Celebrating National Heroes Day, Angkas cuts commissions to 0% for rides, deliveries

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As a gesture of gratitude, and to honor its rider partners, the motorcycle taxi service will not collect commissions on any bookings whether these are for rides or deliveries on National Heroes’ Day on August 29. As a result, 100% of earnings from services like rides and deliveries for that day will go to the Angkas riders.

100% of fares on the day will go directly to riders who restore commuters’ freedom

Angkas riders get a heroes’ treat on National Heroes’ Day

“Ang Angkas malakas dahil sa inyo,” said Angkas CEO George Royeca as he addressed Angkas rider partners recently. 

“We celebrate our national heroes on August 29 for the bikers that fought hard to regulate and professionalize the motorcycle taxi industry,” points out Royeca. “Because of them, we now enjoy freedom from traffic and congestion that has attacked our quality of life. For years, we have been crippled by congestion and it is our modern day heroes that have given us freedom of mobility to travel safely and quickly, unburdened by traffic. Angkas riders have enabled Filipino commuters to be more productive, better rested, happier, more fulfilled---and that is real freedom.”

There have been many ways in which Angkas rider partners have shown their heroism to and for the Filipino people throughout the years. By proving that Filipino motorbike riders can be disciplined, courteous, and safe, Angkas is making the possibility for 18 million motorcycle riders in the Philippines to make a decent, above-the-minimum-wage living with a motorbike more attainable than ever. In maintaining a safety rating of 99.997% after literally millions of bookings, Angkas riders are even now dismantling the long-perpetuated, derogatory “kamote rider” stereotype.

All bookings with Angkas on National Heroes’ Day will go to Angkas Riders

During the pandemic, Angkas pivoted to delivering medicine and essential items to a public in lockdown, and offered free rides to medical practitioners and other frontliners in areas where it operates.

“(PLACEHOLDER QUOTE) “So if a motorcycle has saved you from traffic and congestion, book a ride with Angkas on National Heroes Day, Monday, August 29 where the bikers will enjoy 100% of the fares,” Royeca enjoins Angkas customers, “this is our way to celebrate and honor our biker heroes!”

Time to show Angkas riders some love for the freedom they give back on National Heroes Day

Learn the A-Z to stop cyberbullying; go to www.makeitsafe.ph

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A is for apple? Think again. In cyber lingo, as these parents have experienced, the alphabet takes a whole new meaning, but not necessarily all good.

These cyber expressions could range from AMP, a shorter version of a Filipino cuss word, to other derogatory terms.

Or you might have heard someone say “Go KYS” or “Reincarnate.” These are simple but disturbing terms with the harmful intention of telling a person to “kill yourself.”

And sometimes, cyberbullying does not even use letters or words. Instead, people resort to emojis such as a pig face or snout to shame a person for being fat, or a clown to denote stupidity.

Offensive language and emojis, which often victimize users of social media and social messaging apps, do not stop at inflicting emotional pain. It may cause anxiety, fear, and depression that could prove damaging to mental health, especially among kids and young adults. Cyberbullying is also known to lead to negative self-talk and low self-esteem among children.

“To stop cyberbullying, we start with understanding how and where it happens. Parents can protect their children better if they know how young people communicate. Globe is sharing helpful tips on how parents can guide their kids in this new digital environment,” said Yoly Crisanto, Chief Sustainability and Corporate Communications Officer at Globe.

Explore the new language of the youth and learn the A-Z of cyberbullying prevention through Globe's new portal, www.makeitsafe.ph, accessible via mobile and desktop browsers. You can talk about the alphabet on the site and how each corresponds to lessons on cyberbullying.

You may even add words you may have heard used in cyberbullying to help expand the glossary.

The portal is part of Globe’s cyber safety advocacy, which runs parallel to its support for the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, which fosters innovation towards economic development under SDG No. 9, and inclusive and equitable quality education under SDG No. 4.

