It's all about Apple

Plus: Merck sues Biden administration over Medicare drug price negotiations

Author

Cash Nut
June 06, 2023

In Today’s Edition

  • VC Funding Over the Last Few Months

  • Two-wheeler EV Manufacturer River Bags $15 Mn Funding From Al Futtaim Group, Others

  • JPMorgan Turns to Blockchain for Dollar Trades in India Hub

  • Merck sues Biden administration over Medicare drug price negotiations

  • Apple Vision Pro is Apple’s new AR headset

  • Apple Announces New MacBook Air With 15.3-inch Display and M2 Chip

  • Apple Announces iOS 17

  • Lung cancer pill cuts the risk of death by half

  • Common eye drops may provide hope for nearsighted kids

🚀Startups Nuts

In May, there were 120 crypto venture deals that raised a total of $1.2B, down from the previous month’s count of 130 deals. While the raw numbers showed declines, it was still promising to see projects securing funding during the bear market. Three of the projects that raised in May include zkLink, a multichain trading layer for DeFi & NFTs; Dolomite, a next-gen money market and margin trading platform; and Hourglass, a marketplace for trading time-bound tokens.

The funding round also saw participation from existing investors Lowercarbon Capital, Toyota Ventures, Maniv Mobility, and Trucks VC. River said it will use the fresh funds to bolster its growth, priming its manufacturing and distribution networks to kick-off vehicle delivery in August this year. The Bengaluru-based startup launched its first electric two-wheeler model, Indie, in February this year.

🏭Business Nuts

JPMorgan is partnering with six major Indian banks to pilot a blockchain platform for interbank dollar transactions in the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City). The platform will leverage JPMorgan's Onyx blockchain solution to enable instant, round-the-clock settlements allowing GIFT City banks to operate effectively on their own time zones. This initiative supports New Delhi's efforts to establish GIFT City as an international financial center, competing with Singapore and Dubai.

Merck has sued the Department of Health and Human Services over Medicare’s new powers to reduce drug prices under the Inflation Reduction Act. In a scathing complaint filed in federal district court, Merck excoriated the negotiation process as a “sham” and “tantamount to extortion.” Merck has asked the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to block HHS from forcing the company to enter into an agreement that slashes prices.

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📱Tech Nuts

Apple's augmented reality headset, the Apple Vision Pro, will launch early next year starting at $3,499. The headset seamlessly blends the real and digital world. It doesn't need any controllers. Users control the device using their eyes, hands, and voice. Users who wear glasses can purchase optical inserts made by Zeiss. The Apple Vision Pro uses an M2 chip and includes a new chip called the R1. Many more details about the headset are available in the article along with photos and videos.

Apple's new 15-inch MacBook Air is 11.5mm thick and weighs 3.3 pounds. It is 12 times faster than the fastest Intel-based MacBook Air. The fanless MacBook Air features an M2 chip, a 1080p FaceTime HD camera, a three-microphone array, a six-speaker system, a battery that can last 18 hours on a single charge, MagSafe, two Thunderbolt ports, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. It comes in four colors and starts at $1,299. Pre-orders for the MacBook Air 15-inch are now open, with deliveries beginning next week

iOS 17 includes new safety features, a built-in journaling app, a new nightstand mode, redesigned contact cards, better autocorrect and voice transcription, and live voicemail. Users will be able to search through Messages using filter searchers and additional terms and a new feature called Check In allows users to share their location and status with someone else and automatically send a message when the user arrives home. Stickers and AirDrop also received updates. More details about what's new in iOS 17 are available in the article

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🎁Miscellaneous

A late-stage study led by researchers at Yale University showed that taking the drug osimertinib after lung cancer surgery reduced the risk of patients dying by 51%. The study looked at whether the drug could help patients with non-small cell lung cancer, the most common form of the disease. Everyone in the trial had a gene mutation found in about a quarter of global lung cancer cases. Earlier trials of the drug showed that it also halves the risk of a recurrence of the disease.

A new study has found that a commonly-used eye drop could help slow the progression of nearsightedness in children. The eye drop is used to dilate pupils before eye exams. Children in the study who used the eye drops at bedtime had slower myopia progression than those who received a placebo, resulting in a lower prescription for glasses. Few side effects were reported.

💡What else are we reading and seeing?

  • Veteran hedge fund manager warns of insane startup costs

  • Cava sets IPO terms, could be valued at $2 billion

  • Why you shouldn’t store cash on Venmo or PayPal

  • Three industries ripe for automation, according to a robotics guru

  • The Tech Industry Was Deflating. Then Came ChatGPT

😎Fun Fact

The phrase "saving for a rainy day" originates from saving money to prepare for unexpected or difficult times, like rainy weather.

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