cost

Until now, launching satellites was the business. The US has just turned its exorbitant cost into a million-dollar opportunity

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For years, the space business has revolved around a very specific idea: launch more satellites, faster and cheaper. The race to fill low Earth orbit with large constellations has skyrocketed demand and turned takeoff into a multibillion-dollar industry, but it has also brought to the table a problem that for a long time remained in the background: what to do with these satellites when they reach the end of their useful life and continue to take up space in orbit. In this context, the United States has taken a decisive step by promoting and beginning to materialize the exorbitant market. New business on the horizon. This step forward has already resulted in a concrete contract. Starfish Space has been awarded of an agreement valued at 52.5 million dollars by the Space Development Agency (SDA) of the United States Space Force to offer a service for deorbiting satellites at the end of their useful life. The assignment includes the development, launch and operation of the otter ship in low orbit intended to deorbit satellites of the PWSA when they are no longer operational, with a first operation and the possibility of carrying out several more. The launch is planned for 2027. behind the scenes. This shift cannot be understood without the economic context that has turned space into a high-volume industry. Global space launch services market reached $21.19 billion by 2025 and, according to estimates by Precedence Researchcould climb to 70,560 million in 2035, with a compound annual growth rate of 11.56%. A substantial portion of that revenue comes from continuous satellite deployment, driven by constellations that require frequent launches to maintain and renew their in-orbit networks. An increasingly saturated orbit. Having thousands of satellites operating at the same time is not only a question of deployment, but also of end-of-cycle management. Those responsible for large constellations must decide whether to deorbit their satellites relatively early to limit the risk of orbital debris or whether to keep them active for as long as possible to extract their full economic and operational value. This tension, without a simple solution, has become one of the main drivers that push us to search for new formulas to manage the end of life in orbit. What changes with “deorbit-as-a-service”. Starfish’s proposal is based on separating the end of life of the satellite from its design and daily operation, allowing an external spacecraft to be responsible for deorbiting without requiring prior modifications to the devices in orbit. The company maintains that this approach allows operators to maximize the useful life of their constellations and delegate the retirement of those satellites that cannot deorbit themselves. The previous step. Although the deorbit mission has not yet launched, Starfish Space comes to this point with a previous history of in-orbit demonstrations. The company launched Otter Pup 1 in June 2023 and managed to maneuver it to within 1,000 meters of a target ten months later, a relevant milestone for approach and control operations. In October, an Impulse Space Mira spacecraft used Starfish software to approach another spacecraft to within 1,250 meters, and in June 2025, Otter Pup 2 was launched with the goal of performing the first commercial docking of satellites in low orbit. The big question to answer. What is now being tested is whether satellite deorbiting can go from being an exception to becoming a recurring industrial practice. The expansion of constellations and the pressure to keep low orbit operational force us to look for solutions that do not depend solely on each individual satellite. In this context, the United States’ decision to contract this type of services offers a first sign of where the sector can evolve, although its real scope can only be measured when the first missions begin to operate. Images | Starfish Space In Xataka | Human beings have not set foot on the Moon for 54 years: the mission that aims to correct it has just entered its final phase

Bringing fiber to rural Spain does not come cheap. This interactive map tells you exactly how much it cost

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Those of us who live in urban areas take it for granted that we have fiber coverage, but there are many rural areas from Spain where fiber has taken a long time to arrive and even some where they are still waiting for it. To ensure coverage of the entire territory, the government launched subsidies for operators to deploy their network. Now we have a map to know the status of all deployments, interactive and non-profit. The map. It has been developed by Fernando García Álvarez, a software engineer who has contacted us to publicize his creation. It is an independent and non-profit initiative. Its objective was to gather all the information on fiber deployment plans, both the previous PEBA and the current UNICO plans in a single place, something that until now had to be consulted through various sources. His name is Fiber Programs and when we open it we find a heat map of the entire peninsula, with the red areas representing the areas with the greatest coverage and the yellow areas representing the least coverage. Detailed information. To obtain all the information on the different programs you have to zoom in and click on one of them. Here we can see which operator is carrying out the deployment, which plan it belongs to and other more in-depth data such as the total amount of the subsidy and the completion deadline. This is especially useful for those projects that are still underway because it allows you to know when a specific zone will be connected. Subsidies. That in 2026 there will be those who do not have a fiber connection is shocking, but there is a reason why there are still areas without this infrastructure: it is not profitable for operators to bring their infrastructure to an area where there are very few inhabitants. From this need was born the Broadband Extension Program or PEBA. The plan was active from 2013 to 2020 and subsidized almost 800 projects from more than 100 operators. In 2024, the UNICO Broadband plan took over the baton, with more than 18 million euros and with Avatel and Adamo as the main recipients of the aid. Spain and fiber. Although there are some areas left to cover, they are the least. The reality is that 95% of the Spanish territory has access to fiber optics, which places us well ahead of the European average, which is 64%. Our colleagues from Xataka Móvil made a devastating comparison: a town in Soria has better internet than Berlin. Image | Fiber Programs In Xataka | In 2023 Spain tried to create its own “Starlink” to connect the rural world: it has failed miserably

makes my life easier every day (and at no cost)

