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Tag: asia

  • Prada works with Amazon to nab Chinese counterfeiter

    Prada works with Amazon to nab Chinese counterfeiter

    Prada Group and other luxury retailers collaborated with Amazon’s Counterfeit Crimes Unit (CCU) to provide information to Chinese authorities, resulting in a case against a counterfeit items seller who pleaded guilty.

    “We are firmly committed to eradicating the sale of counterfeit goods to protect our brands and to ensure that our products meet the level of quality, craftsmanship and care that people expect from us,” said Francesca Secondari, general counsel and chief legal officer at Prada Group said.

    Amazon’s CCU detected the attempted counterfeiting back in 2021, followed by an investigation. Amazon provided the evidence to the relevant regional Chinese enforcement agency to lodge a criminal case against the accused.

    The defendant has been sentenced to three years in prison and obliged to pay a $25,000 fine.

    All the counterfeit products found in the defendant’s inventory will be destroyed and revenue from selling such items will be forfeited.

    “The guilty plea is a significant win for Amazon’s CCU, but more importantly it’s a win for all of those who share our commitment to tackling the industry-wide issue of counterfeiting,” said Kebharu Smith, director at Amazon’s CCU.

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  • Lenovo reveals new MotoAI personal assistant for Motorola smartphones

    Lenovo reveals new MotoAI personal assistant for Motorola smartphones

    At the Lenovo Tech World ’23, the Chinese company revealed a bunch of new AI features and flexible hardware that are already in development or in the concept phase.

    Among the many interesting technologies announced by Lenovo earlier today such as foldable and rollable devices in both the smartphone and PC categories, there’s one that seems to be almost ready for primetime, the MotoAI.

    The newly revealed MotoAI is a personal assistant already in development at Lenovo. Aimed at both PCs and smartphones, the MotoAI is supposed to never stop learning and features a foundational model personalized to the user, yet it still protects privacy.

    More importantly, Lenovo’s MotoAI has a large knowledge base that adapts continuously to patterns and usage with natural voice or text interaction capabilities.

    According to Lenovo, users will be able to engage with their personal MotoAI assistant to answer questions, draft messages, schedule tasks, and do other activities that can involve the use of such an AI-powered tool.

    Another interesting aspect about Lenovo’s MotoAI is that unlike other similar products that run cloud-based operations, this one can process data and run tasks locally on-device, which should translate into enhanced data privacy for the user.

    Promising to be a more dynamic, personal and helpful over time personal assistant, MotoAI is supposed to power all Motorola smartphones in the not-so-distant future, so we’ll probably be hearing more about Lenovo’s AI-powered tool in the coming months.

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  • DHL Supply Chain earmarks €350m for Southeast Asia network

    DHL Supply Chain earmarks €350m for Southeast Asia network

    DHL Supply Chain plans to invest EUR350 million in Southeast Asia over the next five years to expand its warehousing capacity, workforce and sustainability initiatives.

    With this investment, DHL Supply Chain will increase its current 1.6 million square meters of warehouse space in Southeast Asia by 25 percent, or 400,000 square meters. This is part of a series of strategic investments by DHL Supply Chain over the past year, which have already added up to EUR1.35 billion globally. These included investments in infrastructure, hiring and development, as well as automation, digitalization and sustainability in India, Latin America and Southeast Asia.

    “Companies are looking at diversifying their supply chains. Southeast Asia, with its efficient work environment and effective trade agreements such as the China-ASEAN FTA, stands to benefit the most.

    “These are strategic investments we take – despite the generally softer market environment – because we invest in the future growth of our business and strongly believe in the strategic expansion and diversification of our regional businesses,” said Oscar de Bok, CEO, DHL Supply Chain.

    The company added that it will continue to develop its warehouse management systems (WMS) and introduce technology in selected markets, such as auto-stores, automated storage and retrieval systems (ASRS) for pallets and large goods, and automated guided vehicles (AGVs).

    “We are not just increasing our capacity, but we are building logistics centers that can cater to future demand for our customers through robotics and sustainability initiatives,” noted Javier Bilbao, CEO, DHL Supply Chain Asia Pacific.

    For example, he highlighted the upcoming fifth facility in Penang – PLH5, which will feature state-of-the-art automated pallet storage and retrieval system and goods-to-person robotics technology to handle small parts picking.

