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Apple (AAPL) is releasing its second generation AirPods Pro later this month along with its newest iPhone and Apple Watches. This is the second generation of AirPods Pro and is called AirPods Pro with USB-C. Apple has adopted the USB-C port in hardware, in compliance with global laws as this port is set to become mandatory in the European Union. It also has other new features in its software.
Apple has given these features names such as Adoptive Audio Conversation Awareness and Personalized Volume.
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All these features present in the device use artificial intelligence to perform features such as turning down music when conversing or allowing nearby sounds through the headphone.
This means that Apple’s artificial intelligence powered software will use its intelligence to decide the sounds that a user wearing the second generation AirPods Pro with USB-C will hear. This also means that users need not take out their AirPods when traveling through busy locations or when talking to co-workers.
Financially AirPods Pro with USB-C are expensive and cost $249. However, their technological features can be considered innovative and can appeal to many.
The new AirPods Pro. Up to 2x more Active Noise Cancellation than the previous generation.
Apple has used its own chip called Apple H1 headphone chip to develop these wireless headphones. The tech giant emphasized these software features in its description of its new AirPods Pro including knowing when a user is listening and knowing when a user is talking.
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Test results from users say that the features work but its adaptive technology is not seamless. However, it is said to be an upgrade when compared with the default noise-cancelation setting in the first generation AirPods Pro.
Reports also say that the AirPods Pro with USB-C is subtle. Some of the features work better than others. The Apple AirPods Pro with USB-C has evolved in its newest generation, and it has become more sophisticated with the use of artificial intelligence.
CWEB Summarized Business Newsletter September 21, 2023
The stock market continues to fall as Wall Street prepares for “higher for longer” interest rates. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) fell 0.6%, while the S&P 500 (GSPC) fell 1.1%, following a nearly 1% loss on Wednesday. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) led the falls with a loss of about 1.3%.
Fox Corporation and News Corporation will no longer have Rupert Murdoch as its chairman of the board. Murdoch, 92, will be honored with the title of “chairman emeritus” at both organizations. One of his sons, Lachlan Murdoch, will take over as chairman of News Corp. and CEO of Fox Corp.
On Thursday, Cisco said that it will acquire Splunk, a provider of cybersecurity software, in a cash deal valued at approximately $28 billion, making it the company’s largest purchase to date.
The COVIDtests.gov website is being brought back online by the Biden administration.
Each household can receive up to four free COVID-19 quick tests from the government starting Monday, September 25.
Private equity company Japan Industrial Partners (JIP) announced Thursday that its $14 billion tender offer to acquire Toshiba had been successful, clearing the door for the troubled industrial behemoth to be taken private.
The Information claimed Thursday that Google executives had contemplated ditching Broadcom as a supplier of artificial intelligence processors as early as 2027, sending shares of Broadcom (AVGO.O) down by as much as 4.3%. The chips, known as tensor processing units, will be designed in-house by Google, which is owned by Alphabet (GOOGL.O).
As Ankara continues to fight double-digit inflation, the country’s central bank increased its key interest rate to 30% on Thursday, a 500 basis point increase from 25%. At 2 p.m. in Istanbul, the dollar was up 0.3% against the Turkish lira, sending the USDTRY exchange rate down to 27.06.
In an effort to stabilize the local market, Russia’s government announced on Thursday that effective immediately, the country will stop exporting gasoline and diesel to any country outside a circle of four ex-Soviet states. Fuel delivered to the countries of the Moscow-led Eurasian Economic Union, which includes Belarus, Kazakhstan, Armenia, and Kyrgyzstan, is exempt from the restriction, the document stated.
On Thursday, the parent company of Ruth’s Chris Steak House, Darden Restaurants, announced quarterly earnings and revenue that blew away forecasts.
A month after Beijing put limitations on sales overseas, citing national security concerns, China’s exports of two rare minerals critical for manufacturing semiconductors plunged to zero in August. The Critical Raw Materials Alliance estimates that China supplies over 80% of global demand for gallium and roughly 60% of global demand for germanium.