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By now we all know Gemini. Google AI is a fantastic tool that we can use for a ton of things: from writing down a recipe in Keep to getting ideas for giving a gift, to generating a Christmas card. We can download it through Google Play Store But there Android phones have an advantage, since Gemini is deeply and very naturally integrated into them. The best thing is how simple it is to activate this artificial intelligence assistant: All you have to do is press and hold the side button on your phone for a few seconds. and we will automatically be able to interact with Gemini (either by writing or speaking). Now, what exactly can this AI do for us? Let’s see it briefly. Gemini is a very useful tool that has no cost Gemini is a very versatile tool that, as we say, can carry out many tasks. Now, before moving on to it, it is worth mentioning two very important details that give even more value to Google’s AI. The first of them is that interacting with Gemini is very natural, so you don’t have to speak robotically for him to understand us. The other detail is also key: everything is done at no cost to the user. In addition to talking to Gemini directly (or writing, as we have said before), we cannot ignore the existence of Gemini Live. Thanks to this function, which arrived after the launch of this AI, we can activate the device’s camera to share visual information with GeminYo. It is very useful if, for example, we want this assistant to translate a poster in another language. We can also share screen with Gemini if ​​we wish. On a day-to-day basis, we can continually use Gemini to set alarms or create reminders. In fact, this Google assistant handles complex tasks very wellwhich simplifies everything a lot. The clearest example is that we can, with a single sentence and in a language that we would use to talk to a friend, ask Gemini to create a reminder for a doctor’s appointment and send a message with this information to our partner (among many other things). Finally, we must add to this cocktail the latest function that Gemini has received, so far, on mobile phones: Nano Banana. Thanks to this, we can generate images very precisely and use them for anything, whether to create a meme or to design a birthday greeting, for example. You have Android phones with direct access to Gemini on offer If you’re in the market for a new Android phone and looking for something that lets you access Gemini directly, you’re spoiled for choice. In fact, MediaMarkt has an active promotion with many of them on offeralthough you only have a few more days to take advantage of it. Below you have a selection of some very interesting ones. Galaxy S25 Ultra If we are looking for a top Android device, perhaps the Galaxy S25 Ultrawhich precisely won the Xataka award for best super high-end mobile this 2025. We are faced with a device with a beastly performance thanks to the tandem formed by the Snapdragon 8 Elite and its 12 GB of RAM. Its 6.9-inch screen with QHD+ resolution has the best anti-reflective treatment there is and its camera system is outstanding. All added up to seven years of updates and a very interesting price with this offer: 890.10 euros in its 512 GB version if we register in myMediaMarkt (it’s free). Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra (512GB) The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Google Pixel 10 Pro The purest Android experience, as usual, will be offered to us by the Google Pixel. We have available right now the Pixel 10 Proa more compact device than the previous one. It has a 6.3-inch OLED screen and uses the Tensor G5 chip, as well as a 4,870 mAh battery with 30 W fast wired charging. Its camera system performs well in all scenarios and has seven years of guaranteed updates. comes out for 854.10 euros if we register at miMediaMarkt. Google Pixel 10 Pro (256GB) The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Google Pixel 9a If we like the previous Google phone, but we are looking for a cheaper alternative, then the Pixel 9a. This device is, right now, a great quality-price option: it costs 399 euros. Despite having been on the market for almost a year, it continues to offer very good performance thanks to the Tensor G4 chip and its 6.3-inch 120 Hz screen is of high quality. It has a very balanced dual camera system and came with seven years of guaranteed updates. The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Vivo V50 Lite We also have an economical and very interesting alternative with the Vivo V50 Lite. This device, which currently costs 209 euros With 256 GB of storage, it stands out for offering a considerably larger battery than previous devices: it is 6,500 mAh. In addition, its 6.77-inch 120 Hz screen provides a very fluid experience. The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Galaxy Z Fold7 We also have several folding ones on sale right now, as is the case with the Galaxy Z Fold7. Although Samsung already has several competitors in the foldable sector, this Fold is one of the best devices of this type out there. Its interior screen, once opened, offers 8 inches with a resolution of 2,184 x 1,968 pixels. In addition, it has plenty of power thanks to its Snapdragon 8 Elite processor and 12 GB of RAM. We have it available for 1,709.10 euros if we register at miMediaMarkt. The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Here are just a few examples. If you are looking for other alternatives, just take a look to the complete MediaMarkt catalog. Some of the links in this article are affiliated and may provide a benefit … Read more

