Kalakshar US

The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative is opening a research center in New York City dedicated to developing new techniques for early disease detection and treatment. CZ Biohub NY, as it’s being called, will work with Columbia, Rockefeller and Yale universities to learn how immune cells detect and attack specific diseases, and eventually use this insight to engineer cells that could do the job more precisely.

The charitable organization headed by Priscilla Chan and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has committed $250 million to the effort, according to STAT, alongside investments of $10 million each from the State of New York and New York City. In a blog post announcing CZ Biohub NY, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative said it will start by focusing on cancers and other diseases that often go undetected until they’ve advanced to the point of being difficult or impossible to treat. That includes “ovarian and pancreatic cancers; neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s; as well as aging and autoimmunity,” CZI says.

CZ BioHub NY aims to get to the bottom of how immune cells work, down to their ability to spot tissue-specific changes that can be among the earliest indications of a disease’s onset. Then, its researchers hope to be able to create cells that can sniff out these abnormalities even earlier than they’re currently able, and be sent to the disease sites directly for more effective treatment. These bioengineered immune cells would “scout, report, and repair damage to our cells before it leads to serious illnesses,” said Chan.

The New York hub is the latest in CZI’s growing network of research institutions, and joins three others that have been established in San Francisco, Chicago, and Redwood City. All have pledged to break ground on their respective scientific goals within a time frame of 10-15 years. Now, according to STAT, the New York biohub just needs to secure a site to work out of.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/chan-zuckerberg-initiatives-250-million-nyc-biohub-will-engineer-disease-fighting-cells-214721932.html?src=rss 

After slogging through years of delays and redesigns, the Tesla Cybertruck can finally be seen on public roads this holiday season, the company announced. Deliveries of the long-awaited luxury EV SUV will begin to select customers starting November 30, before the vehicle enters full production next year at its Texas Gigafactory.  

At the same time, the vehicle’s electrical architecture is reportedly now being redesigned to accomodate an 800-volt standard, up from the 400V its existing Tesla lineup. A lot of luxury, performance and heavy duty EV models — from the Audi e-Tron to the GMC Hummer EV — utilize the 800V architecture, it’s what enables EVs with large battery capacities to charge at a higher rate (thereby reducing charging time) without reducing the vehicle’s wiring harness to slag. Big difference of course is that most automakers don’t announce that particular design change decision in the same breath as initial vehicle deliveries.

For its existing model lines, Tesla’s production and deliveries are both down this quarter, about seven percent or roughly 30,000 units compared to Q2, but still significantly higher year over year, up ~100,000 units, over 2022. The EV automaker has slashed the prices on its vehicles repeatedly this year, first in March, then again in September (taking a full 20 percent off the MSRP at the time) and once more in early October. 

The Model X, for example, began 2023 retailing for $120,990 — it currently lists for $79,990. The models S (now $74,990), Y ($52,490, down 24 percent from January) and 3 ($38,990, down 17 percent) have all seen similar price drops. In all, Tesla reports its cost of goods sold per vehicle decreased to ~$37,500 in Q3.

Musk had previously explained his willingness to drop prices and endure reduced margins if it translates to increased sales volume. “I think it does make sense to sacrifice margins in favor of making more vehicles,” he said in July. 

“A sequential decline in volumes was caused by planned downtimes for factory upgrades, as discussed on the most recent earnings call. Our 2023 volume target of around 1.8 million vehicles remains unchanged,” Tesla wrote in an October press statement. The company delivered some 435,059 vehicles globally in Q3. 

The company continues to increase its investments in AI development as well, having “more than doubled” the amount of processing power it dedicates to training its vehicular and Optimus robot AI systems, compared to Q2. The Optimus itself is reportedly receiving hardware upgrades and is being trained via AI, rather than “hard-coded” software. 

