tech

Project Orbion: Seeing the World Through a Crystal Ball

Published

4 days ago

September 17, 2025

Buzz

Project Orbion: Seeing the World Through a Crystal Ball

There are moments in the history of technology that feel less like innovation and more like the arrival of magic. The first time a human voice traveled across a wire, the first time images flickered across a screen — these were feats that blurred the line between science and sorcery. Today, we stand at the precipice of another.

A coalition of companies led by simulation powerhouse Aechelon Technology is building something that was once the exclusive domain of fantasy: a real-time, all-seeing, perfectly accurate digital twin of our entire planet.

It’s called Project Orbion, and it functions like a technological crystal ball, offering a form of clairvoyance that promises to reshape everything from national defense to disaster relief. This isn’t just an advancement; it’s the closest humanity has ever come to wielding true magic.

Let’s talk technological magic this week. Then we’ll close with my Product of the Week: a dietary supplement that I believe could extend your life and assure your health.

The Alchemy of Synthetic Reality

To understand the spell Project Orbion is casting, one must first understand the concept of “synthetic reality.” Born from the legendary DNA of Silicon Graphics, Aechelon Technology has long been a quiet giant in the world of high-fidelity simulation, particularly for defense clients. It pioneered a discipline that goes far beyond what most of us know as virtual reality.

It’s crucial to distinguish between the different forms of manufactured perception:

Virtual reality (VR) creates a completely computer-generated world, immersing the user in an environment that has no connection to their physical surroundings. It’s best suited for gaming or training in controlled, hypothetical scenarios.

Key Partners Behind Orbion

A magical feat of this magnitude cannot be accomplished by a single sorcerer. Project Orbion is a powerful alliance, an assembly of technological wizards each contributing a unique and vital ingredient to the spell.

At the heart of the project is a constellation of “all-seeing eyes” in the sky. Iceye, a Finnish defense and technology firm, provides a form of scrying that defies the laws of nature. Using a fleet of over 50 satellites equipped with synthetic aperture radar (SAR), they can peer through clouds, dense fog, thick foliage, and the darkest night.

Iceye’s microwave radar pulses paint a startlingly accurate picture of the ground below, and its sophisticated AI can even classify the objects it sees, distinguishing a tank from a truck, for instance.

tech

Survey Finds 30% of iPhone Owners Mulling Move to Rivals’ Foldables

Published

4 days ago

September 17, 2025

Buzz

Survey Finds 30% of iPhone Owners Mulling Move to Rivals’ Foldables

A survey released Monday by a trade-in comparison website found that 30% of iPhone owners are “considering” switching to foldable phones by Apple’s competitors if the company waits until 2026 to launch a foldable of its own.

According to the survey by SellCell, 20.1% of iPhone owners would consider switching to a Samsung foldable and 10.2% to a Google one if Apple waits until next year to introduce its take on the form factor.

The survey of more than 2,000 U.S. iPhone owners also found that 3.3% were waiting for an iPhone foldable before upgrading to their next iPhone.

Nevertheless, the survey suggested a strong upgrade cycle ahead for Apple, with 68.3% of iPhone owners saying they will be buying an iPhone 17, which is expected to be announced next week.

Considering Isn’t Switching
Ross Rubin, the principal analyst with Reticle Research, a consumer technology advisory firm in New York City, pointed out that “considering” switching was a weak measure for measuring loyalty. “There’s a big leap between considering and actually switching,” he told TechNewsWorld.

He also doubted that 30% of iPhone owners would switch because “nowhere near 30% of even high-end Android users are choosing foldables.”

“We don’t see a massive shift from iOS to Android or from iPhones to foldables,” said Francisco Jeronimo, vice president for EMEA devices at IDC, a market research company in Framingham, Mass.

Waiting for Mature Market
Tim Bajarin, president of Creative Strategies, a technology advisory firm in San Jose, Calif., explained that foldable smartphones are a niche market worldwide.

“In 2023, they accounted for approximately 1.4% of the overall smartphone market,” he told TechNewsWorld. “This share is expected to slightly increase to 1.5% in 2024. The market share is projected to exceed 2% only by 2025.”

Current U.S. iPhone model shares show that larger-screen formats like Pro Max and Plus already make up more than a third of sales, according to Consumer Intelligence Research Partners, a market research firm in Chicago.