ecosystem

“We will not flood our ecosystem with soulless AI garbage.” We already know what Asha Sharma wants to do as CEO of Microsoft Gaming

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Friday night has been busy in the gaming world with a movement that, more than a change of cards, represents a paradigm shift in Microsoft’s video game division: the end of the Spencer era and the resignation of Sarah Bond as president of Xbox. Phil Spencer has left the company after almost 40 years, 12 of which he has been leading the gaming area. The new CEO of Microsoft Gaming is Asha Sharma. Who is Asha Sharma. The 36-year-old Indian-American’s CV includes Instacart, where she was director of operations for three years, until she left the firm for Microsoft in 2024. She previously served as vice president of product and engineering at Meta, leading, among other things, the company’s messaging apps. And more than a decade ago he worked in the marketing area of ​​Microsoft. Another leadership profile. Spencer’s leadership was almost evangelical: his era was characterized by rebuilding the brand after the discreet launch of the Xbox One in 2013expansion through acquisitions such as that of Activision Blizzard for 69,000 million dollars and its total commitment to Game Pass. However, Xbox has still not won the console war and its studios have been chaining cancellations and closures in recent times. Sharma’s career is meteoric, but she lacks a track record within the video game industry: she is neither a designer nor a dev, she is an operations and technology executive who comes from leading enterprise AI teams at Microsoft. The new Sharma aims more at operational efficiency, AI and platform ubiquity. Asha Sharma’s roadmap with Xbox. Sharma has already published its first statement where it establishes three axes: Great video games. His message is reassuring for fans: there will be iconic franchises, a commitment to creativity and innovation, and complete trust in Matt Booty. The return of Xbox. You want to put the console back in. center, something that with Spencer had been blurred. Of course, without giving up PC, mobile phones and cloud gaming. The future of gaming and AI. Sharma promises not to flood his ecosystem with artless garbage: “Games are and always will be art, created by humans and with the most innovative technology we offer.” Surprising from someone who comes precisely from there. In summary it would be: AI yes, but with a head. Unknowns and challenges. Its first message is promising but vague and leaves many key questions in an area where finding balance is complicated. If Microsoft, which is the largest player in the sector by capitalization, puts someone without gaming DNA on the front line, it sends a signal of where the business is going that points to platforms, subscriptions, generative AI, platforms… the question is whether that is compatible with making great games. On the other hand, Sharma mentions that games are “art made by humans” but also that AI will “evolve and influence.” We will have to see what the conciliation is like. In addition, neither she nor Booty have clarified What will happen to the studies that Microsoft has closed. Finally, the Xbox Everywhere model invites you to play on any device and makes more sense than ever, so there is no doubt to wonder about the future of consoles as devices. In Xataka | Video games have grown a lot this year. But the money goes to China, Roblox and the owners of mobile platforms In Xataka | Windows was the kingdom of gaming for decades: Microsoft knows that something has gone wrong, and promises these changes Cover | Microsoft

Siri is just the Trojan horse for Google to infiltrate the entire Apple ecosystem

