Neuralink's first product will be named Telepathy.
On January 30, Musk, the founder of Neuralink, announced on social **x that on the 29th, humans received the first brain-computer interface chip implantation, and said that the implanter recovered well after surgery, and "the preliminary results are exciting". Neuralink aims to develop a device that can be implanted in the brain to enable "human-brain-machine interaction". Last year, the company was valued at $5 billion. According to Musk's public statement, the current brain-computer interface is mainly aimed at patients who are unable to control their limbs comfortably after trauma, helping them to operate mobile phones or computers with only their minds. In May 2023, Neuralink said it had received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to conduct first-in-human trials. At the end of the same year, the company recruited patients with quadriplegia due to cervical spinal cord injury or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) to participate in related trials. Although Neuralink has successfully promoted animal testing many times before, it has also faced scrutiny for causing the death of experimental animals.
Hang Lung's total revenue for 2023 is basically the same as last year, and Chairman Ronnie Chan will retire
On January 30, Hang Lung Group and Hang Lung Properties jointly released their 2023 financial results. In 2023, the total revenue of Hang Lung Properties and Hang Lung Group was broadly unchanged from 2022, and the overall leasing revenue increased by 3% to 103., respectivelyHK$1.6 billion and 2% to 108HK$7.9 billion. In the Mainland, the overall leasing revenue of Hang Lung Properties and Hang Lung Group increased by 8% and 7% respectively in RMB terms. The financial report highlighted that in the mainland, the revenue of high-end shopping malls recorded a steady growth of 9%, except for the negative growth recorded by Shenyang Municipal Government Hang Lung Plaza, the performance of all high-end shopping malls recorded varying degrees of growth, among which the performance of Shanghai Hang Lung Plaza, which has the highest revenue, increased by 10% to 175.5 billion yuan, Dalian Henglong Plaza, the highest performance increase, was 19%. On the same day, Hang Lung Group and Hang Lung Properties also jointly announced that Ronnie Chan will retire as Chairman, Executive Director and Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Group, effective after the conclusion of the annual general meeting to be held on April 26, 2024. The Board also recommended and elected Chen Wenbo as the new Chairman of the Group and the Chairman of the Executive Committee. Ronnie Chan, 41-year-old son, joined Hang Lung in 2010 and became Vice Chairman of the Group in 2020.
Shanghai Hang Lung Plaza has the highest revenue and performance growth
Moschino appoints former designer of Loewe as Creative Director
According to **, on January 30, Argentine-born Adrian Appiolaza was appointed as the new creative director of Italian luxury brand Moschino, responsible for overseeing the brand's **, and accessories collections. His first creations will be unveiled during Milan Fashion Week this year. The 51-year-old designer is the successor of Italian designer D**ide Renne, who died unexpectedly just 10 days after taking over as creative director of Moschino. Adrian Appiolaza spent 10 years as Director of Ready-to-Wear at Spanish luxury brand Loewe. He also worked for Chloé and Miu Miu.
CATL expects net profit to rise by 4% in 2023
On January 30, CATL released its 2023 annual performance forecast, saying that the company's net profit in 2023 is expected to be 42.5 billion yuan to 45.5 billion yuan, an increase of 38 percent over the same period last year31% to 4807%。According to the data of the China Automotive Power Battery Industry Innovation Alliance, the installed capacity of CATL's power batteries in 2023 will be 167GWh, an increase of 17% year-on-year7%, which is lower than the average growth rate of the industry. In terms of market share, CATL's share has also decreased, from 48% in 2022 to 43%. However, according to the data disclosed in the 2023 interim report, the revenue of CATL's power battery and energy storage battery business has increased year-on-year, and the gross profit margin has also increased significantly, which may be an important reason for the sharp increase in its net profit.
Toyota has been embroiled in another counterfeiting scandal, and the supply of 10 models has been suspended
On January 29, Toyota Motor announced that its subsidiary Toyota Industries and Co. (TICO) had violated the test of fuel engines, and three diesel engines used illegal software in the power test to optimize power performance and make the values look smoother. Although this does not affect the basic power performance of the engine, and vehicles equipped with the engine can operate normally without a recall, Toyota still suspended the shipment of the engine involved and a total of 10 models equipped with related engines. Previously, in December 2023, Toyota's subsidiary Daihatsu Industrial was also revealed to have tampered with more than 100 pieces of data in violation of regulations during vehicle testing, and Daihatsu has recalled the 320,000 vehicles involved.
Toyota Group Chairman Akio Toyoda attended the ceremony and bowed and apologized for the frequent Toyota car fraud scandals. Amazon announced the termination of its acquisition of irobot
According to Jan. 30, Amazon and robot vacuumer iRobot announced that the two companies had terminated their merger plans in the face of opposition from EU antitrust regulators. The two parties have signed a termination agreement, and Amazon will need to pay irobot a previously agreed termination fee of $94 million. Amazon announced the acquisition of iRobot in early August 2022, and under the acquisition agreement, Amazon will acquire iRobot for $1.7 billion in cash. The European Commission formally raised concerns about the deal in November 2023, saying it could limit competition in the robot vacuum cleaner market. After the cancellation of the transaction, irobot will also carry out business restructuring, including a 31% layoff; Its founder, Colin Angle, is stepping down as CEO.
Shanghai has relaxed the purchase restriction policy for non-Shanghainese housing
On January 30, the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Housing and Urban-Rural Development and the Shanghai Municipal Housing Management Bureau jointly issued the Notice on Optimizing the Housing Purchase Restriction Policy in Shanghai, stipulating that from January 31, non-Shanghai residents who have paid social insurance or individual income tax in Shanghai for five consecutive years or more can purchase one house outside the outer ring area, except for Chongming District. Prior to this, non-Shanghainese singles were required to meet the conditions of "5 years of social security + married" to buy a house, which is now equivalent to the cancellation of the "married" restriction. On the 13th of this month, Shanghai's Qingpu District and Fengxian District also successively optimized the housing purchase policy of the Talent New Town. The new policy stipulates that non-Shanghai talents who have paid social insurance or individual income tax in Shanghai for 3 years or more, and their employers, labor contracts, etc. meet the conditions, can purchase 1 house, and the qualification for purchasing the house will be adjusted from family to individual.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is considering hosting the first Olympic Games of esports
According to Xinhua News Agency, the president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC**) revealed at the Winter Youth Olympic Games in Gangwon Province that it is considering holding the first Olympic e-sports games in 2025 or 2026 at the latest. **Indicates that the format of the competition will be the same as last year's Olympic Esports Week. This means that virtual sports are a combination of esports and sports, and there are some of the most popular video games, but only if they are in line with Olympic values. The details of the event have not yet been confirmed.