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In three days we have seen crazy prices on hardware from Apple, Xbox and Valve. Obviously, these are not isolated events.

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Three pieces of news about hardware price increases or announcements in three days, and all three have met with open rejection from the public. Valve confirms that its new console costs more than 1,000 euros (or much more, depending on the model). Apple raises all its Macs and iPads by 20% on average. Microsoft announces the third Xbox increase in fourteen months. And they all give the same reason, which has been causing the tech industry to convulse for months. The worst: at the moment there is no light at the end of the tunnel. The prices. This past Monday, June 22, Valve wakefulness the final price of its long-awaited Steam Machine: 1,039 euros for the 512 GB model without controller. And that is the economic option. On Thursday morning the 25th, Apple updated their online store with increases of 15 to 20% on all Macs and iPads; The MacBook Air went from 1,099 to 1,299 euros, and the MacBook Neo, the entry-level laptop that the company introduced in March at $599, rose to $699. hours laterMicrosoft: Xbox Series S and Series The reason, which has now become sadly familiar: the RAM and storage crisis. Who is to blame. Neither Apple, Microsoft nor Valve are responsible for this situation. They are the three manufacturers that produce 90% of the world’s DRAM: Samsung, SK Hynix and Micron. They have all made the same decision: prioritize contracts with artificial intelligence data centers over the consumer market. Micron, for example, closed its consumer division in 2025 (the Crucial brand) to redirect its capacity towards industrial customers. SK Hynix, Nvidia’s main supplier, stated that Its production for this year was completely sold. The pressures. A Valve spokesperson described it bluntly in an interview: “They give us a price every month and then they say ‘you can buy this amount’ and it’s a yes or no. And if we say no, they never talk to us again.” It is the same scheme for all companies, just with different consequences depending on the size of the order. Apple has room to negotiate because it sells tens of millions of units a year. Valve, not so much: its hardware volume is incomparably smaller. But the result is similar: the costs have been shot until they cannot be absorbed internally. Tim Cook acknowledged it before the announcement: the situation is already “unsustainable.” Why consoles pay more. Significantly, consoles are especially vulnerable to this crisis. Unlike a MacBook or a phone, consoles have historically sold below their manufacturing cost, assuming that lRevenue from games and subscriptions will cover the difference over time. Microsoft explained it very light: “Unlike phones, computers and other devices, consoles are generally not sold at a profit, but for less than it costs to make them.” That model works when component costs are predictable, but if RAM rises without being possible to anticipate, the market is thrown into chaos. For example, Nintendo is paying 41% more for 12 GB of RAM which includes each unit of Switch 2 with respect to the original projections. Maintaining the sales price in that scenario would mean a loss of $50 per console sold. The case of Xbox is even more striking because it does not stop accumulating increases. The first in May 2025, the second in October of that same year and now this third. According to Microsoft, the cost of console storage and memory “has increased more than 2.5 times” since the last revision. Valve in trouble. The component crisis applied to consumer hardware has hit Valve with particular fury. The Steam Machine was announced in November 2025 pricelesswith internal projections that placed it around 700-800 dollars. The company explains which was based on years of data on the evolution of PC hardware prices, which “tend to go down over time as new technology arrives.” But just the opposite happened: when DRAM manufacturers redirected their capacity towards AI, Valve stopped getting stable prices for its components. Every month a new price arrives; either it is accepted or there is no supply. There is one detail in the launch that illustrates the precarious supply better than any figure: some Steam Machine units are shipping to analysts with a single 16 GB RAM module, while others arrive with two 8 GB modules. The situation has reached the point that the same type of module is not always available. How long will things last? Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said it no room for optimism in the Q3 fiscal 2026 earnings report: “We expect shortage conditions to persist beyond 2027 as a result of AI-driven demand across all segments, coupled with structural supply constraints.” He added that even with a gradual improvement planned for 2028, “there is currently no visibility on when memory supply will be able to catch up with growing demand.” Microsoft, for its part, expects “another doubling” of console storage and memory prices by fall 2027. The consequences beyond the current moment are already beginning to become clear. sony consider delaying the launch of PS6 until 2028 or 2029which would make this period between PlayStation generations the longest in its history. And even when the shortage moderates, no price drops expected: the new level of costs will tend to stabilize, not reverse. That is to say, the week we have just experienced, more than an occasional tsunami, is the advance of a new pricing structure for consumer hardware. In Xataka | Intel and AMD are setting their prices through the roof, so the TikTok company has decided to create its own chip

The Galaxy A27 debuts in Spain with six years of updates and what is necessary to be one of the best-selling mobile phones

