Mobile Tech & Gadgets

Jack Ma, founder of Alibaba, is a Tai Chi fan and millionaire. That’s why he gave himself the gift of starring in a martial arts movie

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Jack Ma, founder and executive chairman of Alibaba, is known worldwide for having founded a technology empire in China, but he also made his first steps in the world of cinema. And of all genres, martial arts. An eccentricity that was allowed to be filled with top stars of the genre and that, however, was more than just an idea to massage the ego: Ma has been practicing Tai Chi for 30 years. The man, the legend. Jack Ma, born in 1964 in Hangzhou, China, is the founder in 1999 and former CEO of Alibaba Group, one of the largest e-commerce conglomerates in the world. He founded the company with the goal of connecting Chinese companies with international buyers, revolutionizing digital commerce. His vision turned Alibaba into a global e-commerce and technology giant. He is currently dedicated to philanthropy and education, while his company has been facing a fall of influence very considerable. 22 minutes of tollinas. In 2017, before retiring from Alibaba, Jack Ma starred in and co-produced a martial arts short film titled ‘Gong Shou Daoo’ (literally, “The Art of Attacking and Defending”): 22 minutes depicting Ma as a Tai Chi master facing off against a series of rivals, all of whom are legendary actors in Chinese action cinema. People like Jet Li, Donnie Yen, Tony Jaa, Wu Jing, Natasha Liu Bordizzo and boxing champion Zou Shiming, among others. Everyone involved agreed to participate free of charge, motivated by the promotion of Chinese culture and martial arts globally. All for Tai Chi. Jack Ma, as we have mentioned, has been practicing Tai Chi for thirty years, and used the film to highlight the philosophy and values ​​of this martial discipline, focusing on balance and harmony. The project arises from the intention of preserving and disseminating this discipline, and reflecting on the screen Tai Chi as an art with a physical and a spiritual aspect. Result: more than 170 million views when it was launched in 2017. But it’s okay or what. Let’s see, a movie in which Donnie Yen and Tony Jaa share the bill cannot be bad even if it wants to. But also, the fan has the opportunity to meet Jet Li again, who has been semi-retired from action movies for years, in a reasonably extensive role with fights. Ma is neither the most forceful nor the most expressive actor, but for that gift to fans alone, he has our thumbs up. If you want more Tai Chi. Speaking of Jet Li and speaking of Tai Chi, the choreographer of the film is Ku Huen-Chiu, chosen very consciously by Ma. Apart from a rich career with films in his filmography such as a sequel to ‘The Matrix’, ‘Kill Bill’ and several classics of Hong Kong action cinema from the nineties, Ku Huen-Chiu participated in the filming of ‘Tai Chi Master’, a marvel by Li and Michelle Yeoh directed by none other than Yuen-Woo Ping, one of the great Chinese action choreographers of all time. So if you think Tai Chi is something for old people in the park, check out that hilarious dynastic martial epic and you’ll change your mind. In Xataka | Jack Ma was the richest man in China. Until he fell out with the government and stopped being one

You thought you had an amazing connection on Tinder, but you were actually chatting with ChatGPT

