end of the chip name (“U” in our example) is Intel’s designation for the chip’s purpose. For laptops, the letters you’ll see at the end are Y, U, H, and HX. The Y series chips are optimized for battery life, which is good if you’re frequently away from a plug for long periods of time, but that added battery life comes at the expense of some performance. H chips are optimized for performance, and U chips are “power efficient” but not “extremely” efficient like the Y line. The newest of the bunch is the HX designation, which are chips that Intel calls “desktop replacement class.” They’re the most powerful of the bunch, but you will get less battery life from laptops with HX chips.
AMD Processors
AMD’s chip naming is just as difficult to decipher as Intel’s. In the name AMD Ryzen 5 8600X, the “8” is the generation (how old it is—higher is better), and the “6” is how powerful it is. A “6” would make this example a medium-powered chip, whereas a 3 or 4 would be weaker (slower). The next two numbers don’t have much impact on anything. The “X” at the end indicates high performance. Other letter designations include U for ultra-low power (for better battery life).
Is there a huge difference between Intel and AMD chips? My experience, testing dozens of both every year, is that it depends. Generally speaking, an Intel i5 is indistinguishable from a Ryzen 5 outside of very specific benchmarks. They’re similar when you’re doing things like browsing the web or editing documents. The same goes for the Intel i7 and Ryzen 7, and the Intel i3 and the Ryzen 3.
Graphics performance is where you’ll notice a difference. In my testing, in both benchmarks and real work use, AMD’s integrated graphics tend to perform better than Intel on graphics-intensive tasks—think editing videos or playing games. Intel’s most recent series of chips has closed that gap significantly, but AMD still has an edge. You may benefit from buying an AMD machine if you’re a video editor or gamer, but what you most likely want is a dedicated graphics card. (More on that in the GPU section below.)
ARM Processors
There are quite a few chips based on the ARM architecture, but the latest and greatest is Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X CPU, which made a splash in 2024 when it debuted as the sole chip supporting Microsoft’s new Copilot+ AI capabilities. (Microsoft says Copilot+ will be coming to Intel and AMD machines eventually.) We’ve tested two Copilot+ laptop with Snapdragon X chips and have been very impressed. Speed is good (though not all benchmark tests run on them yet, so head-to-head comparisons are difficult), battery life is fantastic, and software compatibility is pretty good thanks to Microsoft’s Prism translation layer, which allows popular apps to run on the ARM platform (albeit slowly). It’s early days for the Snapdragon X chips, but so far we like what we’ve seen and think it has, if nothing else, shaken up the Intel/AMD duopoly that’s long reigned over the PC market.
Apple Processors
Apple makes a number a chips these days, used in both MacBooks, iPads, and iPhones. Fortunately the designations are pretty simple. There are three chips in the lineup: the M1, M2, and M3. The M1 is the oldest and slowest; the M3 is the newest and fastest. Within each of those chip lines there are different models, ranging from the base model, Pro, Max, and Ultra. The base model is the least powerful, while the Ultra is the most powerful. Again, we have a separate guide to Macs with a full breakdown of each chip, all the model designations, and which one you want for different tasks.
How Much Processing Power Do You Need?
If you’re a typical user who runs a web browser, Microsoft’s Office Suite, and perhaps even some photo editing software, we recommend a laptop with an Intel Core i5 10th-generation or later processor. That would be displayed as something like “Intel Core i5-10350U.”
If you can afford it, an Intel i7 chip makes a nice upgrade and will make your laptop feel snappier. The extra power often means shorter battery life though, so you’ll need to balance that with your needs. A gaming laptop, for instance, would use an i7 (or i9) chip, but an i5 is usually fine for less demanding tasks. Likewise, for the average user, the AMD Ryzen 5000 series will suffice, but the Ryzen 7000 makes a nice upgrade—again at the cost of battery life.
Disclosure: Our goal is to feature products and services that we think you’ll find interesting and useful. If you purchase them, Entrepreneur may get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners.
For entrepreneurs and business owners, keeping your technology up-to-date is a big part of maintaining a competitive edge. Today, you have a unique opportunity to upgrade to Microsoft Windows 11 Pro for just $22.97 (reg. $199)—but only for one day.
