(Brands & Consumers)
Zoom, the video conferencing company that became a household name when remote work spiked during the Covid pandemic, is laying off 1,300 staff. As reported on BBC, the move affects about 15% of its workforce, which has seen user growth slow and profits fall recently. Boss Eric Yuan said he and other leaders would also…
Microsoft has announced a new version of its search engine Bing, which incorporates the latest in artificial intelligence. As reported on BBC, the overhaul deploys OpenAI’s ChatGPT technology, which has taken the world by storm since its launch last year. The move is by far the biggest threat Google has seen to its dominance in…
Actor Jim Carrey has listed his California mansion for sale, with the five-bedroom, nine-bathroom home being offered for almost $29 million. The sprawling 12,700-square foot property, in LA’s upmarket Brentwood neighborhood, is set across more than two acres of land, according to Sotheby’s International Realty, which is handling the sale. A series of photos accompanying…
Google on Monday unveiled a new chatbot tool dubbed “Bard” in an apparent bid to compete with the viral success of ChatGPT. As reported on BBC, Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google and parent company Alphabet, said in a blog post that Bard will be opened up to “trusted testers” starting Monday, with plans to make…
A takeover of English Championship club Sheffield United by Nigerian billionaire Dozy Mmobuosi is at an advanced stage. As reported on BBC, the Championship promotion contenders’ owner Prince Abdullah has been in talks with Mmobuosi, the founder and Group Chief Executive Officer of Tingo Inc, the parent company of Tingo Mobile. Talks with the Nigerian,…
Tesla co-founder Elon Musk has been cleared of wrongdoing for a tweet in which he said he had “funding secured” to take the electric carmaker back into private ownership. Shareholders argued he misled them with his posts in August 2018, and they had lost billions of dollars because of them. The proposed $72bn (£60bn) buyout…
Ashton Kutcher is making a comeback of sorts, reprising his star-making role as Michael Kelso on “That ’90s Show.” But the 44-year-old didn’t take the Netflix show because he needed a paycheck. In fact, Kutcher said in a recent profile in Esquire that he never needs to take a role for the money again. That’s…
Potential car buyers in China have found that an online advert for a luxury sports car was just too good to be true. As reported by BBC, a Porsche dealership in the the city of Yinchuan listed the brand new vehicle for 124,000 yuan ($18,300, £15,000). That is just a fraction of what it should…
Adidas is adding a third label to its brand lineup. Sportswear, a fashion-forward line aimed at Gen Z, is the company’s first full collection launch in 50 years. Situated between Adidas Originals and Performance, the Sportswear line straddles sport and style, featuring items such as football jerseys, tracksuits and athletic dresses made from performance materials….
Samsung has launched its latest lineup of flagship Galaxy smartphones, touting a better camera and enhanced gaming features as the South Korean tech giant tries to tempt people to upgrade amid weak macroeconomic conditions and waning consumer demand. The Galaxy S23 smartphone lineup features three new models: the standard S23, a slightly more expensive S23+…
Dame Dash has claimed his fellow Roc-A-Fella Records cofounder Jay-Z made him a lowball offer to buy his shares in the record label, prior to the rapper’s lawsuit against him. Dash cofounded Roc-A-Fella alongside Jay — real name Shawn Carter — and Kareem Burke in 1994. In 2021, Dash tried to sell his stake in…
If you had your heart set on Lamborghini letting loose and producing a follow-up to the modern, Aventador-based Countach, then you probably won’t like this news. Speaking to Motor1.com at the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona last weekend, Lamborghini Chief Technical Officer Reuven Mohr indicated the company is focused firmly on its future. “We as…
PayPal is shedding around 2,000 jobs, or 7% of its workers, as it becomes the latest big tech firm to cut costs. As reported on BBC, the online payments company says it was forced to make the decision as it faces “the challenging macro-economic environment.” PayPal’s announcement follows tens of thousands of layoffs by technology…
Carmakers Renault and Nissan have agreed to restructure their longstanding partnership, with the French company whittling down its stake in the Japanese firm to 15%. As reported on CNN, under the agreement, Renault will transfer 28.4% of its shares in the Yokohama-based company into a French trust. Voting rights for that stake will be “neutralized”…
Mercedes-Benz will take a step towards offering a self driving car in the United States, or at least in some states, when it begins selling cars featuring its new Drive Pilot system later this year. As reported by CNN, Mercedes’ Drive Pilot system is designed to work on highways in dense traffic at speeds of…
Audi’s entry into Formula 1 has moved a step closer after the German car manufacturer acquired a minority stake in Sauber. The purchase comes three months after Sauber confirmed they would become Audi’s strategic partner when the German marque enters Formula 1 in 2026. The Swiss constructor’s current partnership with Alfa Romeo will end after…
The management and staff of BSK Studios, the mother company of BSK Streams, is glad to announce and introduce to you our first brand ambassador Venita Oghenekevwe Akpofure.Venita is an actor, reality show tv star, event host, social media influencer, and entrepreneur amongst others. BSK Streams is a multi-functional streaming platform where you can enjoy…
Chevron reported a record full-year profit of $36.5 billion, buoyed by high oil prices. As reported on CNN, adjusted earnings for the year more than doubled from the $15.6 billion Chevron earned in 2021 and up 36% from its previous record profit set in 2011. The oil company’s fourth-quarter earnings came in at $7.9 billion,…
