Offering a digital platform to manage rentals, UK startup Residently draws £7m in seed funding
The UK-based startup Residently has raised £7 million in seed funding, with a tech platform to simplify and modernize the rental process for tenants in London and New York, according to Tech Crunch. A press release from the company said they’ve earned backing from European venture capital firms including Felix Capital, LocalGlobe, and A/0 PropTech, as well […]
YouTube will tweak its UK platform to promote fewer conspiracy videos
YouTube will implement algorithm changes to its platform in the UK, reducing recommendations of conspiracy theory and junk science videos, according to Tech Crunch. YouTube chief executive Susan Wojcicki said the changes will allow quality content “more of a chance to shine” and could reduce views of “borderline content” by 50 percent. The changes were first trialed […]
In a world first, a solar farm is directly powering a UK railway
A UK rail line is now the first in the world to be powered directly by a solar farm, after a trackside 30 kilowatt installation went online Friday near Aldershot, powering signals and lights on Network Rail’s Wessex route, according to The Guardian. If the pilot program is successful, a larger solar farm could be built to […]
Berlin-based hospitality startup Cosi raises €5 million in pre-launch seed funding
The new Berlin-based hospitality startup Cosi has raised €5 million in pre-launch seed funding, drawing participation from big names in world of travel, real estate, and hospitality. The company aims to compete with boutique hotels by offering uniquely designed apartments for short-term stays and a streamlined digital service to facilitate the guest experience. Cosi’s CEO, […]
Facebook unveils ‘Clear History’ feature, giving users more control over data
Facebook is rolling out a “Clear History” feature that will allow users to disconnect their accounts from data collected from third-party websites and apps, according to The Verge. The move comes following several delays, more than a year after CEO Mark Zuckerberg first announced plans for the feature at Facebook’s 2018 developer conference, in the wake […]
Three and EE dispute advert claim as 5G competition escalates
UK telecom operator EE has filed a complaint against rival company Three, over its 5G advertising campaign claiming “If it’s not Three, it’s not real 5G,” according to The Guardian. The dispute comes after Three switched on a portion of its 5G network in London, and as more UK telecom companies begin to compete over the next […]
British Airways to offer VR headsets for first-class passengers
British Airways has announced plans to offer virtual reality (VR) headsets for first-class passengers on select flights between London and New York, starting immediately and continuing until the end of this year, according to The Verge. The pilot program will offer passengers conventional 2D and 3D video, as well as 360-degree movies and shows formatted specifically […]
Drone crashes near schoolchildren in Switzerland, postal service suspends flights
A delivery drone crashed in Switzerland in May, less than 50 meters from a group of kindergarten children, after a rope connecting its emergency parachute was severed, according a report Monday from IEEE Spectrum. The drone was transporting lab samples between hospitals as part of a collaboration between Swiss Post and Matternet, a California-based startup. The […]
Twitter’s revenues rise 21%, shares jump 10%, following moves to improve the platform
Twitter saw higher than anticipated revenue growth for its second quarter, they announced Friday, thanks to an increase in users and advertisers. The social media company attributes the growth to recent changes that have improved user experience on the platform. The news boosted the company’s shares 10 percent, according to Reuters. Twitter deleted millions of spam […]
O2 to launch 5G UK network, without Huawei’s help
UK telecom company O2 has announced the launch of its 5G mobile network this October, in Belfast, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Leeds, London, and Slough, according to BBC News. The following summer, it will expand the network to a total of 50 cities. The company will first deploy 5G in areas with capacity that is often pushed to […]