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BaCta is using engineered bacteria to grow natural rubber and slash CO2 emissions

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BaCta is using engineered bacteria to grow natural rubber and slash CO2 emissions

The synthetic biology and precision fermentation space is a hotbed of entrepreneurial activity these days. But it’s not every day you come across a startup that’s using genetic engineering to produce natural rubber — a substance that’s challenging to reproduce in a lab because of how long its polymer is.

Paris-based baCta has a proof of concept up and running that uses engineered bacteria (E.coli) to yield natural rubber in vitro. The startup says its method, which relies upon a renewable feedstock — currently it’s using glucose but is aiming to diversify into acetate and carbon — is carbon neutral.

The startup has just bagged €3.3 million (around $3.6 million at current exchange rates) so it can get to work on its next challenge: figuring out how to industrialize its lab-based process and move from producing milligrams of raw material so far into the far greater quantities necessary for other companies to use its rubber to make their own products.

Natural rubber not grown on trees

Around half the world’s rubber is synthetic (i.e. derived from petroleum); the other half (natural rubber) is harvested from the latex-laden sap of Hevea trees. Neither route is great from a sustainability point of view. Though natural rubber might sound more environmentally friendly, it can lead to deforestation if land is cleared to make way for Hevea plantations.

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At the same time, with the advent of emissions reporting regulations and the like, manufacturers in Europe and elsewhere are under pressure to find ways to reduce their carbon footprints. So if a raw material’s supply can be greener, and the product is competitively priced, there should be a clear incentive to switch to a bio-engineered version of natural rubber.

BaCta CEO and founder Mathieu Nohet sounds confident that the startup, which was only founded in January 2024, will be able to scale up production of its biosynthesized natural rubber.

He also thinks the approach it’s taken — which involves “synthetic AI enzyme technology that basically lifts scientific barriers and enables polymerization of rubber inside bacteria,” as he explains it — will allow it to hit a price-point that’s competitive versus the conventional commodity, while offering major reductions in CO2 emissions.

“Having this polymerization mechanism inside the cell enables us to be much more efficient in terms of yield and, ultimately, in terms of cost per kilogram, which means that if we’re able to pull off the mixotrophic approach [i.e. feedstock diversification], we’ll actually be competitive with the commodity at the price that is today.”

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“We’re testing acetate [as a feedstock] and also trying to fix carbon directly inside the cell to increase yield, decrease cost and carbon impact. [Natural rubber] has a huge carbon impact, so we could actually remove hundreds of millions of tons of CO2 from the atmosphere if we [are] successful.”

Initially, baCta’s go-to-market strategy entails targeting the material at luxury fashion/apparel brands — so for use-cases like premium shoes, bags, etc. — which don’t need large quantities of raw material. It would then seek to expand out to more industrial-style use cases (rubber parts for vibration damping in machinery, for example) once it’s stepped up production.

“The goal is to scale it up,” he says. “First try it in a fermenter, get it out of the lab, basically, and then to a pilot scale. So, let’s say, 100 to 200 liters cultures, so that we can start delivering bigger batches to our potential customers.”

The startup is hoping to reach pilot scale in 18 months, per Nohet. “Then we would raise another round to reach pre-industrial scale,” he says.

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BaCta’s pre-seed round is led by OVNI Capital, with participation from another.vc, Kima Ventures, Sharpstone Capital, and “prominent” business angels, including Thibaud Elziere and members of the Hexa team, as well as Nicolas Morin, co-founder of Gourmey.

Since the startup’s natural rubber is produced through genetic engineering, Nohet confirms they are able to remove specific proteins in the tree sap that can trigger allergies. This means the biosynthesized natural rubber could have an added benefit in that it could be marketed as hypoallergenic.

Down the line, the startup has plans to move beyond rubber production, too: It wants to apply the approach to deliver carbon neutral production of isoprenoids — a family of chemical compounds derived from a monomer of the rubber polymer — that have many uses in areas like industrial and pharmaceutical production.

But the company is sticking with natural rubber for starters.

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“Rubber has this advantage where many, many people use it for different usage,” he notes. “So we can actually have a sequential go-to-market, where we start with a very high-end customers, and then move towards more mass market. Plus it’s a very, common, famous, understandable product. So we think it’s easier to get people behind the mission with a first product that everybody knows.”

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Science & Environment

Wall Street analysts downgrade Honeywell. We think they’re making a mistake.

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Wall Street analysts downgrade Honeywell. We think they're making a mistake.


Honeywell International Inc. signage is displayed on a monitor on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York.

Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty Images

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Honeywell stock received a rare downgrade from JPMorgan on Thursday. It’s the first time in more than a decade that analysts at the firm lowered their rating.



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Android 16’s Priority Modes leaked, and I need them right now

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Android 16's Priority Modes leaked, and I need them right now

On those days when you have a lot of work to do and not nearly enough time to do it, shutting out distractions is vital. Android’s Do Not Disturb mode is already tremendously helpful in that respect, but it looks like a better version is coming in Android 16 called Priority modes.

Android Authority’s Mishaal Rahman first spotted the change in the Android 15 QPR1 Beta 1. According to Rahman, the Priority Mode feature replaces the Do Not Disturb menu and brings with it UI elements and display settings straight from the Digital Wellbeing feature. He played around with the feature, but was unable to interact with it beyond that.

