09-30 Happy National Long Holiday in China: ARM launched its new ARM Safety Ready Program; Samsung Electronics’ board of directors, has been accused of sabotaging a labor union in what prosecutors claim is a breach of South Korea’s labor policies; etc.
Chipsets
ARM launched its new ARM Safety Ready Program that is aimed to develop solutions for self-driving cars. The company has also launched its Cortex-A76AE, its first processor IP designed specifically for autonomous vehicles. Initially, ARM will start with solutions for Level 3 self-driving vehicles, but over time it will offer products built for Level 4 and Level 5 autonomous cars sometimes in 2020 and beyond. (CN Beta, AnandTech, VentureBeat, ARM, Engadget)
Intel is confident it will be able to produce the expected yields of its 10nm chips this year despite supply issues at the company’s factory network. In an open letter, Intel’s Interim CEO and CFO, Bob Swan, has confessed that the company’s supply of CPUs for the entry-level PC market is currently limited, blaming the shortage on the unexpected return to growth of the PC industry. To address the supply dilemma, Intel is investing USD1B in its 14nm production plants in Oregon, Arizona, Ireland, and Israel. That money will be taken from the USD15B in capital expenditures Intel is allocating in 2017. (CN Beta, Street Insider, CNBC, Forbes, Intel, Neowin)
Camera
OmniVision has announced 2 new global shutter image sensors that are now ready for market, the OG02B1B/OG02B10 and the OV9285. These are designed for Machine Vision applications, and therefore will cater to a wide spectrum of product possibilities, including augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) headsets. (Android Headlines, PR Newswire, OfWeek)
Memory
In Jul 2018, Intel and Micron announced that they were going their separate ways. 3D XPoint is made at Intel-Micron Flash Technologies (IMFT), a joint venture fab in Lehi, Utah. Micron will take ownership of IMFT when the companies separate in 2019. Intel is moving to start a 3D XPoint line, probably at F68 in China. The investment of USD5.5B in F68 2nd phase has already started production, mainly for 96-layer 3D NAND flash memory. (CN Beta, TechNews)
Sensory
Lunewave, a startup with a presence in Boston that is building new sensors to power autonomous vehicles and 5G wireless networks, has raised USD5M in seed funding to develop radar and antenna technologies for self-driving cars. Fraser McCombs Capital, a venture and growth equity investment firm focused on automotive technology, led the round of financing. (CN Beta, 3Ders, TechCrunch)
Connectivity
Drexel University’s College of Engineering in Philadelphia has invented new spray-on antennas, which can be applied as easily as spray paint or bug spray. The sprayable antennas — which are so thin that they are referred to as being “two-dimensional” called MXenes — perform as well as the mobile antennas used in modern devices such as smartphones and wireless routers. (Digital Trends, Baijiahao)
Phone
Lee Sang-hoon, chairman of Samsung Electronics’ board of directors, has been accused of sabotaging a labor union in what prosecutors claim is a breach of South Korea’s labor policies. Lee, who began serving as the company’s chairman in Mar 2018, will face the charges along with 27 other executives from Samsung and its partner companies. (Neowin, Bloomberg, CN Beta)
The teardowns and cost benchmarking team at IHS Markit has completed its preliminary physical review of Apple iPhone XS Max. The model A1921 version of the smartphone sold in North America comes with 64GB of NAND memory and carries a bill of materials (BOM) of USD390, which is just USD20 higher than the BOM for the iPhone X. (Digitimes, IHS Markit, press, CN Beta)
RBC Capital Markets analyst Amit Daryanani indicates that intentions to purchase Apple iPhone increased to 26% versus 20% in 2017. 68% of respondents hoped to buy higher-tier memory models. (CN Beta, Investors, CNBC)
Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro is announced in Thailand – 6.26” 1080×2280 FHD+ IPS, Qualcomm Snapdragon 636, rear dual 12MP-5MP + front dual 20MP-2MP, 4+64GB, Android 8.1, 4000mAh, THB6,990 (USD215). (CN Beta, NDTV, Android Central, GSM Arena, Xiaomi)
Tecno Mobile, a sub-brand owned by Transsion Holdings, launches 3 new phones in India, all features 6.2” 1520×720 HD+ 2.5D, Android 8.1, rear fingerprint scanner, face unlock, 3750mAh: Camon iAir2+ – MediaTek Helio A22, rear dual 13MP-2MP + front 8MP, 2+32GB, INR8,999. Camon i2 – MediaTek Helio A22, rear dual 13MP-2MP + front 16MP, 3+32GB, 3750mAh, INR10,499. Camon i2x – MediaTek Helio P22, rear dual 13MP-5MP + front 16MP, 4+64GB, 3750mAh, INR12,499. (GizChina, Digit, India Today)
Augmented / Virtual Reality
A Facebook 360 and Red Digital Cinema collaboration that began in May 2017 has finally produced fruit. The Manifold camera is pitched as the “first studio-ready camera system for immersive 6DoF storytelling”. It captures multiple camera angles simultaneously from within a given volume, enabling what is says are “infinite perspectives to be generated from any direction within a field of view.” (CN Beta, Hot Hardware, Road to VR, Facebook)
Automotive
Ford, Uber, and Lyft will share data in an attempt to reduce traffic congestion and emissions in cities. The 3 companies have agreed to join SharedStreets, a data clearinghouse focusing on transportation that combines data from public and private sources. (CN Beta, Top Speed, CNET, The Drive)
Toyota will allegedly begin adding Android Auto to its vehicles. The Japanese car maker did not mention when Android Auto would be available, or which model years would get it. (Android Headlines, Extreme Tech, My Smart Price, Bloomberg, Auto Weekly, My Drivers)
Siemens has recently announced an interesting collaboration between its Siemens PLM software and Hackrod to showcase what happens when expert automotive designers use sophisticated industrial automation technologies, including virtual reality, to recreate their product design workflows from the ground up. (CN Beta, Engineering, Hackrod)
Volkswagen AG will use Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform to provide all future digital services and mobility offerings across its entire fleet. From 2020, more than 5M new Volkswagen-specific brand vehicles per year will be fully connected through Microsoft’s cloud and internet of things (IoT). (CN Beta, Telegraph, Digital Trends, Reuters)
Klaus Frolich, BMW Group’s chief executive of development is introducing BMW Vision iNext Concept. The company plans to introduce ‘safe’ fully autonomous driving by 2021 with iNext. (Digital Trends)
Fintech
Swiss-based cryptocurrency startup SEBA Crypto AG has raised USD103M to establish a bank that will offer cryptocurrency services and bridge the gap between cryptocurrencies and fiat being experienced by cryptocurrency firms and investors. (CN Beta, Blokt, Cryptomorrow)
