Month: December 2025

This is the largest battery-powered locomotive in the world

by

There are places where scale determines everything, and Port Hedland is one of them. At this point in the northwest of Australia, a locomotive has appeared that seeks to make its way into a territory dominated for decades by diesel. Progress Rail presents her as the locomotive battery-powered electric largest in the world, and the relevant thing is that it is not enough for a photo, but to fit into a real mining operation. It’s the kind of move that, if it works, could have practical implications in a sector little given to change. From an industrial point of view, the key is not only that the locomotive exists, but that it is already in the place where it is expected to work. Fortescue says that These electric locomotives are intended to operate on its mining network with the stated goal of reducing the use of fossil fuels and improving the energy efficiency of the railway system. The interest of the announcement lies in this direct application, in an infrastructure designed for constant and demanding loads. From now on, it will be the actual operation that will determine whether this bet can be scaled beyond the first units. From diesel to batteries at the heart of Australian mining The locomotive that has arrived in Western Australia It is an EMD SD70J-BBone of Progress Rail’s developments in railway electrification using batteries. On a technical level, it combines an eight-axis architecture with a high-capacity battery, which in the Joule series can reach 14.5 MWh. Regarding weight, Progress Rail speaks of 265 tons in a recent communication, while its technical sheet for the model places it at 245 tons, a difference that the documentation itself does not clarify and that may depend on the configuration. The route followed by the locomotive helps to understand where this initiative is. Shipped from Sete Lagoas, in Brazil, the unit was transported by sea bordering Africa, passing through South Africa, before arriving in Australia. This type of logistics is common when dealing with individual teams and not entire fleets, and fits with the idea of ​​​​a gradual introduction. The move alone suggests that the project is still in an early phase of operational deployment. Fortescue defines these units as Battery Electric Locomotives, or BEL, a concept that transfers principles already known in other electrical fields to heavy rail. In this case, the locomotive runs on energy stored in batteries and recovers part of that energy during brakingan especially relevant aspect on loaded and sloped routes. The company has pointed out that This system makes it possible to recover between 40% and 60% of the energy used, although this figure depends on the profile of the line and the type of operation. Fortescue’s environmental speech accompanies this deployment with ambitious figures. The company ensures that your Electric locomotives could collectively eliminate about a million liters of diesel each year, provided they operate according to planned scenarios. It has also highlighted that the energy used comes from its own renewable infrastructure in the Pilbara, a key element for the reduction of emissions to be effective. Progress Rail set the noise level of this locomotive below 70 dB during operation, a low record by heavy rail standards. In comparative terms, a conventional diesel locomotive is usually above this threshold, especially during acceleration and low-speed work. This difference is not only a matter of comfort, but also influences working conditions in industrial environments where machines operate for long shifts. The acoustic reduction thus adds to other operational changes derived from electrification, beyond energy consumption. From a technical point of view, the most direct comparison is with heavy-duty diesel locomotives that dominate railway mining today. These machines stand out for their autonomy and known logistics, while the electric alternative introduces new variables, such as the management of stored energy and recharge times. Compared to hybrid proposals, which combine thermal engines and batteries, the SD70J-BB is committed to a completely electric scheme, with fewer elements associated with combustion and with the potential to simplify part of the maintenance. In return, dependence on energy infrastructure and stricter planning increases. The arrival of these locomotives cannot be understood without the role of the companies involved. Progress Rail, acquired by Caterpillar in 2006offers diesel locomotives and also alternatives such as batteries, hybrids or hydrogen, and is now seeking to place these solutions in high-demand environments. Fortescuefor its part, is trying to reduce the energy footprint of one of the most intensive logistics chains in mining, and fits these units into its public narrative of decarbonization. From now on, the focus shifts to the operation. It remains to be seen how this locomotive will behave in continuous service, what its real availability will be and what demands it will add in maintenance and energy infrastructure. It will also be key to observe whether the estimates on fuel savings and efficiency are confirmed with data accumulated under real load conditions. Images | Progress Rail In Xataka | Traveling by train is no longer about reaching a destination: the La Robla Express is the “slow luxury” getaway for 1,300 euros per person