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Fuck you cat in a hare when flirting on Tinder It’s been happening since the app existed; photos taken from the perfect angle to capture a great guy, descriptions that do not fit reality or outright false information. Now we have to add one more risk: that the person with whom you have been chatting for days and having deep conversations is using ChatGPT to respond to you. Chatfishing. It is the fashionable term to define this trend. If ‘catfish’ is being deceived with a fake profile, ‘chatfish’ is when the other person uses an AI to prepare their responses and thus more easily conquer their “prey”. We don’t talk about fake profiles that are actually botsbut from real people who use a chatbot to plan their responses and seem like the perfect couple. There are even those who you have created an automation and let ChatGPT take the wheel. New disappointments. Fake profiles were already a problem on dating apps before AI, but in the age of AI it still adds another layer to distrust. In this Guardian report They tell the stories of some victims of this practice, like Rachel, who had a very deep connection with a man that only lasted while they were chatting. Upon meeting him in person he felt that he was “someone he had never spoken to.” I had been talking to ChatGPT. quite common. There are those who use the AI as a psychologist or directly to fall in love with one. Wear AI to improve a Tinder profile and even to help us flirt doesn’t sound crazy at all in the current context. How common is it? There is no way to know exactly, but the truth is that more and more news that narrates this type of situations. It is also not difficult to find posts on forums like Reddit. users sharing their experience after being ‘chatfished’, others showing your suspicions and even who admits to using ChatGPT to flirt. Laziness. Flirting on Tinder can be exhaustingis what is known as ‘dating fatigue’. Getting a match is easy compared to starting the conversation and maintaining interest on both sides. According to one survey conducted by Forbes78% of dating app users in the US felt tired of using them. Given this scenario, there are those who are choosing to automate some of these interactions to try to stand out among other profiles without having to invest a lot of time. The ‘chatfisher’ profile. In the report that we have already mentioned from The Guardian, several users who turn to AI to flirt tell their reasons. Nick sees it as a tool to improve his connection with his matches, but he assures that if he feels a connection with someone, he is the one who takes control of the conversation. There are also people, like Holly, who use it to help improve their communication skills, for example to make a message sound softer if they are upset about something. Of course there are those who use it simply to increase their matches and thus get more dates. Jamil tells how he ended up in a Discord where other men exchanged advice. The modus operandi was to ask the girl about her hobbies, favorite movies and things like that and then give it to ChatGPT so that it can “create answers that make you seem like the perfect couple.” And it seems that the method works because it ensures that he got many more appointments. Apps also use AI. At the beginning of the year, Tinder announced that it was going to implement AI to suggest possible connections to users. By answering a series of questions, the app creates a list of suggested profiles each day. If you also give access to your photo roll, the AI ​​is capable of detecting interests to refine the search. Other apps like Hinge or Bumble also have similar features, but Bumble takes it further with an AI assistant that helps you break the ice with catchy phrases. Of course, at the moment they have only enabled it in the version of the app to find friends. Cover image | Pexels 1, 2 In Xataka | Singles are fed up with Tinder. So they are starting to turn to an old acquaintance: marriage agencies

have been the productivity apps that promised to help you

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There is a tendency to think that the main reason for loss of productivity at work is due to poor time organization or for procrastinating tasks. That is, by leaving pending tasks for later. However, a study carried out by the project management platform Lokalise, has revealed a surprising reason why working hours they don’t give as much of themselves as you would like: too many applications and digital tools are used in daily work. This phenomenon has been called “online tool fatigue” or fatigue due to excess of digital tools. According to the results revealed by the Lokalise survey, when too many messaging, email, data management or project management applications are used, instead of help you be more productivejust the opposite happens and productivity plummets. Impossible to concentrate. According to data from the Lokalise study, based on the opinions of more than 1,000 office workers in the US from different professional sectors, these employees experience constant daily interruptions in your concentration when they receive a message through the work messaging app, they must respond to an email, etc. The data indicates that 17% of respondents switch between tabs, applications or platforms more than 100 times in a single workday. 56% of the workers interviewed assured the platform that tool fatiguesuch as switching between them and notifications, negatively affects your concentration and productivity. Two weeks jumping between applications. On average, this constant switching between applications and attention to notifications causes employees to lose an average of 51 minutes, although 22% claim that the time lost amounts to more than two hours per week. This figure may seem like a small thing, but if this time is added up by all the employees of a company and computed over a full working year, it implies an annual loss of between one week and two and a half weeks of work. non-productive time. All this for something as trivial as clicking on a window to change apps. Too many apps. 55% of participants say they use between three and five computer applications in their daily work, while 31% of employees say they use between six and ten applications to do their work. The usage data collected suggests that productivity tools that consume the most time are the email with 47%, followed by professional messaging apps such as Slack, Teams or Discord with 35%. Surprisingly, video calling tools, on which most meetings are supported, are in third place in terms of time consumed, with 22%. Below 17% there are other more specific applications like the calendarcloud storage systems (Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, etc.) or support and assistance systems such as Asana, Jira, Zendesk or Salesforce. Changing apps is like changing tasks. Although it is part of the resolution of a single task, the constant alternation between applications produces a cognitive effect similar to that occurs with multitasking. By changing the graphical environment, functions and operation of each platform, the brain it takes a certain time to process the change, breaking the inertia of concentration that reaches when performing a certain task in one of the tools. This effect of constant change generates mental fatigue and causes the brain to need several minutes to refocus on the main task after each interruption. In Xataka | Psychology has explained why it is so difficult for you to leave a job even if it is toxic: the sunk cost fallacy Image | Unsplash (Swello)

OpenAI has taken its first step towards Latin America. Behind it there is an investment of 25,000 million in Argentina and many questions