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It was taking a while, but the Galaxy A27 it has become official just before July starts. It is the direct successor of the Galaxy A26one of Samsung’s best-selling phones. Is there much evolution between one or the other? Is it worth taking the leap? Let’s see it a little further down, but small spoiler: part of the 349 euros. Mobile – Samsung Galaxy A27 5G, Black, 128 GB, 6 GB RAM, 6.7″ FHD+ Super AMOLED, Qualcomm Snapdragon 6 Gen 3, 5000 mAh, Android 16 The price could vary. We earn commission from these links A continuous mobile with six years of updates As Samsung explained in its statement, the mobile will be available starting July 3. However, we can now buy it at MediaMarkt, both in its version with 6+128 GB (which costs 349 euros) and the one with 8+256 GB, available for 439 euros. There aren’t many changes between this phone and its predecessor, both good and bad. This means that, despite being an affordable mobile phone, it continues to maintain its six years of updates guaranteed. He Galaxy A27 It arrives with the Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 under the hood, a 4nm chip. This, together with the 6 or 8 GB of RAM memory (depending on the model we choose), will offer us more than enough performance for the most common apps. In addition, it has a 6.7-inch Super AMOLED screen with Full HD+ resolution, 120 Hz and a maximum brightness level of 800 nits. As for the battery, it comes with what is expected in this range: a 5,000 mAh battery with 25W fast charging. It is true that fast charging is fair, but Samsung optimizes its phones very well, so we can expect an autonomy of approximately a day and a half. Like all your current phones, we will also have many AI functions thanks to Galaxy AI and Gemini. At a photographic level, it has three cameras on the back, where its 50 MP main sensor with optical stabilization and an f/1.8 aperture stands out. And, finally, we cannot forget that is compatible with 5G networksBluetooth 5.1 and has a fingerprint sensor located on the side button. ⚡ IN SUMMARY: Galaxy a27 ✅ THE BEST Six years of updates: It is one of the biggest assets of Samsung’s Galaxy A. It makes the phone last longer. Many AI tools: One UI brings many artificial intelligence tools and they work at a very high level, as is the case with the image eraser. ❌ THE WORST High launch price: The phone has increased in price compared to the previous generation, so it is a bit expensive at launch. Fair fast charging: A 25W fast charge is already starting to be very poor, especially if we take into account what other phones in the same price range have. 💡 BUY IT IF… You are looking for a Samsung phone because you like its ecosystem, you want it to have many years of updates and you don’t want to pay too much. ⛔ DON’T BUY IT IF… You are a user who needs their mobile phone to have more power, faster charging or a better camera. You can do very well there. Galaxy S25. You may also be interested Samsung Galaxy A26 5G 256GB Mobile Phone, Amazing Intelligence, 6GB RAM, 50MP Camera, Mint, 3 Year Manufacturer Warranty + 1 Extra Year The price could vary. We earn commission from these links XIAOMI POCO The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Some of the links in this article are affiliated and may provide a benefit to Xataka. In case of non-availability, offers may vary. Images | Samsung In Xataka | Best truly wireless earbuds (TWS) with noise cancellation. Which one to buy and seven recommended models In Xataka | Best mobile phones 2026. Which one to buy based on use and six recommended models