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Apple doesn’t have its own AI, so it has chosen a girlfriend. That girlfriend is none other than Google, which has just signed an agreement with Cupertino to make Gemini the center of future developments. Not one, no. Of many. We thought this was just about Siri. The initial official announcement was brief. Apple would use Gemini, but it seemed that it was going to do so basically to launch its long-awaited version of that personalized Siri governed by a generative AI model at once. It turns out that the agreement is broader. Gemini is Google’s Trojan horse to conquer Apple. Google’s statement revealed that this alliance went beyond what seemed to focus on Siri. In a post on XGoogle stated the following: “Apple and Google have signed a multi-year collaboration agreement that will see the next generation of Apple’s entry-level models based on Gemini models and Google’s cloud technology. These models will help power future Apple Intelligence features, including a more personalized Siri coming this year.” This makes it clear that although the initial protagonist will be Siri, the scope of the agreement can be much more important and affect the entire Apple hardware and software ecosystem. Considering that AI options from Apple Intelligence and Siri will likely reach many of its products and services, Gemini, which will power all of those models, would end up being an integral part of said ecosystem. Collaboration above all. As indicated in The Informationthe agreement allows Apple to ask Google to modify some aspects of how Gemini works, but above all it will allow Apple to adjust Gemini itself so that it responds to requests in the way that Apple prefers. No Gemini branding. Sources close to the negotiations add an interesting fact: it will not be noticed that the AI ​​that we use in Siri and other Apple products is actually based on Gemini. Google’s branding will be blurred, and users will not know what is underneath and what is the engine of those interactions with AI. A more emotional Siri. That source cited in The Information also reveals that Siri will be more approachable and emotional. “Historically Siri has always had difficulty with emotional support,” he explains, but in the Gemini-based version, “Siri will give more complete conversational responses, just like ChatGPT and Gemini.” That, of course, has two sides: AI becomes more “human”, but for vulnerable people that can end up being dangerous. Apple Intelligence will still be there. Although Gemini thus infiltrates the Apple ecosystem, both companies clarified that Apple Intelligence will continue to be available on Apple devices and on the servers of its Private Cloud Compute platform. What is not so clear is that the Apple Intelligence models do not also end up being based on Gemini. Especially since Apple’s “foundational models will be based on Google’s Gemini models.” A priori that should mean internal changes at Apple Intelligence as they adopt Google technology. The new Siri at WWDC? The new version of Siri is expected to be presented in March or April behind him controversial delay which was announced almost a year ago. The new voice assistant will theoretically debut in iOS 26.4, the update that should arrive in those months, but Apple could take the opportunity to announce it at WWDC 2026, two years after that initial announcement that ended up becoming a fiasco: Apple promised things which it has not achieved until now, but Gemini may finally become the solution to that problem. In Xataka | Apple has decided not to enter the AI ​​war because it believes it has something more important: the entry “door”

Huawei is building its own alternative ecosystem to CUDA. If it succeeds, NVIDIA will have a serious problem

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When talking about NVIDIA, almost all the focus is on the hardware: the H100Blackwell, racksenergy consumption, nanometers… It is understandable, but it is a mistake. The defensive moat – the moat– NVIDIA is not the hardware. Is CUDA. CUDA is not an add-on to the chip, it is the de facto standard upon which most of the AI ​​code on the planet is written, optimized and debugged. Changing GPUs without changing CUDA does not exist. And switching from CUDA means rewriting years of work. That is why it is a moat. Why is it important. Huawei’s big bet is not to “make a Chinese H100.” It is to build a path for the developer to reach Ascend without feeling like you are changing planets. The restrictions are accelerating it. Exports have split the world in two: An ecosystem that revolves around NVIDIA. And another that China is trying to lift against the clock. In that second, Huawei is not just playing chips: is playing “ecosystem”in AI and outside of it. And therein lies the nuance: you can be years behind in chips and still reduce dependency if you get the software to swallow. In detail. Huawei is attacking the problem on three fronts, with a pragmatically Chinese logic: not to replace everything at once, but to open shortcuts. Native stack (CANN + MindSpore). It is your “pure” alternative: your own environment and your own tools to get the most out of Ascend. The cost today is high, there are complaints of instability, the documentation is rather messy, and the community is much smaller. PyTorch support. This is the most strategic move. Huawei does not try to make the world love its framework– Try to ensure that the world doesn’t have to leave PyTorch. torch_npu acts as an adapter to run PyTorch models on Ascend, but with one problem: it is not native and suffers with every PyTorch change. If PyTorch advances and your backend lags behind, the developer notices. Portability via ONNX. Here Huawei looks for its best window: inference and deployment, not training. ONNX works as a bridge format: you train where you can (often NVIDIA) and deploy to Ascend. It’s a less romantic and more useful approach: if shortages hit, moving inference to local hardware is an immediate relief. Between the lines. The real story is that Huawei is trying to replicate the “trick” that made NVIDIA great: turning its hardware into an experience. That’s why the tactic that explains everything appears: putting engineers in the client’s home to migrate code and optimize it. It is not scalable as a business model, but it is scalable as a transition model: you buy time while you mature tools, libraries and support. And there is another derivative: if China gets enough teams to adopt Ascend out of necessity, over time that can become habit and then infrastructure. Not because it is better, but because it is already integrated. Yes, but. Huawei has two limits that cannot be fixed with marketing: Hardware improvement rate: Roadmap analysis suggests relative stagnation and a gap that could widen, not close, if NVIDIA continues to accelerate cycles. Off-chip bottlenecks: memory (HBM), tools and industrial capacity. You can add “worse” chips, but you need to make a lot of them and build a lot of systems. And now what. If this movie continues, we will see two clear signs: Less hype of chips and more real migration stories: how many computers have moved to Ascendwith what frictions, with what performance losses. Less obsession with training in Ascend and more normalization of the hybrid pattern: I train where I can, I deploy where I must. NVIDIA will continue to be CUDA. Huawei is not “a chip.” It is an escape strategy. And the restrictions are the fuel that is making it inevitable. In Xataka | With HarmonyOS NEXT Huawei has achieved something incredible. Neither Samsung, Microsoft nor Mozilla achieved it Featured image | NVIDIA, Huawei

