Tech Digest daily roundup: Elon Musk pulls out of $44bn Twitter purchase
Elon Musk is seeking to end his $44bn (£36bn) bid to buy Twitter, alleging multiple breaches of the agreement. The announcement is the latest twist in a long-running saga after the world’s richest person decided to buy Twitter in April. Mr Musk said he had backed out because Twitter failed to provide enough information on the number of spam and fake accounts. Twitter says it plans to pursue legal action to enforce the agreement. “The Twitter Board is committed to closing the transaction on the price and terms agreed upon with Mr. Musk,” Twitter chairman Bret Taylor wrote in a tweet. BBC
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said on Friday it will open a special investigation into a Florida crash on Wednesday that killed a 66-year-old Tesla driver and a 67-year-old passenger. A 2015 Tesla rear-ended a parked tractor-trailer in the Gainesville area at a rest area off Interstate 75, the Florida Highway Patrol said. Both people in the Tesla, who were from Lompoc, California, were pronounced dead at the scene. A patrol spokesman said it was unclear if Autopilot was in use. Reuters
A $54bn (£45bn) software company is leaving London as it searches for a “broader set of investors”, in a fresh setback to Britain’s attempt to court tech. Australian company Atlassian moved its domicile to London in 2014 but is now uprooting itself again and shifting to the US. The Nasdaq-listed company is transferring its incorporation to a new holding company in Delaware, the Telegraph can reveal. Telegraph
Netflix is partnering with Sennheiser to offer a new spatial audio experience that works on all devices.Thanks to Sennheiser’s technology, Netflix content with stereo audio will be enhanced with this new immersive surround sound. Sennheiser said the experience is compatible with all devices, and on all Netflix streaming plans. It does not require surround sound speakers or home theatre equipment. The tech, called Ambeo 2-Channel Spatial Audio, works on standard stereo speakers. Pocket Lint
Hundreds of TV shows and movies bought through Sony’s Playstation Store will be removed next month, meaning customers who purchased these titles will no longer be able to watch them. According to Variety, customers in Germany and Austria will be affected by the shutdown covering films produced by Studiocanal. The timing of this news is no coincidence as August 31, 2021, was the date Sony announced it was discontinuing purchases of movies and TV shows through the Playstation Store. Mashable
Ahead of the biggest premiere the world of astronomy has ever seen, NASA has published the cosmic A-list that will be appearing through the lens of its colossal new space telescope. And it’s not just stars. There are galaxies, a planet too, and what promises to be the deepest view back in time that humanity has ever been able to achieve. On Tuesday, the first images from the $10bn James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) will be shared with the world. Sky News
