Month: October 2025

The Hypershell X Pro is presented as the most advanced exoskeleton. We have tried it for a week and there is an obvious dilemma

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He Hypershell X Pro It is one of the most curious products of the moment. The question is simple and at the same time uncomfortable: are we facing an exoskeleton that really helps you walk more and train more, or are we facing a shortcut that stops making sense if you are already in shape? In a new 24/7 of the Xataka YouTube channel We’ve taken it to a week of continuous use to understand the extent to which that extra push really changes the experience. For a full week, Dani Mangas, who already played with Amazon’s best-selling TVlived with the Hypershell X Pro inside and outside the home. She tested its different support and resistance modes, configured the app with her physical data, and adjusted the support to find the sweet spot. “I literally felt like I was in a science fiction movie.” From that first sensation began a video analysis that combines ergonomics, autonomy and real performance. Hypershell X Pro: wearable technology to move with less effort (or train harder) The assembly is surprising because of how simple it is. The Hypershell The app guides the initial process by asking for height and weight to adjust the anchor point at the hips. “Although it seems crude at first“, explains our colleague, it attaches easily to the body and transmits a firm sensation from the first moment. The start is almost immediate: just turn it on to notice how it starts to push. Dani first tried Eco mode, a gentle help that he describes as “as if someone grabbed you by the waist and pushed you forward a little.” From the app itself or with the buttons on the device you can change mode and intensity without depending on the mobile phone. The funny thing is that it doesn’t feel invasive: it helps, but it makes it clear that the one walking is still you. Away from home is where the Hypershell X Pro shows its character. On the flat the ride becomes more fluid and lighter, but it is when climbing where the difference becomes evident. With Hyper mode activated, the leg “literally raises itself”says Dani. On each slope the push reduces the load on the legs and the feeling of fatigue. The system reacts well, although when stopping there is a slight delay before moving again. Is it more noticeable on long slopes or during frequent starts and stops? Stairs are another area where the Hypershell X Pro comes into its own. In the uphill sections, the assistance raises the leg almost effortlessly, “as if someone was helping you from behind,” says Dani. On the other hand, when going down, a light brake still in beta phase acts, useful but far from being its strong point. Fitness mode goes full circle: adding resistance to every stride, just like walking with weight. Is it worth training with resistance versus “assisted” walking? “The value of the Hypershell X Pro is inversely proportional to your physical fitness,” Dani says in the video. The truth is that, after a week of use, There are moments when it surprises more than expected. and others in which it leaves doubts about who it is really aimed at. The interesting thing is to see how it behaves in each scenario and how far that promise of assistance or resistance goes. All that, and the final verdict, It’s on Xataka’s YouTube channel. Images | Xataka In Xataka | With the Vaporfly Nike already made us run “faster”: with Amplify it literally wants to give us a motor

