Driverless cars in UK ‘within 4 years’, Minecraft hits 300 million sales
Driverless cars could be delivering groceries and transporting passengers on Britain’s roads within four years under plans being considered by the Government. The Department for Transport has drawn up plans for laws that would allow autonomous vehicles without safety drivers in the front seat, according to industry sources. The legislation would be a slimmed down version of the much-delayed future of transport laws that are seen as unlikely to pass before the next election in their current form. Telegraph
The UK might have missed out on as much as £2bn in tax in 2021 from big tech companies shifting their profits elsewhere, according to an estimate by a group campaigning for greater tax transparency. Seven of the biggest US-headquartered tech companies, including Apple, Microsoft and Google owner Alphabet, are estimated to have paid £750m in UK corporation tax and the digital sales tax, compared with £2.8bn in estimated tax due had profits not been routed elsewhere, according to TaxWatch, a campaign group. The Guardian
The UK is at risk of a massive security breach that could see bank account details and national insurance numbers leaked because of the government’s failure to upgrade Whitehall’s ageing computer system, The Independent can reveal. His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs’ (HMRC) has sounded the alarm over its “old and ageing IT systems”, sparking warnings from experts that hackers could steal taxpayers’ sensitive data or leave the UK open to the threat of Russian and Chinese hackers. Independent
Minecraft, the best-selling video game in the world, has broken yet another sales record. During a weekend event, developer Mojang Studios revealed it had now sold more than 300 million copies worldwide. That far surpasses closest rival Grand Theft Auto V, which had sold 185 million copies as of August 2023. But neither comes close to Super Mario as the best-selling franchise: it has sold more than 800 million games across its entire multi-game series. The second top franchise is retro puzzler Tetris, which has sold more than 520 million copies across its different variations since the 1980s. BBC
VW increased all-electric deliveries by 45 percent to 531,500 vehicles globally, raising the BEV share of total deliveries to 7.9 percent after 6.1 percent in the prior year period. In the third quarter alone, the BEV share climbed to 9.0 percent compared to 6.8 percent one year ago. From January to September, Europe remained the key growth driver with an increase of 61 percent to 341,100 vehicles. BEV deliveries jumped 74 percent to 50,300 units in the USA and surpassed prior year levels in China with an increase of 4 percent to 117,100 units. Tech Digest
The account-sharing crackdown that Netflix announced almost a year ago and started implementing in the spring has yet to scare most account borrowers into paying up. But it probably makes business sense anyway, according to a new survey from MoffettNathanson. The market-research firm commissioned Publishers Clearing House to survey 19,000 Americans in Q3 about their usage of the video-streaming service. A full 77% of respondents say they only use their own account, while 8% sometimes lean on somebody else’s subscription and 14% only watch on other people’s accounts. PC Mag
A Scots couple say they are “in shock” after claiming Tesla handed them a £17,000 bill to fix their battery that had been ‘damaged by the rain’. Johnny Bacigalupo and Rob Hussey, from Edinburgh, say they have been hit with the massive bill when their £60,000 electric car stopped working when the capital was faced with extreme weather last week, reports Edinburgh Live. Following “frustrating” correspondence with the company, which boasts Elon Musk as its largest shareholder, the pair say they are still being asked to fork out £17,374 despite claiming no fault on their part. Daily Record
