Good morning. Let’s get you up to speed on today’s tech news.
1. The ACCC kills Telstra and TPG’s network-sharing deal (for now)
Starting in Australia and the ACCC has ruled against the Telstra and TPG network sharing agreement. The agreement would have seen the two telcos sharing network coverage in regional and rural Australia, with TPG required to shut down dozens of network sites. The ACCC was unsatisfied with the proposal and came to the conclusion that it would lead to less competition in the long term, and therefore leave Australian mobile users worse off.
2. InSight is officially dead
As suspected Yesterday, NASA said this morning that the InSight lander mission has run out of power and is over, four years and a month after the probe landed on Mars. The lander, designed to reveal the Martian interior, has slowly suffocated under a relentless drift of Martian dust, which covered its solar panels. The last contact occurred on December 15, and NASA announced Monday that the lander was not responding to communications. Rest in peace, little buddy.
My power’s really low, so this may be the last image I can send. Don’t worry about me though: my time here has been both productive and serene. If I can keep talking to my mission team, I will – but I’ll be signing off here soon. Thanks for staying with me. pic.twitter.com/wkYKww15kQ
— NASA InSight (@NASAInSight) December 19, 2022
3. Police report casts doubt on Elon’s stalker claim
Back into the world of Elon Musk, and police investigating the claim that his two-year-old son, X Æ A-12, was followed by a “crazy stalker” in Los Angeles because of public flight information have cast doubt on the billionaire’s version of what happened. In a statement, the South Pasadena police said they were investigating a report of “an assault with a deadly weapon involving a vehicle” related to the incident on Dec. 13. A member of Musk’s security team, referred to as a “suspect” in the release, was involved in the incident, according to the cops.
4. Tesla reportedly to begin hiring freeze and layoffs
Staying on Musk and Tesla has entered a new hiring freeze, and plans to lay off an unspecified number of staff early in the coming year, according to a report from Electrek. Back in June, Tesla announced a “hiring pause” and forecast 10 per cent staff cuts based on Musk’s “super bad feeling” about the economy. Following those reports, the company laid off 200 employees working on in its Autopilot advanced driver assistance feature in San Mateo, California. Tesla has also suffered major stock losses over the past three months.
I couldn’t believe that Tesla dipped under $150 yesterday.
It’s looking like it could fall under $140 any second now.
Experts are saying it won’t stabilize until it goes to $100. pic.twitter.com/gILR3kujra
— Brianna Wu (@BriannaWu) December 20, 2022
5. AI-created comic book deemed ineligible for copyright protection
The United States Copyright Office has ruled that a comic book made with AI art is ineligible for copyright protection. The artist behind the AI program originally claimed copyright for the work in September, but the copyright governing body has now ruled that the work must be created by a human to gain copyright protection.
BONUS ITEM: Beating out a stock photo of an egg, Lionel Messi’s post celebrating his victory in the World Cup is now the most liked post on Instagram.
It’s my last day before I go on Christmas break, so I wish everybody reading this Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year. Peace out.