Moderna has begun early-stage clinical trials of an HIV mRNA vaccine, the company announced this week. On Thursday, it administered the first doses of a shot it co-developed with the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative to volunteers at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences.
Like the company’s COVID-19 vaccine, the new treatment uses messenger RNA to “trick” the human body into producing proteins that will trigger an immune response. Moderna hopes the shot will induce a specific class of white blood cells known as B-cells, which can then turn into broadly neutralizing antibodies. Those proteins are “widely considered to be the goal of HIV vaccination, and this is the first step in that process,” according to the company.
As part of the trial, Moderna plans to test both a primary vaccine and a booster shot. The Phase 1 trial will involve 56 healthy, HIV-negative adult participants. The company will give 48 of those individuals the mRNA vaccine. Thirty-two of that group will also receive the booster shot. To the final eight involved in the first trial, the company will only administer the booster shot. Moderna says it will then monitor the entire group for six months to gauge the safety of the vaccine. It also plans to examine the immune response the vaccine triggers at the molecular level to determine if it’s effective.
Messenger RNA technology could lead to treatments for a host of deadly diseases, including malaria, but a breakthrough against HIV would be particularly noteworthy. According to statistics from the US government, approximately 1.2 million Americans have the virus, which can lead to the deadly AIDS disease. While outcomes for HIV patients have improved significantly since the ‘90s thanks to the development of new treatments and medication, no HIV vaccine has successfully passed early clinical trials.
It's been a great quarter for Apple. The company just dropped its earnings report for the first quarter of 2022 (which for Apple ended December 25, 2021), and it's broken revenue records all across the board. Not only is its overall revenue at an all-time high of $123.9 billion, it's also made more money selling iPhones, Macs and wearables than ever before. This time last year, the company reported a revenue of $111 billion, which itself was a new record then. Just last quarter, too, it made all kinds of money selling Macs, even without the release of new Macbooks at that time.
Apple's revenue from iPhones of $71.6 billion this year, despite global supply constraints, is a notable jump from $65.6 billion last year. Driven by its transition to its own M1 silicon, Mac revenues also rose by more than $2 billion from the year before, hitting a record $10.9 billion. Chief financial officer Luca Maestri said on the company's earnings call that the last six quarters were "the best six quarters ever for Mac," and that M1-powered devices made up the vast majority of sales, thanks to a "record number of upgraders."
Sales of iPads made Apple $7.2 billion this year, while "Wearables, Home and Accessories" brought in $14.7 billion. That includes things like the Apple Watch, AirPods and HomePods. Both categories of products also broke revenue records. Apple's services also contributed to its overall revenue, with products like TV+ and Fitness+ raking in a total of $19.5 billion — an increase of 24 percent from last year. Maestri noted that paid subscriptions continue to grow, with recent developments in Fitness+, Arcade and Apple Music contributing to the growth.
Investors will be happy to know that Apple's board of directors have declared "a cash dividend of 22 cents per share of common stock, payable on February 10th 2022."
A group of Democratic lawmakers led by Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachuttes has asked six crypto mining companies, including Riot Blockchain, to answer questions about the impact of their operations on the environment and cost of electricity in the US. In separate letters to the chief executives of each firm, the group asks the companies to detail how much electricity they consume, their scaling plans and any agreements they have in place with local utility companies. They have until February 10th to reply.
Lawmakers say they’re concerned about what a dramatic increase in domestic cryptocurrency mining has meant for the environment and consumers. Specifically, they cite a 2021 study from the University of California, Berkeley that estimated crypto mining in upstate New York raised annual electricity bills by approximately $165 million for small businesses and $79 million for consumers, “with little or no local economic benefit.” They also point to the fact that energy consumption related to Bitcoin mining tripled between 2019 and 2021.
“The extraordinarily high energy usage and carbon emissions associated with Bitcoin mining could undermine our hard work to tackle the climate crisis – not to mention the harmful impacts crypto mining has on local environments and electricity prices,” Senator Warren said. “We need more information on the operations of these crypto mining companies to understand the full scope of the consequences for our environment and local communities.”
