Tech Digest daily roundup: Used EV prices slump 6.6% in January

Used electric cars experienced a well-documented price crash last month, and new data shows January’s winners and losers. Figures from Auto Trader reveal the electric cars that rode out the price drops and the ones that didn’t. Jaguar I-Paces crashed by 15.6 per cent year on year (YoY) and dropped by 4.1 per cent between December 2022 and January 2023. The average asking price of the Austrian-made Jaguar was £48,613 last month. Other premium second-hand EVs also slumped further in January, including the Tesla Model S (down six per cent YoY and three per cent month on month to £44,512). Car Dealer

Nissan is to take a stake of up to 15% in Renault’s flagship electric vehicle unit as part of a new long-term deal designed to repair relations in the troubled 24-year alliance between the two global automotive makers. The 15-year agreement includes seeking savings from joint projects in Europe, India and Latin America, as well as working together on electronics and battery technology. The two companies had already announced an agreement for Renault to cut its holding in Nissan to 15% from 43%, matching the Japanese carmaker’s stake in its French partner in a move designed to create a more equal alliance. The Guardian 

While the Nothing Phone (1) was revered as a well-rounded device, our in-depth review determined it was above average, at best. To Nothing’s credit, it has fixed some of the Phone (1)’s issues since launch. Those looking forward to its successor will be pleased to know MySmartPrice has revealed some important specs of the Nothing Phone (2). It will be launched sometime in Q3 2023, the report says. Nothing CEO Carl Pei said the smartphone would launch as a “more premium” alternative to the Phone (1). It will supposedly run an “unannounced” Snapdragon 8 processor, likely the 8+ Gen 2 . Notebookcheck

Collapsed battery maker Britishvolt is close to being bought by an Australian firm, in a deal that could help revive plans to build the UK’s first gigafactory in Northumberland. Recharge Industries was selected as the preferred bidder to take over the majority of the business, which collapsed into administration last month after failing to drum up enough cash to keep itself afloat. Administrators at EY said the group had received ‘multiple approaches’ and ‘numerous offers’ before naming Recharge, but it did not specify why or how much Britishvolt would be sold for. ThisisMoney

Amazon is aiming to shed empty warehouses across Britain as it slams the brakes on growth plans after falling to its worst annual loss on record. Amazon is understood to have kicked off work to sublet unused big-box sites in Britain, following years of swooping for more warehouse space across the country. It is estimated to have opened hundreds of warehouses globally during the pandemic, in a bid to make the most of the boom in online spending. However, demand from shoppers for online orders has taken a hit in recent months, with 2022 having been the toughest year for many e-commerce giants to date. Telegraph 

It has been two months since the public launch of AI chatbot ChatGPT by the firm OpenAI – and it did not take long for people to start noticing what a game-changer this really is. Whether you have asked it to write you a song in the style of your favourite musician, sneaked in a homework question (500 words on the end of World War Two? no problem), tasked it to write copy for your company website, write a speech or even churn out specific program code, ChatGPT has proved that it can deliver – and in a convincing way. BBC