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How Indonesia’s QR payment system, used by 22M+ merchants and set to double to 45M in 2023, helps the country bring its small businesses into the formal economy (Bloomberg)

Bloomberg: How Indonesia’s QR payment system, used by 22M+ merchants and set to double to 45M in 2023, helps the country bring its small businesses into the formal economy  —  From food carts lining Jakarta’s raucous streets to wet markets in Indonesia’s most remote villages, one type of barcode is becoming ubiquitous.

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Many current and former Amazon executives, showrunners, and agents say Amazon Studios is confusing and frustrating; one showrunner says Studios has “no vision” (Kim Masters/The Hollywood Reporter)

Kim Masters / The Hollywood Reporter: Many current and former Amazon executives, showrunners, and agents say Amazon Studios is confusing and frustrating; one showrunner says Studios has “no vision”  —  Despite ambitious bets like ‘Daisy Jones & The Six’ and the upcoming ‘Citadel,’ insiders complain that there’s still …

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China’s Micron investigation marks the most significant retaliation against US chip sanctions so far, contradicting Beijing’s recent business-friendly messaging (New York Times)

New York Times: China’s Micron investigation marks the most significant retaliation against US chip sanctions so far, contradicting Beijing’s recent business-friendly messaging  —  Beijing’s security review of Micron Technology, which has deep roots in China, could have wide-ranging ramifications for other foreign businesses.

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CP/M 6502-Style

There are projects you create to share with the world, but there are also those you do just because you want something for yourself. Lucky for us, [Dietrich-L]’s 30-year-long project to create CPM-65, a CP/M-like OS for the 6502, has become both. [Dietrich-L] does admit that the documentation is “sparse” and “for my personal needs.”

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Stanford’s AI Index Report: in 2022, industry produced 32 significant ML models versus academia’s three, private investment fell 26.7% YoY to $91.9B, and more (James Vincent/The Verge)

James Vincent / The Verge: Stanford’s AI Index Report: in 2022, industry produced 32 significant ML models versus academia’s three, private investment fell 26.7% YoY to $91.9B, and more  —  An annual report on AI progress has highlighted the increasing dominance of industry players over academia and government in deploying and safeguarding AI applications.

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DeFi lending protocol Euler says all “recoverable funds” stolen in its ~$200M exploit have been returned; blockchain data shows the hacker apologized last week (Krisztian Sandor/CoinDesk)

Krisztian Sandor / CoinDesk: DeFi lending protocol Euler says all “recoverable funds” stolen in its ~$200M exploit have been returned; blockchain data shows the hacker apologized last week  —  Culprit had already apologized.  —  The hacker responsible for roiling Euler Finance by draining some $200 million …

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NY-based Bakkt, which offers trading and custodial services, acquires infrastructure provider Apex Crypto for ~$155M, with $55M in cash and up to $100M in stock (Leo Schwartz/Fortune)

Leo Schwartz / Fortune: NY-based Bakkt, which offers trading and custodial services, acquires infrastructure provider Apex Crypto for ~$155M, with $55M in cash and up to $100M in stock  —  New York-based Bakkt announced on Monday that it received regulatory approval to acquire trading infrastructure provider Apex Crypto …

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Over 24 Democrats in Congress who are active on TikTok are being pushed by colleagues to stop using the app, as pressure mounts against TikTok in Washington, DC (Farnoush Amiri/Associated Press)

Farnoush Amiri / Associated Press: Over 24 Democrats in Congress who are active on TikTok are being pushed by colleagues to stop using the app, as pressure mounts against TikTok in Washington, DC  —  Rep. Jeff Jackson of North Carolina has used it to explain the complex fight over raising the debt limit.

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Truly Flexible Circuits Are a Bit of a Stretch

Flexible PCBs have become increasingly common in both commercial devices and DIY projects, but Panasonic’s new stretchable, clear substrate for electrical circuits called Beyolex takes things a step further. The material is superior to existing stretchable films like silicone, TPU, or PDMS due to its high heat tolerance (over 160° C) for the purposes of

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Post, a Twitter alternative that pays publishers via microtransactions, launches in public beta and says outlets get an average $25 CPM for a paywalled article (Sarah Perez/TechCrunch)

Sarah Perez / TechCrunch: Post, a Twitter alternative that pays publishers via microtransactions, launches in public beta and says outlets get an average $25 CPM for a paywalled article  —  Post, a Twitter alternative of sorts that’s rethinking how publishers should engage with social media — and how they should monetize …

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Machine Learning Helps Electron Microscopy

Machine learning is supposed to help us do everything these days, so why not electron microscopy? A team from Ireland has done just that and published their results using machine learning to enhance STEM — scanning transmission electron microscopy. The result is important because it targets a very particular use case — low dose STEM.

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PC shipments in Western Europe fell 20.5% YoY in 2022 and 38.5% YoY in Q4 2022, while tablet shipments fell 18.4% YoY in 2022 and 16.5% YoY in Q4 2022 (Canalys)

Canalys: PC shipments in Western Europe fell 20.5% YoY in 2022 and 38.5% YoY in Q4 2022, while tablet shipments fell 18.4% YoY in 2022 and 16.5% YoY in Q4 2022  —  Western European PC (desktop, notebook and workstation) shipments fell by 38% year-on-year to 10.7 million units in Q4 2022 according to the latest

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Australia bans TikTok from government-issued devices, joining the US, the UK, the Netherlands, Canada, France, and others in taking action against the platform (Angus Whitley/Bloomberg)

Angus Whitley / Bloomberg: Australia bans TikTok from government-issued devices, joining the US, the UK, the Netherlands, Canada, France, and others in taking action against the platform  —  Australia banned TikTok from government-issued devices, joining the growing list of nations concerned about security threats posed …

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Sources: Apple plans to eliminate a small number of its corporate retail staff, marking its first known cuts since embarking on a belt-tightening effort in 2022 (Mark Gurman/Bloomberg)

Mark Gurman / Bloomberg: Sources: Apple plans to eliminate a small number of its corporate retail staff, marking its first known cuts since embarking on a belt-tightening effort in 2022  —  Apple Inc. is eliminating a small number of roles within its corporate retail teams, according to people with knowledge of the matter …

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London-based Quantexa, which uses AI to help businesses navigate online fraud and manage customer data, raised a $129M Series E led by GIC at a $1.8B valuation (Ingrid Lunden/TechCrunch)

Ingrid Lunden / TechCrunch: London-based Quantexa, which uses AI to help businesses navigate online fraud and manage customer data, raised a $129M Series E led by GIC at a $1.8B valuation  —  Financial fraud and other online crime continue to present major threats to businesses, and they remain a key focus …

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Boston-based cybersecurity company Cybereason raised $100M from SoftBank and announces SoftBank EVP Eric Gan will be its new CEO, replacing co-founder Lior Div (Meir Orbach/CTech)

Meir Orbach / CTech: Boston-based cybersecurity company Cybereason raised $100M from SoftBank and announces SoftBank EVP Eric Gan will be its new CEO, replacing co-founder Lior Div  —  The new investment will make the Japanese conglomerate Cybereason’s leading shareholder  —  SoftBank is investing another $100 million in Cybereason.

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