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Donna A. Patterson

@profpatterson.bsky.social
299 followers 129 following 70 posts

Prof & Africana Dir. @ Del State.Texas-born; East Coast-based. Security Fellow @NewAmerica Geopolitics, Africa, African diaspora, global health, Sahel. For consulting and speaking, see: donnapatterson.wordpress.com. Writing a book on Juneteenth.

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Reposted by Donna A. Patterson
evacide @evacide.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Meta Muse appears to read your Apple messages and upload them to the cloud even if you explicitly tell it not to: appleinsider.com/articles/26/...
appleinsider.com
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Reposted by Donna A. Patterson
Carl Quintanilla @carlquintanilla.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
A good reminder from Ed that not everyone will be able to afford a personal agent — even as the Internet is re-wired around them. @edmundlee.bsky.social #Muse
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october "pre-order The Struggle Is Always Worth It now!" krausch @octoberk.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
this investigation on long COVID inside of prisons is out today at the Sick Times! I worked on this piece for months and am so grateful to the folks who shared their experiences with me. I'll write up a real thread a little later, but you can read it now: thesicktimes.org/2026/09/29/i...
thesicktimes.org
I interviewed five people with Long COVID in prison. They are invisible in the system. - The Sick Times
While there are no data sources on Long COVID in prison, experts suspect rates of the disease may be higher there than in the general population. They face high reinfection risks and poor access to me...
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Baltimore Banner @thebaltimorebanner.com · 29/09/2026
Annapolis swings ‘really big hammer’ with $5K fine for short-term rental violations
buff.ly
Annapolis votes to quintuple maximum fine for short-term rentals
The city of Annapolis raised the maximum fine for short-term rental license violations from $1,000 to $5,000.
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Prison Journalism Project @prisonjournalism.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Happy Monday! For many of us, Mondays can feel like the worst day of the week, but for some inside, Mondays bring excitement. Check out Tony's 2021 story about his Monday privileges.
prisonjournalismproject.org
My Monday Privileges
As I brush my teeth, I can’t help but exude excitement. It’s Monday, which means a visit from my 9-year-old daughter.
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Zecharias Zelalem @zekuzelalem.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
I went on the BBC to provide some updates and context on Ethiopia's new war and how it broke out in the first place. As I pointed out here, yesterday bank accounts opened in Tigray were collectively frozen, which prevents millions from accessing funds. The situation is becoming increasingly dire.
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Joey Politano🏳️‍🌈 @josephpolitano.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Solar power also continues to skyrocket in Texas, with generation up 47% compared to last year Over the last twelve months, solar has made up 12.6% of Texas' electricity, a record high!
a graph of Texas monthly solar generation
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Tressie McMillan Cottom @tressiemcphd.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Yes, the precondition for regular AI agent use is changing your culture to speak in middle America white bureaucratic language to make it work. You can’t put “the good collards“ on an optimized shopping list, much less account for what some call familect: www.nytimes.com/2026/09/03/m...
nytimes.com
Every Family Has Its Own Private Language. What Does That Tell Us About Ourselves? (Gift Article)
“Familects” emerge out of in-jokes and mispronunciations, but they reveal something about how all language evolves.
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Phil Lewis @phillewis.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
GoFundMe, the largest crowdfunding site, has seen an over 20 percent increase in fundraisers for tuition and related expenses over the past year
insidehighered.com
GoFundMes for College Tuition Are Up This Year
Students facing acute challenges affording their tuition are increasingly turning to crowdfunding. Experts warn it’s a temporary fix to systemic affordability issues.
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The Globe and Mail @theglobeandmail.com · 28/09/2026
theglobeandmail.com
Alberta’s response to COVID-19 outbreak at Cargill plant was ‘catastrophic failure,’ report says
More than 950 workers at High River plant were infected in 2020, leaving two workers dead and spreading to the community
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Reposted by Donna A. Patterson
Bloomberg News @bloomberg.com · 27/09/2026
The perfectly manicured fairways at Minohara Country Club wind through the forested hills of Gunma Prefecture about two hours from downtown Tokyo. In a few years, they’ll disappear under row-upon-row of solar panels.
bloom.bg
Japan Has No Space for Solar Farms Apart From Old Golf Courses
The perfectly manicured fairways at Minohara Country Club wind through the forested hills of Gunma Prefecture about two hours from downtown Tokyo. In a few years, they’ll disappear under row-upon-row of solar panels.
