Ian Happ homered twice and the Chicago Cubs easily overcame an early deficit to beat the Cincinnati Reds 16-6 on Wednesday night

'One of the first things I wanted to do when I got any money was pay my parents’ house off'

Former UK leader David Cameron sensationally returned to the British government as foreign secretary on Monday, as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak shook up his top team with...

Tim Cook describes his first experience with Apple’s forthcoming Vision Pro headset as an “aha moment”. The mixed reality device, he claims, has the potential to usher in an entirely new era of computing, having a profound impact on the way we work, communicate and experience the world – just like the iPhone did 16 years ago. And for it to succeed, just like the iPhone, it’s going to need apps. The Apple CEO is in London at the end of a whirlwind European tour to meet with app developers that he hopes will be among the first to realise his ambitions for the Vision Pro. The UK has the largest developer community in Europe, and as he meets three of them, he is clearly curious about their apps. It is a common sight with Cook: app developers on their best behaviour, nervous with anticipation, instantly relaxing as he focuses on them, genuinely interested, warming to his encouragement and questioning. “I think the apps today are outstanding,” he says. “It’s a reminder of the empowerment of the App Store. I’m still amazed that an entrepreneur in any country in the world in a basement can start a company and it can be global,” he snaps his fingers, “like that.” Cook likes to talk about Apple’s app developers because he takes pride in the jobs created by the Apple ecosystem. Estimates suggest that half a million jobs are now directly connected to the iOS app economy, which is up nearly 70 per cent compared to 2019. UK app developers have earned nearly £7.5 billion from their apps, Apple says. When Cook took over from Steve Jobs as CEO in 2011, the app economy was still in its infancy: Instagram was less than a year old and apps like Deliveroo and Tinder did not even exist yet. Just over a decade later Apple’s App Store is now facilitating more than $1 trillion in billings and sales annually, helping the company to become the richest in the world. Among the app developers showing off their creations at Apple’s Battersea Power Station headquarters is Joseph Mambwe, whose fitness app Gym Streak aims to manage your workout for you. Mambwe says that, at the app’s core is a demonstration that “resilience is a superpower that is available to everyone, along with persistence and the will to keep going.” The app uses augmented reality (AR) to create videos where the animated figure demonstrating the exercises appears to be working out in your living room. Also in attendance is Andy Weekes, the creator of Night Sky, which also uses AR to make stars, planets and even the International Space Station appear onscreen as you point your iPhone at the place they are in the sky. It can send reminders and messages so you can share what you see – and even what you can’t – with friends and family. There is a regular refrain from the developers about the Apple Vision Pro, which is set to launch early next year: Something like Night Sky could be jaw-droppingly good on the spatial computing headset, with its immersive, wraparound display. Cook says they’re looking forward to it. “We have developer labs in London and Munich, and we’re seeing some incredible work. There’s so much excitement out there.” The tech boss says Vision Pro has become part of his nightly routine, helping him understand how it could become an industry-defining product. “There are huge differences in how people look at it, depending on if they’re read about it or actually tried it,” he says. “I believe even more about how profound spatial computing is. When you’ve tried it, it’s an aha moment, and you only have a few of those in a lifetime.” Throughout the app demonstrations, the developers talk about the support they receive from Apple. “These apps,” Cook says afterwards, “allow developers to make people more sustainable, give somebody educational knowhow about space or even democratise personal training. These are big ideas. These apps are great collaborations, but our whole company is based on collaboration.We really believe one plus one equals three. “We’ve always viewed ourselves as tool makers,” he adds. “So to make tools that allow other people to change the world in their own way and for us to have a role in that makes my heart sing… We’ve always believed our tools should be as easy to use as our products, so we try to make the developer tools simple. It’s the developer’s idea that’s the big lift, not the act of doing it themselves. It’s great to see the validation of that playing out.” Through the powerful processors in the latest iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, Cook believes Apple iOS is now “the best gaming platform out there”. Games also form a major part of Vision Pro’s appeal, allowing users to interact and compete within an entirely new dimension. “There’s significant excitement about our role in gaming, and we’re very serious about it,” he says. “This is not a hobby for us. We’re putting all of ourselves out there.” Read More ‘I saw the future. It left me in tears’ Tim Cook says Vision Pro release is on track: ‘I watched Ted Lasso Season 3 on it’ New discovery is ‘holy grail’ breakthrough in search for aliens, scientist say Musk confirms he is cutting election integrity staff from X/Twitter ahead of 2024

Russian courts have ordered the liquidation of a human rights organization that preserved the legacy of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Andrei Sakharov and have ordered the detention of a prominent election monitor

As if Minnesota Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah needed another reason to blow this thing up, outside linebacker Marcus Davenport is going on injured reserve.