    Looking ahead, the contract logistics unit shared a broader strategy to nurture talent and meet evolving customer demands in automation, digital analytics, electric vehicle (EV) handling, reverse logistics, and solution design. It also plans to double its EV fleet in Southeast Asia over the next five years.

    DHL Supply Chain is also championing sustainability in the sector as it committed to having carbon-neutral facilities for all new buildings, like what it has done in its facilities in Singapore and Malaysia.

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  • Vietravel Airlines appoints new CEO

    Vietravel Airlines appoints new CEO

    Nguyen Minh Hai, who was the CEO of Bamboo Airways for two months earlier this year, has been appointed new CEO of Vietravel Airlines.

    He replaced Vu Duc Bien, who has been running the company since its foundation in 2020. Bien quit for personal reasons.

    Hai has 25 years of experience in the aviation industry. He was previously deputy CEO of Vietnam Airlines and CEO of Cambodia’s Angkor Air.

    Hai was appointed CEO of Bamboo Airways in May and was expected to bring the company to profitability, but he quit in July.

    He is set to face difficulties managing Vietravel Airlines, which has been struggling to expand since its maiden flight early in 2021.

    Its fleet size is limited at four jets and its routes are few. The company is still looking for a strategic investor to quickly expand.

    The airline recently appointed former German vice-chancellor Philipp Rösler as a director to help expand its international network.

    It plans to issue shares to increase its charter capital from VND1.3 trillion (US$52.88 million) to VND2 trillion in the near future and to enlarge its fleet and expand its routes.

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  • YouTube Music rolls out new AI playlist art generator feature

    YouTube Music rolls out new AI playlist art generator feature

    YouTube Music has made significant strides recently in its efforts to compete with the likes of Spotify and Apple Music to become your de facto music app. In an effort to communicate to its users all the recent changes the app has gone through, Google took to its official YouTube Blog today to share the list.

    Amongst all the features that have been either slowly or quickly rolled out throughout the year, there was one standout feature listed that begins to roll out today: the ability to create customized covert art for your playlists with the assistance of AI. This feature is reminiscent of the AI wallpapers Google recently rolled out on Android 14 works by using a pre-determined data set to generate unique artwork. Currently, when a playlist is created on YouTube Music, a collage of the cover art from the first few songs on the playlist automatically became the cover.

    YouTube Music has made significant strides recently in its efforts to compete with the likes of Spotify and Apple Music to become your de facto music app. In an effort to communicate to its users all the recent changes the app has gone through, Google took to its official YouTube Blog today to share the list.

    Amongst all the features that have been either slowly or quickly rolled out throughout the year, there was one standout feature listed that begins to roll out today: the ability to create customized covert art for your playlists with the assistance of AI. This feature is reminiscent of the AI wallpapers Google recently rolled out on Android 14 works by using a pre-determined data set to generate unique artwork. Currently, when a playlist is created on YouTube Music, a collage of the cover art from the first few songs on the playlist automatically became the cover.

    The feature will began its rollout today as an experimental feature, but only for English-language U.S. users. It will be pretty straightforward to use, as it will provide you with a variety of themes and options to create a one-of-a-kind cover for your playlists. YouTube Music eventually plans to expand the feature to other regions and languages in the future.

    In addition, YouTube Music will also be launching a new feature called “Speed dial,” which will make it easier to listen to your favorite songs and artists. It will appear on the Home tab as a section at the top that will show your most listened-to music. Having this section will allow you to easily and quickly jump back into the songs you have on repeat.

    YouTube Music has also introduced many helpful features throughout the year. YouTube says that two billion people come to the platform every month to listen to their favorite music, so it’s a tall order to implement features that fit everyone’s tastes and needs.

    However, features that improve discovery of new music, personalization, and the sense of community, are always a welcome addition. Here’s hoping the generative AI playlist artwork feature rolls out quickly for everyone so we can all customize our music experience even further.

    The feature will began its roll out today as an experimental feature, but only for English language U.S. users. It will be pretty straightforward to use, as it will provide you with a variety of themes and options to create a one-of-a-kind cover for your playlists. YouTube Music eventually plans to expand the feature to other regions and languages in the future

    In addition, YouTube Music will also be launching a new feature called “Speed dial,” which will make it easier to listen to your favorite songs and artists. It will appear on the Home tab as a section at the top which will show your most listened to music. Having this section will allow you to easily and quickly jump back into the songs you have on repeat.

