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Espoo outside of Helsinki is turning into quite the quantum hub. The city’s latest addition to the Finnish quantum computing ecosystem is QMill. The newly minted algorithm startup just raised €4mn in seed funding to leverage near-term hardware to deliver real benefits to industry through quantum computing.  “There is momentum growing at the moment [in quantum], and investors can see that a lot of companies are experimenting with quantum computing now — but so far they have not found quantum advantage,” Hannu Kappinnen, QMill co-founder and CEO, told TNW. “We are the ones who will be the first to provide…This story continues at The Next Web

Espoo outside of Helsinki is turning into quite the quantum hub. The city’s latest addition to the Finnish quantum computing ecosystem is QMill. The newly minted algorithm startup just raised €4mn in seed funding to leverage near-term hardware to deliver real benefits to industry through quantum computing.  “There is momentum growing at the moment [in quantum], and investors can see that a lot of companies are experimenting with quantum computing now — but so far they have not found quantum advantage,” Hannu Kappinnen, QMill co-founder and CEO, told TNW. “We are the ones who will be the first to provide…

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Ekaterina Zaharieva has been nominated as the EU’s first ever commissioner for startups, the bloc’s chief Ursula von der Leyen announced today. Zaharieva served as Bulgaria’s deputy prime minister for judicial reform and foreign affairs between 2017 and 2021. She’s currently a member of the Bulgarian Parliament. Von der Leyen has now proposed Zaharieva as the designated commissioner for startups, research, and innovation. “We must put research and innovation, science and technology at the centre of our economy,” Von der Leyen said. “[Zaharieva] will help ensure that we invest more and focus our spending on strategic priorities and on groundbreaking innovation.”…This story continues at The Next Web

Ekaterina Zaharieva has been nominated as the EU’s first ever commissioner for startups, the bloc’s chief Ursula von der Leyen announced today. Zaharieva served as Bulgaria’s deputy prime minister for judicial reform and foreign affairs between 2017 and 2021. She’s currently a member of the Bulgarian Parliament. Von der Leyen has now proposed Zaharieva as the designated commissioner for startups, research, and innovation. “We must put research and innovation, science and technology at the centre of our economy,” Von der Leyen said. “[Zaharieva] will help ensure that we invest more and focus our spending on strategic priorities and on groundbreaking innovation.”…

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Data centres gobble up roughly 2% of global electricity, which translates to around 1% of energy-related greenhouse gas emissions.   Streaming Netflix, storing stuff in the cloud, and meeting up on Zoom are just some of the online activities fuelling machines’ appetite for energy. But perhaps the biggest culprit of all is artificial intelligence.  AI models require immense amounts of computational power to train and run, particularly for machine learning and deep learning tasks. Consequently, the International Energy Agency (IEA) predicts energy use from data centres will double by 2026.   Either way you slice it, data centre energy use is a…This story continues at The Next Web

Data centres gobble up roughly 2% of global electricity, which translates to around 1% of energy-related greenhouse gas emissions.   Streaming Netflix, storing stuff in the cloud, and meeting up on Zoom are just some of the online activities fuelling machines’ appetite for energy. But perhaps the biggest culprit of all is artificial intelligence.  AI models require immense amounts of computational power to train and run, particularly for machine learning and deep learning tasks. Consequently, the International Energy Agency (IEA) predicts energy use from data centres will double by 2026.   Either way you slice it, data centre energy use is a…

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Flink, one of the few rapid grocery delivery startups left operating in Europe, has secured $150mn to grow its business in Germany and the Netherlands. The funding comprises $115 million in equity and $35 million in debt, with backing from both new and existing investors, including BOND, Northzone, and supermarket chain REWE. This reportedly brings the company’s valuation to nearly $1bn. With the fresh capital, Flink plans to “expand [its] footprint, improve operational efficiency, and continue delivering its service” in the two countries, said Oliver Merkel, the startup’s founder and managing director. The Berlin-based startup will carry out this…This story continues at The Next Web

Flink, one of the few rapid grocery delivery startups left operating in Europe, has secured $150mn to grow its business in Germany and the Netherlands. The funding comprises $115 million in equity and $35 million in debt, with backing from both new and existing investors, including BOND, Northzone, and supermarket chain REWE. This reportedly brings the company’s valuation to nearly $1bn. With the fresh capital, Flink plans to “expand [its] footprint, improve operational efficiency, and continue delivering […] its service” in the two countries, said Oliver Merkel, the startup’s founder and managing director. The Berlin-based startup will carry out this…

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In a first for London, electric drones will soon fly urgent blood samples between Guy’s and St Thoma’s hospitals in the centre of the city. The upcoming flights are part of a joint pilot between the NHS, healthcare logistics startup Apian, and drone manufacturer Wing, a subsidiary of Alphabet, spun out from the company’s moonshot factory X. The aim is to improve patient care by accelerating turnaround delivery times. Currently, blood sample transport relies on van and motorbike couriers, for whom the journey can take more than half an hour. Drones can reduce the duration to less than two minutes.…This story continues at The Next Web

In a first for London, electric drones will soon fly urgent blood samples between Guy’s and St Thoma’s hospitals in the centre of the city. The upcoming flights are part of a joint pilot between the NHS, healthcare logistics startup Apian, and drone manufacturer Wing, a subsidiary of Alphabet, spun out from the company’s moonshot factory X. The aim is to improve patient care by accelerating turnaround delivery times. Currently, blood sample transport relies on van and motorbike couriers, for whom the journey can take more than half an hour. Drones can reduce the duration to less than two minutes.…

