Tariffs, Tesla and a Twitter Hack: Top Tech News from July 14–15, 2025

Broadcom Backs Out of Spanish Chip Plant Deal (Semiconductors)

U.S. chip giant Broadcom has abruptly scrapped plans to invest in a major microchip factory in Spain, according to local media reuters.com. Talks with the Spanish government broke down for undisclosed reasons, derailing a project once valued at up to $1 billion and touted as “large-scale back-end” semiconductor facilities unique in Europe reuters.com. The reversal is a blow to Spain’s ambitions – backed by €12 billion in EU recovery funds – to become a key player in Europe’s chip supply chain reuters.com. Officials declined to comment on why negotiations failed, leaving uncertainty around Europe’s broader push for tech sovereignty in semiconductors.

Ericsson Beats Forecasts but Warns Tariffs Threaten Margins (Telecom)

Swedish telecom equipment maker Ericsson swung back to profit in Q2 2025, reporting a 7.0 billion kronor adjusted operating profit versus a 6.1 billion forecast reuters.com. Cost cuts and strong North American 5G demand lifted results, but the company cautioned that looming U.S. import tariffs are squeezing its gains reuters.com reuters.com. President Donald Trump has threatened a 30% tariff on EU tech imports starting August, which Ericsson’s CFO Lars Sandström says the firm will try to offset by shifting production – while admitting “we cannot guarantee that we are immune to tariffs” reuters.com. Ericsson’s shares dipped 3% on the news, as investors weighed robust U.S. sales against slower markets like India and the new trade headwinds reuters.com.

Tesla Enters India with Hefty Price Tag on Model Y (Automotive)

After years of lobbying for lower import duties, Tesla has finally opened its first showroom in India – but steep tariffs mean its Model Y will cost around ₹5.8 million ($70,000), far higher than in any other major market reuters.com. The launch in Mumbai marks Tesla’s long-awaited debut in the world’s third-largest car market, albeit targeting a niche luxury segment due to India’s near-100% duty on imported EVs reuters.com. Local officials celebrated the entrance of the U.S. EV maker: “In the future we wish to see R&D and manufacturing done in India, and I’m sure at an appropriate stage Tesla will think about it,” said Devendra Fadnavis, Chief Minister of Maharashtra reuters.com. Tesla’s move into India – with a second showroom planned for Delhi – signals optimism about India’s EV potential, even as CEO Elon Musk continues to push for tariff relief.

Global EV Sales Soar 24% as U.S. Lags (Autos & Energy)

Electric vehicle adoption accelerated worldwide in June. Global EV and plug-in hybrid sales jumped 24% year-on-year, driven by surging demand in China (+28%) and Europe (+23%) reuters.com reuters.com. However, North America saw a 1% decline – and a 9% drop in the U.S. – after an early cutoff of federal EV tax credits under a Trump administration spending bill dampened demand reuters.com. “There’ve been reports of a slowdown in China… but overall we’d expect more subsidies to be available, leading to a big boost in volumes towards the end of the year,” explained Charles Lester of market researcher Rho Motion reuters.com. The data suggests Europe and China’s pro-EV policies and new models are sustaining momentum, while U.S. automakers face headwinds from tariffs (25% on imports) and policy shifts reuters.com reuters.com.

StanChart Dives into Crypto with Institutional Trading Desk (Finance)

London-based banking giant Standard Chartered is making a bold foray into cryptocurrencies, launching spot trading for Bitcoin and Ethereum for its institutional clients reuters.com. The service, offered via StanChart’s UK arm, makes it the first globally systemically important bank to provide regulated, deliverable crypto trading to large investors reuters.com reuters.com. The bank says clients – from corporates to asset managers – can trade digital coins through the same interfaces they use for foreign exchange, with non-deliverable forwards (derivatives) to be added soon reuters.com. “As client demand accelerates… we want to offer a route to transact, trade and manage digital asset risk safely and efficiently within regulatory requirements,” CEO Bill Winters said of the move reuters.com. The step underscores rising institutional interest in crypto, even as regulators worldwide tighten oversight of digital assets.

TomTom Raises Outlook as Auto Maps Drive Growth (Software & Mapping)

Dutch mapping company TomTom lifted its revenue guidance for 2025 after a better-than-expected Q2 driven by its automotive technology business reuters.com reuters.com. Once known for satnav gadgets, TomTom has reinvented itself building high-definition maps for car makers and driver-assistance systems reuters.com. Second-quarter revenue fell 4% to €146 million, but beat forecasts thanks to “the resilience of our customers” in the auto sector, CEO Harold Goddijn noted reuters.com reuters.com. TomTom’s stock jumped as much as 11% on the results. The company recently streamlined operations – including cutting 300 jobs – to speed up product delivery, betting on demand from increasingly connected and autonomous vehicles reuters.com reuters.com.

UK Police Bust Retail Hackers in £300 Million Ransomware Case (Cybersecurity)

British authorities have arrested four young individuals (ages 17 to 20) tied to cyberattacks that crippled several major retailers, including Marks & Spencer, Harrods, and the Co-op reuters.com reuters.com. An April ransomware attack on M&S – a household name in the UK – forced its online shopping offline for 46 days and cost the company an estimated £300 million in lost sales reuters.com reuters.com. The National Crime Agency (NCA) called the arrests “a significant step” in dismantling the hacking group reuters.com reuters.com. Investigators say the suspects may be linked to a loose collective dubbed “DragonForce”, and were detained in coordinated raids in England with their devices seized reuters.com reuters.com. M&S welcomed the crackdown as its chairman urged mandatory reporting of major cyberattacks, amid revelations that other large breaches had gone unreported reuters.com reuters.com.

Sesame Street’s Elmo Has His Twitter Account Hacked (Internet & Media)

In an unusual crossover of kids’ entertainment and cybersecurity, the beloved Sesame Street Muppet Elmo had his official Twitter (X) account hijacked by hackers. Over the weekend, the compromised account spewed a series of vile posts – including calls for violence against Jews and bizarre demands about Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein – before they were deleted reuters.com reuters.com. “Elmo’s X account was briefly compromised by an unknown hacker who posted disgusting messages,” Sesame Workshop said in a statement, adding that the profile has since been secured reuters.com. The incident comes on the heels of criticism of X (formerly Twitter) for lax moderation: just last week, users caught Elon Musk’s new AI chatbot posting antisemitic tropes on the platform reuters.com. Since Musk’s 2022 takeover and cuts to content oversight, hate speech has reportedly risen and some advertisers have fled reuters.com. The Elmo hack – though quickly resolved – underscores ongoing concerns about account security and content safety on the reshaped social network.

Sources: Reuters reuters.com reuters.com reuters.com reuters.com reuters.com reuters.com reuters.com reuters.com reuters.com reuters.com reuters.com reuters.com reuters.com reuters.com reuters.com