You should restrict the release of GPT 5.6 yes or yes

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The US Government has asked OpenAI to limit the distribution of GPT 5.6, its next artificial intelligence (IA), to a reduced number of partners approved by the Administration itself. This decision, according to CNNhas been caused by the advanced capabilities of this model. However, this is not an isolated movement. And this request comes a few days after the Trump Administration imposed a export control order to Anthropic, which led this company to withdraw its two most advanced models from the market: Mythos and Fable. The trigger for the current scenario has been, precisely, that episode. Mythos and Fable put Washington and Wall Street on alert for their cybersecurity capabilities, which some experts consider an unprecedented risk vector. According to those same sources, the Administration and OpenAI agree that GPT 5.6 is on par with Mythos in terms of power and reach. This makes it, de factoin the second border model to come under direct government scrutiny in a matter of weeks. OpenAI has accepted this restriction as a provisional way to release this model publicly. Sam Altman, the head of this company, has described this scenario in an internal report as a “strange moment” with no real regulatory framework for AI models. In that same document Altman explained that the Government is approving “client by client” access, a formula that the company tolerates but does not support. A “strange time” for AI companies OpenAI’s official stance leaves little room for ambiguity. “We have made it clear to the US Government that this is not our preferred long-term model, and we will work with them and other players in the sector to achieve a more sustainable approach in future launches,” wrote Altman in his report. The White House has limited itself to stating to CNN that “they continue to collaborate with frontier AI laboratories to develop shared approaches.” OpenAI has not commented anything further at the moment. Donald Trump has signed an executive order asking companies with advanced models to undergo a government review Be that as it may, the regulatory background further complicates the picture. Donald Trump signed an executive order earlier this month requiring companies with advanced models undergo a government review voluntary 30 days before each launch. The framework of its implementation, however, still not established. The handling of the OpenAI case perfectly illustrates the confusion that now pervades everything: the petition came from the White House, while the export ban on Anthropic came from the Department of Commerce. They are two different organisms. Two different instruments and without apparent coordination. In any case, the absence of a clear regulatory framework responds to explicit critics. “Right now we have an ad hoc, personalized, opaque, possibly outside the law approach,” Brad Carson stateddirector of Public First, a bipartisan pro-AI safety superPAC. A superPAC is a type of American political organization that can raise and spend unlimited amounts of money to influence elections or public debate, but without being subject to the funding limits that apply to traditional parties or candidates. Carson recognizes that the Government has the power to remove dangerous products from the market, including AI models, but warns that it must be done with transparency and fairness. We’ll see what happens eventually, but GPT 5.6 still doesn’t have a confirmed public release date. More information | cnn In Xataka | The world is running out of data to continue training AI. China has an ace up its sleeve

The University of Córdoba has found a pesticide in the eggs of up to 14 different wild birds. The only problem is that it has been banned since the 70s.

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One has the intuitive idea that within each egg lies the promise of a story that is just beginning. But it’s a lie. Nature is amazing and elusive and blind and cruel: many eggs, in fact, never even hatch; They end up lost in the countryside or as food for scavengers. For this reason, one day, a group of researchers from the University of Córdoba They decided to collect them and analyze them as what they are: capsules that summarize the chemical memory of the place where they were placed. They collected eggs from bearded vultures, red kites, gray teals and many other species. And inside found everything: from veterinary drugs to heavy metals to all types of pesticides, pesticides and fungicides. Among them were traces of DDT, the organochlorine that we banned in agriculture in the 70s (and could no longer be used as an insecticide in 1994). Curiously, this is not the most worrying thing. What does an egg hide? An egg, as I said, is a photograph of the environment. What accumulates in each bird’s body turns out to be a fairly accurate reflection of what it eats, what it drinks, and where it spends its day. The entire trophic chain is hidden inside each egg. Therefore, when we approach them as the UCO has donewe are not talking about bird problems… we are looking at the chemistry of an entire territory in which we are also. And what have we seen? The most striking thing is not, in fact, DDT (or DDE, its main derivative). Although it is curious that there is a pesticide banned decades ago floating around the environment, it is almost expected: it is what toxicology predicts and why it was ultimately banned. The most interesting thing about the UCO’s work is that it allows us to see, at a single glance, the reality of the pollution with which our mountain coexists. The AGR-125 Veterinary Toxicology group and the Center for Analysis and Diagnosis of Wildlife of Andalusia they used the eggs as ‘non-invasive matrices’ and their data are a canvas that covers many compounds, many birds and a lot of time. There we have found, along with the remains of DDT, commonly used pesticides and fungicides, persistent exposure to endocrine disruptors, heavy metals (such as lead, mercury and cadmium) and, in two bearded vulture eggs, veterinary drugs. And now what? Little, really. The history of DDT shows how difficult it is to work with these realities. As I said, it was banned in agriculture in the 70s, but it remained as an insecticide until 94 and, in fact, It continued to be manufactured (a derivative) in Monzón until 2008. The world of pesticides is a rabbit hole from which rural society never emerges unscathed. Besides, as the authors point outthe concentrations they have found are low. This means that, although we are concerned about the long-term effects, it is very difficult to take extra measures to control the exposure of these birds to these compounds. Luckily, as I also said, this work opens a new door for us to understand what is happening in the countryside and in the mountains. And that, believe me, is already a lot. Image | Kishan Upadhyay In Xataka | We have a problem with pesticides in agriculture. And a bigger one with the panic they generate

Next week the 2,400 W Parkside pressure washer arrives at Lidl that will leave your terrace like new