Madrid was supposed to have renaturalized the Manzanares for its ecosystem. Now he has turned it into another tourist attraction

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It is not strange that in December talk about lights. In recent years some cities in Spain have launched a crazy race for displaying millions of LEDs along its streets or raising the tallest luminous Christmas tree in the country. What is less common is that people talk about the lights that decorate the bed of a river, which is precisely what has been worrying environmentalists and residents of Madrid for days. To be more precise it worries them the City Council’s initiative to activate 61 projectors in Manzanares. For the City Council, these lights are a success that will “more attractive” the riverbank and will reinforce its security. For neighbors and environmentalists, it is a mistake that will generate something very different: “light pollution.” What has happened? That Manzanares is news. And not because of the “renaturalization” process that began years ago, of which they stick out their chest the Madrid City Council and the neighbors and (among other things) has helped recover its fauna. The key in this case is quite different: the lighting system installed in a 560-meter stretch of the river, around Dam 6, between the districts of Arganzuela and Latina. Although the spotlights were installed there more than a year ago They were not activated until a few days agocoinciding with the on of Christmas lights. The problem is that what for the City Council is a cause for celebration for residents and environmentalists is a problem. Why’s that? Because the opinions regarding the Manzanares lights could not be more different. If you ask the City Council, it is an initiative “sustainable and respectful” with the environment that will benefit the neighbors and attract tourists. “It will make this city environment more attractive for residents and visitors, also offering more security to pedestrians,” claims José Luis Martínez-Almeida’s team in the statement in which he celebrated the commissioning of the lights, last Saturday the 22nd. “The 61 LED projectors will project a blue light to boost the attractiveness of the area and realize the central construction,” abounds the City Council before stating that the lights are part of a “pilot project” and are here to stay. For now, they will continue to operate beyond Christmas, on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, adapting their operating hours to sunset. What do the critics say? They talk about “light pollution” and a measure that has been deployed “despite citizen and scientific rejection.” Among those who have spoken out most vigorously against the 61 river projectors are: Ecologists in Action and the Corridor Verde-Imperial Neighborhood Associationgroups that put forward various arguments, such as that the new outbreaks will negatively affect the ecosystem or that they only seek to attract visitors. “It is unnecessary and harmful, it is not justified by any reason of general or public interest and it only responds to the arbitrary whim of the City Council in its desire to continue touristifying the city in general and Madrid Río in particular”, regrets Ecologists. However, the greatest emphasis is placed on the impact that LEDs will have on fauna, something that has already earned them “scientific rejection.” Will it affect the river ecosystem? It depends on who you ask. For the environmental group there are no doubts. “You cannot subject the fauna of Manzanares to an eternal day, not only the birds, but also the insects, which are a crucial part of the ecosystem,” warns in The Confidential Erika González, biologist. “Fauna, like human beings, also need darkness for their life cycle (…) It is difficult for us to understand why the City Council, the same one that decided to successfully renaturalize Manzanares and dedicates a budget for maintenance, now decides to attack the ecosystem.” Things are quite different for the local government, which in the same statement in which he reports on the switching on of the projectors, he emphasizes that the system has been designed applying environmental criteria. “It has been developed using solutions that minimize light pollution. The spotlights are located in a pocket of the river, limiting light emissions to the sky.” Is it the only disagreement? No. Another idea in which the City Council and the neighbors clash is the convenience and necessity of the lights. From the City Hall they argue that the lights will improve “safety” around the river, but residents question whether that is necessary. “There is no insecurity problem and if there were, the logical thing is that lights be installed on the street, not in the river bed,” reasons Susana de la Higuera, from the Pasillo Verde-Imperial Neighborhood Association. The controversy surrounding the Manzanares lights dates back a few months. In fact, the City Council installed them in 2024 with a view to Christmas of that year, but his critics took the issue to the courts and requested precautionary measures. Although the process is not resolved, the judge handling it denied a few months ago the temporary stay that kept the lights disconnected. Ecologists in Action regrets In any case, the City Council has turned them on with the contentious appeal still open. Their discomfort (like that of the neighbors) has already moved to the street with a protest on friday. Images | Madrid City Council In Xataka | Felipe II wanted to build an XXL canal from Madrid to Lisbon. Now the city has recovered it, inspired by Ancient Egypt

