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Could Apple make the leap to Bitcoin?

Apple should launch its own cryptocurrency exchange, an analyst report suggested Monday. The report by Canadian brokerage firm RBC Capital Markets, spotted earlier by Coindesk, said that since Apple Wallet is used by millions in an increasingly cashless society, Apple could easily generate over $40 billion by making the jump to cryptocurrency.

"If Apple went down this path, the USA would likely acquire the most crypto assets from a global perspective," the report said. "If the USA owns the most crypto assets (be it Bitcoin or other assets), it would not make logical sense in our view to ban it. In addition, with Apple's secure and world-class software, the USA would be able to have confidence in user information and balances if needed in the future."

CNET's Apple Report newsletter delivers news, reviews and advice on iPhones, iPads, Macs and software.

CNET reached out to Apple and we'll update when we hear back.

The chatter around Apple comes shortly after CEO Elon Musk voiced interest in cryptocurrency Dogecoin. Tesla said that it'd soon accept bitcoins as payment for its electric cars.

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Apple should jump on the cryptocurrency bandwagon, analyst report says - CNET

Spotify is now testing its live lyrics feature in the United States, so some Spotify users will see an option to view lyrics synced to the music they're listening to on an iOS device.

"We can confirm we're currently testing our lyrics feature to a select number of users in the US. At Spotify, we routinely conduct a number of tests in an effort to improve our user experience. Some of those tests end up paving the way for our broader user experience and others serve only as an important learning. We don't have any further news to share at this time."

Spotify's live lyrics feature won't show up for all Spotify users as the company is using A/B testing to determine demand for live lyrics in the U.S. If you have Spotify, you can check to see if live lyrics are enabled by choosing a song and then checking for the lyrics option in the playback controls.

Spotify's live lyrics option is powered by Musixmatch and has previously been launched in 26 markets around the world, including Brazil, Mexico, Hong Kong, Thailand, and India.

It's not yet clear if the live lyrics feature will fully launch in the U.S. because as Engadget points out, Spotify has tested it in markets like Canada and has then not followed through with the feature's release.

Major Spotify competitor Apple Music has a built-in live lyrics option that has been available since iOS 13. The lyrics in Apple Music scroll as a song plays, keeping time with the music, which is similar to how Spotify's live lyrics work.

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Spotify Testing Live Lyrics Feature in the United States - MacRumors

Micromobility startup Helbiz, which now operates across Europe and the USA, is merging with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) to become a publicly listed company, giving it a war chest to potentially roll-up smaller competitors in the space, as well as the resources to expand into cloud or ghost kitchens as part of a move into food delivery.

Helbiz intends to merge with GreenVision Acquisition Corp. (Nasdaq: GRNV) in the second quarter of 2021. The combined entity will be named Helbiz Inc. and will be listed on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the new ticker symbol, HLBZ.

The transaction includes $30 million PIPE anchored by institutional investors and approximately $80 million in net proceeds will be fed into Helbizs micromobility and advertising businesses, which have 2.7 million users.

Helbiz says the merged entity will have a valuation of $408 million, and by run Helbizs existing management under CEO Salvatore Palella.

Palella said: Through this transaction, were committed to fulfilling our vision in revolutionizing transport by using micromobility to become a seamless last-mile solution.

He further revealed to me that the company plans to establish ghost kitchens in Milan and Washington, DC later this year, with the aim of introducing a five-minute delivery time.

Helbiz has tried to differentiate itself from other players like Lime and Bird by offering e-scooters, e-bicycles and e-mopeds all on one platform.

Key to Helbizs offering is an integrated geofencing platform that tends to appeal to city authorities who dont want scooters left in random places, as well as a swappable battery that enables easier charging of the devices. Its subscription service allows users to take unlimited 30-minute trips on its e-bikes and e-scooters every month.

In Europe the company currently operates a fleet of e-scooters and e-bicycles in Milan, Turin, Verona, Rome, Madrid and Belgrade, and in the U.S. it operates in Washington, DC, Alexandria, Arlington and Miami.

David Fu, chairman, and CEO of GreenVision, commented: Helbiz has distinguished itself as the only company to offer e-scooters, e-bicycles, and e-mopeds all on one user-friendly platform Helbiz has a proven and capital-light business model that combines hardware, software, and services with extensive customer relationships.

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Micromobility startup Helbiz to go public via a SPAC, and will expand into ghost kitchens - TechCrunch

IBM laid out a software roadmap for quantum computing that will include the release the Qiskit runtime this year, updated software interfaces and circuit libraries and control systems into 2023.

By 2025, IBM is projecting that there will be frictionless quantum computing to enable a broad array of applications that will surpass classical computing. A lot is riding on open source software called Qiskit. That runtime will serve as the base for further quantum software development. IBM outlined its quantum computing hardware roadmap in September.

Bob Sutor, vice president of IBM Quantum Ecosystem Development at IBM, said outlining a software roadmap is critical to developers as well as enterprises looking to invest in quantum computing. "Roadmaps give people more confidence on what to expect and when," said Sutor. "We do hope this gives a lot more certainty."

