COMPANY NEWS IN BRIEF

Ethiopian Airlines ready to transport vaccinesEthiopian Airlines is set to take a lead role in ferrying Covid-19 vaccines around the world and expects demand for the service to last for up to three years, its head of cargo services said on Sunday.Africa's biggest carrier has turned to cargo services to shore up revenue after the onset of the coronavirus crisis last year sent passenger numbers down sharply."We have aircrafts converted from passengers by removing their seats, 16 of them, which are very wide aircrafts converted to transport vaccines," Fitsum Abadi, the managing director of Ethiopian Cargo, told Reuters.He was speaking after an Ethiopian plane landed with the country's first 2.2 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines acquired through the COVAX global vaccine-sharing initiative.Last December, Ethiopian Airlines reached a deal with Cainiao Network, the logistics arm of China's Alibaba Group, to establish an international cold chain from China for the supply of pharmaceuticals, including vaccines. - Nampa/ReutersToyota VC invests in AI start-upsToyota Motor Corp’s first venture capital fund is investing in start-ups that help the Japanese automaker refine everyday processes by bringing sharper supply-chain management and robotics to the factory floor, a fund executive said.The Silicon Valley-based Toyota AI Ventures fund, with US$200 million under management, has so far invested in 36 early-stage start-ups, including self-driving car software firm Nauto, factory video analytics company Drishti and air mobility firm Joby Aviation.Toyota, the world’s largest automaker by vehicle sales, and many car companies such as Volkswagen AG are funnelling money into start-ups to help gain an edge in artificial intelligence as investor interest shifts to self-driving cars.For instance, Toyota, which has dozens of factories around the world, wants to be able to quickly share the lessons learned at one plant across other plants so that efficiencies are maximised, Jim Adler, the founding managing director of the fund, told Reuters in an interview.“If you look at cloud computing, for example, and cloud robotics, and fleet learning, when one robot learns something, the rest of the robots automatically learn that thing,” he said. - Nampa/ReutersMalaysia's AirAsia Group plans air taxiMalaysia’s AirAsia Group Bhd plans to launch an air taxi service and the country’s first drone delivery service as the budget carrier seeks to diversify amid the coronavirus pandemic, the company’s CEO said on Saturday.As part of the group’s diversification push, it also aims to launch a ride-hailing service next month as Covid-19 continues to hit air travel.“The air taxi will have a pilot and four seats. At the moment, we have our team working on this upcoming service by AirAsia,” Chief Executive Tony Fernandes said at the Youth Economic Forum 2021, state news agency Bernama reported on Saturday.He also announced that the airline’s logistics unit Teleport, which is currently testing an urban drone delivery service with state-backed firm Malaysian Global Innovation and Creativity Centre (MaGIC), would conduct its first commercial delivery by the end of this year.The struggling airline, which reported a fifth straight quarterly loss in November, has been seeking to raise 2.5 billion ringgits (US$613.95 million) from loans and investors. - Nampa/ReutersAmerican Air 737 MAX declared an emergency American Airlines Co said on Friday that a Boeing 737 MAX bound for New Jersey’s Newark Liberty International Airport declared an emergency after the captain shut down one engine over a possible mechanical issue.American’s Flight 2555 from Miami with 95 passengers and six crew landed safely at Newark without incident, the airline said.The possible issue was related to an engine oil pressure or volume indicator and not the result of anything related to the MCAS system linked to two fatal 737 MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019 that prompted the plane’s 20-month grounding, it said.Boeing Co said it was aware of the American flight and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it will investigate.American was the first US carrier to resume 737 MAX flights late last year following the FAA’s approval of safety updates by Boeing. - Nampa/ReutersModerna reaches supply deal with Philippines Moderna Inc said on Saturday it has agreed to supply the Philippines government with 13 million doses of its Covid-19 vaccine, with deliveries set to begin in mid-2021.The company will work with regulators to pursue necessary approvals before distribution, it said in a press release.Moderna said it expected to reach a separate deal with the Philippines government and private sector to supply an additional 7 million doses.The deal will boost the supply of Covid-19 vaccines in the Philippines, which on March 1 began its campaign to inoculate 70 million of its 108 million people to achieve herd immunity and reopen an economy that in 2020 saw its worst contraction on record.The Philippines, which is battling one of the worst coronavirus outbreaks in Asia, reported 3 276 confirmed cases on Sunday, the third straight day that the daily figure has remained above 3 000 or levels last seen in October.Its food and drug regulator has so far approved for emergency use Covid-19 vaccines developed by Pfizer Inc and BioNTech SE, AstraZeneca PLC and Sinovac Biotech. - Nampa/Reuters

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