Apple to launch iPhone 15 series on September 13

Hello there, welcome to another round of weekly Global tech roundups. This week’s edition features Apple’s iPhone 15 series launch later this year, Uber’s broken jinx, and Elon Musk finally reinstating the X account of Kanye.

It is customary for Apple to unveil its new iPhone models in September, and the tradition is set to continue with the iPhone 15 series. After nearly a year after the iPhone 14 lineup was launched, the tech giant is expected to introduce its latest phone model, the iPhone 15 series, on September 13, as per multiple sources.

E-hailing giants Uber finally recorded its first profit since its founding in 2009, immediately rebuking the narrative that e-hailing companies can not be profitable. The company earned an unexpected profit in the second quarter (Q2) of 2023, marking its first profit since its establishment.

After successfully rebranding from Twitter to ‘X’, Elon Musk, in his gracious self, has finally reinstated the account of Ye, the artist formerly known as Kanye West, after it was suspended nearly eight months ago because the rapper had violated the platform’s rules prohibiting incitement to violence.

In other news, Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, has said it will launch the desktop version of Threads after it saw more than a 50% decline in active users following its launch.

We will share details of these news items and more in this week’s global roundup. Here is a summary of the bulletin.

• Apple to launch iPhone 15 series on September 13
• Uber records first profit since launch
• Elon Musk reinstates X account of Ye
• Meta to launch the desktop version of Threads
• Apple now has one 1 billion paying subscribers

Read also: What you should know about the newly launched Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Fold 5

Apple to launch iPhone 15 series on September 13

Apple reportedly plans to unveil its iPhone 15 smartphone series – iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max on September 13.

If the tech giant does the unveiling on September 13, pre-orders should begin on September 15, following the official launch a week later on September 22, reports 9To5Mac.

Last year, Apple held its ‘Far Out’ launch event on September 7, where it unveiled the iPhone 14 models. The Cupertino company has remained tight-lipped on the details of the new iPhone 15 series. However, several leaks and rumours have suggested possible specifications and pricing for the handsets.

According to rumours, iPhone 15 will get a new design with slightly curved edges and thinner bezels around the display. All four new models will feature Dynamic Island and USB-C instead of Lightning. For the Pro models, Apple is expected to replace the stainless steel frame with a new one made of titanium.

While iPhone 15 and 15 Plus will be powered by the A16 Bionic chip found in iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max will rely on the new A17 chip. Exclusively on the larger Pro model, Apple will add a new periscope lens for better optical zoom.

Uber records first profit since launch

Uber, the ride-hailing service, has successfully exited its loss-making startup phase and is making substantial strides toward profitability. The company earned an unexpected profit in the second quarter (Q2) of 2023, marking its first profit since its establishment. This accomplishment was attributed to various causes, including increased travel and the normalization of work-from-home schedules.

According to its Q2 report, Uber made a $394 million profit in the second quarter of 2023. During the same period, the company recorded its first-ever operating profit of $326 million and a free cash flow of $1.14 billion. As a result of this strong performance, Uber’s stock price increased by around 3.7%.

Uber’s net revenue in Q2 2023 was $9.23 billion, indicating a 14.4% year-over-year increase in revenue from Q2 2022. Furthermore, Uber recorded a 16% increase in gross bookings, totalling $33.6 billion. The company’s ride revenue increased by 25% to $16.73 billion, while delivery revenue increased by 12% to $13.88 billion.

Speaking on this, the Uber CEO, Dara Khosrowshahi, said:

Robust demand, new growth initiatives, and continued cost discipline resulted in an excellent quarter, with trips up 22% and a GAAP operating profit, for the first time in Uber’s history. These results also translated into strong driver and courier engagement, with 6 million drivers and couriers earning a record $15.1 billion during the quarter. Both of these milestones were achieved through a combination of disciplined execution, record audience, and strong engagement. Uber is well-positioned to sustain strong, incremental profit generation.

Read more here.

Elon Musk reinstates X account of Ye

Social media platform X reinstated the account of Ye, the artist formerly known as Kanye West, after it was suspended nearly eight months ago because the rapper had violated the platform’s rules prohibiting incitement to violence.

Ye’s account now shows his last post from December 1, a day before his account was suspended on platform X, the new name owner Elon Musk has given Twitter.

Ye will not be eligible to monetise his account on X, and advertisements will not appear next to his posts, The Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday, citing the social media platform.

Ye’s account was suspended in December, just two months after being reinstated, after one of his posts appeared to show a swastika symbol inside a Star of David. At the time, Musk labelled West’s post as an “incitement to violence”.

X reinstated Ye’s account after receiving reassurance that he would not use the platform to share anti-Semitic or otherwise harmful language, the report said, quoting a person familiar with the matter.

Meta to launch the desktop version of Threads

Facebook’s parent body, Meta, is looking to launch a desktop version of its newest social media platform, Threads. This is coming after the company’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, confirmed that the Twitter rival app experienced a more than 50% decline in users following its launch.

Surpassing ChatGPT as the fastest-growing app, Threads garnered over 100 million users within its first month. However, the app is now struggling to retain its user base. Although these numbers were way better than executives had expected, Zuckerberg acknowledged that it was still imperfect.

During an internal company town hall, he described the drop-off as ‘normal’ and expressed optimism that retention would improve by adding more features, such as a desktop version and search functionality.

According to Mark Zuckerberg’s speech cited by Reuters, he said,

Obviously, if you have more than 100 million people sign up, ideally, it would be awesome if all of them or even half of them stuck around. We’re not there yet.

Chief Product Officer Chris Cox said Meta plans to incorporate additional ‘retention-driving hooks’ to attract users to the app. One of the strategies being considered to keep user retention is ensuring that people using the Instagram app can access important Threads, a move aimed at increasing user engagement.

Apple now has one 1 billion paying subscribers

Apple announced that it now has 1 billion paying subscribers to its services and that revenue from these sales has reached an all-time high, Quartz reports.

In its third-quarter financial results, reported after the stock market closed on Aug. 3, Apple reported $21 billion in net sales for its services category out of $81 billion in total net sales, meaning that these subscriptions now account for a quarter of the Cupertino, California-based technology company’s total sales.

The tech behemoth separates “services” from its “products,” a category that includes iPhones, iPads, Macs, and Apple Watches. Apple’s services include subscriptions to the Apple TV+ and Apple Music streaming services, iCloud cloud storage subscriptions, and its cut of mobile app developer subscriptions through the App Store.

The company doesn’t consistently report its total number of subscribers but did so one year ago when it announced 860 million subscriptions—meaning it added 140 million in a single year. Software, cloud, and streaming services have been increasingly important money-makers for Apple, known primarily for its hardware.