Plus: FedEx is launching an e-commerce platform to compete with Amazon.
| For January 15, 2024 |  |
| Here are today's top tech stories: - Apple presents redesign of smartwatches to avoid U.S. import ban.
- Microsoft overtakes Apple as the most valuable public company.
- GameStop will shut down its NFT marketplace.
Beth
p/beth-duckett | |
| 1 | | U.S. Customs and Border Protection has approved a redesign of Apple's newest smartwatches that allows the company to continue selling the devices in the U.S. According to a legal filing, Apple plans to disable pulse oximetry features on newly sold Watch models through software, allowing it to avoid an import ban. More: - The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) recently found that Apple infringed on tech company Masimo's patents for technology that reads blood oxygen levels, known as pulse oximetry.
- The agency issued an import ban on Apple's Series 9 and Ultra 2 watches.
- Shortly after Apple stopped selling the watches in the U.S., a federal appeals court paused the ban, allowing sales to continue while the case goes through the courts.
- In court, Apple argued that a redesign of the watches should negate the ban. Apple developed a software workaround and presented it last week to the customs agency, which approved it, although the ITC has the authority to overrule the decision if it disagrees.
- The redesigned watches do not contain the disputed pulse oximetry technology.
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| 2 | | Microsoft has surpassed Apple to become the world's most valuable public company by market capitalization. At the end of Friday's trading session, Microsoft stock closed at $388.47 per share, giving it a market cap of $2.89 trillion, while Apple closed at $185.92 per share, for a market cap of $2.87 trillion. 
Details: Market capitalization is the total value of all the shares of a publicly traded company. After trailing Apple for much of the past decade, Microsoft has taken the No. 1 spot after its market value surged by over $1 trillion in the past year. What it means: Microsoft's strategic integration of OpenAI's technology into its productivity software has rejuvenated its cloud-computing business, positioning it to challenge Google. Meanwhile, Apple has grappled with dwindling demand for its hardware, particularly in China, where economic recovery is sluggish, and competition from Huawei has intensified. Other AI-focused tech giants like Nvidia, Meta, and Alphabet have also experienced substantial market cap growth in the past year. | | | |
| 3 | | GameStop is shutting down its NFT marketplace, citing "continuing regulatory uncertainty of the crypto space." The marketplace, which launched in July 2022, will no longer be usable as of Feb. 2. More: - At that time, customers will no longer be able to create, purchase, or sell NFTs, according to a notice posted to GameStop's website.
- As the NFTs were minted on the blockchain, they will continue to be accessible and sellable through other platforms, the company noted.
- GameStop has now made a complete exit from the NFT business.
- Last year the company discontinued its crypto wallet, also citing regulatory uncertainty. The self-custodial Ethereum wallet allowed users to manage cryptocurrencies and NFTs.
- The company's heavy investment in NFTs faced challenges, including a failed partnership with FTX and consumer backlash.
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| 4 | | FedEx plans to launch "FDX," a data-driven e-commerce platform, later this year. The platform is poised to rival Amazon by providing merchants with services like order fulfillment, tracking, and returns. More: - Sellers on FDX will be able to tap into the customer network of ShopRunner, an e-commerce site owned by FedEx.
- They will receive carbon emissions reports about their supply chain and optimal shipping routes,
- Meanwhile, customers on FDX will be able to view delivery estimates for products while browsing and adding items to their carts.
- The platform is currently in a private preview stage. FedEx is aiming for an official launch this fall.
Zoom out: - Amazon is now the largest delivery business in the U.S., surpassing both UPS and FedEx in parcel volume. Amazon expects to reach 5.9 billion deliveries by the end of 2023, up from 5.2 billion in 2022.
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| 5 | | Apple has decided to merge its Siri testing team in San Diego with another team located in Austin, Texas, possibly resulting in layoffs for employees who choose not to move to Austin. According to Bloomberg, the San Diego staff was caught off guard by the move as they were originally told they would be relocating to another campus in San Diego. More: - Most of the San Diego team of 121 employees do not plan to move, Bloomberg reported.
- The employees can still apply for other positions.
- Workers who do relocate will receive $7,000 stipends. Those who don't will receive severance pay of four weeks plus an additional week per year worked, along with six months of health insurance.
Zoom out: - Unlike other tech companies, Apple has largely managed to avoid workforce reductions in recent years.
- In 2023, the company slowed its pace of hiring and laid off a small number of corporate retail employees and contractors
- At the time, CEO Tim Cook said Apple was not currently planning mass layoffs and would only do so as a "last resort."
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| 6 | | Microsoft could auto-launch Copilot, its AI assistant, as a sidebar in Windows 11 during boot-up. The company is now testing the change in its latest Dev Channel preview of Windows 11, allowing testers to give feedback before a wider release. More: - Microsoft plans to automatically launch Copilot only on "widescreen devices" at first, though it hasn't clarified whether it applies to 16:9 and 16:10 displays or exclusively to ultrawide displays like 21:9.
- Users could also disable the automatic launch by navigating to Settings > Personalization > Copilot.
- The change has drawn some criticism online. A user on Reddit wrote that it is "guaranteed to be the most annoying feature ever implemented."
- Microsoft is also adding a dedicated "Copilot" key to keyboards on some new Windows 11 PCs. The key, which will summon Microsoft's AI-powered assistant with one click, is described as "the first significant change to the Windows PC keyboard in nearly three decades."
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- Swiss IT company SoftwareOne Holding AG has rejected a $3.5B takeover offer from Bain Capital, choosing to stay independent after months of negotiations.
- Lost Boys Interactive, the developer of games like Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, has laid off an undisclosed number of employees.
- Swarovski showed off smart binoculars that identify bird species using AI technology.
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 | AI and technology writer | | Beth is a contributing editor and writer of Inside's AI and Tech newsletters. She has written for notable publications like USA Today and the Arizona Business Gazette. During her time as a public policy reporter at The Arizona Republic, she received recognition with a Pulitzer Prize nomination and a First Amendment Award for her collaborative reporting on pension cost increases. Beth also authored a book on the solar photovoltaic industry in 2016. You can reach her at Beth.Duckett@yahoo.com. | | This newsletter was edited by Eduardo Garcia | |
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