manufacturer

Mobile phones in China are suffering the biggest price increase in five years. The culprit is not a manufacturer: it is AI

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Smartphones face a year of challenges due to the price of basic components such as RAM. The predictions They are already talking about increases of between 90 and 150 dollars for basic mobile phones, and between 300 and 400 dollars in the case of high-end mobile phones. AI is about to blow up an industry that has claimed its first victim: Meizu. Go for it, leave almost everything. I still remember that MWC last year when I stopped by the Meizu stand. I liked what I saw: new batch mobiles, with balanced hardware, the design and ROM that I fell in love with almost a decade ago and a shocking promise: the manufacturer was preparing its global launch. A history of mobile manufacturing in China, about to return to Europe as an alternative to manufacturers such as Xiaomi, Honor or OPPO. what has happened. Recently, Meizu has announced its exit from the smartphone market to focus their efforts on AI. In addition to the strong competition in its local market, the sharp rise in RAM prices makes it difficult for the manufacturer to be competitive against more established brands. It is a movement similar to that of ASUS, which He has said goodbye to his Zenfone family to focus on AI solutions and other types of products. The death of the quality-price mobile phone? 2026 will be a critical year for quality-price mobile phones. For years, manufacturers have been able to play with relatively comfortable margins: RAM abundance Component recycling A supply chain at your entire disposal The RAM giants have their shelves collapsed due to requests related to AI, and cheap modules have completely stopped being a priority. The dilemma. IDC analysts make it clear that we are witnessing a major shock in the supply chain. It’s not a temporary high: AI has completely changed market priorities, and things like RAM won’t stabilize in price anytime soon. Historically, we have normalized annual cycles and launches “just because”, even though there was no hardware or news to justify the launch of clone phones year after year. Maybe and just maybe, the price crisis will make manufacturers have to rethink their strategy. Image | Meizu In Xataka | Expensive and premium mobile phones are not a fad: they are the new standard, and Motorola knows it

The Nintendo DS was the best-selling console in the history of the Japanese manufacturer until now. It’s easy to guess who has surpassed her

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The Nintendo Switch has become the best-selling console in the history of the Japanese company, as revealed by Nintendo in its financial report of February 3, 2026. With 155.37 million units sold until the end of December 2025, the hybrid system has surpassed the 154.02 million of the Nintendo DS, which held the record since its discontinuation in 2013. Two proposals. The data gain more weight considering that the Switch debuted in 2017 with a price of $299.99 (exactly double the $149.99 of the DS in 2004) and not has officially dropped in price in its eight years of commercial life. The concept of the DS (two screens, one of them touch) represented a risky bet when the industry prioritized graphical power. The console found its audience in sectors outside of traditional video games, with titles such as ‘Brain Training’ and ‘Nintendogs’ that attracted users with the same casual profile that the Wii had conquered. Added to this was the DS Lite, launched in 2006, which represented 61% of the system’s total sales: 93.86 million units. The Switch arrives. In 2017, the Switch was double the price of its portable predecessor. Its hybrid concept (functioning as a desktop console connected to the television and as a portable device) eliminated Nintendo’s traditional division between home and mobile platforms. And without price cuts: the OLED model, launched in 2021 at $349.99, meant a net increase in the market positioning of the system. Different pricing policies. The pricing strategy of both consoles differs significantly. Adjusted for inflation, the $149.99 DS in 2004 andThey would be equivalent to approximately $240 in 2024. The DS also experienced reductions during its life cycle, reaching $99.99 in 2011. The Switch, in contrast, has maintained its base price for eight years, something unusual in the consumer electronics industry. The accumulated inflation since 2017 has reduced the real value of the price by approximately 20%. For comparison, the PlayStation 2 dropped its price from $300 to $100 in less than a decade. But the Switch unifies two segments: while the DS competed exclusively as a portable platform (coexisting with the Wii and Wii U as home consoles), each Switch unit captures both the traditional home console and handheld audiences. The difference: the software. Beyond hardware, software performance reveals a gap between both systems. According to data from November 2025the Switch has sold 1,452.79 million software units throughout its life cycle, compared to the 948.76 million that the DS reached at the end of its production. A difference of 53% in favor of the Switch that indicates a greater commitment on the part of its user base. Put another way: each Switch owner has purchased an average of approximately 9.4 games, compared to 6.2 for DS users. The Switch catalog, which includes ports and remasters of titles previously exclusive to other platforms, has reached an audience that goes beyond the traditional Nintendo. PS2 objective. The Switch is still below the absolute industry record: Sony’s PlayStation 2 maintains the position of best-selling console of all time with figures that exceed 160 million units. This brand has generated some controversy after Sony updated its historical data including sales that were not previously listed in its public records. To reach that figure, the Switch would need to sell approximately 4.63 million additional units. However, Nintendo’s current projections contemplate only 750,000 more units until the end of the fiscal year. Besides, Switch 2 It has already sold 17.37 million units. The coexistence of both models on the market could accelerate the withdrawal of the original hardware. Images | Xataka In Xataka | The most recurring criticism of Nintendo Switch 2 is that “it does not innovate.” We have tried it and we have something to say about it