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For almost any country in Latin America and the world, a company like OpenAI announcing a multi-million dollar investment sounds like a golden dream. It is not only the most influential company on the planet in artificial intelligence, but also one of the pacesetters in the industry. Its arrival promises jobs, economic movement and global visibility. But, as with any large-scale project, it also has doubts: energy consumption, water use or the sustainability of a data center of hundreds of megawatts are not minor issues. Argentina, at least on paper, has been chosen to attempt that leap. The announcement of the Argentine Government It is based, at least for now, on a single document: a letter of intent signed between OpenAI and the local company Sur Energy. The text, published on October 10, 2025, mentions an investment of “up to $25 billion” for a data center of “up to 500 megawatts,” under the Incentive Regime for Large Investments (RIGI). The location of the project is not specified nor are deadlines or construction phases detailed, which keeps it in a preliminary stage. The Argentine president met at the Casa Rosada with representatives of OpenAI last week Silences that weigh. There are details that attract attention. A multimillion-dollar announcement, linked to the expansion of OpenAI in the region, and yet neither its CEO nor the company itself have communicated it through their official channels. That they have not done so does not invalidate the project, but it does mark a distance with the institutional enthusiasm on the Argentine side. In this type of operations, communication is usually part of the message. Here, for the moment, it is conspicuous by its absence, at least on the side of the American startup on its website and social networks. The plan: AI factories at scale. Stargate is not an isolated project, but the name that OpenAI uses for its global infrastructure program. Its objective is to build a network of data centers capable of supporting cutting-edge artificial intelligence models, the technology that gives life to tools such as conversational chatbots or image generators. In the case of OpenAI, those models are the ones hidden behind products like ChatGPTbased on systems such as GPT-4 either GPT-5. The plan began to take shape months ago, when the company announced an ambitious infrastructure project in the United Stateslater expanding it to other countries. Interior of Stargate 1, the first large-scale data center developed under OpenAI’s own program Power, density, permissions. Data centers for artificial intelligence operate in another league. They concentrate massive training on GPUs with industrial-level consumption and an energy density much higher than that of a conventional data center. Each room requires advanced cooling systems capable of constantly keeping the temperature under control. And, although permits and licenses are required as in any facility of this type, its scale and technical requirements make building one of these projects a much more complex and lengthy process. {“videoId”:”x8jpy2b”,”autoplay”:false,”title”:”What’s BEHIND AIs like CHATGPT, DALL-E or MIDJOURNEY? | ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE”, “tag”:”Webedia-prod”, “duration”:”1173″} RIGI and financing: promise vs contract. As we say, the project is covered by the Incentive Regime for Large Investments, a tool created by the Argentine Government to attract foreign capital through tax, customs and exchange advantages. In practice, the RIGI facilitates the conditions so that a large-scale project can be financed, but it does not guarantee that the investment will materialize. Patagonia sounds loud, it’s not official. On paper, there is no defined location. Neither the Argentine Government nor OpenAI have mentioned Patagonia in their statements. Even so, the name of the local company that appears in the letter of intent, Sur Energy, fuels the idea that the project could be developed in the south of the country. The president of Argentina, Javier Milei, with the CEO of OpenAI, Sam Altman, in May 2024 Climate and design: allies or burden. If the southern hypothesis gains strength, it is also for a technical reason: the climate plays in its favor. Colder areas allow you to operate with less cooling energy and take advantage of outside air, something that reduces costs and emissions. In parallel, the availability of water continues to be a decisive factor. The new artificial intelligence campuses, aware of this risk, are adopting cooling systems that minimize the use of water resources. We will have to wait to know the option chosen by OpenAI. When the network or the water say no. The location of a data center does not depend only on the weather or tax incentives. Factors such as the electrical grid or the availability of water can mark the success or failure of a project. Mexico, for example, is one of the largest technology hubs in the region, but even there a Microsoft data center ran into the limitations of the national network. and had to resort to gas generators. In Chile, Google saw its plan blocked due to excessive water use. They are reminders that it is not enough to have space: you need infrastructure. In Xataka In the nineties, no one saw how the Internet would starve factories. Thirty years later, AI is doing the same thing From exclusivity to autonomy. For years, OpenAI’s infrastructure depended almost entirely on Microsoft. In 2019, the Redmond company invested 1 billion dollars and became your exclusive cloud partner. Over time, that alliance grew to exceed 10 billion, consolidating Azure as the platform where the company’s models were trained and executed. However, OpenAI has been seeking greater operational autonomy. The Stargate program responds precisely to that idea: having its own computing resources and diversifying its technological dependence. From paper to concrete. For now, it all depends on the next steps. For the initiative to move forward, a definitive contract between OpenAI and Sur Energy, the presentation of environmental studies and electrical interconnection licenses will be necessary. The financing scheme and long-term energy agreements will also have to be defined. Only with these pieces in place can we speak of a real work. Until then, … Read more