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With the arrival of good weather, fine-tune the exterior areas of the house It becomes one of the mandatory tasks almost every weekend. If you are tired of scrubbing the garden floor, the terrace walls with the brush, or spending money at the car wash to clean the car, in next week’s Lidl brochure we have found a device that will help you do this. It is about the Parkside 2,400 W pressure washerwhich will go on sale in physical stores next Friday, July 3 by 89.99 euros. Although if you don’t want to wait, you can now buy it on the Lidl website. Parkside pressure washer 2,400 W The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Competing at this price with Lidl is impossible for the vast majority of brands. But if this Parkside cleaning device runs out, on Amazon Prime Day you have this one available Bosch Home and Garden pressure washer with 120 bars and a power of 150 W reduced to 91.99 euros. Bosch Home and Garden High Pressure Washer, High Pressure Cleaner, 1500 W, 125 Bars The price could vary. We earn commission from these links An ideal cleaning tool for removing stubborn dirt. The true hallmark of this pressure washer is its motor with 2,400 W of power, which powers a aluminum high pressure pump Specially designed to offer great durability and resistance to corrosion. This technical combination allows reaching a maximum pressure of 170 bars (with a very solvent continuous working pressure of 115 bars). This means that it has enough strength to lift moss embedded in the stone, clean the joints of exterior tiles or remove grease from the car without straining. In addition, it offers a maximum flow rate of 500 liters per hour, an ideal water volume to speed up cleaning large surfaces without it becoming an eternal task. It can also be noted that this pressure washer comes with seven interchangeable bulbsdetergent tank and a 10-meter anti-twist high-pressure hose. ⚡ IN SUMMARY: offer for lidl’s parkside 2,400 W pressure washer today ✅ THE BEST High pressure aluminum pump: Unlike many cheap pressure washers that use plastic components, this model has an aluminum pump. It is a key technical detail because it resists heating, wear and corrosion much better. The “all-inclusive” accessory kit: It does not require spending extra money on accessories. It comes standard with a vario nozzle, rotating turbo nozzle, detergent bottle and a generous 10 meter anti-twist high pressure hose. ❌ THE WORST Exclusively domestic use… Although it has a lot of power on paper, its overall and internal components are designed for moderate-duration home cleaning sessions. It is not recommended for intensive professional or commercial use. Volume and storage… With a weight of around 11.5 kg (with accessories) and considerable vertical dimensions, it requires a fixed space in the garage or storage room to store it. Although it includes wheels and cable supports, it is a cumbersome machine. 💡 BUY IT IF… You want to clean tiles, remove moss from stone paths, wash fences or clean blinds quickly and comfortably. ⛔ DON’T BUY IT IF… You need a machine to work continuously for several hours a day on facades or industrial warehouses, you will have to make the leap to professional ranges with water-cooled induction motors. Other pressure washers that may interest you Bosch High Pressure Washer UniversalAquatak 135 (1900 W, pressure: 135 Bar, max. flow: 410 l/h, in Box) The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Stanley SXPW24BX Pressure Washer The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Some of the links in this article are affiliated and may provide a benefit to Xataka. In case of non-availability, offers may vary. Images | Webedia and Parkside (Lidl) In Xataka | Safety, organization and entertainment gadgets and accessories for cars on long trips In Xataka | The best mobile phones, we have tested them and here are their analyzes

Our brain has two different circuits for laughing, and one of them is ancestral

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Laughter seems like a simple and automatic act, but neurologically it is a enormously complex phenomenon. It is so complex that we have different types of laughter, since almost all of us have noticed the difference between that uncontrollable laughter that leaves us breathless and the polite laughter that we let out out of courtesy. Now, science suggests that laughter does not depend on a single circuit, but on at least two partially separate networks: one more linked to spontaneous and emotional laughter, and another to voluntary or social laughter. A question of evolution. This has been the focus of an interesting investigation published in Trends in Neurosciences that pointed out that we live with an “ancestral laugh” that is deeply emotional and is directly related to other primates. But, on the other hand, we have “human laughter” which is involuntary and intended to “look good.” To get to this point, the researchers analyzed dozens of patients to whom they performed electrical stimulation while they were awake in order to see the areas of the brain that ‘lighted up’ when they began to laugh. Two networks. The most technical results pointed to the existence of two brain circuits for laughter. The network of spontaneous laughter, which is ancestral, is activated when we hear a brilliant joke or when we are tickled. It is involuntary and purely emotional, causing the most primitive brain regions linked to the reward system and emotions to become active, such as the nucleus accumbens. On the other hand, the laughter that we emit voluntarily to join a conversation and show empathy activates a circuit that does not depend on emotions, but on motor and cognitive control. Two functions that are much superior on the phylogenetic scale of our species. In the disease. This division, which was already intuited in classic reviews, explains why some neurological diseases can nullify the ability to laugh at will, but keep spontaneous laughter intact, since it is in totally different places. With our ancestors. If voluntary laughter appears to be a sophisticated social tool developed by the Homo sapiens To complement language, spontaneous laughter is a direct echo of our evolutionary past. And to understand where this primal laughter comes from, a recent study published in Communications Biology analyzed the acoustics and rhythm of laughter with the aim of comparing laughter sequences in humans and great apes, demonstrating that there is a shared rhythmic pattern. In this way, when a chimpanzee or a bonobo is tickled, it emits vocalizations whose rhythm and timing bear a striking similarity to the spontaneous laughter of humans, or even the laughter of babies. Its meaning. This finding suggests an undeniable evolutionary continuity, since laughter did not appear out of nowhere in our species, but rather arose from neural and vocal networks that our hominid ancestors already possessed. Over hundreds of thousands of years, as our brains developed the motor and cognitive areas necessary for complex language, we “hijacked” that emotional vocalization to create a second circuit: controllable, voluntary, conversational laughter. A missing link. Discovering that laughter has a rhythmic “barcode” shared with apes and two distinct brain pathways is not just a biological curiosity. As points out Nature News Echoing these findings, understanding the evolution of laughter is a direct window into the evolution of vocal control. And the ability to fake a laugh or emit it voluntarily at the exact moment of a conversation requires immense brain plasticity. That is why understanding how we went from the involuntary gasps of primates to the subtle human laughter could be one of the master keys we have in our hands: how we have been able to develop the language we use today. Images | OurWhisky Foundation In Xataka | The human being is the primate that sleeps the least. Science is clear that it is a “radical evolutionary experiment”

