Welcome back to The Shift Tech. Let’s get straight to what matters in Tech this week…
Today we have:
🛰️ Apple and Amazon Just Teamed Up to Take On Starlink in Space
🧠 Max Hodak's Science Corp Is About to Place Its First Sensor in a Human Brain
👩💻Quick Shifts
🛰️ Apple and Amazon Just Teamed Up to Take On Starlink in Space
Amazon is spending $11.57 billion to buy Globalstar's satellite network and take over its existing deal with Apple. The combined network will support iPhone and Apple Watch satellite features while building a direct rival to SpaceX's Starlink.
Amazon Buys Globalstar and Apple's Satellite Backbone: Apple owned 20% of Globalstar, which powers Emergency SOS on iPhone 14 and later. Amazon will absorb the network and keep supporting Apple's satellite features as the deal moves toward a 2027 close.
Apple and Amazon Signed a Future Deal Too: A separate agreement covers current and future iPhone and Apple Watch satellite services, with future features running on Amazon's expanding Leo satellite network rather than the smaller Globalstar one.
The Scale Gap With Starlink Is Huge: Globalstar has 25 satellites. Amazon Leo has 200+ heading toward 3,200. Starlink has 10,000 total, with 650+ cellular-equipped. Amazon is doubling its launch rate to close the gap fast.
This is the first serious challenge to Starlink's smartphone satellite ambitions. Apple gets a long-term partner with deeper pockets. Amazon gets instant credibility through the iPhone connection. Starlink finally has a real competitor.
🧠 Max Hodak's Science Corp Is About to Place Its First Sensor in a Human Brain
Science Corporation, founded by former Neuralink president Max Hodak, just signed Yale's neurosurgery chair Dr. Murat Günel to lead its first US human brain trials for a biohybrid brain-computer interface that combines lab-grown neurons with electronics.
A Different Approach Than Neuralink: Hodak left Neuralink because he believes metal probes are the wrong path forward. Yale's Günel agrees, saying electrodes cause brain damage that degrades device performance over time. Science is using natural neuron connections to build a biological interface instead.
Yale's Top Neurosurgeon Joined After Two Years of Talks: Dr. Murat Günel, chair of Yale Medical School's Department of Neurosurgery, signed on as scientific adviser and will surgically place the first sensor in a patient's brain as part of the upcoming trials.
Science Just Raised at a $1.5 Billion Valuation: A $230M Series C closed last month, with the company's most advanced product being PRIMA, a vision-restoration device for macular degeneration that may get European regulatory approval this year.
The Long-Term Vision Goes Beyond Medicine: Hodak co-founded Science to treat disease and eventually add entirely new senses to the human body. The company's biohybrid approach, combining lab-grown neurons with electronics, is the path he's betting on for getting there.
Brain-computer interfaces have mostly been Neuralink's story for years. Science is now positioning itself as a serious alternative built on a fundamentally different architecture. If the biohybrid approach works, it could solve the long-term degradation problem that limits every electrode-based system today.
👩💻Quick Shifts
📷 GoPro unveiled Mission 1 cameras with up to 8K video, pro-grade features, and a flagship model supporting interchangeable Micro Four Thirds lenses for advanced creators.
🔐 Microsoft’s Windows Recall faces new security concerns, as researchers show malware could exploit authentication to access sensitive user data despite recent privacy-focused redesigns.
📉 Snap is laying off 16% of its workforce, cutting around 1,000 jobs as it shifts toward AI-driven efficiency and aims to save $500 million by late 2026.
🧬 AWS launched Amazon Bio Discovery, an AI-powered platform that helps scientists design drugs faster by combining AI models with real-world lab feedback loops.
🖥️ Microsoft’s Scott Hanselman releasedPeekDesktop, a utility bringing macOS-style click-to-reveal desktop functionality to Windows for quicker app minimization and access.
That’s all for today. See you next edition as we track down and get you all that matters in Tech!
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