the story of how AMD was born by shamelessly copying Intel

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Today AMD is an absolute giant in the semiconductor segment, and its chips are among the most advanced in the world. Their history of innovation is undeniable, but the company’s origins began in a unique way: they ruthlessly copied an Intel chip. Leave me that microscope. In the summer of 1973 Ashawna Hailey, Kim Kailey and Jay Kumar left their jobs at Xerox. But before doing so they wanted to say goodbye in style, and on their last day of work they took an Intel 8080they stripped him and then they used a microscope to take 400 photos of the die of that microprocessor. Reverse engineering. These images allowed the design and architecture of that revolutionary processor to be “deciphered” by reverse engineering, and thanks to them, these three engineers were able to sketch the schematics and logical diagrams that they then offered to Silicon Valley companies to see if any were interested. The origin: Am9080. AMD was the one that ended up taking advantage of that information. The company had just developed a process called “N-channel MOS” for chip manufacturing. The company was taking its first steps at that time, and had hardly any achievements to its credit. What AMD did was combine this advance in its manufacturing technologies with those schemes and launched its Am9080, which some sources suggest began to be sold in 1974 but which in reality did not begin mass production and sale until 1975, 50 years ago. They cloned it and improved it. In an interview with Shawn and Kim Hailey conducted in 1997, these engineers explained how that AMD chip was a resounding success because it managed to be 10 times more efficient in production than Intel: the company managed to obtain 100 dies per wafer, but the chip was also four times more powerful than the original 8080. They made them for 50 cents, they sold them for 700 dollars. That success allowed AMD to begin mass production of a chip that suddenly suffered notable demand, especially in the military and defense industry. In fact, it is estimated that the manufacturing cost of each Am9080 was 50 cents, when the selling price of each one was 700 dollars according to said engineers. The profit margin was absolutely extraordinary. Intel ended up making a deal. That managed to turn AMD into a reference company in the market, and that gave it an advantageous position. One with which he avoided endless legal disputes and which allowed him to sign a cross-licensing agreement with Intel. That made AMD a “second source” for manufacturing its processors. Why did Intel allow something like this? It wasn’t for the love of art. At that time, obtaining lucrative contracts with defense agencies required precisely having a “second source” that could manufacture chips if the original supplier had a problem. Here peace and then glory. That led AMD and Intel to sign an agreement in which AMD paid Intel $25,000 to sign and $75,000 a year for licenses — ridiculous amounts — and that also freed both parties from liability for potential past violations. Everything was forgotten. And finally, x86. That initial agreement was important in achieving the true agreement that sealed AMD’s future. In 1982 Intel allowed AMD to manufacture its own x86 chips. This meant that the firm could begin producing its own versions of chips that used that architecture, the first of which crystallized with the Am286 in 1982, a chip that was a licensed version of the Intel 80286. The rest, as they say, is history. That agreement managed to turn AMD into the great alternative to Intel. Although for years it remained in the shadow of its great competitor, AMD managed to expand its business to the graphics card segment and in recent years this has served to raise it well above Intel in market capitalization: today AMD is the 25th company in the world with a capitalization of 410,000 million dollars. Intel, meanwhile, is going through a notable crisis and is currently the 96th company in the world by capitalization: 182 billion dollars. And it all started (practically) with some microscope photos. In Xataka | The engineer who does not need spotlights: Lisa Su took an AMD on the verge of bankruptcy and ten years later she has made it an empire

The era of extremely slow hurricanes is here

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“I am speechless at how chilling these images are.” With those words, the meteorologist behind Backpirch Weather described what all the experts think seeing how Melissa reached 233 km/h and 941 mbar. That is, seeing live and direct, how “the hurricane reached an almost perfect symmetry 185 kilometers south-southwest of Kingston” (Jamaica). Above all, because (according to the National Hurricane Center) it is a matter of time before it reaches category 5 and, right after, provoke on the island “damage with little or no precedent.” A worrying trend. Melissa has been on the radar of everyone who monitors the hurricane corridor for days now. In fact, he had begun to attract attention for something curious: It was moving extremely slowly.. Now, Melissa moves at about seven kilometers per hour, but during these days she has reached three. This fits with research in recent years that suggests that the speed of hurricanes has been decreasing. And that decrease is important because “a slower-moving storm generally means more flooding and potentially more storm surge.” But Melissa wants to be more than just a trend. Because, how they explained MeteoredHurricane Melissa “has undergone explosive intensification and could reach Category 5 before making landfall in Jamaica.” 12 hours were enough. And things are going to get more serious: “the European model anticipates rains of more than 500 mm in eastern Jamaica, southwest Haiti and eastern regions of Cuba.” It is true that, As Michael Lowry pointed out“if Melissa has demonstrated anything today, it is the difficulty of predicting intensity fluctuations when hurricanes peak”; but, as he hastened to add, “in any case, the mighty Melissa stands firm.” What’s more, the videos that arrive are creepy. What is to come. As explained Álvaro OliverMelissa “has category 4 and it is not unusual for it to even reach 5, with winds exceeding 250 km/h.” But the peculiar thing will be what we said, its “very slow movement.” That could trigger the rains and cause a “great devastation in the next three days.” In Cuba They will displace almost a million peoplebut the Jamaicans don’t have much of an escape. And it is that, precisely that, that can trigger a disaster in slow motion. The next few days are going to be key not only to save hundreds of people; but also to understand why the Caribbean is becoming a death trap. Image | CIMSS (via Alvaro Oliver) In Xataka | If the question is what happens when a hurricane enters an extratropical transition, we will see the answer on Sunday: Gabrielle is at the doors

