*By Alisha Haridasani*
Apple plans to introduce software that will reportedly help habitual iPhone users spend less time glued to their smartphones, a shift away from the company’s efforts to keep people more reliant on its hardware.
The company is expected to unveil its Digital Health initiative at the annual Worldwide Developers Conference next week in San Jose, [Bloomberg reported](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-05-31/apple-to-tout-digital-health-ar-features-at-software-conference). The tools, bundled with the new iOS mobile operating system, help monitor how much time people spend on their phones.
The Digital Health tools are likely a response to concerns raised by two of the company's shareholders in January about the possibly addictive nature of some smartphone apps, particularly among children. “We believe there is a clear need for Apple to offer parents more choices and tools to help them ensure that young consumers are using their products in an optimal manner,” the shareholders said in an [open letter](https://thinkdifferentlyaboutkids.com/).
Apple’s decision to encourage people to put down the company’s most popular product may seem counterintuitive, but it may also point towards a future business strategy for Apple that is more reliant on its services business, which includes Apple Music and iCloud.
The iPhone accounted for more than 60 percent of Apple's revenue in [Q2](https://www.apple.com/newsroom/pdfs/Q2_FY18_Data_Summary.pdf), but growth in sales have slowed in the past few years. Apple’s services, however, are starting to generate more revenue, surpassing revenue from iPads, Macs, and other accessories, such as Apple Watch and Apple TV.
Apple has tried to boost subscriptions for its Music service and has invested in producing original content, as competition with Spotify and Netflix heats up.
Soildus Labs, a market compliance and surveillance technology provider for crypto firms, has spearheaded the launch of the Crypto Market Integrity Coalition, a pledge committing to a safe and sensibly-regulated crypto industry. Kathy Kraninger, VP of Regulatory Affairs at Solidus Labs, discusses on Cheddar News' Closing Bell the biggest problems in the digital asset space that this new initiative plans to solve.
The global chip shortage continues to weigh on the automotive industry. For example, Ford says it is suspending or cutting production at eight of its factories in North America through next week due to the shortage. Balu Balakrishnan, President and CEO of Power Integrations, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he elaborates on why the chip shortage has dragged into 2022.
Peloton has weathered a seemingly never-ending storm the past few months: PR blunders, sinking customer demand, and in recent weeks, reported cost-cutting and potential layoffs. Now, several companies are said to be in the mix as potential buyers: Amazon, Netflix, Disney, and Apple. How likely is it that one of these companies pursues a deal — and how likely is it that it will be Apple who buys Peloton? Dan Ives, Managing Director of Equity Research at Wedbush Securities, joins Closing Bell to discuss his thoughts about Apple pursuing a Peloton takeover,
Astra aborted the launch for NASA ELaNa 41 Mission out of Cape Canaveral on Monday due to what was described as a minor issue, but the company's stock fell nearly 14 percent following the news. Jim Cantrell, CEO and co-founder of Phantom Space, which builds and launches spacecraft of its own, joined Cheddar to discuss the scrubbed mission. “The last thing you want is for this to go wrong, you're better to err on the side of safety expectations,” Cantrell explained, noting that the mission delay was a normal event.
The Biden Administration is set to revise federal rules to address potential security risks from foreign-owned apps, mainly Tiktok. This comes after the White House opted not to pursue a forced shutdown of the Chinese-owned video sharing platform. Under these new rules, federal oversight would be expanded to explicitly include apps that could be used by foreign adversaries to steal or otherwise obtain data. Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, Craig Singleton, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
The metaverse platform Decentraland hosted its first wedding over the weekend. The union was overseen by Rose Law Group, at the firm's virtual property, hosting witnesses including 2,000 guests. The ceremony endured some technical glitches before being completed.
The gaming industry has been under the spotlight so far this year following some big mergers and acquisitions. This week featured earnings of three major gaming companies, but also Meta and for the latter, things are not doing too hot. Joining Cheddar News to break it all down was Kenny Rosenblatt, President and Co-Founder of Arkadium.
