Emerging Technology Industry News Headlines Update on July 30, 2021

Japanese computer memory manufacturer Kioxia is set to release two new solid state drives for content creators, gamers, and professionals. The SSDs, which are under development, will be staged in an exhibit in Shanghai from 30 July to 2 August.

Australian-listed blockchain and AI focused mobile games developer Animoca Brands has acquired 100% of indie game developer Blowfish Studios for an upfront consideration of $9 million, plus payments of up to $26 million conditional on certain employment and performance targets.

Fintech startup 1receipt issues and manages customers’ digital receipts in a smartphone app. And unlike other digital receipts, shoppers are not required to share their personal information.

Western Australian managed IT services consulting company Netlink has rebranded its business with help from digital agency PWD.

Cybersecurity testing standard community AMTSO has elected a new board, appointing Alexander Ivanyuk, Acronis senior director of product and technology, and David Ellis, SecureIQLab vice president of sales and corporate relations, as new board members.

Webcentral has appointed John Stevens to the role of chief operating officer.

The Federal Government has announced the expansion of Australia’s fast charging network for battery electric vehicles (EVs) by providing funding for new chargers across metropolitan and regional Australia to drive uptake of EVs and support consumer choice.

ASX listed telecommunications, cloud and IT solutions provider Over the Wire is expanding its network internationally into Singapore and the United States.

SolarWinds today released its eighth annual IT trends report. Its findings paint a picture where organisations everywhere have exposure to enterprise IT risk, but where risk preparedness is being met with apathy and complacency as businesses exit their COVID-19 crisis mode. The opportunity is there for IT leaders and tech pros to steer their company’s future.

Australian-listed satellite provider Kleos Space has established a partnership with Japanese based Japan Space Imaging to support Kleos’ geolocation data promotion in Japan.

British telco BT and Microsoft have announced a new strategic partnership designed to accelerate innovation across enterprise voice, cyber security and industry-focused services in sectors from digital manufacturing to health, setting businesses in the UK and around the world back to growth.

5G mobile private networks can boost productivity in factories across the UK’s regions and nations from Wales to the Midlands and the North East, according to Vodafone UK.

Boost Mobile‘s new 10-year network agreement with Telstra provides “significant expansion opportunities for Australia’s fastest growing independently owned mobile brand” and ensures a bright future for the youth-focused brand.

Digital operations management vendor PagerDuty has published its first State of Digital Operations report, providing a view of what’s been happening in operations during the pandemic.

Eftpos has announced building its new QR code payments experience infrastructure on schedule, with the first commercial trials to be announced “in the coming weeks.”

BlackBerry’s Research and Intelligence has released its Old Dogs New Tricks research paper which examines how threat actors are sneakily leveraging new and uncommon programming languages to evade detection and hinder threat analysis.

Analytics Plus, a software product of IT management company ManageEngine, can now decode data fast to provide companies trend insights and to help them with strategic decisions.

Parallels Toolbox 5.0, the utility suite for macOS and Windows, delivers new barcode generation and reading functions, among others.

Automated test equipment and virtual instrumentation software company NI and Seagate Technology have announced a new collaboration to enhance data storage and transfer services, including a “first-of-its-kind” advanced driver-assistance systems record offering.

COMPANY NEWS: Nintex, the global standard for process management and automation, has announced the latest enhancements to its next generation Nintex Workflow Cloud, designed for ops, IT, process professionals and power users to improve the way people work by making it faster and easier to manage, automate, and optimise business processes and workflows.

Latest data from Kantar shows consumers are making the most of reduced COVID restrictions, allowing for a more personalised in-store smartphone purchasing experience, although in-store shopping experiences are something many people are finding challenging in Australia due to ongoing COVID lockdowns that either continue or have ended but could start up again at any time.

Researchers from the University of Waterloo’s Cheriton School of Computer Science have found that ethnicity and race are factors whether a software project or contributions may be accepted or rejected, with researchers also noting that the majority of contributions were developers perceptible as white.

Storage solutions company Greenliant introduces the ArmourDrive PX and EX series SSDs, which are ideal for write intensive applications that require data retention and endurance. Greenliant says the SSDs are suited for industrial, medical, networking, and transportation applications.

Telstra has announced that it is now offering Disney+ on Telstra TV.

Australian semiconductor start-up Morse Micro says it is sampling its Wi-Fi HaLow chips to product developers to evaluate and test the solution. By making the HaLow chips available, Morse Micro also adds it expects to see Wi-Fi reach billions of devices.

Artificial intelligence solutions provider SenSen Networks recorded cash receipts from customers in the fourth quarter 2021 of $1.6 million, which it says is the highest quarterly cash receipts since listing, and $200,000 more than in Q4 2020.

Uniphore announced its agreement to acquire Jacada, a customer experience pioneer with a low code/no code platform for contact centre automation.

COMPANY NEWS: Fastly, a global edge cloud platform provider, today announced beta availability of the Signal Sciences agent on the Fastly edge cloud platform. This represents a critical milestone toward Fastly’s vision of empowering developers to protect apps and APIs in every environment—cloud, on-premise, hybrid and now at the network edge.