The group stops short of suggesting regulatory action could be on the horizon for the industry, but clearly the effect of cryptocurrency on other parts of the economy is something lawmakers are thinking about. On January 20th, the House Energy and Commerce Committee held a hearing titled “Cleaning up Cryptocurrency: The Energy Impacts of Blockchains.” What’s more, US lawmakers have taken a more board interest in cryptocurrencies in recent months. That was on display in December when the Senate held a hearing on Stablecoins.
The last year has been a boon for social media scammers, according to a new report from the FTC. The agency says more than 95,000 people lost $770 million to scammers who found them via social media platforms in 2021. That’s more than double the $258 million they say scammers made off with in 2020.
The report doesn’t speculate on why there was such a big increase in 2021, but it notes that reports of scams have “soared” over the last five years. It also states that there was a “massive surge” in scams related to “bogus cryptocurrency investments” and that investment scams accounted for nearly $285 million — more than third — of the $770 million lost last year.
Romance scams have also “climbed to record highs in recent years,” according to the report. “These scams often start with a seemingly innocent friend request from a stranger, followed by sweet talk, and then, inevitably, a request for money,” the FTC says. Also prevalent are scams related to online shopping, most of which involve “undelivered goods” that were purchased as the result of an ad on social media.
Of note, Facebook and Instagram are the only two platforms named in the report. “More than a third of people who said they lost money to an online romance scam in 2021 said it began on Facebook or Instagram,” the report states. Likewise, the FTC says that Facebook and Instagram were the most commonly cited platform for reports of undelivered good, with the two apps cited in 9 out of 10 reports where a service was identified.
“We put significant resources towards tackling this kind of fraud and abuse,” a spokesperson for Meta said in a statement. “We also go beyond suspending and deleting accounts, Pages, and ads. We take legal action against those responsible when we can and always encourage people to report this behavior when they see it.”
Interestingly one of the FTC’s recommendations is that users try to opt out of targeted advertising when possible as scammers can “easily use the tools available to advertisers on social media platforms to systematically target people with bogus ads based on personal details such as their age, interests, or past purchases.” The agency also recommends users lock down their privacy settings and to be wary of any messages asking for money, especially in the form of cryptocurrency or gift cards.
Just a few days after rolling out iOS 15.3, Apple has released the latest iOS developer beta. Among the new features is one that'll come in very handy for unlocking your iPhone while you're out and about in the current climate. The company is testing a way for folks to use Face ID while they're wearing a mask — without needing an Apple Watch.
"Face ID is most accurate when it’s set up for full-face recognition only," Apple explains when users set up the feature. "To use Face ID while wearing a mask, iPhone can recognize the unique features around the eye to authenticate.”
Apple's looking to get rid of that requirement in the latest beta, which will surely come as music to the ears of people who are fed up with punching in their iPhone passcode at the grocery store or the gym. Avoiding using your passcode in public is a boon for privacy too.
You'll need to switch on the option manually. Under the Face ID & Passcode section of the settings, select the "Use Face ID with a mask option" to get started. The feature will still work for those who are wearing glasses, but you'll need to remove your sunglasses.
Other features in the beta include the option to add notes to iCloud Keychain passwords and the ability to copy text from objects using the camera while in the Notes and Reminders apps. Also new is support for adaptive triggers on the PS5 DualSense controller, EU Digital COVID Certificate-compatible vaccination records in Wallet, an Apple Card widget and, perhaps most importantly for many, dozens more emoji.
As for the iPadOS 15.4, there's brightness control for the keyboard and (as part of the macOS Monterey 12.3 beta) something many Mac and iPad users have been waiting for: Universal Control. That feature allows people to control multiple Macs and iPads with a single mouse and keyboard. In December, Apple delayed the feature until the spring. It's not yet clear when Apple plans to release the final versions of the latest software more broadly.
Two and a half years after Death Stranding, the genre-bending action adventure (and spiritual successor to Paperboy) from acclaimed director Hideo Kojima, hit Playstations and PCs the world over, the most definitive version of the game so far has a firm release date for PC. Death Stranding Director's Cut will arrive via Steam March 30th, 2022.
— KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS (Eng) (@KojiPro2015_EN) January 4, 2022
Kojima Studios had previously announced that the new version would arrive at some point this spring but with Thursday's news, gamers can start getting their delivery muscles limbered in earnest. Being a Director's Cut doesn't just mean that players will be treated to even longer cutscenes. Existing PS5 players already have access to new weapons, missions, boss battles, and a racing mode while newly-minted PC gamers will get those bonuses as well as be able to leverage Intel's Xe Super Sampling for improved graphics and performance.
Ubisoft is discontinuing development on Hyper Scape. On Thursday, the company announced it will shut down the game on April 28th. “We set out to create a vertical, close-quarters and fast-paced shooter experience and we are extremely grateful to our community for joining us on our journey,” Ubisoft said. “We will be taking key learnings from this game into future products.”
Well I think the name kind of gave away what would happen.
Ubisoft launched Hyper Scape in the summer of 2020, claiming at the time the title would bring fresh ideas to the crowded battle royal market. However, it struggled almost immediately to capture the attention of people who were already content playing games like Call of Duty: Warzone and Apex Legends. Following a subsequent console release, Ubisoft admitted Hyper Scape “didn’t fully meet the high expectations of our players.” To its credit, the company didn’t give up on the game immediately, and it tried to salvage it with additional content. Clearly, however, those efforts weren’t enough.
It also doesn’t seem like Hyper Scape’s struggles have fazed Ubisoft's desire to create a successful battle royale title. In the upcoming Ghost Recon Frontline, the company is working on at least one new game in the genre. There are also rumors the recently announced The Division Heartland is a battle royale. As they say, if at first you don’t succeed, try, try and try again.
It's all too easy for some folks to sign up for a service, pay a subscription fee every month and forget all about it. With that in mind, Microsoft is tackling the issue of inactive Game Pass memberships. As part of broader changes to Xbox Live Gold and Game Pass in the UK, the company says it will cancel subscriptions that have long lain dormant.
The company will get in touch with people who are paying for an Xbox Live Gold or Game Pass subscription but haven't used it for at least a year. It'll tell them how to stop their payments if they want to opt out. If those people keep forking over cash every month without using their memberships for another 12 consecutive months, Microsoft will eventually stop taking payments.
The change will apply to UK consumers at first. Microsoft told The Vergeit will roll them out globally in the near future.
The company committed to the measure as part of a voluntary agreement with the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). The regulator has been investigating auto-renewing subscriptions on Xbox, PlayStation and Nintendo Switch since 2019. Sony and Nintendo haven't committed to similar undertakings as yet.
Along with changes to inactive subscriptions, Microsoft has agreed to offer better upfront information about memberships, including clear details about auto-renewals, when subscriptions will be reupped, how much people will pay and a way to get a refund if they accidentally renew their plan.
It will contact users who have recurring annual subscriptions and offer them a chance to cancel and receive a prorated refund. Microsoft will also provide clearer notifications about Game Pass and Live Gold price rises and tell users how to turn off auto-renewals.
"Gamers need to be given clear and timely information to make informed choices when signing up for auto-renewing memberships and subscriptions," said Michael Grenfell, the CMA's executive director of enforcement. We are therefore pleased that Microsoft has given the CMA these formal undertakings to improve the fairness of their practices and protect consumers, and will be offering refunds to certain customers."
Near the end of TikTok, Boom, content creator and beatboxer Spencer X chokes up. “TikTok has really changed my entire life,” he says while fighting back tears. He’s one of a few influencers profiled in the 90-minute documentary, which premiered at Sundance 2022 this weekend. It also features activist Feroza Aziz, best known for her viral video that slipped criticism of China’s treatment of Uighur Muslims into what initially appeared to be a makeup tutorial. Other subjects include reproductive rights activist Deja Foxx and Douyin content creator Jason Zhang, whose experiences with the app are all fascinating and moving.
Directed by Shalini Kantayya, TikTok, Boom is meant to “[dissect] one of the most influential platforms of the contemporary social media landscape." The film’s description on the Sundance festival portal says it “examines the algorithmic, sociopolitical, economic and cultural influences and impact of the history-making app.” Unfortunately, if you were hoping to learn anything new about why the For You algorithm is so creepily intuitive, why its parent company ByteDance collects so much data or what exactly are the app's ties to the Chinese government, you'll be disappointed.
