Connect with us
DAPA Banner
DAPA Coin
DAPA
COIN PAYMENT ASSET
PRIVACY · BLOCKDAG · HOMOMORPHIC ENCRYPTION · RUST
ElGamal Encrypted MINE DAPA
🚫 GENESIS SOLD OUT
DAPAPAY COMING

Tech

Scientists Gave Cocaine to Salmon and You Will Absolutely Believe What Happened Next

Published

on

Cocaine pollution can affect the behavior of fish—altering, for example, the way Atlantic salmon move through their environment, prompting them to swim farther and disperse over a wider area.

So finds a recent study by a research team coordinated by Griffith University, the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, the Zoological Society of London, and the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior and published in the journal Current Biology. The findings provide the first evidence that the effects of cocaine contamination on fish behavior occur not only under laboratory conditions but also in the wild, where animals are exposed to much more complex environmental conditions.

Cocaine and its metabolites have been detected with increasing frequency in rivers and lakes around the world, entering waterways primarily through wastewater treatment systems. Although previous research has shown that cocaine pollution can affect animal behavior, this evidence was limited to laboratory conditions. A 2024 study by the Oswaldo Cruz Institute in Brazil showed that even sharks are exposed to cocaine, but little is known about its effects on animals in the wild.

To understand more about it, the authors of the new study surgically implanted small devices that slowly released chemicals into 105 juvenile Atlantic salmon in Lake Vättern in Sweden. They were then divided into three groups: a control group, which was not exposed to substances; a group exposed to cocaine; and a group exposed to benzoylecgonine, the main metabolite of cocaine that is commonly detected in wastewater. The researchers also attached small tags to the fish so they could monitor their movements over a two-month period. From subsequent analyses, the team found that, compared with the control group, fish exposed to benzoylecgonine swam up to 1.9 times farther, dispersing at the end of the experiment about 20 miles from the release point.

Advertisement

“The location of the fish determines what they eat, what eats them, and how populations are structured,” said coauthor Marcus Michelangeli. “If pollution is altering these patterns, it has the potential to affect ecosystems in ways we are only now beginning to understand.”

In addition to showing how cocaine pollution has changed the way salmon use space in a natural ecosystem, the new study found that the most pronounced effect was observed not so much in the group exposed to cocaine itself, but in that exposed to its metabolite. This result has implications for monitoring, since the metabolites are often more common in waterways and current risk assessments generally focus on the main compound, potentially neglecting important biological effects.

“The idea that cocaine might have effects on fish might seem surprising, but the reality is that wildlife is already exposed to a wide range of human-made drugs on a daily basis,” said Michelangeli. The researchers’ next step will be to be able to determine how widespread these effects are, identify which species are most at risk, and test whether alterations in behavior translate into changes in survival and reproduction.

This story originally appeared on WIRED Italia and has been translated from Spanish.

Advertisement

Source link

Continue Reading
Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

Tech

A big 45% saving makes the Blink Outdoor 4 a budget way to increase your security

Published

on

Most home security cameras demand either a complicated installation, a recurring subscription, or a battery you are replacing every few weeks, and the cheaper ones tend to ask for all three at once.

The Blink Outdoor 4 was built to sidestep every one of those frustrations, and it is currently down from $79.99 to $43.99, with $36 knocked off its usual retail price.

Blink Outdoor 4on a blue and white backgroundBlink Outdoor 4on a blue and white background

A big 45% saving puts the Blink Outdoor 4 within easy reach for anyone upgrading their home security

This Blink deal is very much ideal for anyone who wants capable outdoor coverage, and $36 saved at today’s price makes it an easy decision.

Advertisement

View Deal

This is a fourth-generation wireless security camera that sets up in minutes, requires no drilling or hardwiring, and runs on two included AA Energizer lithium batteries for up to two years before you need to think about power again.

Advertisement

Video comes through at 1080p HD with a 143-degree diagonal field of view, infrared night vision for low-light coverage, and two-way audio so you can speak directly to whoever is at your door or in your garden from the Blink app on your phone.