human hands connected from the Philippines

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Thousands of kilometers from Japan, in an office building in Manila’s financial district, a group of young people watches the inside of stores where they have never been. In front of them, monitors show the movements of robotic arms that place drinks on refrigerated shelves. They are the same robots that many Japanese customers believe are fully autonomous. In reality, their apparent independence depends on these Filipino operators who, connected by Internet, correct errors in these machines. When a can falls, they are the ones who give back control. The automata that supply the shelves of Japanese stores They work independently almost all the time. Still, there are times when they fail. When a drink slips or a container is misplaced, an operator from Manila puts on a virtual reality headset and regains control. In a few minutes, move the robotic arm precisely until the error is corrected. These interventions are specific, about 4% of operationsbut they ensure that everything keeps moving without anyone noticing from the other side of the counter. When robots make mistakes, it’s humans who save them The operation of this system depends on a peculiar alliance between companies from two countries. Telexistencebased in Tokyo, designs and manages the robots that operate in Japanese stores, relying on Microsoft and Nvidia platforms. From Manila, Astro Robotics runs the control room where technicians monitor and assist the machines. It’s an example of how chains keep their operations going in Tokyo thanks to a mix of robotics, connectivity and remote workforce. Located at the heart of this operation, the TX SCARA model is a compact and fast robotic arm created to handle drinks in the narrow warehouses of Japanese stores. The system analyzes sales data to decide which products to replenish at any given time. If an error occurs, as we say, it switches to teleoperation mode. The deployment of these robots began in 2022 and since then their presence has multiplied in Japanese stores. What started as a controlled test is today a stable operating system that keeps refrigerators stocked without interruptions. Adoption responds to a clear need: Japan faces a chronic shortage of retail workers, exacerbated by an aging population. In this scenario, automation has become a strategy to sustain the service without expanding the human workforce. Now, while Japan boasts advanced automation, part of its “efficiency” relies on Filipino workers who They charge between 250 and 315 dollars a month, according to Rest of World. It is the same amount that a call center agent earns, but with much more technical and demanding tasks. For Japanese companies, the model is ideal: robots that don’t ask for breaks and remote operators that cost a fraction of the local minimum wage. Innovation, in this case, also externalizes inequality. The work of operators in Manila may seem simple, but it has its complexity. Each one monitors dozens of robots simultaneously and must react quickly when something goes wrong. The pressure to keep the flow constant is high, and shifts lengthen in front of multiple screens. In addition, the use of the virtual helmet can cause dizziness and disorientation after several minutes of use. All this, according to an employee who spoke with the aforementioned media. Every move the operators make in Manila not only keeps the system running: it also teaches the robots to be more autonomous. Telexistence collects that teleoperation data to perfect artificial intelligence models that control the TX SCARA. The information is used to improve the machines’ coordination, grip and responsiveness. In June, the company announced a collaboration with the American startup Physical Intelligence to develop foundational models that give robots more human-like “physical intelligence.” The rise of automation is not limited to Japan. On a global scale, the industry is advancing with unprecedented speed. The market of the so-calledartificial intelligence agents”—programs capable of acting autonomously—could multiply by eight and reach almost $43 billion in 2030, consulting firm MarkNtel Advisors projects. What we can see is that the global demand for technological labor seems to be putting the Philippines in a strategic position. A Penbrothers report notes that foreign companies look there technical talent at low cost for artificial intelligence, automation and robotics projects. Local professionals have access to more qualified jobs, but they continue to earn less than their counterparts in the United States or Europe. The next step will be to see how far this collaboration between humans and machines goes. Telexistence plans to expand the number of connected stores and improve the autonomy of its robots, while experimenting with new gripping and handling systems. It will also be necessary to observe how the percentage of human intervention, still necessary today in part of the operations, evolves. Another key point will be the treatment of data generated in Manila, which feeds artificial intelligence models and raises questions about privacy and ownership of information. Images | Telexistence In Xataka | Amazon has calculated how much it costs to lay off 600,000 employees: 30 cents per item sold and many robots

