Tesla makes further job cuts, China tightens internet controls
Elon Musk has called for “absolutely hardcore” job cuts at Tesla, as the company lays off hundreds more employees in an attempt to control costs. The electric car maker’s chief executive told managers that staff who were not “excellent, necessary and trustworthy” should be axed. It comes a week after Tesla made around 14,000 staff redundant, roughly a tenth of the company’s workforce. Tesla dismissed two key executives, while also cutting entire teams. Telegraph
The UK’s most popular health and fitness apps collect an average of 14 personal data points about their users, which can then be sold on to data harvesters who profit off people’s personal details, new analysis by the data protection service Incogni has found. Millions of people use fitness apps and trackers to record their runs, workouts and diets — but there can be a privacy trade-off. Those who use fitness trackers regularly upload personal details including their precise location and heart rate alongside their lap times. ShinyShiny
“Tens of millions” of people are using technical workarounds to secretly access WhatsApp in countries where it is banned, the messaging platform’s boss has said. “You’d be surprised how many people have figured it out,” Will Cathcart told BBC News. Like many Western apps, WhatsApp is banned in Iran, North Korea and Syria. And last month, China joined the list of those banning users from accessing the secure platform. Other countries, including Qatar, Egypt, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates, restrict features such as voice calls. BBC
New rules that tighten Chinese government restrictions on the country’s internet companies have come into effect today, raising concerns about how they will be applied. The expanded State Secrets Law compels firms – including social media giants Tencent, ByteDance and Weibo – to take action if users post sensitive information. It requires “network operators” to monitor information being shared by users. The rules also describe how posts should be removed, records saved and reported to authorities. BBC
If your iPhone’s alarm hasn’t woken you lately, it seems you’re not alone: Apple has confirmed to Today that a software bug is to blame, following user complaints on TikTok and other social platforms. Apple is “aware of an issue causing some iPhone alarms to not play the expected sound,” according to the report and “is working on a fix.” The company’s official statement didn’t go into more detail on what caused the bug or why it seems to affect some users but not others. ArsTechnica
Huawei’s profits have surged more than six-fold after the Chinese technology champion overcame Western sanctions to steal market share from Apple. The Shenzhen-based company reported a 19.6bn yuan (£2.1bn) profit in the three months to March, up 564pc on the same period a year ago. This comes despite facing US export controls and bans on overseas sales of its networking equipment in the last year, including in the UK. Telegraph
Apple is preparing to hold its next event, titled ‘Let Loose’ and its first launch of the year. The event is likely to focus on the iPad. Most rumours point to that being the headlining release – and even the invitation included an Apple Pencil, in a rare almost-direct confirmation of what would be starring. Apple also hasn’t updated any of its iPads since the year before last, meaning that they are all now overdue. Independent
Ubisoft has announced that its Assassin’s Creed Mirage title will be available for download on the iPhone and iPad starting June 6. “We are proud to share that Ubisoft Sofia had the pleasure and opportunity to bring Assassin’s Creed® Mirage to iPhone and iPad. Our teams worked hard to adapt the game controls to the touch screen in order to provide an intuitive, comfortable and engaging gaming experience.” said the company’s LinkedIn post. GSM Arena
