A Turbulent Week in Tech

Mexico’s tech sector continues to grow with the continued investment of mature tech companies like Nokia and the proliferation of tech startups.

The Metaverse will be heavily influenced by the outcome of an emerging battle between archrivals Facebook and Gemini. This competition in the development of the metaverse is important especially after confirming that Facebook, now Meta, has continually failed to address targeted misinformation campaigns in Latino communities, even after being repeatedly informed of their existence. In other news, it has come to light that Amazon lobbied against consumer privacy legislation in the Americas. Meanwhile, leading IT provider, Tech Mahindra looks to tackle the tech talent shortage in Latin America. On Monday, tech stocks dipped in response to increasing interest rates.

This is your weekly briefing on Tech:

Mexico

Nokia Increases Investment for Guadalajara Facility

After a year of growth, Nokia announced additional investment for its Guadalajara 5G testing facility to support product testing, sales growth and supply chain operations in the region. The investment also aims to secure Nokia’s presence in the Mexican market and fan out further in Latin America.

Unicorns: Too Good to Be True?

Consisting mainly of tech companies, Mexico’s startup sector has boomed, drawing in billions in investment and encouraging thousands to establish their own, said startup contributor Karlo Valentín Rodríguez, Co-Founder & CTO of Klustera.

International

An Emerging Metaverse Battle: Gemini v. Meta

The Winklevoss twins, founders of Gemini cryptocurrency exchange firm, raised US$400 million to fund the development of a decentralized metaverse, setting the stage for the latest clash between these two archrivals.

Facebook Fuels Rampant Disinformation in Latino Communities

Despite capturing over half of the Spanish-speaking market domestically and in Latin America, Facebook has ineffectively answered repeated calls to address the viral spread of misinformation among Spanish-speaking and Latino communities, according to press reports, research groups, leaked documents and advocacy groups.

Amazon Lobbies Against Consumer Privacy Protections

Like other technology giants, Amazon has built a lucrative business model on consumer data, as such it has had a vested interest in preserving access to this intelligence. Sources told Reuters that the e-commerce giant has been actively working to undermine privacy protections in North and South America. Mexican consumers, lacking a robust Federal Consumer Prosecutor Office (PROFECO), are left particularly vulnerable.

Leading IT Provider Seeks to Cover Talent Crunch in Latin America

In an effort to solve a possible talent shortage for the next three quarters, Tech Mahindra has designed a rescue plan to broader its talent base, reskill its workforce, increase its hires and upgrade training while boosting its presence in tier II towns.

A Turbulent Day for Tech Stock

Technology stocks closed at a loss on Monday night after an investor sell-off followed the renomination of Jerome Powell to the US Federal Reserve; he is expected to raise interest rates into 2022 to curb a 30-year high inflation rate. Rates were also up in Mexico, Canada, Brazil, Germany and the UK, sending a clear market signal to investors that growing stock will likely lag.