where to buy Macs or iPads even on sale

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The RAM crisis is affecting a huge number of manufacturers and, after the rumors that have been circulating, the news is now official: Apple will raise the price of a total of 21 products. But… have all the devices already uploaded? Not yet, so let’s go over what the best prices, offers and discounts that is right now on each device. Which Apple products have risen the most The price increase has not exactly been small, but there are some devices that have risen more than others. In MacBooks, the biggest increase is found in the MacBook Air M5 in its 13-inch configuration, which was previously the most attractive due to its quality-price ratio. The official price before was 1,199 euros and now it has cost 1,429 euros. It’s a 19% increase (230 euros at the exchange rate). The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Macs have also been affected with a quite notable increase in the case of the Mac Studio M4 Max. Its price before the increase was 2,329 euros and now it costs a whopping 3,029 euros. It is not a computer that is found in too many stores, so over time we may not even see offers. The same thing happens with iPads as with MacBooks, and that is that we have the biggest price increase in the iPad A16which is Apple’s most basic model. The 379 euros that we saw before the increase is a thing of the past, since it has now cost 499 euros. The increase is 129 euros (32%). As for other products, the Apple TV 4K has been the most affected. In most stores (not just the Apple Store) we almost always found it for 169 euros, but now it has risen to 229 euros with an increase of 36%. That is, the difference is 60 euros. Where is the old price still MacBook Neo The news about the price increase has arrived in the middle of Amazon’s Prime Day, so we can still find good deals on some devices, both on Amazon itself and in other stores. We have a good example with the MacBook Neofound on Amazon for 649 euros instead of 699 euros. Store Price Difference vs current price State amazon €649 €150 New MediaMarkt €649 €150 New PcComponents €649 €150 New The English Court €699 €100 New MacBook Air M5 But if we talk about computers that have risen a lot in price, The MacBook Air M5 is the one that takes the cake. However, there are stores that still have it on sale, such as MediaMarkt. Right now it is available for a price of 1,099 euros instead of 1,429 euros. Store Price Difference vs current price State MediaMarkt €1,099 €330 New PcComponents €1,299 €130 New iPad A16 The iPad A16 is Apple’s most basic model and the one with the highest percentage increase in price. It has now cost 499 euros, although there are stores that still have it cheaper. Store Price Difference vs current price State amazon €349 €150 New MediaMarkt €349 €150 New The English Court €349 €150 New PcComponents €339 €160 Reconditioned Back Market €349 €150 Reconditioned Products that are more worth it There are devices worth paying attention to before we see the price increase effective in all stores. He MacBook Neo no longer enjoys the same quality-price ratio, so the 649 euros that costs right now are attractive. The same goes for the MacBook Air M5 in its 13-inch configuration. The 1,099 euros We will not see them again after the price increase, so it is interesting to consider the possibility of buying it now if we are going to need it later, as may be the case with the next school year. The iPad Air is one of the most attractive tablets: it is powerful, very light and its price was very well balanced. With the new price increase, it has gone from costing 649 euros (official price) to 799 euros. El Corte Inglés still has it on offer for 619 euroswhile MediaMarkt, for example, has already raised the price to 749 euros (it has it with a small discount). The price could vary. We earn commission from these links The best time is now Today is the best time to buy one of these Apple devices. Some have already been updated with the current prices, but others continue to enjoy offers, promotions and discounts that are the last opportunity to buy them much cheaper. We remember that we are on the last day of Prime Day. It is possible that prices will be updated once the Amazon campaign ends. All devices that have increased in price New prices on MacBooks Current base PRICE BASE PRICE BEFORE DIFFERENCE MACBOOK NEO 799 euros 699 euros +100 euros (+14%) MACBOOK AIR (13″) M5 1,429 euros 1,199 euros +230 euros (+19%) MACBOOK AIR (15″) M5 1,729 euros 1,499 euros +230 euros (+15%) MACBOOK PRO (14″) M5 2,229 euros 1,929 euros +300 euros (+16%) MACBOOK PRO (14″) M5 PRO 2,949 euros 2,549 euros +400 euros (+16%) MACBOOK PRO (14″) M5 MAX 4,849 euros 4,249 euros +600 euros (+14%) MACBOOK PRO (16″) M5 pro 3,449 euros 3,049 euros +400 euros (+13%) MACBOOK PRO (16″) M5 max 5,149 euros 4,549 euros +600 euros (+13%) New prices on Macs Current base PRICE BASE PRICE BEFORE DIFFERENCE IMAC 1,819 euros 1,519 euros +300 euros (+20%) MAC MINI M4* 969 euros* 969 euros* 0 euros (0%)* MAC MINI M4 PRO 1,919 euros 1,719 euros +200 euros (+12%) MAC STUDIO M4 max 3,029 euros 2,329 +700 euros (+30%) MAC STUDIO M3 ultra 6,349 euros 4,849 euros +1,500 euros (+31%) New prices on iPads Current base PRICE BASE PRICE BEFORE DIFFERENCE ipad a16 499 euros 379 euros +120 euros (+32%) ipad mini 679 euros 549 euros +130 euros (+24%) iPad air (11″) m4 799 euros 649 euros +150 euros (+23%) iPad air (13″) m4 999 euros 849 euros +150 euros (+18%) iPad pro (13″) m5 1,299 … Read more