COMPANY NEWS: Accounting automation software leader BlackLine and Kyriba, a global leader of cloud-based finance and IT solutions, today announced that they are joining forces to streamline the digitalisation of the office of the CFO and improve collaboration between finance and treasury departments.

Google announced the opening of a new Melbourne region here in Australia. This joins the Sydney region that opened in 2017 and becomes the 27th Google Cloud region globally.

RMIT is set to become the first Australian university to implement a dedicated cloud supercomputing facility on Amazon Web Services to drive digital innovation in research and education at scale.

Independent non-partisan organisation Reset Australia says Facebook has profiled young users and teenagers with sensitive advertising content such as smoking, gambling, and extreme weight loss. The organisation calls for measures to regulate these ads.

Victoria University researchers wanted to predict domestic violence incidents by analysing social media data and turned to Oracle Cloud to provide the sheer computational grunt needed to support its deep learning models.

Software development and deployment tool specialist Progress has announced a new verison of Progress Telerik Test Studio, its enterprise UI test automation platform.

IT service management company DC Two has reached another milestone: it has been awarded certification of the internationally recognised ISO 27001 for data security. The recognition will not only enhance its reputation but also presents new opportunities, especially in the public sector.

Infrastructure provider Vertiv has hired two new people to its channel team.

Despite getting its butt seriously kicked by AMD, Apple, TSMC and others, Intel is still the world’s biggest maker of CPUs for traditional computers, and it has announced its first new transistor architecture is more than a decade, along with an “industry-first” for backside power delivery, “continued leadership in advanced 3D packaging innovations,” and its first customer announcements for Intel Foundry Services.

Not one to fold on its folding smartphone ambitions, the head of Samsung Electronics‘ mobile communications business Dr TM Roh explains how Samsung’s galaxy of smartphone technology is “bringing more people into the fold.”

Ok, so anyone that has seen curved screens will find Samsung’s new Odyssey Neo G9 anything but odd, and when it comes to the best of the best, even the $2,999 price isn’t an oddity, even when that price could buy you a PS5, Xbox Series X, gaming PC and still have the odd bit of change to spare.

Car subscription service Carbar has earned a $50 million class A investment from Sydney-based credit investor Global Credit Investments. The funding will be used to grow the business and will allow Carbar to gain new car subscriptions.

Full of sound and fury signifying what Kingston says is the kickstarting of a gaming revolution, Kingston’s new Fury branded memory comes in three flavours – Fury Renegade, Fury Beast and Fury Impact.

REVIEW PROMOTION: When it comes to timeless games that are simple to pick up and play for casual and strategic players alike draughts, or checkers, has to be near the top of the list. GamoVation has made the definitive Android version in its Quick Checkers game.

Zoho Invoice is lending its services for free to help small and medium businesses and freelancers with their invoice process. With the software, they can send professional invoices, follow up payments, and get paid online.

Billed as being “built for the rough and tumble of everyday life,” HMD Global says its Nokia XR20 is “the latest life-proof phone concealed in a sleek, timeless design,” with “four years of monthly security updates, an industry-leading three warranty and three years of OS upgrades.”

Health insurer nib health funds has made its member cards available in Apple Wallet.

Withings introduces ScanWatch Rose Gold, a new watch that scans and detects heart and health conditions to improve one’s health and fitness. The new watch can also send a notification to its wearer when it detects an irregular heartbeat.

New Zealand cable operator Hawaiki Submarine Cable has been acquired by BW Digital, an affiliate of the global maritime company BW Group, for an undisclosed price.

The limits on the amount of spectrum that can be purchased by the telcos in the November spectrum auction is creating some vocal comments in the main media.

The Australian Government‘s move to push Telstra to buy Digicel appears to contradict the policy it has adopted in order to ban Huawei from having a role in the country’s 5G networks.

COMPANY NEWS: Claroty, a leader in industrial cybersecurity, launches Team82, its new research arm dedicated to threat research reports, policies, and disclosures. It recently published a report that details vulnerabilities in cloud-based management platforms and the need to secure implementations.

GitHub has announced its suite of supply chain features is now available for the Go programming language. This includes the GitHub security database with over 150 Go advisories, Dependabot alerts and updates, and dependency graph which provides information to alert for vulnerable dependencies.

The Discord chat system is being increasingly targeted by the malware fraternity, according to security vendor Sophos.

Adobe has announced two more APIs within Adobe Document Services.

Thousands of people are being asked to share their search engine results for research into whether platforms such as Google and YouTube promote misinformation and political biases, with the launch of the citizen science Australian Search Eperience Project.

The South West Alliance of Rural Health and Barwon Health employ InterSystems’ Iris for Health data platform to improve clinical outcomes and patient experience.

Aussie Broadband has managed to raise a donation of $200,000 from its customers to provide access to education and engagement programs for young Australians.

Communication, network, and cloud solutions provider Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise has appointed Maud Holvast as its new ANZ country business leader.

Australia-based computer vision startup Visionary Machines has appointed Amir Mashkoori to the role of chief executive officer.

eftpos has announced seasoned digital executive Mark Britt has joined the eftpos team as CEO of Beem It to take it next-level with plans for a new national rewards platform for Australian consumers, while also providing evidence a Parliamentary inquiry today into mobile payment and digital wallet financial services.

