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Time Is Money

May 26, 2024 • 7 min read

Trending:

London Drugs Cyberattack
Micron Technology Patent Infringement Case

Week Recap:

A recent study published in the journal Toxicological Sciences has revealed the presence of microplastics in every sample of human and dog testes examined by researchers. Microplastics, defined as plastics smaller than five millimeters, were found consistently across all samples, highlighting their pervasive nature. The study also noted that dogs with higher levels of plastic contamination in their testes had lower sperm counts.
After nearly a two-year pause in crewed flights, Blue Origin has resumed crewed operations with the successful completion of its NS-25 mission (this past Sunday). This mission carried six tourists to the edge of space, marking a significant milestone for several passengers, including Ed Dwight, an artist and former Air Force Captain who was slated to be the first Black astronaut candidate in 1961 but never went to space until now. Alongside Dwight were Ken Hess, a software engineer and entrepreneur; Carol Schaller, a retired accountant; Sylvain Chiron, the founder of Brasserie Mont Blanc brewery; Gopi Thotakura, an aviator; and Mason Angel, a venture capitalist from Industrious Ventures.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a proposal by Elon Musk’s Neuralink to proceed with a second human implant of its brain chip. This follows a first trial where issues arose, leading to the company's development of modifications to improve the device's stability and functionality. These modifications involve implanting the device's ultrathin wires deeper within the brain's motor cortex, moving from the initial three-to-five millimeters to eight millimeters.
Scientists have made a new discovery, uncovering a hidden branch of the Nile River that once ran near more than 30 pyramids in Egypt, potentially clarifying how ancient Egyptians transported the massive stones used in their construction. This 40-mile-long river branch, lying dormant beneath desert and farmland, was identified using radar satellite imagery that can penetrate sand and reveal buried geological features. The study, published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment, explains that the river's proximity to the Giza pyramid complex and other sites suggests it played a crucial role in the logistics of pyramid construction.
The AI wearable startup Humane, initiated by former Apple employees Imran Chaudhri and Bethany Bongiorno in 2018, appears to be in turmoil just a month after launching its first product, the Humane AI Pin. Despite raising $230 million from prominent investors like OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, the company is reportedly seeking a sale with a target price of $750 million to $1 billion, according to Bloomberg.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has recently approved eight spot Ethereum ETFs, marking a significant shift in its stance. The approvals include ETFs from major financial firms such as BlackRock, Fidelity, Grayscale, Bitwise, VanEck, Ark, Invesco Galaxy, and Franklin Templeton. Although the SEC has approved the 19b-4 forms for these ETFs, the issuers still await the effectiveness of their S-1 registration statements before they can commence trading.
News Corp and OpenAI unveiled a multi-year partnership that grants OpenAI access to an extensive array of News Corp’s news content. This collaboration aims to enrich OpenAI's responses to user inquiries by integrating content from notable News Corp publications such as The Wall Street Journal, The Times, The Australian, and several others, spanning both current and archived material.
CentroMed, a healthcare provider based in San Antonio operating as El Centro Del Barrio, has announced that 400,000 of its current and former patients have had their personal and protected health information compromised due to a cyberattack. The breach was detected on May 1, 2024, following unauthorized access to their network on April 30, as stated in an incident notice on CentroMed's website.
Harvey, a platform providing generative AI tools for the legal profession, has announced a partnership with Mistral AI, a company known for its development of both open-source and commercial AI models. Founded by Arthur Mensch, Guillaume Lample, and Timothée Lacroix, Mistral AI creates a variety of models that emphasize performance, capability, and efficiency—qualities that align closely with Harvey's commitment to delivering secure, accurate AI solutions where confidentiality and precision are paramount.

London Drugs Cyberattack:

London Drugs, a Canadian pharmacy chain, experienced a ransomware attack on April 28, leading to the temporary closure of its 79 stores across British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba until May 7. Despite this disruption, pharmacy staff remained available outside the stores to fulfill essential prescriptions. The British Columbia-based company described the incident as an attack by a sophisticated global group of cybercriminals.
The company confirmed that some of its corporate files, potentially including employee information, were stolen during the breach. London Drugs has committed to notifying affected individuals if the situation changes, in compliance with privacy laws. The ransomware group LockBit has claimed responsibility for the attack, initially demanding $25 million and threatening to leak the stolen data unless paid. They also claimed that London Drugs had agreed to pay $8 million, although the company has publicly stated its refusal to meet the ransom demands.
In response to the breach, London Drugs has informed all current employees and is offering them two years of free credit monitoring and identity theft protection. The company is conducting a thorough review to ascertain the full extent of the data compromised, which is expected to take some time due to the significant system damage caused by the attack. This incident comes shortly after law enforcement actions disrupted LockBit's operations and unmasked its leader, although the attack on London Drugs indicates that these efforts have only slightly impacted the broader cybercriminal activities.

Micron Technology Patent Infringement Case:

Micron Technology, a semiconductor manufacturer, was found liable in a patent infringement case and ordered to pay Netlist, a computer memory company, damages potentially amounting to $445 million. The dispute, adjudicated by a U.S. District Court in Texas, involved Micron's infringement of two Netlist patents that enhance memory module capacity and performance in high-performance computing products. The jury awarded $20 million for one patent and $425 million for another.
However, the total amount Micron owes could change due to ongoing legal proceedings. Notably, the Patent Trial and Appeal Board recently invalidated one of the Netlist patent claims involved in this lawsuit, which might reduce the payable damages since this particular patent accounted for the majority of the awarded sum. This ruling follows a similar pattern to a previous case in 2023, where Netlist secured over $303 million in damages from Samsung in the same court.
Despite Micron's secondary position in the high-bandwidth memory market, the company remains a significant player. Micron's production for high-bandwidth memory is already fully booked through 2024 and nearly allocated for 2025. While the financial implications of this judgment may impact Micron, they are not expected to severely disrupt the company’s operations or its financial health.

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