عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Technology

Amazon and Google Launch Multicloud Service for Faster Connectivity

FILE PHOTO: The logo for Google LLC is seen at the Google Store Chelsea in Manhattan, New York City, US, November 17, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: The logo for Google LLC is seen at the Google Store Chelsea in Manhattan, New York City, US, November 17, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo
TT
TT

Amazon and Google Launch Multicloud Service for Faster Connectivity

FILE PHOTO: The logo for Google LLC is seen at the Google Store Chelsea in Manhattan, New York City, US, November 17, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: The logo for Google LLC is seen at the Google Store Chelsea in Manhattan, New York City, US, November 17, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo

Amazon and Google introduced a jointly developed multicloud networking service on Sunday to meet growing demand for reliable connectivity the companies said in a statement, at a time when even brief internet disruptions can cause major outages.

The initiative will enable customers to establish private, high-speed links between the two companies' computing platforms in minutes instead of weeks, reported Reuters.

The new service is being unveiled a little over a month after an Amazon Web Services outage on October 20 disrupted thousands of websites worldwide, knocking offline some of the internet's most popular apps, including Snapchat and Reddit. That outage will cost US companies between $500 million and $650 million in losses, according to analytics firm Parametrix.

The new offering combines AWS' Interconnect–multicloud with Google Cloud's Cross-Cloud Interconnect, to improve network interoperability, according to announcements by the two cloud providers.

"This collaboration between AWS and Google Cloud represents a fundamental shift in multicloud connectivity," said Robert Kennedy, vice president of network services at AWS.

Rob Enns, vice president and general manager of cloud networking at Google Cloud, said the joint network is intended to make it easier for customers to move data and applications between clouds.

Salesforce is among the early users of the new approach, Google Cloud said in a statement.

AWS provides computing power, data storage and other digital services to companies, governments and individuals and is the world's largest cloud provider, followed by Microsoft's Azure and Google Cloud.

Tech companies including Alphabet, Microsoft and Amazon are investing billions to build infrastructure that can handle surging internet traffic with the growing demands of artificial intelligence, as the need for computing power to support these services accelerates.

Amazon’s cloud business delivered robust growth in the third quarter, generating $33 billion in revenue; more than double that of Google's $15.16 billion.

Most Viewed

 
 
Technology

Meta Pauses Teen Access to AI Characters

FILE - Attendees visit the Meta booth at the Game Developers Conference 2023 in San Francisco on March 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)
FILE - Attendees visit the Meta booth at the Game Developers Conference 2023 in San Francisco on March 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)
TT
TT

Meta Pauses Teen Access to AI Characters

FILE - Attendees visit the Meta booth at the Game Developers Conference 2023 in San Francisco on March 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)
FILE - Attendees visit the Meta booth at the Game Developers Conference 2023 in San Francisco on March 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)

Meta is halting teens' access to artificial intelligence characters, at least temporarily, the company said in a blog post Friday.

Meta Platforms Inc., which own Instagram and WhatsApp, said that starting in the “coming weeks,” teens will no longer be able to access AI characters “until the updated experience is ready”

This applies to anyone who gave Meta a birthday that makes them a minor, as well as “people who claim to be adults but who we suspect are teens based on our age prediction technology.”

The move comes the week before Meta — along with TikTok and Google's YouTube — is scheduled to stand trial in Los Angeles over its apps' harms to children, The Associated Press said.

Teens will still be able to access Meta's AI assistant, just not the characters.

Other companies have also banned teens from AI chatbots amid growing concerns about the effects of artificial intelligence conversations on children. Character.AI announced its ban last fall. That company is facing several lawsuits over child safety, including by the mother of a teenager who says the company’s chatbots pushed her teenage son to kill himself.

