Share Tweet Apple just teamed up with Volkswagen to turn some of the automaker’s passenger vans into self-driving vehicles. As part of the partnership announced on Wednesday night, Apple will equip a fleet of Volkswagen T6 Transporter vans into autonomous shuttles for Apple employees. The partnership is seen as bittersweet for Apple. Its automotive initiative has been slow-going, and it has struggled to find partners among high-end brands like BMW and Mercedes-Benz.
Apple and Volkswagen are officially in the car business together.
That’s according to a multiple news reports published on Wednesday night, which outline some details of Apple’s plan to turn some Volkswagen passenger vans into self-driving vehicles.
Apple will equip the German automaker’s T6 Transporter van with its own self-driving technology and use a fleet of them as employee shuttles.
The partnership between Apple and Volkswagen is seen by some as bittersweet for the consumer-electronics giant, which had higher hopes for its self-driving car project when it first launched in 2014. Apple has sought partnerships with BMW and Mercedes-Benz. Those endeavors never panned out.
But the deal with Volkswagen could help breathe new life into one part of the project, which, as The New York Times reports, has been middling — mostly due to false starts and employee turnover within the program.
More broadly, Apple has encountered some formidable competition in the self-driving space, right in its own backyard. Waymo, the autonomous-car unit that Google launched in 2016, is miles ahead by most estimates.
It hasn’t been all bad news for Apple’s automotive ambitions, though. As of May 9, it had 55 self-driving vehicles on the road in California, according to DMV records.
SEE ALSO: Apple has the second-largest fleet of self-driving cars in California — bigger than Tesla, Waymo, or Uber
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Homebase sold to owner of HMW for nominal sum
Loss-making hardware chain Homebase has been sold to its management team backed by retail turnaround specialist Hilco for a nominal sum.
Homebase was put up for sale by its Australian owner earlier this year, just two years after completing a £340m takeover.
Wesfarmers said it expects to record a loss on the disposal of £200m to £230m.
Wesfarmers chief executive Damian McGloughlin said: “We are very pleased to have reached an agreement with Hilco and this marks an exciting new chapter for Homebase.”
He added: “With Hilco’s support we have the commitment of an experienced partner, substantial additional capital, stability for the business and the opportunity to reinvigorate a brand that has been a mainstay of UK retail for over 40 years.”
More follows …
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Police found $28.6 million-worth of cash sitting in an empty apartment linked to Malaysia’s former prime minister Najib Razak Police seized $28.6 million-worth of cash, which included 26 foreign currencies, from properties reportedly linked to former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak. The seizures happened on six properties linked to Najib last week, where 284 designer handbags and 72 bags were found stuffed with cash, jewelry, and watches taken. Police needed 22 bank staff and 11 counting machines to track and verify all the cash found. The raids appear to be part of an investigation into suspicious money transfers from the state investment fund which lost billions of dollars.
Police recently seized $28.6 million-worth of cash from a residence reportedly linked to former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak.
Najib lost a national election earlier this month in a dramatic turn of events which led to the first transition of power to the opposition alliance in the country’s independent history. Najib’s popularity began to plummet in 2015 after billions of dollars went missing from the state fund 1MDB, and hundreds of millions were reportedly found in Najib’s personal bank accounts.
After being sworn in as the new prime minister Mahathir Mohamad promised to continue the investigation into 1MDB, saying he expected charges to be laid against Najib. Last week, police conducted raids on six properties linked to Najib and seized 284 luxury handbags and 72 bags of cash, jewelry and watches. At the time.
Amar Singh, head of Malaysia’s Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID), said in a press conference on Friday that 35 of 72 bags contained cash totaling about $28.6 million.
“We’ve counted since 21 to 23 May, and yesterday we sat with the bank to tally the amount in that seizure. I can confirm that the money in those 35 bags is about 114 million ringgit ($28.6 million). It’s in 26 currencies, Malaysian ringgit, US currencies and various other denominations,” Singh said.
Singh had been unable to provide estimates of the amount of cash seized earlier “because it was a lot,” he said. Police used 11 counting machines and 22 bank officers to count and verify the 26 foreign currencies that were seized.
The luxury handbags and bags of cash and jewelry was seized from an empty apartment in the Pavilion Residences on May 18. Nothing else was in the apartment except for furniture, Singh said.
Though Singh would not confirm whether the apartment was linked to Najib, the raid occurred at the same time police began searching Najib’s home, and the apartment of each his son and daughter in the Pavilion Residences.
Experts will soon start the process of authenticating and appraising the remaining 37 bags of jewelry and watches.
