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Intel is reportedly preparing to further reduce its headcount, this time by laying off more than 20 percent of its employees. It could announce a plan to do so as soon as this week. The struggling company had 108,900 employees at the end of last year, so it may be set to cut tens of thousands of jobs. According to a Bloomberg source, the aim of the downsizing is to streamline management operations and refocus Intel with an engineering-driven culture. Last August, Intel said it would cut more than 15,000 jobs to reduce costs. In fact, the company, which has been slow to embrace the industry's shift toward artificial intelligence, has been significantly reducing its headcount since 2022 amid declining sales. These latest purported layoffs would mark one of the first major restructuring measures since Lip-Bu Tan became CEO in March after the sudden departure of Pat Gelsinger. The company is set to report its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. Companies that are restructuring often announce layoffs around the time they release earnings reports. Tan has also pledged to sell off assets that aren't core to Intel's goals as he tries to turn the business around. Last week, it emerged that Intel is selling off a majority stake in chipmaker Altera for $4.46 billion. That deal is expected to close later this year.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/intel-may-be-preparing-to-lay-off-20-percent-of-its-staff-161557058.html?src=rss
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Marketing and Advertising
Amazons Project Kuiper is reportedly way behind schedule, according to an investigation by Bloomberg. This is the companys satellite internet service, which intends to rival SpaceX and Starlink. The issue seems to be one of scale, as the company has had trouble increasing production of the actual satellites. The reporting indicates that the Kuiper team has only managed to manufacture a few dozen of these satellites. As a comparison, there are currently over 7,000 Starlink satellites in orbit. The initial production of the Kuiper satellites was delayed until the tail-end of last year, so Amazon hasnt had too much time to ramp things up. Beta testing didnt start until earlier this year. Amazon had planned for an initial launch on April 8 for 27 satellites, but that got delayed until April 28. Project Kuiper hopes to eventually provide broadband connectivity to at least 400 million households, in addition to providing service in remote areas. However, it needs to launch over 3,000 satellites to reach that goal. Additionally, it secured a government contract with a deadline to put 1,600 satellites in orbit by next summer. Insiders suggest that it will probably have to seek an extension from the FCC. "Weve designed some of the most advanced communications satellites ever built, and our primary objective is to build and launch enough of them to begin delivering service to customers later this year," an Amazon spokesperson told Seeking Alpha. "Our manufacturing schedule is on track to support this target, and well continue to increase our production and launch rates as we begin a full-scale deployment of our network." It did manage to launch a pair of prototype satellites into space in late 2023. This was followed by successful tests of an optical mesh network that linked the two satellites in low Earth orbit. The company is scheduled to conduct a number of launches throughout the year, with help from Arianespace, Blue Origin and SpaceX. United Launch Alliance, a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin, will handle the April 28 launch. Amazon hasnt indicated why satellite production has hit this hiccup. We reached out to the company and will update this post when we learn more.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/space/amazons-starlink-rival-project-kuiper-is-reportedly-way-behind-schedule-153514471.html?src=rss
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Marketing and Advertising
More people worldwide will be seeing ads on Threads in the future. Back in January, Meta launched a small test of ads visible to a subset of users in the US and Japan, which included a handful of brands. Threads was completely ad-free since it became available a year-and-a-half before that, though Meta had been planning to put ads on the service months before the test began. Now, Meta is rolling out ads on Threads to over 30 countries globally. That means the advertisements will reach a bigger percentage of its 300 million users, though it will be interesting to see if their rollout will have any impact on the service's steady growth. Meta didn't list out those 30 countries, and it also didn't say how often ads will show up in people's feeds. Like in the initial test period though, the advertisements will appear in between organic content or posts from people and friends users follow. Meta is opening up ads on Threads to all its eligible advertisers around the world, as well, so users will be seeing placements from more companies, including ones local to their countries. The company told us that it's adopting a phased approach to its rollout, so advertisements might appear more and more frequently on the service as time goes on. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/meta-expands-ads-to-threads-users-in-over-30-countries-150535654.html?src=rss
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Marketing and Advertising
WhatsApp is introducing a new feature called Advanced Chat Privacy that can block participants from sharing the contents of a conversation. This is an opt-in tool thats available for both traditional chats and groups. Once selected, the toolset will prevent anyone in the chat from sharing anything outside of the app. This means itll block all chat exports, but thats just the beginning. The software also prevents a smartphone from auto-downloading media and will stop integration with AI assistants. Basically, what happens on WhatsApp stays on WhatsApp. However, it's unclear if it prevents screenshotting. We've reached out to Meta and will update this post when we hear back. The platform says this is "best used when talking with groups where you may not know everyone closely but are nevertheless sensitive in nature." It gives examples like a support group about health challenges and a chat about community organizing. WhatsApp says this is just the first version of the tool and that itll be adding "more protections" in the future. Its rolling out right now across the globe, though it could take a month or two to reach everyone. The platform is already known for being privacy-focused, as it uses end-to-end encryption. It also leverages related software tools like disappearing messages and chats that require device authentication.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/whatsapp-introduces-a-feature-that-blocks-chat-participants-from-sharing-content-150042001.html?src=rss
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Marketing and Advertising
Roku is wading deeper into the smart home space with two new security cameras, which can run on batteries. As such, you'll be able to place the Roku Battery Camera and Roku Battery Camera Plus pretty much anywhere. The former is said to run for up to six months on a single charge, while the Roku Battery Camera Plus might operate for a couple of years before you need to juice it up. There's an optional solar panel attachment so you might never have to manually recharge the batteries. These cameras are designed for simplicity. A step-by-step guide on your phone walks you through how to set them up. They provide 1080p full-color visuals and there's a color night vision mode. Other features include motion detection and notifications. You can create schedules for the cameras too. Of course, you can monitor what the cameras see via the Roku Smart Home app or the web, as well as Roku TVs and streaming devices. Through the Roku Cameras app on your TV, you can view a carousel of camera feeds that cycle either periodically or based on motion events. There's a picture-in-picture option in case you want to watch TV and keep and eye on what's happening in and around your home too. Roku hasn't announced pricing for the cameras as yet. They'll be available in the coming months and will join the likes of the Indoor Security Camera in Roku's lineup. The company also unveiled its latest streaming sticks and announced new TVs and feature updates at an event on Wednesday.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/smart-home/roku-unveils-two-new-battery-powered-security-cameras-144554234.html?src=rss
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Marketing and Advertising
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