Gemini to Invest $24M as Part of India Expansion Plans

Maxst launches extended reality-based metaverse platformSouth Korean augmented reality (AR) technology firm Maxst has officially launched its spatial AR platform dubbed “Maxverse” on Tuesday (local time). This comes after a series of various field tests and improvements since the platform’s beta launch last year.“Maxverse is a new platform that enables the construction of reality-based metaverses along with extended reality (XR) content creation and distribution,” explained Kang Min-soo, who leads the development of the platform. “We are currently working with several local governments and businesses to develop services that use our platform, and we expect Maxverse to play a significant role in hastening the impending metaverse era.”Photo by julien Tromeur on UnsplashMetaverse as captured on cameraMaxverse, unlike traditional virtual reality-based metaverses, allows users to create metaverse experiences based on the real world as captured on camera. It is equipped with an array of tools including Space SDK, an XR software development kit (SDK) that allows seamless implementation of spatial maps to virtual reality applications; Space+ Maker, where users can author their own XR content; and Space+ Viewer, where they can share their original content on apps and websites to be experienced through AR and VR.The platform leverages three-dimensional reconstruction technology to create spatial maps and a visual positioning system (VPS) to recognize a user’s location. Maxst highlighted that these would become a vital feature in connecting the metaverse and the real world in the future.Maxverse also comes with a Passport social login feature — a Web3 service that allows users to sign in to various services with their Passport account. It makes use of the OAuth 2.0 authorization framework and the OpenID Connect protocol to simplify the complex authentication and authorization processes, granting developers access to Maxverse’s resources.Anticipation for real-world use casesMaxverse’s purpose is to ultimately let anyone easily create and participate in metaverse spaces. Users can generate their own unique services by locating self-created content assets like images, videos and audio on XR metaverse spaces that closely resemble the real world. Maxst expressed hopes for the platform’s potential to be extensively utilized across a diverse range of industries such as e-commerce, real estate, education and tourism.

Bitmain’s Latest Air-Cooled Antminer Set to Ship in Q1 2024Bitmain, the prominent Chinese Bitcoin mining equipment manufacturer, has officially unveiled its latest innovation, the Antminer T21.Photo by Traxer on UnsplashHeat toleranceThe company confirmed in an announcement made on Thursday that the state-of-the-art air-cooled Bitcoin miner will ship during the first quarter of 2024. The Antminer T21 is expected to make waves in the world of cryptocurrency mining given that it can withstand scorching temperatures of up to 45 degrees Celsius.During a facility tour, the firm tweeted out on Friday: “Although it is so hot here, ANTMINER is still running stable!”The context of the comment relates to an installation of the new miner’s predecessor at a Moonwalk Systems facility in the arid heat of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Moonwalk is utilizing water cooling to overcome the local conditions. However, it’s in environments like this one that Bitmain is likely to envisage its latest Antminer performing well.Energy efficiencyAnother standout feature of the Antminer T21 is its energy efficiency. With a stellar energy efficiency ratio of 19 joules per terahash (J/TH), it outpaces its predecessor, the Bitcoin Miner S21 Hyd, which offers an energy efficiency of 16.0 J/TH. This efficiency means miners can maximize their returns while minimizing their energy costs. Additionally, the Antminer T21 boasts an impressive processing power of 190 terahashes per second (TH/s), a crucial factor in the competitive world of Bitcoin mining.The compatibility of the Antminer T21 with the SHA256 mining algorithm, used in the proof-of-work (PoW) consensus mechanism for cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, and Bitcoin SV (BSV), adds to its appeal.Notably, Bitmain has extended a helping hand to pre-order buyers of the Antminer T21 by offering Bitmain’s Price Protection Plan. This plan, available until November 25, aims to support miners in times of cryptocurrency market volatility. The plan shields customers from price fluctuations in Bitcoin for periods of one, three, or six months.Company difficultiesFounded in Beijing in 2013, Bitmain swiftly rose to prominence as a global leader in producing Bitcoin (BTC) mining ASICs. However, the company faced internal turmoil due to a power struggle between its co-founders, Wu Jihan and Ketuan Zhan. The situation was eventually resolved in 2021, with Jihan Wu stepping down from his roles as chairman and CEO of Bitmain and selling his ownership share to Zhan for $600 million.ASIC miner manufacturers like Bitmain have also had to grapple with the backdrop of a challenging market environment that has seen plummeting prices paid for mining equipment over the past two years.Bitmain has faced scrutiny regarding its treatment of employees. Recent reports from local sources and Bitmain employees revealed that the company issued a notification in September indicating negative operating cash flow. In response to these financial challenges, Bitmain delayed the disbursement of a portion of its employees’ September salaries, raising concerns about the financial stability of the organization. In April of this year, it emerged that the Chinese authorities had imposed a fine on the company due to tax irregularities.

Singapore-regulated Telcoin, a developer of financial applications for mobile users, has successfully restored user balances following an exploit that saw approximately $1.2 million worth of funds transferred from affected accounts.Photo by Martin Sanchez on UnsplashUnauthorized withdrawal of assetsThe incident, which occurred in late December, was attributed to an error in the interaction between Telcoin's digital wallet and a proxy contract on Polygon. In a blog post which was published on Wednesday, the company shared a full post-mortem analysis report which it commissioned Hong Kong-based blockchain security firm BlockSec to carry out, relative to the exploit. The fault in the proxy contract's implementation caused a technical conflict that allowed for the unauthorized withdrawal of assets. Fortunately, no admin keys were compromised, ensuring that the broader Telcoin ecosystem remained unaffected. In response to the security breach, Telcoin took action by immediately freezing the use of its application as a precautionary measure. The team initiated an investigation and committed to releasing updates promptly to address the issue and restore normalcy. The identified address associated with the exploit was 0x35d2775e5f95596509951b140d68fc5b9185ff98. TEL token freefallDespite the initial market turbulence, with the price of the Telcoin (TEL) token plummeting, the cryptocurrency has demonstrated resilience. On Dec. 25, TEL fell from a peak price of $0.00235146 to $0.00122535, representing a 48% decrease. At the time of writing, the price has slightly rebounded, trading at $0.001335. Nevertheless, it's still down 40% over the course of the past month's trading. In a social media direct message to CoinDesk recently, Telcoin's founder and CEO, Paul Neuner, expressed pride in how his team responded to the issue, stating: “Making the decision to preemptively restore affected user wallets from our company treasury was a no-brainer, and I’m proud of the team for making that happen in record time.” Regulatory standingTelcoin's regulatory standing played a crucial role in instilling confidence during this challenging time. Although headquartered in Tokyo, the company is regulated in Singapore as a Major Payment Institution (MPI) by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). The firm is also registered and regulated in other global markets, including Canada and Australia. Telcoin maintains offices in Singapore, Tokyo, Dubai and Los Angeles. The company had been active in trying to shape regulation in the United States in 2023, with company executives having made repeated visits to Washington D.C. to meet with Financial Services Committee members and staffers on Capitol Hill. In April of last year, the company extended its service offering to the European market, starting out initially in Lithuania.It appears that the restoration of Telcoin's application services led to a significant boost in user confidence. The company reported a 400% increase in deposits compared to the previous month. Users responded favorably to Telcoin's swift resolution of the security breach, with a ratio of $3.60 being deposited for every $1 withdrawn in the first day since the service restoration. Telcoin's measures, collaboration with security experts and the surge in user deposits appear to have resulted in a resilient recovery. The saga highlights the importance of prompt and transparent responses in maintaining trust in the face of crypto security issues.