go back to pencil and paper

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We take for granted the conveniences of the digital age: instant messaging, online shopping, the databases that power millions of businesses. Everything flows until something breaks and the routine stops. In companies, this failure can have devastating effects. Jaguar Land Rover verified itwhich suffered a cyber attack that paralyzed its production lines. Now the scenario is repeated in Japan, where Asahi, the giant that controls about 40% of the beer market, has had to stop its activity and resort to the most basic: handwritten orders, paper documents and faxes that ring again. The incident broke out at the end of September, when an attack by ransomware left inoperative Asahi’s ordering and shipping systems in Japan. In a few hours, the company had to suspend activity in most of its factories and completely reorganize its logistics. The country’s supermarkets and convenience chains, including 7-Eleven and FamilyMart, warned of possible stock shortages. Although production began to resume on a limited basis, the brewer admitted that it could not guarantee timelines for returning to normality. When a cyberattack turns off screens and forces you to return to paper The systems that allow Asahi to process orders, coordinate deliveries and communicate with distributors were out of service following the attack. Although factories could continue producingthe company was forced to stop activity because it could not manage a single shipping order. The measure was part of the containment protocol, which included blocking servers and suspending incoming mail from abroad. In a few hours, the largest brewer in the country went from total automation to an almost complete stoppage. Faced with the digital blockade, Asahi activated an emergency plan based on manual procedures. Orders were written down by hand, delivery notes were printed and shipping confirmations were communicated by fax, as they were decades ago. The goal was simple: keep the product flowing, even if it was limited. The brewery thus managed to partially reactivate its distribution network, while preparing the reopening of its call center. It was a slow and laborious response, but it allowed the first batches of beer to leave the factories again. Little by little, Asahi began to commission its factories. The six brewing centers in the country returned to limited production, starting with the Asahi Super Dry line. Some soft drink and food plants were also reactivated, although at a slower pace. The company specified that its production was still far from normal and that containment measures were still in force. The attack affected only Asahi’s domestic operations. The company clarified that its subsidiaries in Europe and the United Kingdom continued to operate without incidents. The Japanese side, which contributes around 50% of its global incomewas the only one hit. Although the geographical scope was limited, the economic and logistical effect within the country was notable. A group called Qilin sand claimed responsibility for the cyberattack. We are talking about an organization that operates under a “ransomware as a service” model and that has already been involved in attacks on large companies. Asahi did not confirm that version or detail the type of intrusion. In any case, The Japanese Government maintains an investigation open to clarify what happened. Asahi is keeping its recovery plan underway, focused on gradually restoring ordering and shipping systems. As we say, the immediate priority is normalize production and fully reopen its customer service center. Starting in mid-October, the company hopes to increase the pace of distribution and recover part of the catalog affected by delays. It has not yet set a date for full restoration, but it assures that security measures will be reinforced before returning to one hundred percent operation. Images | Asahi (1, 2) | freepik In Xataka | How often should we change ALL our passwords according to three cybersecurity experts

Europe needs tungsten for its electrical future. A Swedish mining company knows where to find it: Ourense

