Applications Software

BETTIAH, India—A beggar in the eastern Indian state of Bihar strolled through a train station one recent weekday, toting a metal pail for cash and a tablet computer with a QR code stuck on the back.Raju Prasad began accepting donations via mobile-payment apps a few months ago. The 42-year-old said his takings have almost doubled to about 300 rupees a day—that is roughly $4, and more than the average daily wage for a farm laborer in Bihar, India’s poorest state. Many travelers now zap over 5 or 10 rupees with a few taps on…

Microsoft Corp. MSFT 1.29% said it would be slowing down some of its hiring, making it the latest tech giant to become more cautious about adding staff. The Redmond, Wash., company said it would be reducing the pace at which it hires people for its software group that develops its Windows, Office and Teams applications. The group had been one of the company’s fastest-growing divisions in recent years. The move is in…

Under the terms of the deal, Broadcom will assume VMware’s $8 billion debt load. Photo: Gabby Jones/Bloomberg News…

Apple Inc. AAPL 0.11% is boosting pay for workers amid rising inflation, a tight labor market and unionization pushes among hourly store employees. The iPhone maker on Wednesday told employees in an email that the company is increasing its overall compensation budget. Starting pay for hourly workers in the U.S. will rise to $22 an hour, or higher based upon the market, a 45% increase from 2018. Starting salaries in the U.S. are also…

Zoom’s revenue growth from online customers has been slowing notably over the last few quarters. Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images…

DAVOS, Switzerland—Fears of an economic downturn have lately gathered steam. Corporate executives at the World Economic Forum here struck a mostly gloomy tone to match.“There is a cycle of mood,” said Alex Karp, chief executive of Palantir Technologies Inc. “You walk around and everyone thinks it’s going to be bad, so it’s going to be bad.” Mr. Karp isn’t alone, but the pessimism he says he’s picking up among other CEOs also isn’t uniform. “It will be…

Zoom Video Communications Inc. ZM -0.46% sales continued to slow as work life returns to normal and the demand for the company’s videoconferencing services winds down. The San Jose, Calif.-based company on Monday said that sales rose 12% in its first quarter, the slowest growth rate on record, and that the top line is expected to rise less than 10% in the current period. While it maintained its sales view for the year,…

A small number of workers at one of Activision ATVI -0.26% Blizzard Inc.’s studios has voted in favor of unionizing with the Communications Workers of America, a first for a major U.S. videogame publisher and another example of new groups organizing amid a labor crunch. Twenty-two quality-assurance testers at the studio—Middleton, Wis.-based Raven—took part in the vote Monday in the face of opposition from Activision management. They…

Broadcom Inc. AVGO -3.10% is in talks to pay around $60 billion for VMware Inc., VMW 24.78% people familiar with the matter said, in what would be one of the biggest takeover deals of the year.The two technology companies are aiming to announce a cash-and-stock deal worth about $140 a share on Thursday, assuming the talks don’t fall apart, the people said. The price wasn’t yet set and could still move around, some of…

GameStop Corp. GME 0.34% launched a digital wallet for cryptocurrencies and nonfungible tokens, pushing further into a buzzy area as it looks to turn around its core videogame business. The company said Monday that the move will allow gamers and others to store, send, receive and use cryptocurrencies and NFTs across decentralized apps without having to leave their web browsers. The Wall Street Journal in January reported…