In the 15th century Mallorca was a great manufacturer of nautical charts. Now that has allowed him to get hold of a treasure

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When almost six centuries ago the cartographer Pere Rossell created a detailed nautical chart of the Mediterranean, its purpose was to help sailors negotiate the winding coasts of North Africa and the Tyrrhenian, Ionian and Black Seas, a vast expanse of water crisscrossed with trade routes. What Rossell probably did not imagine is that in 2025 that Portulan letter full of annotations, lines and the occasional illustration would end up becoming a treasure in itself. One for which the Consell de Mallorca has paid 700,000 euros. The goal: bring him back home. A map, a treasure. That there are maps (and codices) that are worth more than many treasures is nothing new. He reminded us a few years ago an atlas supposedly consulted by Christopher Columbus on his first trip to America that ended up sold for several million euros. And we has remembered again now the Consell de Mallorca, although with a much more modest outlay. The island government has just paid 700,000 euros by a nautical chart prepared in the mid-15th century by one of the most important (and prolific) cartographers on the island at that time: Pere Rossellpart of the Mallorcan cartographic schoolwhich in turn connects with one of the eras of greatest splendor of the region in the preparation of nautical charts. From the workshops of Mallorca came plans so precious that they were in demand from Flanders to Alexandria. The Mediterranean on paper. The Majorcan press assures that the objective of the Consell is to expose the document in the Mallorca Museumbut the truth is that you don’t have to wait that long to enjoy its details, colors and annotations. At least if we don’t mind doing it through a screen. Sotheby’s, the firm in charge of the auction, includes a description and a detailed gallery of images on your websitewhich recalls that the plan was drawn up at the end of the 1440s, is written in Latin and Catalan and shows the Mediterranean and Black Seas in great detail. In the work Rossell reviewed dozens and dozens of place names and multiple navigation routes. As a cherry on top, it included shields, flags and details of nine cities with their fortifications. “Part of our identity”. Sotheby’s also stated that the plan has been valued by between 700,000 and one million of pounds. Mallorca Diary precise that the starting price was 600,000, around 687,000 euros, the amount that the island Government has decided to disburse through a direct purchase. The effort is more than justified for the Consell. Its head of Culture, Antònia Roca, celebrated a few days ago that portulano returns to Mallorca after spending several centuries outside the land where it was made, around the year 1447. “We acquired one of the most important jewels of maritime navigation and our historical heritage and we want to share it with the citizens.” A jewel that comes home. Roca is not the only one who thinks this way. A few weeks ago, prestigious historians such as María Barceló, emeritus professor of Medieval History, they claimed to local institutions to take advantage of the Sotheby’s auction to enrich the island’s heritage with a unique piece. Among other reasons, they alleged that no Majorcan public institution has one of the 15th century letters that came from the island’s School of Cartography. “They are the first who should act, they have the moral obligation to acquire it. We must recover the cultural heritage of this land dispersed throughout the world,” the expert insisted. Days later the Consell seemed to take note. Is it so valuable? Beyond its heritage value, Sotheby’s highlights the peculiarity of the nautical chart within Rossell’s legacy: the work that the Consell has just acquired is “the oldest of the ten navigation maps signed by Rossell”, one of the great exponents of the Mallorcan school. The plan was probably drawn up as a commission from the powerful Florentine Martelli family, in whose archive it was preserved for more than five centuries, until almost the 1970s, when it appears in the book dealer’s catalogue. Kenneth Nebenzahl. In the 80s it passed into the hands of the Pritzker couple and now (after a stop at the Sotheby’s auction house) it returns to Mallorca. Works of art…practical. Pere Rossell’s nautical chart is relevant for another reason. In his day there were ordinary plans in which practical criteria predominated and were basically designed for use on board ships, so they were sparse in decorations and ornaments. Then there were luxury portulans, meticulously decorated objects that usually ended up in palaces. As explains Ramón J. Pujadeshead of research at the Barcelona History Museum, The Worldthe work acquired by the Consell is halfway between both categories. They are premium nautical charts, designed for navigation but that do not give up aesthetics or becoming a status symbol. Images | Shoteby’s and Wikipedia In Xataka | Someone has created abstract works of art with one of the most unique forms of engineering: highway “knots”