Optus 5G has raced to the top of the speed leader board after officially being awarded the coveted title of ‘Australia’s fastest 5G mobile network’ by independent benchmarking company Ookla.

Optus announced the launch of what it says is the world’s first TikTok sign-language activated filter. Featuring Optus ambassador Ian Thorpe, Optus will unveil a branded effect that shows TikTok users how to say key phrases in Auslan sign language, including ‘How are you?’ and ‘It starts with Yes’, through the hashtag challenge #SignYes.

Energy management and automation company Schneider Electric and business IT firm Intelli-Systems have worked on a micro data service solution to provide management and support services for the NSW Aboriginal Land Council.

ImpaQt’s investment in digital health company Cardihab will help provide solutions to prevent cardiovascular diseases in Australia.

Three years in the making, Thin Ice VR is a groundbreaking virtual reality production using world-first technology to retrace Sir Ernest Shackleton’s famous 1914 Trans-Antarctic expedition, highlighting the devastating impact of climate change over the past 100 years – and it will be airing later in 2021.

Security vendor Sophos has acquired network detection and response provider Braintrace.

Independent not-for-profit organisation AustCyber teams up with Microsoft to launch Cyber Security Traineeship Program to help the cyber careers of 200 participants and encourage diversity.

The company that operates the world’s biggest single hydrocarbon network has admitted that it suffered a data leak, which it blamed on third-party contractors.

Adobe has announced two more APIs within Adobe Document Services.

Professional services company Accenture has joined forces with business software provider Pegasystems to launch a new technology platform – PostingConnect – that helps streamline the Australian Defence Force’s relocation process for its members, including a simple to use mobile app.

The Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment chooses software company Link4 as one of the four access point providers to accelerate its e-invoicing adoption. The adoption of e-invoice could add $4.4 billion to the NZ economy in over ten years, the company says.

The Lorna Jane womens activewear manufacturer and retailer has been ordered by the Federal Court to pay $5 million in penalties for making false and misleading representations to consumers, and engaging in conduct liable to mislead the public in connection with the promotion and supply of its LJ Shield Activewear.

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia has taken a 25% stake in two retail service providers that resell NBN services and says it will offer discounted plans to its customers through these two companies.

The Olympic Games in Tokyo will take place without an Australian crowd this year, so support for Australian athletes is much needed. Fans can show support by using green and gold face filters and profile frames on their Facebook and Instagram accounts.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation has rejected a Freedom of Information request from a security researcher that sought information on its sharing of data through iview, a service that allows users to see programs that have already been broadcast or, in some cases, which are yet to go to air.

Following the conclusion of UEFA Euro 2020 and the Copa America 2021, Optus Sport’s big tournament focus shifts to premium women’s football.

Micro data centre specialist Zella DC has secured funding from the Advanced Manufacturing Growth Centre to build a new micro data centre. The funds will be used to improve research and development.

The ACCC is examining competition and consumer concerns with general online retail marketplaces such as eBay Australia, Amazon Australia, Kogan and Catch.com.au as part of its inquiry into digital platform services in Australia.

IT talent specialist David Field has been appointed head of augmented professional services at Cube Networks.

Zoom’s new Zoom Apps and Zoom Events have launched, with Zoom Apps “seamlessly embedding third-party apps within the Zoom Meetings and desktop client experience, enhancing collaboration, productivity, and entertainment for today’s hybrid workforce,” while Zoom Events is “an all-in-one platform for creating a wide range of interactive and immersive virtual events to reach and engage audiences.”

It’s a busy time for rural, regional and remote telco Field Solutions Group (FSG). The company has secured three financial awards under the Federal Government’s mobile black spot program to run the first neutral host radio access trial, to provide another 15 towers, and to trial domestic roaming.

Clubhouse styles itself as “the leading social audio platform”, and after a 16 month beta, mostly on iOS and then recently on Android, and it has announced that it has dropped the invite/waitlist system for the, so anyone can join, tune in and participate.

Epos Audio released its first entry into the microphone field last month with the B20. It’s proving to be a formidable option that truly sets a high bar for competitors.

Deakin University has chosen remote work solutions provider LogMeIn’s LastPass solution to safeguard its users’ sensitive data, records and passwords.

Thomson Reuters has announced it is rolling out its Onesource global indirect tax software on 30 Oracle cloud regions including Sydney and Melbourne so clients know exactly where their data is being processed.

Anne Ward has joined the board of voice communications software provider MNF Group as an independent director and chair.

Creative was the force behind PC-based soundcards and continues to bring its SoundBlaster audio heritage to your lounge room with its Creative Stage V2 soundbar.

Global customer relationship management software provider Salesforce has completed its acquisition of enterprise collaboration platform provider Slack Technologies.

Capgemini subsidiary Acclimation has released Quick Starter – Finance and CRM to help businesses adopt SAP Business ByDesign.

The Sony HT-A9 and HT-A7000 soundbars immerse users in music as if they were listening live in front of their favourite artists. The two soundbars are also designed to blend in any room environment.