    YouTube Music has also introduced many helpful features throughout the year. YouTube says that two billion people come to the platform every month to listen to their favorite music, so it’s a tall order to implement features that fit everyone’s tastes and needs.

    However, features that improve discovery of new music, personalization, and the sense of community, are always a welcome addition. Here’s hoping the generative AI playlist artwork feature rolls out quickly for everyone so we can all customize our music experience even further.

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  • WhatsApp takes privacy a step further by testing a way to completely hide locked chats on Android

    WhatsApp takes privacy a step further by testing a way to completely hide locked chats on Android

    WhatsApp is rolling out a new update through the Google Play Beta Program that includes a new feature to hide locked chats. The feature is currently in development, but it is expected to be available to all users in a future update.
    WhatsApp officially rolled out the Chat Lock feature back in May as a way to keep your most sensitive conversations private. When you lock a chat, it will be protected by a password or biometric authentication. This means that only you will be able to open and read the chat, even if someone else has access to your phone.

    However, as spotted by WaBetaInfo, WhatsApp is now taking this one step further by adding a new feature to hide these locked chats altogether, which will make it even more difficult for someone to access them. This addition is now live on the latest WhatsApp beta for Android, version 2.23.22.9.

    Without the feature enabled, anyone with access to your phone could still be able to see that you have locked chats and may be able to guess the password or biometric authentication. However, when the feature enabled, the list of locked chats is completely removed from the chat list, making it almost impossible for someone to even know that you have locked chats without having your secret code.
    The option to turn this feature on is accessible within the app’s settings, with a clear “Hide locked chats” toggle in the Chat lock settings section. Once turned on, users will need to enter their secret code into the search bar to unlock the locked chat list.

    This new feature will improve user privacy by making it more difficult for anyone with access to the phone to even realize that locked chats exist. This is especially important for users who have sensitive or confidential conversations that they want to keep hidden from prying eyes.

     

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  • Pampers launches ‘biggest innovation’ in diapers in five years

    Pampers launches ‘biggest innovation’ in diapers in five years

    Procter & Gamble’s (P&G) diaper brand Pampers has revamped its Swaddlers product – and included an innovation it hails as its biggest innovation since 2018.

    Swaddlers now feature a new blowout barrier that helps prevent leaks and blowouts.

    “We created the new Blowout Barrier to give parents peace of mind and help do away with what was always considered a parenting rite of passage,” said Marty Vanderstelt, SVP at P&G’s North America Baby Care.

    P&G claims that the product also has features that lock wetness away from the skin and keep the diaper in place even as the baby moves.

    The product has been launched in the US ahead of a global rollout.

  • JD Logistics rolls out express parcel service in Hong Kong, Macau

    JD Logistics rolls out express parcel service in Hong Kong, Macau

    JD Logistics is strengthening its presence and operations in the Greater Bay Area with the expansion of its self-operated express delivery business in Hong Kong and Macau via JD Express.

    The enhanced delivery network will comprise several operations centres and offer intra-city and cross-border express delivery between Hong Kong, Macau, and China.

    In Hong Kong, the company promises expedited intra-city deliveries as fast as 4 hours and nighttime extended delivery hours until 10:00 PM. In Macau, intra-city packages can arrive as soon as the next morning.

    JD Logistics has provided B2B and B2C warehousing and distribution logistics solutions across Hong Kong and Macau for over five years, and the company’s newly launched self-operated express delivery services will enable online shoppers in Hong Kong and Macau to enjoy the same convenience found in the mainland.

    “With our recent expansion of delivery services into Hong Kong and Macau, we are proud to bring JD Express’ quality service, honed over a decade, to these regions for the very first time,” said Wei Ma, General Manager of JD Logistics Express Business Hong Kong.

    “With a humble and practical approach, we are committed to providing our customers in both cities with a reassuring and worry-free express delivery experience.”

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  • BNP Paribas Moves to a Posh Address in Lugano

    BNP Paribas Moves to a Posh Address in Lugano

    BNP Paribas has opened its new headquarters in southern Switzerland on a fashionable shopping street in Lugano.

    According to a statement Friday, French bank BNP Paribas opens its new headquarters at Via Nassa 11 in Lugano, demonstrating the importance it attaches to developing its activities in Ticino.

    The inauguration ceremony was attended by BNP Paribas Suisse board members Yves Martrenchar and Marina Masoni, Enna Pariset, CEO of BNP Paribas (Suisse) and head of BNP Paribas Group in Switzerland, Beat Bachmann, CEO Wealth Management Switzerland & Emerging Markets and Fabio Spinelli, site manager Wealth Management Lugano.