Of the remaining 284 designer handbags found in boxes, most of these were from Hermes which can cost up to $200,000 each.
“We have already discussed with Hermes and we’ll take pictures and send it to Paris to certify from the aspect of authenticating it and also the price,” Singh said.
Earlier this week, Najib gave a testimony to Malaysia’s anti-graft agency over $10.6 million found in his bank account, which allegedly originated from a former 1MDB subsidiary.
Najib set up the 1MDB fund in 2009, but in 2015 nearly $700 million was reportedly found in his personal bank accounts, which a royal Saudi family member said was a personal donation.
A number of countries, including the US and Switzerland, are investigating $4.5 billion that was allegedly siphoned off from 1MDB, some of which was used to fund “The Wolf of Wall Street” movie and diamonds for supermodel Miranda Kerr.
Najib is currently barred from leaving the country.
SEE ALSO: In a historic election, Malaysia’s allegedly corrupt prime minister lost to his 92-year-old former mentor who ran on behalf of a man he put in jail
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Air France is the latest airline to appease China by changing the way it describes Taiwan, as Beijing hands carriers an extension to mid-2018 China has granted a number of airlines, including United Airlines and Qantas, an extension to mid-2018 to change references to Taiwan on their websites. Last month, China sent a letter to 36 foreign airlines demanding they stop listing Taiwan as a country by May 25. On the same day as the deadline, Business Insider noticed Air France became the latest airline to change its reference of Taiwan from a country to a province of China, which is China’s preferred description. China has ramped up its territorial claim in 2018 by targeting how Taiwan is described by foreign companies including airlines. Delta Air Lines, Lufthansa, British Airways, Malaysian Airlines, and Air Canada have all changed references to Taiwan this year.
Air France has become the latest major airline to change how it refers to Taiwan as a Friday deadline imposed by China was extended until mid-2018.
Last month, China’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) sent a letter to 36 foreign airlines demanding they stop referring to Taiwan as a country on their websites by May 25. The US State Department told Business Insider it raised “strong concerns” with Beijing over the letter, and the White House deemed the situation “Orwellian nonsense.”
But with China being a crucial market in Asia, the US government’s position didn’t stop a number of airlines acquiescing to China’s demands. Business Insider discovered Malaysian Airlines changed its reference to Taiwan last week, as did Air Canada, Finnair, and a number of smaller airlines.
And on Friday, the initial deadline given by China’s CAA, Business Insider noticed Air France had also changed it’s listing from “Taiwan” to “Taiwan – China,” one of China’s preferred descriptions.
It’s a surprising move from Air France, which flew its first code-share flight between Taipei and Paris with Taiwan’s China Airlines on April 16.
And earlier this month French President Emmanuel Macron, speaking alongside Australia’s prime minister, said it was important for the Asia Pacific to “not have any hegemony in the region,” a not-so-subtle hint towards China’s recent overtures.
The timing of Air France’s change is particularly interesting as a number of airlines have received an extension to update their websites until mid-year.
United Airlines, a major player on the US-China route, confirmed to Business Insider on Friday it has received an extension.
Qantas, which received the CAA letter in April, was also granted more time.
“We made adjustments to our websites earlier this year and, along with various other airlines worldwide, have been given additional time to further clarify how we refer to Chinese territories,” the spokesperson said.
It is likely a number of other airlines received an extension, but American Airlines, which received the initial CAA letter, declined to comment.
Taiwan is a self-ruled, democratic island that Beijing considers to be a province of China that will eventually be fully reunified — by force, if necessary. China frequently seeks to assert its claim to Taiwan on the global stage.
This year has seen China ramp up its political efforts against foreign companies’ descriptions of China.
For omitting China’s claim over Taiwan, hotel chain Marriott was forced to shut down the Chinese version of its website for a week, fast-fashion retailer Zara was ordered to complete a “self-inspection” and turn in a rectification report, and retailer Gap apologized for selling a T-shirt with an “incorrect” map of China. Just yesterday it emerged that Japanese retailer Muji was fined $31,000 for importing hangers that listed Taiwan as the country of origin.
But airlines have received the brunt of China’s attention.
In January, Delta Air Lines was censured the CAA for listing Taiwan as a country on its website.
After that incident, China ordered all foreign airlines to review their websites and reportedly called in representatives from 25 air carriers to demand they remove references to Taiwan as a country.
Lufthansa since changed its website to list “Taiwan, China” telling Business Insider it takes “customs of the international clientele into consideration.” British Airways also made a switch, settling on “Taiwan – China,” though the airline did not rule out further changes in comments made to Business Insider.
