<div>
  <ul>
    <li>
      <p>
        FTX, a cryptocurrency exchange, signed a deal that includes an option to buy BlockFi, a DeFi borrowing and lending platform, for up to USD 240 million.&nbsp;
      </p>
    </li>
    <li>
      <p>
        Additionally, FTX also provided BlockFi with a USD 400 million revolving credit facility, which will be subordinate to all client funds.
      </p>
    </li>
  </ul>
  <p>
    &lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;
    <b>Analyst QuickTake</b>
    : This news comes as a conclusion to BlockFi&rsquo;s bid to secure its finances during what is currently major instability in the overall crypto market, exacerbated 
    <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2022/06/29/crypto-hedge-fund-three-arrows-capital-plunges-into-liquidation.html">
      by the collapse
    </a>
     of major hedge funds such as 
    <a href="https://sp-edge.com/companies/996052">
      Three Arrows Capital
    </a>
    . With comparable firms such as 
    <a href="https://sp-edge.com/companies/523519">
      Celsius
    </a>
     also freezing withdrawals from depositors, BlockFi initially sought to
    <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/11219">
       secure a USD 250 million
    </a>
     line of revolving credit last month.&lt;/ul&gt;
  </p>
</div>


<div>
  <p>
    <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/ftx-signs-deal-option-buy-184616765.html">
      Reuters
    </a>
  </p>
  <p>
    <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2022/07/01/ftx-us-deal-with-troubled-crypto-lender-blockfi-floats-acquisition-with-up-to-240m-purchase-price/">
      Tech Crunch
    </a>
  </p>
</div>


Decentralized Finance (DeFi)

FTX signs deal with BlockFi; includes potential acquisition for USD 240 million

Incorporating technology to improve efficiency and success rate of clinical trials

Clinical Trial Technology

<div>

 <p>AI-based trial management platform provider, Cognivia, has successfully garnered a funding of EUR 15.5 million (USD 16.5 million) in its most recent round. Major participants in the funding round included Vesalius Biocapital IV, Société Fédérale de Participations et d'Investissement (SFPIM), and Wallonie Entreprendre (WE).</p>
 
 <p>Plans for the obtained funds are primarily geared towards the deployment of the company's AI and machine learning empowered predictive clinical trial solutions. These innovative solutions are designed to decipher the correlations between patient characteristics and behaviors on a global level.</p>

</div>

Cognivia raises EUR 15.5 million in funding to deploy company's AI and machine learning solutions

Building future-ready applications in the cloud

Cloud-native Tech

PROMINENT_CATEGORY

<div>
 <p>The Technical Oversight Committee (TOC) for Kubernetes has announced its 1.30 update which offers numerous feature updates and enhancements. The improvements aim to enhance resource usage and scalability, strengthen security, and provide superior development support.</p>
 <p>Significant features of the 1.30 update comprise the Recursive Read-Only (RRO) Mounts feature that boosts cybersecurity by circumventing accidental alterations, a spec.trafficDistribution field allowing teams to set routing preferences for traffic to endpoints, performance enhancements in recursive SELinux labels, structured parameters for resource allocation, and Common Expression Language for admission control, and more.</p>
</div>

Kubernetes updated with enhanced security and performance features

Generating, collecting, and analyzing enterprise data will never be the same.

Edge Computing

<div>
 <p>Vertiv, a leader in digital infrastructure, has introduced SmartRow2, an edge data center solution offering enhanced scalability and flexibility. It promises to cut down deployment time by 80% and reduce costs by 30% compared to traditional methods.</p>
 <p>The solution can house up to five IT racks with power capacities between 3.3 kW to 6.6 kW. Feature options include 2N power and cooling redundancy, offering greater fault tolerance and reducing the risk of surprise downtimes.</p>
 <p>SmartRow2 also claims to enable infrastructure setup within a week, compared to up to a year with conventional methods. In addition to its speed and cost-effectiveness, the system also focuses on sustainability, incorporating effective in-row cooling methods that can lower cooling energy use and CO2 emissions by roughly 20% on average.</p>
</div>

Vertiv unveils SmartRow 2 Edge data center solution for accelerated deployments

<div>
 <p>Advantech, an embedded computing solutions provider, has collaborated with Phison, known for its flash controller and storage solutions. They are working to develop a GenAI platform, aiming at Edge computing and industrial applications.</p>
 <p>The partnership entails integrating Phison's aiDAPTIV+ technology within Advantech's Edge AI platforms. The goal is to streamline AI training processes and to decrease the demand for costly GPU and VRAM resources.</p>
 <p>The collaboration is anticipated to contribute to advancements in industry 4.0 and 5.0. It looks forward to enhancing automation and data exchange within manufacturing technologies. This is predicted to benefit sectors such as manufacturing, healthcare, and infrastructure. The benefits include predictive maintenance, automated decision-making, and improved customer interactions.</p>
 