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The New York Times @nytimes.com · 27/09/2026
More than 50 new cases of measles have been reported in Pennsylvania since Wednesday, state health officials said, as efforts continue to combat an outbreak that has spread across the state.
nyti.ms
Pennsylvania Measles Outbreak Grows to Nearly 900 Cases
State health officials said 55 new cases had been reported since Wednesday. In all, 890 measles cases have been reported across 39 counties so far this year.
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Le Monde @lemonde.fr · 27/09/2026
En Ethiopie, la télévision publique du Tigré frappée par un drone
lemonde.fr
En Ethiopie, la télévision publique du Tigré frappée par un drone
Les autorités fédérales éthiopiennes avaient annoncé le 21 septembre avoir suspendu « pour une durée indéterminée » Tigrai TV et interdit à tout média de relayer ses informations.
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Mike Boylan-Kolchin @mbkplus.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Once again, I gotta say: you cannot treat anything you’re feeding into an AI as anonymous. There are enormous ethics implications for, e.g. referees who are clearly uploading others’ unpublished papers without consent, let alone health care professionals or law enforcement
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Anna Merlan @annamerlan.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
NEW: I came across a bookseller who was afraid that a mysterious company trying to buy some of his rarest books was going to use them to train AI models. I went down the rabbithole with him, and was confused and altogether existentially weirded out by what I found www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
A bookseller confronts a mysterious company hunting his rarest books
Was a Kentucky retailer targeted by a destructive AI "predator"?
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Zecharias Zelalem @zekuzelalem.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
DRONE TARGETS JOURNALISTS These images from the @afp.com show the aftermath of an Ethiopian drone strike today, on the headquarter TV station of the local Tigrai TV network in the Tigrayan city of Mekele, as war rages on. No info on casualties, Tigrai TV has been off air since the attack.
AFP photo showing the destruction caused to the headquarter building of Tigrai TV in the city of MekeleAFP photo showing the destruction caused to the headquarter building of Tigrai TV in the city of Mekele
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Agence France-Presse @afp.com · 27/09/2026
✈️ Un avion de Lufthansa reliant Francfort à Lisbonne a été dérouté samedi soir vers Lyon après qu'une batterie externe (powerbank) appartenant à un passager a pris feu à bord, sans faire de blessés, a appris l'AFP dimanche auprès de la compagnie.
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The New York Times @nytimes.com · 27/09/2026
Two giant pandas, a male named Ping Ping and a female named Fu Shuang, arrived in Atlanta on Sunday, three days President Xi Jinping of China said he’d send “envoys of friendship” to the U.S.
trib.al
Giant Pandas, Icons of China’s Soft Diplomacy, Arrive in Atlanta
A male named Ping Ping and a female named Fu Shuang landed on Sunday, days after China’s leader said he would dispatch “envoys of friendship” to the United States.
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Rima I Anabtawi @rimaanabtawi.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Medicines run short in Iran under US sanctions www.ft.com/content/fb89...
ft.com
Medicines run short in Iran under US sanctions
Washington’s campaign to isolate the Islamic republic has made securing pharmaceuticals increasingly difficult
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Bloomberg News @bloomberg.com · 27/09/2026
Australia's senate requested the heads of OpenAI and Anthropic to appear at an inquiry to answer questions following the country's recent revelation of a hack of a government website.
bloom.bg
Australia Senate Requests OpenAI, Anthropic CEOs Face AI Inquiry
The heads of artificial intelligence firms OpenAI and Anthropic PBC have been called on to appear before an Australian Senate inquiry to answer questions after the recent revelation of a hack of a government website.
