Latest news with #Otto
The Verge
a day ago
- Entertainment
- The Verge
Secretlab now sells a $300 adjustable legrest for your gaming throne.
Posted Jul 24, 2025 at 3:00 PM UTC Secretlab now sells a $300 adjustable legrest for your gaming throne. Legrests are a thing, and you can find them far cheaper than this, but 'You really just want a second tiltable butt cushion, trust us!' is a vibe I haven't seen before. It's called the Otto, has height and tilt adjust (down to 30 degrees), and is filled with memory foam. Follow topics and authors from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates. Sean Hollister Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All by Sean Hollister Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All Gadgets
Daily Mirror
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
'New type of terror thrilled my kids at theme park two hours from UK'
Futuroscope is a theme park with a difference – the rides are shows too, awakening all your senses on this sprawling French site, which boasts futuristic-style architecture. Think 4D and IMAX motion simulators, and terrifying rides combined with huge screens, so the tornado chaser takes you right into the eye of a (digital) storm. I booked a two-night break with my 11-year-old son, Otto, and we were keen to try an alternative type of terror. The park is in southwest France, a few miles from Poitiers, and also includes a 'digital' water park. Arriving at the theme park, we picked up translation headsets first – the screens that accompany almost every ride have commentaries. We ventured into The Time Machine and sat on a moving conveyor, facing the 4D film with the Raving Rabbids, feeling the wind and travelling into a snapshot of the future. Do you have a travel story to share? Email webtravel@ Most kids will recognise the Rabbids from the video-game series, and they are a huge feature of the park – naughty rabbit-like creatures scream and gibber at you from screens around the site. Next up was the €20million attraction, Destination Mars. We become astronauts at the space training centre, before bracing ourselves for a shuttle ride into orbit. The roller-coaster carriages spin you senseless and launch you down an indoor, vertical free-fall drop, right at the end. Looking back on the Earth, as we hurtled away, added a great touch. I staggered out, dazed, and Otto dragged me to one of the omnipresent burger stands. A huge theatre with a 4D nature documentary didn't just provide respite from the adrenaline adventures. The screen rolls under your feet as you fly over mountains and immerse yourself in life under the sea. Danse Avec Les Robots had all the mad futuristic feels you could hope for – giant robotic arms flipped us upside down and high into the air. Dancing to the thumping beats, attached to the arm of this monster, was one unpredictable ride. We watched Cosmic Collisions in the Planetarium and sat back in reclining seats, staring at a journey around the planets, on the ceiling, all translated via the app into headsets. At the Space Loop restaurant, meals hurtle down from the kitchen on a mini roller coaster towards sets of tables, some doing a loop the loop. Get them quick because incoming containers knocked a few of our side dishes off the track. Retrieving them from the floor, we roared with laughter alongside the other diners served by the same metal track, trying to work out which meal was spiralling down at us at an alarming rate. You order through the screens on each table – and the blue-bunned burgers are fun. Having walked around what felt like every inch of the 148-acre park, we headed, with aching feet, to the nearby Eco Lodges, set around a lake with a small waterfall. The wooden hut has a separate kids' sleeping area and glass doors open out on to a balcony, overlooking water. So far, so good. I was longing for a cup of tea, but in true environmental style, there are no kettles. The lack of a TV was refreshing, though, and I decided to have a long, hot shower and sit outside, in the tranquillity of nature, after a day of non-stop thrills. A firm advocate of the sacrifices we must all make in the face of climate change, the Eco Lodge quickly showed me up to be a complete fraud. We were in for a short, sharp shock. After a few moments of bliss, the shower turned cold as hot water is limited to a few minutes to keep the carbon footprint low. Otto screamed his way through his freezing wash! At night the lodge was sweltering. I opened the French doors at around midnight and the cold air was a delight. I even noticed three frogs on our balcony. Breakfast arrived – croissants and yogurt – in a wicker basket and the tea and hot chocolate we had ordered came in flasks. Unfortunately, the drinks were stone cold. I bought a cup of tea at the lodge reception area and armed with swimming gear, we walked to Aquascope water park. There's a choice of eight huge waterslides, with light displays as you whizz down the tunnels. The Rocket involves a 400ft free fall. The Lazy River circles the whole site, and Aquadynamic's currents push you through an outside 'river'. There's a fun tots' area too. It was