The TUR drops almost 9% despite the winter extra cost

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The energy scenario for January 2026 is very different from what families experienced just three months ago. As we analyzed in Octoberthe autumn began with an average increase of 13.2% in the Last Resort Rate (TUR) for households, driven by the introduction of the seasonal surcharge and the increase in regulated costs. However, the new resolution of the General Directorate of Energy Policy and Mines, published this Saturday, December 27 in the Official State Gazette (BOE), change the board: The individual rate without taxes will decrease an average of 8.7% compared to October prices. The savings figures. The reduction not only affects individual consumers, but extends to the entire spectrum of the regulated rate. The descent is broken down as follows: Households (TUR 1 and 2): For an average customer who only uses gas for cooking and water (TUR 1), the annual bill with taxes will decrease by 3.7%. For those who also have heating (TUR 2), the decrease will be 4.3%. SMEs (TUR 3): Small businesses will see a 4.8% drop in their annual receipt. Neighboring communities (TUR Vecinal): In rates ranging from TUR 4 to TUR 11, the variable term will be reduced between 5.7% and 8.3%. What does this mean for the consumer? This drop represents a “balloon of oxygen” at the time of highest consumption of the year. The TUR is confirmed as a refuge from the volatility of the free market, where some clients even pay twice as much for the same supply. In addition, the regulations have shielded the protection of specific groups. According to the resolution of the BOEthe last resort rate is applicable indefinitely to communities of owners, public buildings for residential use and non-profit organizations. The international market has set the tone. The General Directorate of Energy Policy and Mines has applied a technical formula where the fall in international markets has weighed more than fixed costs. The points are: Cheaper raw material. The cost of base gas has been reduced by 1.7% thanks to the drop in the price of Brent (-2.9%), even compensating for the slight loss in value of the euro against the dollar. Seasonal gas down. Although in winter “seasonal gas” is mandatory (more expensive due to high demand), this year its cost is 18% lower than the previous period due to the decrease in natural gas futures. Technical components. The cost of the raw material has been set at about 2.55 cents per kWh — which serves as the basis for calculating your bill before adding tolls and taxes. Quarterly surveillance. This truce in prices will come into force on January 1, 2026. However, the automatic nature of the TUR implies that on April 1 the price will be reviewed again depending on how the different global conflicts evolve and storage capacity of the European Union. For now, Spanish households will start the year with a necessary respite from the cold. Image | Unsplash and freepik Xataka | Spain lights up for Christmas, but an uncomfortable doubt arises on some rooftops

Getting a manicure while she was on sick leave almost cost her her job. He was saved by a detective who didn’t know how to do his job.