The ecosystem is what keeps me at Apple. OPPO has proposed to burst it

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If the mountain does not go to Muhammad, Muhammad goes to the mountain. One of the reasons why I am an Apple user, it is because of its ecosystem. Although I have a second Android phone, there are two elements that continue to tie me to the apple: the Apple Watch (which seems irreplaceable to me) and AirDrop. The twist is that Android is turning that upside down, and OPPO with O+Connect has given me a slap of reality. If Apple is jealous about something, it is its ecosystem. Their devices work great with each other, but with Android/Windows they cut features or don’t work at all. In recent months, Chinese brands have set out to break that barrier, with Xiaomi and OPPO being the leaders when creating Android devices with “native” support of Apple devices. From OPPO they have already shown the AirPods working perfectly on an Android mobile and they have plans for the same thing to happen with the Apple Watch, and Xiaomi with HyperOS 3 allows you to use your iPad and Mac as floating windows. The theory is fine, but now I have seen first-hand that it works perfectly. And O+Connect is a missile to Apple’s AirDrop… which works even better than AirDrop. OPPO busting AirDrop OPPO has been arguing for a few years that we should be able to interconnect devices regardless of their brand and operating system. In 2022 they launched Connect to allow you to easily control and send files with Windows, but a few months ago announced the evolution: O+ Connect. This app was presented from the beginning as the tool for an OPPO device to communicate not only with a PC, but with a Mac and, also, with iOS devices. Translation: a way to transfer files between the two that emulates the operation of AirDrop. Due to technical issues, it is something that has been implemented in OPPO, OnePlus and Realme phones little by little with the latest system versionsand it basically works like this: On the iPhone/iPad, we download O+ Connect from the App Store. On the OPPO, OnePlus or Realme device, we choose the “Share” option and click on the “iPhone or PC” icon. Literally, the icon is an iPhone with its Dynamic Island and everything. The Android creates a Wi-Fi hotspot and, from the O+ Connect app, the iPhone detects that connection point. We send the files and they are transferred over that local connection. When the transfer is finished, which is very fast, the hotspot is automatically deactivated. Recently, I have had two cell phones from the group in my hands. First, the Realme GT8 Pro with which I went to China to take photosand a few days ago the OPPO Find X9 Pro for analysis. With both I have used this function a lot – a lot – to transfer photos to both the iPhone (from where I upload them to Instagram) and the iMac (because it also works on macOS), and the experience has been fantastic. I share a lot with AirDrop and it usually works well, but there are many times where either the transfer fails or it doesn’t set up in the first place, having to turn AirDrop off, turn it back on, and repeat the process. It’s a bit tedious, but my experience with both the OPPO and the Realme has been spectacular. Not a single mistake, good transfer speeds (even scrolling through very heavy photos and videos) and, in general, a very good experience. I think it’s not as fast as the native AirDrop feature, but set to burst the ecosystemI consider AirDrop and full support for AirPods to be very good touchstones. As I said at the beginning, that ecosystem is the only thing that keeps me in the apple brand, and the moment I can use my Apple Watch Series 10 on a mobile phone with the photographic capabilities of a Xiaomi 17 Profrom a Vivo X300 Pro or the OPPO Find X9 Pro itself, it is more than likely that I will return to Android as my main system. Images and photos | Xataka In Xataka | Macbook Pro M5, analysis: sometimes, the advances that are not seen are the great success of an excellent product

Samsung already has its “Safari moment.” The launch of your browser on Windows is the key to having your Apple-like ecosystem

