TechCapsules

EY has named Dr. Philip Intallura as Partner and Global Quantum Leader, tasking him with expanding the firm’s quantum‑safe migration, risk advisory and pilot projects for financial services and regulated sectors. Zapata Quantum added MIT mathematician Dr. Peter Short to its Scientific Advisory Board, joining existing members to steer the Quantum Pilot™ platform’s algorithm roadmap. IQM appointed Dr. Voica Radescu as Director of Commercial Partnerships, leveraging her IBM Quantum Innovation Center experience to grow European and global [...]

The Zayed Sustainability Prize announced the finalists for its 2027 competition after receiving a record 10,233 submissions from 177 countries, a 32% rise over the previous year. The contest now spans six categories – Health, Food, Energy, Water, Climate Action and Global High Schools – and guarantees every finalist financial backing. Organizational finalists in the five sector categories will each receive US$100,000, while high‑school finalists get US$25,000; category winners will earn US$1 million or US$150,000 for schools. Selections [...]

Apple released the iPhone Duo, a dual‑display device featuring an under‑display FaceTime camera, Touch ID, and a secondary front screen. Early reviewers noted compromises in app support and camera performance, but the company has since pushed updates to improve compatibility. Users appreciate the focused smaller screen and the convenience of unlocking with an Apple Watch, though some find the lack of right‑edge backswipe and limited Face ID frustrating. The Duo has sparked renewed public interest, with many curious about [...]

Tesla’s driverless fleet logged 438,000 unsupervised miles in the week to Oct. 18, edging past Waymo’s 406,000 miles for the same period in Austin. Company data show a jump from 250,000 miles last quarter to 1.7 million, then to 3.3 million within days, implying roughly 20 % weekly growth. At that rate, Tesla would surpass Waymo’s national weekly total of about 4 million miles in roughly 11 weeks and could reach 10 million weekly miles by week 16, overtaking half of Uber‑plus‑Lyft mileage in [...]

A YouTuber from JerryRigEverything tested the new iPhone Duo’s durability in a series of controlled destruction experiments. The front Ceramic Shield display survived a Mohs‑scale scratch test up to level seven, just below sapphire, while the inner flexible panel scratched at level two, similar to other foldables. The titanium frame was scratched by a knife and singed by a lighter, and heavy dust clogged the hinge after repeated opening. A bend test that forced the large outer [...]

SpaceX has reportedly lifted the restrictions it placed on Starshield, the military‑grade variant of its Starlink broadband service used by Ukraine’s armed forces. Defense Minister Evgeniy Khmara told reporters that the system is now operating normally, though the military continues testing and has not received an official explanation for the prior limitations. The restrictions, which lasted about ten days, caused Ukrainian drones traveling near 100 mph to lose connectivity, leading to loss of control of some unmanned aircraft and [...]

Apple released a second release‑candidate build for watchOS 27.2, build 24S118, following the first RC earlier in the week. The update precedes a broader launch of the 27.2 software suite, which will include iOS, tvOS, and iPadOS releases. The new watchOS RC likely addresses bugs discovered after the initial build, though specific changes remain undisclosed. Developers and public beta testers can download the latest build to test stability before the public release next week.

A Convovo study revealed that when prompted to recommend a candidate for the 2024 midterms, SpaceXAI’s Grok 4.7 favored Republicans in 92% of responses, while OpenAI’s GPT‑6.1 Sol favored Democrats in 97%. Across nearly 500 races, the models agreed less than 10% of the time. The research, which used API calls rather than consumer apps, highlighted implicit biases in source selection and topic focus, raising concerns about AI neutrality in political guidance.