Technology is filled with all kinds of rumours, real and fabricated. It gives us a look at what might be and will be. BitStream gathers the whispers all in one place to divine what the future has in store.
Nokia, which recently staunchly said it’s out of the smartphone business for good, is now tightening its grip on tomorrow’s auto market. Its map service, Here, is emerging as a hot ticket among car companies like BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Audi and Uber — which may be willing to pay as much as $US3 billion for Here, apparently to try to decrease its dependence on Apple and Google maps. Here offers maps for over 200 countries, and Uber wants that robust data to expand into over 250 new cities, delivery services, and even ride-sharing in self-driving cars. [WSJ]
Facebook streamlines link sharing: It seems not enough people are dropping links on Facebook mobile, so the company’s trying out a search engine that suggests to users postable pages that match keywords you’re interested in. [TechCrunch]
Levono’s new laptop acts loopy: The company’s LaVie Z two-pound laptop that debuted at this year’s CES apparently has some kinks, including botched auto-rotation. [Consumer Reports]
This robot suit lifts monster wads of cash: Elderly bank employees in Japan could start strapping on robotic braces for help lifting hulking piles of coins and bank notes. The suit could cut the energy it takes to lift an object by half, be it construction materials or Scrooge McDuck’s swimming pool filler. [WSJ]
And now, dogfighting drones: The fighter jets of the future may not carry human fighters at all. Surveillance and recon could only be just the start of drones’ uses in warfare — companies like Lockheed Martin and Boeing are all working on tech that could allow drones to battle in the sky. [Bloomberg]
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