Hong Kong security product maker Reolink has introduced Argus Pro, a smart camera that is powered by rechargeable battery or the solar panel for easy installation and enhanced security.
HTC to slice 1,500 from workforce
Taiwan smartphone maker HTC is making a cut of the most painful kind — by slicing 20 percent of its workforce. The decision to swallow the bitter pill comes in the wake of heavy losses and strong competition.
To Dell and back
Dell Technologies is making a comeback on the New York Stock Exchange. The PC giant went private in 2013 as part of a transition strategy in the midst of changes in the industry brought about by mobile and cloud computing.
Banking spend drives external storage Q1 growth in India
Banking led professional services, manufacturing, telecommunications and government to contribute more than 80 percent to overall external storage market in India in Q1, according to IDC India. The quarter saw a jump of 12.7 percent year-on-year to US$84.1 million.
StumbleUpon stumbles out
After 16 years, discovery engine StumbleUpon, which pushes web contents to users, has shut down.
Myanmar startup Goama launches mobile gaming app in India
Myanmar startup Goama has launched its “Netflix of Games” mobile gaming subscription app in India. Called Go|Games, the Android app has more than 700,000 subscribers in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Indonesia, Cambodia, and Myanmar.
SenseTime makes triple signing in Singapore
China artificial intelligence (AI) company SenseTime has inked memoranda of understanding (MOU) with Nanyang Technological University (NTU), National Supercomputing Centre of Singapore (NSCC) and Singtel.
1Coach wearable: More than a tracker, it’s a run advisor!
SensFusion has launched 1Coach, a wearable running sensor that not only tracks but also offers training advice for improving runs.
ELSA Speak helps in English pronunciation
Artificial intelligence (AI) startup ELSA is giving non-native English speakers help with ELSA Speak, an app that teaches how to pronounce English words correctly.
Glitch with Google Home and Chromecast
By Edward Lim
“Sorry, something went wrong. Try again in a few seconds.” and “There was a glitch. Try again in a few seconds.” are not messages most Google Home and Home mini users are familiar with, but these messages kept repeating themselves most of yesterday.
Qualcomm targets kids with Snapdragon Wear 2500 platform
Qualcomm is targeting smartwatches for children with its Snapdragon Wear 2500 platform. Announced at Mobile World Congress Shanghai, the chip is designed to deliver extended battery life, low power location tracking and an optimised version of Android for kids.
Epicentre exits Apple business in Singapore
Epicentre Holdings has sold its Apple business in Singapore — both online and retail stores — to competitor Elush (T3), marking the end of an era.
Microsoft to launch pricey USB-C dongle for Surface
The cost of having thinner and lighter devices can be really high. The compromise is the absence of jacks and ports that users often take for granted. To get that needed port, users have to pay a hefty price. In the case of the Microsoft Surface Pro and Surface laptop, a soon-to-be-launched USB-C dongle will cost US$79.99, according to The Verge.
Man vs machine in Dota 2
Machine learning and deep learning are two expressions of artificial intelligence (AI) that have been widely written about. But, another approach to AI called reinforcement learning is coming to the fore. One of the first applications of reinforcement learning is in training AI bots to beat humans in the highly popular game Defense of the Ancients 2 (Dota 2).
APrivacy launches WhatsApp bot for financial services industry
APrivacy has introduced APrivacy Bot on WhatsApp to help banks and insurance companies better engage with their customers. It offers a fully programmable chatbot, or connection with an existing chatbot, providing interaction with customers directly over WhatsApp.
ElinkSmart rolls out smart home camera kit
China manufacturer ElinkSmart has unveiled the Smart Wi-Fi Camera Kit for home security.
Machine vs Machine
Singapore blogger Daryl Aiden Yow created a storm when he manipulated stock images and posted them on his Instagram account. The 27-year-old has since apologised but his action has cast more doubt on the blogging community.
NVIDIA Shield TV comes to ANZ
It’s been a long time coming — more than three years — but NVIDIA Shield TV is finally heading to Australia and New Zealand. The Android TV-based device was dubbed the “world’s first 4K Android TV console” when it was introduced in March 2015.
