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Tesla CEO Elon Musk's next big bet rides on better batteries

Tesla is working on new battery technology that CEO Elon Musk says will enable the company within the next three years to make sleeker, more affordable cars that can travel dramatically longer distances on a single charge. But the battery breakthroughs that Musk unveiled Tuesday at a highly anticipated event didn’t impress investors. They were […]

Microsoft will buy video game maker ZeniMax for $7.5 billion

Microsoft is buying the company behind popular video games The Elder Scrolls, Doom and Fallout. The software giant said Monday that it is paying $7.5 billion for ZeniMax Media, the parent company of video game publisher Bethesda Softworks. Microsoft said it is buying Bethesda in part to beef up its Xbox Game Pass game subscription […]

Judge agrees to delay US government restrictions on WeChat

A judge has approved a request from a group of U.S. WeChat users to delay looming federal government restrictions that could effectively make the popular app nearly impossible to use. In a ruling dated Saturday, Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler in California said the government’s actions would affect users’ First Amendment rights, as an effective ban […]

Trump backs proposed deal to keep TikTok operating in US

NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump said Saturday he’s given his “blessing” to a proposed deal that would see the popular video-sharing app TikTok partner with Oracle and Walmart and form a U.S. company. Trump has targeted Chinese-owned TikTok for national security and data privacy concerns in the latest flashpoint in the rising tensions […]

Apple to launch first online store in India next week

NEW DELHI (AP) — Apple announced Friday that it will launch its first online store in India next week, as it seeks to increase sales in one of the world’s fastest-growing smartphone markets. The company at present uses third-party online and offline retailers to sell its products in the country. Apple CEO Tim Cook said […]

Phone flip: New Quibi series 'Wireless' empowers the viewer

NEW YORK (AP) — Most directors insist on having final edit approval of their films. Not the creators of “Wireless.” The series on the mobile-platform Quibi employs an ingenious way to tell a story on a smartphone: You see different things on the screen depending on whether you hold your phone vertically or horizontally. Horizontally, […]

Celebs join Instagram 'freeze' to protest Facebook inaction

LONDON (AP) — Kim Kardashian West, Katy Perry, Leonardo DiCaprio and other celebrities are taking part in a 24-hour Instagram “freeze” on Wednesday to protest against what they say is parent company Facebook’s failure to tackle violent and hateful content and election misinformation. Hollywood stars and influencers are lending their backing to the “#StopHateforProfit” movement’s […]

Bill Gates Sr., father of Microsoft co-founder, dies at 94

SEATTLE (AP) — William H. Gates II, a lawyer and philanthropist best known as the father of Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, has died at 94. Gates died peacefully Monday at his beach home in Washington state from Alzheimer’s disease, the family announced Tuesday. In an obituary the family credited the patriarch with a “deep commitment […]

Q&A: What does a deal between TikTok and Oracle mean?

HONG KONG (AP) — ByteDance, the Chinese company that owns the popular video-sharing app TikTok, has chosen Oracle over Microsoft as a new American technology partner to help keep the app operating in the U.S. TikTok confirmed the decision Monday, echoing earlier statements from Oracle and the U.S. treasury secretary. ByteDance faces a Sept. 20 […]

Oracle wins TikTok over Microsoft in Trump-urged bid

The owner of TikTok has chosen Oracle over Microsoft as the American tech partner that could help keep the popular video-sharing app running in the U.S., according to a source familiar with the deal who was not authorized to speak publicly about it. Microsoft announced Sunday that its bid to acquire TikTok’s U.S. operations was […]