Tesla vehicles are popular in Norway, Apple will increase its battery replacement fees, and the social media giant could face more government regulations this year.
All these technology related news are trending right now. Welcome to trending hashtags. It’s Tuesday, January 3rd, and I’m your host, Sameera Balsara.
Tesla sold more cars in Norway than any other brand for the second year in a row, winning a 12.2 percent share ahead of Volkswagen’s 11.6 percent. According to reutersFour out of five new cars sold in Norway in 2022 were battery powered, with Tesla leading the way. Norway has become home to the largest proportion of electric vehicles in the world, now making it an optimal location for automakers to launch models. And according to the Norwegian Road Federation, the share of battery electric vehicles is set to increase from 65 percent to 79.3 percent of all new cars in 2022.
Battery replacement costs for Apple products will go up in March. The company made the announcement on the device’s repair page under its Price Estimators, reports 9to5Mac. price hike varies depending on the device. For iPhones, Apple’s site says, “The out-of-warranty battery service fee will be increased by $20 for all iPhone models prior to iPhone 14.” MacBook Air models will see a price hike of $30. iPad prices will also increase by about $20.
Social media companies may have to bear more government regulation In 2023. Representative Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin and Senator Amy Klobuchar have both confirmed that the rules for the social media giant will be in place until the new year. On January 1, Gallagher compared TikTok to “digital fentanyl” on NBC’s “Meet the Press”, while adding that he considered the app dangerous, addictive and destructive. Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen, who was also in the segment, said she believes the US is far behind when it comes to social media regulation. Haugen said social media platforms work using similar algorithms, and regulators should stress the need for more transparency about how these apps work.
Chinese companies are paying big bucks for virtual employees. Tech company Baidu said the number of virtual people working for clients is set to double by 2021, with salaries ranging from $2,800 to $14,300 a year. according to a cnbc reportThese virtual people are a combination of animation, sound tech and machine learning to create digitized humans who can sing and interact on livestreams. In August, the city of Beijing announced plans to build a municipal virtual people industry worth more than 50 billion yuan by 2025. In fact, a survey published by Kantar revealed that at least 36 percent of consumers had seen a virtual influencer. or digital celebrity performed in the past year and in 2023, 45 percent of advertisers said they would be more likely to sponsor a virtual influencer performance or invite a virtual person to attend a brand event.
All these technology related news are trending right now. Hashtag Trending is a part of the ITWC Podcast Network. Add us to your Alexa Flash Briefing or your Google Home Daily Briefing. Be sure to sign up for our Daily IT Wire Newsletter to get important news straight to your inbox every day. Plus, check out the next episode of Hashtag Tendence, our weekly hashtag trending episode in French, which drops every Thursday morning. If you have any suggestion or tip, drop us a line in the comments or via email. Thanks for listening, I’m Sameera Balsara.
