Tech Digest daily roundup: Elton John quits Twitter over misinformation policy

Sir Elton John has become the latest celebrity to leave Twitter since its acquisition by Tesla boss Elon Musk. The singer, a headline act for next year’s Glastonbury Festival, blamed the platform’s “change in policy” around misinformation without elaborating. Twitter stopped taking action against accounts spreading misleading information about Covid-19 last month. In response to Sir Elton’s announcement, Mr Musk said he hoped the star would be back. In what could be his last ever tweet, the Rocket Man singer wrote: “All my life I’ve tried to use music to bring people together. Yet it saddens me to see how misinformation is now being used to divide our world. BBC 

Any iPhone with Ultra in the name was always going to be expensive, and so it comes as no surprise to hear that the rumored iPhone 15 Ultra might cost even more than the iPhone 14 Pro Max. That’s according to LeaksApplePro – a leaker with a respectable track record – who, writing for HowToiSolve(opens in new tab), claimed the iPhone 15 Ultra might start at up to $1,299. Prices for other regions weren’t provided, but Apple currently sells the 512GB iPhone 14 Pro for that price, and it elsewhere costs £1,429 / AU$2,249, so those prices would likely apply here too. Tech Radar

Twitter has been accused of secretly “blacklisting” prominent right-wing figures in the US in order to ensure they reached a smaller audience. High-profile right-wing individuals – such as talk show host Dan Bongino, conservative activist Charlie Kirk and anti-lockdown campaigner Dr Jay Bhattacharya – were apparently demoted by Twitter staff before it was taken over by Elon Musk. The “blacklists”, which limited the visibility of accounts or prevented them from being featured in Twitter’s list of trending topics, have been revealed as part of the so-called Twitter Files. Sky News 

If people haven’t heard of Nothing before, folks wandering Soho will pass by a new physical location for Nothing. The store will open Saturday, December 10 at 11:30AM in London where it will sell the Nothing Phone (1) and the Ear Stick earbuds, along with Nothing merch. There will also be a selection of audio products from Swedish brand Teenage Engineering and “curated collections from fashion and design brands” as well. The décor inside the shop is bright, white, retro, and transparent, inspired by the minimal and transparent look of the brand’s products. GSM Arena 

  
Source: Nothing

Google is bringing the Waze team across to the organization running Google Maps to cut costs. The Wall Street Journal reports that more than 500 employees at Waze will join Google’s Geo organization, which is responsible for Maps, Earth and Street View. The move is happening today. There are no redundancies as part of the move, but Waze CEO Neha Parikh will leave her role after a transition period, a Google spokeswoman told WSJ. Google is tightening its belt along with the rest of the tech sector in the face of uncertain macroeconomic conditions. ZD Net

Sam Bankman-Fried, the former boss of the failed crypto-exchange FTX, has said he hopes to start a new business to help pay back the victims of his old firm’s collapse. Speaking to the BBC from the Bahamas, he said he would “give anything” to be able to begin a new venture in order to recoup his users’ lost investments. “I’m going to be thinking about how we can help the world, and if users haven’t gotten much back, I’m going to be thinking about what I can do for them,” Bankman-Fried told the BBC. “And I think at the very least I have a duty to FTX users to do right by them as best as I can.” Guardian