very busy and we jostled into others in the wave pool, before discovering the magical cavern around the corner. Ideal for younger swimmers, a huge aquatic cinema envelops the pool, showing a mix of cartoons and the ocean, set against a starry night sky. There are underwater lights and random bubbles and we watched the sun rise on the screen, floating, mesmerised. I honestly felt as if I was in the sea. We've enjoyed a number of family holidays with water slides in Europe, but have never been to a digital water park. It's impressive and very clean but the queues were long. We visited at Easter, but careful timing could avoid the region's school holidays and crowds. We rounded off our trip with the late-night light show at the theme park, which takes place in an open-air arena. The seats filled up quickly, and no wonder. The display, which played out on giant screens over water, was an explosion of digital illusion and sound. It was absolutely spectacular. Futuroscope is the ideal place for space-mad pre-teens and theme-park fanatics because it's totally different from anything the UK has to offer. I'd recommend Hotel Ecolodgee for true climate zealots, but there are hotels dotted around the site, including a space-themed one, so you can truly carry on embracing that Futuroscope feeling. The fun definitely landed. Book the holiday Fly from Stansted or Edinburgh to Poitiers, or get the Eurostar from London St Pancras International to Lille Europe then connect via a TGV to Poitiers. Stay two nights at Futuroscope Experiences from around £724 for a family of two adults and two children under 12. Includes two nights at Ecolodgee on B&B, two-day tickets to Futuroscope and tickets to Aquascope. Price based on September dates.
Newsweek
4 days ago
- General
- Newsweek
Rescue Dog Left Home Alone—Woman Left Heartbroken by Note From Neighbor
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A woman has revealed the heartbreaking note she received from her neighbors after adopting a dog who spent 7 years in a puppy mill. Emily Hanson, 38, initially started fostering Otto, the Shih-tzu in June 2024. He was estimated to be around 7 years old, and it's likely that he'd spent his entire life in a cage. There was no denying that the life he had to endure took its toll on Otto. Hanson told Newsweek that he was "so anxious that he didn't sleep" for the first 24 hours that she had him. Even when he did manage to rest, he would sleep in "very small increments" because he just couldn't settle. It took Otto several weeks to develop a proper sleep schedule, and he's still afraid of certain things (plates and bowls to name a few). Nonetheless, he's come an awful long way, and he was officially adopted by Hanson in July 2024. "I'm so proud of him and the progress he's made," Hanson, of Columbus, Ohio, said. "He's come such a long way. His Shih-tzu personality shines now, and he learned to go down steps and go in the grass." Otto the rescue dog, and the note Hanson received from her neighbors. Otto the rescue dog, and the note Hanson received from her neighbors. @miltonandotto / TikTok Shortly after adopting Otto, Hanson received a handwritten letter from her neighbors saying that the dog "has been pretty loud" and "seems to be anxious" whenever she's gone. The note continued: "Wanted to make sure you knew about it, and get your pup feeling okay and comfortable when you're gone from the apartment. Thanks, your neighbors." As soon as she read the letter, Hanson "felt terrible" for Otto and her neighbors too. She has a pet cam in her apartment, so she was aware that Otto had separation anxiety, but she had hoped that it didn't bother her neighbors. Hanson said: "I lived in a building with 9 other units, so the noise was likely disruptive. I had been taking him everywhere I could. I pretty much knew every dog friendly bar and restaurant in the Columbus area. And though I only worked in the office two days a week, he was not welcome at a corporate office. So, I guess I hoped the neighbors wouldn't be home during that time." Upon reading the letter, Hanson knew she needed to make it up to her neighbors. She bought Starbucks gift cards for everyone on her floor and the person who lives directly beneath her apartment. She also wrote notes for them to explain Otto's backstory, in which she told them he'd been rescued from a puppy mill "where he was kept in a cage for 7 years." She thanked them for their patience and understanding, and said she was actively working on his separation anxiety. The note Hanson wrote for her neighbors to apologize and explain. The note Hanson wrote for her neighbors to apologize and explain. @miltonandotto / TikTok While she isn't certain which neighbor wrote the letter, Hanson has spoken directly to some of the people in her building and they were very understanding. It's been 12 months since she received that letter, and Otto has made great strides in that time. For the most part, he doesn't bark or whine when Hanson leaves now. Whenever she checks the pet cam, he's usually asleep with his blind rescue brother named Milton. "He does get sad when I leave, but he is doing so well. He