Apple announces its best apps of 2020 – ProWellTech
Apple publishes its annual list of the best apps, a self-driving truck startup raises $ 350 million, and BioNTech / Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine receives emergency approval in the UK. This is your daily crisis for December 2nd, 2020.
The big story: Apple announces its best apps for 2020
There were different winners – all selected by App Store editors – for different devices. Home Workout App Wakeout! was named iPhone App of the Year, Disney + Apple TV App of the Year and Productivity App Fantastical Mac App of the Year. The iPad app of the year was perhaps the most obvious choice: Zoom.
In terms of user popularity, Apple stated that Zoom was the largest free iPhone app, followed by TikTok and Disney + (which must be considered free for technical reasons), while the most popular free iPhone game was Among Us.
The technology giants
Loon stratospheric balloons are now teaching themselves how to fly better thanks to Google AI – Alphabet’s Loon has been using algorithmic processes to optimize the flight of its stratospheric balloons for years, but the company is now deploying a new navigation system.
Apple’s MagSafe Duo charger is available now. The MagSafe Duo was released in the Apple Store yesterday and has delivery estimates as early as this week.
Google says its news showcase will provide free access to paywall stories. So far, Google News Showcase has been launched in countries like Germany, Brazil, Argentina, Canada, France, the UK, and Australia.
Startups, Finance and Venture Capital
Self-driving truck startup TuSimple raises $ 350 million from U.S. rail, retail and freight giants – TuSimple was one of the first autonomous truck startups to emerge in a small but busy industry.
Virta Health’s behavioral diabetes treatment service is now valued at over $ 1 billion. Virta aims to reverse the presence of type 2 diabetes and other chronic metabolic diseases by changing a user’s diet and exercise.
Space Perspective raises $ 7 million for its plan to take tourists to the edge of space – the spacecraft Neptune is designed to carry up to eight passengers on a six-hour journey that spans two hours at the top of the Earth’s atmosphere.
Advice and analysis of extra crunch
From survival to success as a hardware startup – six strategies by Minil’s CEO Nils Mattisson.
A Roundup of the Latest Unicorn News – So much for a slowdown on the December news.
(Extra Crunch is our membership program that aims to democratize information about startups. You can sign up here.)
Everything else
UK Approves BioNTech / Pfizer COVID-19 Emergency Vaccine – UK becomes first country to approve vaccine for widespread use.
Discovery is set to launch its own streaming service on Jan 4th – Discovery is the newest media company to launch a standalone streaming service and the latest to adopt the simple naming strategy of just adding a plus sign.
Gift Guide: The Best Books of 2020 Recommended by VCs and ProWellTech Writers (Part 1) – Contains many good books for tech and business readers, as well as my recommendation for the not new, non-technical, yet extremely good novel, “Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. “
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