Chinese smartphone maker realme has released an updated user interface for the skin it uses over Android, with UI 2.0 to be available for a number of devices including the realme 7 Pro, the 7 5G, X3 SuperZoom, realme 6 and C12 models.

Research technology company Glow has appointed Lachlan Donald to an advisory role on its board.

Nokia and Vodafone launched a jointly developed machine learning product running on Google Cloud to quickly detect and remediate network anomalies before they impact Vodafone customers.

Mobile company vivo and mobile phone operator Advanced Info Service have conducted 5G standalone network tests using a V21 5G smartphone in urban areas of Bangkok.

Australian-listed document productivity software company Nitro Software has launched Nitro Sign as a standalone subscription esigning product as part of a new comprehensive, flexible pricing and packaging model for the Nitro Productivity Platform.

Infrastructure automation provider Puppet says the findings of its 2021 State of DevOps Report have provided insight into the chasm between organisations with highly evolved DevOps practices and those whose DevOps evolution has plateaued.

Pass out your new DuckDuckGo email address and the service will strip out all the trackers from incoming email before forwarding to your actual address.

Software company SugarCRM integrates a sentiment analysis feature to its SugarPredict AI capabilities to identify each customer and prospect’s emotional state and intent.

Chinese tech giant Alibaba Group has released a new cloud-based solution designed to help Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 onsite staff reduce the risk of getting heatstroke during the summer in Tokyo.

Research by Ceridian HCM Holdings shows the majority of executives plan to increase their teams within the next 12 months, that remote work will continue, that the gig economy will increase, and AI will play a big part in the recruitment tools of the future.

While the world scrambled to be GDPR-compliant it appears companies are barely striving to do the minimum when it comes to modern slavery laws and disclosure. The legislation might be considered the GDPR of the supply chain but is becoming little more than a box-ticking exercise by big Australian corporates.

In a statement to the Australian Securities Exchange, Telstra confirmed that it has been in discussions regarding a potential transaction to acquire telecommunications company Digicel Pacific in the South Pacific region in partnership with the Australian Government.

A $2.1 million project by the Digital Health Cooperative Research Centre to collect patient data in one place is aimed at better equipping healthcare workers when making critical and life-saving clinical decisions.

Chief data officers (CDOs) say there is a need for greater investment in data-driven initiatives, according to a study released by Qlik. CDOs also have agreed that organisations must be more data-driven towards decision making.

By 2025 cyber attackers will have weaponised operational technology environments to successfully harm or kill humans, according to new research from Gartner.

Under a $52 million contract, IT services management company Empired will provide digital managed services across the Environmental Protection Authority of Victoria’s cloud platforms, networks, and business applications.

Data integration and integrity specialist Talend has hired Melle Whiting and Julien Francia as account directors based in Melbourne and Canberra respectively.

Data centre operator NextDC’s M2 Melbourne data centre now offers Google Cloud Interconnect.

Azure NetApp Files, a high-performance file storage service, is now available in Au Central, the Azure Government Cloud in Canberra.

AI-powered enterprise voice and chat platform Stackchat is officially partnering with Tourism Australia to launch the tourist organisation’s “revolutionary” platform on its UK website to provide every visitor with a personalised experience tailored to drive leads for Aussie businesses.

Debit card system provider eftpos has collaborated with FinTech Australia, to propose a report recommending how Australian fintechs can best leverage the eftpos digital roadmap and API programs – and work in partnership for the betterment of Australia’s digital economy.

Global digital transformation company Schneider Electric says it has achieved a key milestone with its offering of a personalised digital experience for logged in customers and partners on its website se.com.

As a contributing member of the O-Ran Alliance, edge computing company Adlink will deliver its expertise to reshape the Radio Access Network (RAN) industry.

As digital transformation reshapes the labour market and Australian businesses face a deepening skills shortage, new research reveals the impact demand for digital skills is having on job prospects and earning potential for employees across IT and other areas.

Alibaba is providing media professionals covering the Tokyo Olympics with the Alibaba Cloud Pin, allowing them to engage with each other and exchange social media contact information in a safe manner.

Vissles‘ latest gadget is a mechanical keyboard that works via Bluetooth or USB, can pair to multiple devices at once, has hot-swappable keys for Windows and macOS, and a range of backlighting options.

Global ICT professional association ISACA says mitigating information and technology risk and advancing digital transformation are among the top priorities for today’s enterprises, and has announced new COBIT resources to help organisations navigate IT risk and DevOps.

The City of Greater Bendigo has chosen customer experience and workforce engagement software company Alvaria to help it improve services to residents.

A forthcoming documentary promotes the idea that sustainability should be a major focus for quantum technology.