Modern user interface: Windows 11 Pro introduces a sleek, modern user interface that is not only visually appealing but also designed to improve user experience. The enhanced UI provides easier navigation and access to the tools you use most, making your daily tasks more efficient and enjoyable.
Enhanced multitasking capabilities: If you’re someone who juggles multiple tasks, Windows 11 Pro has you covered with improved multitasking features like snapping windows and virtual desktops. These tools allow you to easily organize your workspace, keep track of multiple projects, and easily switch between tasks.
Advanced security for peace of mind: Security is always a top concern, especially for entrepreneurs managing sensitive business data. Windows 11 Pro includes advanced security features such as biometric login, TPM 2.0, Smart App Control, and BitLocker encryption, ensuring that your information is well-protected against modern threats.
AI-powered productivity: One of the most-used features of Windows 11 Pro is its AI integration. With the new Copilot feature, you get AI-driven assistance that helps you navigate the system more efficiently, find what you need faster, and even suggest ways to improve productivity. Whether it’s voice typing, enhanced search functions, or snap layouts, AI can help streamline your workflow and make your day more productive.
Don’t miss this limited-time offer on the most modern Windows OS on the market.
Get Microsoft Windows 11 Pro for just $22.97 (reg. $199) only through August 25 at 11:59 p.m. PT.
Disclosure: Our goal is to feature products and services that we think you’ll find interesting and useful. If you purchase them, Entrepreneur may get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners.
With this terrific all-in-one bundle, you can get Microsoft Office 2019 Pro Plus for Windows and Microsoft Windows 11 Pro for just $45.97 (reg. $428) through September 3. This package offers everything you need to streamline your operations, boost productivity, and stay secure with the latest in AI-driven updates and security features.
Power up productivity.
Microsoft Office 2019 Pro Plus is packed with all the essential productivity tools your business needs. From creating polished documents in Word and analyzing data in Excel to designing impactful presentations in PowerPoint and managing communications with Outlook, this suite has you covered.
Windows 11 Pro is designed to keep your business on the cutting edge with its latest security features and AI-driven updates. The OS offers enhanced protection against cyber threats, improved performance, and a sleek, user-friendly interface. It’s built to support modern work environments, whether your team is working remotely, in-office, or a hybrid of both.
The new AI assistant, Copilot, can help you streamline your work by summarizing documents, changing settings, and much more. And the latest AI enhancements can also be seen elsewhere, like in the Paint app, which makes it easy to remove backgrounds from images and other tools.
For small businesses and startups, every dollar counts. Don’t miss this dynamic bundle that has 5/5 stars online.
The original proposal for the World Wide Web, written by Tim Berners-Lee in 1989, is an important piece of internet history. It also can’t be opened on modern computers.
John Graham-Cumming, a British software engineer and writer, attempted to open the Word document containing the proposal. Modern versions of Microsoft Word and Apple’s Pages both utterly failed to open the file, as he outlined in a blog post. The open-source word processor LibreOffice worked, albeit with messy formatting. Graham-Cumming ultimately found a PDF exported by CERN in 1998, which was the only way he was able to see the document as it existed in 1989.
It’s worrying that such an important piece of history, in such a common file format, could be almost completely lost to the passage of time and software updates. Anyone with a collection of old digital documents, photos, and videos might be wondering if the same thing will happen to their files, which is the sort of question digital archivists deal with all the time, it turns out. So I reached out to one.
“Twenty years, in the digital realm, is ancient,” says Lance Stuchell, director of digital preservation services at the University of Michigan. His team is frequently tasked with recovering digital files from old computers and storage mediums. “We have a lab that can deal with old media—floppy drives, CDs, older computers. We can get that off of those types of media and move it into our preservation system while ensuring we don’t mess it up while we’re doing it.”
But getting the files off the drive is just the first step: Then you have to open them, and leave them in a state that will be openable for decades to come. It’s a job that’s given Stuchell a reason to think about strategies for keeping documents around as long as possible. I asked him what those of us who aren’t professional archivists should do to ensure our files last decades.
Use Open Formats
The Word document I mentioned before could no longer be opened by Microsoft Word because the software has changed over time. This is part of the challenge of archiving digital files.