We thought dinosaurs were on the verge of extinction before the meteorite. we were wrong

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The most emblematic mass extinction in Earth’s history without a doubt occurred up to 66 million years ago. It marked the end of an era like the Cretaceousand with it, the disappearance of dinosaurs that were not birds. But what was that extinction really like? This is the big question that experts have asked themselves and that it is already beginning to have light. For decades the scientific community has debated whether dinosaurs were already in decline before they abruptly went extinct or whether they were wiped out while they were still thriving. This is where the new has had an impact published study in the magazine Science in which the Spanish researcher Jorge García-Girón from the University of León participates, who sheds light on this debate. Simply put, the research refutes the idea of ​​a prolonged decline and suggests that dinosaurs were diverse and divided into distinct ecological regions just before the asteroid impact. The fossils of the south. Much of the uncertainty about this issue comes from a bias in the fossil record. The only well-dated faunas that span the extinction boundary come from northern North America (in the famous Hell Creek Formation). This made it impossible to know whether the extinction pattern observed there was a global or local phenomenon. In this case, the research team focused on a fossil-rich unit much further south, in the San Juan basin of New Mexico, known as the Member Naashoibito. The age of this formation has been a matter of controversy for years and was often considered much older. But now by applying geochronology techniques with Argon dating and magnetostratiography, the study has finally achieved precise dating. The results are conclusive: the Naashoibito Member dates back to the latest Cretaceous, which corresponds to up to 66 million years. This means that the fossils found there, which include a variety of species, preserve some of the last known non-avian dinosaurs. They lived a maximum of 340,000 years before the asteroid impact and were contemporaries of the Hell Creek fauna. Separated by weather. This finding is crucial because, for the first time, it allows us to compare two different faunas from the same end of the Cretaceous. And the result refutes the idea that we had all about decline in our minds. And the study not only dates the fossils, but also uses powerful ecological models to analyze the diversity of terrestrial vertebrates throughout North America. The results show that, far from forming a homogeneous and cosmopolitan fauna, the dinosaurs maintained high diversity and clear endemism until the end. In other words, it can be said that the dinosaurs were “strong” and divided into distinct regional assemblages. In this case, the study identifies two clear bioprovinces in the north and south that remained stable during the late Cretaceous. What separated these faunas? The analysis suggests that the main factor was temperature. More than a simple geographic division, different dinosaur communities were adapted to different climates. For example, the data propose that warmer southern regions may have been more tolerable for sauropods, while colder, more temperate northern regions were more suitable for hadrosaurines. The conclusion. The sum of the evidence points directly to the fact that non-avian dinosaurs were abruptly annihilated at the end of the Cretaceous. They were not in a decline as was thought, so they did not have this factor on top of them that would already condemn them to extinction if the disastrous event on Earth had passed. Instead, it has been seen that its ecosystem was diverse and biogeographically compartmentalized. Extinction in this way was sudden and, as the later fossil record demonstrates, was followed almost immediately by the rapid diversification and rise of mammals. Images | Vaibhav Pixels In Xataka | A museum kept bones for 20 years that they thought were rubble. Now we know that Mexico had its own T-Rex