Ferdinand Porsche devised the first car with an electric motor in each wheel. Today a Chinese manufacturer is going to make it possible

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Just a few days ago we were talking about Dongfeng at the Santana plant, since it will be the Dongfeng Z9, brought in pieces from China, that will end up being assembled in Linares to end up traveling Spanish roads under another name: the Santana 400. However, the brand also has a presence in Spain with the boxan urban vehicle that we have known since the end of last year. Dongfeng in China is another world, as the brand has much more impressive and innovative vehicles. One of them is the eπ 007, which has led the brand to become the first established manufacturer in the world to bring a sedan with four motors integrated into the wheels into mass production. The electric motor that is attached to each wheel What’s special about it. In-wheel motors eliminate traditional components such as the differential, drive shaft and semi-transmissions. The eπ 007 is equipped with four independent units of 100 kW each, manufactured by Shanghai Automobile Electric Drive, which add up to a combined power of 400 kW (536 HP). This architecture promises to reduce mechanical losses approximately 30% and the firm claims that it allows individual control of each wheel with torque responses in milliseconds. The advantages. According to official documentation, the system provides improvements such as a 10% to 15% smaller turning radius, 25% higher energy regeneration efficiency thanks to better braking control on all four wheels, and 20% to 30% lower maintenance costs. In addition, by eliminating the transmission tunnel, the cabin gains interior space with a completely flat floor and greater flexibility in locating the batteries. It’s not the first attempt. Although other manufacturers have attempted to market vehicles with in-wheel motors, such as the Lightyear 0 or the Lordstown Endurance, all came from startups that later went bankrupt. Dongfeng is one of China’s leading state-backed car companies, making the eπ 007 the only model to enter mass production with this technology. The vehicle will be the litmus test to find out if the invention, first devised by Ferdinand Porsche in 1900, it may end up having a commercial place, beyond concepts. The good thing is that the miniaturization of electronics over the last few decades has allowed manufacturers to opt for ideas as revolutionary and as old as including an electric motor in each wheel of the car. In the past, the problem with this system was the excess weight it brought to the vehicle. Today, Dongfeng wants to demonstrate that this idea can become viable. It remains to be seen if it will be so attractive that the general public will bet on it. More traditional versions. At the same time, Dongfeng also recently launched the updated eπ 007+, with three finishes that combine 100% electric and extended autonomy. The price started at about 139,900 yuan (about 16,788 euros). The pure electric variant is offered with a 200 kW rear motor and 650 km of CLTC range, or with a 400 kW dual motor and 565 km. Both use lithium-ferrophosphate batteries. The version with range extender combines a 1.5-liter generator with a 160 kW rear electric motor, achieving 308 km in electric mode and up to 1,308 km in total. In Xataka | Porsche owners in Russia woke up this morning without being able to start their car. And they have a suspicion