Psychology knows that we are turning bad education into diagnosis

by

A decade ago, if someone behaved selfishly in a relationship, we would clearly say that they were “selfish.” Today, you will most likely hear that that person has an “avoidance bond” or that his or her behavior is a “response to past trauma“. That is why today psychology has come to explain absolutely everything, but there is a problem: we are pathologizing everyday life. A new idea. The psychologist Ángela Fernández recently threw a dart at the center of the debate: “not everything is trauma or anxious attachment; sometimes it is simply a lack of education.” And this phrase is not just an unpopular opinion; is the summary of a growing concern in the scientific literature about how the “trauma culture” is blurring the boundary between pathology and character. “Overpathologization.” The concept is not new, but it has never been so relevant. scientific literature I already warned about the tendency that exists to look for an illness in every action we do inappropriately in daily life. In this way, modern psychology runs the risk of turning normal activities or reactions, such as sadness after a breakup or work stress, into a medical problem. This increase in diagnoses It has a pretty dangerous side effect.: trivializes serious disorders. When we call any emotional wound or inconvenience “trauma,” we are eroding the perception of human resilience, and in the process, downplaying those who truly suffer from PTSD. If everything is trauma, nothing is. In the Anglo-Saxon clinical field, the term “Trauma Culture” has been coined. Publications in Psychology Today warn that this fashion of seeking an explanation clinic for every emotional reaction can be counterproductive. Far from helping, it pushes people towards therapeutic interventions that they don’t fit your real problempreventing grieving or learning processes that are simply part of growing up. This is something that is added to by different psychotherapists who emphasize that considering each conflict that exists in a couple as a “response to trauma” mixes everyday stress with pathological conditions that are truly very complex. All this does is create a generation of people who consider themselves “broken” by default, instead of understanding that frustration and conflict are inherent to human interaction. It is selfishness. One of the most controversial points of Fernández’s criticism is the mention of “lack of education” or maturity, and the bibliography seems to agree with him. Published works in ScienceDirect about the “egoism-altruism spectrum” suggest that certain harmful behaviors are not explained by a “deregulated” nervous system, but by personality traits such as lack of empathy or manipulation. Something that is innate to a person, and that can hardly be treated. In this way, we have subclinical psychopathic traits: people who do not have a mental illness, but who show excessive interest in their own well-being. In these cases, the clinical diagnosis acts as a “cloak of invisibility” that exempts the person who causes some type of harm from personal responsibility. An excuse. That is why if I have had bad behavior, I can create an “invisibility cloak” effect that exempts me from personal responsibility. This way, I can blame this behavior on the parents or my own personal past, as if it were an “attachment trauma.” But the reality is that, often, these are unempathetic patterns that should be treated from ethics and education, not from the psychiatry manual. The danger of labels in infancy. Different scientific reports point because we are labeling normal variations in children’s behavior as mental disorders. This means that what was once a restless child or one who had difficulty following rules, today runs the risk of being quickly diagnosed and medicated. By turning behavioral problems into psychopathologies, we are missing the opportunity to teach discipline, limits, and frustration tolerance. As experts point out Birchwood Clinic, extensive use of these labels increases anxiety and medicalizationcreating a dependency on the health system for problems that, historically, were resolved in the social and family environment. The verdict of science. Social media has created a market of “pocket diagnostics” where selfishness is disguised as “self-care” and rudeness as “emotional limit.” However, clinical psychology insists: for something to be a disorder, there must be significant functional impairment. That is why being inconsiderate towards others does not make a person a psychiatric patient, but sometimes you simply have to grow up. Images | Vitaly Gariev In Xataka | Those born between 1950 and 1970 have a psychological advantage over other generations: they are entering their “peak”