    For BNP Paribas Wealth Management, it is a priority to support the development of the Ticino economy and its stakeholders, especially entrepreneurs and wealthy families, Bachmann said. BNP Paribas has been based in Switzerland since 1872 and employs 1,200 people nationwide.

  • Facebook and Instagram are testing themed icons for their Android apps

    Facebook and Instagram are testing themed icons for their Android apps

    The most recent Alpha and Beta versions of the Facebook and Instagram apps on Android now support Android’s themed icons. This supports recent rumors that Meta was working on finally adding this functionality to its apps’ icons, years after it became available throughout the operating system.

    Automatic theming, including themed icons, were introduced to Android with version 12 of the operating system. This feature extracted the dominant colors of your wallpaper and applied them throughout the interface, making for a more minimal and cohesive look.

    Initially, there were eight color palettes to choose from, but that eventually doubled with Android 13 and expanded even further with a monochrome option on Android 14. Still, as the adoption grew with popular app icons, there was always that one holdout — Meta.

    Fortunately, this is now changing as both the Instagram and Facebook icons support automatic theming on Android in their Beta and Alpha apps, meaning that this will likely be rolled out to their stable versions soon. This was spotted by users currently using these versions and reported by Mishaal Rahman on X.

    This is available right now in versions 307.0.0.0.42 (beta) of Instagram and 439.0.0.0.30 (alpha) of Facebook and signals a turning point to how Meta handles the implementation of new Android features. This was evident more recently by the limited rollout of a new Instagram layout for tablets, which can be tested now using a larger screen device, such as the Google Pixel Fold on Android 14 QPR1 Beta.

    For those that enjoy having matching icons on their Android’s home screen, support for a matching themed icon for both of these applications could finally stop the issue of having to hide them inside a folder or pushing them to a secondary stream (if not hide them altogether). Hopefully, this feature makes it to the stable channels sooner.

  • Nestle begins work on ‘companion products’ for weight loss drugs

    Nestle begins work on ‘companion products’ for weight loss drugs

    Nestle on Thursday said it has started work on products to “companion” weight loss drugs like Novo Nordisk’s game-changing Wegovy, hoping to cash in on their growing popularity.

    The Swiss food giant’s CEO Mark Schneider said Nestle had not seen any impact from such drugs on sales so far, referring to the threat they pose to the packaged food industry that has spooked investors in recent weeks.

    Nestle shares fell this month after Walmart, the world’s biggest retailer, said it saw a slight pullback in food consumption with people taking appetite-suppressing drugs.

    “We’re working already on a wide range of products that could serve as companion products,” Schneider said during an earnings briefing, noting that some supplements can help with the “loss of lean muscle mass” and “rapid regain of weight”.

    “The largest parts of our portfolio will not be affected” by this new breed of weight loss drugs, he said.

    Globally, Nestle’s biggest businesses are coffee and pet care, while frozen food, confectionary and ice cream make up 15 per cent of sales.

    “We’re watching this carefully and will keep you updated,” Schneider said.

    Wegovy has been shown to help patients reduce body weight by around 15 per cent when used along with exercise and lifestyle changes. It is so far available in the United States, Norway, Denmark and, as of late July, Germany.

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  • Groke Pet launches liquid multivitamin range for dogs

    Groke Pet launches liquid multivitamin range for dogs

    Groke Pet has launched a new line of liquid multivitamin supplements that specifically targets the health needs of dogs.

    Boasting 98 per cent locally sourced ingredients, the Vitalixir Plus boosters range – formulated and manufactured in Australia – promises to redefine pet nutrition.

    Groke Pet chief scientist Dr Andrew Duggan credits the breakthrough to “relentless work and collaboration with an exceptional team”.

    “Vitalixir Plus Boosters additionally target specific health areas in dogs, from skeletal health, skin, and coat rejuvenation, to weight management and anxiety relief,” Duggan explains.

    “Each booster blends nutrients and superfoods aimed at promoting optimal health.”

    The company champions prioritising local ingredients, adopting and encouraging sustainable practices, and fostering communities by partnering with social enterprises.

    “Every drop infuses the rich goodness of Australia, fostering not only thriving but flourishing pets,” said Anne Duggan, CEO of Groke Pet.