Just like the McRib, straws might be a thing of the past at McDonald’s. The chain has begun testing strawless lids in some US cities as part of a multi-year effort to make its packaging more environmentally friendly. “These lids help optimize our packaging and eliminate the use of small plastics, just one example of…
Tesla is gearing up for a challenging 2023, after cutting prices to spur demand. The electric car company, led by billionaire Elon Musk, reported record revenue and profits in the three months to December, beating expectations. Musk acknowledged “questions” about how the firm will be affected by higher borrowing costs and a weaker economy. But…
Twitter is being sued by the Crown Estate over alleged unpaid rent for their London headquarters. As reported by BBC, the Estate – which oversees a property portfolio belonging to the King – filed a claim against Twitter in the High Court in London last week, according to Reuters news agency. The alleged arrears relate…
Microsoft on Monday confirmed it is making a “multibillion dollar” investment in OpenAI, the company behind the viral new AI chatbot tool called ChatGPT. As reported on CNN, Microsoft, an early investor in OpenAI, said it plans to expand its existing partnership with the company as part of a greater effort to add more artificial…
Amazon is expected to begin a fresh round of job cuts in what looks poised to become the largest workforce cuts in its 28-year history as reported on CNBC. Earlier this month, CEO Andy Jassy said the layoffs would affect more than 18,000 employees, primarily in its human resources and stores divisions. Amazon said in…
Twitter’s full-time headcount has dwindled to approximately 1,300 active, working employees, including fewer than 550 full-time engineers by title, according to internal records viewed by CNBC. Around 75 of the company’s 1,300 employees are on leave including about 40 engineers. As reported by CNBC, the company’s trust and safety team, which makes policy recommendations, design…
Google employees are scrambling for answers from leadership and from colleagues as the company undergoes a massive layoff. On Friday, Alphabet-owned Google announced it was cutting 12,000 employees, roughly 6% of the full-time workforce. While employees had been bracing for a potential layoff, they are questioning leadership about the criteria for layoffs which surprised some…
What goes around, comes around. Popularized in the late ’90s and early ’00s, clamshell “flip phones” were trendy for their compact design – a fraction of the size of chunky “brick” phones a few years earlier – and offered satisfying closure when you hung up a call. But flip phones weren’t ideal for texting as…
When Sony unveiled the PlayStation VR2, it announced several launch titles including heavy-hitters like Horizon Call of the Mountain, Resident Evil: Village and No Man’s Sky. As reported by GSM Arena, since then it added 11 more titles to the list and has confirmed that Grand Turismo 7 will also be part of the VR…
Google parent Alphabet Inc. is cutting 12,000 jobs worldwide in the latest round of layoffs to hit the technology sector. As reported by NBC News, CEO Sundar Pichai announced the cuts in a memo to Google employees that was later shared online in a company blog post. “This will mean saying goodbye to some incredibly…
An auction for hundreds of items at Twitter’s San Francisco HQ has just ended. A statue of the platform’s famous bird logo has claimed the most expensive item sold, coming in at $100,000 (£81,000). Viewers online noted that some of the used items were no bargain, as they were selling for more than retail. The…
Manchester United set out a dazzling Davos shop front this week, but insisted its lounge was to entertain clients and partners rather than to attract buyers for the English soccer club. United said in November it was looking at options to either get new investment or explore a potential sale, 17 years after the Glazer…
Usain Bolt, the legendary Jamaican sprinter, was reportedly caught up in a massive employee fraud scheme that resulted in over $1.2 billion in stolen funds from a wealth management company, Stocks and Securities Limited (SSL). Bolt had millions invested with SSL, his manager, Nugent Walker, told Jamaica’s The Gleaner outlet. Stocks and Securities Limited (SSL)…
Dior has named BTS star Jimin as a global brand ambassador, a move that further signals South Korea’s growing importance to the world’s biggest luxury fashion houses. Announcing the partnership via social media Monday, Dior said its appointment “solidifies” the singer’s friendship with the French label, and “continues a bond” with artistic director of menswear…
While still grappling with the fallout from a company he did take private, beleaguered billionaire Elon Musk is now facing a trial over a company he did not. As reported by Aljazeera, long before Musk purchased Twitter for $44bn in October, he had set his sights on Tesla, the electric automaker where he continues to…
Tesla has cut the price of some of its most popular electric cars by thousands of pounds in Europe and the US, in a bid to boost customer demand. The firm faces a difficult global economic outlook and increased competition from other carmakers. The price cuts are in the range of 10% to 13% in…
Apple CEO Tim Cook recommended the company cut his pay this year after shareholders rebelled. As reported by CNN, the world’s largest tech company said it would reduce Cook’s target pay package to $49 million, 40% lower than his target pay for 2022 and about half Cook’s $99.4 million total compensation that he was granted…
A Manhattan jury has said Adidas AG had failed to show luxury brand Thom Browne Inc’s use of stripes on its clothing infringed the sportswear giant’s signature three-stripe trademark. The jury found the fashion house’s parallel stripe designs were not likely to cause consumer confusion with Adidas’ products, ending a trial that began January 3….