Google Maps to find out how it has changed from the 50s to today

by

Looking back to see what the maps of yesteryear were like can be fascinating because, well, you may find that In the Roman Empire they had a whole tangle of highwaysbut it is not necessary to go that far: the road infrastructure of the Spanish state has changed enormously in recent decades. You can ask your grandfather, but you can also see it in the latest and ambitious project of the National Geographic Institute. Spain in the 1950s was eminently rural, but agrarian modernization, industrialization and poverty led to the exodus of a significant part of the population from the towns to the cities. Throughout those 70 years, a dense and complex network of infrastructure and urban centers has been developed that did not exist before. Towns, cultivated areas and fields have been left along the way. For this ‘Google Maps of Spain from the 50s to today‘The IGN relies on Telespazio Ibérica, a geographic information company with satellite services. Its objective for nine months will be to launch the Historical Information System on Land Occupation in Spain (SIOSE). The new Historical Information System on Land Occupation in Spain (SIOSE) will be the most complete, precise and exhaustive tool to analyze the effects of climate change on the state’s ecosystem, the changes in territorial planning and land use in recent decades. As explains the director of cartography of Telespazio Ibérica, Óscar Muñoz: “The Historical SIOSE will not only include a complete database, but also a statistical and visual validation report that will guarantee the reliability of the results for scientific, urban and environmental uses. Thanks to this we will be able to see, objectively, how the Spanish ecosystem has changed and know which green areas have been lost, which urban areas have grown and how our landscape has evolved in the last 70 years.” The idea is to capture how its territory and landscape have evolved that period of time painstakingly rebuilding cities and towns, forests, crops, roads and buildings, among others. This Information System on Land Occupation in Historical Spain will be made up of 572 sheets of the National Topographic Map, ranging from the first complete aerial record of the territory (the american flight of ’56) and cartography generated later, both at the regional and state levels. In addition, Telespazio Ibérica is based on a pilot developed for the IGN and will have to refine it with a more precise and functional land coverage. To do this, they will use both digitization and automated image analysis and AI algorithms, which guarantee reproducibility throughout the entire territory. In Xataka | Castilla-La Mancha is about to shrink 2,000 hectares in favor of Aragon. All because of a 19th century dispute In Xataka | Who owns the maps in the world?

The creative death of Marvel’s MCU left a huge hole. One that in my case is filling WWE on Netflix

by

Twice a week I like to live a cathartic experience, and it is something that I strictly adhere to since the beginning of 2025. WWE and Netflix they started a million-dollar collaboration (a decade at a rate of 500 million dollars a year) so that their star shows could be seen around the world. Gone are those weekend mornings in Four with La Bomba Batista, Rey Mysterio or Randy Orton who starred in the childhood of an entire generation, but thanks to the platform of streaming, nostalgia hits harder than ever by allowing us to experience nothing less than the farewell tour of the greatest of all time: John Cena. But beyond the trip to childhood, my religious weekly ‘Raw’ and ‘Smackdown’ have helped me realize that with a ring and a handful of wrestlers they are scratching the same part of the brain as I expected the MCU to activate during these last years. The interrelation of the character arcsinvincible enemies, unexpected turns of a hero and alliances on the horn is something that Marvel has lost since ‘Avengers Endgame’ and that I find almost every week in wrestling. All that is needed is a suspension of credulity that is generated by the cathartic nature of the slaps (choreographed, not fake) and by how dedicated the public is to an event that also has the added bonus of being held live. Perhaps it sounds ridiculous for those who have not known about this world for 20 years, or for those who have barely entered it, but once you are part of the wheel, it is difficult not to get hooked by multiple aspects: combats measured to the millimeter with a physical preparation from another planet, soap opera stories between the stars where the distance between reality and fiction is separated by a bad fall or a word out of the script, or demonstrations of aura with entrances like those of Penta either Roman Reigns. But everything has its dark side and, as often happens, being a woman places me (even more frequently) in a dilemma. 7 TRICKS to get the MOST out of NETFLIX Triple H is not spared either The eternal “separating work and author” that does not prevent the bitter taste in the mouth produced by wanting to see the new Woody Allen or Roman Polanski movie or refusing to continue reading to JK Rowling. And the WWE is an almost inexhaustible source of controversies that makes it very difficult to draw the line and be able to simply enjoy a high-quality show and wrestlers who give their all in vibrant fights. The WWE has suffered under the previous management of Vince McMahon and their continuous scandalsbut with the arrival in 2022 of Paul Levesque (known as Triple H for wrestling lovers, and also McMahon’s son-in-law) as the new content director, they wanted to sell a new post-Vince era, establishing a gender equality policy on the roster and moving away from wrestlers with whom racial stereotypes were promoted. Since the replacement took place, there is no doubt that the female presence has increased in WWE, and continues to do so year after year; In its annual report we can see that of its superstars a 40% are womenin front of the 35% from previous year. And not only does it increase in number, but in quality; offering us stories and combats that are often infinitely superior to those perpetrated by male stars on the roster. Names like Rhea Ripley either Becky Lynch They are the female reference and those who lead the way for new recruits. The combination of global streaming thanks to Netflix and the growing number of female talentshas been the key factor that has managed to boost the increase of this audience. And, already in the documentary ‘WWE: Unreal’, the creative director that high percentage stood out: “WWE women have become an integral part of what we do. 40% of our audience is female. So, when you start down the road to ‘WrestleMania,’ you try to approach it with them the same way you do with the guys, you approach the narrative in the same way. “However, at the same time, this reality is continually clouded by putting its stars against the ropes beyond the ring itself. And the figure of Triple H is not exempt from controversy either. It is not only that he has visited the oval office alongside Trump this summer to join the Presidential Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition, reminding us once again of the US president’s relationship with the world of WWE and, inevitably, being a reminder of what political side the company joins. Not in vain, when the worst of the pandemic forced bodies to pile up in refrigerated trucks, even in New York, the WWE was one of the first sports practices to resume thanks to an exemption from Republican Florida. But the bulk of the excesses during his mandate are directed at the female public. Wrestlers and female audience against the ropes The WWE, through a agreement with Saudi Arabia which began in 2018 with the celebration of one of its events in the Middle Eastern country, was added to the list of sports that participate in the sportswashing strategic to whiten the image of the regime. This agreement, reprehensible for all that it implies on a political and social level, becomes even more flagrant and uncomfortable if we highlight what it means directly for the women of the company. In those first three events since 2018, the participation of the women’s section was totally prohibitedneither could they compete nor, of course, were female audiences allowed. It seems that, therefore, with that agreement of 100 million dollars annually Triple H easily forgets about that high percentage of female spectators that he brags about. It was not until 2019 when the Saudi authorities, in a display of modernity, allowed female wrestlers to compete, as long as they wore wrestling clothing that completely covered their bodies. … Read more