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Companies increasingly make use of the services of private detectives to investigate whether their employees really They are on sick leave or they are faking itwhich would be reason enough to a disciplinary dismissal. According to the detectives themselves, the companies that use their services do so because they previously They already have signs that there is fraud, which is why the majority of cases that are investigated agree with the companies that hire them and end up in disciplinary dismissal. However, in some cases, the way that evidence is obtained is the key to the success of the case. This is what happened to the employee of a beauty center in Barcelona. Despite being able to prove that there had been fraud, a sentence The Superior Court of Justice of Catalonia declared the dismissal null and void and forced the company to compensate its employee. Medical leave and dismissal. The employee at the beauty center went to the doctor because of pain in her left hand and back, and they gave her the temporary disability leavewith rest and rehabilitation to recover. While she was still on sick leave, the company began to suspect that perhaps she was not that sick and decided to hire a private detective to check what she was doing outside of work. The detective prepared a report in which he noted that the worker had performed a manicure service for which she had charged 35 euros in cash while she was still on sick leave. With that report as a key piece in its argument, the company fired her via disciplinary dismissal, alleging that she had broken trust and that she was taking advantage of her leave to work on her own. In your dismissal letter you could read: “(…) you summoned, and performed a manicure treatment on, a person who was accompanied by said company (of detectives), at the aforementioned address, and charged this person in cash 35 euros for the service performed. The company has sufficient evidence, images and videos that confirm the regularity of these events.” What the court decides. The worker appealed the dismissal because she understood that it was unfair and was based on evidence obtained illegally. In the first instance, the Social Court No. 1 of Barcelona agreed with the company and declared that the dismissal was appropriate, and assigned the employee to collect 771.15 euros for untaken vacations plus 10% late payment interest. But did not recognize compensation some. The story changed when the case reached the Superior Court of Justice of Catalonia (TSJCAT), when the worker appealed that first sentence. The Social Court reviewed how the detective’s evidence had been obtained and concluded that it was invalid because it had been obtained by inducing the situation. That is to say, something that was already happening had not been observed, but rather the opportunity had been created for the employee to do that manicure. What Detectives Can and Can’t Do. The case puts on the table what private detectives can do when investigating a person on sick leave and what lines they cannot cross. From Sentinel Private Detectivesremember that the law “prohibits them from taking images or evidence of events that occur in the intimate part of people’s lives. The garden is also considered an extension of the home,” so they cannot record there if it is a closed space. The investigation agency points out that their work should focus on “following and observing, without forcing situations,” and that their role is that of “mere observers of facts and behaviors.” Jordi Briñoldirector of Brininvest Detectiveshighlights that its activity is regulated by the Private Security Law and for the Civil Procedure Law, and that in cases of sick leave they can only act in “open spaces.” According to his explanation, “anything that happens in intimate spaces or that has what is called an expectation of privacy, we cannot access there”, and any monitoring must comply with what he calls “the triple judgment of proportionality”, that is, that the evidence is adequate, necessary and that it does not take longer than reasonable. The researcher clarifies that they can carry out actions under pretext (for example, making an appointment in a publicly announced consultation), but “we cannot provoke an unnatural response”, which fits with the idea that the person under investigation cannot be induced to commit the infraction. Why the detective’s evidence is useless. In this case, the court considers that the detective did not limit himself to looking from the outside at what the convalescent employee was doing as his regulations dictate, but that he intervened to make the behavior happen for which she was later punished. Along these lines, the ruling links with the doctrine of the Supreme Court that rejects evidence based on provocation, and remembers that situations cannot be fabricated and then used as an excuse to fire. By removing the detective’s report from the case, the company’s entire argument collapsed, so the Court understands that the true reason for dismissal is that the worker I was on medical leavesomething that Law 15/2022 prohibits using illness as a reason to dismiss a person because it represents discrimination due to illness. For this reason, the Superior Court of Justice of Catalonia declares the dismissal void, orders that the company reinstate the employee, pay her all the salaries that she stopped receiving during the time that the judicial process lasted and pay her 7,501 euros for moral damages, in addition to 600 euros in defense fees. In Xataka | Social Security has published the data on sick leave in 2024 and we have bad news: we have broken a record Image | Unsplash (Behnaz Kh)

Not collecting the shared shares of the Gordo de Navidad correctly can cost you a lot of money

