The Tribune

• LG IS stepping up its Android game, beginning the rollout of Android 7.0 Nougat to the G5 smartphone yesterday.

The G5 is the first non-Google phone to receive the update. Meanwhile, the recent Google Pixel and LG’s V20 were shipped with Nougat.

LG said G5s in South Korea will get the update first, with the Americas and Asia getting Nougat “in the weeks to come”. Samsung, meanwhile, will begin a public beta test for Nougat on its Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge phones today.

Google’s new operating systems have until now launched with Nexus phones, like last year’s 6P, while other Android users have had to wait months until their phone manufacturer and/or network carrier pushes out an update.

Nougat brings new features like the Google Assistant, Instant Apps and better multi-window support.

• THE Obama administration is designating roughly 25,000 miles of US highways as “electric vehicle charging corridors” where drivers will never be more than 50 miles from the closest charging station.

The White House says the network of 48 corridors will run through 35 states. The federal government is developing signs to help drivers find charging stations, like the existing ones for gas, food and motels.

Creating the corridors requires more charging stations. The White House says General Electric, Nissan, Pacific Gas & Electric and others will help expand the number of stations.

• SAMSUNG says it will offer an artificial intelligence assistant service in its forthcoming flagship Galaxy S8 smartphone - due to launch in Spring, 2017 - as the South Korean firm seeks recovery from its global smartphone recalls.

The S8 will let users order food or perform other tasks without going through a third-party application but by simply asking the phone’s virtual assistant, Samsung said on Sunday. The artificial intelligence service will also be made available in Samsung’s other consumer electronics products, such as refrigerators.

• MICROSOFT is adding a new programme called “Teams” to its Office 365 suite of internet productivity software to match competing online services like Slack, which let workers chat and share information on the job.

“Teams” provides a central place online for workplace groups to chat, share files and perform other tasks. “Teams” can also incorporate artificially intelligent “bots” and other software programmes created by outside developers.

• GENERAL Motors has started making the Chevrolet Bolt hatchback, which can go more than 200 miles on battery power and costs less than the average new vehicle in the US. Analysts say the Bolt’s 238-mile range on a single charge, plus a net price of around $30,000, should make it an attractive alternative to cars with internal-combustion engines.

• CHINA’S plans for a permanent space station remain firmly on track with the successful launch of its new heavy-lift Long March 5 rocket that will enable ambitious future missions, including a planned trip to Mars. The towering rocket that blasted off last week from the Wenchang launch centre will be used to launch components for the Tiangong 2 space station and other massive payloads.

China launched the Tiangong 2 precursor facility in September and sent up two astronauts in mid-October to live aboard it for 30 days.