Mariah Carey has unleashed a schism at a concert in Singapore

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Although she no longer appears on the front page of the news as she did in the nineties, Mariah Carey continues to attract the world’s attention, especially as Christmas approaches. However, a concert recent event in Singapore sparked some controversy among the public: can you listen to ‘Fantasy’ without getting up to move your hips or is it materially impossible? Mariah moment. Mariah Carey’s favorite dates are approaching. Christmas is inaugurated by the diva as soon as Halloween passes, and with this she begins to add reproductions of her ‘All I Want for Christmas Is You‘ until reaching milestones like the one a year ago, becoming lMost played Christmas song in Spotify history. A couple of days ago he received the award for MusiCares Person of the Year for his philanthropic work. But it’s not all good news. Also a few days ago, without going any further, there was a brawl at one of his concerts in Singapore. What happened. The International Business Times website account that a Mariah Carey concert in Singapore held on October 8, 2025 as part of her The Celebration of Mimi tour, went viral after some attendees they will count on social networks what had happened there. In them they were seen arguing with other spectators about whether they should remain seated, as most of the theater where the concert was taking place, or could get up to dance, applaud and sing the songs. Zombies with Mariah. At the event held at the Arena @ Expo Singapore there were 6,600 people, but unlike what is usual at a concert in Europe or the United States, the attendees remained seated. This caused some users, such as the tiktoker @advlogss called the audience “Zombi” for remaining impassive before the diva’s repertoire. Another user of the social network, @sha_nikitarelates: “there was a lady behind us saying ‘You have to sit down! It’s a sit-down concert!’ Different forms of enjoyment. What happened is that cultural differences between the inhabitants of Singapore, where the public tends to behave more reservedly than in the West, and people from other backgrounds collided, which, as can be seen in the videos, was the case of those who broke with tradition. On Singapore news website ‘The New Paper’ They explain it perfectly: A British security guard who has been working in the country for years, Joe Borg, claims to understand both sides. “I would understand if some people were upset because they couldn’t see the concert,” he says. According to Borg, concert-goers in Singapore are less likely to participate due to “less alcohol consumption and rowdiness” than in other countries. The respect is very nice. There’s another interviewee in ‘The New Paper’, a K-pop fan called Ms Tay, who says there are “appropriate times to sit down and times to stand up.” She has worked as an usher at concerts, and can therefore attest that banners and glow sticks can be “annoying” when they block the view of others. And in fact, he has even seen people stand on chairs just to see better. In our book of concert etiquette, that crosses several boundaries. ​ In Xataka | Spanish stadiums are desperately looking for money, and it is not on a whim. 19 business days a year are no longer enough

analyzes your poop and promises to take care of your health for $600

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Who in their right mind would think of putting a camera in the toilet. If the camera also costs $600, the thing sounds even more crazy. It’s Kohler’s latest idea and it makes more sense than it seems. Monitoring even the poop Smart watches and bracelets have created a whole health monitoring culture. This is what a few years ago we called the ‘I, quantified’but recording the steps was just the beginning. Today any wearable is capable of recording our keystrokes, the blood oxygen level and they also measure our sleep. Where smartwatches or smart rings do not reach, an entire category of health monitoring devices has emerged such as smart scales or Kohler’s proposal with the Dekoda camera. It is not the first in this line, a couple of years ago we already talked about sensor to detect urine withings. Dekoda: the camera that analyzes your bowel movements Kohler is one of the most recognized household products manufacturers in the United States. They recently announced the creation of a new division focused on health and their first product is Dekoda, a camera that is installed in the toilet to record the frequency and characteristics of our bowel movements. Dekoda has “advanced optical sensors and spectroscopywhich effortlessly observe how light interacts with your waste to learn to detect variations that could indicate health problems.” Kohler says that behind Dekoda there are more than 10 years of research to ensure accurate and reliable results. Dekoda comes with a mobile app in which data is transmitted (not photos, thank goodness) and helps detect health problems such as dehydration or presence of blood in the stool, which can be indicative of serious illnesses. It also offers nutritional suggestions and lifestyle changes. To ensure privacy, all content is encrypted and can be protected by fingerprint. It also comes with a remote control that is placed on the wall to scan the fingerprint and thus distinguish between users. The camera is placed on the edge of the toilet bowl (it can be placed in any toilet, it does not have to be from Kohler) and works with a rechargeable battery that we can remove to recharge it. It costs 599 dollarsbut also you must have a subscription to Kohler Health to be able to use the app, so you have to add 70 dollars per year per user or 130 dollars if there are several. Images | Kohler In Xataka | I got my hands on some “sleep headphones” in the hopes of finally falling asleep. It came out regular