They are a quick way to check that the flight is going well

by

The process of entering a plane is anything but placid: a queue that seems eternal, making sure you don’t lose your luggage, your identification and other valuable objects, making sure you find your seat and where to put your suitcase. And in the middle, a lot of people in the same situation as you and who seem infinitely slower and more annoying than you. But that’s it, it’s already happened: you’ve already sat down, you’ve fastened your seatbelt and you’re waiting for takeoff. My condolences if it has touched you in the middle. If you are in the hallway, congratulations: you will be able to stretch a little more and get out more easily. And if you are at the window, you can better observe the takeoff and landing and rest your head. And furthermore, you will see better that triangle over the window. A triangle to enjoy the views and verify that everything is going well Sometimes it is red, sometimes it is black and it is not on all the windows: in fact there are usually one or two triangles on each side of the cabin and at a certain height above the seat on the side wall, which is why you may never have noticed them. Because we usually know where the nearest emergency exit is (thanks to the explanations of the flight attendants team), but the triangle is not so easy to see even though it is of crucial importance. In fact, you may have never seen it, but the cabin crew is very clear where it is both before and during the flight. As explains aviation expert and former commercial pilot Daniel Bubb, those triangles indicate the windows from which there is better vision of the wings. It is clear that in that window you can take very cool photos for Instagram, but the reason for being is different: “Helping crew members when there is an emergency or a failure in the flaps, slats, engine or other parts (…) It allows them to identify the location of the problem more quickly.” Knowing this, if you see the cabin crew looking out of that window from time to time it may give you a little respect, but a relatively frequent check does not mean that something is wrong, since it is also used to verify that the wing is deicing correctly and that everything is going well, he adds. Small, private planes and some older models do not have them as long as the triangles They are not mandatory but they are useful for the crew, but it is normal that you will find at least two. Each of them is located on each side of the plane, just above the window that lines up with the edges of the wing on the outside. Of course, if the plane is larger, there may be two triangles on each side, thus marking the leading edge and trailing edge of the wing. To that seat in aviation is known like the “William Shatner Seat”a cultural nod to the episode ‘Nightmare at 20,000 Feet’ of “The Twilight Zone“ October 1963 where Shatner saw a gremlin on the wing of the plane. I haven’t had the pleasure of seeing it, but yes that Simpsons reference in a House of Terror special. Going in that seat has its advantages. The first is obvious: it offers a magnificent point of view for taking photographs and videos. However, it can also be useful if you are not too excited about flying: you can see for yourself how everything is fine and the de-icing process before takeoff. In addition, it offers a smoother flight sensation as turbulence and abrupt landing and takeoff are less noticeable. It sounds so appealing that the next question would be to know which row that seat corresponds to, but as there are different models and configurations of airplanes, there is no single answer. Of course, if you want to increase the probability that it will be your turn, look at the seat map and select the ones closest to the ends of the wing. If one day you are lucky and your assigned seat is that, enjoy the views. In Xataka | Few people know what the red balls on high-tension cables are for: they are a simple way to save lives Cover | Photo of Edwin Petrus in Unsplash

