tech

Apple delays release of next iPhone Air as consumers greatly prefer the standard and Pro models

When Apple releases its iPhone 18 next year, there will be a Pro model and a foldable model, but no iPhone Air, The Information reports. That’s because demand for the newest, thinnest iPhone has been exceptionally low even as iPhones generally have sold above expectations. Indeed, Apple notched an iPhone revenue record for the September quarter.

While the company had set aside only 10% of its manufacturing capacity for the iPhone Air, even that portion has remained unsold, The Information reports. Meanwhile, early sales of the iPhone 17 and 17 Pro have handily beaten last year’s version, and have been driving overall iPhone sales. Nikkei Asia previously reported that Apple was “drastically” cutting back manufacturing of the iPhone Air “end of production” levels. A KeyBanc survey also recently found “virtually no demand for iPhone Air,” which people have criticized for its lower battery life among other compromises for its small size.

As of yet, there’s no new release date for the next iPhone Air, but Apple has yet to explicitly cancel it.

Apple Delays Release of Next iPhone Air Amid Weak Sales

Apple Delays Release of Next iPhone Air Amid Weak Sales

While the company had set aside only 10% of its manufacturing capacity for the iPhone Air, even that portion has remained unsold, The Information reports. Meanwhile, early sales of the iPhone 17 and 17 Pro have handily beaten last year’s version, and have been driving overall iPhone sales. Nikkei Asia previously reported that Apple was “drastically” cutting back manufacturing of the iPhone Air “end of production” levels. A KeyBanc survey also recently found “virtually no demand for iPhone Air,” which people have criticized for its lower battery life among other compromises for its small size.

As of yet, there’s no new release date for the next iPhone Air, but Apple has yet to explicitly cancel it.

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Tesla’s China sales hit three-year low

Tesla sold just 26,000 vehicles in China last month, down 36% from the more than 40,000 it sold in October 2024 and the lowest it’s been since November 2022. China is Tesla’s second-biggest market after the US, where sales are expected to fall following the end of the $7,500 federal EV tax credit. Sales also fell in a number of countries in its third-biggest market, Europe, in October.

In China, Tesla faces increased competition from companies like BYD and XPeng, which is also getting into the robotaxi and robot markets. Notably, China also saw lower car sales overall in October amid weaker consumer sentiment.

Fortunately for Tesla, which is now focusing more on its robot, autonomous taxi, and AI goals, analysts are also placing less of an emphasis on its car business.

Tesla retail sales in China hit 3-year low in Oct

Tesla retail sales in China hit 3-year low in Oct

In China, Tesla faces increased competition from companies like BYD and XPeng, which is also getting into the robotaxi and robot markets. Notably, China also saw lower car sales overall in October amid weaker consumer sentiment.

Fortunately for Tesla, which is now focusing more on its robot, autonomous taxi, and AI goals, analysts are also placing less of an emphasis on its car business.

tech

Anthropic’s move to diversify from Nvidia chips may give it an edge against OpenAI

Anthropic has reportedly been upping its revenue forecasts, and appears to be catching up to market leader OpenAI.

Anthropic’s thriving API business is juicing its revenues, and it has made some strategic moves that are boosting its margins.

Unlike OpenAI’s all-Nvidia strategy, Anthropic has diversified to also use chips from Amazon and Google, according to a report from The Information.

The cheaper, more efficient chips may be part of the reason that Anthropic is projecting that it will be profitable in 2027.

The report also notes that OpenAI’s expensive $40 billion “backup” server build-out is part of its plan to eventually monetize hundreds of millions of nonpaying ChatGPT users, while Anthropic is generating 80% of its revenue from paid API access and isn’t spending as much to serve its much smaller base of free users.

Anthropic Projects Cost Advantage Over OpenAI

Anthropic Projects Cost Advantage Over OpenAI

Unlike OpenAI’s all-Nvidia strategy, Anthropic has diversified to also use chips from Amazon and Google, according to a report from The Information.

