From Foldable Phones to Moon Missions: The Biggest Tech News Roundup (July 29–30, 2025)
Consumer Electronics & Gadgets: Samsung’s Foldable Push
Samsung Unveils Thinner Foldables: Samsung launched its latest foldable smartphones – the Galaxy Z Fold7 and Galaxy Z Flip7 – touting them as the thinnest, lightest iterations yet. The premium Galaxy Z Fold7 now starts at $1,999 (a 5% hike from last year’s model), while a new cheaper Flip7 FE comes in at $899 reuters.com. Both devices sport slimmer profiles (the Fold7 is 26% thinner and 10% lighter than its predecessor) to address past bulkiness reuters.com. Analysts say the refinements help Samsung fend off growing competition from Chinese rivals in the niche foldables market reuters.com. The company is even teasing a tri-foldable phone by year’s end reuters.com, signaling Samsung’s aggressive roadmap for foldable consumer electronics innovation.
Software & Gaming: Opera Fights Microsoft, Sony Sues Tencent
Opera’s Antitrust Complaint: In software news, Norwegian browser-maker Opera escalated its rivalry with Microsoft by filing an antitrust complaint in Brazil. Opera alleges Microsoft gives its Edge browser an unfair edge by pre-installing it as the default on Windows, hindering competition reuters.com reuters.com. “Microsoft thwarts browser competition on Windows at every turn… and then frustrates users’ ability to download and use alternative browsers,” Opera’s general counsel Aaron McParlan said in a statement reuters.com. Microsoft had no immediate comment on the complaint.
Sony vs. Tencent in Gaming: In the gaming world, Sony Interactive Entertainment is suing China’s tech giant Tencent, accusing it of blatantly ripping off Sony’s hit Horizon video game franchise. Sony’s lawsuit claims Tencent’s upcoming game Light of Motiram is a “slavish clone” of Horizon Zero Dawn – copying gameplay, story themes, and artistic elements so closely that one reviewer dubbed the title “Horizon Zero Originality” reuters.com. Sony is seeking damages and an injunction to block Tencent’s release of the alleged knock-off reuters.com.
Figma’s Frenzied IPO: In tech startup news, design software maker Figma raised its IPO price range and is now eyeing an $18.8 billion valuation amid red-hot investor appetite reuters.com. The listing (set to price Wednesday) could raise about $1.2 billion, inching Figma closer to the $20 billion it was valued at before Adobe’s attempted acquisition reuters.com. Analysts at D.A. Davidson lauded Figma’s strong fundamentals and “dominant market share in the product management space,” calling it “the right company to lead the charge into the public markets” reuters.com. In fact, bankers say the deal is heavily oversubscribed, reflecting Wall Street’s enthusiasm for high-growth software listings even amid broader market jitters.
Chips, Hardware & Earnings: Nvidia Relief and Mixed Results
Nvidia Gets a Green Light: A bit of relief in the semiconductor trade war – U.S. officials allowed Nvidia to resume some chip shipments to China, according to White House economic advisor Kevin Hassett reuters.com. The move lets Nvidia fulfill orders that had been in limbo under export curbs. Shares of the GPU maker ticked up on optimism that a partial reprieve could soften the blow of U.S. chip restrictions on Chinese customers.
Tech Earnings Roundup: A slew of tech companies reported results or forecasts, revealing mixed fortunes in the hardware and tech business sectors:
- Logitech beat quarterly expectations thanks to booming business demand for PC peripherals reuters.com. Enterprise upgrades of webcams and headsets helped offset softer consumer sales.
- Electronic Arts (EA) issued a cautious outlook, forecasting lower-than-expected game bookings as gamers tighten discretionary spending reuters.com. The videogame publisher cited weaker engagement in some franchises.
- Seagate warned of a revenue slump ahead; the hard-drive maker projected next quarter’s sales below estimates and its shares tumbled on the news reuters.com. Slower demand in the PC and cloud markets is weighing on storage hardware sales.
- Capgemini, the French IT consulting giant, trimmed its full-year outlook amid softer client demand reuters.com. The firm noted some caution from corporate customers on big tech projects, echoing a trend of business IT belt-tightening.
Cybersecurity & Data Breaches: Hacks Hit Telecom and Science Sectors
Orange Telecom Cyberattack: A major European telecom fell victim to hackers – Orange S.A., France’s largest telecom operator, disclosed it was hit by an “unspecified cyberattack” that disrupted services for enterprise and public-sector clients techcrunch.com. Orange detected the breach on July 25 and swiftly isolated affected systems, causing some platform outages techcrunch.com. By July 29, the company was working to restore operations and claimed there’s no evidence of customer data theft so far techcrunch.com. Authorities have been notified and Orange filed a complaint as investigators probe the intrusion.
