Tech Digest daily roundup: Shaking head and Afro comb added to Emoji list
A shaking head, pair of high-fiving hands and an afro comb are all set to head to smartphones over the next year as the draft list for Emoji 15.0 is revealed. Three new shades of heart have been introduced – light blue, pink, and grey – as well as a smattering of animals, including a donkey and goose, vegetables in the form of peas and ginger, and cultural artefacts like maracas and a wooden flute. Two new icons have also been introduced: a pink Khanda to represent Sikhism alongside the other major world religions, and a blue wifi logo. Guardian
The UK technology sector has a talent shortage which could “stifle growth”, an industry body has warned. Liz Scott, from TechNation, said it was “a real issue” which must be rectified. There were more than two million UK job vacancies in tech last year, more than any other labour area, but an industry coalition says nearly 12 million workers lack essential digital skills. The government told the BBC it was working very closely with industry on digital skills training. However, schemes like boot camps, apprenticeships and degree apprenticeships do not seem to be enough to address the gap. BBC
Amazon is to employ more people in the UK than the British Army as the tech giant creates another 4,000 new jobs. The hiring spree will take Amazon’s UK workforce to 75,000 people, eclipsing the planned number of soldiers in the army by 2025. The new jobs will be spread across large warehouses in Wakefield and Knowsley, near Liverpool as well as across head office and Amazon Web Services. Positions will also be available across 19 “Just Walk Out” stores that automatically bill shoppers, avoiding the need for paying at tills. Telegraph
Conservative leadership candidate Kemi Badenoch has said the Online Safety Bill is “in no fit state to become law” as the government confirmed that the legislation’s final stages have been delayed. Former minister Ms Badenoch, who is through to the second round of voting in the Conservative Party’s leadership race today, said postponing the Bill was the “right move”. She added that if she were to be successful in her bid to become leader, she would “ensure the bill doesn’t overreach”. Responding to earlier reports the legislation had been delayed, Ms Badenoch tweeted: “This would be the right move. The Bill is in no fit state to become law.” Sky News
Amazon, seeking to resolve two European Union antitrust investigations, has promised to treat third-party merchants on its website fairly, the bloc’s competition watchdog said Thursday. The U.S. online retail giant offered to make a number of commitments to ease competition concerns, and the European Commission, the 27-nation bloc’s top antitrust enforcer, said it will now seek feedback on them from “interested parties.” The commission launched an investigation four years ago over concerns Amazon breached EU competition rules by using data from merchants selling products on its platform to gain an unfair advantage over them. AP News