Ashley Young is in talks with Everton following his departure from Aston Villa, the PA news agency understands. The 38-year-old is a free agent having left Villa at the end of his contract. A move to Goodison Park could be next, as it is understood that things are moving in a positive direction on that front. Young made over 100 appearances for Watford before joining Villa, for the first of two stints with the club, in 2007. He subsequently signed for Manchester United in 2011 and won the Premier League, FA Cup, League Cup and Europa League during nine years at Old Trafford. Young moved on to Inter Milan in 2020 and helped them claim the Serie A title, becoming the third Englishman to win Italy’s top prize after Jimmy Greaves and Gerry Hitchens in 1963. The 39-times capped England international, who can play as a left-back or left winger, then rejoined Villa in 2021. He made 32 appearances last season, and 250 for Villa across his two spells. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

A cortege will pass through the singer's former home of Bray, County Wicklow, after a private service.

President Joe Biden’s plan to limit certain investments in China may prove a boon for US intelligence agencies.

Republic of Ireland defender Megan Campbell was “gutted” not to be able to join her nation at the Women’s World Cup but believes the team’s participation at the tournament is a “catalyst” to inspire the next generation of football fans. The centre-back for Liverpool and the Republic was not chosen as part of Vera Pauw’s squad for the tournament in Australia and New Zealand after being unable to recover in time from an unspecified injury. The Republic crashed out of the tournament with just one point from three group-stage games after Monday’s goalless draw with Nigeria, but despite this Campbell said the support shown for the team has been “incredible”. “I joined in with many thousands of other fans from Ireland as the whole country was backing the team and watching the games, and the amount of Irish support Down Under has been incredible,” the 30-year-old told the PA news agency. “What an opportunity for the girls to be able to put Ireland on the biggest stage possible and it’s only the start for this team. “It’s a catalyst, hopefully, for building for the future generations.” She also commended the quality of football at this year’s World Cup, describing it as a “great spectacle” following England’s win over China in the final round of the group stage. Campbell said England had “come out all guns blazing” after beating China 6-1 on Tuesday. “I think it’s been a great spectacle for women’s football and shows how close the games have been… in general the scorelines have been quite narrow so this shows that the level is improving all over the world,” she said. Campbell felt the Lionesses experienced “a lot of pressure” going into this year’s World Cup, following their European Championship win, but said they had successfully achieved their objective of winning every group-stage match. “I think they probably have a lot of pressure coming into the tournament off the back of winning the Euros and that was to be expected, obviously, because they have done so well,” she said. “But it’s about winning games in the group stages, and that’s what they’ve done and they’ve managed to achieve that by getting nine points out of nine.” In a bid to make women’s football more visible, particularly in schools, Campbell and Czech Republic and Chelsea midfielder Katerina Svitkova joined more than 100 schoolgirls at Alexander Stadium in Birmingham on Tuesday to inspire the next generation of children to play football. “It’s been a lovely atmosphere here. Probably close enough to an atmosphere Down Under, I’d say, as the kids are quite loud,” Campbell said. The Republic and Liverpool player said there were some “hidden talents” at the Football Fun Day event brought together by Visa and HSBC. “There have been some girls who probably haven’t played football before for a team who will now sign up for teams because they love being here and feel inspired by the day,” she said. “I think the job’s complete, and we’ve probably done a really good one if girls now want to play football.” She hopes increased visibility of women’s football will create new role models for young children to be inspired by. “With the women’s football team doing so well, it’s great to have this off the back of it to inspire the next generations,” she said. “That’s what this is about, trying to inspire the next generations to play football but also just for girls in general and in life to have models to look up to regardless of if it’s football or not.” She also hopes that more visibility of the Women’s Super League will help to inspire more children to watch the game. “I think the league will only grow this year and participation will increase, which is the most important thing overall. “It’s about the here and now, but it’s also about the future generations and what we can provide for them.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Johnny Sexton will feel uneasy about missing warm-up matches – Paul O’Connell Sarina Wiegman hails England adaptability after big win over China There’s nothing to it – Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp on Kylian Mbappe loan link

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