ShinyShiny snippets: Clearview AI fined £7.5m for facial recognition breach

Facial recognition company Clearview AI has been fined more than £7.5m by the UK's privacy watchdog for collecting the facial images of people in Britain from the web and social media. The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) said that globally the company illegally collected more than 20 billion images of people's faces to create a global…

Two-fifths of British workers want 4 day working week to reduce stress

Two fifths (39%) of the nation’s employees wish their employers would trial a four-day working week in order to reduce burnout, new data shows. The findings encourage employers to promote healthy working habits, such as regular screen breaks. Almost half (44%) of employees report feeling burnt out at work, while 1 in 3 find maintaining…

ShinyShiny snippets: Mastercard pilots biometric payment system

The cost of groceries may be rising, but shoppers will have to grin and bear it at the checkouts. Under new plans unveiled by Mastercard, customers will soon be able to pay by smiling or waving at checkouts, meaning that the days of scrambling for a credit card or cursing a lost debit card could soon…

ShinyShiny snippets: Apple ‘testing screen for foldable display’

Apple is reportedly testing the use of a color display from E Ink as an external screen for an unannounced foldable device, according to noted analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. “The color EPD [Electronic Paper Display] has the potential to become a mainstream solution for foldable devices’ must-have cover/second screen thanks to its excellent power-saving,” the analyst wrote…

Dog owners are happier – it’s official

Those with a dog have 69 per cent more ‘meaningful’ interactions (one-to-ones which boost their overall mood) than those without. That's according to a study of 2,004 adults which also found dog owners benefit from the simple act of walking their canine chum. Nearly one in three (31 per cent) feel less lonely when they…

ShinyShiny snippets: Elon Musk puts Twitter deal on hold over fake accounts

Elon Musk has said his $44bn (£35bn) deal to buy Twitter is temporarily on hold after he queried the number of fake or spam accounts on the social media platform. He said he was waiting for information "supporting [the] calculation that spam/fake accounts do indeed represent less than 5% of users". Following the announcement, Twitter…

ShinyShiny snippets: Royal Mail wants fleet of 500 drones

Image: Royal Mail The Royal Mail wants a fleet of 500 drones to help deliver the mail to remote communities across the UK. In the next three years it hopes up to 200 drones will help carry the mail on 50 new routes with the Isles of Scilly, Shetland Islands, Orkney…

ShinyShiny snippets: RIP Apple iPod Touch – you served us well

The Apple iPod Touch first launched in 2001 Apple has announced it is discontinuing its music player, the iPod Touch, bringing to an end a device widely praised for revolutionising how people listen to music. When the first iPod was launched in 2001, it could store 1,000 tracks. Today there are…

ShinyShiny snippets: Tesla slashes Shanghai EV production

Tesla has pulled back most of its production in Shanghai as China’s zero-Covid policy wreaks havoc in its supply chain. The electric car company, owned by billionaire Elon Musk, has cut back from making 1,200 units a day to fewer than 200 units, Reuters reported. The plans were outlined in an internal memo sent after…