Engineers fly 6.4m quadcopter drone, Tinder introduces Matchmaker option

Engineers at the University of Manchester have flown what they claim may be the biggest unmanned quadcopter drone yet built. The university says it is unaware of a bigger unmanned quadcopter, but there is no independent verification of the record. As the name suggests, quadcopters are drones with four propellers. The drone is made from foamboard, giving it a cardboard-like appearance, and spans 6.4m (21ft) corner to corner. The first flight of the Giant Foamboard Quadcopter (GFQ) took place in July inside a hangar at the Snowdonia Aerospace Centre. BBC 

Tinder is now letting users’ family members suggest potential partners on the dating app. The company’s new feature, Matchmaker, allows users to give access to their potential matches to up to 15 friends or relatives in a 24-hour period. Those people can then view profiles and suggest possible matches even without a Tinder account. However, they cannot message potential partners on the user’s behalf. Once the Matchmaker session ends, Tinder users have the opportunity to review the profiles their matchmakers’ recommended and then make a final decision. Sky News 

According to a Financial Times’ report on Monday, Toyota’s long-awaited solid-state batteries are to be ready by 2027 or 2028. The company is working on the batteries, which, according to the Financial Times, should have a range of 1,200 km, twice as long as Toyota’s current range. The solid-state batteries are also to lower Toyota’s EV charging time to 10 minutes. The batteries are costly and hard to manufacture. Challenges with the batteries include their heightened sensitivity to moisture and oxygen, along with the mechanical pressure required to prevent dendrite formation—metal filaments causing short circuits. UK Investor Magazine

Tesla is under investigation by US authorities following claims the electric carmaker has been misleading customers over the driving range of its vehicles. The Department of Justice (DOJ) has sent subpoenas to Tesla ordering it to share “certain matters” related to the vehicle range of its cars, Elon Musk’s car company said on Monday. In a stock market disclosure, Tesla said US authorities were demanding information from the company on personal benefits and personnel decisions, as well as about the range of its electric cars. Telegraph 

The OnePlus Open launched last week. That marked the first entry into the foldable phone space for the brand, and looks set to be a monstrous handset. In fact, based on the specs alone, it looks like it could be a true Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 killer. The handset packs in a host of top tech, like a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor, a killer Hasselblad camera system and a pair of AMOLED displays. All of that is good anyway, but the device becomes even more appealing when you consider the price. At just £1,599, it’s substantially less expensive than the Z Fold 5 and other competitors like the Google Pixel Fold. T3.com

Deepfakes, viral online challenges and protecting freedom of expression: the online safety bill sprawls across many corners of the internet and it’s about to become official. The much-debated legislation is due to receive royal assent, and therefore become law, imminently. The purpose of the act is to make sure tech firms have the right moderating systems and processes in place to deal with harmful material. “This means a company cannot comply by chance,” says Ben Packer, a partner at the law firm Linklaters. “It must have systems and processes in place to, for instance, minimise the length of time for which illegal content is present.” The Guardian