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El Gordo de Navidad is much more than a lottery draw. It is a cultural tradition that has taken root in Spain, causing many people to share tenths with family, friends or co-workers as a symbol of hope and good wishes sets. However, this gesture of good will, so common these days, can become a serious problem if the prize is not collected correctly. The Technicians of the Ministry of Finance (Gestha) they insist in which the way of collecting and distributing the prize is key to not ending up paying more taxes than necessary nor face subsequent tax penalties. Treasury is one more to distribute. In the Christmas Lottery, prizes over 40,000 euros are taxed at 20% on the part that exceeds that amount, so that a tenth awarded with the Gordo de Navidad (400,000 euros) becomes 328,000 euros net for the winner and 72,000 euros for the Treasury. Aitor Fernández, head of the tax area of TaxDownexplains that “the first 40,000 are always exempt. That leaves us with a total of 360,000 euros on which the 20% tax is applied,” and remembers that the bank already delivers the money with the withholding applied, so that the winning person directly receives the net amount. How to collect a shared tenth without fears. The Tax Agency recommends that, when a tenth is shared by several people, all participants identify themselves at the time of collection or designate a representative with notarial power to certify the identity and the percentage of prize that corresponds to each participant. Fernández details that the banking entity is in charge of taking the data of “how many are the winners, how it is distributed and is in charge of settling the tax before the Administration, giving each beneficiary their already net part.” If all the participants are identified, the financial institution distributes the exemption of the first 40,000 euros among all of them and applies to each one the corresponding withholding on the part of the prize that corresponds to them, in proportion to their percentage. Thus, they all appear as beneficiaries before the Treasury, which can verify that each one has supported 20% of what exceeds 40,000 euros without there being any double taxation or suspicion of donations covert The mistake that one collects and then distributes. The TaxDown expert warns that the greatest risk appears when a single participant collects the tenth in his name without leaving a record that this prize will be distributed later, and then distributes the money through transfers to the rest. “It is a mistake that can be made and should be avoided at all costs,” emphasizes Fernández. In that case, both the 40,000 euro exemption and the 20% withholding apply only to the person listed as the prize holder, while subsequent movements can be seen as cash gifts. As Fernández details, for the Tax Agency “subsequent transfers corresponding to a hypothetical distribution would be considered donations, which consequently implies that they are taxed.” This means that whoever receives the money could have to pay the Inheritance and Donation Tax, with the added problem that many autonomous communities only reduce this tax among first-degree relatives, while among friends, unmarried couples or other distant relatives the tax cost can skyrocket. A prize free of charge. Regarding the treatment of the prize in personal income tax, the TaxDown tax expert recalls that, once the withholding corresponding to the special tax Regarding lotteries, the amount obtained is not taxed again in the Income Tax return and does not affect access to scholarships or aid that depend on income, although it may influence the Wealth Tax of those who are obliged to present it. Fernández emphasizes that “what they pay us is what we can dispose of” and that there will only be new taxation if that money is invested and generates interest or capital gains, which, then yes, will have to be declared in the personal income tax as capital gains, but not for the money received from the lottery. For this reason, the expert remembers that it is best not to rush when investing that money and it is best to think about it calmly. At the end of the day, letting it “rest” is not going to entail an additional tax expense. In Xataka | Why do millionaires like Zuckerberg and Gates decide not to leave all their money to their children? Image | Flickr (Aiaraldea Gaur eta Hemen)

Gemini is capable of a lot from your mobile. And at no cost

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The Android operating system (and any of its ROMs) has always given its users countless options for everything, always with the same goal: to make their experience as comfortable as possible. For more than a year now, that includes artificial intelligence with an absolute protagonist: Gemini. Google’s AI, a natural substitute for its Assistant, is a very versatile tool that can help us in our daily lives. Everything happens by holding down the side button of the device and we will have it working on the screen, all without forgetting that it is a function at no cost. Let’s review some of the things we can expect from this artificial intelligence. With Gemini you can do everything (and effortlessly) As we say, Gemini is capable of many and quite diverse things, although its key point is that He does it in a very natural way. The easiest way to see this is if you need to do a quick search on the Internet: you activate Gemini, ask it a question in normal language and in a few seconds you will have an answer. But there is more. Google’s AI is also great for activating reminders or alarms without having to go to any application or having to waste a little of our time writing anything. Besides, It also handles complex tasks very well. In one go you can, for example, create a reminder for a reservation at a restaurant and send a message to someone to tell them that you will meet there. With the ‘Connected Applications’ function, in fact, we can also ask Gemini questions about an app that we have on the screen without having to open and close it (since for that we can invoke this AI by holding down the side button). turn of Gemini Live. This Gemini function allows us have conversations with the AI ​​to get ideasall without having to write or press any button, always promoting that idea of ​​naturalness that we mentioned above. This function also allows us to activate the mobile camera and ask it about a set of clothes or a set of tools, for example. We can also do the same, but sharing the screen with Gemini Live. Finally, we also have Nano Banana available, an image generation tool which is not only fast and works very precisely, but is there at no cost (like the rest of Gemini’s tools). All these Android phones are discounted and give direct access to Gemini If you have an Android phone, you can download the Gemini app and use it from there without any problem. Now, below we offer you some alternatives with this operating system that may interest you to enjoy everything that this AI offers by just pressing the side button and what we have at a good price in MediaMarkt. Galaxy S25 Ultra As one of the most outstanding options we have the Galaxy S25 Ultrawinner of the Xataka award for best super high-end mobile this 2025. A round device in every sense: brutal 6.9-inch screen (with QHD+ resolution), plenty of power thanks to the Snapdragon 8 Elite and a very complete camera system. All without forgetting that it has seven years of guaranteed updates and very good autonomy. comes out for 1,199 euros in its 512 GB version. Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra (512GB) The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Vivo V50 Lite If we are looking for a cheaper alternative and prioritize autonomy, we have this Vivo V50 Lite. Despite having a quite attractive price (it costs 209 euros with 256 GB of storage), has a huge 6,500 mAh battery. Despite its size, its thickness is quite contained, since it is 7.79 millimeters. It also stands out for its 6.77-inch P-OLED screen with 120 Hz and powerful speakers ideal for enjoying movies and series. The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Google Pixel 10 Pro The purest Android experience is going to be offered to us by this Google Pixel 10 Pro. This is not the only thing that stands out about it, obviously, since it is a very complete device with a very good 6.3-inch screen, great performance and a very balanced triple camera system. It’s loaded with AI, it also has seven years of guaranteed updates and right now we have it available for 899 euros. Google Pixel 10 Pro (128GB) The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Xiaomi 14T Xiaomi also has several very interesting proposals like this one Xiaomi 14T. It is a device that is currently in a very interesting price range (we can get it for 349 euros) and stands out for an AMOLED screen with 1.5K resolution, MediaTek Dimensity 8300 Ultra chip and 5,000 mAh battery. In addition, its camera system performs at a good level and is compatible with both Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos. The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Honor 400 Lite We close this selection of phones with the Honor 400 Lite. It stands out for its 6.7-inch screen and for having a dual camera system where its 108 megapixel main sensor stands out. Its battery is 5,230 mAh, capable of offering good autonomy. If our budget is tight, this is 229 euros It’s very interesting. The price could vary. We earn commission from these links These are just a few examples of phones with Gemini available from the side button. If you are looking for something else, you can take a look. to the complete MediaMarkt catalog. 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 | Amanz on UnsplashSamsung, Google, Vivo, Honor, Xiaomi In Xataka | The best mobile phones, we have tested them and here are their analyzes In Xataka | The best quality-price mobiles. Their analyzes and videos are here

