Third-party Apple accessory makers reportedly hit by Apple Watch charging pucks shortage

Another industry reportedly affected by delays caused by the pandemic is Apple's third-party accessory makers. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman writes in the latest edition of his Power On newsletter that smaller accessory makers are supposedly having issues acquiring Apple's proprietary charging pucks that it can use on their accessories. It results in delays of products. It isn't clear what caused the issue, but it won't be surprising if it's due to the supply chain issues caused by the pandemic. Apple's own chargers aren't affected by the problem.

Source: 9to5Mac

TikTok sells its AI tech to other companies

Photo by Solen Feyissa on Unsplash

TikTok's parent company ByteDance quietly launched its BytePlus division, which is in charge of selling TikTok's technology, including its recommendation algorithm, computer vision tech, automated translations, real-time effects and more. The division is based in Singapore, but it has a presence in Hong Kong and London. BytePlus is also looking to register trademarks in the US.

Companies like Indonesian online shopping company Chilibeli, American fashion app Goat, and travel site WeGo have bought access to TikTok's tech. It isn't a surprising move as it helps ByteDance compete with the likes of Amazon and Microsoft to offer behind-the-scenes tools to businesses and open a new revenue source for the company.

Source: Engadget

Porsche recalls around 43,000 Taycan EVs over power loss issues

Porsche has recalled around 43,000 Taycan and Taycan Cross Turismo electric vehicles globally because of a sudden power loss problem. Taycan owners are required to bring their EVs to a dealership to get an hour-long software update. There will be no over-the-air option this time. But the German automaker said you can still continue driving the car until the update is ready. Models that are rolling off the line no longer have this issue.

The recall was prompted by an NHTSA investigation of nine incidents where power shut off while the vehicles were in motion. Six of them refused to restart. Porsche discovered the problem in 130 cars after conducting its investigation. There haven't been reports of collision or injuries, at least.

Source: Engadget

Lucasfilm releases first look at 'Star Wars: Visions' anime anthology

For anime fans out there, the galaxy far, far away is coming to your radar. Lucasfilm has just released a behind-the-scenes look at the upcoming Star Wars: Visions, an anthology of short anime films set in the universe. The shorts feature everything from a chibi Boba Fett, rock opera, a twin Star Destroyer, and many more.

"We really wanted to give these creators a wide creative birth to explore the Star Wars galaxy," LucasFilm executive producer James Waugh said during the Anime Expo Lite panel. "We wanted this to be as authentic as possible to the studios and the creators. The idea was, this is their vision, riffing off all of the elements of the Star Wars galaxy that inspired them."

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