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For years, Galaxy mobile users have had a somewhat fractured experience when it comes to synchronized web browsing between devices. opt for google chrome is the best option for this, although the South Korean’s own browser is considered one of the best alternatives for those who want to escape the clutches of Google. Upon reaching the PC, that history, passwords and bookmarks were trapped on the mobile. Despite has not stopped improving in recent times, more with the arrival of One UI 7, so far it has not landed on Windows. Samsung Internet comes to computers. Samsung officially announced the launch of “Samsung Internet” for PC. At the moment, it is a beta version compatible with Windows 10 (version 1809 or higher) and any build of Windows 11. The company has already made a failed attempt in 2023but this time the launch is final. The key. Let’s be clear: Samsung’s goal is not to steal your gigantic market share to Chrome. Rather, Samsung’s move seeks to replicate the strategy of other Big Tech like Apple with Safari: strengthen its own ecosystem with services out of the box. The goal is for the experience between a Galaxy and a laptop (like a Galaxy Book) to be seamless and frictionless. This is how it works. Synchronization with Samsung Android phones is its crown jewel. When you open it for the first time, it suggests logging in with your personal Samsung account, and so the PC browser automatically syncs: history, bookmarks, passwords saved in Samsung Pass… Until now, this required installing a dodgy Chrome extension, but that’s gone: it’s now a native feature that works without a hitch. Packed with features. Samsung hasn’t skimped on features when moving its browser to Microsoft’s operating system. Much of what makes the smartphone version popular matters: Galaxy AI – Includes navigation assistant to summarize and translate web pages. Privacy: Maintains “Smart Anti-Tracking” and “Privacy Panel”. Secret mode: its own version of incognito mode, which on Android allows you to lock yourself with a fingerprint, is present. Split View: Allows you to view two web pages side by side in the same tab. Does not break the monopoly. As expected, the South Korean has been based on the most predominant engine on the market: Chromium. This is a fundamental advantage for two reasons: compatibility with all websites and, of course, with all extensions in the Chrome Web Store. We have tried it. After downloading the installer, the process is very fast. The first startup asks to sign in with your Samsung account, offers to import bookmarks from other installed browsers, and asks if you want to activate the ad blocker. In less than a minute, the bookmarks from my phone were already on the PC. I was looking for an alternative outside of Google and this Samsung Internet is going to stay on my Galaxy for a while. Galaxy AI on Samsung Internet for PC allows you to translate and summarize web pages After a few hours of use, I have positive feelings. The interface is clean, minimalist and respects One UI design elementsSamsung’s customization layer on Android. Consistency in the design is not broken, and that is not so simple when talking about different operating systems. It feels light and fast, without the burden of extra services that others like Microsoft add to their solutions. And unlike Chrome, synchronization of open tabs between your mobile and PC is almost instantaneous. How to install it. Here comes the important part. Officially, the beta is only available to users in the United States and Korea. However, there is a direct link to the executable file, which they have shared from SamMobile. We have tested it from Spain and it works perfectly, although we have to apply a small fix for it to start: change the language and region of Windows to “English (United States)” and “United States.” Soon, when it arrives globally, it will be executed without major impediments. Cover image | Pepu Ricca for Xataka In Xataka | Change Chrome for a European alternative: step to follow and what you should take into account