</div>

Advantech partners with Phison to develop GenAI solutions for the edge

INCUMBENTS_PRESENT

<div>
 <p>Scale Computing, a provider of Edge computing solutions, is partnering with Reskube, a power and internet solutions provider, to enhance resilience in edge computing systems. The partnership intends to utilise Scale Computing’s infrastructure and Reskube’s resilience solutions for developing Edge systems with fewer disruptions. The goal is to provide consistent visibility and control over distributed resources, streamline deployment and management, and improve service providers' capacity to fulfill service-level agreements.</p>
</div>

Scale Computing partners with Reskube for robust edge computing deployments

ANALYST_QUICK_TAKE

<div>
 <p>MycoTechnology, a firm that focuses on mycelial fermentation, has managed to increase the production of a novel sweetener made from honey truffles. This has been achieved by moving from a lab bench scale to using 3,000 l tanks.</p>
 <p>This innovative honey truffle sweetener, which is produced from a sweet protein, asserts advantages over regular sugar. Not only is it more potent, it also has a clean taste, and is non-allergenic and non-toxic. Additionally, it can be fully digested by the human body.</p>
</div> <p><b>Analyst QuickTake:<br>
 </b> <a href="https:<br>
//sp-edge.com/companies/517448"> Alkion BioInnovations </a> (formerly Alkion BioPharma) is another company that develops sweet proteins as an alternative to sugar. However, its sweet protein is only 300x sweeter than sugar, while MycoTechnology’s honey truffle sweetener claims to be 1,500–2,500x sweeter than sugar with a similar calorie content to other proteins.</p>

MycoTechnology scales production of first-ever honey truffle sweetener

Conservation Tech

<div>
 
 <p>Marine technology company, Kraken Robotics, has obtained orders exceeding USD 6 million for their subsea batteries. The identity of the customers has not been disclosed. </p>
 <p>The company plans to deliver these orders in 2024 and 2025. This instance underpins the growing demand for marine robotic systems, sensor technology, and subsea batteries in the sector.</p>
 
</div>

Kraken Robotics receives orders for subsea batteries totaling over USD 6 million

Technologies bringing about a new reality

Extended Reality

<div>
 <p>Microsoft is introducing Augmented Reality (AR) capabilities to its Microsoft Teams smartphone app with Teams Dynamics 365 Remote Assist. Previously exclusive to HoloLens 2, these features can now be utilized by mobile app users. </p>
 <p>The initiative aids in repair and maintenance work by linking frontline personnel with specialists, enabling shared visuals and creating spatial annotations within the video feed. This will help IT administrators enhance frontline Extended Reality (XR) workflow management and bolster security with comprehensive data encryption and compliance certifications. </p>
</div> <p><b>Analyst QuickTake:<br>
</b> The news adds to Microsoft <a href="https:<br>
//sp-edge.com/updates/23971"> integrating </a> its mixed reality platform, Microsoft Mesh, into Teams to enable immersive 3D meetings. Additionally, Microsoft <a href="https:<br>
//sp-edge.com/updates/23963"> launched </a> its GenAI-powered assistant Copilot for its Dynamics 365 Guides platform, enabling more queries to be resolved more efficiently.</p>

Microsoft updates Teams smartphone app with AR instructional annotations

<div>
 <p>Google has revised the YouTube app for the Quest 3, theoretically permitting 8K streaming, notwithstanding the device's quality is limited to 4K.</p>
 <p>There's speculation that Meta might announce support for 8K streaming during its annual Connect 2024 event this year.</p>
</div> <p><b>Analyst QuickTake:<br>
</b> Meta <a href="https:<br>
//sp-edge.com/updates/28347"> recently </a> introduced update v64 to its Quest 3 headset, improving mixed reality passthrough quality, among other features. The potential move to support 8K streaming aligns with competition from Apple in the space, which <a href="https:<br>
//support.apple.com/en-gb/guide/iphone/iph6e3a6d4fe/ios"> supports </a> the playback of spatial videos captured on an iPhone 15.&nbsp;</p>

Google updates Quest 3 YouTube application for improved XR streaming quality

Clean, congestion-free air travel gets liftoff

Passenger eVTOL Aircraft

<div>
 
 <p>Urban air mobility company BETA Technologies, based in the US, has received UL certification for its Charge Cube, a product for electric charging. </p>
 <p>The certification was awarded after extensive testing in areas such as electrical, mechanical, environmental, and electromagnetic compatibility. The charger complies with multiple UL standards, namely UL 2202, UL 2231-1, and UL 2231-2.</p>
 <p>The Charge Cube has a number of features including multimodal, interoperability, and a 50-foot cord that uses a global charging standard. This makes it compatible with a range of electric vehicles, including cars, trucks, and airplanes. The cube can be used in conjunction with BETA’s Thermal Management System and can be used to charge electric aircraft and ground EVs. </p>
 
</div>

All Updates