Sutor said the goal is to set up a software ecosystem to get to the point where quantum computing trumps the classic approach. Much of the roadmap revolves around eliminating noise in the quantum system and errors. "This is a different programming model and we are mixing software development constructs," said Sutor.

Quantum computers are coming. Get ready for them to change everything|Research: Quantum computing will impact the enterprise, despite being misunderstood|What classic software developers need to know about quantum computing

Because quantum computers are physical systems it's critical that software develops to correct errors and add fault tolerance. Ultimately, developers will earn quantum computing programming and Sutor noted there has been a lot of interest in IBM's quantum classes. "If you know Python you can learn quantum computing," said Sutor. "Then you just have to decide where you want to enter the stack. If you're a sophomore in college and thinking ahead you can use Qiskit for all of this."

Here's a look at the roadmap.

A few key highlights along the way:

More quantum computing:

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IBM outlines its quantum computing software roadmap with heavy dose of Qiskit, open source - ZDNet

BURLINGTON, Mass., Feb. 04, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Avid (Nasdaq: AVID) today announced that aspiring creative people around the globe have now downloaded copies of Avids freePro Tools | First,Media Composer | FirstandSibelius | Firstcreative tools software more than 3 million times. Avid First tools were created to give new generations of artists essential experience and a career foothold by learning on simplified versions of the same tools that professionals use every day to create the most popular films, television and music enjoyed by people everywhere.

Since the introduction of Avids freemium offerings in 2015, First downloads have accelerated year over year, with 1 million added during the last year alone. With cloud-enabled First tools, users can create songs, music scores, videos, movies and other professional-grade content. First tools users seeking to further their creative capabilities and advance their careers can upgrade to more powerful versions of Avid creative tools on affordable paid subscription plans. Overall,the consistent conversion rates of free softwaredownloadsto paid software subscriptions for Avids First tools family arehelping to drive the companys robust subscription growth in the large and growing creative tools market.

The Avid First tools continue to rise in popularity because they put a massive amount of creative capacity into the hands of aspiring artists and creative professionals, giving them entry-level versions of the industrys leading creative tools for freewith an easy upgrade path to fully featured versions through affordable subscription plans, said Jeff Rosica, Chief Executive Officer, Avid. Were thrilled that weve set a new record with 1 million additional downloads achieved in less than a year. Besides helping millions of aspiring content creators learn their craft, the continued success and accelerated popularity of Avids First freemium software strategy has also proven to be an important contributor to the growth of our subscription business.

Pro Tools | First is for artists beginning their journey in recording and production. It gives aspiring artists a leap forward in turning their ideas into music. First users compose, record, mix and collaborate in the cloud with a streamlined creative tool set built on industrystandard Pro Tools.

Media Composer | First is for artists just beginning their journey in video editing. Its a complete, streamlined creative toolset built on Avids renowned editing brand with all the features and functionality needed to tell great stories.

Sibelius | First is a streamlined notation tool for musicians, composers and students. Based on the worlds bestselling notation software, Sibelius | First enables music composition, transcription and editing with the added advantage of cloudbased workflows.

All Avid First tools for aspiring creatives can be downloaded immediately for free athttps://connect.avid.com/3-Million-Downloads.html

Avid First Users Connect with the Global Creative Community Avids free tools also put the power of the global user community at users fingertips with free resources to advance their working knowledge, such as tutorials and online forums, which enable users to solicit help and share advice from each other and Avids staff experts. All Avid users are encouraged to take a free membership in the Avid Customer Association, which facilitates the creative communitys input and influence on what Avid does next and provides a forum for raising issues affecting media creation today.

About AvidAvid delivers the most open and efficient media platform, connecting content creation with collaboration, asset protection, distribution, and consumption. Avids preeminent customer community uses Avids comprehensive tools and workflow solutions to create, distribute and monetize the most watched, loved and listened to media in the worldfrom prestigious and award-winning feature films to popular television shows, news programs and televised sporting events, and celebrated music recordings and live concerts. With the most flexible deployment and pricing options, Avids industry-leading solutions include Media Composer, Pro Tools, Avid NEXIS, MediaCentral, iNEWS, AirSpeed, Sibelius, Avid VENUE, FastServe, and Maestro. For more information about Avid solutions and services, visitwww.avid.com, connect with Avid onFacebook,Instagram, Twitter,YouTube,LinkedIn, or subscribe toAvid Blogs.

2021 Avid Technology, Inc. All rights reserved. Avid, the Avid logo, Avid NEXIS, FastServe, AirSpeed, iNEWS, Maestro, MediaCentral, Media Composer, Pro Tools, Avid VENUE, and Sibelius are trademarks or registered trademarks of Avid Technology, Inc. or its subsidiaries in the United States and/or other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Product features, specifications, system requirements and availability are subject to change without notice.

PR Contact:AvidDave Smith978.502.9607david.smith@avid.com

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Over 3 Million Copies of the 'First' Versions of Avid's Creative Tools Have Now Been Downloaded by Video and Music Makers - GlobeNewswire