BARCELONA: Driverless cars, fridges that talk to toasters, breathtaking immersive reality, mind-blowing gaming experiences – 5G was going to enable it all, and telecom companies were going to make a packet.

TOKYO: Pokemon’s last major smartphone hit, “Pokemon Go”, had fans on the move hunting the lovable characters, but its next release will focus on a more relaxing activity: sleep.

SAN FRANCISCO: Facebook owner Meta on Friday unveiled its own version of the artificial intelligence behind apps such as ChatGPT, saying it would give access to researchers to find fixes to the technology’s potential dangers.

PARIS: TikTok’s breakneck rise from niche video-sharing app to global social media behemoth has brought plenty of scrutiny, particularly over its links to China.

SYDNEY: Facebook and Instagram began a week-long rollout of their first paid verification service on Friday, testing users’ willingness to pay for social media features that until now have been free.

BRUSSELS: Microsoft insisted its planned $69-billion takeover of videogame giant Activision Blizzard would be good for consumers, dismissing concerns it would harm competition, after EU regulators held an anti-trust hearing.

Kota Kinabalu: Sabah’s only one Electric Vehicle (EV) BMW charging station is set to change with a campaign by Falida Motors Sdn Bhd, a Tesla car dealer, and its partner Green EV Charge Sdn Bhd to get hotels, condominiums, etc. to provide more EV charging stations to benefit the growing EV motoring public.

SAN FRANCISCO: Facebook, the social network that was supposed to stay free “always,” and its stablemate Instagram launched on Sunday a paid subscription service, as the advertising-based business model that has long dominated the internet falters.

Kuala Lumpur: The cheaper Pakej Perpaduan prepaid data plan for B40, youths, people with disabilities (OKU), senior citizens and veterans will be available for subscription at the end of this month. The main mobile telcos in Malaysia consisting of CelcomDigi, Maxis, Telekom Malaysia, U Mobile and YTL Communications have jointly issued a statement announcing that they would introduce the special prepaid mobile internet plan effective February 28, 2023.

PARIS: In South Korea, researchers have succeeded in developing contact lenses with an integrated display that can show a range of information in augmented reality, thanks to a novel 3D printing process.