'We face intense competition' -Facebook CEO

In his opening remarks during a much-anticipated congressional hearing featuring the CEOs of four of America's largest tech firms, Facebook Inc's Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday defended his company against allegations by critics that the social network has hurt competitors with their business practices.

Facebook Messenger Rooms to roll out live streams feature

Social media giant Facebook is adding more virtual hangout features to Messenger Rooms. According to Mashable, Mark Zuckerberg's empire announced on Thursday morning that the Messenger Rooms video call app would get some integration with Facebook Live. From within the Messenger Rooms app, the user will be able to hit a button and go live to Facebook, sharing whatever conversation one is having with the world. One will be able to invite as many as 50 people to join the call. Additionally, the user can host the most chaotic live podcast or a virtual book club or a webinar. Once after starting the stream, the user gets to choose where on Facebook should be shared and one can also get to choose the audience, who will watch the live streaming. It also offers an option to add new guests mid-broadcast and can remove a guest whenever required. The new feature will start rolling out in "some countries" on Thursday, according to Facebook. Messenger Rooms was launched earlier this year in the midst of the pandemic.

Zuckerberg criticizes Trump virus response

Facebook Inc Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg on Thursday criticized the administration of President Donald Trump for its response to the coronavirus during a live interview with Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government's top infectious diseases expert.

Facebook ad boycott groups 'disappointed' after Zuckerberg meeting | #TheCube

Facebook ad boycott groups 'disappointed' after Zuckerberg meeting | #TheCube

Shapps returns from Spain and defends quarantine measures

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has arrived home this afternoon after his holiday in Spain was cut short. The MP will go into 14-day isolation and defends the sudden quarantine measures put in place by the government for travellers returning from that country. Report by Bassaneseg. Like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/itn and follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/itn

Iran Launches Underground Missiles as part of Staged Attack

Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard launched underground ballistic missiles as part of an exercise targeting a mock-up US aircraft carrier in the strategic Strait of Hormuz. The military drill, code-named "Great Prophet-14", caused two American bases to go on alert, amid heightened tensions between Tehran and Washington after a series of escalating incidents last year. The message behind this action was clearly aimed at the US, whose Navy routinely sails into the Persian Gulf from the Strait of Hormuz. Report by Avagninag. Like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/itn and follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/itn

Expert unsure about right timing for second test

Testing passengers for coronavirus at airports is a useful tool according to Dr Jasmina Panovska-Griffiths from UCL, but it remains unclear when second tests should be carried out as the virus has a maximum incubation time of 21 days. Report by Bassaneseg. Like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/itn and follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/itn

Google and Jio to jointly build android-based smartphone operating system: Mukesh Ambani

Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani at their 43rd Annual General Meeting announced that Google and Jio are partnering to build an Operating System that could power a value-engineered, entry-level 4G/5G smartphone. "Google and Jio are partnering to build an Operating System that could power a value-engineered, entry-level 4G/5G smartphone. The Jio-Google partnership is determined to make India 2G-mukt," said Mukesh Ambani. Google CEO, Sundar Pichai said that everyone should have access to the internet. Proud to partner with Reliance Jio to increase access for the hundreds of millions in India who don't own a smartphone with our 1st investment of $4.5B from the Google For India Digitization Fund, he said.

PM Modi interacts with Google CEO Sundar Pichai via video conferencing

Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacted with Google CEO Sundar Pichai via video conferencing. The PM interacted with Pichai and his team member on July 13. Google CEO Sundar Pichai announced that, "We are excited to announce Google for India Digitisation Fund. Through it, we will invest Rs 75,000 Cr or approx US$10 Bn into India over next 5-7 years. We will do this through mix of equity investments, partnerships and operational infrastructure in ecosystem investments."

Google Vows to Add More Diverse Leadership by 2025

CEO Sundar Pichai announced that the company will be adding more Black employees and those from "underrepresented groups" in top roles over the next five years.

Google To Allow Employees To Work From Home Until Summer 2021

Google employees will be allowed to work from home until at least July 2021. According to CNN, the tech company made the announcement concerning their employee's on Monday. The company had initially said employees would be working remotely through the end of 2020. The decision to extend the work from home policy into next year indicates they are bracing for a long pandemic. The tech industry has led the charge on remote work during the pandemic, with many making the option permanent.