The dual-zone enhanced motion detection lets you define exactly which areas of the frame trigger an alert, which cuts down on false notifications from passing cars or shifting shadows rather than actual movement that matters.

Advertisement

Person detection is also available, using embedded computer vision to distinguish a person from an animal or object, though this feature requires an optional Blink Subscription Plan sold separately and is not included in the base price.

Advertisement

The Whatsapp LogoThe Whatsapp Logo

Get Updates Straight to Your WhatsApp

Join Now

Advertisement

Cloud video storage follows the same model, with a 30-day free trial included and a paid subscription needed to keep footage beyond that period, while local backup is possible via a Sync Module XR and MicroSD card, both of which are sold separately.

The included Sync Module Core acts as the system hub, supporting up to ten Blink devices and extending battery life across the camera range, meaning the Blink Outdoor 4 can grow into a wider whole-home setup over time.

Alexa compatibility allows you to pull up a live view, arm or disarm the camera, and set routines using any compatible Amazon device, which makes it a natural fit for households already inside the Amazon ecosystem.

This deal is very much ideal for anyone who wants capable outdoor coverage without a professional installation or a long-term commitment, and $36 saved at today’s price makes it a straightforward decision.

Advertisement

Advertisement

SQUIRREL_PLAYLIST_10148964


Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Tech

Sealy Promo Codes: $100 Off

Published

on

Sealy is a mattress brand that is tried and true for many people, given that it has been around since 1881. That’s a lot of time to refine your product. Sealy has kept pace with the times by offering modern variations like memory foam and hybrid mattresses while also maintaining a strong lineup of traditional innerspring beds.

For example, the Cocoon Chill by Sealy is one of our favorite cooling mattresses that passed our week of testing with flying colors. While I’ve only been in the mattress industry for five years (a blip compared to Sealy’s timeline), I’m the resident sleep writer, reviewer, and certified sleep science coach here at WIRED. These are beds to keep an eye on, especially when they go on sale. Without further ado, here are some Sealy promo codes for this very case.

But if Sealy isn’t the only brand you’re contemplating, you can find our top-tested picks on our best mattresses list, plus the best bedsheets to go with them.

Save $200 on an Ease Power Base With This Sealy Coupon

Sealy doesn’t just make mattresses, and their coupons aren’t just for mattresses—you can also score deals on products like bed frames. The Sealy Ease Power Base allows you to modify the angle of the head and foot of the bed, along with adjustable leg heights to best match your stature. If you plan on getting one to accompany your new Sealy Elite mattress, use Sealy promo code on this page to knock $200 off your bed and Ease power base purchase.

Advertisement

Take $100 Off a Posturepedic Spring Mattress With This Coupon Code

Sealy’s Posturepedic Spring mattress isn’t messing around when it comes to lumbar support. Sealy’s PrecisionFit coils are also working hard within this bed, with firmer coils in the center of the bed right where your spine needs it most—keep that in mind if you have back pain. Gel memory foam layers to keep tension off your pressure points and lower back.

Grab Two Adjustable Support Pillows for $69

Your head and shoulders need as much support as your knees and toes, which is why you’re looking for the best pillow out there and a good deal. Sealy’s got a good thing going with its adjustable pillows, which have the same pressure-relieving memory foam that works to contour around your head. No Sealy promo code needed for this one, because you can bundle to save $29 with a purchase of two pillows.

Get Savings on the Best Mattresses With Sealy

Sealy beds are everywhere. And there’s a reason this mattress is so popular, as they have tons of different models for every type of sleeper. Be sure to check out their complete lineup, including some of their most popular mattresses: the Sealy Posturepedic Hybrid Mattress, the entire Posturepedic Elite Collection, which helps to cradle and support the whole body, and the Cocoon Chill Mattress, ever-popular with hot sleepers who need a cooling mattress.