“With physical stuff, the less you look at it the longer it lasts,” Stuchell says. “Digital stuff, we’re constantly fighting with obsoleteness. As the file moves through time, it’s losing information.”
Updates to software like Microsoft Word mean that files that opened fine in the ’80s don’t open in the 2020s. Part of the problem: Microsoft, and only Microsoft, controls the file format, or even knows how it works. For this reason, Stuchell says he encourages people to export files in an open file format—especially files they want to keep accessible for the long term.
For documents he recommends PDF/A, an open standard built on top of Adobe’s PDF format that includes everything the file needs in order to be opened, including the fonts used in the document. Microsoft Office, LibreOffice, and Adobe Acrobat all support exporting to PDF/A, meaning it’s relatively easy to make such a file. Stuchell recommends that you archive any document that you want to keep to that format.
Apple has officially unveiled the latest version of its operating system for Mac. This time around, Apple stuck to its “California places” naming convention and went with macOS Sequoia. (Yes, a sequoia is a type of tree, but it’s also a national park in northern California.)
Also known as macOS 15, the new OS packs a ton of new capabilities onto the desktop, including a password management app, videoconferencing tools, and updates to Safari, as well as all the features that come with Apple Intelligence—the company’s new artificial-intelligence-powered system. Below, we break down all these new features that will become available in macOS Sequoia when it ships this fall.
MacOS Sequoia, or macOS 15, is a free update for your Apple computers. But some features, like Apple Intelligence (more on that, later), are exclusive to Macs with the M-series Apple silicon chip. To figure out which Mac model you have, click on the Apple icon in the menu bar in the upper-left corner of your display and click About This Mac. We’ve listed all the models that will be able to run macOS Sequoia below.
MacBook Air: 2020 and later
MacBook Pro: 2018 and later
Mac Mini: 2018 and later
iMac: 2019 and later
iMac Pro: 2017 and later
Mac Pro: 2019 and later
Mac Studio: 2022 and later
MacOS Sequoia is currently available only as a developer beta, but the public beta (where everyone can try out the features) will be available in July.
New Features
Below, we break down all the major features coming to MacOS 15. For a full list, head over to Apple’s official preview page.
iPhone Mirroring
Photograph: Apple
Sometimes your iPhone is in the other room or deep in your bag. For those moments when you need to use it but simply don’t feel like getting up to find it, you’ll be able to pull it up on your computer. As part of Apple’s Continuity features, iPhone Mirroring gives you the ability to both access and interact with your iPhone wirelessly using your Mac.
When the feature is in action, you’ll see your iPhone’s custom home screen appear. From there, you can use the keyboard, trackpad, or mouse to drag and drop content (like photos, videos, and files) between both devices, open and use any of your apps, swipe through all the pages on your home screen, as well as view and respond to notifications. While you’re doing all this, your iPhone will remain locked. It also works while your iPhone is in Standby mode, a feature from iOS 17 that turns your iPhone into a smart display while charging.
Safari Updates
Photograph: Apple
MacOS Sequoia offers a few new features to Safari. With Highlights, Safari will use machine intelligence to show you relevant information from the webpage like directions, links, summaries, and restaurant reviews. Apple also redesigned the Reader to minimize distractions. In addition to a sleeker view of the article, you’ll also see a summary and a table of contents (for longer articles). If the webpage includes a video, Viewer will bring it to the forefront while still giving you access to playback controls (Picture in Picture included).
Window Tiling
Video: Apple
Those who always keep a ton of browser windows open simultaneously will appreciate the new Window Tiling feature that helps organize them for a better viewing experience. When you drag a window to the edge of the screen, the new OS will automatically suggest a tiled position on your screen. (It’s similar to Snap on Windows.) You can then drop the window into place, arrange multiple windows side by side, or place them in any of the four corners to make room for more apps. For quicker organization, you can use keyboard and menu shortcuts too.
Videoconference Tools
Photograph: Apple
Last year, Apple added a ton of new videoconference tools with MacOS Sonoma including Presenter Overlay, Reactions, and various features for the Mac’s built-in webcam. This year, the company is adding a few more. With apps like FaceTime and Zoom, you’ll have access to a new presenter preview capability that allows you to see what you’re about to share before actually sharing it. Meanwhile, the built-in backgrounds feature allows you to apply system wallpapers, color gradients, or your own photos as a backdrop for video calls. Apple says this feature will be available on FaceTime and third-party apps like Webex.
