CATEGORIES

AMAZON WINS EU COURT FIGHT OVER $300 MILLION TAX RULING

In the latest setback to European Union efforts to tackle corporate tax avoidance, a court on Wednesday annulled a ruling by the European Commission that a tax deal between Amazon and Luxembourg’s government amounted to illegal state support.

BIDEN SIGNS ORDER TO BEEF UP FEDERAL CYBER DEFENSES

President Joe Biden signed an executive order meant to strengthen U.S. cybersecurity defenses in response to a series of headline-grabbing hacking incidents that highlight how vulnerable the country’s public and private sectors are to high-tech spies and criminals operating from half a world away.

ALIBABA RECORDS FIRST QUARTERLY OPERATING LOSS SINCE IPO

Alibaba had its first quarterly operating loss since it went public in 2014 after Beijing slapped a record $2.8 billion fine on the nation’s largest e-commerce company for abusing its market position.

WALMART INVESTS IN GM'S CRUISE AUTONOMOUS VEHICLE SUBSIDIARY

Walmart and some institutional investors have joined the latest investment in Cruise, bumping the capital influx into the General Motors autonomous vehicle subsidiary from over $2 billion to $2.75 billion.

FACEBOOK REPORTS SOARING QUARTERLY AD REVENUE, STOCK JUMPS

Facebook’s stock jumped Wednesday into record territory after the social media giant reported stronger-than-expected results for the first quarter thanks to soaring ad revenue.

GM: SOFTWARE, NEW BATTERY PARTS WILL SOLVE BOLT FIRE ISSUES

Engineers at General Motors have figured out how to fix a battery problem with the Chevrolet Bolt electric hatchback that caused five of them to catch fire.

DAIMLER TRUCK, VOLVO TO MAKE FUEL CELLS IN EUROPE FROM 2025

Germany’s Daimler Truck AG and Sweden’s Volvo Group say they plan to jointly manufacture hydrogen fuel cells for trucks in Europe starting in 2025 and called on European Union policymakers to boost incentives for climate-neutral technologies.

UBER TO RECRUIT 20,000 UK DRIVERS ON POST-LOCKDOWN DEMAND

Uber plans to recruit 20,000 more drivers in the United Kingdom to help fill swelling demand for rides as the country’s coronavirus lockdown restrictions ease.

CHINA'S HUAWEI SAYS SALES DOWN 16.5% AMID US SANCTIONS

Embattled Chinese tech giant Huawei said first-quarter revenue fell after it sold its lower-priced Honor smartphone brand, but profitability improved.

iPAD PRO 2021: SUPERCHARGED WITH XDR DISPLAY, M1 CHIP, & THUNDERBOLT

The iPad Pro has become something of a workhorse in recent years, offering professionals an alternative to a laptop with cutting-edge capabilities and software.

DUTCH GOVERNMENT PAUSES CORONAVIRUS APP OVER DATA LEAK FEARS

The Dutch government has temporarily disabled its coronavirus warning app amid data privacy concerns for people who have the app installed on phones using the Android operating system.

APPLE PROFIT SOARS IN LATEST QUARTER ON HIGHER iPHONE SALES

Demand for the iPhone and other Apple products drove profits to more than double in the January-March period as the tech giant continued to capitalize on smartphone addiction.

APPLE'S iPHONE PRIVACY CLAMPDOWN ARRIVES AFTER 7-MONTH DELAY

Apple is following through on its pledge to crack down on Facebook and other snoopy apps that secretly shadow people on their iPhones in order to target more advertising at users.

APPLE MUSIC LAUNCHES MORE THAN 100 CITY-FOCUSED MUSIC CHARTS

Apple Music is coming to a city near you — the streaming service has launched daily music charts focused on particular cities around the world, including New York City, Tokyo and Lagos.

US JOBLESS CLAIMS FALL TO 547,000, ANOTHER PANDEMIC LOW

The number of Americans applying for unemployment aid fell last week to 547,000, the lowest point since the pandemic struck and an encouraging sign that layoffs are slowing on the strength of an improving job market.

