Major Tech Shifts: Chip Export Bans, Starlink Aid, and Kotlin’s End

Chip Export Bans to Russia

Following the United States' sanctions after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, major semiconductor and IT companies such as Intel, Dell, Lenovo, TSMC, and GlobalFoundries have halted shipments and sales to Russian customers, complying with new export control regulations.

Starlink Support for Ukraine

Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov requested SpaceX CEO Elon Musk to provide Starlink internet service. Musk confirmed that Starlink is now operational in Ukraine, with additional terminals on the way, ensuring continuous connectivity even if Russian forces disrupt ground networks.

Kotlin 1.8 Removes Android Extensions

The Kotlin Android Extensions Gradle plugin, originally introduced in 2017 to offer Synthetics and Parcelize features, is being deprecated due to issues such as global namespace pollution and lack of nullability information. Android View Binding replaces findViewById, and the plugin will be fully removed in Kotlin 1.8, scheduled for release at the end of 2022. Parcelize remains available via the separate kotlin‑parcelize plugin.

Fujitsu Ends Mainframe and Unix Business

Fujitsu announced it will cease sales of its mainframe and Unix server systems, with support continuing for five more years. The company plans to transition customers to cloud‑based services under the Fujitsu Uvance brand, urging existing mainframe users to migrate their applications before the 2035 (mainframe) and 2034 (Unix) end‑of‑life dates.