If Elon Musk’s Hyperloop Sounds Like Something Out Of Science Fiction, That’s Because It Is
Even though Elon Musk will officially release his Hyperloop design on August 12, we already think we know what it is and that it could change the world. Musk describes the hyperloop as something that is a “cross between a Concorde, a railgun and an air hockey table,” and that it could go from San Francisco to New York City in 30 minutes. Sounds like something straight out of a science fiction story right? Well, that’s because it is. Even before Rand Corporation scientist R.M. Salter published a 17-page report detailing how something like the Hyperloop — or electromagnetically levitated ... → Read More
Silicon Alley Insider - Tuesday, July 16, 2013
Android handset and OS maker Xiaomi sold 7.03 million handsets in the first half of 2013, the company announced today. Over that period, the Beijing-based startup made RMB 13.27 billion (about $ 2.16 billion) in revenue. Xiaomi’s latest figures means it sold almost the same number of phones in the first half of 2013 as it did in all of 2012 and made more than double the amount of revenue in the first half of 2013 as the $ 957.46 million it netted in the corresponding period a year ago. The company did not reveal its profits, but investor Hans ... 
SpaceX and Tesla founder Elon Musk might very well be the entrepreneur who most changes the world. But his dreams could have ended in 2008 if it weren’t for venture capitalist Steve Jurvetson. Jurvetson, a managing partner at Draper Fisher Jurvetson, backed Musk when he was broke. He had a very good reason: Jurvetson wants to fly to the moon one day. Not with the first manned flight that SpaceX eventually takes, or even the second one. (He calls that “crazy stuff,” he said during a talk last September.) But one day. His fascination with flying to the moon has ... 
Playing video games for a living is the dream of pretty much every adolescent male at one point or another. Believe it or not, there are gamers who are doing exactly that. And they’re making some serious money. e-Sports Earnings has ranked the 100 players with the highest overall earnings from competitive gaming. Over 60 gamers have earned over $ 100,000 in prize money. To top it off, that’s not even counting the sponsorship deals and income that many of these players receive from streaming their practice games on services like Twitch. 15. Luo “Ferrari_430″ Feichi – $ 226,776.58 From ... 
AT&T announced tonight a new plan that will let customers upgrade to a new smartphone once every year. It’s called AT&T Next, and it’s very similar to the “Jump” trade-in program rival carrier T-Mobile announced last week. Here’s how it works: New AT&T customers and those eligible for an upgrade can sign up for Next. You get a new smartphone or tablet for $ 0 down, but you have to agree to pay a monthly fee for the device. The monthly fee is the unsubsidized price of the phone (the price you pay if you buy the phone without a ... 
A lot of media outlets are reporting that a Chinese woman was allegedly killed after answering a call while her iPhone was charging, including one report from the Wall Street Journals’ China Realtime Report blog. Most of the details are pretty sketchy. The police haven’t confirmed the cause of death, though one policeman said that her neck “had an obvious electronic injury” and it looked, on first inspection, as if she was electrocuted. Police haven’t released other details, such as what model of iPhone she was using, or what kind of charger she was using. The China Consumers’ Association had ... 
Yahoo will be allowed to prove that it fought against the National Security Agency’s internet spying program, PRISM. A secret court ruled on Monday that the government should investigate how it can declassify the legal battle, “The Government shall conduct a declassification review of this Court’s Memorandum Opinion of [Yahoo's case] and the legal briefs submitted by the parties to this Court,” reads the ruling, according to CNET.”After such review, the Court anticipates publishing that Memorandum Opinion in a form that redacts any properly classified information.” Yahoo, Google and other Internet giants are fighting the federal government to disclose more ... 
The tech industry is fast-paced and always looking for that Next Big Thing. So tech companies have come up with a lot of great tricks to boost their employee’s creativity. From having Lady Gaga talk to employees to giving staff year-long sabbaticals, these ideas have often led to a company’s most successful products. It also leads to happier employees. Sagmeister & Walsh gives everyone a whole year off every seven years Every seven years, designer Stefan Sagmeister closes his New York studio, Sagmeister & Walsh for a year-long sabbatical to let all employees rejuvenate and refresh their creative outlook. He ... 
Movies are full of futuristic computers and holographic displays that can make any tech enthusiast drool. Everyone remembers the mind-blowing user interface in “Minority Report,” but what about movies from the past couple of years? Advances in special effects have allowed the computers of the future to become a cinematic reality, with an attention to detail so minute you often feel like you could reach out a hand and start typing. But it can be hard to get a good look at them before the scene changes, and you’re often left wondering how feasible the user interfaces could be. Thankfully, the ... 