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Mark Anthony Neal (@NewBlackMan on X) @markanthonyneal.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Ralph Ellison Trust Donates Rights to Bard College The liberal arts college announced a center dedicated to the “Invisible Man” author, who taught classes there. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/23/a...
nytimes.com
Ralph Ellison Trust Donates Rights to Bard College (Gift Article)
The liberal arts college announced a center dedicated to the “Invisible Man” author, who taught classes there.
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Hugo Lowell @hugolowell.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
TRUMP will meet Anthropic’s Dario Amodei for one on one dinner tonight, per person familiar and confirming Axios
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NOLA.com @nolanews.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
As the film American Amazon reveals, the South's wetlands and wildlife are extraordinary. Narrated by Jon Batiste, it highlights ancient trees, unique species, and the urgent need to protect this fragile ecosystem bit.ly/4xNmjvK
bit.ly
New Orleans native Jon Batiste narrates stunning nature documentary coming to theaters in November
As the film American Amazon reveals, the South's wetlands and wildlife are extraordinary. Narrated by Jon Batiste, it highlights ancient trees, unique species, and the urgent need to protect this fragile ecosystem
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Anne Applebaum @anneapplebaum.wsocial.eu · 26/09/2026
Incredible: another Ukrainian famine is unfolding, this time in Russian-occupied Oleshky. The remaining inhabitants of what used to be a thriving small city, now down to about 6000 people, are blockaded by Russian forces and cut off from food and water. www.bbc.com/news/article...
bbc.com
Oleshky: Eating garden weeds to survive in Russian-occupied city cut off from food and water
The BBC has spoken to residents in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian town of Oleshky who say they are being "constantly shelled".
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Chris Conaton @conatonc.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
A familiar story for anyone who follows @volts.wtf. “The Chronicle spoke to more than half a dozen grid experts…to try to understand why Texas’s notoriously unreliable grid had a remarkably reliable summer. The answer was unanimous: solar panels and batteries.”
houstonchronicle.com
Texas shattered energy demand records this summer. Here's why the grid held up.
Texas repeatedly broke electricity demand records this summer, but ERCOT avoided emergencies as booming solar and battery capacity helped keep the grid stable.
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Amy Maxmen, PhD @amymaxmen.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Six babies born w/measles in PA, a potentially deadly condition. www.nbcnews.com/video/doctor... I spoke with a pediatrician in Utah who pleaded w/parents to give their newborn antibodies - mom had measles. He pushed & pushed & may have spared that baby's life. kffhealthnews.org/public-healt...
kffhealthnews.org
Anguished Parents. Doctors in Tears. Utah’s Long Measles Outbreak Takes a Toll. - KFF Health News
Measles has been spreading in Utah for nearly a year, straining hospitals, schools, and parents. The state’s outbreak provides a glimpse into a new era in America’s health, in which vaccine-preventabl...
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Texas Tribune @texastribune.org · 27/09/2026
When asked why he doesn’t become an independent, U.S. Sen. John Fetterman responded: “Because I’m a lifelong Republican.” After realizing his slip-up, Fetterman laughed and said: “That’ll get clipped.” He then corrected himself and said he's a lifelong Democrat. #TribFest26
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NOLA.com @nolanews.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
So, whatever happened to voodoo queen Marie Laveau’s husband, Jacques Paris? According to old documents, he was a cabinet maker who married 18-year-old Marie in 1819. He appeared in the
bit.ly
Marie Laveau’s husband disappeared 200 years ago, but an LSU student thinks she finally found him
So, whatever happened to voodoo queen Marie Laveau’s husband, Jacques Paris? According to old documents, he was a cabinet maker who married 18-year-old Marie in 1819. He appeared in the
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Donna A. Patterson @profpatterson.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
OpenAI says agents leaked 53 images from ChatGPT users in latest example of rogue activity
theguardian.com
OpenAI says agents leaked 53 images from ChatGPT users in latest example of rogue activity
Disclosure reveals ⁠new area of privacy risk for the company and illustrates ​how difficult it is to inventory unauthorized activity tied to its agents
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Texas Observer @texasobserver.org · 26/09/2026
From @gaigedavila.bsky.social : Time is running out for the Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge, once called a "crown jewel" of protected spaces in the U.S. Can one last lawsuit slow down the border wall until Congress can act?