beer that doesn’t give you a hangover

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“Only idiots drink non-alcoholic beer.” That was the reflection with which a young German named Louis Shirmer responded to Washington Post about the state of beer without in your country. If we think of beer, it is inevitable to think of Germany. It is one of the countries where the most beer is consumedbut in a few years now, something is changing: Europe, is becoming a land of non-alcoholic beer. And the new ‘liquid gold’ of breweries is also conquering Germany. Trend. We have said it on several occasions: the non-alcoholic beer market is experiencing a considerable growth. So much so that it is transforming the global industry and what a decade ago was considered a marginal product, with just a few options, has become a segment that is emerging. The non-alcoholic beers (the 0.0, especially) are more abundant, but there are also many companies that have gone all out with flavor. In some countries, it is a segment with an annual growth of 20% and there are already estimates that it will be a market of almost 44 billion dollars by 2035. Far from traditional beer, but without a doubt a good amount of money. Beyond fashion. Generational change is something that influences. The surveys point to a majority of ‘millennial’ consumers and Generation Z who choose or would choose an alcohol-free version of your favorite beer, something that responds to lifestyles known as “superb curious” (sober out of curiosity) or lifestyle “damp” (not abstinence, but moderation). Everything needs to be given a name in English. It can also respond to greater health awareness. According to the World Health Organization, alcohol causes more than three million deaths annually, 5.3% of the total, but apart from this, this aforementioned improvement in flavor allows 0.0 versions of a drink that, like coffee, is something social, to be chosen. The statistics confirm, in short, that alcohol in general is less present in everyday life (although depends on age). What the industry does. own Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has indicated in one of its latest consumer reports that it is something that is in the doldrums, and the brewers have done what they should: try to ensure that the consumer does not escape their product. If they drink less alcohol, we have to invest more in creating 0.0 versions, and there we have companies like Heineken, one of the giants in the sector, making millionaire investments in its Heineken 0.0 brand. AB InBev is another of the giants in the beer sector, with Budweiser as the flagship brand, and they estimate that, by the end of this year, at least 20% of their global beer volume will consist of no or 0.0 options. Returning to Germany, the country’s Brewers Association comment that non-alcoholic beer represents 9% of beer production and consumption in the country, but in the coming months they expect it to reach double digits. In Spain it is estimated that 15% of all beer consumed is non-alcoholic, being leaders in Europe in this segment. Jacobo Olalla is the general director of Cerveceros de España and attributes This success is due to the fact that the Spanish consumer does not drink looking for the effect of alcohol. And in Belgium, another beer country par excellence, the consumption of non-alcoholic beer now represents 5%. It seems little, but it represents a growth of 24.3% since 2021 and in a recent festival it was sold 800% more non-alcoholic beer than in the previous year’s version. Beer without getting drunk. Now, although breweries are investing to adapt and create alcohol-free alternatives, there are brands such as the American Athletic Brewing that have focused exclusively on alcohol-free products. It is the leader undisputed of its segment in the American market (the second largest consumer of beer internationally), so it is not something insignificant. And yes, obviously, non-alcoholic beer can have the properties of the cereals with which it is made without the negative side of alcohol (both for the body and in terms of its intoxicating effects), but the English have come to investigate a beer without it being capable of getting drunk. Behind that beer is David Nutt, a neuroscientist who seeks to ensure that beer continues to be a social drink capable of disinhibiting shy people, but avoiding risks such as addiction, cirrhosis or aggressive behavior. At the moment they are promises, but we would have to see how it affects, for example, the driving of a vehicle. Not just beer. We have to see if it is a fad or if it is something generational that is here to stay, but the purchase of alcohol in general, according to the International Wine and Spirits Recordhas fallen 20% since 2000 while the 0.0 beverage market has doubled in the last three years. And we don’t just have to talk about beer: there are wine cellars and spirits brands that are investing much in its ‘dealcoholized’ segment. In the end, Louis, it seems that non-alcoholic beer is not just for idiots. Images | uk:Користувач:Gutsul In Xataka | In the United States they are making beer with water from showers and sinks. And they have good reasons