OpenAI needs a lot of money. And to keep giving it to them, they are promising things that cost even more money.

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That OpenAI is in trouble is something we’ve been talking about from long agobut the last few weeks have aggravated the situation even more if possible. The company continues burning money like there’s no tomorrow and the income does not match. OpenAI needs investors and to justify those investments it needs to diversify into new markets. It’s going to be very difficult. The problem. On the one hand we have an OpenAI that dominated the AI ​​chatbot market with ChatGPT, but no longer enjoys the technological advantage it used to. Sam Altman himself acknowledged in an internal email that Google was technologically catching up with them with Gemini 3 and user figures indicate that Gemini is getting dangerously close, with 650,000 monthly users in front of the 800,000 weekly ChatGPT users. Losing the market leadership they themselves created would be a serious problem, but unfortunately for OpenAI, it is not the only one. The other problem. OpenAI’s spending projections for the next eight years are $1.4 trillion, said by Sam Altman himself. Let’s pause: 1.4 European billion, that is, 1,400,000,000,000. Thirteen figures, that’s nothing. To justify those astronomical investments, Altman talks about getting into robotics, cloud computing services and the highly anticipated (although nothing concrete) personal device designed by Jony Ive and which It will be “the iPhone of AI”. It sounds good, the problem is that at the moment OpenAI does not have the infrastructure and it does not say how it plans to compete in these markets. The OpenAI business. The barrier to entry to create an AI chatbot in 2022, when ChatGPT came out, was much lower than that presented by the sectors with which OpenAI is flirting. In the Wall Street Journal newsletter They point out something key: they are markets with fierce competition and huge companies that have been well established for years. Let’s look at the panorama they face: Robotics: Humanoid robots are still a developing segment and we have doubts that it becomes mainstreambut already There are many companies competing to put a robotic butler in our home. That OpenAI would manufacture its own robots seems completely unlikely because they do not have the infrastructure and it would cost them a fortune, something they do not have. The most feasible scenario would be to work with a robotics company to integrate their AI. In the United States it would have to compete with Figure and Tesla, both with their own AI. In China, with Unitree and Deep Robotics. Complicated. Cloud computing: getting computing power is another of OpenAI’s problems and the center of its multi-million dollar deals with amazon, NVIDIA either amd to mention a few. Setting up your own business in the cloud would mean competing with giants like Microsoft, Google or Amazon, who are also your own partners and you need them. Not to mention that Personal devices: It is the sector in which they have a more concrete plan, and yet we hardly know anything about this supposed “iPhone of AI”, a device so revolutionary that the smartphone would be a thing of the past, or so Ive and Altman said. We have not seen a single image of the device and the project has been delayedbut assuming OpenAI ends up launching it, it has the difficult task of convincing the world that it is better than a smartphone. Humane didn’t make it. For now it works for them. In October OpenAI closed a share sale that raised its valuation to $500 billionmaking it the most valuable startup in the world. It is an astronomical figure especially considering that the company’s expenses are also astronomical; only in the last quarter They lost a whopping 11.5 billion dollars. Investors have remained confident until now, the question is how long the party will continue. OpenAI needs it to last several years to be able to have that business that is going to cost 1.4 billion to build. Images | Wikipedia In Xataka | We have reached a point where not even the CEOs of Google or Microsoft deny that we have an AI bubble

What is this subscription, what does it include and how much does it cost in Spain?