The cheaper, more efficient chips may be part of the reason that Anthropic is projecting that it will be profitable in 2027.

The report also notes that OpenAI’s expensive $40 billion “backup” server build-out is part of its plan to eventually monetize hundreds of millions of nonpaying ChatGPT users, while Anthropic is generating 80% of its revenue from paid API access and isn’t spending as much to serve its much smaller base of free users.

tech

In hopes of teasing out more sales, Tesla is renting cars for $60 a day

After a record sales quarter, analysts expect Tesla sales to fall in the current quarter, as the end of the government’s $7,500 EV tax credit crimps electric vehicle sales in general.

Tesla has a plan: it’s now renting Teslas from select dealerships, starting in Southern California, for up to a week at a time, starting at $60 a day.

The company has thrown in freebie features like Supercharging and Full Self-Driving (Supervised), and is giving those who choose to buy a Tesla within a week of their rental experience a $250 credit.

Will that help keep Tesla sales from falling? (Analysts polled by FactSet forecast sales in the fourth quarter to be down 9% and the full year to fall 7%, compared to the same period a year earlier.) Probably not, but supposedly car sales don’t really matter anymore to Tesla anyway: Tesla has its sights set on owning a future without poverty or crime but with driverless robotaxis and robot surgeons.

Shares of Tesla were up 2.3% in premarket trading as broader markets rose. Through Friday’s close, they were up 13% for the year, slightly underperforming the S&P 500.

Tesla can’t sell its cars anymore so it is renting them now

Tesla can’t sell its cars anymore so it is renting them now

The company has thrown in freebie features like Supercharging and Full Self-Driving (Supervised), and is giving those who choose to buy a Tesla within a week of their rental experience a $250 credit.

Will that help keep Tesla sales from falling? (Analysts polled by FactSet forecast sales in the fourth quarter to be down 9% and the full year to fall 7%, compared to the same period a year earlier.) Probably not, but supposedly car sales don’t really matter anymore to Tesla anyway: Tesla has its sights set on owning a future without poverty or crime but with driverless robotaxis and robot surgeons.

Shares of Tesla were up 2.3% in premarket trading as broader markets rose. Through Friday’s close, they were up 13% for the year, slightly underperforming the S&P 500.

tech

Rani Molla11/7/25

Amazon expands low-price Haul section to 14 new markets as Amazon Bazaar app

Amazon is expanding its low-cost Amazon Haul experience to a new stand-alone app called Amazon Bazaar.

Amazon launched its Temu and Shein competitor a year ago as a US mobile storefront on its website and has since expanded to about a dozen markets. Consumers could purchase many items for under $10, as long as they were willing to stomach longer delivery times.

Now, thanks to success in those places, the programming is expanding to 14 new markets — Hong Kong, the Philippines, Taiwan, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, Peru, Ecuador, Argentina, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and Nigeria — with a new app and name: Amazon Bazaar.

“Both Amazon Haul and Amazon Bazaar deliver the same ultra low-price shopping experience, with different names chosen to better resonate with local language preferences and cultures,” the company said in a press release.

Amazon extends Haul’s ultra low-price shopping experience to 14 new destinations with new Amazon Bazaar app

Amazon extends Haul’s ultra low-price shopping experience to 14 new destinations with new Amazon Bazaar app

Now, thanks to success in those places, the programming is expanding to 14 new markets — Hong Kong, the Philippines, Taiwan, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, Peru, Ecuador, Argentina, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and Nigeria — with a new app and name: Amazon Bazaar.

“Both Amazon Haul and Amazon Bazaar deliver the same ultra low-price shopping experience, with different names chosen to better resonate with local language preferences and cultures,” the company said in a press release.

map of big tech undersea cables

Big Tech’s most important infrastructure is at the bottom of the sea

While data centers on land are getting all the attention, Big Tech’s vast network of undersea fiber-optic cables carry 99% of all international network traffic.

Jon Keegan11/7/25

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