Technology

Musk Expects Europe, China to Approve Tesla’s Full Self-Driving System Soon

SpaceX and xAI CEO Elon Musk speaks during a panel discussion during the 56th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF), in Davos, Switzerland, 22 January 2026. (EPA)
SpaceX and xAI CEO Elon Musk speaks during a panel discussion during the 56th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF), in Davos, Switzerland, 22 January 2026. (EPA)
TT
TT

Musk Expects Europe, China to Approve Tesla’s Full Self-Driving System Soon

SpaceX and xAI CEO Elon Musk speaks during a panel discussion during the 56th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF), in Davos, Switzerland, 22 January 2026. (EPA)
SpaceX and xAI CEO Elon Musk speaks during a panel discussion during the 56th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF), in Davos, Switzerland, 22 January 2026. (EPA)

Tesla is likely to win regulatory approval in Europe and China for ​its driver-supervised Full Self-Driving (FSD) system as early as next month, CEO Elon Musk said on Thursday, as the electric automaker looks to boost software revenue amid slowing vehicle sales.

While regulatory progress on FSD and early robotaxi deployments point to momentum in Tesla's AI ambitions, the technology remains nascent relative to a valuation that far outstrips those of many technology and automotive companies.

"We hope to get Supervised Full Self-Driving approval in Europe, hopefully next month, and then maybe a similar timing for China," Musk said at his first appearance at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Tesla has been seeking approval for the system in Europe, where tougher vehicle safety ‌rules and a ‌fragmented regulatory framework have slowed deployment compared with the US
Dutch vehicle authority ‌RDW ⁠said ​in November ‌it expected to decide on FSD in February.

Tesla had said once it secures approval in the Netherlands, other EU countries can recognize the exemption and allow a rollout ahead of a formal EU approval.

In China, the smart features similar to FSD remain restricted to a limited number of vehicles as the US automaker had to halt the software update deliveries last March, citing the need for additional regulatory approval.

Tesla made a long-awaited update to its autopilot software in China last February. But some owners expressed disappointment that the system for which they paid ⁠more than $9,000 came with operational restrictions.

FSD is classified as an advanced driver assistance feature that requires drivers to remain attentive, and regulators have scrutinized it ‌amid concerns over the safety and oversight of automated driving technologies.

ROBOTAXI ‍UPDATE BOOSTS SHARES

Separately, Musk said Tesla has started ‍robotaxi rides in Austin, Texas, without safety monitors. The service started in June with a Tesla employee ‍in the front passenger seat overseeing the car's behavior.

Shares of the automaker closed 4.2% higher on Thursday after social media posts about the driverless robotaxi rides circulated. Tesla operates a ride-hailing service in California and has received permits to test and deploy its robotaxis in Texas, Arizona and Nevada.

While the deployment in Austin without safety monitors represents progress, Tesla's robotaxi ambitions ​remain well short of earlier targets to operate in several major US cities, highlighting the regulatory and safety hurdles that hinder rapid rollouts.

Registration of Tesla's vehicles fell 11.4% in California last ⁠year, with its market share of new cars in the US state slipping below 10%, according to a report by the California New Car Dealers Association.

The company reported a second consecutive drop in vehicle deliveries in 2025, ceding its position as the largest electric vehicle maker in the world to China's BYD.

HUMANOID ROBOT AMBITIONS

Musk has repeatedly said much of the artificial intelligence developed for autonomous vehicles will also underpin Tesla's planned humanoid robots. Musk said on Thursday that he expects robots to outnumber humans.

He said on Thursday that Tesla expects to sell its Optimus humanoid robots to the public by the end of next year, later than the timeline he had previously outlined.

Industry experts and executives have said scaling humanoid robots for real-world use is technically complex, in part because of a lack of data needed to train the AI models that underpin robot behavior.

"For Optimus, what they (the market) need ‌is credible evidence of scalable manufacturing, a regulatory path, and unit economics if possible," said Ken Mahoney, CEO of Mahoney Asset Management, a Tesla shareholder.