Sleep on It (Literally) With Sealy’s 90-Night Trial and 10-Year Warranty

Sealy offers you 90 nights and 10 years to back up your new mattress purchase, which is the industry standard. Your body needs at least 30 days to get used to the new bed, and 60 nights beyond that initial timeframe helps you be extra sure it’s the one for you. Ten years is generally how long you can expect a mattress to last, so this is another way of Sealy standing by the durability of its product, whether you plan on buying online or in-store.

Advertisement

Source link

Continue Reading

Tech

M5 Max 16-inch MacBook Pro vs Samsung Galaxy Book6 Ultra: Compared

Published

on

Samsung’s Galaxy Book6 Ultra is the latest attempt to take the thin-and-light workstation crown away from Apple’s MacBook Pro. There is a clear winner.

Two open laptops side by side on a blue-green gradient background, left showing a dark abstract maze pattern, right displaying a bright multicolored swirl wallpaper.
M5 Max 16-inch MacBook Pro [left], Samsung Galaxy Book6 Ultra [right]

The premium notebook market is highly competitive, and Apple has been a big part of that particular industry for decades. The MacBook Pro is synonymous with the concept, being an aluminum-clad slab of portable computing for power users on the go.
Many have tried to emulate Apple’s aesthetic, and with some success, too. Even rival companies like Samsung have gone down a similar route with their premium notebooks.
Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Source link

Continue Reading

Tech

Amazon workers are apparently ‘tokenmaxxing’ AI platforms to hit arbitrary usage targets

Published

on


  • Amazon wants 80% of its developers to be using AI every single week
  • The company is even tracking AI token usage via internal leaderboards
  • Unwilling workers are using AI where it’s not necessary just to inflate figures

Some Amazon employees are reportedly using the company’s internal agentic AI platform, MeshClaw, to automate unnecessary or trivial parts of their work simply to boost internal AI usage metrics.

This comes as company workers are being pressured from above to use more AI – Amazon wants four in five of its developers to be using the tech weekly, and has since started tracking AI token consumption on internal leaderboards.

Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Tech

5 Of The Cheapest Amazon Alexa Devices You Can Buy In 2026

Published

on





We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

Folks looking to upgrade their day-to-day lives with smart technology have no particular shortage of options, with most of the major tech companies offering devices to manage almost any scenario you can fathom. But in the smart assistant game, it really comes down to a few major players in Apple’s Siri, Google’s Gemini (and its former iteration, Google Assistant), and, of course, Amazon’s very own Alexa.

Those AI assistants no doubt play a big role in the lives of most folks in the modern world. However, Alexa may own a slight advantage over the competition when it comes to hardware due solely to its ties to Amazon, which happens to be the largest e-commerce outlet in existence by a pretty wide margin. To that end, most of the major manufacturers of tech now make devices that are compatible with Alexa.

Advertisement

Amazon, naturally, also makes an entire line of smart devices that are Alexa enabled and ready to make your life a little easier whether you’re at home or out and about for the day. For this particular list, we’re focusing on that set of smart devices. Similarly, we are keeping to options which can be purchased directly through Amazon, as it sometimes must make sense to buy directly from the source. In any case, if you are looking for Alexa ready devices for your home and beyond, here’s a look at a few of the cheapest you can currently buy through Amazon. 

Advertisement

Smart Display: Echo Show 5 – $89.99

Many of Amazon’s Alexa enabled devices are, of course, designed to provide some level of service to users by allowing them to control compatible devices through a single digital point of origin. Some of those devices are, however, are also geared towards providing users with entertainment options, and one of the more popular Alexa devices in that list is the SlashGear-approved Amazon Echo Show 5.

If you’re interested in the entertainment enabled device to your Alexa array, you can add an Echo Show 5 for a typical retail price of $89.99. It should be noted that the sticker price may be even lower on occasions when Amazon is running a sale. For that price, you get an Alexa device that is equipped with a 5.5-inch screen that can indeed be used to stream news programs and your favorite shows from Amazon and any number of streamers. The device can also be used to stream music from your favorite artists, with Amazon claiming dramatic upgrades in the audio setup over previous generations.