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In the parish of Pentes, in the Ourense municipality of A Gudiña, the excavators have already begun to remove earth. There, on a slope where until recently only the mountain wind could be heard, the Swedish mining company Eurobattery Minerals AB has launched the work to extract tungsten – also known as tungsten –, a strategic metal for the European energy and technological transition. Galicia thus joins the small group of regions on the continent with active exploitation of this critical mineral. A strategic mine for Europe. The company, through its Galician subsidiary Tungsten San Juan, has launched its San Juan project while preparing its application for the second call for Strategic Projects under the European Regulation of Critical Raw Materials (CRMA), to open in January 2026. The first earthworks and the construction of a service warehouse are already visible in the area, as confirmed by the Vigo Lighthouse. When it is at full capacity, this will be the second active exploitation of tungsten in Spain, along with that of Barruecopardoin Salamanca. More in depth. The San Juan project will be an open pit mine with a goal that goes beyond local production: to provide European tungsten to the continent’s new industrial ecosystem. The company has begun improving infrastructure and constructing a pilot plant with gravimetric technology, while estimating reserves of 60,000 tons of ore with a grade of 1.3% WO₃. These are modest figures on a global scale, but significant for a Europe that seeks to reduce its dependence on Chinese imports of this critical metal. It has not been a short road. The procedures began in 2016 with geological studies, surveys and the construction of accesses, all under the supervision of the Xunta de Galicia. “Our goal is to produce tungsten responsibly and efficiently within Europe,” explains Agne Ahleniusgeneral director of Tungsten San Juan and former head of the Barruecopardo mine. “With this project, Galicia and Spain reinforce their role in the European supply chain of critical raw materials.” The metal that supports the energy transition. Few materials concentrate as much strategic value as tungsten. Its density, its resistance and its very high melting point make it a key resource for modern industry: from wind turbines to defense, including semiconductors and electric cars. But behind its technical brilliance there is a global conflict. China controls more than 80% of production and, in recent months, it has further limited its exports. The result: skyrocketing prices, uncertainty in the markets and a new reminder of how dependent Europe continues to be. To break this cycle, Brussels has launched the Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA), a plan to guarantee access to critical minerals within European territory. According to the European Commissionthese initiatives not only seek economic stability: they also aim to reinforce the industrial autonomy of the continent and reduce its vulnerability to geopolitical tensions. Spain, a mining window. The start of the San Juan project is not an isolated event. It is part of a larger movement: the rediscovery of Spain’s mining potential. The country has projects of copper, tungsten, vanadium, graphite and cobalt, in addition to new deposits of rare earths in Estremadura and Gran Canaria. The European Union has set clear goals. It wants to stop depending on third countries for its supply of raw materials, and the new Critical Raw Materials Regulation (CRMA) mark the way: By 2030, at least 10% of critical minerals must be extracted within Europe, 40% processed on EU soil and 15% from recycling. Furthermore, no external country may concentrate more than 65% of the supply. On this map, Spain appears as a key piece: with Galicia, Castilla y León, Andalusia and Extremadura at the forefront, the country could become one of the gateways to the new European green reindustrialization. European autonomy is in Galicia. The roar of the excavators in A Gudiña not only marks the beginning of a new mine, but also the symbol of a change of era. Europe wants to leave decades of dependence behind and build a more sovereign and sustainable industry. From a Galician hillside, a small tungsten mine has become part of that strategy. What begins in Pentes may be, deep down, one more piece of the new energy and technological map of Europe. Image | Unsplash Xataka | The price of silver is exploding to levels not seen since 1980. The reason: we need too much

A player has an insane record, 40,000 games purchased on Steam. That there is a badge to reward him is what is disturbing

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Neither collecting neither gambling addiction: This is pure and simple accumulation. But with a clear objective: to obtain the badge that recognizes the possession of no less than 40,000 games in Steam. An achievement that has already been recognized by databases like SteamDB and that undoubtedly leaves anyone breathless who thinks that the store’s seasonal sales get a little out of hand. We are nothing more than insects contemplating a giant. Sonix the Collector. The milestone has been reached by the user Sonix (SonixLegend), who has become the first person to have more than 40,000 games in his library. The badge is “Game Collector: 40,000+” (the highest of this type that can be achieved) and, according to SteamDB, Sonix reached 40,029 games on September 23, 2025. It now has 40,366. In addition, it adds 22,136 DLCs and the thing does not end here, since it maintains a wish list with 26,936 titles. More data? His favorite game is ‘Alien Swarm’, a semi-unknown free-to-play multiplayer shooter from 2010 to which he has dedicated a whopping 551 hours. A paste. Steam estimates the value of the Sonix collection at $250,041 based on the lowest prices available, but the current total cost would exceed $612,072. And since this includes both purchased titles and free games and promo codes, it is impossible to calculate the true value of what has been purchased. Sonix is ​​based in Shanghai, and has been active on Steam for fifteen years. Your profile shows a level of 303, which is equivalent to activity well above average. Other beasts. The Sonix brand is closely followed by other compulsive buyers. Ian Brandon Anderson is close to achieving the coveted badge, with 39,786 games and is closely followed by a third user, ikun, with 36,888. Interestingly, the three largest collectors achieved new records for the number of games purchased on the same day. We don’t know if it specifically means anything, except that Steam continues to be in enviable health, and that this form of compulsive collecting is not an isolated eccentricity of Sonix: at this moment there are almost 20 users with more than 30,000 games, and the top 50 are all above 22,000. Collecting is not what it used to be. Without a doubt, digital collecting has very different nuances than that of accumulators of physical material: the capacity to store digital material, for example, is practically unlimited. And the constant flow of very substantial discounts in stores like Steam itself makes it possible for collections to multiply at a very notable speed. Or put another way: without realizing it, your Steam library has hundreds, perhaps thousands of items? You have to make a very consistent effort to reach those extremes in physical video game collecting. Playing is another story. Of course, playing all these games is impossible, and we enter into issues that have little to do with the enjoyment of what was purchased: reaching the figure of 40,000 games purchased regardless of what they are or, in the case of physical collecting, buying catalogs of consoles that in a high percentage are made up of low quality games, but that must be had due to completism. There are already studies that define this completism as a form of behavior that has little to do with the acquisition of something we like for our enjoyment and, in these cases, talk about addiction It is not completely left out of the equation. Header | Erik Mclean in Unsplash

