Tech Digest daily roundup: Blue Origin loses NASA court case
A judge has dismissed Jeff Bezos’s private spaceflight company Blue Origin’s lawsuit against NASA over the awarding of a moon-landing contract to SpaceX. In a single-page ruling, which Blue Origin has until 18 November to redact before it is released in full, the US Court of Federal Claims granted the government’s wish to have the lawsuit dismissed. It poses a potential end to Jeff Bezos‘s bid to take part in NASA‘s Artemis programme, which aimed to take the first woman and the next man to the lunar surface by 2024 – although that date is in question. Sky News
Instagram has brought back support for Twitter card previews after removing the feature nine years ago. Now, when users share an Instagram link on Twitter, a small preview of the post will be displayed. Instagram controversially removed the feature shortly after being acquired by Facebook in 2012. Twitter card previews started for some users on Wednesday and will eventually be available to everyone. Instagram and Twitter are both promoting the change. BBC
For several months, WhatsApp has been testing a feature that would allow users to link their account to secondary devices and continue to send and receive messages without the primary smartphone online. This feature is now officially rolling out to all WhatsApp users in the most recent update of WhatsApp on both Android and iOS versions. Previously, you had to make sure your main smartphone was still connected to the internet before you could carry a conversation on your linked web browser. When enabling this feature on your smartphone, you need to opt into the feature – labeled as still in “Beta”. Once enabled, you’ll be unlinked from all devices before re-linking to a new device. GSM Arena
After passing the Senate in August, the US House of Representatives early Saturday morning passed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill 228-206. The passage hands President Biden a win after months of negotiations and wings of the Democratic party attempting to attach the infrastructure bill to the president’s Build Back Better bill. With its passage, it heads to the president’s desk for a signature…The bill includes major support for electric vehicles and clean energy, specifically, there is $7.5 billion set aside to create a nationwide network of EV charging stations to expedite the adoption of electric cars this decade. Another $65 billion will fund an investment in clean energy and renewables for the nation’s electricity grid, and promises to create a more resilient system. Funds will also funnel to various clean energy technology projects. CNet
Ukraine has filed charges of espionage and attempted state overthrow against five people who allegedly were part of a hackers group controlled by Russia. The Security Service of Ukraine said Friday that the hackers group known as “Armagedon” was responsible for some 5,000 cyberattacks on Ukrainian state agencies since 2014. The service said it had intercepted and recorded conversations of two group members it claims are agents of Russia’s Federal Security Service, the main descendant of the Soviet KGB, working in Russia-annexed Crimea. The five alleged hackers were charged in absentia. There were no details on the extent of the damage any of the group’s attacks may have caused. AP News