Fermilab & Tea App Breaches: In the U.S., a high-profile research facility and a startup app both suffered cyber incidents. Fermilab, a major government physics lab, was hit by a cyberattack that exploited a vulnerability in Microsoft SharePoint reuters.com. Officials said hackers accessed Fermilab systems via a known SharePoint flaw also implicated in other recent breaches. And in the private sector, a women-focused dating advice app called Tea had to suspend its messaging feature after suffering repeated data breaches reuters.com. The small startup found hackers were exploiting security holes, prompting the app to temporarily shut down chats while patching up its systems.
These cases underscore that no one – from telecom giants to niche apps – is immune from cybersecurity threats, especially as attackers target any vulnerable entry point in widely used software.
Telecom & Social Media: YouTube Ban Down Under, Airbnb Crackdown in Spain
Australia’s Teen Social Media Ban Widens: Australia is taking an unprecedented stand in social media regulation. The government announced it will include YouTube in its first-of-its-kind ban on social networks for minors reuters.com. (The nationwide law, set to take effect in December, will require tech platforms to block users under 18.) This reverses an earlier decision that exempted YouTube on educational grounds. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the change comes after regulators warned of rampant harmful content on YouTube – 37% of surveyed teens reported exposure to harmful videos, the worst rate among platforms reuters.com. “I’m calling time on it… I want Australian parents to know that we have their backs,” Albanese declared, emphasizing the duty to protect kids online reuters.com. YouTube objected, insisting it’s a “library of free, high-quality content… not social media,” and hinted it may fight the designation in court reuters.com. If implemented, the ban will also cover Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and more – a bold experiment closely watched by other countries.
Spain Targets Airbnb’s Illegal Listings: In Spain, regulators scored a win in reining in the short-term rental market. The Consumer Ministry revealed that Airbnb removed 65,000 listings for unlicensed vacation rentals that authorities had flagged as illegal reuters.com. These units did not comply with local tourism registration rules. Spain isn’t stopping there – officials identified another 55,000 listings lacking required license numbers and have ordered Airbnb to take those down as well reuters.com. The crackdown is part of a broader push to control rampant holiday rentals, which critics say drive up housing costs. Airbnb is appealing the government’s action, but the message is clear: Spain is getting serious about enforcing rental laws on tech platforms in the sharing economy.
Biotech & Health Tech: Cancer Drug Breakthroughs and Mega-Deals
Lilly’s Cancer Drug Triumph: There’s promising news on the biotech front. Pharma company Eli Lilly announced that its new blood cancer drug Jaypirca outperformed a rival medication in a head-to-head clinical trial reuters.com. In patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, Jaypirca achieved a higher overall response rate (shrinking or eliminating tumors) than AbbVie’s standard therapy Imbruvica reuters.com. The study met its primary goal of proving Lilly’s drug is at least non-inferior – and early data suggest superior efficacy on some measures reuters.com. While longer-term survival data is still being gathered, Lilly said results are “trending in favor” of Jaypirca’s benefit reuters.com. The positive trial puts Lilly on track to expand use of Jaypirca and could shake up treatment for certain leukemias, a market where AbbVie’s Imbruvica has long dominated.
GSK’s $500 M China Deal: In industry developments, Britain’s GSK struck a major partnership with China’s Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals to co-develop up to 12 new medicines. GSK will pay $500 million upfront for rights to a promising Hengrui drug for chronic lung disease, with options on 11 more experimental therapies reuters.com reuters.com. If all milestones are hit across all programs, Hengrui could earn up to $12 billion in future payments reuters.com – highlighting the deal’s huge scope. “This deal reflects our strategic investment in programs that address validated targets… increasing the likelihood of success,” said GSK’s R&D chief Tony Wood reuters.com. By teaming up, GSK aims to replenish its medicine pipeline (as some older drugs face declining sales) while Hengrui gains a global partner to bring its drugs to market. The tie-up shows how Western and Chinese biotech players are joining forces to accelerate health tech innovation on a global scale.
