Apple reportedly looking to buy Cobalt directly from miners. The metal is used in lithium-ion batteries in Apple's devices, but it can also power electric vehicles. Shares of Apple up half a percent on Wednesday. Inverse Technology Reporter Mike Brown explains how this move might help Apple further its dominance in the tech space.
"There's a race at the moment for supplies over the coming few years," says Brown. Electric vehicles use about 1,000 times as much Cobalt as smartphone devices.
"It would be the first time Apple secured its own Cobalt supply so it could help to re position itself as a company, rather than going to factory manufacturers that deal directly with suppliers itself," says Brown.
After Facebook and its family of platforms were down for nearly eight hours on Monday, other social media platforms like Snapchat saw a surge in usage. The social media platform already popular with teens saw a 20 percent jump in activity during Facebook's global outage.
Google's users will now have extensive greener options. The updated services across platforms will allow users to look for eco-friendly routes in Google Maps, book flights with low carbon emissions, and reduce energy usage at home with Nest thermostats.
The recent California oil spill has wreaked havoc on the shores of Huntington Beach as wildlife habitats and potentially some people have been exposed to the 140,000+ gallons of oil in the ocean. Cheddar News was joined by Dr. Deborah Bronsan, President of Deborah Bronson & Associates to learn more about the environmental dangers and how the area can recover from this tragedy.
Shares for Netflix ($NFLZ) surged on survey data that showed people still saw the streaming platform as offering the best content compared to its competitors. A report by investment banking company Cowen Inc. reported the findings, rating it an outperform, and expects Netflix to garner 3.6 million new subscribers in Q3.
Banks are calling on Apple to lower fees for processing payments. The current model allows the tech giant to collect 0.15 percent on each transaction processed through Apple Pay.