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Nintendo aims to match Switch success with new console
Nintendo aims to match Switch success with new console
by  AFP

Nintendo hopes to match the runaway success of the Switch when its levelled-up new console hits shelves Thursday, with strong early sales expected despite the gadget's high price. And success is crucial for Nintendo.

'Moving forward': the Gen-Z farmer growing Fukushima kiwis
'Moving forward': the Gen-Z farmer growing Fukushima kiwis
by  AFP

A short drive from the Fukushima nuclear disaster site, novice farmer Takuya Haraguchi tends to his kiwi saplings under the spring sunshine, bringing life back to a former no-go zone. He also met a veteran farmer, who moved away after the disaster and whose kiwis' rich flavour left him stunned.

'The Matrix is everywhere': cinema bets on immersion
'The Matrix is everywhere': cinema bets on immersion
by  AFP

In a Los Angeles theater, a trench coat-wearing Neo bends backwards to dodge bullets that spiral over the viewer's head, as the sound of gunfire erupts from everywhere. There follows much gunfire, lots of martial arts and some mysticism, along with a romance between Neo and Trinity, played by the leather-clad Carrie-Anne Moss.

Silicon Valley VCs navigate uncertain AI future
Silicon Valley VCs navigate uncertain AI future
by  AFP

For Silicon Valley venture capitalists, the world has split into two camps: those with deep enough pockets to invest in artificial intelligence behemoths, and everyone else waiting to see where the AI revolution leads.

'I am NOT taking drugs!' Musk denies damning report
'I am NOT taking drugs!' Musk denies damning report
by  AFP

Elon Musk on Saturday denied a report that he used ketamine and other drugs extensively last year on the 2024 campaign trail. In a post Saturday on X, Musk said: "To be clear, I am NOT taking drugs!

Ecuador apologizes to farm workers deemed to live like slaves
Ecuador apologizes to farm workers deemed to live like slaves
by  AFP

Ecuador's government apologized Saturday to some 300 people who worked as farmers for a Japanese textile firm in conditions which a court likened to modern-day slavery. The court said that over the course of five years Furukawa had people living in conditions of modern-day slavery in its abaca fields.

OPEC+ announces sharp increase in July oil production
OPEC+ announces sharp increase in July oil production
by  AFP

Saudi Arabia, Russia and six other key OPEC+ members announced on Saturday a huge increase in crude production for July. Analysts see several possible motivations for the production hikes, one of them being Saudi Arabia and others penalising members for not keeping to their quotas under the cuts first agreed in 2022.

Chinese automakers get stern 'price war' warning after discount spree
Chinese automakers get stern 'price war' warning after discount spree
by  AFP

A top industry group had a stern rebuke Saturday for automakers fuelling a "price war", a week after Chinese EV giant BYD announced sweeping trade-in discounts, with multiple competitors following suit. Days later, Stellantis-backed Chinese EV startup Leapmotor announced similar discounts on two "entry-level" models through June 8.