Ciara O'Brien

5 days ago | irishtimes.com | Ciara O'Brien

Wearable technology company Whoop has unveiled two wearables with advanced capabilities that include blood pressure monitoring and medical ECG. The two new sensors, Whoop 5.0 and Whoop Medical Grade (MG) are smaller but include more technology and are more power efficient, with enhanced sensors that capture information 26 times per second. The medical grade Whoop has built in a new ECG feature that can detect signs of atrial fibrillation and notify wearers of irregular heart rhythms.

6 days ago | irishtimes.com | Ciara O'Brien

Stripe took a step towards expanding the use of stablecoins in the mainstream financial system, expanding stablecoin-funded accounts to more than 100 new markets. The move will allow its customers to hold funds and make payments internationally more easily, Stripe said. The company unveiled a raft of product updates at Stripe Sessions in San Francisco, including new AI features that include an AI foundation model for payments and dispute management powered by artificial intelligence.

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ciara O'Brien

We have to start rethinking what a mid-range smartphone looks like. In fact, we have needed to do that for a while because most of the mobile phone makers have upped their game considerably in that respect. The mid-range smartphones of today are a lot like the premium phones of not so long ago. For most people, that will mean they get all the essential features they need, plus a few unnecessary ones, for a price that won’t break the bank.

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ciara O'Brien

AI and stablecoins are “dramatically reshaping the landscape”, Stripe chief executive Patrick Collison has said, describing them as “gale force tailwinds” in a turbulent economy. But despite the ongoing challenges, he said, there was a “powerful case” for optimism. Mr Collison delivered his upbeat assessment at the opening of the payment technology company’s annual Stripe Sessions conference. Stablecoins are crypto assets linked to the value of fiat currencies such as the US dollar.

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Ciara O'Brien

Meta chief executive Mark Zuckerberg has taken a jab at Apple following a ruling in the US that would force the company to open up its App Store to more competition. “Tim [Cook]‘s had a bad week. I’m not going to pile on. But Sundar [Pichai] is cool. I like Sundar,” he said of the Google boss. A US judge last week said Apple had failed to comply with a 2021 order that would allow developers to point consumers to payment options outside the App Store. Apple said it would appeal the ruling.