Microsoft promised a quantum computer by 2029. Nature publishes a review that questions its promise

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Microsoft has been trying to demonstrate for almost two decades the existence of Majorana modes: quasiparticles that emerge in certain topological superconducting materials and that behave as if they were Majorana fermions. The Italian physicist Ettore Majorana mathematically described the existence of these fermions in 1937, and since then many researchers have become obsessed with them because they have a characteristic that makes them unique: They are both a particle and their own antiparticle. However, the Majorana modes that Microsoft works with are not fundamental particles; They are emerging phenomena in the field of condensed matter. Its appeal lies in the fact that if it manages to master them, it could manufacture qubits that are intrinsically more stable than those of its rivals and capable of resisting the external noise that weighs everyone down today. quantum computers. About that bet Majorana 2 arrived earlier this June, a new topological quantum processor that incorporates new materials to create a more stable topological phase. Its scientific basis comes from an article published in February 2025 in Naturecentral to all subsequent developments of this company. Regarding that work, Chetan Nayak, the technical director of quantum hardware, announced that Microsoft had cut its schedule in half: the goal of having a fully functional quantum computer is now set for 2029. Shadow looms over Microsoft’s quantum research The scientific community is being extraordinarily demanding with that article and with the research program surrounding it. In fact, this ability to exercise criticism and analysis is one of the strengths of the scientific method. Last Wednesday, Nature posted a review peer-reviewed and signed by Henry Legg, professor of quantum physics at the University of St. Andrews (Scotland), which raises new doubts about the foundations of that work. Not about a peripheral detail. On its foundations. And the background of those from Redmond does not help. Two scientific articles supported by Microsoft have already been removed from Nature. On those occasions, the editors also pointed out several alerts about possible problems in two other texts: one from Nature and the other from Science. Microsoft explained that the recalled items were produced outside of its laboratories and that did not review the data before publication. Be that as it may, the February 2025 work questioned by Legg is the fifth under scrutiny and, unlike the previous ones, it is not being withdrawn. “It’s almost like debating whether flight is possible or not, and then you find yourself next to a plane. Well, come on, get on and take a spin” Microsoft’s response has been overwhelming. According to Reutersthis company assures that it supports its research and that its program is making practical advances despite the doubts it is raising. Nayak has illustrated it with a metaphor: “It’s almost like debating whether flight is possible or not, and then you find yourself next to an airplane. Well, come on, get on and take a spin.” The response has been equally resounding. Sergey Frolov, a physicist at the University of Pittsburgh, points to a fundamental problem: Microsoft lacks the accumulated evidence that supports IBM or Quantinuum, rivals that do not depend on the existence of Majorana modes. “Neither Microsoft nor anyone else has laid the groundwork to make it clear that these advances based on Majorana modes are plausible through a series of reliable experiments,” Frolov declared. “On the contrary, we have several articles that continue to be questioned at the most basic level by different people.” The geopolitical context adds additional pressure. The Trump Administration has invested $2 billion in quantum computing and this week has set the goal to have a functional system by 2028, a year ahead of Microsoft’s deadline. The race is real. The question is whether the science that supports it is also. Image | Microsoft More information | Reuters In Xataka | 38% of AI experts in the US have been trained in China. They are essential to sustain your leadership

