New York Times (September 24)
Germany is attempting to woo “Indian workers spooked by U.S. visa changes,” as the European nation confronts a growing labor shortage. “Every fifth citizen…is now older than 67, and the country’s baby boomers…are beginning to retire.” Currently, there are an estimated 387,000 unfilled jobs, mainly in technology, and “that number is expected to more than double in the next two years.” The unfilled jobs also mean “there are not enough young workers making payments into the social system to support it.”
Tags: Baby boomers, Confronts, Germany, Indian, Labor shortage, Payments, Retire, Social system, Spooked, Technology, U.S., Unfilled jobs, Visa changes, Woo, Workers
The Economist (September 20th to 26th)
China’s workforce “has undergone an extraordinary transformation,” diversifying from its base in farming and factories. The world’s largest workforce now includes some 200 million “precarious” gig workers, who provide “a warning for the world.” With technology remaking labor markets, 40% of the labor force in urban areas is now dependent “on some kind of flexible work,” yet many of these gig workers “struggle to buy property and gain access to public services and benefits.” This transformation “will shape China’s economy and society for years to come.”
Tags: 200 million, Benefits, China, Economy, Factories, Farming, Flexible work, Gig workers, Labor markets, Precarious, Property, Public services, Technology, Transformation, Urban, Warning, Workforce
Inside EVs (June 30)
Ford CEO Jim Farley is impressed with China’s electric vehicle industry. Speaking at the Aspen Ideas Summit, he said, “it’s the most humbling thing I’ve ever seen.” He recognizes that EVs in China are far more advanced, “They have far superior in-vehicle technology.” American technology “in most cars amounts to a media player, a navigation system and maybe some smart cruise control. China has pushed the envelope far beyond that.” They also offer a better price and better quality than U.S. cars. “Their cost, their quality of their vehicles is far superior to what I see in the West” said Farley who added, “We are in a global competition with China…. And if we lose this we do not have a future at Ford.”
Tags: Advanced, Aspen Ideas Summit, CEO, China, EV, Farley, Ford, Future, Global competition, Humbling, Impressed, Price, Quality, Technology, U.S.
The Guardian (June 9)
“Apple researchers have found ‘fundamental limitations’ in cutting-edge artificial intelligence models, in a paper raising doubts about the technology industry’s race to develop ever more powerful systems.” The researchers “found that standard AI models outperformed LRMs in low-complexity tasks, while both types of model suffered ‘complete collapse’ with high-complexity tasks.”
Tags: Apple, Complete collapse, Complexity, Cutting edge, Doubts, Fundamental limitations, LRMs, Race, Researchers, Standard AI models Outperformed, Tasks, Technology
Time (March 24)
“The unveiling of DeepSeek R1, China’s most advanced AI model to date, signals a dangerous inflection point in the global AI race.” It should be “a wake-up call for American leadership. What’s at stake isn’t merely economic competitiveness but also the most geopolitically precarious technology since the nuclear age.”
Tags: Advanced, AI model, China, Dangerous, DeepSeek R1, Economic competitiveness, Global AI race, Inflection point, Leadership, Nuclear age, Precarious, Technology, U.S., Unveiling, Wake-up call
Reuters (November 29)
“It’s time for Toyota Motor’s two biggest domestic rivals to deal with their problems by joining forces. Nissan Motor’s woes are the more obvious: poor results prompted the $9 billion manufacturer into an emergency overhaul this month. But $40 billion Honda Motor’s autos unit is subpar, too. Welding them together would give scope to cut costs, charge earnings and invest more efficiently and effectively in electric vehicles and other technology.”
Tags: Costs, Earnings, Effectively, Efficiently, Emergency, EVs, Honda, Nissan, Overhaul, Results, Rivals, Technology, Toyota, Woes
Traders Magazine (September 25)
“Compliance and risk leaders need to reorient their processes and technology to align with how traders trade in today’s markets.” Many legacy systems are “decades out of date, designed in a time when you had to keep an eye on one financial instrument or venue at a time.” Insider trading can occur through economically related securities and a rising number of ”social media-related market manipulation cases” are facing regulators in India (SEBI), Hong Kong (SFC) and the U.S. (SEC). “Market operators and financial institutions must… innovate their practices to ensure market integrity while creating value and opportunities.”
Tags: Compliance, Economically related securities, Financial instrument, Hong Kong, India, Legacy systems, Market manipulation, Processes, Risk leaders, SEBI, SEC, SFC, Social media, Technology, Traders, U.S.
Wall Street Journal (August 26)
In the “latest retreat by U.S. companies,” IBM is shuttering its R&D operations in China. “Geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and China have led many multinational companies to reassess their business in China.” IBM once viewed “China as a major growth market,” but its market share has plummeted. Revenue dropped nearly 20% last year when “Beijing pushed Chinese buyers to purchase more from domestic technology suppliers, in a campaign dubbed ‘Delete America.’”
Tags: China, Companies, Geopolitical tensions, Growth, IBM, Market share, Multinational, R&D, Reassess, Retreat, Revenue, Shuttering, Suppliers, Technology, U.S.
Washington Post (July 4)
“Japan’s Nikkei 225 stock index closed Thursday at a fresh record high of 40,913.65, pushing past its most recent record close set in March on heavy buying of automaker and technology shares…. Both foreign and domestic investors have piled into the Japanese market in recent months even as the economy has slowed.” The weak yen is “part of the attraction…. But changes to investment regulations have also lured many Japanese investors into the equity market.”
Tags: Automaker, Domestic, Economy, Foreign, Heavy buying, Investors, Japan, Market, Nikkei 225, Record high, Shares, Technology, Weak yen
Forbes (May 19)
“The Biden administration said this week the U.S will quadruple tariffs on Chinese EVs in a move aimed at protecting American workers and businesses from unfair Chinese trade practices.” Some think this will provide a lifeline, but at least one auto industry executive believes “the increase won’t help the long-term staying power of the industry or its jobs.” Instead, the “capitulation to the status quo” will “condemn” the U.S. auto industry “to a slow but certain death” as the rest of the industry moves “toward technology that doesn’t rely on oil.”
Tags: Auto industry, Biden, Businesses, Capitulation, China, EVs, Lifeline, Protecting, Status quo, Staying power, Tariffs, Technology, Trade practices, U.S., Unfair, Workers