A New Passwords App
Photograph: Apple
If you never loved Keychain, now you have a better option: macOS Sequoia comes with a new Passwords app that allows you to access all your passwords (Wi-Fi passwords included), passkeys, and verification codes in one place. It keeps all your Apple devices in sync, runs on Windows machines (using the iCloud for Windows app) too, and supports end-to-end encryption.
More With Messages
Photograph: Apple
A few new Messages features are coming to macOS Sequoia—and by extension, to iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 as well. You’ll be able to format your texts within Messages using bold, italic, underline, and strikethrough type treatments. You’ll also have the ability to add animated effects to a specific word within a text. For some phrases and words, you’ll also see suggestions appear as you type. Apple added new Tapbacks too—instead of using the traditional heart, thumbs up, thumbs down, question mark, or exclamation point, you’ll also see options to use emoji and stickers. Another standout new feature is the option to schedule your messages ahead of time so they’ll be sent later.
Apple Intelligence Features
Photograph: Apple
In addition to the features above, the company also announced new AI capabilities powered by Apple Intelligence—its “personal intelligence system” built into MacOS Sequoia, as well as iOS 18 and iPadOS 18.
Amazon was among a number of technology companies at the IAA motor show in Munich. The presence of Amazon, Qualcomm, Samsung and other tech giants underscores how traditional automakers are looking to bolster the tech in their cars.
Arjun Kharpal | CNBC
MUNICH — You’d be forgiven for thinking that the IAA, one of the world’s biggest motor shows, is actually a technology conference, after tech giants like Amazon, Qualcomm and Samsung all showed up for this year’s event.
Their presence underscores demand for traditional automakers to boost the technology in their vehicles, from software to hardware, as they look to catch up with Tesla in the electric car future. Ramping up technology features is also essential to meet buyer expectations in China.
“Tesla and the Chinese start-ups. This is the two-way force they [traditional automakers] are experiencing, driving them to have more user experience in the car,” Mohit Sharma, automotive research analyst at CCS Insight, told CNBC.
They can’t do it alone. Carmakers are looking at tech firms for help, while also trying to work on items like software in house.
Part of Tesla’s global success has come down to its technology in a number of areas, from batteries to Autopilot — its advanced driver assistance system (ADAS), which uses semi-autonomous driving features. The screen within Tesla cars is also akin to that of a smartphone.
Those features are what rival automakers are trying to build and get ahead on.
There are two major operating systems in the smartphone sphere — Google’s Android and Apple’s iOS. That’s not the case in the car world, when it comes to the ever popular infotainment systems and screens.
Auto firms are now focusing on developing their own operating systems, so that using car screens more closely resembles working with the apps of a smartphone.
To that end, Mercedes-Benz revealed further details at the IAA about its self-developed operating system called MB.OS, which will help power various features from the giant screen across the dashboard to the voice assistant in its upcoming EVs.
Swedish EV player Polestar this year created a joint venture with Xingji Meizu — a smartphone maker owned by Chinese auto giant Geely — and plans to launch its own smartphone in December, when the Polestar 4 car begins delivery to customers. Meizu is making an operating system for Polestar cars based on its own product, called FlyMe. The idea is that users would be able to have a seamless experience between the smartphone and Polestar’s operating system in the company’s cars.
U.S. chipmaker Qualcomm was also in attendance at IAA. The company is making a big push into the automotive space, where its chips can be used to help power artificial intelligence applications within vehicles. One example it showed was a car assistant that could find a recipe for chicken enchiladas and add the ingredients to a shopping list.
It’s not just about the screen — automakers are also looking into using all parts of the car to display information. BMW said the Neue Klasse EV models it unveiled on Saturday will have what it calls Panoramic Vision, a heads-up display which projects information on the windscreen at the driver’s eyeline.
To make the drive as comfortable as possible, U.S. EV maker Lucid showed off the massage feature of the seats in its Air Midnight Dream Edition car.