The country’s leading digital solutions platform has various initiatives to protect people, particularly, minors and the youth, from cyberviolence, which includes bullying, and online sexual abuse and exploitation of children (OSAEC).

Globe also implements the Digital Thumbprint Program (DTP), a series of workshops and modules that teaches students, parents, and teachers about online responsibility and safety. It has been rolling out initiatives under the #makeITsafePH campaign to raise awareness about cybersecurity, partnering with various local and international organizations to block sites that promote OSAEC.

To learn more about Globe, visit www.globe.com.ph.

Ben&Ben teases fans with cryptic billboards across Metro Manila

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Cryptic billboards and posters alluding to a new Ben&Ben release have recently appeared in strategic locations all over Metro Manila.

The material, which contains discarded film photos with texts exposing some personal thoughts, is said to be part of the lyrics of an upcoming Ben&Ben song to be released sometime next week.

A few days ago, the nine-piece Filipino collective tweeted what looks like a snippet of a lyrics offering an intimate take on the painstaking process of letting go.

Ben&Ben also dropped a performance video of “Stand By You,” featuring Indonesian superstar Pamungkas. The collaborative visuals, which was recorded earlier this month at SoundCheck Studio, has racked up more than 220,000 views as of press time.

Set to conquer the international stage with their first North American tour, the Paninindigan Kita music act will be performing in iconic and key venues across nine cities in the US and Canada—ahead of their send-off concert on September 3 at the CCP Open Grounds.

Lei Jun Unveils Xiaomi Pilot Technology

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Xiaomi Group officially revealed the development status of Xiaomi Pilot Technology in the first R&D and staffing update since announcing its entry into the smart electric vehicle segment in March 2021, 500 days ago. Xiaomi plans to invest RMB 3.3 billion in the first R&D phase of its autonomous driving technology, and has established a sizable R&D team of more than 500 world-class professionals. A series of valuable acquisitions and strategic investments in upstream and downstream enterprises have also allowed Xiaomi to steadily build out its mid-to-long-term industrial capabilities in the field of autonomous driving.

During today's press conference, Xiaomi also released a live road test video of its autonomous driving technology, demonstrating its advanced algorithms and capability to handle a comprehensive list of scenarios.

"Xiaomi's autonomous driving technology adopts a self-developed full stack approach, and the project has made progress beyond expectations," said Lei Jun, founder, chairman and CEO of Xiaomi Group.

First R&D phase investment planned at RMB 3.3 billion, talent recruiting, and industry-wide deployment

Since announcing its entry into the smart electric vehicle industry, Xiaomi has remained committed to enter the field of autonomous driving. The company's zero to one breakthrough has been enabled through heavy resource allocation to R&D, selective hiring of the industry's best talents, and investment in upstream and downstream enterprises.

As revealed by Lei Jun, Xiaomi plans to invest RMB 3.3 billion in the first R&D phase of its autonomous driving technology, and the size of the dedicated team now exceeds 500. By the end of the year, the team is expected to continue to grow to more than 600 members.

Since official establishment last year, Xiaomi's autonomous driving team has attracted many top industry professionals. Currently, the 500 member department incorporates 50 industry experts who form the backbone of the team, and an exceptional education background team wide, with over 70% holding master's or doctorate degrees. Core members of the team have experience working for some of the most celebrated companies in the field of AI. Their professional expertise covers all areas necessary to develop Xiaomi's self-developed autonomous driving technology, including: sensors, chips, algorithms, simulation, tool-chain, data platform, and more.

Xiaomi has wholly acquired autonomous driving startup Shendong Technology, in order to enhance its autonomous driving technological expertise and talent pool. In addition, Xiaomi is also committed to building its mid-to-long-term strategic industrial capabilities by investing RMB2 billion in more than ten upstream and downstream enterprises in the autonomous driving field. These enterprises cover a variety of categories, such as core sensors, core actuators, domain controllers, and more.