Extended MCU Series With USB-C Dual Port, CAN FD And Large Memory. More product variants include features such as dual-bank Flash, support for CAN FD and crystal-less USB Full-Speed data/host support. Strengthening the STM32G0 Arm Cortex-M0+ microcontroller (MCU) series by STMicroelectronics are more product variants and features such as dual-bank Flash, support for CAN FD and crystal-less USB Full-Speed data/host support. For budget-conscious applications, the new STM32G050 Value Line and mainstream STM32G051 and STM32G061 MCUs add rich analogue features and up to 18KBytes of RAM in package options up to 48-pins. Additionally, the STM32G0B0 Value Line, STM32G0B1 and STM32G0C1 MCUs introduce new features to the STM32G0 series by integrating a USB 2.0 device/host controller and dual-bank Flash memory. The STM32G0B1 and STM32G0C1 feature ST’s FDCAN peripheral.

Automatic Error Detection For High-Quality Lithium-Ion Batteries. New automatic error detection process that is implemented at the AQua Battery Competence Cluster. Lithium ion batteries are high energy density batteries used in a variety of applications like mobile phones, laptops, drones, electric vehicles, etc. These batteries are prone to degradation and issues like thermal runaway due to internal short circuits. For a high quality commercial lithium-ion battery, errors during the manufacturing process must be detected and corrected. For this, researchers from Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, along with the AQua battery research cluster are developing new approaches toward quality assurance and analytics in production of lithium-ion batteries. Read more at KIT: Quality Campaign for Better Batteries

Air-Powered RAM Chip for Soft Robots. The RAM chip is made using microfluidic valves instead of electronic transistors. Engineers at the University of California-Riverside have developed an air-powered computer memory that can be used to control soft robots. The work is published in the open-access journal, PLOS One. According to the researchers, the innovation overcomes one of the biggest obstacles in the advancements of soft robotics which is the mismatch between pneumatics and electronics.

GaN Based Designs For Compact Low-Voltage Power Converters. Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute IAF have presented interleaved GaN transistors design for improved efficiency. In automotive and other power converters, Gallium Nitride (GaN) based power transistors can increase the performance due to wide bandgap and offer the best compromise between safety, compactness and efficiency. Various applications such as e-bikes, robotics or drones, drive and board systems in mobility, or IT infrastructures—all these sectors rely on cost-effective, efficient and compact electronics. GaN based power transistors offer high energy density, high voltage operation, cost-effectiveness, and much more compactness as compared to their silicon counterparts. Read more at GaN low-voltage designs enable compact 3-phase motor inverter IC

World’s First 6 GHz USB Spectrum Analyzer with 245 MHz True IQ Streaming. Aaronia has developed the world’s first 6 GHz USB spectrum analyzer with 245 MHz true I/Q streaming which can thus increase the real-time bandwidth by six times. The analyzer also has another record-breaking feature, a small POI (Probability Of Intercept) of up to 10ns that enables the SPECTRAN V6 X to capture signals that are 1,000 times shorter than the conventional spectrum analyzers. The SPECTRAN V6 X also has an integrated vector signal generator with a modulation bandwidth of up to 120 MHz (opt. 245 MHz), which considerably increases its range of operation.

With a sweep speed of, the SPECTRAN V6 X has a sweep speed of over 1THz/s which shortens the cycle time by nearly 40 times compared to the ones used in the market today. In addition, it also is possible to cascade many numbers of these devices to achieve even higher real-time bandwidths.

The spectrum analyzer uses the latest version of the RTSA Suite PRO software, a powerful, multifunctional spectrum analysis software.

VCSEL Flood Illuminator High IR Illumination For In-Cabin Sensing. It combines VCSEL and optical packaging technologies to provide a high optical power output and narrow spectral bandwidth Ideal for optical In-Cabin Sensing (ICS) systems, the TARA2000-AUT family of VCSEL (Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser) flood illuminators by ams are based on 2D NIR imaging or 3D Time-of-Flight sensing, which supports the next generation of assisted and autonomous driving technologies in vehicles.

Driver Monitoring Systems (DMS) track whether the driver is alert and attentive while driving. TARA2000-AUT’s high optical power distributed over the whole Field of Illumination (FoI) can replace multiple lower-power emitters. This offers automotive OEMs savings in space, component count and cost. With peak optical output of 940nm and a very narrow spectrum, the TARA2000-AUT also makes it easy for automotive OEMs to achieve high immunity to interference by sunlight, improving the monitoring system’s performance and reliability.

Ultra Long Range Detection Enables Safe Automated Driving. Through a software enhanced 4D LiDAR hardware, the sensing system achieves long detection range for dark objects, pedestrians and bicycles. The 4D LiDAR sensing system by Aeva delivers a detection range of more than 500 metres, thanks to the software improvements on existing hardware.

This breakthrough enables instant detection and identification of pedestrians beyond 350m and dark objects, including vehicles, beyond 500m of range. This long-range sensing has the potential to provide crucial safety enhancements for automated driving, especially in applications where sufficient braking distance is safety-critical – including in highway driving – and challenging to achieve with existing technologies. Importantly, Aeva 4D LiDAR’s ultra long-range performance also identifies the ground drivable regions beyond 200m.

AI Analog Matrix Processor Offers High Performance Computing. Delivers up to 25 TOPS in a single chip and executes matrix multiplication operations without any external memory. The M1076 Analog Matrix Processor (AMP) by Mythic delivers up to 25 TOPS in a single chip for high-end edge AI applications. It integrates 76 AMP tiles to store up to 80M weight parameters and execute matrix multiplication operations without any external memory. This allows the M1076 to deliver the AI compute performance of a desktop GPU while consuming up to 1/10th of the power – all in a single chip.