For the holiday season, Amazon is investing its greatest annual sum in U.S. hourly pay by hiring 250,000 new workers. In the United States, Amazon’s average hourly wage for customer fulfillment and transportation rose to over $20.50 this year thanks to a $1.3 billion investment.
If “structural issues” aren’t fixed soon, according to Deutsche Bank CEO Christian Sewing, Germany will become Europe’s sick man. “We are not the sick man of Europe,” Sewing said in his keynote talk at the Handelsblatt Banking Summit 2023 on Wednesday. “But it is also true that there are structural weaknesses that hold back our economy and prevent it from developing its great potential.”
New York Times columnist David Brooks vented his frustration at the rising cost of groceries on Twitter. Is $78 for a burger and fries truly the going rate there? Even at the terminal? Social media detective work swiftly debunked Brooks’ claim, tracing the table, class, chair, sheet, and cut of fries back to the Smokehouse Restaurant in Newark’s Terminal A, where a burger and fries costs a more reasonable $17.
SpaceX, led by Elon Musk, has filed a federal lawsuit in Texas against the U.S. Department of Justice to halt the DOJ’s hiring discrimination prosecution.
Thursday, September 21 2023: Darden Restaurants (DRI), Flux Power Holdings (FLUX), Scholastic (SCHL)
Friday, September 22 2023: Dynatronics (DYNT), Netsol Technologies (NTWK)
Stocks to watch with positive momentum this week and Buy Rating:
Italy’s Martina Trevisan pulled off a stunning comeback to defeat top-seeded Ons Jabeur of Tunisia 6-7 (4), 7-5, 6-3 on Wednesday in the third round of the Guadalajara (Mexico) Open Akron.
With Jabeur up a set and serving for the match at 5-4 in the second, she went ahead 30-0 before Trevisan began her rally. Trevisan won the next four points to break serve, then won the next two games to force a third set.
Trevisan recorded two of the three service breaks in the final set to advance to her second quarterfinal in a WTA 1000 event this year. She also reached the quarters at Miami in March.
In earlier matches on Wednesday, Americans Sofia Kenin and Caroline Dolehide pulled off upsets.
Kenin ousted Latvian sixth seed Jelena Ostapenko 6-4, 7-5 by saving four of five break points while Ostapenko committed seven double faults. Dolehide completed a 6-1, 6-2 sweep of No. 8 seed Ekaterina Alexandrova of Russia with the help of three aces.
Three other Americans were in action on Wednesday, but all three fell. French third seed Carolina Garcia downed Hailey Baptiste 7-5, 6-4, Canadian Leylah Fernandez breezed by Emma Navarro 6-2, 6-3, and Emiliana Arango of Colombia defeated Taylor Townsend 7-5, 1-6, 6-4.
In other action, second-seeded Greek Maria Sakkari bested Italy’s Camila Giorgi 6-2, 6-2, and 10th-seeded Belarusian Victoria Azarenka crushed seventh-seeded Veronika Kudermetova of Russia 6-2, 6-1.
Guangzhou Open
Slovakian Viktoria Hruncakova swatted 15 aces en route to a 7-6 (5), 5-7, 6-4 victory over China’s Yue Yuan in the second round in Guangzhou, China.
Hruncakova also won 57 of 82 first-service points to topple Yuan, who saved 10 of 16 break points.
On a day where there weren’t any upsets, Polish No. 1 seed Magda Linette flew past Australia’s Daria Saville 6-0, 7-6 (0), third-seeded German Tatjana Maria swept Zhuoxuan Bai of China 6-1, 6-2, and Italian fourth seed Lucia Bronzetti beat Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima 6-3, 6-3.
No. 5 seed Rebeka Masarova of Spain was a 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (7) winner over Swiss foe Viktorija Golubic, while seventh-seeded Belgian Greet Minnen downed Great Britain’s Harriet Dart 7-6 (7), 6-7 (5), 6-4. Other victors included Kazakhstan’s Yulia Putintseva and Xiyu Wang of China.
Japan’s Taro Daniel rallied to upset eighth seed Aleksandar Vukic of Australia, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 on Wednesday in the Round of 32 at the Chengdu (China) Open.
The unseeded Daniel, ranked 95th in the world, won in 2 hours and 14 minutes over Vukic, ranked 50th. Daniel converted five of 14 break points to three of seven for Vukic.
