One Thing Today in Tech
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MFine merges with LifeCell's unit in JV; Vegrow raises $25 mln; Apple slips in PC shipments
MFine, a mobile health app and digital healthcare platform provider facing a money crunch in the slowdown, is merging with the diagnostics business of LifeCell International, a stem cell bank and reproductive genetic testing services company, to form a new entity called LifeWell. Vegrow, a fruits marketplace, has raised more money. And Apple slipped in Q2CY22 worldwide PC shipment rankings, IDC says
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TCS CEO says prospects remain strong; Elon Musk seeks to end Twitter deal; String Bio raises Series B funding
Rajesh Gopinathan, CEO and MD of Tata Consultancy Services, said on Friday the company continues to see strong deal prospects ahead, amid a global economic slowdown, as customers continue to invest in technology. Elon Musk wants to walk away from his proposed $44 billion Twitter deal. And Bengaluru biotech startup String Bio has raised more money, including from an Australian oil and gas company
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IT services to sustain double-digit growth; Rajeev Misra's role pared back at Softbank; Netflix rolls out spatial audio
India's information technology services sector will sustain double-digit revenue growth this fiscal, at 12-13 percent, driven by digitalisation, strong demand for new-age technologies, and depreciation in the rupee, rating agency Crisil said in a note yesterday. Rajeev Misra, head of SoftBank Group's giant venture-investing arm, will step back from Vision Fund 2, And you can now search for spatial audio on Netflix
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Apple introduces lockdown mode; Amazon faces new UK probe, announces Prime days in India; Axilor raises $100 mln fund
Apple has introduced a 'lockdown mode' to help those small number of users who may be under threat of the most sophisticated mercenary cyberattacks, the company said in a press release yesterday. Amazon faces a new probe by UK regulators, even as it announces its Prime Day sales this month. And Axilor is raising $100 million for its second fund after backing more than 50 companies from its first fund
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Twitter challenges some Indian content orders; EU approves sweeping big-tech laws; Nexo offers to buy Vauld
Twitter on Tuesday asked an Indian court to overturn some government orders to remove content from the social media platform it offers, in a legal challenge that alleges abuse of power by officials, Reuters reports. The EU approved two landmark sets of rules that regulate big tech companies. And Indian entrepreneurs Darshan Bathija and Sanju Kurian's crypto lender Vauld, which is in a financial bind, has been made a buyout offer by larger rival Nexo
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TCS to appeal latest EPIC case order; Vauld locks up, explores restructuring; Xiaomi releases 12S Ultra with 1-inch sensor
Tata Consultancy Services, told the stock exchanges yesterday that it will appeal the latest order in a US law court in a seven-year old case brought by EPIC Systems, a US company, which has accused India's biggest IT services provider of stealing intellectual property; Vauld, another crypto exchange and lender, has locked out users as it considers restructuring; and Xiaomi's latest flagship has a 1-inch camera sensor, which is big as smartphones go
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Google will delete location history of abortion clinic visits; PE VC investments in India fall 30 percent
Google will delete location data of users who have visited personally sensitive places, including abortion clinics, the internet search giant said in a blogpost, a week after the US Supreme Court ended women's legal right to abortions in the country; Apple's next watch may be able to tell if you have a fever; and PE VC investments fall in India as the world moves into an economic slowdown
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Zendesk to be bought out for $10.2 bln; IT services staff in no hurry to WFO; Intel expands India design centre
Zendesk has agreed to be acquired by a group of buyout firms for $10.2 billion, bringing back a deal that will be one of the biggest private-equity takeovers of the year, Wall Street Journal reports. IT services employees are in no hurry to get back to the office, according to a survey by CIEL HR, Economic Times reports. And Intel has expanded its design and engineering capacity in Bengaluru by 2000 seats
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Apple and Android phones hacked by Italian spyware; Flipkart commits to net-zero by 2030
Apple's iPhones and Android smartphones were hacked by an Italian company's spyware in Italy and Kazakhstan, Google said in a report on Thursday, according to Reuters. Flipkart has committed to decarbonising its operations by 2030 and that of its entire supply chain by 2040, the Walmart company said in a press release. And Fundamental VC, an early-stage Bengaluru investor, is raising $130 million for its first fund
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Accel announces $4 bln 'later-stage' fund; UK probing polio virus find; EV raw material costs double
Accel, one of the top global venture capital firms, best known in India for backing Flipkart and Freshworks, has raised a $4 billion fund to invest in what it calls later-stage ventures. Britain has declared a 'national incident' after a rare discovery of a 'vaccine-derived' polio virus in sewage samples in London. And the cost of raw materials needed for EVs has doubled during the pandemic, according to AlixPartners, a consultancy
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Biden nominates Arati Prabhakar as top S&T advisor; Google ends French dispute, Germany probes Maps; Matrix to raise $450 mln India fund
US President Joe Biden yesterday announced his intent to nominate Indian American engineer, Dr Arati Prabhakar, to serve as Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), and once confirmed to this position, also as Assistant to the President for Science and Technology. Google ended a two-year fight against France, agreeing to a fine and stipulations over deals with news publishers.