A big part of the focus of Tesla technology has surrounded its Autopilot ADAS. No car can operate autonomously — at least from a legal perspective — but automakers are ramping up the driverless features and capabilities.
Tesla is perhaps one of the furthest ahead with its ADAS features, followed by young Chinese players like Xpeng and Nio.
Many automakers aspire to become major players in the world’s biggest and highly competitive electric vehicle market, China. In a bid to differentiate themselves from rivals, Chinese firms have talked up the tech features of their vehicles, from software to ADAS capabilities — and Chinese customers expect the latest tech perks.
“It’s not just good enough to bring a great European design to China, you have to be very, very special about what you offer to the market when it comes to software,” Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath, told CNBC in an interview Tuesday.
Heeding that sentiment, foreign companies from BMW to Mercedes are looking to invest heavily in tech development, as they aim to boost EV sales in China.
Volkswagen CEO Oliver Blume on Wednesday said that the company is ramping up its number of software engineers in China.
“We want to operate with China speed in China,” Blume said at the IAA conference.
A Polestar 4 electric SUV is on display during the 20th Shanghai International Automobile Industry Exhibition at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai) on April 18, 2023 in Shanghai, China.
Meizu is not a major smartphone player in China with companies like Apple and Oppo among the biggest. And the Polestar smartphone would not be an attempt to grow market share.
Instead, the unusual step of an EV company launching a smartphone comes from a desire from automakers to make the car like a mobile phone on wheels.
“Where you have an opportunity to link these two worlds, without any border … then you can really have a seamless transition,” Ingenlath said.
You can imagine a world where you’re using an app on your phone and you enter the car and that same app is displayed on the car’s dashboard screen, for example.
“I still have problems to get, you know, an SMS displayed,” Ingenlath said of the frustrations with current technology.
Ingenlath added that the phone will be a “premium” device. Meizu is known in China for more mid-tier devices. This will help Meizu push into the high-end device market for handsets too, Ingenlath said.
While it is still unusual for car companies to launch phones, the idea is gaining some traction. Chinese EV start-up Nio plans to launch its first self-developed mobile phone in September.
There are lots of reasons this could make sense specifically in the world’s second largest economy.
It’s not just good enough to bring a great European design to China, you have to be very, very special about what you offer to the market when it comes to software.
Thomas Ingenlath
CEO of Polestar
Firstly, there is no Google Android mobile operating system. This means that automakers can customize the operating system on their phone and the car to sync up. For example, Meizu has its own operating system called FlyMe. And the company is making an operating system for Polestar cars based on this.
The smartphone that Polestar releases is also likely to have a similar OS which will make integration seamless.
“It’s not just good enough to bring a great European design to China, you have to be very, very special about what you offer to the market when it comes to software,” Ingenlath said.
“Many OEMs are following Geely and potentially other future players such as Apple if they come up with their own car with their smartphone to provide a holistic and tighter connected experience in every aspect of mobility,” Neil Shah, vice president of research at Counterpoint Research, told CNBC.
An OEM is an original equipment manufacturer and refers to car manufacturers.
Shah said the smartphone would also allow Polestar to bundle software, apps, services and features such as remotely controlling or turning on the car with a phone.
Launching a phone could also help carmakers learn more about their customers’ habits, Shah added.
The Polestar 4 is on sale in China for 349,800 Chinese yuan ($47,890) — that’s more expensive than Tesla’s Model Y which starts at 263,900 yuan.
The Polestar 4 is being positioned as “more premium, more luxurious” than the Model Y, Ingenlath said.
The CEO said Polestar’s customers come from German carmakers BMW and Mercedes-Benz and that the car is being positioned more as a competitor to cars like the Porsche Macan.
Ruth Bosch is an artist who has worked for companies like League of Geeks and creative studio Volta, and who is now art director at Studio Fizbin, developers of the excellent Say No! More.
Despite portraying himself as a paragon of free speech, Twitter owner Elon Musk has repeatedly given into the requests of powerful autocratic regimes to silence their citizens. The Onion asked Twitter users how they felt about Musk’s censorship, and this is what they said.
Ron DeSantis launched his 2024 presidential campaign in an online Twitter Spaces event with Elon Musk that was marred by 25 minutes of technical glitches where the audio stream crashed repeatedly, making it impossible for most users to hear the new presidential candidate in real time. What do you think?
