Boardroom is a sports, media and entertainment brand co-founded by Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman and focused on the intersection of sports and entertainment. Boardroom’s flagship media arm features premium video/audio, editorial, daily and weekly newsletters, showcasing how athletes, executives, musicians and creators are moving the business world forward. Boardroom’s ecosystem encompasses B2B events and experiences (such as its renowned NBA and WNBA All-Star events) as well as ticketed conferences such as Game Plan in partnership with CNBC. Our advisory arm serves to consult and connect athletes, brands and executives with our broader network and initiatives.
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Tech Talk is a weekly digest by Boardroom’s Michelai Graham that breaks down the latest news from the world’s biggest tech companies and the future of industry-shaping trends like AI.
Coming in hot. Here are two pieces of news I didn’t expect to see this week: Digital Currency Group finally reached a settlement with Genesis creditors, and Dr. Seuss’ Cat in the Hat is getting an audio series in partnership with Amazon’s podcast studio Wondery.
A peek into today’s edition:
iPhone 14 models topped global sales, becoming the most-shipped smartphone device in the first half of 2023. Apple shipped 26.5 million iPhone 14 Prop Max units between January and June, according to research firm Omdia’s Smartphone Model Market Tracker. There were 21 million iPhone 14 Pro units shipped and 16.5 million iPhone 14 devices. This success comes as Apple prepares for its next product demo event on Sept. 12. The Big Tech company is expected to announce the iPhone 15, two new Apple Watches, and the latest iOS upgrade. Here’s everything we know so far about the 15th generation of the iPhone. Apple is also planning a major upgrade for the iPad Pro sometime next year.
Also, Google “accidentally” leaked a photo of the Pixel 8 Pro on its own website the same day Apple announced its Sept. 12 event. There’s no launch date for Google‘s new mobile device yet, but the tech company usually holds its demo events in October.
Back to Apple. The company may debut a USB-C charging port with the iPhone 15 to align with European laws stating that all mobile phones, tablets, and cameras sold in the region must use USB-C for wired charging by Dec. 28, 2024. I don’t know about y’all, but I’m sensing Apple will surprise us with something at this event. Remember when the tech giant completely skipped over launching an iPhone 9 and introduced the iPhone X instead? I’ll never forget that.
IBM is celebrating more than 30 years as the official technology partner of the United States Tennis Association (USTA) with new AI-powered features across all digital platforms for the 2023 US Open Tennis Championships. Following success with similar AI tech first introduced at the 2023 Masters in April, IBM debuted generative AI spoken commentary and AI Draw Analysis to USOpen.org and the US Open app. I was fortunate enough to tour the IBM Data Center at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center this past week alongside IBM and USTA execs and Maria Sharapova, 2006 US Open champion.
The future of AI tech in sports is bright simply because of the ease of combing through datasets, viewing player highlights, and digging into rankings, all with intuitive digital interfaces on the web and mobile and fan engagement at the center. Check out my full download on the work IBM is doing with the US Open and how the tech corporation plans to expand its offerings to more big sporting events.
The Securities and Exchange Commission has ordered LA-based media and entertainment firm Impact Theory to pay $6.1 million in penalties for the unregistered offering of NFTs. The commission alleged that the company raised $30 million from hundreds of investors after encouraging them to purchase NFTs as an investment into the business. This is the first major NFT enforcement action that the SEC has pushed forward with as government entities crack down on crypto operations across the US. Impact Theory did not admit wrongdoing or deny the commission’s allegations as part of the settlement.
Meta is pushing forward on its metaverse plans with the beta testing launch of Horizon Worlds on mobile devices. Horizon Worlds is Meta’s premiere virtual reality, gaming, and social platform. This upgrade expands the digital destination beyond Meta Quest VR headsets, and the mobile version will operate like a typical gaming app. The Big Tech firm is also testing a web-based version of Horizon Worlds. Interested users can request access to the mobile and web versions of Horizon Worlds here.
Also, is Meta preparing to launch IGTV 2.0? Maybe. Instagram is internally testing a three-minute and 10-minute Reels feature with a more integrated video experience. There is no word on when the feature will expand externally.
Amazon is pushing forward with its return-to-office policy, requiring employees to report to an office three days a week, just as Meta recently implemented. I’m going to bet that tech workers will begin to push back on Big Tech companies to fight the crackdown on in-office policies in favor of remote work.
