LUXURY CAR BRAND JAGUAR TO GO ALL-ELECTRIC BY 2025

Struggling luxury car brand Jaguar will be fully electric by 2025, the British company said this week as it outlined a plan to phase out internal combustion engines.

AUTOWORKERS FACE UNCERTAIN FUTURE IN AN ERA OF ELECTRIC CARS

When General Motors boldly announced its goal last month to make only battery-powered vehicles by 2035, it didn’t just mark a break with more than a century of making internal combustion engines. It also clouded the future for 50,000 GM workers whose skills — and jobs — could become obsolete far sooner than they knew.

COST OF A SINGLE BITCOIN EXCEEDS $50,000 FOR FIRST TIME

The seemingly unstoppable rise of Bitcoin continued with the cost of a single unit of the digital currency rising above $50,000 for the first time.

IN SURPRISE MOVE, FACEBOOK BLOCKS NEWS ACCESS IN AUSTRALIA

In a surprise retaliatory move Thursday, Facebook blocked Australians from sharing news stories, escalating a fight with the government over whether powerful tech companies should have to pay news organizations for content.

TURN YOUR QUARANTINE CLUTTER INTO MONEY

I placed more online orders than I can count in 2020. And I justified all of them.

APPLE TV+ TO PRODUCE RIDLEY SCOTT'S NAPOLEON EPIC STARRING JOAQUIN PHOENIX

Ever since Stanley Kubrick’s unrealized dream biopic, Napoleon Bonaparte, the famous French conqueror and rules, has been a very elusive character for directors. The life of Napoleon Bonaparte is an amazing story of revolutionary ideals crushed by the seductiveness of power and his ultimate demise is a story that is one of the best known in history. Kubrick would have been able to make an epic but he never got to it during his lifetime and now, legendary director Sir Ridley Scott has signed a deal with Apple to direct and produce Kitbag, a biopic based on the life of Napoleon Bonaparte.

MAJOR AUSTRALIAN MEDIA COMPANY STRIKES GOOGLE NEWS PAY DEAL

Seven West Media has become the largest Australian news media business to strike a deal with Google to pay for journalism in a partnership announced this week before the nation’s Parliament considers draft laws to force digital giants to pay for news.

US STILL UNRAVELING ‘SOPHISTICATED' HACK OF 9 GOV'T AGENCIES

U.S. authorities are still working to unravel the full scope of the likely Russian hack that gave the “sophisticated” actor behind the breach complete access to files and email from at least nine government agencies and about 100 private companies, the top White House cybersecurity official said Wednesday.

US CHARGES NORTH KOREAN COMPUTER PROGRAMMERS IN GLOBAL HACKS

The Justice Department has charged three North Korean computer programmers in a broad range of global hacks, including a destructive attack targeting an American movie studio, and in the attempted theft and extortion of more than $1.3 billion from banks and companies, federal prosecutors said Wednesday.

WALMART SALES STILL SURGING, BUT A CHILL MAY BE ON THE WAY

Walmart is raising wages for 425,000 of its 1.5 million U.S. workers and is investing $14 billion this year to speed up its distribution network as the nation’s largest retailer navigates vast industry changes that were accelerated by the pandemic.

BIDEN BACKS OFF ON TIKTOK BAN IN REVIEW OF TRUMP CHINA MOVES

The Biden administration is backing off former President Donald Trump’s attempts to ban the popular video app TikTok, asking a court to postpone a legal dispute over the proposed ban as the government begins a broader review of the national security threats posed by Chinese technology companies.

REPORT HIGHLIGHTS CYBER RISKS TO US ELECTION SYSTEMS

Election systems in the U.S. are vulnerable to cyber intrusions similar to the one that hit federal agencies and numerous businesses last year and remain a potential target for foreign hacking, according to a report released Wednesday.

MIAMI MAYOR DIGS ELON MUSK'S TUNNEL PITCH TO EASE TRAFFIC

Miami Mayor Francis Suarez spoke with Elon Musk about the tech billionaire’s interest in digging road tunnels in Miami to alleviate traffic congestion in Florida’s largest metro area.