“I’m tired of the media trying to silence this man.”
Zoey Burns, Freelance Plagiarist
Ron DeSantis Introduces New Son Barron Trump
“Twenty-five minutes of no talking was the best launch the DeSantis campaign could hope for.”
Drew Fanning, Unemployed
“It’s good to have the superficial appearance of a Trump alternative.”
Discord is a pretty good product. It’s an easy way to communicate with friends, find realtime communities around topics of mutual interest, and crucial for making use of voice chat across most online multiplayer games. And now Discord’s decided to muck it all up by forcing everyone to switch to a new username in a giant migration no one seems to understand the reasoning for.
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As things stand, every Discord username is case sensitive and has four digits at the end of it. This lets multiple people adopt the same name and also makes it harder to search for people unless you have their exact handle—a virtue in a world where online harassment has become the norm. The system is occasionally annoying but overall feels befitting the platform’s greater amount of intimacy and privacy, and has helped it become a great hangout space, especially for gaming. Sony and Microsoft recently integrated it directly into the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S. And of course it’s also become a hotbed for leaks lately, including classified military reports.
Image: Discord
Not content with that successful status quo, Discord now plans to massively shake things up. “We wanted to make it easier for you to identify and add your friends while preserving your ability to use your preferred name across Discord,” the company announced this week. “So, we are removing discriminators and introducing new, unique usernames (@username) and display names.”
More memory is always good This massive solid-state drive has incredible read and write speeds that allow for seamless gameplay, a big capacity, and is really easy to install as well.
These changes will arrive in the coming weeks and will initially be voluntary. Eventually, however, everyone will have to move over to the new system. Display names will still exist and be the primary way people are identified in chat, but the underlying username will become similar to the kind used everywhere else, complete with lots of potential duplicates once everyone is forced to change. Many of the initial reactions have not been kind:
Aside from the fact that many Discord users seem to have adopted the platform precisely because it’s not easily searchable like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, there are plenty of other concerns as well. The move could open up more possibilities for fraud and impersonation, as we’ve seen with the recent hellfire on Twitter. There’s also been speculation that some people will now start camping on high profile usernames that belong to streamers and influencers on other platforms. But the biggest issue is that there’s no clear benefit to users with the change.
Discord, on the other hand, is a for-profit startup that needs to continually scale in order to get bought or eventually go public. Like Slack, it can’t just be really good at private messaging and voice channels, it seemingly needs to be a huge social platform all its own. Bleh. There are already genuine concerns about how the company harvests use data, and might potentially exploit it to train AI chat tools. Many of the better features, meanwhile, are locked behind the service’s monthly Nitro subscription.
The platform has been great in recent years, and was a lifeline for many when the pandemic shuttered everyone inside. Who knows what it will become in the future though, and changes like this are never reassuring. In the meantime, game companies keep moving their internet forums to Discord, leaving entire online communities at the mercy of the Silicon Valley growth mindset.
In 2021 Mythic Games, with the backing of Ubisoft, announced a Kickstarter campaign for an officially-licensed board game adaptation of Rainbow Six: Siege. Two years later, Mythic are asking people who already paid for the game to pay a bit—and in some cases a lot—more.
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The game, simply called 6: Siege, is pretty much what you’d expect: two teams of operatives do battle on a tactical map, one side attacking, the other defending. And as you would also expect from an officially-licensed board game appearing on Kickstarter, it is supposed to be huge, promising all kinds of plastic miniatures, expansions, 3D buildings and terrain.
In 2021 you could get the game in three tiers: a basic $69 copy, a deluxe $199 version and an even more premium $269 edition. That last one came with a lot of stuff: five “years” of expansions, multiple map packs, extra units, a neoprene dice tray, 3D buildings and even a little laser pointer so you could quickly and accurately determine line-of-sight stuff.
Now, in 2023, with the pandemic having wreaked havoc on the board game industry, Mythic (via Wargamer) have posted an update on their campaign website stating that, as things currently stand, the money that people paid during the initial campaign isn’t going to actually cover their manufacturing costs.