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Let’s tell you what it is the price and features of the subscription AI Plus from Google. This is a lower subscription than Google AI Pro, which retains things like access to the most advanced models of Geminibut cut back on the use of other additional tools. This is a movement similar to that of ChatGPT Gowith which Google tries to make the artificial intelligence payment. Because 20 euro subscriptions are excessive for most users, so they have decided to try a much lower one. We will tell you the characteristics and comparison of the other subscription. What is Google AI Plus Google AI Plus is the name of the cheapest subscription to use paid Gemini. Gemini is the company’s artificial intelligence, and its free version is quite limited in terms of access to more advanced and powerful models. The solution if you want greater access to Google’s most powerful AI is to pay, and this is a subscription that seeks to be more affordable. Google initially created two paid subscriptions. For “ordinary” people it offered AI Pro with a price of 22 euros per month, and for more advanced users another price of 275 euros per month. Clearly, even the “cheapest” one was excessive for most users, so they decided to create one more step, a cheaper subscription. By paying this subscription you will have access to Gemini 3 Pro or the new models that arrive in the future. Access will not be any more limited than the most expensive subscription, but wider than in the free version. You’ll also have access to AI interactions with Gmail and other Google services, video creation, and more. Google AI Plus vs AI Pro Google AI Plus Google AI Pro Gemini App Access to Gemini 3 Pro, and Deep Research in 3 Pro. Videos are also generated with limited access to Veo 3.1 Greater access to Gemini 3 Pro, and Deep Research on 3 Pro. Videos are also generated with limited access to Veo 3.1 flow Access to the AI ​​tool for film creation, being able to create scenes and stories, with limited access to Veo 3.1 Greater access to the AI ​​tool for film creation, being able to create scenes and stories, with limited access to Veo 3.1 Whisk More complete access to creating videos from images with Veo 3. Expanded access to creating videos from images with Veo 3. Credits 200 monthly AI credits for Flow and Whisk 1,000 monthly AI credits for Flow and Whisk Notebooklm Access to the research and writing assistant with expanded access to audio summaries, notebooks, and other resources. Greater access to the research and writing assistant with 5x more audio summaries, notebooks, and other resources. Gemini in google apps Access Gemini directly in Gmail, Docs, and Google apps. Access Gemini directly in Gmail, Docs, and Google apps. Also to Vids. Google Home Premium Standard No 30 days of Gemini event and feature history Gemini Code Assist and Gemini CLI No More model requests per day on Flash and Pro models in Gemini CLI and Gemini Code Assist IDE extensions Jules No Higher limits when using Jules, the asynchronous scheduling agent for software developers created by Google Storage 200 GB of total storage in your Google account, to use in Drive, Gmail or Photos 2 TB of total storage in your Google account, to use in Drive, Gmail or Photos Price 7.99 euros per month 21.99 euros per month As you can see, the 8 euro subscription already gives you access to Gemini 3 Pro and Deep Research, as well as video generation with Veo 3.1. The more expensive version has broader limits of use, but the economical one is already an interesting gateway, also for creating videos from images. One of the differences is seen in the number of monthly credits for Flow and Whiskwhich is five times higher than the most expensive subscription. The same thing happens with NotebookLM, which has five times more limits in the Pro version, but in the Plus you already have access. The same thing also happens with the possibility of using Gemini in Google apps, such as Gmail or documents, you have it in both subscriptions. The main difference comes with three additional tools. The most economical subscription does not include the additional benefits of using Gemini on your smart speakersuch as a greater history of events and functions. You also don’t have access to special options for creating code or scheduling agents. For this you will have to go to the Pro subscription at least. There is also a difference in storage that is added to your Google account. In the Pro version it is still 2 TB, but in the Plus you already have 200 GB, which is more than the 15 GB that Google gives you for free. Google AI Plus Price Google AI Plus is priced at 7.99 euros per month. There may be times when there is a temporary promotion, such as two months at 3.99 euros and then return to the normal subscription. But the full price is eight euros per month. In Xataka Basics | The best prompts to save hours of work and do your tasks with ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot or other artificial intelligence

SpaceX changed the space economy. Now he wants to do the same with the cost of satellites

