Financing at the point of sale may be a small share of unsecured lending in the United States today, but it’s growing fast. Banks seeking long-term growth should explore market entry, and merchants should reassess their financing offers.Point-of-sale (POS) financing services in the United States have grown significantly over the past 24 months, especially since the onset of COVID-19. Trends fu...

It seems like the ‘berry still has some juice left in it! The Passport 2 concept builds on the successful 2014 BlackBerry Passport, and does what BlackBerry does best… provide a uniquely different smartphone experience that’s characterized by that beautiful QWERTY keyboard.For everyone who thought BlackBerry was done and dusted, 2020’s been a pretty interesting year for the company. Chinese...

A smart surface that can actively and repeatedly release and reabsorb substances by environmental stimuli.Imagine a dressing that releases antibiotics on demand and absorbs excessive wound exudate at the same time. Researchers at Eindhoven University of Technology hope to achieve just that, by developing a smart coating that actively releases and absorbs multiple fluids, triggered by a radio si...

Beyond and Impossible showed the potential for plant-based proteins. Now tomatoes are coming for tuna.[Mimic Seafood’s Tunato nigiri. SOURCE: MIMIC SEAFOOD]When a tuna marketing executive took a bite of the dehydrated tomato seasoned with olive oil, algae extract, spices, and soy sauce early last year, he was shook. “This is going to be a problem for us,” he said. At least that’s how Ida Sp...

Coca-Cola is harnessing its history of collectibles with a first NFT as marketers continue experimenting with the intersection of cryptocurrency and culture.The Atlanta-based beverage giant is selling a series of four NFTs—known as non-fungible tokens—that will be sold as a single asset with proceeds benefiting Special Olympics International. NFTs are digital assets backed by blockchain techn...

The videoconferencing company is moving into new markets using its successful formula of creating easy-to-use and better-engineered products. Rivals should be worried.Zoom is well on its way to becoming a tech powerhouse.The pandemic catapulted Zoom Video Communications Inc. from a scrappy upstart into a more than $115 billion video-conferencing behemoth, central to the lives of millions of rem...

PANTONE has officially introduced a new shade of green, dubbed the ‘HK Tram Green’, as a tribute to the city’s iconic mode of public transportation.The shade is a vivid, deep grassy green to commemorate the historical and cultural significance of the trams in the city, as well as its status as a global landmark.According to the Hong Kong Tatler, the double-decker trams, known as “ding ding...

While other organic materials release CO2 when they decompose, this ink will continue storing its carbon for over 100 years!Vollebak grows black algae in giant ponds located in California, which is collected and heat-treated to concentrate it into a black powder to be used as a pigment for dye.Every day, we wear clothes without knowing how they’re made. Unless you’re already buying clothes fr...

In recent years, artificial intelligence agents have succeeded in a range of complex game environments. For instance, AlphaZero beat world-champion programs in chess, shogi, and Go after starting out with knowing no more than the basic rules of how to play. Through reinforcement learning (RL), this single system learnt by playing round after round of games through a repetitive process of trial...