In other matches in the Round of 32, Russia’s Roman Safiullin downed American Brandon Nakashima in straight sets 6-4, 6-4, and France’s Corentin Moutet cruised past China’s Tao Mu 6-2, 6-2.
Zhuhai Championships
Dalibor Svrcina of the Czech Republic recorded his second career tour-level win by eliminating Chinese wild card Zhe Li 6-4, 6-3 in the Round of 32 in Zhuhai, China.
Svrcina added to winning one match at the Australian Open in January by committing just five unforced errors and hitting 18 winners while converting four of five break points. Li had 12 unforced errors and 17 winners while converting just one of eight break points.
In other matches, Lloyd Harris of South Africa defeated Czech Jiri Vesely 6-4, 6-2, and Japan’s No.8 seeded Yoshihito Nishioka knocked off France’s Terence Atmane 0-6, 6-4, 6-2.
Coming off an 84th-minute, match-winning goal by Gadi Kinda against Minnesota United, Sporting Kansas City are one point below the playoff line in the Western Conference standings.
With two home matches this week, SKC can’t afford a letdown as they welcome Nashville SC to Kansas City, Kan., on Wednesday.
Nashville (11-9-7, 40 points) is in the seventh spot in the Eastern Conference, seven points ahead of 10th-place Chicago. Sporting KC (9-12-8, 35 points) trail Portland for the ninth and final playoff spot. They’re two points behind Minnesota for eighth.
Neither club can afford a slip-up at this point in the season.
Sporting KC, who started the season 0-7-3 with three goals in their first 10 matches, have scored 36 goals in the 19 matches since, going 9-5-5. None was bigger than Kinda’s goal.
Kinda received a pass from Roger Espinoza in the right flat. He took a touch inside and cut back onto his left foot to shoot the ball past Minnesota goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair.
“I would say this is a mature performance by us,” Sporting coach Peter Vermes said after the match. “It’s really nice to see with all the different ups and downs we’ve had over the season and at a time when we needed a mature performance, guys executed on it.”
Sporting KC will try to keep up their offensive pace against a Nashville club that has allowed the fewest goals in MLS (27).
Nashville SC have been in somewhat of a freefall since their last victory on July 1. They’re 0-4-2 in the six league matches since and have scored just two goals in that time.
Their last match, at home against Charlotte on Sept. 2, went to stoppage time in a scoreless tie. After Scott Arfield put Charlotte up 1-0 in the third minute of stoppage time, Golden Boot co-leader Hany Mukhtar converted a penalty kick in the 98th minute, his 14th goal of the season.
“We’re a million miles away from where we need to be,” Nashville coach Gary Smith said following the match. “(Saturday’s) performance for sure was a long way off from where we need to be. (Now) we get some time for recovery. We get some time to work and put this game behind us.”
The Houston Dynamo will attempt to continue their three-month hot streak and move up in the standings when they host the surging Vancouver Whitecaps on Wednesday in a key late-season match.
Houston (11-10-7, 40 points) heads to the midweek match in fifth place in the Western Conference, one point and one spot below the Whitecaps (11-8-8, 41 points). The Dynamo have six matches to play in the regular season while Vancouver has seven.
The Dynamo’s most recent match was a 1-1 draw at home with West frontrunner St. Louis City on Saturday. Houston is now unbeaten in its last six league matches dating back to July 15 (3-0-3).
Corey Baird scored against St. Louis in the 42nd minute with a header. The Dynamo surrendered the equalizer in the 87th minute, snapping a 540-minute stretch without conceding a goal that was the second-longest such streak in club history.
“We had big chances to see that game out,” Houston coach Ben Olsen said. “As these games get a little tighter and the weather now changes, the speed of the game happens and everybody’s fighting for playoff spots, you’ve got to see those plays out. You got to give yourself that cushion because everybody’s coming, and it’s tough to keep teams off the board.”
Amine Bassi leads Houston with nine goals while Hector Herrera paces the Dynamo with 13 assists, tied for second most in the league.