texasobserver.org
Santa Ana's Last Stand
Congress repeatedly shielded the Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge from the border wall. Now, construction has begun—and an irrigation district lawsuit may be the only option left to buy time for…
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Reposted by Donna A. Patterson
Brian Goldstone @brian-goldstone.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
This story brought me back to Kara, one of the mothers in my book, There Is No Place for Us. She was homeless with her four kids while driving for DoorDash. They had to pee in bottles so bathroom stops wouldn't make her late. After gas, she earned $6.50 an hour—75 cents less than the minimum wage.
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Financial Times @financialtimes.com · 26/09/2026
Foreign capital flows into US stocks hit record as appetite for debt fades ft.trib.al/wWqTaR5
ft.trib.al
Foreign capital flows into US stocks hit record as appetite for debt fades
Overseas purchases of US equities topped $940bn in the year to July, coinciding with strong gains in the S&P 500
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Le Monde @lemonde.fr · 26/09/2026
« Nous n’avons rien, ni endroit sûr ni nourriture » : au Yémen, la situation humanitaire s’aggrave
lemonde.fr
« Nous n’avons rien, ni endroit sûr ni nourriture » : au Yémen, la situation humanitaire s’aggrave
Alors que les combats entre houthistes et forces gouvernementales se poursuivent dans le pays, les ONG se mettent en ordre de bataille pour tenter de venir en aide aux civils, notamment aux plus de 130 000 déplacés.
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Texas Observer @texasobserver.org · 26/09/2026
Our top story: “These plays were speaking to the experiences that we had … and yet it was a universal story that was being told. There were stories that dealt with families, communities, human beings, and all of the dynamics that are rolled into who we are.”
texasobserver.org
Houston's Historic Black Theater at 50
For five decades, the Ensemble has brought Houstonians together to laugh, cry, and talk back to plays representing all aspects of African-American life.
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WIRED @wired.com · 26/09/2026
The Muse app continues Meta’s trend of opting users into data collection for AI training. It also nudges you to share your bank account, email, and passport information.
buff.ly
Meta's Muse Is Better at Surveilling Than Helping Me
The Muse app continues Meta’s trend of opting users into data collection for AI training. It also nudges you to share your bank account, email, and passport information.
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WIRED @wired.com · 25/09/2026
They likely came for silicon—but left with silica. www.wired.com/story/thieve...
wired.com
Thieves Stole ‘Nvidia’ Trailers. They Got 20 Tons of Sand
They likely came for silicon—but left with silica.
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FRANCE 24 @france24.com · 25/09/2026
🔴 Dans un entretien exclusif accordé à #FRANCE24 et RFI en marge de l'Assemblée générale des Nations unies à #NewYork, le président sénégalais Bassirou Diomaye Faye défend la candidature de son prédécesseur Macky Sall au poste de secrétaire général de l'#ONU.
go.france24.com
L'Entretien - Exclusif : sur France 24 et RFI, le président sénégalais Diomaye Faye aborde le prêt du FMI
En marge de l'Assemblée générale de l'ONU à New York, Bassirou Diomaye Faye a accordé un entretien exclusif à France 24 et RFI, qui sera diffusé jeudi à 20 h, heure de Paris. Dans cette interview, le président sénégalais aborde notamment le prêt de 2,2 milliards de dollars négocié avec le Fonds monétaire international.
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Ars Technica @arstechnica.com · 25/09/2026
arstechnica.com
US being left behind in EV charging speeds as China goes sub-5 min to 70%
The new LFP battery charges from 10 to 70% in 4.5 minutes at just 65˚C.