Automotive Tech & EVs: New Electric SUV and Foxconn’s Big Reveal
Li Auto’s High-Tech SUV: China’s EV market continues to buzz, as rising startup Li Auto launched its first pure electric vehicle – a six-seat Li i8 SUV designed to challenge Tesla. The Li i8, unveiled July 29, is a family-oriented electric SUV that boasts cutting-edge specs. It offers two battery options enabling up to 720 km range (CLTC) on a charge cleantechnica.com, and supports ultra-fast charging that adds ~500 km of range in just 10 minutes cleantechnica.com. Li Auto developed a new high-voltage battery platform and in-house electric drivetrain for the i8, featuring proprietary silicon-carbide power electronics and an advanced cooling system cleantechnica.com cleantechnica.com. Priced in the upper-mid range (¥321,800–¥369,800, roughly $45k–$52k) cleantechnica.com, the i8 is positioned as a premium SUV blending “the all-terrain capabilities of off-road vehicles, the handling of sedans, and the comfort of MPVs,” the company said cleantechnica.com. The timing is noteworthy – Tesla just introduced a 6-seat Model Y variant, so Li Auto clearly aims to steal some thunder in the hotly contested Chinese EV segment cleantechnica.com.
Foxconn’s EV Ambitions: Meanwhile, Foxconn – best known as Apple’s iPhone assembler – is making waves in automotive tech. The Taiwanese manufacturing giant abruptly halted trading of its stock on Tuesday pending a major announcement, and revealed it will hold a joint press conference with TECO Electric & Machinery on July 30 reuters.com. TECO is a top Taiwanese maker of industrial motors, including electric vehicle motors reuters.com. The surprise trading halt and event suggest a significant EV-related venture or partnership is in the works. Foxconn has publicly stated it is actively expanding into electric vehicles and seeking alliances with automakers and suppliers reuters.com. Industry watchers speculate Foxconn could be collaborating with TECO on next-generation EV powertrains or even unveiling a new EV prototype. By leveraging TECO’s motor expertise, Foxconn appears to be accelerating its push to become an OEM/assembler in the electric vehicle supply chain – a move that could shake up the auto manufacturing landscape if successful.
Space Tech & Aerospace: Private Moon Mission and an Aussie Rocket Milestone
Firefly’s Lunar Lander Contract: In space technology news, NASA is further embracing commercial partners for Moon exploration. Texas-based startup Firefly Aerospace announced it has secured a $176.7 million NASA contract to deliver science payloads to the Moon’s south pole by 2029 reuters.com. This mission – Firefly’s Blue Ghost Mission 4 – will use the company’s new Elytra Dark orbital transfer vehicle to carry a Blue Ghost lander loaded with five NASA instruments reuters.com reuters.com. Once on the lunar surface, the lander will deploy two small rovers and experiments to assess resources, radiation, and thermal conditions near the pole – critical data for future human missions reuters.com reuters.com. Notably, Firefly already achieved a successful Moon landing earlier this year (becoming the second private firm to do so) and is even preparing for an IPO reuters.com. NASA’s choice of Firefly – part of the agency’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program – highlights the growing role of startups in deep space exploration. “In a pivotal shift for U.S. space policy, NASA has been increasingly turning to private companies… to accelerate deep space exploration by leveraging commercial efficiency,” Reuters notes reuters.com.
Australia’s Rocket Launch Test: On the other side of the world, Australia took a giant leap in its domestic space capabilities. Queensland-based company Gilmour Space Technologies completed the maiden test launch of Eris, which is Australia’s first homegrown orbital rocket news.satnews.com. The 23-meter, 30-ton Eris rocket blasted off from the new Bowen Orbital Spaceport on July 30 as part of a test flight aiming to reach space. The rocket’s hybrid engine fired and the vehicle cleared the pad – achieving about 14 seconds of powered flight before an anomaly cut the attempt short news.satnews.com. Despite not reaching orbit, the launch is viewed as a major milestone. “Space is hard,” quipped CEO Adam Gilmour, noting that even SpaceX and Rocket Lab needed multiple tries to succeed news.satnews.com. Clearing the tower on the first attempt proved much of Gilmour’s homemade technology works, he said, adding “we’ve learned a tremendous amount that will go directly into improving our next vehicle” news.satnews.com. The team is already incorporating lessons for a second test rocket now in production. With this partial success, Australia moves closer to joining the exclusive club of nations capable of launching orbital rockets – and Gilmour Space has cemented itself as a key player in the country’s nascent space industry.
Sources: Official press releases and leading news outlets have been cited throughout this report, including Reuters reuters.com reuters.com, TechCrunch techcrunch.com, and other authoritative tech publications. Each source is linked inline for verification of facts and quotes. This comprehensive roundup spans consumer tech, software, hardware, cybersecurity, telecom policy, biotech, automotive, and space – capturing the top non-AI tech developments from July 29–30, 2025.