V-16 beacons run the risk of being left without connectivity if their manufacturer goes bankrupt. Don’t worry, there is a solution

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You may have read it on social networks: you buy a connected V-16 beacon, you go years without using it and, before you know it, the company that sold it to you has gone bankrupt, has stopped paying for its servers and now you have a nice paperweight because, without connectivity with DGT 3.0, that beacon has become illegal. It’s true? No. Plain and simple. When we buy a connected V-16 beacon, the manufacturer assures us that the connectivity is guaranteed for at least 12 years. The manufacturer may offer more connectivity time, as an incentive to purchase, but it cannot offer less. This, like the luminosity of the beacon or the 30 minutes that it must be in operation for at least, is one of the demands that Traffic has set to manufacturers so they can sell their beacons and we let’s buy them with enough peace of mind to be following the rules. Sure, but… what if the company goes bankrupt? It is one of the questions that some users have asked and that has been answered by accounts on social networks like Twitter. It is stated that when a connected V-16 beacon is activated and the required 100 seconds pass, the following process is launched: Protocol A: the beacon sends the data exclusively to the manufacturer’s servers Protocol B: Data leaves the manufacturer’s servers and is forwarded to the National Access Point for Traffic and Mobility Information which is where all activations and any other type of emergency are reflected. The response points out that, in the event that the manufacturer stops selling the connected V-16 beacon, the connection would be broken and therefore we would be left with a luminous paperweight because without connectivity that light is not legal. Insured. To confirm these details, we have contacted some of the companies that manufacture or sell these types of beacons. César Basterrechea explains to us from Atressa Automotivewho have their own beacons, that the information is not true and clarifies what would happen if their company went bankrupt and stopped paying for the beacons. First, he points out, the manufacturer has to register in DGT 3.0 and request a connectivity license. When this requirement is met, the following happens: “My operator sends me the data generated by one of my beacons through an APN and which is protected within a private VPN, the information reaching my Cloud once received, we send it through a VPN with a digital certificate to the DGT 3.0. If my company closed tomorrow, my operator would redirect the data emitted from my beacons to another APN of its own and through its own VPN it would send the data to the DGT cloud” With these words he explains, therefore, that it is the operator that offers its support if the company stops paying for the servers and, therefore, cannot offer the service. They confirm it to us. Asked to the other party, the answer is the same. In Xataka We have contacted Orange, an operator that offers connectivity in different connected V-16 beacons on the market. The company confirms the above, although it points out that, exactly, it is not that the operator keeps the servers of the bankrupt company, it only guarantees that the signal reaches DGT 3.0. “The communication architecture has been defined so that there are two ways to send the data to DGT 3.0: through the manufacturer’s cloud services (which must always be used if there are no incidents) or directly from the operator if the manufacturer’s cloud service is not operational (manufacturer bankruptcy or massive drop in its cloud service)” It’s not easy. The truth is that although we have confirmation from this beacon manufacturer And getting there is not easy. In the Resolution of November 30, 2021 which details the requirements that a V-16 beacon must have connected to be valid, it specifies that the manufacturer must have support to offer the service if it cannot be performed, but nowhere does it specify whether this company should be the operator, as Atressa Automotive tells us. This text explains the above-mentioned details of protocols A and B. Subsequently, the following is stated: The implementation of a device with these characteristics requires having a standard channel and a common language. Additionally, defining this standard also makes it easier for a third party to perform these functions if necessary due to the existence of a problem in the information systems of a manufacturer. The data model that the messages that V-16 devices send to their manufacturers’ information services must comply with is defined below. a hoax. Although with the connected V-16 beacons we have had a lot of controversy and we know that there are even those who has demonstrated cybersecurity risksThe truth is that this time we are facing a hoax. The DGT has actively repeated that when we buy a connected V-16 beacon we are guaranteed access to DGT 3.0 for 12 years. And although the protocol does not clearly detail whether a specific company must take charge (operators, other manufacturers…), it does specify that it must guarantee backup to keep the service active. Photo | DGT In Xataka | V16 beacon without eSIM or connectivity: what the DGT says about them from 2026

