List of All Articles with Tag 'tec'

By Supantha Mukherjee and Martin Coulter STOCKHOLM/LONDON Top artificial intelligence (AI) executives including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman on

Scientists and tech industry leaders, including executives at Microsoft and Google, have issued a new warning about the perils that artificial intelligence poses to humankind

NEW YORK Short sellers in shares of Nvidia Corp. were down $4.1 billion in mark-to-market losses over the

Scientists and tech industry leaders, including executives at Microsoft and Google, have issued a new warning about the perils that artificial intelligence poses to humankind

European Union efforts to mend relations between Kosovo’s Serbian and Albanian communities are unraveling as violence spills across

ROME Italy's government plans to set up an investment fund backed by state lender Cassa Depositi e Prestiti

Scientists have achieved a new world record for a next-generation solar cell, which holds the promise for novel applications like building-integrated and window solar panels. The breakthrough follows two years of research from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University into organic solar cells (OSCs), which until now have been too inefficient and costly to be used widely in practical applications. The research team invented a new technique to boost the stability of OSCs, achieving a power-conversion efficiency of 19.3 per cent. “The new finding will make OSC research an exciting field, and this will likely create tremendous opportunities in applications like portable electronics and building-integrated photovoltaics,” said Li Gang, a professor of energy conversion technology at Hong Kong Polytechnic University. “This is a very encouraging result for the long-standing research on OSCs that I have conducted over the past two decades. We have already achieved better OSC efficiency and this will subsequently help accelerate the applications of solar energy.” Professor Li and his team believe an efficiency rate above 20 per cent is now achievable using their new technique. The research is detailed in a study, titled ‘19.3% Binary Organic Solar Cell and Low Non-Radiative Recombination Enabled by Non-Monotonic Intermediate State Transition’, published in the scientific journal Nature Communications. The 19.3 per cent efficiency record is still a long way off other solar cell technologies, with researchers passing the 30 per cent barrier last year with a tandem design that used the so-called “miracle material” perovskite. OSCs are more lightweight and flexible than traditional silicon-based solar panels, as they consist of thin layers of organic semiconducting materials. The materials used are more environmentally friendly and 1,000-times thinner than silicon solar cells, meaning they have the potential to be vastly cheaper. They are also semi-transparent, allowing them to be used not just within building materials, but also on windows. Dozens of startups are already working on novel applications for harvesting solar energy, such as London-based Filia, which integrates solar technology into blackout blinds. California-based Ubiquitous Energy raised more than $30 million last year to push forward its vision of turning skyscrapers into “vertical solar farms” through the development of windows capable of converting sunlight into electricity. The firm aims to begin production at some point next year following further research and development. Read More Electric car range set to double with first production of breakthrough battery Solar panel efficiency to increase 50% with first production of ‘miracle’ tandem cells Solar panel efficiency to increase 50% with first ‘miracle’ tandem cells Elon Musk’s private jet lands in China for billionaire’s first visit in three years WhatsApp set to add major features including a new username system

By Munsif Vengattil NEW DELHI India will start a pilot project this week to establish itself as an

Nvidia Corp. is set to became the first chipmaker to achieve a $1 trillion market capitalization as its

German truck maker Daimler, Toyota and two other automakers plan to work together on new technologies, including the use of hydrogen fuel, to help fight climate change

Qualcomm Inc. is betting the future of AI will require more computing power than what the cloud alone

WhatsApp is developing a range of new features, including a new username system and a screen-sharing option during video calls. The username system will allow users to select a unique name attached to their account, WABetaInfo first reported, based on changes spotted in the app’s beta version 2.23.11.15 for Android. This may enable users to find each other through usernames instead of phone numbers in the future, with conversations using the username expected to be end-to-end encrypted. Beta testers of the app’s 2.23.11.19 version also found a new screen-sharing feature that reportedly enabled users to share the contents of their screen on video calls, also allowing people to record sections of the call. Some testers also reported finding a “status archive” feature, limited to business accounts, which enables users to archive their WhatsApp statuses after 24 hours and reshare them later in the future. These features appear to be under development and not yet available to all testers. They may be gradually rolled out to users. Other changes include a new “password reminder feature” for end-to-end encrypted backups on WhatsApp for iOS and Android as well as an improved support for message drafts. The latter is expected to help users who may forget about partially composed messages in the middle of conversations. The Meta-owned company previously did not indicate the presence of a message under drafts in the chat bar and the new indicator of unfinished messages at the top of the chat list may allow users to notice this. Some users may notice a few small changes in WhatsApp’s bottom navigation bar on downloading the beta for Android 2.23.11.19 update. A new icon and a prompt during video calls seem to help users share their screen. The feature records everything displayed on one’s screen and shares it with the recipient. But the recipient may be unable to get the content of the sharer’s screen in case they are using an outdated WhatsApp version. Potential wider accessibility of this feature, however, remains unclear as it may not work in large group calls. Read More Major WhatsApp update enables secret chats WhatsApp update fixes glaring irritation when using app WhatsApp update will let people edit messages after they are sent