was not left alone for more than 30 minutes to an hour after that note. He either went to a friend's who was home, or a dog sitter. Little by little, I tried various ways to leave him, and one day, miraculously, there was no barking, crying or scratching. And it just got better from there," Hanson continued. Indeed, Hanson told Newsweek that Milton "appreciates the peace" now too as they can both get their beauty sleep. The proud owner often documents the lives of her rescue dogs on their dedicated TikTok account (@miltonandotto), and in July she shared a post about the note her neighbors wrote. The post has melted hearts in a matter of days, leading to more than 38,200 views and over 3,200 likes on TikTok at the time of writing. The online response has been incredibly uplifting, as Hanson hopes to show that rescue dogs are capable of thriving if they're given patience and love. "Everyone, for the most part, is supportive and proud of Otto for being such a champ. I hope we are helping to educate people on the horrors of puppy mills but also the strength and resilience of dogs. It has been one of the greatest joys of my life to watch Otto thrive," Hanson said. Otto's story has generated over 100 comments on TikTok, as internet users praised the progress he's made so far. One comment reads: "such a brave little soul!" Another TikTok user wrote: "That was such a sweet and thoughtful note they left, glad he's doing better." Another person responded: "Beautiful story and ending." Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? We want to see the best ones! Send them in to life@ and they could appear on our site.
AllAfrica
18-07-2025
- Business
- AllAfrica
Japan and South Korea know the way to compete with China and US
Governments around the world are hustling. European policymakers, for example, are eager to boost the region's industrial relevance in a world where the US and China dominate cutting-edge technologies. They want to move beyond the adage that 'the US innovates, China replicates and the EU regulates'. As part of this, policymakers worldwide are striving to foster their own versions of Silicon Valley. They have invested to create ecosystems abundant with ambitious startups backed by venture capital investors. Their ultimate aim is to see these firms develop into what are known as scale-ups and compete in global markets. But if governments – from Berlin and Brussels to Ho Chi Minh City – are to find their edge, I argue they should follow a model closer to Seoul's or Tokyo's playbook than that of Silicon Valley. South Korean and Japanese policymakers have long understood that the proliferation of startup activity should not be an isolated aim. In our 2025 book, Startup Capitalism, my colleague Ramon Pacheco Pardo and I revealed that the approach of these countries sees national champion firms like Samsung and Toyota use startups as resources to help them compete internationally. As the head of a government-backed startup center in Seoul told me, a key aim of South Korean government policy for startups is to 'inject innovative DNA' into the country's large firms. Policies attempt to embed startups into the fabric of lead firms, and do not try to disrupt their competitive positions. For this objective, the Silicon Valley playbook is sub-optimal. US government policy has enabled venture capital investment through regulatory changes and has ensured that talented people are free to challenge their former employers. Classic examples include the so-called 'traitorous eight' who left Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory in 1957 to found Fairchild Semiconductor. A more recent example is Anthony Levandowski, who left Google's self-driving car project to start his own company, Otto, in 2016. The competition was so close that Google sued Uber – as it had acquired Otto – in 2019 over the trade secrets Levandowski allegedly used to develop his self-driving truck company. Uber eventually paid Google a 'substantial portion' of the $179 million it was awarded initially in arbitration. The Japanese and Korean formula is distinct. Each of South Korea's 17 Centers for the Creative Economy and Innovation, established about ten years ago to drive innovation and entrepreneurship, has one of the country's large firms ( chaebol ) as an anchor partner. The chaebol 's industrial focus – whether it's shipbuilding, electronics or heavy machinery – is reflected in the focus of the startups engaging with that center. The startups work on issues 'that keep the large firm up at night' and, in return, the startups have unparalleled access to distribution channels, marketing and proof-of-concept testing. While the centers have not produced volumes of globally competitive scale-ups, they have delivered on the aim of injecting innovative ideas and talent into large companies such as Hyundai, LG Electronics and SK Group. In Japan, tax incentives encourage big businesses to acquire startups. The 'open innovation tax incentive' allows a 25% deduction from the price of the acquisition. The aim here is to encourage Japan's national champion firms to integrate startups into their core