The tunnel between Spain and Morocco seemed like a chimera. Now a tunnel boring machine manufacturer says it is viable

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The idea of ​​connecting Europe and Africa directly is something that takes century and a half fluttering the mind of leaders and engineers. The simplest way would be to connect Spain and Morocco through the Strait of Gibraltar, and what for decades was considered a chimera due to its complexity, today is a little closer. And the company that would make the tunnel boring machine He defends that “it is viable.” In short. I told it Populi Voice a few days ago. Óscar Puente -Minister of Transport- and Karim Zidane -Delegate Minister of Investments, Convergence and Evaluation of Public Policies of Morocco- they met in Moncloa to discuss the infrastructure expansion plan of the North African country. Puente conveyed to the Moroccan minister the interest of the Spanish business sector in participating in an ambitious project that plans to expand its high speed network up to 1,300 km by 2040. The meeting discussed infrastructure such as ports and airports, but the strategic backdrop is the vaunted tunnel that links Spain and Morocco. Centennial project. The union of Europe and Africa through a direct connection between Spain and Morocco is something that comes from afar. The same thing happens with the ‘Peace’ project that aims to unite the United States and Russiabut as in the case of the tunnel with Morocco, it has not yet materialized. In 1869, the Public Works Council already tested the possibility of connecting both continents through Gibraltar. The proposal ended up in the drawer, but over the yearsdifferent technicians and rulers have rescued it with a “we could do this.” There is a clear commercial interest both in mobility of people (the “passage operations” add many vehicles crossing by ferry) as commercial (improvement in relations between the United Kingdom and Morocco, the country from which they buy fruit). “Viable“However, although with some plan in between, nothing was finalized. Something has changed: a German company called Herrenknech affirms that the tunnel is viable. They are not just any company: it is one of those that leads in the manufacturing of tunnel boring machines -or boring machines- and, after a feasibility study commissioned by the Spanish company SECEGSAhave stated that the project is “technologically viable” after the reactivation and promotion of a few years ago and socioeconomic analysis published in 2024. It really isn’t that much distance that would have to be covered. In other parts of the world, such as northern europe or in China, we see similar underwater railway tunnel projects of considerable length. The particularity of the Strait of Gibraltar tunnel is not so much the length (it would have to cover about 40 kilometers underground and underwater), but rather the characteristics of the territory. Characteristics: the tunnel profile would be the following: Distance between terminal stations: 42 kilometers. Total length of the tunnel: 38.5 kilometers. Length of the underwater tunnel: 27.7 kilometers. Minimum range at the lowest point: 175 meters. Maximum depth: 475 meters. Slope: 3%. Complex. The geology of the strait is very complicated because it has numerous areas of unstable clay, but also very strong marine currents and the presence of earthquakes. Any slight mistake when carrying out calculations or using unsuitable materials would cause a catastrophe. This is where Herrenknech comes into play as one of the few companies with the capacity to design specific machines that can operate in these conditions. Apparently, they themselves confess that it would be a challenge, but that a route through the Camarinan Threshold (which is longer than a straight line, but also shallower) could be done with current engineering. and expensive. Viable, yes, cheap… no. According to the information of Populi Voicethe base bidding budget corresponding to the Spanish part would exceed 8.5 billion euros. HE wait that part will be paid for with community funds thanks to concessions similar to those of the Channel Tunnel. And the international implications would be tremendous, linking Rabat and Madrid, directly, by train. It’s going to be long. For a time it was expected that the 2030 World Cup that Spain, Portugal and Morocco will co-organize was the catalyst for this project, but the times simply do not allow it. It would be extremely complicated for the tunnel to be operational by 2030 when we only have a “it is possible” from the company that manufactures tunnel boring machines and, in fact, the estimated deadlines speak of a tunnel within a decade or more. Now, what was considered a chimera for decades is now have a realistic performance goal between 2035 and 2040 is an important step forward. But there is a lack of work, money and crucial international coordination to achieve the objective of this tunnel between Spain and Morocco. The next step? Carry out new studies shared between countries on seismic activity, possible tsunamis and the behavior of the maritime corridor, as well as a technical planning which must be done before August of next year. What is clear is that it seems more viable than the dam-bridge that someone proposed a few years ago. Images | SECEGSA (2), Moncloa In Xataka | Modern tunnel boring machines are real monsters compared to those of 1950. The paradox is that they are just as slow