Google to replace certain Nest Thermostats that can't connect to wi-fi

Tech giant Google has announced that Nest thermostat owners, who encountered a 'w5' error, would have their thermostats replaced if the normal troubleshooting steps failed. According to Mashable, Google has acknowledged the existence of a hardware fault leading to the w5 error and it is still not clear exactly what is causing the problem, However, the company will replace thermostats if the normal troubleshooting steps don't work. Google has confirmed the same in a statement provided to Android Police. A part of the statement read, "This does not affect the thermostat's ability to control the customer's heating and cooling system in the home, but does impact the user's ability to manage the thermostat remotely. There's also a support page specifically for those running into a w5 error on their Nest thermostat. Google's statement noted that only "a very small number" of users are affected by the issue, though a lengthy support thread dating back to November 2019 and its 200+ replies suggests otherwise

Alexa will soon launch Android, iOS apps through voice commands

Amazon is currently working on a new feature for its voice assistant service Alexa which will allow the software to launch Android as well as iOS applications through voice commands. According to The Verge, the new feature termed as 'Alexa for Apps' launched on July 22 in preview form which will allow only select developers to select the way the software will work. The new feature can be seen as a move by Amazon to make its voice assistant service more viable against its competitors -- Apple and Google.

Lawmaker: sellers liken Amazon's platform to 'heroin'

During a House antitrust hearing on Wednesday, U.S. Representative David Cicilline quoted a third party apparel company's negative description of working with Amazon, saying "Amazon strings you along for awhile because it feels so good to get that paycheck every week. And in the past, for lack of a better term, we called it 'Amazon heroin.'"

Amazon’s Ring Preparing Smart Light Bulb

Amazon’s Ring Preparing Smart Light Bulb

Amazon Launching New Alexa App

Amazon Launching New Alexa App

Why You Might Want To Log Out Of Twitter, Like, Right Now

Business Insider reports hackers linked to a cryptocurrency scam have broken into dozens of high-profile Twitter accounts. Among the known victims so far are Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and presidential hopeful Joe Biden. The accounts of Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Kanye West, among others, tweeted requests to people to send thousands of dollars in Bitcoin. The tweets said they would double the payment in return.

Bezos Richer Than Ever

The economy is in a depression. However, Jeff Bezos' net worth has increased. CNN reports that he's now worth nearly $172 billion, a new record for the world's richest person. This week, Bezos beat his previous wealth record that he reached prior to his divorce from his ex-wife MacKenzie. Much of Bezos' wealth is tied to Amazon. He owns roughly 57 million shares, or 12% of the company. And its stock has soared 56% year to date.

Amazon pledges $2 bln venture fund for clean energy

Amazon.com said on Tuesday it will launch a $2 billion venture capital fund that will focus on technology investments to reduce the impact of climate change and support sustainable development. Fred Katayama reports.

Jeff Bezos 'Happy to Lose Customers' Over Solidarity With Black Lives Matter

Bezos took to Instagram to share a screenshot of an email from a customer who was annoyed by Amazon's statement in support of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Scrutiny approached 'with respect and humility' -Tim Cook

Apple CEO Tim Cook told a congressional hearing featuring the CEOs of four of America's largest tech firms, "I am here today because scrutiny is reasonable and appropriate. We approach this process with respect and humility, but we make no concession on the facts... if Apple is a gatekeeper, what we've done is open the gate wider."

Oprah Winfrey To Premiere New Show On Apple TV+

Oprah is launching a new show on Apple TV+. The streaming service announced the new series which will feature the media mogul. "The Oprah Conversation" is scheduled to premiere on the streaming platform Thursday. According to a press release, the show "will continue to explore impactful and relevant topics". The debut episode is titled "How to Be an Antiracist," and features Oprah and bestselling author Professor Ibram X.

Billie Eilish's Religious Past

Billie Elish spoke about her faith as a child during a recent episode of her Apple Music podcast "me & dad radio." "When I was little, like when I was a little kid, I was super religious for no damn reason," the 18-year-old musician said. "My family never was religious. I didn't know anyone that was religious." "For some reason, as a little girl, I just was incredibly religious." Business Insider reports that her strong religious views remained in place for years.

Apple starts assembling iPhone 11 units in India

Tech giant Apple in collaboration with its contract manufacturing partner Foxconn has started the assembling of the iPhone 11 units in its plant near Chennai in India. According to TechCrunch, small batches of locally manufactured iPhone 11 units have been shipped to retail stores already but the yield is currently limited. The company has further plans and ambitions to scale up the local productions of the phone in India, TechCrunch reported.