T-Mobile is eliminating district and regional territory positions affecting hundreds of stores across the country, a move that is intended to help curb costs at the wireless provider, The Desk has learned. The positions primarily affect regional and district managers who oversee T-Mobile’s retail business, including its corporate-owned stores and authorized retailers, according to people…
The CEO of Brewdog has paid out nearly £500,000 to winners of a competition that misleadingly offered drinkers beer cans made of ‘solid gold’. James Watt said he had made ‘some costly mistakes’ with the 2021 promotion, which saw 50 of the cans hidden inside packs of craft beer. It turned out that the cans…
Beverage giants Coca-Cola and PepsiCo are under preliminary investigation at the Federal Trade Commission over potential price discrimination in the soft drink market as the agency looks to revive a decades-old, but largely dormant law banning the practice, according to four people with knowledge of the probe. The companies’ pricing strategies are being scrutinized under…
Britain’s financial watchdog has fined the UK subsidiary of Nigeria’s Guaranty Trust Bank 7.6 million pounds ($9.3m) for what it says are further failures in its anti-money-laundering systems and controls. “These weaknesses were repeatedly highlighted to GT Bank by internal and external sources, including the FCA, but despite this, GT Bank failed to take appropriate…
A federal agency is considering a ban on gas stoves, a source of indoor pollution linked to childhood asthma. In an interview with Bloomberg, a US Consumer Product Safety commissioner said gas stove usage is a “hidden hazard.” “Any option is on the table. Products that can’t be made safe can be banned,” agency commissioner…
Elon Musk was the second person ever to amass a personal fortune of more than $200 billion, breaching that threshold in January 2021, months after Jeff Bezos. The Tesla Inc. chief executive officer has now achieved a first of his own: becoming the only person in history to erase $200 billion from their net worth….
Customers of US bank Silvergate, which provides cryptocurrency services, have withdrawn over $8bn (£6.7bn) of their crypto-linked deposits. Around two-thirds of the bank’s customers pulled their deposits in the final three months of 2022. The bank has sold $5.2bn in assets to cover the cost and remain liquid. It came as three US regulators warned…
Associate Health Minister Ayesha Verrall has revealed that the Ministry of Health is now seeking public feedback on the proposed regulations in response to rising youth vaping rates as reported by 1News. “We need to strike a better balance – vaping’s useful to help people quit smoking but we don’t want kids to be starting…
Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) has hired over 40 welders from Indonesia to work at its Geoje Island yard in South Korea as it struggles to recruit skilled workers, the company said in a press release. As reported by Oil & Gas, the contractor said that a total of 41 Indonesian welders arrived to work at…
A bride said she “cried all morning” on her wedding day after she missed the event because of a canceled Southwest flight. Katie Demko, who lives in St. Louis, told Insider that she and her fiancé, Michael, had planned a destination wedding in Belize for Friday. He went to Belize ahead of Demko, and she…
Business magnate Warren Buffett is widely regarded as one of the greatest investors of the modern-day world. His seemingly unmatched and consistent value-investing strategies have earned him the title of Oracle of Omaha. Many of his investing strategies are known, but there is one that is often overlooked yet incredibly important. It’s a lot more…
In a recent partnership between Adidas and Lexus, the hit Wakanda Forever is rendered in car form. Inspired by Black Panther and working with students at Adidas S.E.E.D. (School for Experiential Education in Design), the luxury automaker and the sportswear company have created a version of the Lexus RX 500h F Sport fit for the…
King of Beers and Official Sponsor of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Budweiser, a product of International Breweries Plc has released the first-ever FIFA World Cup music video shot during the tournament for the theme song, “The World Is Yours To Take”. The one-of-a-kind video features American rapper, singer, and songwriter, Lil Baby along with…
Michael B Jordan has been spotted watching Bournemouth take on Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. As reported by Daily Mail, the Hollywood star is part of the consortium that took over Bournemouth – headed up by American businessman Bill Foley. The game at Stamford Bridge is the Cherries’ first Premier League game since the takeover, as…