We believed that the NVIDIA-killer would be some other chip manufacturer. We were very wrong

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Yesterday NVIDIA had a stumble in the stock market. The shares lost 7% and then recovered part of the fall. Meanwhile, Google grew by about 4%. Both movements had the same origin: the rumor that Meta is considering using Google’s TPU chips in its data centers in 2027. Why is it important. During the last few years NVIDIA has managed to dominate imperially the AI ​​chip segment. Its accelerator GPUs made the difference, but although other traditional manufacturers such as AMD tried to follow in its wake, the dominance of the company led by Jensen Huang was spectacular. That could change, and the surprise is that the one who threatens that position is Google. Google prefers to throw balls out. A Google spokesperson explained on CNBC that “Google Cloud is experiencing accelerated demand for both our custom TPUs and NVIDIA GPUs; we are committed to supporting both, as we have for years.” But they have been preparing the move for a decade. Sundar Pichai’s company has been working on the development of the Tensor Processing Unit since 2015. They launched the first version in 2018 to take advantage of it in its cloud computing business, but little by little these TPUs have been gaining performance and are now promising alternatives for AI loads, both for training and especially inference, as Ironwood demonstrates. Anthropic already uses them, Meta could do it. Google has already reached a circular financing agreement with Anthropicto which it will supply its TPUs for data centers that work with its model, Claude. The rumors pointed out by The Information make it feasible that Meta reach a similar agreement with Google and use those chips in its data centers. The difference, of course, is the size of Meta versus Anthropic. NVIDIA shows off its chest. In a post on It is a message with two faces: on the one hand, congratulations. On the other hand, the declaration of intent. But you already know what’s coming. The CEO of NVIDIA, Jensen Huang, already warned at the investor conference when presenting results of the current situation: the rivalry with Google’s TPUs is increasing. However, he also insisted that Google remains his client and Gemini – which has just been renewed with a spectacular Gemini 3— can run on NVIDIA technology. Competition is good. All major technology companies try to avoid dependence on NVIDIA, and almost all of them have their own bets. It’s AMDbut also Intel, Microsoft, amazon and of course the aforementioned Google. But apart from them there are proposals such as those from OpenAI, Broadcom or TSMC that with their XPUs they want to end the reign of NVIDIA. But CUDA is still a lot of CUDA. The development of own chips is promising, but as AMD knows wellNVIDIA continues to have a spectacular wild card with CUDA, the industry standard development platform for AI solutions. The network effect that this technology has generated it’s going to be hard to beatbut Google certainly has resources to try. Image | World Economic Forum | Hilel Steinberg In Xataka | That Qualcomm prepares its own AI chips is good news. Whether it has an opportunity in the market is a very different thing.

The normal thing when a product is successful is that the manufacturer renews it the following year. Hello iPhone Air