NASA'S MARS HELICOPTER TAKES FLIGHT, 1ST FOR ANOTHER PLANET

NASA’s experimental helicopter Ingenuity rose into the thin air above the dusty red surface of Mars on Monday, achieving the first powered flight by an aircraft on another planet.

IS IT FINALLY GAME ON FOR VIDEO GAME ADAPTATIONS?

Is there a more woebegone movie genre than the video game adaptation? This is the pantheon of “Max Payne,” “Wing Commander” and “Assassin’s Creed.” In the 27 years since the first video game movie, “Super Mario Bros.,” these adaptations have been so regularly mocked that you might think the genre was -- like a teetering fighter in “Mortal Kombat” surrounded by chants of “Finish him!” -- on its last legs.

US AID LIFTS SOUTHWEST TO Q1 PROFIT, AMERICAN LOSES $1.25B

With a strong push from taxpayers, Southwest Airlines is the first major U.S. airline to report a profit since the pandemic started, and airlines executives say that the worst of the pandemic caused crisis for their industry appears to be over.

ASTRONAUTS FLYING REUSED SPACEX ROCKET, CAPSULE FOR 1ST TIME

For the first time, NASA is putting its trust in a recycled SpaceX rocket and capsule for a crew.

RESTAURANTS, DELIVERY APPS STILL AT ODDS AS DEMAND GROWS

Diners got used to delivery during the pandemic, and the habit may stick long after dining rooms reopen.

AUSTRALIA PLANS TO SPEND $417M ON HYDROGEN, CARBON CAPTURE

Australia’s prime minister has proposed spending an extra 539 million Australian dollars ($417 million) on hydrogen and carbon sequestration projects, seeking to burnish his government’s green credentials ahead of a climate summit to be hosted by President Joe Biden.

FLORIDA HOUSE OVERWHELMINGLY APPROVES CONSUMER PRIVACY BILL

The Florida House resoundingly approved a consumer privacy bill, giving the public an opportunity to regain ownership of the personal data collected by companies and the right to sue companies for mishandling information in a marketplace where consumers themselves have become lucrative commodities.

APPLE UNVEILS NEW PRODUCTS, SCHEDULES PRIVACY CRACKDOWN

Apple spruced up its product line at an event Tuesday while slipping in quiet notice of a software update, now due next week, designed to enhance the privacy of iPhone users at the expense of digital advertisers such as Facebook.

GOOGLE EARTH ADDS TIME LAPSE VIDEO TO DEPICT CLIMATE CHANGE

The Google Earth app is adding a new video feature that draws upon nearly four decades of satellite imagery to vividly illustrate how climate change has affected glaciers, beaches, forests and other places around the world.

COINBASE SOARS IN MARKET DEBUT, VALUED NEAR $86 BILLION

Coinbase made a rousing debut on Wall Street Wednesday, with shares of the digital currency exchange rising as high as $429, briefly giving it a market value over $100 billion.

US RECOMMENDS ‘PAUSE' FOR J&J SHOTS IN BLOW TO VACCINE DRIVE

The U.S. recommended a “pause” in use of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine to investigate reports of rare but potentially dangerous blood clots, setting off a chain reaction worldwide and dealing a setback to the global vaccination campaign.

DRIVERS WANTED: RECORD DEMAND AT UBER AS VACCINATIONS RISE

Uber is offering sign-up bonuses and other incentives for drivers as it faces record demand for rides and meal delivery.

USERS COULD SOON HIDE ‘LIKE' COUNTS ON INSTAGRAM, FACEBOOK

The tiny red hearts that appear under Instagram photos of kids, kittens and sandwiches can be a source of stress for many users, an insidious way of measuring self-worth and popularity.

A $1.2 BILLION LOSS FOR DELTA, BUT RECOVERY IS ON THE RADAR

Delta Air Lines lost $1.2 billion in the first quarter, more than expected, but executives said Thursday that the airline could be profitable by late summer if the budding recovery in air travel continues.

THE DISABLED HOPE THEIR OSCAR MOMENT CAN BECOME A MOVEMENT

Right down to its production design, the Oscars have not always felt like the most welcoming place for the disabled.