Vancouver heads to Houston for its fifth match of a seven-match road trip after a 2-1 win in Toronto on Saturday. The Whitecaps have three wins and a draw in the first four matches on the club-record trip.
Tristan Blackmon and Brian White scored the goals against Toronto after the Whitecaps had fallen behind early in the second half.
Whitecaps coach Vanni Sartini pointed to his team’s maturity in rallying for the win.
“When we were down, we weren’t in crisis or something,” Sartini said. “We knew that we were in charge of the game and would have the possibility to score at any moment. … We have a kind of maturity at the moment that even if we go down, we keep doing the thing we’re supposed to do. We stick to the plan.”
White leads the Whitecaps with 11 goals in league play while Ryan Gauld leads MLS in goal contributions since May 31 with 18 (10 goals, eight assists).
The host Whitecaps hammered Houston 6-2 on May 31 in the teams’ first meeting of the year.
Orlando City SC and New York City FC have a long history since they joined Major League Soccer as expansion cousins in 2015.
As the Lions travel to New York and Citi Field on Wednesday, they do so as favorites, looking to hold onto a top-four spot in the Eastern Conference.
Despite being undefeated in three matches, NYCFC (6-10-13, 31 points) have won only twice in their past 20 league matches, while Orlando (14-6-8, 50 points) comes into the midweek clash riding a run that has seen them lose only twice in 18 outings. The Lions are 5-0-1 in their past six.
On Saturday, Orlando fought back from a 3-1 deficit against the Columbus Crew, capturing a 4-3 victory with the comeback powered by three goals after the 73rd minute. Ramiro Enrique had both the 86th-minute tying goal and 97th-minute winner.
Sitting second in the conference, Orlando will look to hold onto their advantageous position against New York City, with Uruguayan forward Facundo Torres leading the attack with 12 goals in 25 appearances. Should he find the back of the net, he would move into third place in Orlando City SC franchise all-time scoring, trailing only Nani and Cyle Larin.
“(Our form) is important because it shows that the team is ready to play in playoffs, which is the most important when the playoff is coming,” Orlando midfielder Mauricio Pereyra said after the win over Columbus.
NYCFC find themselves in the thick of a playoff race, sitting 12th in the conference, four points back of D.C. United (35 points) for the ninth and final playoff spot. They enter the midweek clash off a scoreless draw in the Hudson River Derby against the New York Red Bulls.
“Every game is going to have a playoff feel to it for us, and it should because every point and every win is critical,” NYCFC head coach Nick Cushing said. “We will be as practical as possible to make sure that we can win as many points and just take one game as it goes.”
After Wednesday, both teams will have a quick turnaround to the weekend, with New York City looking ahead to hosting last-place Toronto FC while Orlando welcomes Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami.
FC Cincinnati are hoping to stay strong in preparation for the playoffs when they visit CF Montreal on Wednesday.
Cincinnati (17-4-7, 58 points) has dominated the MLS table since April, sitting first in the Eastern Conference since the start of the month and leading the way in the race for the Supporters’ Shield since mid-month. Heading into the final stretch, it holds an eight-point advantage over Orlando City in both races.
FC Cincinnati head into the mid-week match coming off a draw against the Philadelphia Union in which Cincinnati erased a two-goal deficit in the second half. It marked the third time this season that the club has avoided defeat after trailing by multiple goals, most in MLS.
“We have six games remaining and despite maybe the period of time until the playoffs start, this is when you want to be at your best,” FC Cincinnati coach Pat Noonan said. “The reality is we’re trying to hold that top position so we’re going to need to be at our best under these circumstances.”
Cincinnati captain Luciano Acosta will be back after serving a one-match suspension due to yellow card accumulation. The Argentine leads the club with 13 goals, more than twice as many as striker Brandon Vazquez, who ranks second on the team with six.
Montreal (11-14-3, 36 points) remains in a battle for a playoff spot as the season winds down. Currently above the line in eighth place, the club is one point up on D.C. United, who hold the final spot, and three points ahead of the Chicago Fire, against whom they played to a scoreless draw in their last outing.
The club is winless in its past three matches and has been shut out in two of those. And while players know the challenge they face against Cincinnati, they’re confident in their abilities in front of the home crowd.