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Apple has a problem, almost a syndrome with the fourth iPhone. For years it has been trying to integrate a new variant of the “classic” iPhone into the family, but the success of these models has always been limited. It happened with the iPhone mini and then with the iPhone Plus in its different versions. And now it seems to be happening with his brand new iPhone Air. No iPhone Air 2 at the moment. As indicated in The InformationApple has warned “engineers and suppliers that they would remove the future iPhone Air (next generation) from planning without providing a new release date.” Three different sources have confirmed that Apple has no intention at the moment of relaunching a second iteration of the iPhone Air. We expected it in 2026. Theoretically, the second-generation iPhone Air should have been launched next fall alongside the iPhone 18 family and the rumored iPhone Fold. And it was going to be much better. It was expected to be even lighter than the current iPhone Air and still have a higher capacity battery. In fact, sources close to the project also reveal that Apple was working on a new cooling system that debuted with the iPhone 17 Pro and that would be adapted to those hypothetical iPhone Air (2026). It was even rumored that instead of a single camera I would have two. Bad sales. The reason for that decision seems to be sales of the iPhone Air below expectations. News had already appeared that Apple had ordered a huge production cut to just 80% of the original capacity: that ultralight model does not seem to have attracted the mass public. Minimum production. In The Information they confirm this reduction in production. According to their data, Foxconn has “dismantled all but one and a half production lines, and expect to stop production completely at the end of this month.” Apple’s other major manufacturing partner for the iPhone Air, Luxshare, already stopped its production of this model at the end of October. New release schedule. Following the news, what is now expected is that Apple will present its new family of devices in two different phases: Fall 2026: iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max, iPhone Fold (unofficial name) Spring 2027: iPhone 18, iPhone 18e The other possibility. Sources close to the company reveal that the iPhone Air could simply be suffering important changes —like those mentioned— for a theoretical second generation. That would make its development process a little longer, but it is not ruled out that this model will end up appearing in spring 2027 along with the iPhone 18 and iPhone 18e. The condemnation of iPhones that are liked but do not sell. we loved it the iPhone mini—like everyone else who bought it—but it didn’t sell much. The iPhone Plus also proved to be an interesting product, but it didn’t catch on either. In both cases, Apple ended up abandoning these models to focus on what worked in sales, and now seems to be doing the same, or, at least, adjusting production to demand, something that makes perfect sense from a business point of view. In Xataka | If the question is which of the big tech companies is winning the AI ​​race, the answer is: none

The largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world was born by revenge

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Before changing forever The history of transportation On two wheels, Soichiro Honda was simply a Japanese young man from the late 30s obsessed with the engines. He spent hours in the workshop trying to improve motor parts and creating designs that thought they could make a difference. His most precious creation was a motor piston made with parts of an old radio that, according to him, could Improve the performance of engines. How our partners say Motorpasion motorcyclein those years, Toyota was already The biggest Japanese company of the engine, so the young Honda decided to take his piston with the hope that they would hire him. However, there they did not receive him as the young Soichiro expected. According to He counted Honda himself in an interview for Japanese television: “I took my first pistons to Toyota. I was young, stubborn and dreamer. I thought the engineers would be impressed. But they laughed on my face: ‘This does not meet our standards.” Years later, Honda would remember that moment with a phrase that says everything: “They rejected me in Toyota … so I founded Honda“That” no “of Toyota did not demotivate him, on the contrary. He decided to continue on his own and demonstrate what he was capable of. “I grab my dreams with these hands” After that rejection, Honda did not lament in a corner “I returned to my workshop with my heart broken, but not empty,” he said. He sold to his wife’s jewels to be able to manufacture a prototype and continue working to transform transport. I slept little and spent so many hours in the workshop that he came to confess that “I worked until my hands bleed.” And yet, fate seemed to go against. During World War II, his small factory was destroyed by the bombings. Then, an earthquake razed it again. And what did Honda did? He sold the remains of what was left to Toyota and with that money he set up in 1946 the Honda Technical Research Institute. Such and as they tell in Motorcyclingthe war had left Japan in ruins, so thousands of people needed move in a simple and cheap way. Soichiro thought: If there are engines that are left over, why not put one on a bicycle? Thus their were born First motorized bicycles. They were not the most beautiful or the fastest, but they worked and helped move Thousands of people that before they could not go anywhere. “It was not glamorous, but it worked. And then, the failure ceased to be my enemy … and became my fuel,” Honda told his memoirs. Honda Dream Type D In 1948, Honda associated Takeo Fujisawaan entrepreneur who complemented Soichiro’s business vision. A year later, they launched their first motorcycle designed from zero per Honda motor: the Dream type da motorcycle that mounted a two -stroke engine of 98 cc and 3 hp. It was simple, effective and designed for day to day. As he said: “I grabbed an engine, I rode it on a bicycle, and something new was born.” That way of thinking – resolving real problems with simple ideas – was what ended up marking all its history and that of Honda. The (first) best selling motorcycle on the planet In 1958, Honda was already a recognized brand that built its own engines and assembled them on a small motorcycle that was razing sales: the Honda Super Cub. It was a total success. More than 110 million units have been sold worldwide. That makes it The best selling motorcycle in history. A year later, in 1959, Honda’s motorcycles landed in the US and from there to the world. Today Honda is in more than 160 countries, produces motorcycles in 35 factories distributed throughout 21 different countries. In 2025, they have overcome The 500 million motorcycles produced in total. Honda was always clear with his way of seeing life: “Do you know how that is achieved? Falling so many times that you already know how to get up even before touching the ground“. And everything, for a revenge. In Xataka | The world has been filled with SUVs and electric cars. The Honda Prelude is the confirmation that Japan will be salvation Image | Sling