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Dylan Freedman @dylanfreedman.nytimes.com · 25/09/2026
EXCLUSIVE: A new report recovers nearly one million link shortener URLs used by OpenAI's agents while hacking Hugging Face. The agents attempt to message other chatbots like Claude, solve CAPTCHAs and exfiltrate Hugging Face's internal Slack messages. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/25/t...
nytimes.com
How OpenAI’s Rogue A.I. Agents Tried to Trick a Robot Detector (Gift Article)
A new report by a Bay Area start-up called Parse adds new details to an incident that has shocked the A.I. world and led to calls for closer government regulation.
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jessamyn @librarian.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
"Are You A Librarian: The Untold Story of Black Librarians follows the librarians who kept the doors open when the law said they shouldn't-from segregated reading rooms to freedom libraries to the branches serving our communities now" Rentable/streamable 📚 www.historysplayground.com/are-you-a-li...
historysplayground.com
Watch Are You a Librarian | History's Playground
Rent the Are You a Librarian documentary for $3.99 and stream it for 72 hours on History's Playground.
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kate conger @kateconger.com · 25/09/2026
Next week, Google is putting an experimental satellite into orbit that is the first step towards building A.I. data centers in space. This technology is all still very speculative, but tech leaders are increasingly adamant that this is the future of compute. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/24/t...
nytimes.com
Google Is Sending an A.I. Data Center to Outer Space (Gift Article)
Next Thursday, Google is sending an experimental satellite into orbit that will have enough computing power to answer simple A.I. queries from space.
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Uplifting News @upliftingnews.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
A $50 million gift will fund Native student scholarships for the next five years and create a permanent endowment to support Indigenous students for generations.
nativenewsonline.net
A $50 million gift from MacKenzie Scott is being dedicated entirely to Native students, with $10 million funding scholarships over the next five years and $40 million placed in a permanent endowment to support Native students for generations to come.
A $50 million gift from MacKenzie Scott is being dedicated entirely to Native students, with $10 million funding scholarships over the next five years and $40 million placed in a permanent endowment to support Native students for generations to come.
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Le Monde @lemonde.fr · 12/09/2026
Les ports français, porte d’entrée privilégiée du trafic de stupéfiants
lemonde.fr
Les ports français, porte d’entrée privilégiée du trafic de stupéfiants
Un document de l’Office anti-stupéfiants, consulté par « Le Monde », révèle comment la France est devenue un pays stratégique pour l’entrée en Europe de la drogue, en particulier de la cocaïne, et les nouveaux procédés de dissimulation des produits.
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Saeed Jones @theferocity.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
I want us all to become more intolerant to bullies in our daily lives.
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fravery.bsky.social @fravery.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
Asan Ginkgo Tree Road, South Korea
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C.H. Romatowski @chromatowski.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
This Smithsonian magazine piece featuring my friend @julialmv.bsky.social is one of the best popular accounts I’ve read of Long Covid and the current state of science. Highly recommend.
smithsonianmag.com
For Many Americans, Covid Is Still a Chronic, Disabling Disease. These Scientists Are Working Tirelessly to Bring Them Relief
Long Covid saps the strength and vitality of patients, who have little recourse to fight it. A team of specialists—including an afflicted researcher working mostly from her bed—is looking for answers
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The New York Times @nytimes.com · 06/09/2026
A woman was rescued on Saturday from a mostly buried house in Betrawati, Nepal, 10 days after flooding devastated the area. Her recovery was the second improbable rescue of the day. trib.al/W4ihQgE
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The Globe and Mail @theglobeandmail.com · 05/09/2026
theglobeandmail.com
As glaciers melt near mountains, risks multiply and Canada isn’t prepared, scientists warn
The Himalayan disaster that led to flooding in Nepal is a cautionary tale about the climate crisis
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Carl Quintanilla @carlquintanilla.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
".. The foldable iPhone .. could start from $2,099 to $2,299, according to TrendForce estimates, with the top of the line version potentially costing more than $3,000." @scmpnews.bsky.social $AAPL www.scmp.com/tech/big-tec...
scmp.com
Apple poised to unveil most expensive iPhone yet, fuelled by memory price surge
TrendForce says 20 per cent increase is “moderate”, with memory costs for 256-gigabyte iPhone 18 Pro model up nearly 400 per cent in a year.
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