On top of that, you can connect the device to doorbell cameras like those from Ring, which is, of course, owned by Amazon. The Echo Show 5 can also be used for video calls if you like, and even possesses some smart home hub capabilities that can help you control smart lights, smart thermostats and your home security system. It can also serve as a digital frame for your favorite photographs.

Advertisement

Smart Speaker: Echo Pop – $39.99

If you don’t need an Alexa device equipped with all that video capability, and just want a little something that can help you kick out the jams in your kitchen, office or bedroom, Amazon’s Echo Pop may be just the stripped back speaker you need. It is also one of the cheaper Alexa enabled devices that Amazon makes, with the online retailer selling it for just $39.99 these days.

Don’t let the term “stripped back” put you off of this little speaker, as it is as well-designed and developed as any of Amazon’s Alexa devices. Though it may be small in stature, it’s also built to provide some solid punch on the audio front, with Amazon claiming it’ll easily fill any average sized room with big sound. It’ll do so directly through Alexa or through a mobile device connected via Bluetooth if you prefer to blast a playlist from your favorite streamer.

Advertisement

Its Alexa capabilities also extend to the control of certain smart devices like lights and plugs via voice commands. Like many other Alexa devices, the Echo Pop can also answer any number of questions, and is fitted with the now common light bar that lets you know when the AI assistant is engaged and when it’s not. According to Amazon, the device is pretty eco-friendly too, with its fabric covering made of 100% post consumer recycled yarn, and its casing being manufactured from 80% recycled aluminum. For the record, it’s also equipped to run the new Alexa+ program.

Advertisement

Smart Car Companion: Echo Auto – $54.99

Amazon does make a few devices that allow you to take Alexa with you. Its Echo Buds wireless earbuds would likely have been the accessory listed here if they hadn’t been listed as “currently unavailable” through Amazon for some time now. Even as some might think Alexa shouldn’t have a place in a moving car, the Echo Auto accessory is designed to put the AI assistant there for any vehicle owner who does.

No, the Echo Auto does not put Alexa at the wheel of our vehicle. Rather, this device is designed to provide more hands-free functionality to drivers on the road. The microphone equipped device — it’s actually got 5-mics built in to ensure you are heard over in-cabin noise – is designed to mount anywhere in your vehicle, and is powered/connected to it via USB connection. Once it’s up and running, you’ve basically got a mobile Alexa device that can perform many of the same functions as the one in your living room, and will do so by way of simple voice commands.

That list includes playing music, podcasts or radio broadcasts, sending text messages and making phone calls. You can also connect the device to your Alexa enabled home hub and use it to engage smart locks on your home, turn lights on and off inside, and even adjust the thermostat while away. Echo Auto may seem like overkill to some, but at $54.99, many may be willing to give it a go. 

Advertisement

Smart Alarm Clock: Echo Spot – $79.99

In the context of smart home upgrades, alarm clocks are one place where technology has largely failed us, because, well, even as necessary as they are, they are still just infuriatingly loud and limited in personalization. We’re not here to make any claims that Amazon has fixed the long-running alarm clock conundrum. Nonetheless, the Echo Spot Alarm Clock feels like a solid enough step in the right direction if you’re looking for a new one.

The first version of the Spot was, of course, discontinued a couple of years back. The re-imagined Spot is basically a modified version of the Echo Dot, with Amazon flattening the face of that high-tech orb and replacing it with a flat surface that is half shiny digital display and half speaker. That display is customizable to each user’s needs, but is also designed to prominently feature the time, the date and the temperature. Perhaps more importantly, the device allows users to tailor their wake-up routine to their specific desires, making it easier than ever to rise and shine on your own terms.

Advertisement

Yes, like most Alexa tech, the Echo Spot is also equipped to play music, audiobooks, and podcasts at your request, and provide a myriad of other voice-activated functions. It can also connect to your home hub and aid actions like dimming lights, and can even use motion detection to tweak the thermostat in your home. At $79.99, it’s also a pretty affordable option for such a major alarm clock upgrade.