“Even if Cincinnati is currently the best team in the league, I’m positive that we’re going to have a great match,” CF Montreal coach Hernan Losada said. “When we play at home, the team feels good. The crowd gets behind us and we have an incredible atmosphere, which gives a massive boost to the players.”
Montreal sits near the bottom of the league with 28 goals scored. Eight of those have come from Mathieu Choiniere and Chinoso Offor, who share the team lead with four apiece. Romell Quioto, who returned from injury as a substitute against Chicago, has three goals, despite being sidelined since mid-May.
After their first defeat of the Lionel Messi era, Inter Miami will aim to rebound against visiting Toronto FC on Wednesday in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Miami (8-15-4, 28 points) suffered a 5-2 road loss to Atlanta United on Saturday, with Messi and Jordi Alba absent due to what coach Tata Martino described as “muscle fatigue.”
The Herons are 8-1-4 since Messi joined the club in July. Eight of those matches (5-0-3) came outside of regular-season action, during the Leagues Cup and U.S. Open Cup tournaments.
It isn’t yet known if either Messi or Alba will be available Wednesday, though both trained in full on Tuesday. With two regular-season matches slated before Miami plays in the U.S. Open Cup final on Sept. 27, Messi and/or Alba could be given further time to recuperate.
Inter Miami are in 14th place in the Eastern Conference, with seven points separating the Herons from ninth-place D.C. United and the final East playoff berth.
“Our decisions are based on what we have in the days ahead because we are in the hunt for the playoffs, but we also have the game on the 27th and that is … for a title,” Martino said, adding that in terms of the regular season, “we won’t abandon our hopes, but our focus is on the 27th.”
Toronto FC (4-14-10, 22 points) are the only team behind Miami in the East standings, and are coming off a 2-1 home loss to the Vancouver Whitecaps last Saturday.
Deandre Kerr scored for Toronto, tying him for the club lead with five goals this season. Within an overall disappointing season for Toronto FC, interim head coach Terry Dunfield pointed to the development of less-experienced players such as Kerr as a silver lining.
“It’s a lot of opportunity for younger players,” Dunfield said. “When they look back at this season, not only have they had a lot of important appearances, they have, I’d say, for the most part … grown throughout the year.”
Toronto FC are the only team in MLS with a winless away record (0-9-4) this season.
In their first meeting this season, Toronto FC had a 2-0 win over Inter Miami on March 18 in Toronto.
D.C. United continue the fight for their playoff hopes when they host Atlanta United on Wednesday night in Washington.
D.C. (9-12-8, 35 points) has played to back-to-back scoreless draws in its past two outings, home to San Jose on Sept. 9 and then at Charlotte last Saturday night.
It was enough to keep the Black and Red in possession of a playoff place for the moment, entering Wednesday two points above Chicago and three above Charlotte for the ninth and final Eastern Conference spot.
But it wasn’t ideal, given Chicago has one match in hand and Charlotte has two.
“It’s the minimum we needed to get,” D.C. striker Christian Benteke told the Washington Post after the draw in Charlotte. “We wanted to get the three points. It was a 50-50 game at times, but I felt we had some chances.
“Now at this stage, every point counts, and we’re going to take this point.”
The match also continued a frustrating trend of attacking inconsistency that began in late June. D.C. has scored 11 times in its past 10 matches, but nine of those goals came in three multi-goal performances. They’ve been held scoreless five times.
Atlanta (12-8-9, 45 points) has also struggled with consistency this season but now looks to be in its best form of the year following an active summer transfer window.
The Five Stripes have scored multiple goals in four of five matches since league play resumed following the Leagues Cup break. They are coming off a rousing 5-2 home win over Inter Miami on Saturday.
While Miami was without Lionel Messi, Atlanta still had to respond after conceding an early goal. Two summer signings contributed, with Tristan Muyumba scoring Atlanta’s first goal and Saba Lobjanidze adding a late assist.
“It was massive, a massive reaction,” said goalkeeper Brad Guzan, whose team enters Wednesday sixth in the East but only three points out of third.
“That was extremely impressive, and obviously the result was good, but I thought how we got to that result was even more important than the actual result itself.”