Technology

TikTok Establishes Joint Venture to End US Ban Threat

(FILES) A photo taken on April 10, 2025 shows the Chinese social networking service TikTok's logo on a smartphone screen (L) and US and China flags combo illustration on a laptop screen in Frankfurt am Main, western Germany. (Photo by Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV / AFP)
(FILES) A photo taken on April 10, 2025 shows the Chinese social networking service TikTok's logo on a smartphone screen (L) and US and China flags combo illustration on a laptop screen in Frankfurt am Main, western Germany. (Photo by Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV / AFP)
TT
TT

TikTok Establishes Joint Venture to End US Ban Threat

(FILES) A photo taken on April 10, 2025 shows the Chinese social networking service TikTok's logo on a smartphone screen (L) and US and China flags combo illustration on a laptop screen in Frankfurt am Main, western Germany. (Photo by Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV / AFP)
(FILES) A photo taken on April 10, 2025 shows the Chinese social networking service TikTok's logo on a smartphone screen (L) and US and China flags combo illustration on a laptop screen in Frankfurt am Main, western Germany. (Photo by Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV / AFP)

TikTok announced Thursday it has established a majority American-owned joint venture to operate its US business, allowing the company to avoid a ban over its Chinese ownership.

The video-sharing app is a global digital entertainment powerhouse but its mass appeal and links to China have raised concerns over privacy and national security.

The TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC will serve more than 200 million users and 7.5 million businesses while implementing strict safeguards for data protection and content moderation, the company said.

The new structure responds to a law passed under US President Donald Trump's predecessor Joe Biden that forced Chinese-owned ByteDance to sell TikTok's US operations or face a ban in its biggest market, said AFP.

Trump welcomed and claimed credit for the deal, but also thanked Chinese President Xi Jinping for approving it.

"I am so happy to have helped in saving TikTok!" Trump said in a post on Truth Social late Thursday.

"It will now be owned by a group of Great American Patriots and Investors, the Biggest in the World, and will be an important Voice."

"I would also like to thank President Xi, of China, for working with us and, ultimately, approving the Deal," he added.

- Cybersecurity audit -

ByteDance retains a 19.9 percent stake in the joint venture -- keeping its ownership below the 20 percent threshold stipulated by the law.

Three investors -- Silver Lake, Oracle and Abu Dhabi-based AI investment fund MGX -- each hold 15 percent stakes. Oracle's executive chairman Larry Ellison is a longtime Trump ally.

Other investors include Dell Family Office, affiliates of Susquehanna International Group and General Atlantic.

The joint venture will retain decision-making authority over trust and safety policies and content moderation for US users.

But TikTok's global entities will manage international product integration and commercial activities including e-commerce and advertising.

Under the arrangement, US user data will be stored in Oracle's secure cloud environment, with cybersecurity audited by third-party experts and adhering to federal standards, TikTok said.

Jasmine Enberg, co-CEO of Scalable, a media company focused on the creator economy, said TikTok users would be relieved by the deal but that there were "still big questions about how this will all play out."

"Behind the scenes, TikTok is likely working hard to assure advertisers it will remain business as normal," she told AFP.

"While the need for users to download a new app seems unlikely, brand partners will want to know that their TikTok strategies won't be disrupted."

- Ellison in spotlight -

The joint venture will be governed by a seven-member, majority-American board including TikTok CEO Shou Chew and executives from investment firms.

TikTok executive Adam Presser was appointed CEO of the new entity, with Will Farrell serving as chief security officer.

The 2024 law came as US policymakers, including Trump in his first presidency, warned that China could use TikTok to mine Americans' data or exert influence through its algorithm.

But Trump, crediting the app for his appeal with young voters, delayed enforcement through successive executive orders, most recently extending the deadline to January 22.

The deal largely confirms an outline announced to staff by Chew last month.

In September, one-time venture capitalist and Vice President JD Vance said the US entity would be valued at about $14 billion but it would ultimately be up to investors to determine pricing.

That month, Trump said a new venture had been agreed with China and would meet the law's requirements.

Trump specifically named Ellison, one of the world's richest men, as a major player in the arrangement.

Ellison has returned to the spotlight through his dealings with Trump, who has brought his old friend into major AI partnerships with OpenAI.