Now that President Joe Biden has taken office, there will soon be a host of new faces in positions with significant influence over the life sciences industry, as the first item in our roundup this week explains. These include new leaders at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Health and Human Services, key roles in the ... READ MORE >
technology
5 trends from defense technology companies’ Q3 earnings calls
Defense technology businesses spent Q3 2020 shoring up their supply chains in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. These businesses simultaneously navigated the start of pandemic recovery, shifting election expectations and a continuing resolution. Top executives in the defense technology space highlighted opportunities, headwinds, and strategic ... READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: North America tech sector M&A reaches pre-pandemic levels
Since bottoming out in May, tech sector mergers and acquisitions in North America have been rising steadily. In October, dealmaking reached pre-pandemic levels last seen back in January and February of this year. Bright spots for M&A within the technology sector in recent months have been software, cybersecurity and fintech. Dealmaking has not shown ... READ MORE >
Education technology will be crucial this school year, could see record venture capital in 2020
As fall draws near, school districts, educators and parents are trying to figure out what educational plans will look like for students and teachers in the 2020-2021 academic year. Earlier in the pandemic, UNESCO estimated that nearly 1.5 billion learners globally were affected by school closures. On July 17, California Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered all schools ... READ MORE >
As cars become increasingly connected, the prevalence of autonomous vehicles will grow
In recent years, auto companies have developed more technologies that enable autonomy for their vehicles. As the number of sensors and technologies in cars has increased, so too has the amount of data available for machine learning algorithms to harness for potential innovation. These data points are sourced from a car’s steering, braking and navigation ... READ MORE >
Upcoming Xbox, PlayStation consoles may accelerate the growing esports industry
Anticipation is building around new gaming console releases expected from Sony and Microsoft, at a time when the esports industry is already growing amid the coronavirus pandemic. Sony announced full details and specifications of the redesigned PlayStation 5 console on June 11, and is anticipated to release the system in November. Not to be outdone, ... READ MORE >
Video gaming and esports, already growing in the U.S., see major lift during pandemic
A rise in video gaming since pandemic shelter-in-place orders went into effect could be the wave the esports industry has been looking for to become a more widespread trend in the United States. Until more recently, the growing popularity of esports had been most dramatic in Asian countries. The trend is now spreading more in Europe and North America. ... READ MORE >
Tech jobs have not been spared in the pandemic, but growth of remote work helps some
Before COVID-19, unemployment in the technology sector was at a five-decade low and was far lower than the overall U.S. unemployment rate. Though unemployment has risen for some parts of the technology sector as the pandemic has gripped the country, companies are still hiring for other roles. Job postings for web developers and applications software ... READ MORE >
Coronavirus epidemic threatens technology global supply chain
Coronavirus deaths continue to rise Recently, we’ve seen significant volatility within the global market as investors continue to weigh the overall impact of the coronavirus (2019-nCoV). While a vaccine from drugmaker Gilead Sciences Inc. brings a glimmer of hope in finding a cure, the virus continues to spread rapidly throughout China, primarily ... READ MORE >
Private equity looks for recession-proof deals
These are flush times for American private equity funds. Through November, they have raised more capital than any other fiscal year. But a good portion of that cash has not been put to use – yet. One reason is that many takeover targets have simply become too expensive, a dynamic reflected in the drop in deal activity for 2019. According to RSM Bloomberg, ... READ MORE >