One step closer to the World Cup
With World Cup fever in full force right now, many budding players are hoping for the day when they could be under the global spotlight. Well, a little help from artificial technology (AI) may help take them a step closer.
AMAX launches AI-optimised server platform
High-performance server maker AMAX has launched the DL-E48A, a reconfigurable single/dual root high-density GPU platform designed for artificial intelligence (AI) training and inference.
5G networks vital for autonomous vehicle connectivity
While the world waits in anticipation for its arrival, 5G has been identified as vital for autonomous vehicle connectivity.
YouTube Music and YouTube Music Premium now available in ANZ and South Korea
Australia, New Zealand and South Korea are the first in the region to enjoy YouTube’s new music streaming service available from yesterday.
Smartwatch market heading towards steady growth
The worldwide wearables market is adjusting as smartwatches continue to come to the forefront. In the coming years, smartwatches will encompass more features and functionalities.
Intel tweet that launches a new GPU war
On June 13, Intel had the GPU world in a flurry when it tweeted “Intel’s first GPU coming in 2020”. The media were quick to post stories of this incoming new GPU, which would add interesting competition to a market dominated by NVIDIA with AMD a distant second.
JD.com gets US$550m cash injection from Google
China e-commerce giant JD.com has received a US$550 million investment from Google as part of a strategic partnership.
OnePlus 6 crosses 1m mark in 22 days
Twenty-two days. It took relatively unknown smartphone maker OnePlus just that amount of time to sell one million units of OnePlus 6, its latest smartphone.
AWS DeepLens deep learning video camera goes on sale
Amazon has announced that the AWS DeepLens video camera for running deep learning models is now on sale.
Metadata and Conversica team up on AI-based lead generation
Artificial intelligence (AI)-based companies Metadata and Conversica are partnering on automating the marketing and sales development process for B2B companies. Combining their AI expertise, they will help companies in generating qualified leads to following up with on leads at a faster rate and with better quality than can be achieved manually.
App to teach children responsible mobile device usage
Help is at hand for parents who need help in teaching their young children the dos and don’ts of using smartphones and other mobile devices. They can now turn to Tittle for Parents, an app that lets parents protect their children on mobile devices and teach about safe and appropriate use.
Royal Holdings launches 3D image scanner for smartphones
Security checks have become the norm in airports, malls and many public places. While screening devices are often bulky, a more portable alternative is now available following the launch of SWORD, a mobile 3D image scanner that can be used with smartphones.
Dell EMC widens lead on HPE as worldwide server revenue grew 33.4% in Q1
Dell EMC turned in a stellar performance in Q1 by growing 51.4 percent in server revenue, enabling it to widen the gap with second-place Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) which nevertheless grew an impressive 21.5 percent.
The US recaptures world’s fastest supercomputer title with first exaop AI system
The United States has regained its pole position at the fastest supercomputer race with the aptly named Summit.
US$1b fine reprieve for ZTE
US$1 billion is a hefty sum to pay for a fine but for ZTE, it means getting its business back on track.
Kerusso shares daily devotional via Alexa
Amazon Echo users can tune in to daily devotional as part of the Alexa flash briefing, thanks to a service launched by Christian apparel company Kerusso.
Giant notebook and graphics card spotted at Computex
By Edward Lim
Computex seems to have mellowed down over the years. While the show floor used to be filled with booth girls and exhibitors literally pushing bags and tchoichke in the past, this is no longer the case.
NVIDIA announces platform to build intelligent robots
NVIDIA has announced the availability of NVIDIA Isaac, a new platform to power the next generation of autonomous machines, bringing artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities to robots for manufacturing, logistics, agriculture, construction, and many other industries.
Taiwan’s MOST and NVIDIA to collaborate on AI efforts
Taiwan is going big on artificial intelligence (AI) and its Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) will be collaborating with NVIDIA on AI initiatives.
Huawei and Xiaomi lead smartphone growth in Q1
China smartphone makers Huawei and Xiaomi grew strongest as the market recovered in Q1, according to Gartner.
Computex dishes out 35 Best Choice Awards
As a prelude to Computex Taipei next week, co-organiser Taipei Computer Association (TCA) has announced 35 winners of the 17th Best Choice Award (BC Award).