Amazon kept losing money on its Echo devices. He has found a way to stop the bleeding: flood us with ads

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Amazon has been losing a fortune with their Amazon Echo devices. Connected speakers and displays are in millions of homes, but they have never been profitable. The company’s hope was that they would become a vehicle to sell more products on its e-commerce platform, but that goal was never met. Now Amazon has found a way to get a lot out of them: to put advertising in them for good. Lots of advertising. Why is it important. Amazon has just launched on the market your new Echo Show and Eco Dot. Prices have risen in all cases, but they also arrive with Alexa+ —although not in Spain at the moment—, the AI ​​assistant that the company has been working on for several months. These products are supposed to offer important advantages in the user experience, but at the moment what is happening is that these devices are displaying advertisements frequently. Wasted. Between 2017 and 2021 Amazon lost more than $25 billion with its Amazon Echo. The idea seemed good: they could sell them at a loss if they later amortized them by converting them into products to sell us things. Instead, users ended up taking advantage of them for little more than setting timers and musicand that has ended up being a huge problem for Amazon. Ads everywhere. There are several users of Amazon’s connected screens—the Echo Show—who are seeing surprise ads appear on these screens. a user Reddit account how the alarm clock feature on your Echo Show 5 became an annoying ad. Other user checked that in addition to one advertisement, songs that he had not specified were playing, while another he complained about how his Echo Show kept advertising the Amazon Plus service. Ads now appear more frequently on Prime Video. Source: Xataka. Flooded with advertising. These screens don’t stop showing ads, match other users, but in addition none of those users accepted that their devices could be used to display advertising, and there is no switch or configuration parameter that stops this behavior. Even people who are paying $20 for Alexa+, Amazon’s new AI assistant, are complaining from all that advertising avalanche. Also on Prime Video. Personally, I don’t have an Echo Show, but I have noticed that when enjoying series and movies on Prime Video, advertisements are broadcast with greater frequency and duration. I am not he only (not much less). Amazon allows customize preferences regarding advertising, but those who have done it affirm that this does not hardly reduce the frequency with which advertisements appear. What Amazon says. An Amazon spokesperson stated the following: at Ars Technica: “Advertising is a small part of the experience and helps customers discover new content and products they may be interested in. If customers don’t like a suggestion, they can swipe to the next card on the screen or directly provide feedback by tapping the info icon or tapping the screen.” If you move away, I announce to the song. The Amazon Ads website details the ad formats, and the text explains that “The ad viewing experience dynamically adapts based on the customer’s proximity to the device.” Once it is detected that the user is more than 1.2 meters away from their device, “the ads are displayed in full screen alternating with other content, such as the weather, recipes, sports and news.” This seems to be getting worse. The latest comments seen on Reddit or on X (formerly Twitter) seem to make it clear that Amazon is increasing the amount of advertising it displays on its devices and services. The question, of course, is how far they will go… and how that will impact both sales of their devices and subscriptions to their platforms. In Xataka | Amazon missed the AI ​​train, but it wants to catch it back. The new Alexa with AI will arrive this month to try it

China’s biggest problem is not the US. It is a “virus” that advances at an unprecedented speed and threatens to empty its factories