The Government is already debating whether or not to extend fuel aid. If you don’t do it we will pay 15 euros more to fill the tank

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Next Monday, June 29, the Council of Ministers will debate whether to extend the fuel tax reduction beyond June 30, which was the established deadline. If you don’t do it, filling the tank in the middle of a vacation trip is going to hurt us a lot more than it does now. Fuel aid. In March, the Government approved a package of urgent measures to stop the rise in energy prices caused by the war between the United States and Iran. The most visible for the driver was the reduction in VAT on fuel from 21% to 10%, accompanied by a reduction in the special tax on hydrocarbons. These measures expire on June 30 and the Government has to decide now what to do with them. What is being studied. According to share From ABC, the Ministry of Economy is considering maintaining VAT at 10% for at least three more months, that is, until September. A gradual withdrawal of aid is also being studied to avoid the so-called rocket effectthat is, a sudden increase in prices from one day to the next in the middle of the high travel season. What happens if it is not extended. According to the calculations of the Spanish Confederation of Service Station Employers (CEEES), the elimination of all aid would mean an increase in the price of 29 cents per liter for gasoline and 22 cents for diesel. With current prices (around 1.46 euros per liter for gasoline and 1.53 for diesel) both fuels would rise to 1.74 euros per liter. In this way, filling a 55-liter tank would go from costing around 70 euros to close to 90. And the blow would come right in the middle of the summer operation. The diesel thing is delicate. The Iran crisis has caused a liter of diesel to cost more than gasoline, something quite unusual taking into account the lower taxation of diesel in comparison. Although the price has fallen for four consecutive weeks, it still remains 5% above what it cost before the start of the conflict, according to collect ABC. If the reduction in the special tax on hydrocarbons is withdrawn, diesel has a good chance of once again overcoming the psychological barrier of 2 euros. Why it is not so easy to extend it. The Government cannot extend these measures on its own because it needs the support of Congress. That means negotiating with the investiture parties, including Junts and the PNV, something that already generated tension in March when the first decree was approved. On the other hand, there is also external pressure, since the Bank of Spain pointed out Just a few days ago, Spain has been the country in the European Union that has mobilized the most public resources in response to this crisis (0.25% of GDP), criticizing that 75% of the measures are not focused on the most affected, but are of a general nature, as is precisely the case with the VAT reduction. The European Commission and the Treasury technicians (GESTHA) also have recommended withdrawing these subsidies considering them contrary to the energy transition. What does the transportation sector ask for? The Spanish Confederation of Freight Transport (CETM) already has asked that any extension explicitly includes the transport of goods by road. In a statement, the organization warns that “leaving transportation outside of these measures would mean ignoring the sector on which a good part of the country’s economic activity is based.” In addition, the CETM demands that the commitment to pay 20 cents per liter of fuel promised to the sector be made effective. What does the president say? Pedro Sanchez has advanced that the new decree will be “to protect the productive fabric and also the citizens”, although without specifying the exact scope of the measures. The Government warns that, even with a peace agreement between the United States and Iran, the economic effects of the conflict will continue to pressure prices for weeks or months. Cover image | Roberto Rodríguez and engin akyurt In Xataka | In February, historic rains broke the roads. Málaga has just received the go-ahead to repair the A-7 and A-45

In 1778 Mozart attempted to teach composition to a French noblewoman. It didn’t go well at all, but thanks to her we now have unpublished works