Power efficient chipsets to drive edge AI
Power efficient chipsets are set to be the main driver as artificial intelligence (AI) moves makes a significant shift from the cloud to the edge, according to ABI Research.
SenseTime raises US$620m in funding
SenseTime has raised US$620 million in series C+ funding from Fidelity International, Hopu Capital, Silver Lake, Tiger Global, Qualcomm Ventures, other investment firms, and strategic investors.
NVIDIA unveils first unified AI and HPC platform
NVIDIA has introduced the NVIDIA HGX-2, the first unified computing platform for both artificial intelligence (AI) and high performance computing (HPC).
ICT spending in APAC (sans Japan) to hit US$1.5t in 2021
Information and communications technology (ICT) spending in Asia/Pacific (excluding Japan) will hit US$1.5 trillion in 2021, according to IDC.
No cloud storage access for SingHealth staff
Apple iCloud, Dropbox, Google Drive, and Microsoft OneDrive will have one more thing in common besides being cloud storage services — they will not be accessible to all 28,000 staff of SingHealth from July 1.
Apple douses Steam’s plan to put app into iPhone
Online game distributor Steam’s attempt to release the free Steam Link app for iPhones has hit a roadblock from Apple.
Google moves to top of smart speaker market in Q1
Google has ousted Amazon from the perch of the global smart speaker market. According to Canalys, Google shipped 3.2 million units with its Google Home and Google Home mini series , surpassing the 2.5 million units of the Amazon Echo series for the first time in Q1.
Go-Jek goes regional
Go-Jek will be heading to the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam in the next few months.
Bigger yet smaller with NVIDIA Max-Q
Razer has unveiled a new version of its Razer Blade gaming notebook that sports a bigger screen, smaller bezel and the NVIDIA Max-Q design, an innovative approach to designing the world’s thinnest, fastest, and quietest gaming laptops.
Foxconn Industrial Internet targets US$4.3b China IPO
China’s biggest initial public offering (IPO) since 2015 will come to pass if Foxconn Industrial Internet hits its target of 27.1 billion yuan on May 24.
Google puts vehicle icons on Google Maps for iOS
Do you find the vehicle icons in Uber or Grab apps interesting? Well, iOS users can now enjoy the same feature on their iPhones.
Robot see, robot do
NVIDIA researchers have demonstrated how robots can be trained to observe and repeat human actions — a “first of its kind” capability powered by deep learning.
Microsoft acquires Semantic Machines
Microsoft has acquired Semantic Machines, which has developed a new approach to building conversational artificial intelligence (AI).
YouTube rolls out new music streaming service
Spotify, beware! YouTube has announced a revamped version of YouTube Music that will be competing for music lovers.
Cryptocurrency and Carry
Singapore-headquartered Carry is teaming up with Spoqa of South Korea to bring cryptocurrency payment and blockchain-enhanced loyalty points to brick-and-mortar retailers.
NVIDIA researchers head to Brisbane for ICRA
Dubbed “the brains behind the bots”, NVIDIA researchers will be heading to the International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA) at Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre in Australia from May 21 to 25.
India smartphone market posts strongest Q1 shipment
The India smartphone market shipped 30 million units in Q1, the strongest Q1 performance ever and an 11-percent growth year on year, according to IDC.
ZTE gets reprieve from US President
ZTE looks like it’s getting a chance to resurrect its business, thanks to help from the highest office in the United States. Last week, the China telecom giant announced that it had to cease business activities because of US sanctions on critical components.
Carousell secures US$85m funding
Singapore-based Carousell has secured US$85 million in Series C funding to grow and expand its e-commerce business across the region.
CIARA to build AMD-based high performance servers for high frequency trading
High performance systems maker CIARA has announced that it will produce an AMD-based ORION HF server line, as well as customised Blockchain platforms, running on AMD’s high-performance processors, with GPU mining cards.
ZTE ceases activities
ZTE has hit a massive roadblock that has resulted in the cessation of its business operations. China’s number 2 telecom equipment maker was hit by the US’s seven-year blockade to vital components needed for its devices.
Entelechy Asia 