Tech Digest daily roundup: Cryptocurrency donations for Ukraine reach £10m
Cryptocurrency analysts say at least $13.7m (£10.2m) has so far been donated to the Ukrainian war effort through anonymous Bitcoin donations. Researchers at Elliptic, a blockchain analysis company, say the Ukrainian government, NGOs and volunteer groups have raised the money by advertising their Bitcoin wallet addresses online. More than 4,000 donations have been made so far, with one unknown donor gifting Bitcoin worth $3m to an NGO. The median donation is $95. On Saturday afternoon, the official Twitter account of the Ukraine government posted a message: “Stand with the people of Ukraine. Now accepting cryptocurrency donations. Bitcoin, Ethereum and USDT.” BBC
SpaceX billionaire Elon Musk said on Saturday that the company’s Starlink satellite broadband service is available in Ukraine and SpaceX is sending more terminals to the country, whose internet has been disrupted due to the Russian invasion. “Starlink service is now active in Ukraine. More terminals en route,” Musk tweeted. He was responding to a tweet by a Ukraine government official who asked Musk to provide the embattled country with Starlink stations. Reuters
The Russian TikTok video has it all: a cat, puppies and a pulsing background beat. It’s cute, watchable and hardly seems the stuff of state propaganda. In 2014, Russia flooded the internet with fake accounts pushing disinformation about its takeover of Crimea. Eight years later, experts say Russia is mounting a far more sophisticated effort as it invades Ukraine. Armies of trolls and bots stir up anti-Ukrainian sentiment. State-controlled media outlets look to divide Western audiences. Clever TikTok videos serve up Russian nationalism with a side of humor. AP News
Chinese manufacturer Huawei has unveiled a wide range of new gadgets, including its first all-in-one PC and e-ink tablet, as it looks for new ways to bring in customers. The electronics giant has broadened its product range in recent years after US sanctions cut off the firm’s access to the hardware and software used to power its smartphones, which once rivalled Apple and Samsung in market share. Ahead of the Mobile World Congress (MWC) trade show in Barcelona, announced a new flagship MateBook X Pro laptop and MateBook E two-in-one laptop, a new MatePad tablet powered by its HarmonyOS operating system, the company’s first-ever printer and a portable speaker alongside the MateStation X PC and Amazon Kindle-rivalling e-ink tablet, the MatePad Paper, which can also be written on using a Huawei stylus. Yahoo!
Ministers are in talks to effectively take a “golden share” in the top-secret military technology provider Ultra Electronics in return for giving the green light to its £2.6bn takeover by private equity.Ultra, which makes highly sensitive defence equipment for Britain’s nuclear submarines, has been left in limbo after its board last year agreed to being bought by Cobham, the defence company that is controlled by American private equity firm Advent. City sources said that while a formal golden share similar to those in BAE Systems and Rolls-Royce was not being offered by Advent, legal undertakings would provide a similar degree of security to the Government. Golden share arrangements typically give the holder a veto over the sale of a business. Telegraph
Finally, a huge society has published its plans to improve Britain’s EV charging. I’ll set the scene. EV charging is painless, easy and affordable – if you can do it at home and tap into cheaper (not cheap) overnight electricity tariffs. But, when you’re out on the road, and in urgent need of ‘juice’, EV charging sucks. It’s often neither painless nor easy, and can be unfathomably costly. Taking that last point first – illuminated, menu-like price lists should be clearly displayed on and around all public charging units. Just as petrol and diesel pumps or car park pay & display machines spell out their prices (and offer printed receipts), all public EV charging units must do the same. In addition, the units, and their surroundings, must be properly lit for safety, security and convenience. Autoexpress