businesses. In 2024, for example, Toyota integrated high-tech wheelchair startup, Whill, into its mobility services offering. Various government initiatives also aim to provide coaching and mentoring for startups around raising venture capital funding and sharpening a pitch for demo day. In Japan and Korea, these initiatives embed big business throughout. In J-Startup, an initiative aimed at creating a cohort of so-called unicorns (startups valued at over $1 billion), the Japanese government involves industrial leaders as judges who help select applicants for the program. These people then act as coaches and mentors to the startups. Japan's lead firms are, in return, exposed to innovative technologies and startup culture. In a similar way, South Korea's K-Startup Grand Challenge connects participating foreign startups with the country's chaebol for proof-of-concept development. The government cites partnership and licensing agreements between the parties as an important outcome of the program. Through these connections, Korea's big businesses have another mechanism for accessing innovative ideas and talent from abroad. Governments that want to compete with China or the US cannot continue on their existing path. They need to do something different, and Japan and South Korea's approach offers an alternative. These approaches are not without downsides. There is, of course, the risk of well-resourced corporations operating 'kill zones' around their business lines. This might involve early low-value mergers and acquisitions, or even copying their products in a bid to eliminate them. The central position of large firms to the economy also means that the innovation agenda of startups is set by incumbent firms. This fosters complementary products, and not those that disrupt – and ultimately improve – domestic firms or technologies. There's also the worry of perceived corruption. But I argue that pursuing a half-committed strategy is riskier. If governments maintain a wall between big business and startups, believing this is essential to minimise corruption and that large firms will innovate just as startups will scale-up into larger firms, they risk underwhelming outcomes on all levels. We may see flailing productivity in the sectors in which countries have excelled. And scale-ups will fail to materialise while populations of 'zombie startups', that simply stagnate while propped up on state largesse, increase. Startups should be considered as resources to boost nationwide industrial capabilities, not efforts aimed at seeding a country's answer to Silicon Valley's Google or OpenAI. Robyn Klingler-Vidra is the vice dean for global engagement and an associate professor in political economy and entrepreneurship, King's College London . This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Business Wire
15-07-2025
- Automotive
- Business Wire
Cardata Intelligence: AI-Powered Vehicle Program Analytics Now Live
BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Cardata, a leading provider of vehicle reimbursement solutions, today announced the official launch of Cardata Intelligence, a powerful new analytics platform designed to modernize how organizations manage and optimize vehicle reimbursement programs. Cardata Intelligence replaces spreadsheets and legacy tools with a smart reporting suite that cuts manual work and speeds up time-to-insight by 70%. Share Cardata Intelligence replaces spreadsheets and legacy tools with a smart reporting suite that cuts manual work and speeds up time-to-insight by 70%. Users can edit custom reports, run natural-language queries, and set alerts tied to KPIs and policy thresholds—all without relying on analysts or waiting on support teams. 'We've made a fantastic leap forward by overlaying a large language model on our database, enabling natural language queries and delivering deep, automatic insights into your vehicle program—what it looks like, where it's most effective, and how to adapt it,' said Haywood Marsh, CEO of Cardata. 'I think that's going to be a game changer for a lot of people.' Instead of reacting to issues after month-end, administrators now receive alerts and AI-detected anomalies as they occur, helping them address compliance gaps, budget risks, or operational inefficiencies immediately. Key Features: Custom smart alerts on cost spikes or mileage deviations. Customizable dashboard by region, department, or driver cohort. Scheduled reports delivered directly to stakeholders across HR, Finance, Fleet Management, and more. Otto, a natural-language analytics assistant, for filtering reports with plain language prompts. Early users report faster decision-making and improved oversight. HR teams automate compliance checks; finance leaders track regional reimbursement trends without digging through spreadsheets; and admins spot mileage outliers in seconds. About Cardata Cardata delivers IRS-compliant vehicle reimbursement solutions for organizations with mobile employees. Serving clients across various industries, Cardata helps businesses reduce costs, ensure compliance, and support employee experience with scalable, flexible reimbursement programs.