SEE ALSO: China wants to dictate how foreign airlines refer to Taiwan and the US is having none of it — this is how every major airline is responding
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At least 15 people injured in suspected explosion at a restaurant in Canada Police are responding to a possible explosion at a restaurant in Mississauga, Canada. At least 15 people were injured.
Medical personnel have evacuated at least 15 people after a possible explosion at a restaurant in Mississauga, Canada, according to multiple news reports published Thursday night.
Law-enforcement officials were notified of the incident at the Bombay Bhel restaurant between Hurontario Street and Eglinton Avenue at 10:32 p.m. local time.
At least three people in critical condition were taken to Toronto’s Sunnybrook Hospital, the Peel Regional Paramedic Service said in a tweet.
Reported explosion inside a restaurant on Hurontario Street in #Mississauga https://t.co/POKqyTVqnC
— Jeremy Cohn (@JeremyGlobalTV) May 25, 2018
It was not immediately clear what may have caused the explosion.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
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Rockets take series lead after bonkers final 60 seconds to push the Warriors to the brink The Houston Rockets beat the Golden State Warriors in Game 5 on Thursday to take a 3-2 series lead and push the Warriors to the brink of elimination. The final 60 seconds of the game was a calamity, with Chris Paul getting injured and the Warriors flubbing several good chances to steal the win. The Rockets will have a chance to knock off the Warriors for good, but Paul’s health remains a huge question mark heading into Game 6 on Saturday.
The Houston Rockets and Golden State Warriors were the NBA’s two best offenses this season, but their Western Conference Finals series has been defined by their defense and inability to score in big moments.
The Rockets, as of Thursday night, are winning the battle. Houston pulled out a 98-94 win over the Warriors in Game 5 to take a 3-2 series lead, pushing a team many thought was unbeatable to the brink of elimination.
The final 60 seconds, much like Game 4, was not about crisp execution, but both teams trying to simply get by, hoping they would have the lead when the final buzzer sounded. There were no highlight plays; rather series of mishaps shaping the result of the game.
After Draymond Green hit a three-pointer to bring the Warriors within one point with 1:15 to play, Chris Paul isolated on the other end. While driving on Warriors guard Quinn Cook, Paul landed awkwardly and didn’t get up.
The Warriors came down on the other end, with a 5-on-4 advantage and swung the ball to the open Cook, a G-League call-up this year who played so well down the stretch of the regular season that the Warriors signed him for the stretch run. Cook missed the open look. Meanwhile, Paul limped to his feet, holding his hamstring, clearly injured.
Chris Paul suffers an injury late in game 5 pic.twitter.com/VLGm7MXklq
— Def Pen Hoops (@DefPenHoops) May 25, 2018
The Rockets and Warriors both missed on their next possessions, keeping the game locked at 95-94.
After Stephen Curry’s floater bounced off the rim, the Warriors were forced to foul Trevor Ariza. Ariza made just one of two free throws, keeping the Warriors within striking distance.
However, it was the rebound of the missed free throw that may have done in the Warriors. As both teams jockeyed for the ball, Green corralled it on the baseline to keep it from going out of bounds and Instinctually threw it ahead to Kevin Durant, who called timeout. Because Green technically advanced the ball with the pass, when the Warriors called timeout, they could not advance the ball to half-court to inbound the ball. Instead, they would have to inbound from the back-court.
And that’s where it unraveled for the Warriors. As Curry got the ball on the inbounds, he tried to advance it up ahead to Green, who had a numbers advantage. Green, however, bobbled Curry’s pass, resulting in a turnover to the Rockets with three seconds left. Eric Gordon was fouled, hit both free throws, and sealed the game.
DRAYMOND TURNOVER
ROCKETS RECOVER pic.twitter.com/g8k5Y8BTpx— Def Pen Hoops (@DefPenHoops) May 25, 2018
The question lingering over all of this is Paul’s health. Paul has delivered for the Rockets in this series, hitting several big shots in the past two games to help them get two wins. If he’s out, the Rockets will have to rely on James Harden, who has struggled to find his shot in this series.
Questions also remain about the Warriors’ mental state. A team so composed and so capable of dominating has not looked so frazzled over the past two seasons. But against the Rockets, the Warriors have fallen into playing Houston’s isolation-heavy, slow-paced style, and their offense has been nullified by Houston’s ability to switch. And despite that, the Warriors still had their chances to win the game, only to bobble them.
Game 6 will take place Saturday night in Oakland, California.
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