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Oftentimes, even in the tech world, people equate the term quantum computing to something almost mysterious. But as much as concepts of quantum mechanics such as superposition and entanglement may seem akin to magic, they still happen (in the context of quantum computing) on pieces of hardware.  While research breakthroughs will be crucial in scaling quantum computing as a technology, ramping up hardware production capacity will become increasingly important to keep up with rising global demand. IQM, founded in 2018, established its first quantum computer production facility just outside of Helsinki in 2021. Today, the company announced that it has…This story continues at The Next Web

Oftentimes, even in the tech world, people equate the term quantum computing to something almost mysterious. But as much as concepts of quantum mechanics such as superposition and entanglement may seem akin to magic, they still happen (in the context of quantum computing) on pieces of hardware.  While research breakthroughs will be crucial in scaling quantum computing as a technology, ramping up hardware production capacity will become increasingly important to keep up with rising global demand. IQM, founded in 2018, established its first quantum computer production facility just outside of Helsinki in 2021. Today, the company announced that it has…

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Lithium-ion batteries are a critical element for our transition away from fossil fuels. It is equally critical to ensure the sustainability of their supply chains for the benefit of society and businesses alike. The mining process of the raw materials necessary for lithium batteries has long been linked not only to pollution, but also to human rights abuses. New research from Infyos, an AI-powered supply chain risk platform, has once again raised the alarm. It found that the companies that account for 75% of the global battery market (from automotive to consumer electronics industry players) have connections to one or…This story continues at The Next Web

Lithium-ion batteries are a critical element for our transition away from fossil fuels. It is equally critical to ensure the sustainability of their supply chains for the benefit of society and businesses alike. The mining process of the raw materials necessary for lithium batteries has long been linked not only to pollution, but also to human rights abuses. New research from Infyos, an AI-powered supply chain risk platform, has once again raised the alarm. It found that the companies that account for 75% of the global battery market (from automotive to consumer electronics industry players) have connections to one or…

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Back in the early 2000s, Estonia was rapidly modernising, shaking off the remnants of Soviet influence. It was ambitiously transforming itself into a digital society with innovations such as e-government and online voting.  And, of course, it gave birth to Skype, the company that would launch the small Baltic nation’s journey towards becoming a startup powerhouse and a “unicorn country.” Since then, Estonia has established itself as a leader in breeding high-profile software companies, such as Bolt and Wise. Now, it’s aiming to become a deeptech hub, accelerating the development of research- and science-based entrepreneurship. Deeptech in Estonia is still…This story continues at The Next Web

Back in the early 2000s, Estonia was rapidly modernising, shaking off the remnants of Soviet influence. It was ambitiously transforming itself into a digital society with innovations such as e-government and online voting.  And, of course, it gave birth to Skype, the company that would launch the small Baltic nation’s journey towards becoming a startup powerhouse and a “unicorn country.” Since then, Estonia has established itself as a leader in breeding high-profile software companies, such as Bolt and Wise. Now, it’s aiming to become a deeptech hub, accelerating the development of research- and science-based entrepreneurship. Deeptech in Estonia is still…

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Swedish startup Heart Aerospace has unveiled its first full-scale demonstrator hybrid-electric aircraft as it targets commercial flight by the end of 2029, a year later than previously planned.  Heart revealed the prototype, dubbed HX-1, at its hangar in Gothenburg yesterday, which we toured earlier this year.   The HX-1 prototype outside Heart’s hangar in Gothenburg, Sweden. Credit: Heart Aerospace The company will initially use the aircraft for ground-based testing, with the first flight scheduled for the second half of 2025 at the latest. It is set to be the largest electric plane to ever take to the skies.    “It is a…This story continues at The Next Web

Swedish startup Heart Aerospace has unveiled its first full-scale demonstrator hybrid-electric aircraft as it targets commercial flight by the end of 2029, a year later than previously planned.  Heart revealed the prototype, dubbed HX-1, at its hangar in Gothenburg yesterday, which we toured earlier this year.   The HX-1 prototype outside Heart’s hangar in Gothenburg, Sweden. Credit: Heart Aerospace The company will initially use the aircraft for ground-based testing, with the first flight scheduled for the second half of 2025 at the latest. It is set to be the largest electric plane to ever take to the skies.    “It is a…

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Every week, millions of adults pretend that they’re football managers. I am one of them. We live out our dreams in the Fantasy Premier League (FPL), an online game that’s become a global phenomenon.  With a budget of 100 million (digital) pounds, we build virtual squads of footballers. If their real-life counterparts play well, we win points. By the end of the season, the team with the most points wins. But what exactly do they win? Well, that depends who you ask. Here’s the official answer: over 10 million players compete for the grand prize of — drum roll, please — …This story continues at The Next Web

Every week, millions of adults pretend that they’re football managers. I am one of them. We live out our dreams in the Fantasy Premier League (FPL), an online game that’s become a global phenomenon.  With a budget of 100 million (digital) pounds, we build virtual squads of footballers. If their real-life counterparts play well, we win points. By the end of the season, the team with the most points wins. But what exactly do they win? Well, that depends who you ask. Here’s the official answer: over 10 million players compete for the grand prize of — drum roll, please — …

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