New Credit-Card sized SDR for 300 MHz to 6 GHz Applications. A new credit-card-sized modular software-defined radio (SDR) for commercial, government and defence applications has been developed by CesiumAstro. The SDR-1001 has been tested to NASA GEVS standards. It features the 4 TX and 4 RX channels that are tunable from 300 MHz to 6 GHz. The SDR-1001 ships with a default BPSK/QPSK modem and optional FPGA Developer Toolkit enabling custom waveform development.

New design guidelines SMARC 2.1.1 for extended connectivity for ARM and x86 help developers find relevant information for designing their SMARC carrier boards. SMARC (Smart Mobility ARChitecture) is a specification published by the Standardization Group for Embedded Technologies e.V. (SGET) – a technical consortium hosting and developing specifications for embedded computer technology. SMARC is a small form factor computer-on-module designed for applications that require low power, low costs, and high performance. SMARC modules are based on ARM processors but they can also use other low power SOCs and CPUs, such as tablet oriented x86 devices and other RISC CPUs. The core CPU and support circuits, including DRAM, boot flash, power sequencing, CPU power supplies, Gigabit Ethernet and dual channel LVDS display transmitter are integrated in a module making it suitable for portable and stationary embedded systems. The new SMARC Design Guide 2.1.1 can be downloaded here.

Researchers develop a high performance polarization sensitive photodetector that can be used in a variety of civil and military applications. Polarization-sensitive photodetectors (PSPDs) are useful in various military and civil applications like bio-imaging, remote sensing, night vision, and helmet-mounted sights for fighter pilots. PSPDs use materials having a refractive index that changes with polarization and direction of propagation of light. These materials can detect photons of a desired linear polarization. The advantage of this device is that for traditional photodetectors to realize polarized light detection, they need to combine optical filters with polarizers, which increases the size and complexity of devices. On the other hand, PSPDs with advanced materials as mentioned above can result in a small-size photodetector. Further information regarding the research can be found here.

Researchers at the TU Dresden, Germany have implemented high-frequency essential building blocks with low power consumption using organic materials. Semiconductor devices are reaching their limits of performance. Modern electronic systems need faster devices with low-power consumption and low production costs. Organic semiconductors have many properties including light weight, low-cost production, low-temperature processing, mechanical flexibility, and abundant availability. This makes them a better choice for fabricating electronic circuits. The work is described in the journal Nature Electronics.

Software company Zendesk reports in its latest study that Australian leaders are confident how agile they are despite the pandemic. The majority of customer service managers benefitted from being proactive as it saved time and costs, the study found.

DevOps value stream delivery and management platform Digital.ai’s 15th State of Agile Report finds a strong increase in Agile adoption plus a desire for ongoing distributed working by most development and IT practitioners.

The City of Greater Geelong has chosen Nintex Promapp to support its digital transformation and modernisation efforts.

Digital workspace specialist Citrix has promoted Sydney-based Safi Obeidullah to the role of global head of value advisory.

Qlik’s Cloud Services track will enable its partners to transform customer relationship, accelerate adoption, and build a new model focused on service, success, and solutions.

Wireless communication technology company MixComm unveils the Eclipse3741, a new antenna in package module, which is designed to enable λ/2 wavelength antenna lattice spacing to support higher power applications.

Canalys’ stats for Q1 2021 show Xiaomi in the number two spot behind Samsung for the first time, pushing Apple to third, with the BKK-owned brands Oppo and Vivo in fourth and fifth spots, with Xiaomi’s success at the expense of Huawei, but it’s still Apple that makes the most money.

A study conducted by cloud security vendor Zscaler found there was a 700% increase in IoT-specific malware attacks in December 2020 compared with the pre-pandemic period.

Facebook introduces soundmojis to messenger to make chats livelier and more fun. It also shares which emojis are widely used by age groups, and which emojis are the most popular.

Cross-platform software specialist Parallels has released Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS), with new productivity and management features to enable employees to work easily and securely from anywhere.

The 20th edition of the Australian Entertainment and Media Outlook 2020-2024 report from PwC has arrived, showing that to the end of December 2020, total Australian advertising spend contracted by 8.0% to $15.4 billion, and consumer spend dropped by 1.9% to $42.5 billion.

Digital technology company Webcentral has flagged $2 million in cost synergies annually as it announced it had entered into a merger with 5G Networks, which would see it acquire 100% of 5GN by way of a scheme of arrangement.

Universal battery charger

This universal battery charger, made in India, can charge LiFePO4, Li-ion, and lead-acid batteries. One has to just select the type of battery and let this amazing device do its magic. It is a microprocessor based product that makes use of a high-frequency design to keep product size compact. Salient features include wide AC input voltage range, active power factor correction, battery protection, and rugged product design. The battery charger offers value to users in terms of portability, charging quality, accuracy, and product reliability.

