What's up: TikTok fined $600 million in Europe; China needs U.S. auto chips; an eye-scanning crypto project comes to the U.S.

Good morning, CIOs. Strong earnings reports from Amazon and Apple underscore the resilience of the technology sector.

Apple reported its highest March-quarter revenue in three years on Thursday, driven in part by higher iPhone demand

Amazon revenue increased 9% during its first quarter to $155.7 billion, topping analyst expectations. Amazon Web Services saw its quarterly sales grow by almost 17% to $29.3 billion, a strong showing, but slightly below expectations.

Coming a day after Microsoft and Meta Platforms posted positive performances, the results confirm that amid global economic uncertainty, the fundamentals guiding demand for their products and services remain strong.

"Smartphones are now essential to modern life," says Heard on the Street's Dan Gallagher, "as are the internet searches, online commerce, social networking and cloud computing that drive the business models of Apple and its peers."

Adding to this stability, corporate-technology budgets don’t tend to get slashed easily.

Of course, this week's spate of earnings reports reflect the period before the trade war really kicked in. The best (or worst) is yet to come. So far, Big Tech's ability to adapt, as demonstrated by Apple's shift in production to India and Vietnam, suggests more resilience in the face of evolving challenges.

Reddit swings to profit. The social media company said its daily active users climbed 31% to 108.1 million, slightly above analyst expectations of 107.3 million.

Instacart posts higher revenue. The grocery-delivery company logged higher sales in the first quarter, boosted by increased orders, though profit slipped as operating expenses increased.

MicroStrategy loss widens. The bitcoin-buying software company said its loss widened to $4.23 billion compared with a loss of $53.1 million a year earlier. MicroStrategy had said it might not be able to regain profitability in future quarters, especially if it continues to take big losses on its crypto holdings.

Block cuts annual guidance. The parent company of Cash App and Square on Thursday reported a first-quarter revenue fell to $5.77 billion from $5.96 billion a year earlier. Analysts surveyed were looking for $6.19 billion. 

TikTok fined $600 million in Europe over China surveillance risks. The Irish Data Protection Commission, which leads enforcement of the European Union’s privacy law, said Friday that TikTok had failed to demonstrate that any user data it sends to China would be protected from government access under Chinese laws covering things like espionage and cybersecurity.

Trade war exposes China’s dependence on U.S. for auto chips. Texas Instruments and European companies Infineon, NXP and STMicroelectronics as well as Japan’s Renesas have traditionally dominated automotive semiconductors. Beijing has told China’s carmakers that it would like them to ensure at least a quarter of the chips in their vehicles are made in China as of this year.

Sam Altman’s eye-scanning crypto project launches in the U.S. World works as an open-source protocol, according to its website. Users download a wallet app that supports the creation of a digital identity. To get their identity verified, users visit an imaging device that uses sensors “to verify humanness and uniqueness.” As of March, World had verified 11 million people worldwide.

Ukraine's battle drones inspire U.S. Army. The U.S. Army is embarking on its largest overhaul since the end of the Cold War, with plans to equip each of its combat divisions with around 1,000 drones and to shed outmoded weapons and other equipment.

• Carbon-removal credits are one of the few ways companies can decarbonize, but so far demand has remained limited to just a handful of buyers.
• Getting a startup on its feet after a cyberattack can cost a fortune. More often than not, investors get stuck with the bill.
• Tariff uncertainty and geopolitical turbulence have boosted interest in private-credit investment.
• Brands like Mastercard and PepsiCo are shaking up their Pride spending, with some citing political pressure and economic uncertainty.
   

President Trump is expected to propose far-reaching cuts to federal environmental, renewable energy, education and foreign-aid programs. (WSJ)

China said Friday it was weighing starting talks with the U.S. to halt a trade war, but only if Washington shows sincerity through concrete measures such as by canceling tariffs against Beijing. (WSJ)

U.S. delays in billions of dollars of supplemental Medicaid payments have forced some hospitals across the country to cut costs including laying off staff. (WSJ)

The Pentagon inspector general has expanded an investigation into Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s sharing of military plans to a second Signal chat that included his wife and brother. (WSJ)

The WSJ CIO Journal Team is Steven Rosenbush, Isabelle Bousquette and Belle Lin.

The editor, Tom Loftus, can be reached at thomas.loftus@wsj.com.