In general, the documentary tries to cover too much. It jumped from Aziz finding a community of Afghan-Americans on the app, to X defying his parent’s expectations to make a career out of beatboxing, to sexism, racism, child predators, body image issues, TikTok’s creation and ByteDance’s history, all within the first 40 minutes. There’s discussion of the impact on creators’ mental health, Facebook’s interest in buying TikTok, the reinforcement of social disparities, China’s control and censorship, Trump’s rallies in Tulsa, the subsequent ban of the app and more. In the second half, there’s even a random dramatic reenactment of “a statement made by a former ByteDance employee” during the COVID-19 outbreak.
If TikTok, Boom was trying to catalog every time TikTok made the news, it did an admirable job. But in its effort to recap history, the film fails to deliver any insight. I could have easily Googled “TikTok timeline” and gotten all the same information without having to sit in front of my TV for 90 minutes. Had the documentary narrowed its focus, I suspect I would have learned more.
But in its effort to recap history, the film fails to deliver any insight.
I also have a small, but important gripe. The film needs more careful editors. It features B-roll and expert interviews correctly pronouncing and spelling the app Douyin that predated TikTok. Mere seconds later, the narrator and an onscreen graphic both mispronounce and misspell Douyin as “Duoyin.” Another spelling error: a list of so-called “Sensored words” in a graphic as opposed to “censored.”
Maybe I’m nit-picking, but mistakes like this affect the credibility of any documentary, which should be a well-researched piece of video journalism.
That leads me to my biggest problem with TikTok, Boom: It makes some dangerous assumptions. At one point in the film, an animated rendering insinuates that TikTok scans a user’s face while they’re watching videos and determines if they’re smiling or not. The film posits that this information is then fed into the algorithm that lets ByteDance recommend more content on your For You page.
There is no evidence that TikTok does this. In fact, unless Apple and Google’s privacy indicators (which show when your phone’s cameras are being used) are malfunctioning, people would know if an app was watching them. It’s more likely that the TikTok, Boom team misinterpreted terms in the app’s privacy policy that states it’s collecting “faceprints and voiceprints.”
Courtesy of Sundance Institute.
That’s not to say ByteDance is completely in the clear here; it’s never explicitly explained why it’s gathering that data. Other parts of its privacy policy are even more alarming, like the fact that ByteDance collects information about users’ "keystroke patterns or rhythms." In 2020, the company had to publicly admit wrongdoing and agree to stop accessing users’ clipboard data every few keystrokes. Back then, it claimed this was part of an anti-spam feature. Now, the latest versions of iOS and Android will alert you if an app has accessed or pasted content from your clipboard, so you can be aware of unnecessary data collection.
Look, I get it. The For You algorithm can be so uncanny that people scramble to find nefarious reasons for its effectiveness. It’s just like when we all wondered if Instagram and Facebook were listening to our conversations to serve us eerily timely ads. But it’s one thing for individuals to wonder if your phone is spying on you and a whole other problem if a documentary recklessly claims it’s happening. The filmmakers don’t seem to realize the responsibility it has to its viewers.
In fact, had TikTok, Boom just focused on breaking down the For You algorithm or studying exactly what data the app is collecting (and in that context its ties to China), the film might have unearthed something illuminating. Instead, it ends up being a mostly redundant recap with a catchy title.
Since 2016, Critter and Guitari's Organelle line has been one of the most unique ways to create music. What looks like a simple keyboard is actually a computer powered by a Raspberry Pi module and Pure Data, a visual programming language primarily intended for creating and manipulating audio. It’s a setup that gives the Organelle – and its 2019 successor, the Organelle M – the ability to function as synth, drum machine, effects unit and more. However, all of that versatility comes at a cost; buying the Organelle M new from Critter and Guitari will set you back $595 before tax.
Enter the Organelle S. At $495, it’s $100 less expensive than the Organelle M. It doesn’t include the built-in speaker or battery compartment found on its sibling. Outside of those two features, however, the Organelle S includes the same processor as the Organelle M. Despite its smaller size, it also comes with distinctive maple-wood keys of its predecessors. In a way, it’s a more powerful version of the original Organelle that comes with a faster processor, more RAM, MIDI connectivity and a microphone for recording.