Advertisement

Smart Home Hub: Echo Hub 8 – $179.99

In the smart home tech market, the home hub is essentially one device to rule them all sort of option. By that standard, “cheap” is sort of a relative term, as the hub offers such a wide range of functionality. Still, there are plenty of budget-friendly smart home hub options on the market, with Amazon’s Alexa enabled Echo Hub 8 — which can be purchased for well under $200 — ranking among them.

For the record, Echo Hub 8 typically sells for $179.99, and yes, the device is indeed compatible with Amazon’s upgraded Alexa+ AI assistant. That means it can be used to run thousands of other compatible devices and seriously streamline your smart home setup. Fronting an 8-inch touch screen, the wall-mountable Echo Hub can be plugged into a standard outlet or hard-wired for a cleaner on-wall look. It’s also easy to set up via the voice command, “Alexa, discover my devices.”

As for what that hub will discover, you can count pretty much any Alexa smart device on that list, as well as a myriad of others, with the easy-to-use Echo Hub able to operate lighting and smart plugs in every room in the house. It can also adjust the thermostat, operate any connected speaker systems, show feeds from doorbell and other security cameras, and provide easy-access control over home security systems. You can even connect it to your smartphone through the Alexa App so you can check the status of all of those smart devices and setting while you’re out. 

Advertisement



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Tech

Why is Apple backing Android against the EU?

Published

on

The European Union wants Google to allow any AI company to use its services, and the company hates the idea. Apple agrees with Google.

Apple doesn’t seem to be listened to by the European Union when it complains about its own experiences trying to work within the Digital Markets Act (DMA). But since the EU has asked for responses to its proposals for Google to open up to rival AI firms, Apple has tried again.

“The DMs [draft measures] raise urgent and serious concerns,” said Apple in a submission to the EU, as seen by Reuters.

For instance, Apple is expressly concerned about the idea that any AI firm could in theory send emails or order food via Android, without Google’s or perhaps the user’s knowledge.

Advertisement

“If confirmed, they would create profound risks for user privacy, security, and safety as well as device integrity and performance,” continued Apple.

Apple doubtlessly has its own platforms in mind when it is now objecting to rival firms having full access to Android. But it also makes the point that the EU has specified AI firms in its proposals, and Apple points out how poor and error-strewn AI apps are.

“These risks are especially acute in the context of rapidly evolving AI systems whose capabilities, behaviours, and threat vectors remain unpredictable,” said Apple, “as we are now seeing time and again.”

Anyone can submit their opinion to the EU when there is an open call like this, and everyone who does is really looking to protect their own interests. So Apple is clearly concerned that it, too, may be forced to allow the same rival access in iOS.

Advertisement

However, Apple does also have the experience of what it has previously claimed to be “hundreds of thousands of engineering hours” in complying with the DMA. And as part of its new submission, questioned the EU’s technological expertise.

“The EC is redesigning an OS… it is substituting judgments made by Google’s engineers for its own judgment based on less than three months of work,” said Apple. “It is all the more dangerous given the only value that can be discerned from the [draft measures] guiding this work appears to be open and unfettered access.”

Separately, in May 2026, the EU concluded that its DMA has made a positive impact, thereby ignoring Apple’s lobbying for it to be revised.

What happens next

It’s not clear when Apple submitted its filing to the EU, but it was during the consultation period that ran from April 27, 2026, to May 13, 2026.

Advertisement

The European Commission states that it will “carefully assess” submissions from both Google and what it calls interested parties. It does say that there may be adjustments made to the proposed measures because of the submissions.

However, it also mandates that its final decision “must be adopted within six months” of the opening of the specification proceedings. In this case, that means July 27, 2026.

Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Tech

FreeCAD 1.1 Tutorial, For Beginners Who Like Clear Instructions

Published

on

If you’ve been interested in FreeCAD but haven’t known where to start, here’s a wonderful video tutorial for FreeCAD 1.1 by [Deltahedra] aimed squarely at how to model a 3D part from scratch while also following best engineering practices for part design. It focuses on a concise and meaningful workflow that respects your time and doesn’t make assumptions about skill level. It even starts by taking a few moments to explain how to navigate the interface, a courtesy many will appreciate.

FreeCAD can do quite a lot, so a tutorial that focuses on a specific yet broadly-applicable task with a clear context is a great way to narrow the scope into something manageable, and be comprehensive without getting bogged down in minutiae. [Deltahedra] does this by exclusively using the part design workbench, demonstrating what to do to make a part step-by-step, and showing common mistakes that can happen and how to fix them if they occur. Beyond that, it’s left up to the curious hacker to delve for themselves into what else FreeCAD has to offer.

Since 1.1 is (at this writing) the latest stable release, one can also be confident that the tutorial will match the user interface and features one sees on their own screen. After all, it can be frustrating to attempt to follow a tutorial only to find out things are a few versions behind and nothing is where one expects it to be.

Advertisement

Best practices aren’t just fussy rules about how to do things, and [Deltahedra] demonstrates this by showing how certain procedures just plain make more sense when designing shapes. Our own Arya Voronova has also shared best practices for FreeCAD, so check that out for some added perspective. You’ll be wielding FreeCAD in confidence and comfort in no time.

Thanks for the tip, [Vik Olliver]!

Advertisement

Source link

Continue Reading

Tech

Testing Giant Fire Darts From The Mary Rose

Published

on

Fire arrow versus the recreated fire dart. (Credit: Tod's Workshop, YouTube)
Fire arrow versus the recreated fire dart. (Credit: Tod’s Workshop, YouTube)

The Mary Rose was a carrack in the English Tudor Navy of King Henry VIII  that fought in multiple battles during the 16th century before it was sunk in 1545. After its wreck was located in 1971 and raised in 1982 the ship and all the items contained within the partially preserved hull became the focus of intense study. Among these items are the weaponry found, including the canons, but also massive darts that seemed to have been designed for an incendiary payload. Recently [Tod’s Workshop] collaborated with others to test these presumed incendiary darts.

Although fire arrows have been around for a while, seeing what appears to be super-sized versions of these is somewhat unusual, but could make sense in taking out enemy ships of the time. The main questions are how you would even fire them, and how effective they would be. Were the darts thrown by hand from e.g. the crow’s nest, or fired from a canon?

The reproduction darts used are based on the recovered remnants of the original darts, with an incendiary mixture inside a pitch-covered cloth covering. This mixture would be ignited by wooden fuses after a set amount of time, at which point the resulting fire would be basically impossible to put out. Obviously, this also means that if you were to throw one of these darts, it can absolutely not fall onto your own ship.

First tested was throwing the dart by hand, which seems like it would clear the ship. Of course, the three recovered darts were found near a rather special canon that appeared to be both a miscast and angled upwards. Whether that canon was used for launching apparently somewhat experimental darts is hard to say, but it can be tested. Sadly, lacking a full-sized black powder canon a scale model dart was fired using compressed air.

From that scale test it’s clear that at full charge the dart would disintegrate due to the rapid acceleration, but a ‘soft’, or reduced, charge could work against nearby targets. Once the dart lodges itself into the enemy ship’s structure, it would definitely cause severe damage as further tests in the video demonstrate. Having a salvo of these fire darts fired at you from a nearby ship would definitely make for a pretty bad day.

Advertisement

Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Tech

LinkedIn becomes the latest name on a 100,000-job tech layoff list

Published

on

Microsoft’s professional network becomes the latest name on a list that now includes Meta, Amazon, Oracle, and IBM, even as the same companies are guiding $725 billion of AI capital spending this year.


LinkedIn is cutting roughly 5% of its staff, the latest reduction at a Microsoft-owned business and the most recent entry in a year-long Big Tech contraction that has now displaced more than 100,000 workers across the sector.