is in a park full of parents with umbrellas

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In times where love seems to be summed up in a “swipe left” or “swipe right”, finding a partner has never been so easy… Or so difficult. While Tinder, Bumble or Hinge promise algorithmic compatibility, in China the most popular dating “app” does not require an internet connection, just a printer, an umbrella and worried parents. Every weekend, entire parks in cities like Beijing, Shanghai and Chongqing are transformed into a mosaic of laminated posters with personal descriptions. It is not the singles themselves who place them, but their parents. It is the so-called marriage market or xiangqin jiao (literally, “blind dating corner”), a phenomenon that can be described as an analog version of a dating app. Love in times of demographic crisis. The rise of these markets has its origins in a paradox: while matching apps and agencies multiply, weddings and births plummet. In 2024, only 6.1 million couples will get married in China, 21% less than the previous year and the lowest number since records began. according to data from the Wall Street Journal. This year there was a small rebound — 3.54 million marriages in the first half — thanks to a new policy that simplifies civil registration according to the South Morning Post. But the general trend continues to plummet. The causes of this situation they are multiple: long working hours, high housing prices, gender inequality and, above all, new priorities among young people. “Energy is limited, so I eliminate what drains me the most. First thing? Dates,” confessed a 22-year-old studentreflecting a profound generational change. Faced with this scenario, many parents decided to move from concern to action: if their children are not looking for a partner online, they are looking for one in the parks. How does the Tinder of paper? According to Noema Magazinethe first love market emerged more than a decade ago in Shanghai, in People’s Park. Every Saturday and Sunday, no matter rain or shine, the park is filled with parents with signs hanging on ropes, benches or open umbrellas. They detail age, height, weight, salary, property, including whether the candidate’s parents have a pension. Photos, interestingly, are optional. “Those who do it best are the average ones: neither very good nor terrible,” explained a matchmaker nicknamed the Professor Guwhich charges the equivalent of $16 to display a poster for six months. In Chongqing, another of the large cities of the southwest, The Wall Street Journal described similar scenes: retired parents squeezed on paths covered with posters. Some attendees use WeChat — the ubiquitous app in China — to scan QR codes or exchange contacts. A woman included in her profile that she earns $560 a month, that she owns a house and a car, and that she is looking for a husband “without bad habits, under 29 years old and no taller than 1.73.” On the next page, a 26-year-old man asked for a wife with a university education and “who is not too plump,” a reflection of still very traditional standards. The cultural contrast is evident. In China, marriages are still considered an economic and family alliance rather than a romantic act. Therefore, the marriage market is, as detailed in Noema Magazine“a fusion between Match.com and a farmers market,” where banners replace digital profiles and parents act as human filters. Marriage market in Shanghai Is love found? Really, few achieve success. The stories of couples formed under this phenomenon They are almost non-existent. Most return every weekend out of habit, for company or simply to kill time. A father from Shanghai, interviewed by The Agehas been there for more than a year and has only gotten two matches for his 36-year-old son, with no results. “I only act as an intermediary, I pass the information on to him, but in the end it depends on him,” he confessed resignedly. Despite everything, for many it is a form of generational catharsis. “Our kids think ‘why should I settle?’” said a woman nicknamed Sister Gaoa veteran matchmaker who arrives every week with dozens of laminated profiles. “In our generation, people put up with more. Today they don’t want to tolerate anything.” There are also young people who challenge the norm. As reported by the state media CGTNHuang Junjie, 29, decided to advertise himself in the Beijing market. “I tried apps like Douyin or Xiaohongshu, but they felt very far away. Here at least you see people face to face,” he explained, standing next to his sign. He was looking for a mature woman and was even willing to get married. matrilocal —living with the wife’s family—something unthinkable a generation ago. Beyond love. Behind every umbrella is a story of anxiety and family pride. In China, many parents feel that seeing their children married is their last mission in life. In a society where being single is perceived almost as a failure, the markets They are both a space of hope and shame. For this reason, some parents They confessed to feeling humiliated for having to “offer” their children in public, although others defended their right to intervene. “The girls are not willing to say ‘I want a boyfriend’, so we help them,” said a mother from Shanghai. In essence, the phenomenon also reflects loneliness of an older generation. With more than 300 million retirees, many of them widowed or divorced, attending the love market is also a way to socialize, not to be left alone at home. Meanwhile, the Government is trying to stop the decline in marriages with economic incentives, child subsidies and even university courses on “romantic education.” But, as analysts point outthe results remain modest: young people value personal freedom more than the pressure to get married. A pressure for women. In this scenario, women bear disproportionate pressure. In China, staying single beyond the age of 27 can make you a Sheng Nuliterally “leftover woman.” The term, popularized by state media in the 2000s, became a social stigma that pushes many professionals to justify their singleness to … Read more