Si828x version 2 isolated gate driver

The Si828x version 2 isolated gate driver addresses the growing market for halfand full-bridge inverters and power supplies that require improved power density, cooler operation, and reduced switching losses. It includes features such as 4A peak gate drive current, improved common mode transient immunity, undervoltage settings that improve flexibility for SiC FETs and guard against poorly regulated power supplies and eliminates parasiticinduced shoot-through conditions, offering a variety of benefits that make it ideal for hybrid and electric vehicles as well as industrial applications.

Graphene Hall Effect sensor

GHS01AT Graphene Hall Effect Sensor is optimised for use in relatively low field environments and normal ambient temperatures. Bringing the magnetic field measurement resolution towards that of more complex magnetic sensors, yet with the small size and ease of use of a Hall sensor, it can address monitoring tasks for which conventional technologies are not able to provide an effective solution. The sensors are ideally suited for battery cell analysis for validity of different battery cell chemistry derivatives and form factors under development and thus enable detailed and point-to-point understanding of battery cell behaviour. If hotspots arise, the local mapping of internal cell resistance in these areas could provide insights into the physical processes occurring in the lead up to their formation.

Cement based rechargeable batteries

The ever-growing need for sustainable building materials poses great challenges for researchers. Now thanks to unique research from Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, the technology for rechargeable cement based battery has been conceptualised. It involves a cement based mixture having small amounts of short carbon fibres for increased conductivity and flexural toughness. Embedded within the mixture is a metal-coated carbon fibre mesh—iron for the anode and nickel for the cathode. The rechargeable cement based battery has an average energy density of 7 watthours per square metre (or 0.8 watthours per litre). The energy density is still low in comparison to commercial batteries, but this limitation could be overcome by huge volume utilisation while constructing buildings. It could also be coupled with solar cell panels to provide electricity for monitoring systems in highways or bridges.

‘Magic’ material that enables development of quantum electronic devices

MIT researchers and colleagues have turned a ‘magic’ material based on graphene, which is composed of atomically thin layers of carbon, into useful electronic devices. Normally, such devices are key to the quantum electronics industry. The approach solves a variety of problems associated with more complicated processes. As a result, the work could usher in a new generation of quantum electronic devices for applications including quantum computing. Further, the devices can be superconducting or conduct electricity without resistance. The overall ‘magic’ material, formally known as magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene (MATBG), has inspired a new field known as twistronics. The developed electronic devices include a Josephson junction or superconducting switch, a spectroscopic tunnelling device, and a single-electron transistor.

Study shows new holographic light collector can Improve solar panel efficiency by separates the colours of sunlight and directs them to the solar cells. Researchers at the University of Arizona have developed an innovative technique to capture the unused solar energy that illuminates a solar panel. The study published in the Journal of Photonics for Energy (JPE), elaborates on the special holograms created. The research was supported by the QESST Engineering Research Center, which is sponsored by the US National Science Foundation and the US Department of Energy to address the challenge of transforming electricity generation to sustainably meet growing demands for energy.

DIY: Smart Security Camera Using Raspberry Pi Zero W and a Raspberry Pi camera to make a smart security camera. The camera uses object detection (with OpenCV) to send you an email whenever it sees an intruder. It also runs a webcam so you can view live video from the camera when you are away.

Transport for NSW is undertaking a major recruitment drive with the hiring of hundreds of local IT professionals of all disciplines and levels across the state.

A Juniper Research whitepaper created with Neustar covers the state of the market and how to solve the challenges of unwanted robocalling.

While cheap Laser-branded Android tablets are on sale at Officeworks for under $100, a higher quality entry-level tablet is the Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 Lite, and while its specs are at the value end of the scale, it still looks like a great tablet for everyday purposes.

According to Cloudian’s 2021 Ransomware Victims Report, traditional ransomware defences are weakening, and despite having IT staff trained in anti-phishing and organisations setting formidable security, hackers were still able to infiltrate their systems

Synology is well-known for its range of NAS systems and its powerful DSM operating system. The company has now launched its new HAS5300 series of hard drives for high-capacity, high-performance, and resilient storage.

TPG Telecom has announced three group executive appointments as it looks to maximise the growth potential of the company across its three strategic priorities of owned infrastructure, enterprise and households.

Eyes on Edge: tinyML Vision Challenge with tinyML Foundation. Create a proof of concept application using machine vision on embedded systems to address an industry-grade problem, win prizes and recognition from the tinyML Foundation. Submissions can leverage any embedded vision hardware platform and software framework. Extra points for battery-operated, ultra-low-power projects.