Chief executive Dan Shapero, who took over from Ryan Roslansky in late April when Roslansky moved into a new AI role inside Microsoft, set out the cuts in a memo to employees, citing the need to operate “more profitably” and to reinvent how the company works with smaller, more agile teams. Bloomberg reported the memo on Wednesday.

LinkedIn employed roughly 17,500 staff at the start of 2026, implying a cut in the region of 900 to 1,000 roles.

Advertisement

The 💜 of EU tech

The latest rumblings from the EU tech scene, a story from our wise ol’ founder Boris, and some questionable AI art. It’s free, every week, in your inbox. Sign up now!

The company has not confirmed an absolute number, but multiple outlets briefed by sources put the figure at about 875 jobs, with engineering, product, marketing, and the Global Business Organization carrying most of the impact.

The bigger number is the one that frames everything else. By 13 May, the global technology sector had announced more than 100,000 layoffs across some 250 separate events, an average of roughly 880 a day, according to industry trackers.

Advertisement

The TrueUp layoffs tracker had logged 286 events affecting 128,270 workers, the highest reading since the 2023 contraction.

The defining feature is the divergence between payroll and capital expenditure. Amazon, Microsoft, Alphabet, and Meta are collectively guiding to roughly $725 billion of capital spending in 2026, almost all of it directed at AI infrastructure, GPUs, and data centres.

That figure is up from $410 billion in 2025, and rising faster than at any point since the cloud build-out of the late 2010s. Headcount, meanwhile, is going the other direction at the same firms.

The biggest single tranche still ahead this week is Meta’s. The company will begin companywide layoffs on 20 May, cutting approximately 8,000 employees, or about 10% of its 78,865-person workforce, with further reductions planned for the second half of 2026.

Advertisement

Microsoft has taken a different shape. Rather than involuntary cuts, the company in April opened a voluntary-separation programme to around 8,750 US employees, roughly 7% of its domestic headcount, structured under a “Rule of 70” formula in which years of service plus age must total at least 70.

It is the first such programme in the company’s 51-year history. Final notifications went out on 7 May, with a 30-day decision window. LinkedIn’s cuts now layer on top of those Microsoft moves.

Amazon has been quieter but is on a larger absolute trajectory. The company confirmed in January that it was cutting 16,000 corporate roles, bringing total reductions since October 2025 to roughly 30,000, the largest workforce contraction in its history.

Chief executive Andy Jassy framed the cuts as a flattening of layers built up during the 2020-2022 hyper-growth phase, not a direct AI substitution.

Advertisement

The smaller players are following the same pattern at a different scale. Oracle has cut roughly 30,000 positions, around 18% of its global workforce. IBM, Salesforce, Cisco, and SAP have all confirmed cuts over the year, and defence-adjacent contractors tied to federal technology procurement have shed several thousand roles since the start of the year.

For LinkedIn, the framing is narrower. Shapero’s memo pointed to slower revenue growth and an organisational flattening rather than an AI substitution, and the cuts are part of a wider Microsoft-group rebalance that began with the April Rule-of-70 programme.

LinkedIn’s revenue still grew 12% year on year in the most recent quarter, which makes the cut a profitability call, not a top-line one.

Whether the AI-substitution reading holds across the rest of the sector will probably be settled by the second-half 2026 round of disclosures, particularly Meta’s.

Advertisement

Until then, the running 2026 total is the only honest summary of the labour story: more than 100,000 jobs out, $725 billion of capex going in, and a widening gap between where the money sits and where the people do.

Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Tech

NAND contract prices surge over 600% since September 2025, DRAM up ~400%

Published

on


You’ve no doubt heard the short version of this story time and again: AI startups are gobbling up all of the memory that manufacturers can produce, leaving traditional electronics firms to fight for the remaining scraps. In all situations, that means heavily inflated prices and for some near the bottom…
Read Entire Article
Source link

Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © 2025