The price of chocolate is rising so much that chocolate bars are no longer legally chocolate bars.

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Imagine for a moment that Nocilla, the famous Spanish spread, reduced the chocolate in its recipe so much that they could not use its famous ditty about “milk, cocoa, hazelnuts and sugar” without incurring fraud. Imagine the shock, the controversy, the disbelief. Well, something very similar to that. just happened in the uk and, honestly, it is a warning of the future of chocolate. What has happened? For decades, McVitie’s tried to become in the UK’s quintessential chocolate cookie: “If you like your cookies with lots of chocolate, join our club,” has been their advertising slogan all this time. But that’s over: Pladis, the parent company (one of the country’s largest producers of cookies, sweets and salty snacks), has so limited the chocolate in the recipe for its Club cookies and Penguin bars that, legally, they are no longer chocolate cookies. Now They only have a chocolate ‘flavor’. But why? The explanation is simple: cocoa prices have risen so much (especially, in 2024 and early 2025) and skyrocketing production costs. As we have been warning for months, this pressure was wreaking havoc on the world of chocolate. Manufacturers very quickly realized that they could not transfer all the increases to final prices: demand was going to be savagely reduced. The reduflation and countless other strategies to contain prices. And as both in the United Kingdom and in the European Union, the regulation requires that at least 20% of the product are “cocoa solids”crossing that line requires a change of name. And what does all this imply? Although it may seem strange, the consequences of all this in October 2025 are that although consumption falls due to price, business improves. Although chocolate is 13% more expensive today than at the beginning of the year and almost 19% more than just a year ago; the sector has been able to generate more than 80 million profit than last year. However, the future is uncertain. In a recent report, Produlce (the sector’s employers’ association) recognized that consumption fell last year (according to their calculations, by 8.6%), although spending per person increased by 5.5%. But that is something worrying: because, despite the fact that cocoa is giving some rest, the price is still double what is usual. And everything suggests that will continue to rise in the medium term. Image | Ubcule | Monika Guzikowska In Xataka | A chocolate bar filled with pistachio has become the most desired viral on TikTok: the “Dubai chocolate”

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