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In September, and in front to a data offered by the United Nations that put the future of the Chinese economy in check, Beijing defended itself with an opportunity for the future: the AI. In between, it remained to be seen who was right. Because the main problem of the economy that pull the strings of the planet are pure mathematics applied to a near and most uncertain future. One that indicates that, sooner rather than later, its population will to plummet. Against oneself. The demographic crisis that shakes China today is, to a large extent, the result of a policy that worked too well: the birth control campaign begun in the seventies and crystallized in the policy of only child 1979. What began as a state intervention to contain population growth that was considered unsustainable ended up shaping behaviors, expectations, and family structures for generations. Sterilizations, fines and forced abortions not only birth numbers reducedbut they inhibited the cultural habit of mass reproduction, and when the State began to relax the rules (allowing two children in 2016 and three in 2021) the social response was no longer the same: the fertility rate fell from 1.77 children per woman in 2016 up to 1.12 in 2021and the timid incentive measures have barely reversed the curve. The real cost of breeding. Behind the numbers there are everyday decisions. The economic calculation of starting a family in China is, as in so many other places, considerable: studies estimate that raising a child from birth to the end of their college education can cost on average about $75,000and in cities like Shanghai that figure shoots up to approximately $140,000. These prices, together with long work daysmarket expensive housing and professional expectations, explain why many young people (especially women) they choose not to have children. Surveys and testimonials collected show that for many people motherhood today is equivalent to a professional and personal resignation that they are not willing to assume: “I don’t want to think about sacrificing my life,” summarizes an executive from Hangzhou in the Washington Postand that plea for time and personal autonomy is one of the reasons why symbolic subsidies from the government (for example, some 500 dollars a year for the first three years) are insufficient to reverse the trend. Without weddings and solutions. we have been counting. Demographic decline is accelerated by fall of marriage: in 2024 just 6.1 million of couples registered their union, compared to 13.5 million in 2013, a data that works as predictor of future births when the rate of births outside of marriage is marginal. The State not only offers economic incentives and university courses about “how to flirt”, but has returned to intrusive behavior: officials pressure newlyweds about your plans of pregnancy and control the conversation public about marriage in the media. It is a gesture of urgency that clashes with the autonomy of generation Z, increasingly individualisticfor which getting married and procreating are no longer social mandates but options (among many). That tension between pronatalist policy and cultural change explains why coercive measures of the past do not seem to translate into higher births today. Accelerated aging. While fewer Chinese are born, the older population continues to grow: Life expectancy rises and the population pyramid inverts, which poses a brutal rebalancing in public accounts. Projections indicate that in the coming decades the proportion of elderly will doublewith colossal pressure on pensions, healthcare and long-term care financed by an increasingly narrow contributor base. Demographers warn that this phenomenon can trigger a vicious circle: more resources allocated to the elderly imply less public support for young families, which further reduces fertility. By 2100, according to calculations by international organizations, there will be more people out of working life than within it, a scenario with economic and political implications of systemic scope. The factory of the world shrinks. The problem is not only quantitative but qualitative: the workforce that made China the factory of the planet (born between 1960 and 1980, with a disposition for industrial jobs) has no substitute culture in later generations that they avoid factory work. At the same time, the proportion of Chinese manufacturing in the world total (today located around 30%) will necessarily be reduced if demographics exhaust the labor supply. The official short-term answer is automationbetting on robots and investment in productivity, but substitution does not work the same in all sectors: services, care and certain labor-intensive branches will continue to demand humans. The consequence is that manufacturing companies already they detect competitive pressure in prices and labor costs, and some observers point out that the industrial replacement could move to India, Southeast Asia, Mexico or Eastern Europe, with a multiplier effect on global supply chains. Politics and resistance to foreigners. They remembered in the post that a lever that in other countries would alleviate the labor force deficit (immigration) crashes in China with taboos of cultural homogeneity and political considerations that make the adoption of broad immigration policies difficult. That forces the government’s options and forces it to rely on internal incentives and in robotization. The strain between the economic need for labor and the preference to maintain cultural cohesion places Beijing in a strategic dilemma: either it embraces broader migrations (with all the integration challenges that this would imply) or it accelerates productive reconversion and the displacement of sectors that depend less on the labor factor. State measures. Faced with the abyss, Beijing has been introducing measures: relaxation of family policysubsidies, public campaigns for promote marriage and birth rate, and tax programs limited. But the experts they underline that late policies rarely reorder behaviors already fixed for decades. Louise Loo and other economists they estimate that reducing the workforce could take away about 0.5 points percentages to annual GDP growth in the next decade, a bite significant for an economy that needs to grow to absorb debts and finance its modernization. The challenge is that demographics act over long periods of time: cohorts born today … Read more