AI already generates photos indistinguishable from reality, so people are using it to collect fake returns

by

The photo on the left was taken by me on my bathroom counter, the second is the result of asking Nano Banana to simulate that it had been hit during transport. If it weren’t for the Gemini logo in the lower right corner (which can be removed very easily), it would pass perfectly for a real photo. Online stores have a problem. what’s happening. There is an increasingly common trend in the world of online sales. Some customers are taking advantage of imaging models like Nano Banana to request product returns. Is what this person did: He ordered a carton of eggs from a fast home delivery service. One of the 24 eggs was broken. He took a photo and asked Gemini to add more broken eggs. He sent it to customer service and voilà: return completed. Why is it important. The images are no longer proof of anything, we saw it with the first images generated with Nano Banana Pro that went viral, and we are going to have to learn to live with it. Not only will we doubt absolutely every image we see, it also means that anything that could be verified with images may now be false. There are many more scenarios: cheat on your boss telling you that you had an accident on the way to work, exaggerating the damages to your insurance company, lying to your partner… China has the advantage. They count in South China Morning Post that the trend of deceiving online sales companies with AI is a trend that is spreading like wildfire. During the pass 11.11 celebrationseveral stores received images of customers asking for a refund using AI-generated images, such as a rusty electric toothbrush, a frayed item of clothing, or a broken ceramic mug. There is a case that has been echoed Wiredin which a customer who bought live crabs demanded a refund because many had arrived dead. To prove it, he sent images and even videos, but the sellers noticed that the video was not real because there were crabs with more legs. The problem with these detected cases is that the images were not credible, but that makes us think of all the more subtle images that will be considered good. There are more cases. China has the largest online trading systemso it makes sense that more cases have been detected, but it is not a trend exclusive to one country. The egg case that we mentioned above occurred in India and cases have also been detected in the United States. According to the fraud detection firm Forterthe use of AI images for this type of deception has increased by 15% by 2025, coinciding with the arrival of more capable imaging models. With Nano Banana Pro it looks like the trend is going to give a significant boost. Returns without return. Obviously, this technique cannot be used with just any product. There are cases in which stores refund our money without it being necessary for us to return the product. It can be applied in the case of perishable, fragile products and, in general, low-value products. If the images are no longer proof, they will have to change the strategy. Sending us a broken bottle of shampoo, I don’t know if it would be the best option, but they could force that the photos sent can only be taken from the app itself and not upload the ones we have in the camera roll. Image | Amparo Babiloni, Xataka In Xataka | FACUA believes that a lot of V16 beacons “approved by the DGT” are not legal. And there’s a way to sum it up: fraud.

