COMPANY NEWS IN BRIEF
Google buys carbon removal credits from Brazil startup, joining MicrosoftAlphabet's unit Google has agreed for the first time ever to purchase nature-based carbon removal credits from a Brazilian startup, its first engagement with carbon projects in the South American country.
Google will buy 50,000 metric tons of carbon removal credits by 2030 from Mombak, which purchases degraded land from farmers and ranchers or partners with them to replant native species in the Amazon rainforest, the firms said on Thursday.
Google, which had previously bought engineered removal credits, follows fellow U.S. tech giant Microsoft which last year inked a deal to buy up to 1.5 million credits from Mombak.
The Brazilian startup and Google did not reveal terms of the deal. In 2023, when it sold credits to McLaren Racing, Mombak priced them at an average of more than $50 per ton.
"The vote of confidence for us and this sector in general that comes from Google stepping into this is a really positive signal," Mombak's Chief Technology Officer Dan Harburg said in an interview, hoping it would trigger more deals.
Carbon offsets allow companies to make up for greenhouse gas emissions by paying for actions to cut emissions elsewhere to meet corporate climate goals. Each credit represents a reduction of one ton of carbon dioxide emissions.
Critics of carbon offset markets, including Greenpeace, say they allow emitters to keep releasing greenhouse gases.
-REUTERS-
China aircraft lessor orders 50 737 MAX jets, in boost to Boeing
China Development Bank Financial Leasing said its aircraft leasing unit would order 50 Boeing 737 MAX 8 jets, in a boost to the planemaker that has been grappling with a slowdown in Chinese orders and a strike by factory workers.
Publicly disclosed Boeing plane purchases by Chinese customers had slowed significantly since Sino-U.S. trade relations deteriorated in 2018 and the manufacturer dealt with a lengthy return to service for the MAX in China after two deadly crashes.
The order for 50 MAX jets is the largest by a Chinese customer since China Southern Airlines ordered the same number of MAX planes in 2015, according to data from Boeing's website. Boeing declined to comment.
The planemaker's deliveries to China had been gradually recovering in recent months after a lengthy hiatus.
CDB Aviation Lease will take delivery of the planes between 2028 and 2031, its parent said in a statement, adding it would boost the proportion of next-generation aircraft in its fleet.
Alibaba accelerates AI push by releasing new open-source models, text-to-video
Chinese technology company Alibaba released on Thursday new open-source artificial intelligence models and text-to-video AI technology, intensifying its efforts to compete in the booming area of generative AI.
The open-source models, numbering more than 100, come from Alibaba's Qwen 2.5 family, its latest foundational large language model released in May.
Chinese technology companies, like their U.S. counterparts, have been investing heavily in generative AI, with firms racing to develop robust product portfolios and diversified offerings.
While competitors such as Baidu and OpenAI have primarily adopted closed-source approaches, Alibaba has embraced a hybrid model, investing in both proprietary and open-source development to broaden its AI product range.
Its new models range from 0.5 to 72 billion parameters - the variables that determine an AI model's capability and performance - in size, offering proficiency in mathematics, coding, and support for over 29 languages, Alibaba said in a statement.
The models aim to cater to a wide array of AI applications across various sectors including automotive, gaming, and scientific research.
Alibaba on Thursday also unveiled a new text-to-video model as part of its Tongyi Wanxiang image generation family, joining a growing number of Chinese tech firms entering this emerging market.
The move puts Alibaba in direct competition with global players such as OpenAI, which has also shown interest in text-to-video technology.
-REUTERS-
Tupperware files for bankruptcy as its colorful containers lose relevance
Tupperware Brands filed for bankruptcy protection in Delaware late on Tuesday, succumbing to mounting losses due to poor demand for its once popular colorful food storage containers.
Its popularity exploded in the 1950s as women of the post-war generation held "Tupperware parties" at their homes to sell the containers as they sought empowerment and independence.
However, its sales slumped in recent years as the company struggled to place more of its products in retail stores and online sales platforms. Tupperware has historically relied on independent sales representatives to move its products, but that strategy has failed to reach modern consumers, according to the company.
"Nearly everyone now knows what Tupperware is, but fewer people know where to find it," Tupperware Chief Restructuring Officer Brian Fox wrote in a court filing in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. I
Tupperware last month raised doubts about its ability to remain in business after flagging bankruptcy risk several times due to liquidity constraints.
The company has $812 million in debt, much of which was purchased by distressed debt investors at a deep discount in July, according to court filings. Those new lenders had sought to use their debt position to seize Tupperware assets including its intellectual property such as its brand, pushing to the company to seek bankruptcy protection, Tupperware said.
Tupperware has $500 million to $1 billion in estimated assets and $1 billion to $10 billion in estimated liabilities, according to bankruptcy filings. It listed the number of creditors to be between 50,001 and 100,000.
The company had in 2023 finalized an agreement with its lenders to restructure its debt obligations and signed investment bank Moelis & Co to help explore strategic options.
-REUTERS-