France and Germany have proposed a European cloud platform called “Gaia-X” as a way to reduce its dependence on U.S. tech companies.
German Watchdog Probes Apple Over Retail Store Temperature Checks
Germany’s regional data protection agency is launching a probe into Apple due to recent procedures that include temperature checks for COVID-19.
Germany Forces Apple to Open NFC to Third-Party Payment Apps
Germany has forced Apple to open its NFC capabilities on iPhones so that third-party payment apps can compete better with Apple Pay.
Germany Orders Google to Stop Human Review of Voice Recordings
On the same day that Apple pauses Siri grading, a Germany privacy watchdog ordered Google to stop its human review of voice snippets.
iOS 13 NFC Enables More ID Scanning
Last week we reported that iOS 13 NFC will support Japanese identity cards. Now the German Federal Ministry of Interior announced support for its ID cards as well.
The Federal Ministry of the Interior, for construction and homeland welcomes this important step. This will soon allow users of Apple’s mobile devices to benefit from digital sovereign applications such as ID, ePass, and eVisum [including] in person checks at international airports.
US Might Punish Germany For Using Huawei
The United States might punish Germany if the country decides to use Huawei technology in its 5G infrastructure.
Qualcomm Wins Against Apple, This Time in Germany
Apple said it will stop selling iPhone 7 and iPhone 8 phones in retail stores in the country.
German Apple Pay to Launch Soon
Heads up Apple customers in Germany: German Apple Pay is launching soon. Banks like HVB and Bunq have already sent out emails to customers.
Apple Pay in Germany, CVS, 7-11 Coming This Fall
At first, CVS removed support for mobile payments in favor of the CurrentC service.
This Robot Is Named Justin, and He's Going to Build Houses on Mars
Check out Justin, a robot designed by German space agency DLR (via Wired). Justin is pretty special, starting with the fact that he was designed to make housing and other buildings on Mars. He’s powered by AI that allows him to do things he hasn’t been programmed to do, and he has three fingers and a thumb, each with eight joints, allowing him to handle a wide variety of tools. He can clean and maintain machinery, and in a recent test repaired a solar panel in minutes. Justin can also lift 31 pounds with each arm, which will go even further on Mars, which has a lower gravity. Oh, and he can make coffee and tee, thank you. Wired has more, and it’s very interesting.
Apple Pay Germany Rollout Could Happen Next Month
Germany may finally be getting on board with Apple Pay, and it could happen as soon as next month.
6 Cool Tech Things Going On in Germany
Dr. Mac was in Germany last week, where he found six cool tech things, including his first encounters with Microsoft’s HoloLens Augmented Reality (AR) headset and HTC’s Vive Virtual Reality (VR) headset, plus robots galore, a very cool drone, and more.