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The cost of launching cargo into space was, for years, one of the great limits of the aerospace industry. LaNASA documents in several works, including the analyzes of Harry W. Jonesthat during the last decades of the 20th century many pitchers moved in a typical range of between 10,000 and more than 20,000 dollars per kilowith an average cost of around $18,500/kg in low orbit, with the space shuttle far above due to its complexity and operating expense. It was not just the price of the launch systems, but of a model based on disposable components, manual processes and highly specialized operations. The situation remained stable for decades, until SpaceX decided to rethink how the economics of orbital launch should work. Instead of assuming these costs as inevitable, the company opted to reuse stages, optimize processes and manufacture its own engines and systems from scratch. This combination allowed the price per kilo to be reduced to unprecedented levels, although the change did not occur immediately. What is relevant is that, for the first time, a private actor demonstrated that launches could be much cheaper and that price did not have to be a structural barrier for the industry. When launch is no longer the limit, attention shifts to satellites The resulting prices began to change behavior in the sector. With Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy, the cost per kilo became in the range of 3,000 to 1,500 dollars, according to NASA calculations based on catalog prices. These figures not only mark a reduction, but a turning point: for the first time, companies, institutions and even governments could rethink the design of missions knowing that launch was no longer the main economic barrier. From there a question arose that until then had no answer: if the trip had been made cheaper, what would happen to what was sent into space? The traditional satellite model was built on the idea of ​​optimizing each unit. It was not important to produce many, but to produce one that could operate for years, with high capacity and low probability of failure. Manufacturers and operators were investing in complex systems, with long development cycles, exhaustive testing and specialized structures to fulfill specific and prolonged missions. This strategy responded to an environment in which launch was so costly and infrequent that it was more profitable to prioritize reliability and durability than to think about scalability or rapid replenishment. One of the first companies to help change this approach was OneWeb, that introduced a manufacturing model designed for scale. Instead of ordering each satellite as an individual piece, the company designed a common architecture and partnered with Airbus to produce repeatable unitswith standardized processes and shorter manufacturing times. The plant installed in Florida in 2019 was presented as the first factory of satellite serial production on a large scale, with two lines capable of removing up to two units a day. It was not about building a better satellite, but about building many. SpaceX took the satellite constellation idea and turned it into its own industrial system. With Starlink, it not only replicated the use of mass-produced satellites, but also linked that production to its launch capacity with Falcon 9, operated by the company itself. This integration allowed the deployment to be accelerated without depending on external release windows or commercial suppliers. The constellation began to grow at an unprecedented rate and, in a few years, it vastly surpassed any other similar project in number and pace. The difference was not only in manufacturing satellites, but in being able to launch them at will. Although OneWeb was one of the first players to apply industrial logic to satellite manufacturing, its constellation has grown at a very different pace than Starlink. At the end of 2025, OneWeb has around 648 satellites in orbit, while SpaceX exceeds 8,000 operational satellitesaccording to the most recent data published by orbital monitoring firms. The difference is not only due to the number of launches, but also to the mode of production. According to an economic analysis published in 2025the estimated manufacturing cost of OneWeb satellites is around $14,000 per kilo, compared to approximately $2,500 per kilo for Starlink satellites. These figures reflect a gap that has more to do with the integration model than with the technology itself. The estimated manufacturing cost of OneWeb satellites is around $14,000 per kilo, compared to approximately $2,500 per kilo for Starlink satellites. The reaction of the sector did not take long to arrive. With the advancement of Starlink, both companies and public institutions Similar projects began to be considered based on constellations with a high number of satellites and sustained deployments. Amazon launched KuiperEutelsat and OneWeb reinforced their alliance to maintain presence in the market and the European Union approved the IRIS2 program with institutional support.China is also working on its own large systems. It is not just about competing in numbers, but about accepting that scale and replacement capacity are part of the new spatial model. When the satellite becomes a replicable product, the way of planning its presence in orbit also changes. It is no longer about launching a mission and hoping it works for as long as possible, but rather about building a structure that can grow, modernize and replace units regularly. The satellite becomes a component of a network, not the center of the mission. This logic favors models based on scalability and continuous replacement, similar to those of other technological infrastructures. Space stops being a destination and becomes a platform. SpaceX demonstrated that the cost of the launch was not a technical limit, but rather a model one. Now it is trying to apply that same logic to satellites, with an approach based on scale, continuous manufacturing and integration with its own launch systems. The result is not only a larger constellation, but a different way of understanding what it means. operate in orbit. The question is no longer how much it costs to get to space, but who can … Read more

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