TECHNOLOGY
ITRI promotes new standard
Taiwan’s semi-official Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) announced on Friday that it would partner with Bit-Torrent Inc, a US-based file sharing service provider, to deploy new standards for consumer electronics device manufacturers. BitTorrent, which has amassed 100 million community users for its multimedia content on all forms of electronic devices, is promoting the “Bit-Torrent Certified” standard that ensures compatibility among software, devices and content within the ecosystem. Devices with the proof-of-concept standard, like a computer in the shape of a vase, are being featured by ITRI and BitTorrent at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, ITRI said in an e-mail statement. ITRI will work with BitTorrent to promote the BT logo and industry standards, such as jointly developing next-generation peer-to-peer and cloud computing technologies.
TELECOMS
Verizon reignites rumors
Verizon Wireless says it will hold a press conference on Tuesday, reigniting rumors that it will become the second US carrier to sell Apple Inc’s iPhone. At the International Consumer Electronics Show this week in Las Vegas, Verizon unveiled phones and tablets that will run on its next-generation wireless network, making it significant that Verizon will still have an announcement big enough to warrant a press conference in New York a week later. Rumors that Verizon would carry the iPhone have become louder in recent months, as AT&T Inc is believed to be nearing the end of its exclusive hold on the iPhone.
AUTOMAKERS
Saab names interim CEO
Saab Automobile AB on Friday replaced its top executive in the US, naming Matthias Seidl interim CEO for Detroit-based Saab Cars North America effective immediately. Seidl replaced Michael Colleran, who resigned “to pursue further career opportunities,” Saab said in a statement. Jan Ake Jonsson, president and CEO of Saab Automobile AB, said Seidl temporarily takes on responsibility for Saab Cars North America in addition to his current position as executive director of global sales.
POSTAL SERVICES
US firms investigated
The US Justice Department is investigating claims of anti-competitive behavior by shipping companies FedEx Corp and UPS Inc. Los Angeles attorney Maxwell Blecher says in a sworn court document that a federal antitrust attorney called him and disclosed the investigation. The Justice Department declined to confirm the investigation on Friday. FedEx and UPS say they are aware of the investigation. Blecher represents a firm called AFMS that helps companies negotiate lower rates from UPS and FedEx. The company’s federal lawsuit says UPS and FedEx announced on the same day that they would no longer deal with such consultants.
PHARMACEUTICALS
Genzyme, Sanofi eye deal
US biotech drugmaker Genzyme Corp is discussing a more lucrative deal with French giant Sanofi-Aventis, which has been unsuccessfully pursuing the company since July, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday. According to persons cited by the Journal, the companies are discussing an agreement that would value Genzyme at US$20.7 billion, or US$80 per share. Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Genzyme has repeatedly rejected Sanofi’s takeover bid of US$18.5 billion, or US$69 per share. The Journal identified the sources as “people familiar with the matter.”
Taiwan Transport and Storage Corp (TTS, 台灣通運倉儲) yesterday unveiled its first electric tractor unit — manufactured by Volvo Trucks — in a ceremony in Taipei, and said the unit would soon be used to transport cement produced by Taiwan Cement Corp (TCC, 台灣水泥). Both TTS and TCC belong to TCC International Holdings Ltd (台泥國際集團). With the electric tractor unit, the Taipei-based cement firm would become the first in Taiwan to use electric vehicles to transport construction materials. TTS chairman Koo Kung-yi (辜公怡), Volvo Trucks vice president of sales and marketing Johan Selven, TCC president Roman Cheng (程耀輝) and Taikoo Motors Group
Among the rows of vibrators, rubber torsos and leather harnesses at a Chinese sex toys exhibition in Shanghai this weekend, the beginnings of an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven shift in the industry quietly pulsed. China manufactures about 70 percent of the world’s sex toys, most of it the “hardware” on display at the fair — whether that be technicolor tentacled dildos or hyper-realistic personalized silicone dolls. Yet smart toys have been rising in popularity for some time. Many major European and US brands already offer tech-enhanced products that can enable long-distance love, monitor well-being and even bring people one step closer to
RECORD-BREAKING: TSMC’s net profit last quarter beat market expectations by expanding 8.9% and it was the best first-quarter profit in the chipmaker’s history Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), which counts Nvidia Corp as a key customer, yesterday said that artificial intelligence (AI) server chip revenue is set to more than double this year from last year amid rising demand. The chipmaker expects the growth momentum to continue in the next five years with an annual compound growth rate of 50 percent, TSMC chief executive officer C.C. Wei (魏哲家) told investors yesterday. By 2028, AI chips’ contribution to revenue would climb to about 20 percent from a percentage in the low teens, Wei said. “Almost all the AI innovators are working with TSMC to address the
Malaysia’s leader yesterday announced plans to build a massive semiconductor design park, aiming to boost the Southeast Asian nation’s role in the global chip industry. A prominent player in the semiconductor industry for decades, Malaysia accounts for an estimated 13 percent of global back-end manufacturing, according to German tech giant Bosch. Now it wants to go beyond production and emerge as a chip design powerhouse too, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said. “I am pleased to announce the largest IC (integrated circuit) Design Park in Southeast Asia, that will house world-class anchor tenants and collaborate with global companies such as Arm [Holdings PLC],”