that of closed garage controls and owners

by

Paul Wieland is a restless computer scientist. A few years ago he wanted to try control your garage door with your smartphone. There were interesting commercial options such as the MyQ platform, but what he wanted was to be able to open and close it while having access to home Wi-Fi, without depending on the servers of MyQ or any other company. In 2022 he managed to develop the first prototype of his solution, which he called RAGDO (Rage Against the Garage Door Opener, or Rage Against the Garage Door Opener). Users could use home automation platforms such as HomeKit or Home Assistant easily and for free without depending on third-party servers. Depending on third parties is usually a bad idea It was just then that Chamberlain Group, the company responsible for MyQ—a service with 14 million users—decided to cut off access to third-party solutions. The connections people had set up to use their MyQ port with home automation apps from Apple or Google they stopped working. Additionally, Chamberlain began promoting subscription services with external partners, thus breaking the user experience for existing customers. A RAGDO device installed on the garage opener. Source: Ratcloud LLC. These changes were highly criticized by thousands of users who saw how their hardware products lost functionality, although the basic door opening seemed to continue working in the free version of MyQ. At that time, sales of RAGDO – which offered a great solution to the problem – skyrocketed. From believing he would sell 100, Wieland found that he was selling tens of thousands of his devices. This expert commented in The New York Times How RAGDO’s success is due to a widespread frustration: companies sell Internet-connected hardware, but once they get a large enough user base, they modify or use it to “squeeze” customers with forced subscriptions that tend to take control away from users. It’s something we’ve seen numerous times in the recent past. Google announced in April that its first-generation Nest smart thermostats they would become “dumb” thermostatsand the controversy with absurd subscriptions is famous for example in the field of cars: BMW charges extra for heated seats and Mercedes for offering a larger turning radius for the wheels of some of its models or, simply, to run more. The truth is that in an ideal world you should be able to do whatever you want with the digital products you buy, but that doesn’t apply in the US. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which was created in the late 1990s, had the goal of fighting content piracy but also made it illegal to try to overcome the digital barriers that companies create to prevent their applications from being used illegally. A quarter of a century later that law remains controversial. Garage controls are the new walled gardens The problems that Wieland and the users of this type of systems have suffered in the US are not very different from those that we suffer in Spain, for example. Garage doors have been able to be opened with a remote control for decades, but this market has become a complex framework of standards and closed and proprietary solutions. While at first the controls were simple and were based on a transmitter and a receiver, the problems of that simplicity—anyone could open or close any door—led to the appearance of several iterations, such as controls with DIP switches with which it was possible to configure fixed combinations different from those of other garages, but which were also easy to end up copying. Currently the most common thing is to have control solutions with “rolling codes” or variable/evolving codes, which ensure that each signal transmitted by the remote is unique and cannot be used for unauthorized access. Security has certainly increased, but this method made numerous companies They will create their own variants of rolling codes for two reasons: one public and reasonable (to protect its users, there are no widely accepted universal standards) and another hidden (to protect the business and generate income). These designs make garage door openers, which are relatively cheap and simple to build, typically expensive for end users. The controls are not compatible between manufacturers even if they use rolling codes, because each one uses its own frequencies and modulations and proprietary code generation protocols. In some cases it is feasible to clone them with “universal remote controls”, and in fact there is a parallel industry in which locksmiths and specialized stores offer the cloning service, or we can purchase these remote controls and then program them ourselves. However, there are, for example, communities of owners in which the managers They are programmed from the switchboardnot from the remote, which prevents cloning the remote without an administrator registering the code on the receiver. The queries in various discussion forums They show that there are many doubts about what works and what doesn’t, and there are not many trivial solutions beyond buying the “official” remote control for each garage. There are, of course, systems that offer the alternative of using mobile applications and Wi-Fi or BLE modules connected to the garage motor. MyQ is the best example of this, but the inertia of the sector and the garage door regulations themselves They do not provide these types of solutions. It may be that the progressive adoption of home automation interconnection like Matter sooner or later I managed to propose a valid alternative, but today we continue to depend on these solutions. Image | Dushawn Jovic In Xataka | “Garage squatters”: there are people parking their cars every day in parking spaces that are not theirs

We still don’t know if humanoid robots will be the next great technological revolution. Yes we know that China will lead it

by

There are a lot of companies determined to sell us the idea that, in the not too distant future, everyone we will have a humanoid robot at home. We have many doubts that they will be the revolution that they promise (and there are reasons for this), but in China they have it very clear. Patents. They count in South China Morning Post that Morgan Stanley has published volume 3 of its series ‘Robot Almanac‘, which details some key data on the state of the humanoid robot industry. China is far ahead when it comes to patents, having registered 7,705 patents in the last five years, while in the United States they have registered 1,561, almost five times less than its technological rival par excellence. Dependence. It’s not just about patents, China has another key advantage and that is that its production lines are much more efficient from a cost point of view. This causes the rest of the companies that manufacture humanoids to depend on them if they do not want their production costs to skyrocket. The cost of building a supply chain in which China was left out would raise prices exponentially. The report estimates that manufacturing the Tesla Optimus Gen 2 without China’s participation would raise the cost from about $46,000 to $131,000. Obsession with robots. Humanoid robots from companies like Unitree or Deep Robotics have been in the public eye for a long time. We have seen them participate in the first robotic olympics, fight, play soccer and how dance corps in macro concerts. They are appearances clearly focused on going viral, showing their capabilities to the world and, ultimately, making people see them as something cool and want to buy one. However, although humanoids take all the spotlight, they are only the tip of the iceberg of a strategy that goes much further. Personified AI. In English it would be ’embodied AI’ and it is the approach that China has taken in his particular AI career. The government included the term in his job report this year, which highlights its strategic importance. More than large language and software models, China wants AI that is present, whether in the form of humanoid robots, drones, autonomous vehicles or industrial robots. Speaking of industry, guess who has 51% of all industrial robots in the world. Exactly: China. Industrial robots. According to data from Financial TimesChina installs 280,000 robots a year in its factories with a clear objective: automate to achieve greater efficiency and power continue being the factory of the world. Now that workers’ salaries are higherthe way they have found to remain competitive against markets like India or Bangladesh is automation. Image | Andy Kelly in Unsplash In Xataka | I have asked for water from the first humanoid robot working in Beijing. It’s a weird vending machine.