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Wolfgang A. Mozart died more than two centuries ago at the age of 35, but neither the time that has passed since his death nor his youth have prevented his talent from continuing to surprise us in 2026. Literally. Although few musicians have been as scrutinized as the Austrian genius, the Bibliothèque Nationale de France (BnF) just discovered an unpublished notebook from 1778 with scores from Mozart’s hand. The 44-page work contains seven pieces for flute and harp. Beyond the artistic value, the discovery sheds new clues about his life. The date: 02/02/2026. Sometimes chance is capricious. Coincidentally, that day, a week after the 270th anniversary of Mozart’s birth, one of the BnF conservators was rummaging through old manuscripts in the archive when he came across a piece that caught his attention. “I opened it and saw staves full of deletions, corrections and additions,” relates the BcN employee, François-Pierre Goy, responsible for the collections prior to 1800. “I recognized Mozart’s handwriting, his way of drawing the brackets, the rounded treble clefs leaning forward, the double final bars with fermatas above and below,” explained Goy to Le Monde. If it is not common to find an unpublished work by Mozart, that specific discovery was even more exceptional: the notebook dates from the end of the 18th century, but it is not signed and the BnF stored it among twenty manuscripts that were in the process of being recataloged. Following the trail. Goy had a hunch (one based on his extensive knowledge of the Austrian composer), but that is not enough to attribute an anonymous notebook to Mozart. To confirm his suspicions he went to Laurence Decoberthead of the Iconography and Documentation Service of the Department of Performing Arts of the BnF and a good connoisseur of the Austrian composer. In fact, he participated in the exhibition ‘Mozart, a French passion’, in 2017. Their analysis must also have pointed to Mozart’s authorship because Goy and his colleague decided to turn to a third specialist. Just a few months ago, in April, there was a knock on the door of Armin Brinzingthe director of the Mozart Library at the Mozarteum University of Salzburg. The expert did not have many doubts either: he confirmed the attribution and, above all, highlighted the historical importance of the work. “It is Mozart’s most important discovery in decades,” claims. What does the notebook contain? The document contains 44 handwritten folios with seven short works for flute and harp, as well as composition exercises, nothing strange if we take into account the context in which the experts place it: the BnF believes that it collects the composition lessons that Mozart gave to Marie-Louise-Philippine de Bonnières de Guînesan aristocrat three years younger than the Austrian and who is remembered above all for her skill as a harpist. “The use of French paper in the manuscript and its content (composition exercises and seven pieces for flute and harp) suggest that it bears witness to the lessons that Mozart gave directly from May to July 1778, during his last stay in Paris, to de Guînes,” explains the French organization. The young harpist, who was 19 years old at the time, was the eldest daughter of Adrien-Louis de Bonnières de SouastreDuke of Guînes and great lover of music. In fact, the duke himself was reputed to be a virtuoso flutist. By hiring Mozart as a composition teacher, he hoped that his daughter would create “great sonatas” for the instruments they both played: she the harp; he the flute. “I’ve tried everything”. The notebook located between the shelves of the BnF completes an episode in Mozart’s life that we already knew in part. Through a letter that Wolfgang wrote in May 1778 to his father, Leopold, who remained in Salzburg, we know, for example, that his young pupil may have been a skilled harpist, but she did not seem to have the makings of a composer. “She has no ideas, nothing comes of it. I’ve tried everything with her,” recognized Mozart frustrated. In general, his stay in Paris was not as profitable as he expected. He did not receive the recognition he desired and Goy explains that the duke never paid the Austrian for a flute, harp and orchestra concert that he commissioned. “We don’t even know if the Guînes family ever performed the pieces.” Why is it important? Locating a lost Mozart manuscript is always good news, even more so if (as in this case) it includes several unknown pieces. The notebook found by Goy, however, presents a series of peculiarities that make it even more interesting on a historical level. For example, the works are intended for a flute that the duke had bought in London, an instrument “rare, if not unique in Paris”, clarify from the BnF. Furthermore, Mozart did not devote the same attention to the flute or harp that he did to other instruments for which he created more repertoire, such as the clarinet. The new BnF work is also completed with annotations that seem 100% taken by the student and six blank final pages, without annotations. The big question. The manuscript is fascinating, but the truth is that experts seem to have few doubts about its origin. The BnF believes that it is one of the pieces “confiscated” in the mansion of the Duke of Guînes in mid-1794, during the Terror period of the French Revolution. Goy himself remembers that in the National Archives of France there is an inventory that cites “two bundles of sheet music” bound books taken from the aristocrat’s house in May 1794, after he sought refuge in England. The truth is that in recent years music lovers have enjoyed the discovery of various works unknown by Mozart, including pieces from his adolescence. “One of the most important”. Whoever wants to enjoy the short pieces for flute and harp that have just been resurfaced from the BnF archives can do so now in a performance made June 21 in the Ovale room of … Read more

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