As a result, they’re giving backers three choices: they can pay more money, they can wait for prices to come down and receive their games at some point in the future, maybe, or they can ask for a refund. Backers of the $69 edition are being asked to pay an additional $39, $199 backers will need to pay $99 more and the $269 backers are being asked to pay an extra $129.
…the combined crises of COVID and the war in Ukraine, which we had not anticipated, have changed the international situation. Prices have literally exploded in all areas, and the estimates on which we based ourselves before and during the Kickstarter campaign are absolutely no longer relevant.
To give you some examples, the cost of paper and cardboard has increased by 50 to 100% on average (the paper we use for example has gone from $600 per ton to $1200 per ton), the cost of labor in China where our games are produced, assembled and shipped has also doubled from $4 to $8 per hour. The cost of energy, plastic and raw materials has increased by almost 50%. Finally, while container fees have recently dropped from their ridiculous highs (but not back to pre-crisis prices), the cost of the Last Mile has skyrocketed and has never been higher. On our side, it must be said, we spent much more than expected in the development of the game, with more people than we expected working on it and longer than we originally estimated (which caused extra costs, but also has the advantage of having an optimal, well-tested, varied and balanced game in the end).
Wildly, this isn’t the first time Mythic has had to do this; their Darkest Dungeon adaptation had to ask for extra money as well, something that 20% of backers refused to do. In this case Mythic’s update says that “If we do not reach the commitment rate, we commit to reimburse all contributors for these additional costs by the amount of their contribution”, and that “At the end of the fundraising period, if we have reached the minimum commitment to go into production, we will start printing.”
While I have a lot of sympathy for board game publishers and manufacturers right now, these conditions aren’t new; I wrote “Board Games Are Having A Bad Time” in April 2020, and this game was Kickstarted a year later. For Mythic to have not gone overboard with allowances for pricing variations during such tumultuous times reflects poorly on their campaign planning, and fans are right to be upset at being not only asked to pay more, but to pay so much more.
It’s also yet another example of the dangers inherent in the arms race so many board game publishers are trapped in on Kickstarter, offering increasingly obscene amounts of plastic miniatures and other luxuries with their games in an effort to appeal to backers, all the while making their projects far more expensive—and thus risky—to actually make.
I’ve contacted Mythic to clarify what exactly happens to the whole campaign if the “commitment rate” isn’t met, and will update if I hear back.
Recently, Spotify’s “fake artist” problem, first spotted as far back as 2017, has been a topic of conversation yet again, with a playlist of 49 virtually identical songs from different artists making the rounds on the internet. And no, this isn’t a snarky jab about how all pop music is built on the same general concepts; these songs appear to be similar versions of the same piece of poorly produced music, each differentiated by random changes in pitch.
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Between its gargantuan size and anemic royalty payouts, Spotify has rarely been without controversy. As a veritable kingmaker operating, allegedly, by the invisible hand of the music marketplace, attempts to mine the service for money are nothing new. Sometimes large corporations are suspected of such behavior, including Spotify itself (which it staunchly denies). Clever artists have also deployed tongue-in-cheek stunts to try and game the system, which is widely seen as being brutally unfair to indie musicians. Recently, songs from no-name artists have been found to bear striking similarities to one another. They’re clearly the same piece of music, starting the same way and using the same melodic motifs, though the album art, artist name, and base pitch of each version varies.
On Twitter, media producer Adam Faze shared a strange discovery, collating 49 seemingly identical songs into a public Spotify playlist titled “these are all the same song.”
One quick listen and, yeah, there are shades of difference, mostly in terms of pitch. But these are undeniably all the same song.
As many pointed out in Faze’s replies, it all sounds like the product of low-effort generative music techniques or even AI productions—and, no, not the more respectable, exploratory kind that composers, electronic musicians, and visual artists have experimented with for years.
It would also seem that this phenomenon is not exclusive to Spotify. As musician Zoë Keating discovered, Apple Music also seems to have pitch-shifted renditions of classical music attributed to faux artists.
Kotaku has reached out to Spotify and Apple for comment.
While just about anyone can upload music to streaming services with something like a Distrokid account, Universal Media Group has recently called on Spotify to take a stance against AI-generated music that lifts the likeness of established artists to create new music. As with AI-generated visual art, however, these problems aren’t likely to fade away.