It’s about how Asia is winning the cultural battle

by

When I went to China for the first time in November 2023 with other colleagues, one of my travel companions wanted to take advantage of the few free hours we had to buy a Labubu to give to his daughter. I had no idea what he was talking about. He explained it to me and I stayed the same. A couple of years later, the Labubu are such a mainstream phenomenon that POP MART has opened its first store on Gran Vía and They even appear in ‘South Park’, one of the reference adult series in the West of the last 30 years (with permission from The Simpsons). The opening of a POP MART on the most iconic street in Spain, where theaters, popular fashion brands and franchises gather (special mention deserves Uniqlo and Miniso), is just the tip of the iceberg of something: the East is no longer just the factory of the world (with China as a prominent head), its weight has transcended from the industrial to the cultural to sneak into the mainstream of the West. It is a true victory for Asian pop culture, until now concentrated in its own borders with few exceptions that transcended the niche to the popular. The attractive lottery of the closed box. Of David Beckham to Rihanna passing through Dua Lipa either Lisa from Blackpink: They all have their Labubu. Born in 2015 by Hong Kong artist Kasing Lung for his illustrated book series “The Monsters”, the Labubu they exploded when POP MART started releasing them as collectibles in surprise boxes back in 2019. What started as something niche has become a trend that knows no boundaries or classes. They have them to the Thai royal house and when there is stock, it flies: fans crowd at the door in such a way that you don’t know if they are queuing to buy a ticket for a concert or if there is a rare edition. And she can be a millionaire: the human-sized, mint green Labubu has been auctioned for 230,000 Australian dollars. The Labubu as an expression of identity, status and belonging. You don’t know which one you’re going to get until you open them like it’s the reward mechanism in a video game. Of course, Labubu is not just for boys and girls. It reflects changes in consumer culture reaching millennial and generation Z adults thanks to collecting, nostalgia and the need for comfort. You buy more than a doll: it is an experience full of emotion, the status that comes with having the most exclusive edition and of course, the profitability of resale. It is the almost ideal intersection between gaming and finance: a supply and demand market where assets are stuffed. And little joke with this: POP MART has had to suspend sales in cities like london due to fights between fans and the counterfeit market It is already a reality. Whether you see it as a toy or a fashion accessory, what is clear is that Labubu has emerged as the spearhead of the soft power Chinese. China no longer (only) manufactures products, it also manufactures desire A lot of muscle, a little soft power. China is the second largest economy in the world, but in cultural influence it is quite a few steps below. The Asian giant has a legendary cultural heritage of more than 5,000 years, but for the West it is limited to silk or tea. Naming a movie or a movie star comes down to Bruce Lee (American-Hong Kong born in San Francisco). The reasons? Many and varied: from following content guidelines from the Chinese Government and censorship, but also from considering it as lower quality from a prejudiced perception. China is no longer exotic, it’s cool. First it was economically, but China is also opening up culturally to Western markets, more products appear on social networks and Western audiovisuals and the West is welcoming them with open arms. China had started promoting its brands, the New Silk Road wave visa-free entry for tourism, but nothing as effective as an innocent stuffed animal that has transcended thanks to fans, TikTok and celebrities. At a time (actually, it almost doesn’t matter when you read this) when the global perception of China is often shaped by geopolitics and surveillance, Labubu offers something different, adorable, creative and exciting. And they are not alone: ​​the game’Black Myth: Wukong‘ was a global hit in 2024 and more of the same for the ice cream and bubble tea chain Mixueto cite a couple of examples. It may end up being another fad, but right now they are objects of aspiration and desire. It is proof that Chinese cultural products can do it. That POP MART stores are in the most central streets of large cities is another way to demonstrate this. It has taken Labubu a decade to get here, China will probably have a harder time creating a solid narrative around its cultural products such as Nintendo and its Mario universe. But it’s on its way. China begins to look closely at Japan and Korea. The country of the rising sun is famous for its exports of anime, fashion and gastronomy and since 2010 it has in its strategy “Cool Japan“a government strategy to promote its creative industries abroad. However, this initiative has had its ups and downsthe weight of the market and fans in hits like Pokémon or ramen being undoubted. South Korea has what is probably Asia’s latest and most effective softpower model. With strong support from the state, the Korean wave has achieved great successes from the film ‘Parasites’ to the K-pop phenomenon. China with Labubu is another third way, with a commercial ecosystem focused on intellectual property, lifestyle and trends. In Xataka | There are people burning their Labubus in nets. The reason: a crazy theory that links them to a Mesopotamian devil In Xataka | The Labubu’s half-humanity bags are becoming too small. So its creator already knows how to … Read more

