Intel says the semiconductor chip shortage will last at least another two years, Apple’s iOS 14.5 has arrived, and giant paydays for CEOs are rubbing the internet the wrong way.
It’s all the tech news that’s popular right now. Welcome to Hashtag Trending! It’s Tuesday April 27 and I’m your host Baneet Braich.
Intel isn’t mincing words: The semiconductor chip shortage will last at least another two years. This is bad news for, well everyone. Recently, reports about the auto industry’s struggles have made it clear that many factories are idle or closed because of the chip shortage. The shortage has also slowed down the overall recovery from the pandemic and keeping the auto industry from making up for lost sales. Car buyers may purchase a new car however, it may lack options that use specialized chips. A major reason for the chip shortage in the auto industry is because semiconductor manufacturers are prioritizing manufacturers of smartphones, video game consoles and other consumer electronics. New Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger says it, “will take a while until people can put more capacity in the ground.” [LinkedIn]
Apple’s iOS 14.5 has arrived. A major change is Apple’s App Tracking Transparency which allows users to give permission if they want apps to track or share their activity across apps and websites for advertising purposes. Users will get a pop-up notification to give permission. This could lead to major changes in Facebook’s advertising business as it so heavily relies on targeted advertising. If you own an Apple watch you can now set your iPhone to automatically unlock without requiring a Face ID or passcode as long as you are wearing the smartwatch. There are also a lot more emojis focusing on inclusivity. Siri will no longer default to a female-sounding voice either. Instead, you can choose your preferred voice during the setup.
And lastly, CEOs were rewarded with giant paydays during the pandemic last year while employers got the short end of the stick. The New York Times reports that the CEOs of Hilton, Norwegian Cruise Line and Boeing made about $56 million, $36 million and $21 million last year. All these earnings and yet the hospitality industry faced immense losses with business and employees who lost their jobs. The compensation gap between executives and average workers keeps widening. According to the Economic Policy Institute, CEOs now make 320 times what a typical worker makes. The fact that CEOs are so expensive has brought to light an article from the New Statesman, questioning why we don’t automate some of the CEO’s function. Things like recruitment, invoicing, to playbooks, and more, can be automated. Management or decision intelligence capabilities are already offered by Google and IBM. AI may not be able to make the major decisions alone, but it has proven to help with examples like Hong Kong’s mass transit system where AI does all the maintenance scheduling. [LinkedIn]
That’s all the tech news that’s 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. Make sure to sign up for our Daily IT Wire Newsletter to get all the news that matters directly in your inbox every day. I’m Baneet Braich, thanks for listening!