Industrial espionage is threatening the largest chips manufacturer on the planet: TSMC

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It is no secret: espionage is very present in The semiconductor industry. It is in other sectors and we can be sure that a strategic industry such as integrated circuits It is not at all immune to him. On this occasion “the victim” is the Taiwanese company TSMC, The largest integrated circuit manufacturer of the planet. And, curiously, this plot of industrial espionage does not arrive at any time. And this company is about to start the large -scale manufacture of chips using its most advanced integration technology: The 2 Nm. What we know at the moment is that, According to Reutersthe Taiwanese authorities have arrested three TSMC employees because they have allegedly stole commercial secrets of this company. As we can expect, behind this detention is TSMC itself, as He has revealed The Taiwan Superior Prosecutor’s Office in a statement. According to Nikkei Asiathose responsible for this company have realized that two employees and a former employee have been made with critical information about the photolithography of 2 Nm of TSMC. This information is very valuable. In fact, it could be used by a competitor to optimize its own semiconductor manufacturing processes. The research has not yet determined whether this stolen information has reached another company, but United Daily News ensures that researchers have registered the offices of the Japanese company Tokyo Electron. At the moment this last signature has not confirmed or denied anything. Other industrial espionage frames that have given much to talk Our next protagonist is Asml. This Dutch company is the only one that is currently capable of manufacturing teams of extreme ultraviolet photolithography (UVE) that are necessary to produce avant -garde chips. At the end of 2023 Peter Wennink, the then general director of ASML, confirmed that a Chinese origin employee had abandoned the company in 2022 after being recruited by Huawei with the purpose of revealing this Chinese company secrets of the Dutch firm that a priori could compromise their business. According to the Dutch medium, Russia has something important in its favor: it has spies inside Asml This event was so serious that those responsible for ASML decided to include it in their 2022 annual report and Wennink was forced to Give explanations In a meeting with investors. According to this executive, the information stolen by the former Chinese employee It was partial. In fact, he described it as “one piece in a puzzle whose box is not in your power.” This Wennink statement rightly reflects The titanic complexity that have the most advanced lithography equipment produced by ASML. At the end of last year this company starred in another plot of espionage. Again as “victim.” The Government led by Vladimir Putin intends to have a prototype of UVE lithography equipment capable of manufacturing 130 Nm chips ready in 2026. And in 2028 another similar one trained to produce integrated 7 nm circuits. A priori it is difficult to believe it, but, according to the Dutch medium USRussia has something important in your favor: it has spies within ASML. Like China. In fact, one of them, a former employee of Russian origin, He has been arrested and is accused of stealing critical commercial secrets. The last plot of industrial espionage that I propose that we review is starring the South Korean company SK Hynix and the Chinese company Huawei. In mid -April 2024 a former employee of Chinese sk Hynix origin It was stopped at a South Korean airport when he was about to enter the country. The accusation that was cernia about it was very serious: it was suspected of having stolen confidential information about semiconductor manufacturing processes Used by SK Hynix to give it to Huawei. This employee decided to print 3,000 pages of technical documents, and that movement gave it away because it aroused suspicion immediately within the company. He faces 18 years in prison. Image | TSMC More information | Reuters | Nikkei Asia In Xataka | South Korea fears US reprisals. To avoid their old lithography equipment, they take dust on a warehouse

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