They are the last hope of an ecosystem on the brink of collapse

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Under the waters of the Mar Menor, a tiny army has just deployed on a pyramid of biodegradable clay bricks. There are 55,000 flat oysters —Ostrea edulis— born in a hatchery of the Spanish Institute of Oceanography (IEO-CSIC) and today converted into hope to filter and regenerate a system on the brink of collapse. The operation, carried out by the IEO team and the Association of Southeastern Naturalists (ANSE) with the logistical support of the WWF solar boat, It is the first experimental reef native oyster from the Mar Menor. A deep project. The project is called RemediOS-2, and it doesn’t come out of nowhere. Its first phase, RemediOS-1demonstrated in 2022 that it was possible to produce oyster seed from native specimens of the Mar Menor. In just four months, the IEO hatchery in Lo Pagán produced 60 million larvae from just 36 broodstock. Now, the second phase makes the leap to the open sea. The idea is simple, but ambitious: oysters are natural biofilters. A single oyster can filter five to ten liters of water a day, removing organic matter and nutrients. The researchers estimate that a well-established culture will retain up to 20% of the nitrogen that enters the lagoon each year, and that the entire oyster population would be able to filter the entire Mar Menor in just 23 days. But how does it work? The experimental reef is located near Isla del Barón, one of the most sensitive areas of the Mar Menor. There, 175 blocks of biodegradable clay designed by the company Oyster Heaven were anchored. Larvae settled on them, which now grow feeding on excess nutrients in the water. Each block functions as a “temporary home”: the material slowly degrades while the oysters attach themselves to the bottom and form their own natural reef. In total, the system occupies about 12 square meters of seabed, but represents a key experiment in ecological restoration. Scientific monitoring is carried out by ANSE under the direction of the IEO-CSIC. Technicians analyze the survival, growth and stress level of the oysters, in addition to measuring their sexual maturation and the accumulation of contaminants such as bacteria. E.coli or marine biotoxins. An extra help. To monitor this entire process they need even more hands. So the project counts too with technological support from the Polytechnic University of Cartagena (UPCT). Its researcher Francisco López Castejón used a remote underwater vehicle (ROV) to inspect the reef and see how this technology can monitor underwater habitats where diving is difficult. With science and technology working together underwater, the next question is inevitable. Why oysters in the Mar Menor? For decades, this sea has suffered from the accumulation of nitrates and phosphates from intensive agriculture. These nutrients feed an excess of phytoplankton that clouds the water and depletes oxygen, causing massive episodes of anoxia and death of fauna. The goal of RemediOS-2, in the words of the Department of the Environment of the Region of Murciais that the flat oyster acts as a natural regeneration tool. Its filtering helps reduce eutrophication and its shells, rich in calcium carbonate, contribute to carbon storage, an added benefit in the face of climate change. Beyond restoration. The project is also a test bed for a new blue economy. According to the Pleamar Program, The project aims to involve the local fishing sector, organize marine spaces for future restoration actions and demonstrate that regenerative aquaculture can be compatible with environmental recovery. The third phase of the project will include genetic studies to check whether local oysters are better adapted to climate change, with the aim of producing resistant “seeds” that can be reintroduced both into the lagoon and the Mediterranean. Forecasts. For now, oysters continue to grow under the gaze of researchers and underwater robots. The third part of RemediOS is already in planning. Perhaps these 55,000 oysters alone cannot save the Mar Menor, but they can demonstrate that environmental restoration can start with a mollusk, a handful of biodegradable bricks and a simple idea: let nature repair itself. Image | IEO Xataka | The reservoirs in the Segura basin are at their limit. The question is whether the new rains can save them

a domestic ecosystem that you cannot escape

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We are in Munich to attend the presentation of Xiaomi. There are spotlights illuminating Xiaomi 15t Pro And at the entrance of the auditorium it is the pair of Su7 ultra Those who wear all eyes. But something catches my attention: At the door there is a huge Trojan horsewhich leads these lines. Remember this data. In the presentation, the brand shouts its specifications: Collaboration with Leica. Periscopic telephoto. 