ONLINE GROCERY SHOPPING DRIVES UP SALES AT OCADO

Ocado, one of the biggest internet-only grocery retailers, said this week that sales rose 35% during the last fiscal year as the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the shift toward internet shopping.

ARAB SPACECRAFT ENTERS ORBIT AROUND MARS IN HISTORIC FLIGHT

A spacecraft from the United Arab Emirates swung into orbit around Mars on Tuesday in a triumph for the Arab world’s first interplanetary mission.

STATE POLICE DROPS PHONE APP THAT MAKES TEXTS DISAPPEAR

The Michigan State Police told officers to remove a phone app that keeps no record of outgoing text messages, a newspaper reported this week.

TAXING TIME: HOW THE PANDEMIC WILL AFFECT FILING YOUR TAXES

The pandemic has made everything a bit trickier — tax filing season is no exception.

DIGITAL SIEGE: INTERNET CUTS BECOME FAVORED TOOL OF REGIMES

When army generals in Myanmar staged a coup last week, they briefly cut internet access in an apparent attempt to stymie protests. In Uganda, residents couldn’t use Facebook, Twitter and other social media for weeks after a recent election. And in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region, the internet has been down for months amid a wider conflict.

UN CHIEF: POLLUTERS MUST JOIN ‘NET ZERO' CLUB FOR CLIMATE

Polluters must step up their commitments to cutting greenhouse gas emissions before a crucial climate summit in November, U.N. SecretaryGeneral Antonio Guterres said this week.

A SPECIAL VALENTINES MEAL CAN TAKE MANY FORMS THIS YEAR

As we come to the end of a collective year of pandemic firsts, Valentine’s Day is next up. And showing love and gratitude can feel more important than ever.

50 Countries Vow To Protect 30% Of Land And Sea By 2030

At least 50 countries committed to protecting 30% of the planet, including land and sea, over the next decade to halt species extinction and address climate change issues, during a global summit Monday aimed at protecting the world’s biodiversity.

TESLA TO FIX TOUCH SCREENS, ENDING SPAT WITH US REGULATORS

After initially refusing a request from U.S. safety regulators, Tesla has now agreed to recall about 135,000 vehicles because the large touch screens on the console can go dark.

UN CHIEF CALLS FOR REGULATING SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANIES

The United Nations chief called for global rules to regulate powerful social media companies like Twitter and Facebook.

LAWSUIT SAYS FOXCONN COST GOVERNMENTS HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS

Worldwide electronics leader Foxconn Technology Group violated terms of its contract in Wisconsin, while local governments spend hundreds of millions of dollars to prepare for the project, a lawsuit filed by a real estate development company alleges.

NINTENDO PROFITS SOAR AS PEOPLE PLAY GAMES DURING PANDEMIC

Nintendo Co. reported that its profit for the first three fiscal quarters nearly doubled as people around the world stayed home for the pandemic and turned to playing games.

BRITAIN TO TEST MIXING AND MATCHING OF COVID-19 VACCINES

British scientists are starting a study Thursday to find out if it’s OK to mix and match COVID-19 vaccines.

AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTER SAYS BING COULD REPLACE GOOGLE

Australia’s prime minister said that Microsoft is confident it can fill the void if Google carries out its threat to remove its search engine from Australia.

KINGDOM OF WAKANDA DESTINED FOR DISNEY + STREAMING SERVICE

The Kingdom of Wakanda is staking out turf on the Disney + streaming service.

AMAZON CEO JEFF BEZOS MAY STEP DOWN WITHOUT STEPPING AWAY

Even after stepping aside as CEO, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos appears likely to keep identifying new frontiers for the world’s dominant e-commerce company. His successor, meanwhile, gets to deal with escalating efforts to curtail its power.

APPLE CEO ESCALATES BATTLE WITH FACEBOOK OVER ONLINE PRIVACY

Apple CEO Tim Cook fired offa series of thinly veiled shots at Facebook and other social media companies, escalating an online privacy battle pitting the iPhone maker against digital services that depend on tracking people to help sell ads.