Select from any of the following suggested categories or choose your own area of interest:

• Predictive maintenance
• Retail and grovery
• Automotive
• Industrial automation
• Disease detection
• Wellnedd and fitness
• Wildlife monitoring
• Safety and security
• Aerospace

Timeline:

• Submissions Starts: April 15, 2021
• Submissions Close: August 20, 2021
• Winners announced by: September 1, 2021

Prizes:

• First Place: $3,000 value gift card
• Second Place: $2,000 value gift card
• Third Place: $1, 000 value gift card

Read more detail and register at hackster.io

Researchers develop eco-friendly perovskite solar cells that prevent lead from seeping into the soil in cases of solar panel failure. Perovskite solar cells include a perovskite-structured compound, most commonly a hybrid organic-inorganic lead or tin halide-based material, as the light-capturing active layer. The use of perovskite materials allows for a cheap and easy manufacturing process. Perovskite is a very promising solution for solar harvesting but cells contain lead, which is toxic to the environment and a serious health hazard. Read more at the study published: Fighting Health Hazards in Lead Halide Perovskite Optoelectronic Devices with Transparent Phosphate Salts

MediaTek Launches Helio G96 and Helio G88 SoC processors, provide cutting-edge displays, intuitive OS experiences and elite photography capabilities. Helio G96 supports 120Hz displays with up to FullHD+ resolution and no limitation in DDIC supply, C-phy or D-phy interface. It supports both LCD or AMOLED displays. The G96 is said to have combined this with support for up to 108MP cameras. Moreover, it features fast 4G LTE with Dual 4G SIM and MediaTek HyperEngine 2.0 Lite game technology. Read more at MediaTek product: The G in Gaming

Available from 2 August 2021, Microsoft 365 is Windows 10 – and later this year Windows 11 – running in Microsoft’s cloud and accessible via personal and corporate devices.

With customer interactions changing dramatically in the age of COVID-19 with stores closing and events canceled, companies must transform to meet swelling digital demands. Salesforce AppExchange has introduced new chat and trusted review features to make it easier for customers to connect with partners.

Swinburne University partners with immersive media company Imagine Room to build a studio facility in Melbourne that will carry out crucial research in virtual reality, human biometrics, performance, and assisted technology design.

AMD’s star has been rising ever since it launched its Ryzen and EPYC processors, with AMD bringing back much-needed competition to the computing space, making PCs great again and putting the super into supercomputing, and AMD’s MD of sales for the APJ region joined us on iTWireTV to talk about it all.

NBN Co. has awarded around $1.1 million worth of construction contracts as part of the $2.9 billion plan to upgrade large parts of the fibre to the node network to fibre to the premises.

Data cloud specialist Snowflake has announced support for Unified ID 2.0, which will help organisations enrich their audience data without sharing personally identifiable information.

Fred IT is using Twilio’s Programmable Messaging API and Twilio Studio to deliver electronic prescriptions that provide access and convenience to patients, doctors, and pharmacists in Australia.

There is a gap among young girls pursuing STEM-related fields despite the belief that STEM is crucial in Australia’s future, according to new research which also highlighted that STEM participation dipped further at postgraduate and masters/PhD level.

Salesforce.org has announced its new Marketing Cloud for Nonprofits to equip organisations of all sizes with the tools needed to build new personalised engagement with prospective supporters and deepen existing relationships.

The Australian Communications and Media Authority is looking to improve the way the telco sector supports consumers in vulnerable circumstances, with a proposed Statement of Expectations for the industry released for consultation today.

Bitdefender launches eXtended EDR, an endpoint detection and response solution that identifies and stops ransomware attacks. The solution is intended for organisations of all sizes.

It’s not Connect 4, but PayPal Pay in 4, with this buy now pay later deal coming six weeks after PayPal announced a new feature enabling instant transfers from PayPal balances to eligible bank accounts.

Macquarie Data Centres has announced plans to build its biggest data centre to date. Intellicentre 3 Super West is to be built at the company’s Macquarie Park data centre campus in Sydney.

Lenovo is deepening its partnership with Internazionale Milano by sponsoring the back of the club’s iconic jersey. Lenovo has also supported the club with its technology since 2019 to transform its operations and improve performance.

TCL is one of the Chinese leaders in tech, and its latest TCL 20 series is making a play to deliver top quality tech at affordable pricing. The TCL 20 Pro 5G is the company’s flagship smartphone with “several display and camera upgrades designed to take the user experience to new heights.”

New updates for Oracle Cloud ERP and Oracle Cloud EPM make work easier, according to Oracle.

Polaris lowered its operational costs and cut its energy consumption by 29% by using Stulz’s cooling technology.

Tones And I graces the cover of Rolling Stone Australia but with a twist: her cover will be released as a limited edition NFT for $230.

Driverless Halo solve transportation challenges with a people first approach to autonomous cars.

Business software provider Zoho has added the Business Intelligence Platform to its portfolio. This AI-driven system combines the newly launched Zoho DataPrep with an enhanced version of Zoho Analytics.

Monash University researchers identify 45 trends and formulate ten principles revolving energy planning and forecasting for future home life in a new study. The researchers add that as trends emerge in different households, consumers’ interests should be taken into account in the development of future energy systems.

NextDC announced that its B2 Brisbane data centre is the newest Cloud Interconnect location for Google Cloud, in what NextDC says is Queensland’s first locally available cloud access location.

Customers in the UK and Australia can deploy Progress MOVEit Transfer in Microsoft Azure either as-a-Service or in an Azure instance. The software is for customers who need data security compliance, lower latency, or for those who want to maintain data physically within their countries.

IDTechEx says 5G not only greatly improves network experiences for mobile consumers, but more importantly, will bring digitalisation into every industry, revolutionising our society. However, this vision will not be realised without small cell development.