3,200 brightness nits. “Interesting, but secondary,” I think. The biggest announcement that Xiaomi is doing here is not measured in pixels or focal lengths, but in The cubic meters of conquered domestic space. Xiaomi has just entered the European appliance market. Neveras, washing machines, air conditioners. Far beyond air fryers and whippers. It is part of the great jump that the company is making. Those who a decade ago sold regulators at 150 euros and competed in price, five months ago They left me speechless with their ultra Exposed in Shanghai, competing from you to you with Porsche. And now you are executing a maneuver that reminds a lot of Huawei’s story After US sanctions: The construction of a self -sufficient and vertically integrated technological universe. Huawei responded to need: sanctions forced him to create Harmonyos and its own ecosystem. Xiaomi acts, rather, from what we could call an “calculated ambition”. We have been seeing this slide in their presentations for years, with a somewhat oversized pride: The photo is from the Munich event and the 15T, but this same mantra we have been watching it for a long time in all Xiaomi presentations. Image: Xataka. Oversized because ‘Human X Car x Home ‘stayed somewhat lame in the last two areas. In 2024 they solved the second and now they just solved the third. They just announced a fridge, the Mijia Refrigerator Cross Door 502L. In addition to a fridge, it is a 502 -liter data terminal installed in the kitchen. A space that was previously foreign to the brand. It is important because Xiaomi is well understanding human behavior and technological inertia: When you install an Xiaomi fridge that communicates perfectly with your washing machine, which in turn is synchronized with Your vacuum robot And with your TV, you have crossed a psychological and economic threshold that it is difficult to return. The cost of that change – Substack is crowded with Reflections on the famous’Switching Cost ‘– It is not calculated by the price of the new mobile, but in the complete disintegration of your domestic ecosystem. What Apple is doing with devices, wearables and services, but applied to ‘HUMAN X CAR X HOMand‘. With the car we saw something similar, and with the glasses, too. As with the best ecosystems, CAda device is a node that reinforces general architecture. The smartphone (now that 15t pro that monopolizes holders) is only the epicenter, but intelligence is distributed throughout the rest of the house. The one that captures and processes the flow of data that emanates from everyday life. Each interaction with the fridge, each washing cycle, each thermostat adjustment, feeds a system that learns, predicts and at some point will anticipate needs. The comparison with Huawei is inevitable. Both have demonstrated transformation capabilities. Huawei building its strength in response to an external siege. Xiaomi, executing its planned territorial expansion. His entry into Europe with this range of “Aiot appliances” shows an ambition that goes beyond the market share: they want to change the nature of the connected home. Image: Xataka. Europe has a fragmented appliance market. It is dominated by centennial marks like Bosch and Siemens, there are local phenomena like Balay, the arrival of Hisense has noticed and Samsung pushes, with more insistence than Tino, focusing on technology. Unique opportunity, especially if The European consumer, traditionally conservative choosing large appliances, begins to value more connectivity and energy efficiency (Xiaomi proudly exhibits the A +++ certificates in their air conditioners) above the brand tradition. If someone believes that the European consumer clings to their trusted brands, and more if they are local, you just have to remind you What happened to BQ in 2018: He clung to that idea as an argument against the arrival of Xiaomi and that was one of his last decisions before he died. In addition, Xiaomi’s great danger comes from its execution speed. In three years they went from having no automotive division to produce the SU7a vehicle that not only competes but in many aspects surpasses the giants of the sector. Now, that same speed is applied to the home. The vacuum robot with 20,000 pa for suction. The washer with AI that adjusts the cycles according to the type of tissue. The refrigerator with customizable temperature areas. Everything points to a future where the distinction between intelligent device and traditional appliance simply disappears. But there is a more disturbing dimension in this conquest: the concentration of technological power in the hands of a few companies – mainly Chinese and American— Ask questions about privacy, digital sovereignty and technological dependence. When your fridge, your washing machine, your car and your phone respond to the same company, you have given a level of control over your daily life that would have been unthinkable makes a generation. The data that flow from these devices are information, are power. AND In that technological crossroads is Europto. Without its own technological giants capable of competing in this new scenario of total integration, you must choose between American ecosystems (Google, Apple, Amazon …) and the Chinese (Xiaomi, Huawei … and soon perhaps Byd with their own home automation ambitions). Each choice implies more than a preference for consumption, it is an implicit geopolitical alignment. Today’s technology is much more complex than ten years ago. That is why this presentation in Munich will be something that I will remember within a few years. It is not so much the launch of new products, as any other presentation, but The turning point in the way Chinese technology continues to … Read more