Millennials are terrified of ordering fish

by

“Give me a quarter and a half of clams and that horse mackerel that has such bright eyes.” I will never utter that phrase, which my mother or my grandmother (non-generic feminine) could have said. Neither me, nor my sister nor surely anyone of my generation. We are millennials and we do not make such a thorough diagnosis of the condition of a fish that we probably would not know how to recognize without a label. Mercadona knows it and has made a move: since this year has changed its fishmongering system to leave behind, or at least reduce it to a minimum, the traditional display of fresh fish from the market at customer demand to increase the presence of its packaged and ready-to-go products. The company explains that fish consumption is in free fall with at least a 20% decrease and that with this change they seek to offer a simpler, faster and more comfortable experience for the customer, by avoiding queues and waiting. Although it is not specified, this change also implies reducing the presence of staff, streamlining sales, simplifying supply and logistics processes and raising the unit prices of the fish: it does not cost the same to order a sea bream as it does a couple of packaged sea bream fillets. This migration, which began in 2024 and which they already did previously with the butcher shop, represents an adaptation to consumer habits where the purchase of the finished product prevails over the classic display. Different, but in line with your bet for ready-to-eat dishes. Leaving aside the obvious benefits of the change for Juan Roig’s supermarket chain, there is a reality: there are compelling reasons for it to work. Another fishmonger system for new clients with other habits The new generations are illiterate when it comes to fish and meat. Thus, we have lost species- or part-specific terms (from the flank or neck of fish to the stifle of beef) for something much more generic like “fillets for the oven.” But it is not strange either: with some exceptions, we prefer ready-made parts to dealing with the entire animal. It is worth remembering that viral video of a young man disgusted and nauseated by having to clean a chicken. However, this applies more to meat than to fish, where historically in the fishmonger it falls apart to then be able to use that hake in its entirety: the head for a broth, the tail for the oven… In any case, the gutted, boneless and perfectly arranged appearance on a tray feels much more aseptic. Between one thing and another, we don’t know what to ask for: this tiktoker account How because of “not knowing how much to order I ended up buying 25 euros of hake“. Other She directly appears looking at the butcher shop counter with the same scared face that cows look at the train and the phrase “My biggest fear as a semi-adult: not knowing how to buy in a butcher shop.” In the answers, someone says that he did not know that salmon was sold by the piece: “I ordered a salmon thinking it was a kilo, he gave me the whole salmon (€64). How embarrassed I was I didn’t tell him anything and I took him away“. And yet another talks about ordering 50 grams of cheese at the delicatessen and leaving with all the shame and the only slice in the package. Of course, all the ingredients are in place for bulk personalized attention to disappear in the fishmonger, as long as there is a professional advising on which cut to buy based on what you were going to cook or what species is in season, these are increasingly less frequent scenarios and will disappear as the old generations give way to the new ones in the supermarkets. Mercadona has already anticipated its landing. In Xataka | Mercadona has eaten up its competition in Spain thanks to a recipe as successful as leonine: 3.88% In Xataka | Fish is mired in a historic crisis in Spain. And there is a reason: he is increasingly successful at leisure than at home Cover | Mercadona and Jeremiah Lazo

Log In

Forgot password?

Forgot password?

Enter your account data and we will send you a link to reset your password.

Your password reset link appears to be invalid or expired.

Log in

Privacy Policy

Add to Collection

No Collections

Here you'll find all collections you've created before.