Self-developed algorithm, aiming to become an industry leader in the smart EV industry in 2024

Xiaomi adopts a self-developed full stack approach to autonomous driving technology, covering all core areas, such as hardware and software development, perception and positioning, and focuses on full-scale proprietary solutions to enable complete closed-loop data capabilities. This approach allows autonomous driving algorithms to be quickly iterated based on user needs.

In a demonstration video, Xiaomi's test vehicle showcased accurate, safe and intelligent assisted driving in multiple scenarios including U-turns, roundabouts, and continuous downhill driving.

With an emphasis on parking, Xiaomi's autonomous driving team announced an innovative auto-parking solution that covers scenarios such as "reserved parking spaces", "autonomous valet parking", and "automatic robotic arm charging". In the future, other parking lot services will be made available, and, in order to comply with relevant national laws and regulations, a mix of AI and service-oriented features will be added.

Lei Jun also mentioned that Xiaomi plans to create a fleet of 140 test vehicles in the first phase of its autonomous driving technology development. They will be tested individually nationwide, with an aim of becoming an industry leader in the smart EV industry in 2024.

Apart from utilizing internal resources, Xiaomi Auto team also receives strong support from multiple other teams within Xiaomi, such as the Xiaomi AI Lab, XiaoAi AI Assistant team, and Smartphone Camera team to jointly create a cutting-edge autonomous driving experience.

In just over a year, Xiaomi's autonomous driving technology has achieved a real 0 to 1 breakthrough, and has become a new force attracting considerable attention in the industry.

Ben&Ben and Pamungkas team up for the performance video of “Stand By You”

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Filipino nine-piece collective Ben&Ben has recently joined forces with Indonesian singer-songwriter Pamungkas to release a performance video of “Stand By You.” The infectious pop-rock original, which is an English translation of Ben&Ben’s 2022 hit “Paninindigan Kita,” was recorded at SoundCheck Studio in Pasig City last August 5, 2022 (Friday).

Prior to the live studio session, both regional superstars were introduced to each other online last month, and got the chance to brainstorm on how to approach the song with a collaborative mindset. “We sent over a rough translation of our song Paninindigan Kita,” shares Ben&Ben in a statement. “He [Pamungkas] came up with brilliant lyrical ideas, and we ended up co-writing the English lyrics for this song with him.”

Ahead of their sold-out show at 123 Block in Mandaluyong City, Philippines, Ben&Ben and Pamungkas recently recorded a live performance of “Stand By You” complete with a fuller, more intricate arrangement and reassigned verses. The chart-topping Filipino band is more than happy about the result of the session, and how it brought the best of both worlds in one project.

“There was a natural chemistry between both artists,” says Ben&Ben. “This came out in the way the instruments were arranged and the different parts were worked into the final version of the performance.”

Ben&Ben also praised Pamungkas on how he managed to add a totally new vibe to the song, while injecting his own flair into the instrumentation. “This made the collaborative version very distinct in a way that represents both styles blended into one performance, instead of it being a straightforward cover version of the song.”

“Stand By You” is the first of the two-part collaboration between the prolific and award-winning Asian artists. They’re also set to release the performance video of “I Got To Get You” soon.

Pamungkas is currently headlining his own Southeast Asian tour to promote his fourth studio album, Birdy. His hit single “To The Bone” was a huge regional success, topping Spotify Indonesia Top 50 charts for several weeks and peaking at No. 5 on Spotify Philippines Top 50 charts last year. The song also performed well commercially in other Southeast Asian countries, particularly in Thailand, Singapore, and Malaysia.

Ben&Ben is set to conquer the international stage with their first North American tour, performing in iconic and key venues across nine cities in the US and Canada. They’re also gearing up with the release of their new international single this month—ahead of their send-off concert on September 3 at the CCP Open Grounds.

Watch the live performance of “Stand By You” here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wrYBtxxgZk