Someone forgot a bag of cheetos in the largest cave chamber in the US. The problem is chaos to the ecosystem that comes after

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That humans can generate The biggest chaos in ecosystems that surround us I think it is out of any doubt. However, already a difference from other animals, no matter how large the error is, We are able to repeat it In a short time. Therefore, what happened in one of the most fascinating areas in the United States is a good example. Even if it is A simple check of Cheetos. The importance of Carlsbad’s caverns. Located in the state of New Mexico, it is about A set of more than 119 underground cavesof great geological and ecological importance. Formed by the acid water action that dissolved the limestone over millions of years, these caverns stand out for their vast network of passages and cameras, including the famous “great room”, one of the largest underground cameras in the world. These unique geological formations include impressive stalactites, stalagmites and columns, hence it is of great scientific interest to study the processes of training of caves and the geological history of the southwest of the United States. However, this enclave named World Heritage by UNESCO has also become a must of mass tourism. A bag. As The National Parks Service explained in an article (NPS), what happened should make all future tourists think after a distracted visitor left a bag of Cheetos in the depths of the Carlsbad caverns. Apparently, the snack dropped into the historic great room, the largest cave chamber by volume in North America, the same one that can only be accessed by walking around an hour underground. A pump to the ecosystem. Once there, the bag can rot in the wells of the wet cave. In other words, those small “cheese” snacks stranded in the cave can make a small expansive wave through the local ecosystem. “The processed corn, softened by the moisture of the cave, formed the perfect environment to house microbial life and fungi. The crickets, mites, spiders and flies of the cave are soon organized in a temporary food network, dispersing the nutrients to the cave and the surrounding formations. The mold extends to the nearby surfaces, gives fruit, dies and smells bad. Count the NPS In a publication. A much bigger problem. In the same article it is denounced that “at the scale of the human perspective, a spilled snack bag may seem trivial, but for the life of the cave the world can change,” they emphasize. “Great or small, we all leave an impact wherever we go. Let’s all leave the world in a better place than we find,” adds the center. Apparently, the rangers had to perform an arduous follow -up task to carefully eliminate any rest of the garbage and mold from the surface of the cave, hoping to avoid any lasting impact on the cave. Garbage and natural environments. One of the great scourges of The National Parks of the United States It has to do with what visitors “bring” and leave when they leave. That garbage throws chilling numbers: more than 300 million people visit the national parks every year, generating almost 70 million tons of garbage. And of all enclaves, the caves take the worst part. The reason? They are more vulnerable because they are isolated from the outside world and house a rich variety of highly adapted, endemic and sensitive organisms. If a new seasoning is added to the equation, call cheetos or similar ones, the result can radically alter the balance of biodiversity. The example of the Lascaux cave. Possibly, it is the most famous case and the clearest example of how we are capable of alter an environment of this type. Discovered in France in 1940, they immediately became famous for their cave paintings dating from 17,000 years ago, one of the best samples of prehistoric art. However, after opening to the public in 1948, mass visits began to negatively affect the delicate microclimate of the cave. Apparently carbon dioxide exhaled by visitors, along with moisture and changes in temperature, began to cause visible damage to paintings, such as the appearance of fungi and algae on the walls. These changes put at risk the conservation of paintings, some of the most important in humanity. Closed forever. Faced with this deterioration, in 1963 the French authorities made the decision of Close the Lascaux cave to the public To protect the paintings. Since then, only a very limited number of scientists and conservation experts have had access to it. In fact, to allow the public to continue appreciating the art of Lascaux, a replica known as Lascaux II was created, which reproduces the main cameras and paintings of the original cave. This measure, protecting the historical value of the caves with steel doors and security cameras, has allowed to preserve the artistic heritage of Lascaux while maintaining its educational and cultural value. Maybe we should do the same with all caves with historical value. Although before it should be reviewed that no one has left a snack. A version of this article is PUblicó in 2024 Image | Ken LundCarlsbad Caverns National Park In Xataka | We have been recycling the garbage we produce. Experts say it has not served at all In Xataka | In the US, a woman used an AirTag to check if recycling served something there. It turned out that it did not work

Spain is no longer the ugly duckling of the European technological ecosystem. Now has the opposite problem

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Spain is ceasing to be the lagged technological ecosystem of Europe. The venture capital funds have invested just over 1 billion euros in 95 Spanish startups only in the first quarter of 2025. That represents an 184% increase on the sum collected in the first quarter of 2024, according to a long report published by Sifted. Why is it important. Spain is already the Fourth European country in technological financing this yearand its operations count is already close to Germany and France, with populations and income per capita notably higher. The context. This moment is not accidental, but arrives at the confluence of three factors that have created the perfect storm: The gold fever that is being AI worldwide. Government movements favorable to technology, such as generous fiscal disasters, Visas for Startups and Digital Nomads wave Sett. The appearance of the so -called ‘Mafia founders’: those that have experience in large Spanish companies such as Cabify, Glovo and Job & Talent. There is a turn here: recent rounds are larger and faster to run than before, according to Sifted in statements from sources in the sector consulted. In figures: 95 capital rounds. 910 million euros collected in what we have of a second quarter … … which is 90% more than in the second quarter of 2024. And the trend accelerates: more than half of all financing operations in Spain had at least one foreign investor. The accumulated in what we have of the year is more moderate if we attend to the figures of The referentwhich reach 1,774 million euros compared to 1910, depending on the methodology and type of operations included. In any case, the amount is higher than that of any year except 2021, 2022 and 2024. And we have not even reached the 2025 Ecuador. In the foreground. The big names are here: Between the lines. It is a change that goes beyond money: that there are Spanish founders contacting large investors is a double sign: Increase confidence in your own startups. They look for better conditions than those offered by Spanish funds. This contributes to the gap between British and Spanish equivalent rounds, to give an example, reduce. Yes, but. The background question is whether there really is a change in the trend or if we are simply seeing the consequence of large funds looking for destiny to your money. And that arrival of foreign funds also represents a dilemma for national risk capital: More legitimacy for the ecosystem. But also more competition. Spain has gone from being ignored by the great international funds that its own founders often prefer the conditions that foreign investors can offer. Spanish funds now face a competition that previously existed. The problem contrary to the one they had five years ago. In Xataka | The worst nightmare for governments is to have more pensioners than workers: in Galicia it is already happening Outstanding image | Per Lööv in Unspash

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