punish those who buy a Seat Arona

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There is a way to fill your streets with electric cars. And it does not have to go through aid to those who buy it. Or, at least, it doesn’t just have to go through aid to those who buy it… In Denmark they have another idea: punish those who opt for a combustion car. And that is a slab for cheap gasoline. 65%. So far this year, 15.8% of electric cars sold in Europe are electric. In our country, although we have been growing little by little, we remain in a bare 8%. For now, the European market survives on markets that buy a very high volume of electric cars like germany and countries with a very high penetration of this type of vehicles. Germany and France, which are the countries where, by volume, the most electric cars are purchased, are on the border of 18%, slightly improving the European data. But there are countries where these figures explode. In the Netherlands and Sweden they are close to 35%. Let’s not talk about Norway, with 95%. Let’s talk, instead, about Denmark. Do you help?. Although in most of Europe we have sought success in purchasing aid, perhaps we should start to change our approach. In Spain, the system created for MOVES III Plan is cumbersome and not very transparent for the consumer. Whoever approaches the dealership for an electric car has to take advantage of a 0% loan from the company (if it advances the aid) or wait for more than a year for the money to arrive. If it reaches you. Germany now has one of the Higher electric car purchase rates in Europe and by volume it is the first market. However, it has gone through its ups and downs. At the end of 2023 they withdrew aid for electric cars and immediately afterwards crashed in the market. Manufacturers published huge discounts hoping for a return of subsidies that have never arrived. Why have the tables turned? Taxes. For attacking the market in a way similar to that of Denmark. In both countries, those who buy an electric car are rewarded but, above all, those who buy a gasoline car are punished by pushing them to opt for the cleaner option. In Germany, as in Belgiumthe State is subsidizing the purchase of electric company cars, an economic incentive that is usually common in its companies. In Denmark, anyone who opts for a combustion car is harshly punished. The registration tax is calculated taking into account the volume of emissions of each car. And that increases the cost of having a gasoline car. How does it work? In Denmark, in addition to a 25% VAT, you have to pay a progressive registration tax that varies with respect to its cost. First tranche (cars up to 65,000 DKK, about 8,700 euros): 25% the value of the car Second tranche (cars between 65,000-202,200 DKK, from 8,700 euros to 27,000 euros): 85% the value of the car Third tranche (cars over 202,200 DKK, over 27,000 euros): 150% of the car’s value But this registration tax has some asterisks. If the car is for private use and is electric, 40% of the tax is paid. But, in addition, the State subsidizes up to DKK 165,000 of this tax. That is, you only start paying when the tax exceeds more than 20,000 euros and only 40% of it. And the gasoline ones? Here is the great incentive to go electric. The gasoline car not only pays the expected registration tax. In addition, an additional surcharge must be paid for vehicle emissions. The sections are the following: 0-109 grams of CO2: 280 DKK (37.49 euros) per gram of CO2 109-139 grams of CO2: 560 DKK (74.99 euros) per gram of CO2 more than 139 grams of CO2: 1,064 DKK (142.47 euros) per gram of CO2 In Motorpassion They give the case of a Seat Arona as an example. The car will have to pay 85% of its value but, in addition, it has an extra cost of 5,211 euros. Emitting 124 grams/km of CO2 with its 95 HP 1.0 TSI engine, you will pay 30,520 DKK for the first 109 grams/km of CO2 and another 15 grams/km of Co2 at a cost of 560 DKK, which adds up to 8,400 DKK. That is, the punishment is 38,920 DKK, about 5,211 euros. hateful comparisons. Taking all of the above into account, we can think of an electric car for 50,000 euros (373,475 DKK). In that case, we will have to count on two taxes. The first is the VAT which, as we have seen, is progressive and we would pay the following: First tranche: 25% of DKK 65,000, which is DKK 16,250 Second tranche: 85% from 65,000 DKK to 202,200 DKK, which is 116,620 DKK. Third tranche: 150% from 202,200 to 373,475, which is 256,912 DKK In total, 389,782 DKK (about 52,193 euros). From that money we must subtract 165,000 DKK that the State puts out of its own pocket, which leaves us with 234,782 DKK. But, in addition, electric ones have a 40% reduction. That is, another 93,891 DKK. The fee is therefore reduced to 140,837 DKK (18,850 euros tax) It is also free from the penalty of the emissions tax. A gasoline car with a base price of 25,000 euros, a bracket similar to that found in a Seat Arona, will have to pay the tax equivalent to 186,708 DKK. That is, the 16,250 DKK of the first tranche and 85% of 121,708 DKK of the second tranche. That is, 103,452 DKK. The total is therefore 119,702 DKK. Or, what is the same, just over 16,000 euros. In this case, however, the State does not cover any of the registration tax and the CO2 penalty must be added, which amounts to another 38,920 DKK. That is, 5,211 euros more to make a total of more than 21,000 euros for registering a Seat Arona, almost the same as the cost of the vehicle. … Read more

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