Things have progressed a bit in the most recent version of the beta. The previously inactive Quick Settings tile is now functional and allows you to quickly activate or deactivate different modes. The modes shown include Do Not Disturb, Event, Gardening, Meditating, and Sleeping. Any selected modes are highlighted so you can easily see which ones are active at a glance.

In his analysis, Rahman pointed out that both Event and Sleeping have placeholder icons, but he says he expects a more fleshed-out interface by the time the project is finalized. Android has already introduced more than 40 different icons to choose from in the QPR Beta 2, which suggests that you can set up custom Priority Modes with an icon of your choice.

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This is a massive change that revamps and improves one of Android’s core features. Since it is such a big shift, it will likely be part of Android 16’s feature list, but it is possible it will be released later in Android 15‘s life cycle.

From a user perspective, I love what Priority Modes brings to the table. The ability to customize alerts so that only specific ones come through is basically what exists with Do Not Disturb now, but Priority Modes will make it significantly more convenient to activate. One of the primary obstacles right now is the process of activating Do Not Disturb; why bother going through all those taps when I can just toss my phone in a hoodie pocket and achieve the same effect?

Other reports say that Priority Mode can enable other features, like dimming the wallpaper, turning the screen black-and-white, and much more. I’d rather not admit how often I glance at my phone because of a dynamic wallpaper, so this is a welcome feature.

It’s also worth pointing out that this same update appears to let you place any app into a bubble for easy multitasking and screen management. It all sounds great, and I can’t wait to get my hands on it.

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Perakitan Rack Server Indorack Close Rack IR11542P

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Galaxy Z Fold 5 & Flip 5 start getting October 2024 security update

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Galaxy Z Fold 5 & Flip 5 start getting October 2024 security update

Samsung has started rolling out the October 2024 security update to last year’s foldable smartphones, the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Z Flip 5. It’s worth noting that the company is also rolling out this month’s security update to the Galaxy Z Fold 6 alongside.

The Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Galaxy Z Flip 5 start getting the October 2024 security update

Initially, the company pushed the latest security update to the Galaxy S24 series including the Galaxy S24 FE. Now, the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Galaxy Z Fold 5 have also started receiving the October 2024 security update in Europe.

The latest security update for the Galaxy Z Fold 5 comes with a firmware version F946BXXS3DXI9. Whereas, the new update carries a firmware version F731BXXS3DXI9 on the Galaxy Z Flip 5. The October 2024 security update includes fixes for 42 security vulnerabilities that have been reported in the previous version.

Notably, these include fixes from Google and Samsung. Google reportedly patches 2 critical and 28 high-level security loopholes in total with one already resolved in the previous update. Whereas, two fixes have nothing to do with the Samsung Galaxy smartphones.

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On the other hand, Samsung fixes 12 security flaws related to system services and Knox. It should be noted that the October 2024 security update doesn’t bring any new features to both the foldable.

You can check for the update by following the instructions below

If you live in Europe and have Galaxy Z Fold 5 (Review) or Flip 5, you can check for the update right away. You can do so by going to Settings > Software update. On the Software update page, wait for the device to scan for any new updates.

If a new update pops up, you can simply tap Download and install. That’s all you have to do, your device will take care of the rest. Moreover, if you live outside of Europe, the update might soon pop up on your device too, so stay patient.

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Refurbished Server in India | Used Server in Bangalore

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Refurbished Server in India | Used Server in Bangalore



TieDot Technologies Provides Used and Refurbished HPE Rack Servers, HPE Tower Servers, HPE Blade Servers, HPE Apollo Servers Dell PowerEdge T140, T30, T330, T340, R840, R940, R440, R540, R730, R730xd, R740, R640, R630, R740xd, R240, R340, T440, T640 Server Series for price and availability Call: +91-9035020041 | +91-9036000187 Email: sales@tiedottechnologies.com

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Apple, Anker, Sonos, Lego and more

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Apple, Anker, Sonos, Lego and more

Another October Prime Day is on the books, but all of the deals haven’t disappeared from Amazon’s site just yet. This year’s Fall Prime Day brought a bunch of discounts on smartphones, speakers, wearables, robot vacuums and more tech, and you can still grab some of the sale prices right now even after the event has officially ended. While it’s possible we see some of these deals come back in a month during Black Friday, it’s a good idea to pick up your top items now if you’re keen on getting some of your holiday shopping done early. Here are the best Prime Day deals you can still get today.

10th-gen iPad

Photo by Nathan Ingraham / Engadget

Apple deals can be hit or miss during Amazon Prime Day, but we saw a number of good ones this time and many of them are still available. Whether you’ve been on the hunt for a new Apple device for yourself or you know you want to pick one up as a gift, you can save a bit of cash if you do so now.

A number of Lego sets are still on sale post October Prime Day. Some of our favorites come from the Star Wars, Super Mario and Harry Potter lineups, and you’ll find savings up to 41 percent on those.

Roku Streaming Stick 4K

Will Lipman Photography for Engadget

Yes, Black Friday is right around the corner, but it would be unwise to sleep on these Prime Day tech deals that you can still get today. We’re seeing steep discounts on headphones, TVs, streaming devices, gaming gear and more, making it a good time to pick up something for yourself or cross a few items off your holiday shopping list early.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter for the latest tech deals and buying advice, and stay tuned to Engadget.com for all of the best tech deals coming out of October Prime Day 2024.

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