Additionally, the company announced that all US and Canadian Hertz rentals will have access to the Tesla App, allowing them to use their phones as key fobs. Customers who already have a Tesla profile set up can apply those settings to their Hertz rental as well.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/tesla-begins-cybertruck-deliveries-on-november-30-210430697.html?src=rss 

Netflix announced price hikes on two of its plans today. As the company relayed its quarterly earnings, tit said it’s increasing rates for its Basic and Premium plans. The Basic plan, which Netflix killed earlier this year, moves from $10 to $12 for grandfathered customers, while Premium rises from $20 to $23.

Netflix said its ad-supported and Standard plans will remain the same at $7 and $15.49, respectively. Before Wednesday’s news, the company last raised prices in early 2022.

“While we mostly paused price increases as we rolled out paid sharing, our overall approach remains the same — a range of prices and plans to meet a wide range of needs, and as we deliver more value to our members, we occasionally ask them to pay a bit more,” Netflix wrote in its earnings report. “Our starting price is extremely competitive with other streamers and at $6.99 per month in the US, for example, it’s much less than the average price of a single movie ticket.”

The company’s move to limit password sharing appears to have paid off. Paid memberships are up to 247.15 million, a significant 10 percent annual increase. Paid net subscriber additions were 8.76 million for Q3, the biggest increase of the last year. In addition, Netflix’s advertising-supported plan seems to be off to the hot start it expected as it accounted for 30 percent of all new sign-ups in countries where it’s available.

Netflix has shifted its strategy as it adjusts from its peak-pandemic highs while facing increased competition. In addition to its price hikes, ad-supported plan and password-sharing crackdowns, the streaming service is even taking the peculiar step of moving into retail.

Netflix is hardly alone in raising prices. Disney+, Hulu and Max have all issued increases in the past 12 months. That isn’t limited to direct rivals: Xbox Game Pass, PlayStation Plus, Spotify, YouTube Premium and Apple Music all jacked up their subscription costs in the last year.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/netflix-jacks-price-premium-plan-201116492.html?src=rss 

Amazon has some big plans for its drone delivery program, including an international expansion to the UK and Italy in 2024. The company also aims to start drone operations in a third US city next year, following existing efforts in College Station, Texas (where it just started offering prescription medication delivery by drone) and Lockeford, California.

Drone deliveries in the UK and Italy will start at one site each before expanding to more locations over time. Amazon says it will announce the specific locations for the US, UK and Italy expansion in the coming months.

Moreover, Amazon will integrate the Prime Air program into its delivery network. In the US, drones will run out of some Same-Day Delivery sites. By basing drones at those locations and its larger fulfillment centers in the UK and Italy, Amazon says customers can choose from a wider range of items for drone deliveries. Until now, Amazon has been using dedicated delivery centers at its first two Prime Air locations.

When the option is available in their area and they buy an eligible item that weighs under five pounds, Amazon customers can choose to have the product delivered by drone. Thousands of items are eligible for drone delivery, including office and tech supplies, household products and beauty items. The company notes that, for nearly a year, it’s been using drones to deliver items to customers in its first two Prime Air locations in an hour or less.

Reports earlier this year suggested that Prime Air got off to a very slow start, delivering to just a handful of homes in its first few weeks of operation in Texas and California (the program is said to have been hit hard by layoffs around that time too). Regulatory red-tape was said to be a key reason for the lackluster debut. To that end, Amazon says it has been “working closely with regulators and governments around the world to expand drone delivery.”

Meanwhile, Amazon plans to start making deliveries with the MK30 drone it first showed off last November. This model has a range that’s twice as large as previous drones, while it has improved tolerance for higher and lower temperatures. The MK30 can also operate in light rain. It’s smaller, lighter and quieter than previous drones too, according to Amazon.

What’s more, the MK30 latest model is said to be capable of identifying and avoiding obstacles that are in its delivery area, including objects like moveable cranes that weren’t there the previous day. One other intriguing aspect of the MK30 is how it flies. After taking off vertically, it orientates itself for horizontal, wing-borne flight. Add all of that up (and roll in some safety features), and Amazon says the MK30 can deliver packages to folks who live in more densely populated suburban areas and have smaller backyards.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/amazon-plans-to-start-drone-deliveries-in-the-uk-and-italy-next-year-185027120.html?src=rss