    The range, including the standout Vitalixir Complete Daily Nutrition, offers over 48 vital nutrients in a convenient, easily absorbed liquid format.

    Groke Pet’s supplement range starter is available for $99 online via grokepet.com.au. The company said it is actively engaging to confirm distribution channels.

  • Samsung Internet Browser app updated with autocomplete support

    Samsung Internet Browser app updated with autocomplete support

    Samsung continues to improve its Internet Browser app with new features. After thoroughly testing them in the beta version of the app, Samsung has now released some of these features to the stable channel.

    This means that if you update to the latest version of Samsung Internet Browser, regardless of whether or not you’re enrolled in the beta program, you’ll benefit from additional functionality

    Among the most important new features included in the latest update is support of URL autocomplete in address bar, which will save you a lot of time when you want to type in an address to visit a certain website.

    Apart from that, the new version of Samsung Internet Browser also gained new support for syncing tab groups, as confirmed by the official changelog. Finally, the app now features an increased number of days of History saved, so you’ll be able to check which sites you’ve visited in the last 90 days.

    If you’re looking to upgrade to Samsung Internet Browser v23.0.0.47, your only option is the Galaxy Store for the time being. However, the latest update should pop up in the Google Play Store very soon too in case you don’t want to go the Galaxy Store route.

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  • Google Wallet adds Driver’s License and Digital ID support for more U.S. States

    Google Wallet adds Driver’s License and Digital ID support for more U.S. States

    Back in June, Google announced some forthcoming features for Google Wallet that we are just now seeing roll out. One of these was the ability to add a state ID or Driver’s License to facilitate TSA checkpoint procedures at select airports.
    However, when this feature launched, not all U.S. states were on board with the program. At the time, Maryland became the first state to support it, with the state ID literally becoming the poster child for the rollout, as can be seen in the marketing materials.
    Meanwhile, support for additional states was promised for a later date, with Arizona, Colorado and Georgia listed as the next ones slated to join the Digital ID program. Surprisingly, and without much fanfare, that day has arrived sooner than we thought.
    Google has quietly rolled out support for these three states already, joining Maryland in the Google Wallet app. You can already see these states pop up when attempting to add an ID Card on the app. Considering there hasn’t been a versioned update to the Google Wallet app since October 3rd, we are inclined to think that this is a server-side push.
    The setup process requires a photo scan of the front and back of your physical ID or Driver’s License, followed by a short video verification process. Once setup has been completed, the digital ID will be themed with artwork that represents the issuing state — such as a peach to represent Georgia.
    This update brings Google Wallet’s digital ID compatibility up to par with Apple Wallet, where the ability to have a mobile Driver’s License has been available in some states since last year. Samsung has also announced that this would be coming to Samsung Wallet later this year, and Google previously stated that more functionality will be added to digital IDs in the future, such as the ability to verify online accounts.
  • Threads by Instagram reveals secret new features on mobile and the web

    Threads by Instagram reveals secret new features on mobile and the web

    Threads by Instagram is on a mission to earn that spot on your phone’s home screen and it plans on doing that by regularly releasing new features that are of interest to its users. In its latest release, the company has revealed a few “secret” features that you may or may not know exist on the platform.

    Head of Instagram and Threads boss, Adam Mosseri, revealed via a post a couple of tricks that the app can currently do. While these are definitely not mind-blowing additions, they are neat little details that can enrich the app’s user experience.
    On the mobile apps, you can now long press on a post to follow everyone who is mentioned on it. A panel will popular at the bottom of the app showing you who was mentioned in the post. Here, you can either follow each one individually or choose the “Follow all” option. As a bonus, there is also a “Copy text” option if you want to use that same text in a new post or share it to another app.

    You can now copy and paste media attachments on the web to make posting easier. Previously, when composing a post you had to click on the media icon in order to attach an image or video from your device’s file manager. Now, it’s as easy as copy/paste, which can save you a ton of time when wanting to add something that’s already saved in your clipboard.

    Not only can you tag other accounts within Threads, but you can also now tag Instagram accounts. When tagging, you can now see Instagram accounts populate in the autocomplete options. This is great if the account you want to tag has not signed up for Threads yet, but does have a presence on Instagram. Who knows? This might entice more Instagram users to sign up for threads and gain more exposure that way.
    Hopefully, Threads continues to add on helpful features such as they have been lately. The platform’s daily user base continues to request new features regularly and these are seemingly not falling on deaf ears. We will continue to report new features here as they are revealed.