Beginning January 9, the service will introduce a new Kickboxing workout type, a brand-new sleep theme for meditations, a Beyoncé Artist Spotlight, new Time to Walk guests, and three new trainers

Apple Fitness+, the award-winning fitness and wellness service that is welcoming to all, is introducing new ways for users to improve their overall well-being in the new year. Starting Monday, January 9, the service will launch Kickboxing, a new total-body cardio workout type. A brand-new meditation theme, Sleep, will join the nine other themes in the Meditation library, all designed to make users’ practice more impactful than ever before. To help them get started, a new program called Introduction to Meditations for Sleep — designed to help users wind down before bed and drift off to sleep — will launch.

Additionally, Artist Spotlight will launch new workouts featuring music by Beyoncé, including songs from her latest album, RENAISSANCE, bringing her iconic music to the service. Time to Walk will kick off its fifth season with new guests, including Golden Globe-nominated actor Jamie Lee Curtis, late-night talk show host Amber Ruffin, Olympic champion figure skater Nathan Chen, and German actor Nina Hoss. Fitness+ will also launch two new Collections — 6 Weeks to Restart Your Fitness and Level Up Your Core Training — as well as welcome three new trainers to the team.

“No matter where people are on their health and well-being journey, Fitness+ makes it easy to get started and stay motivated with workouts and meditations that are welcoming to all,” said Jay Blahnik, Apple’s vice president of Fitness Technologies. “Whether people want to boost their cardio with the newest workout type, Kickboxing; move to Beyoncé’s latest hits; or wind down before bed with a meditation, there really is something for everyone to take care of their body and mind in the new year.”

Kickboxing and New Trainers

Kickboxing workouts can help build full-body fitness, and are a great way to build strength, stamina, coordination, and balance. Starting January 9, Fitness+ will add Kickboxing as a new total-body cardio workout type. Each workout will consist of a distinct round of moves followed by one final round, which will combine the moves users just learned into an all-out one-minute interval. No equipment is required, and workouts will be 10, 20, or 30 minutes long.

Kickboxing will be led by two Fitness+ trainers. Jamie-Ray Hartshorne, who users know and love from Treadmill, HIIT, and Time to Run workouts, trained in muay thai and professionally competed in Thailand.

Additionally, Nez Dally will join the trainer team to lead Kickboxing workouts. The muay thai fighter made history when she became the first woman to compete in Thailand wearing a hijab. In her workouts, she brings the drive of a high-achieving athlete to empower users with every jab, cross, and kick.

In addition to Dally, two more new trainers will join the Fitness+ trainer team in January: Brian Cochrane for HIIT and Jenn Lau for Strength. Cochrane, who hails from Scotland, grew up playing a variety of sports, making his HIIT training a versatile practice. As a former singer in an indie band, he continues to be inspired by the way music and movement come together.

Lau co-founded a gym in her hometown of Toronto, and she is just as passionate about inclusivity as she is about helping people stay active. She brings tenacity and playfulness to every lift and lunge she teaches.

• Fitness+ trainer Jenn Lau is shown.
• Fitness+ trainer Brian Cochrane is shown.

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Introducing Sleep Meditation

Meditation on Fitness+ is designed to help users release tension and anxiety. A brand-new Meditation theme, Sleep, will be added to the Meditation library, joining the nine other themes, including Calm, Gratitude, Resilience, and Creativity. The robust library is designed to make the practice of meditation more powerful and useful than ever before. New sleep meditations will be added every week, and each practice can be done as part of a wind-down routine or while drifting off.

To help users get started with sleep meditations, a new program, Introduction to Meditations for Sleep, will launch. The program consists of four 20-minute meditations that conclude with five minutes of relaxing music. The meditations — which can be done in any order at any time, each using different techniques to help users slow down and rest — include “Quiet Your Mind,” “Relax Your Body,” “Appreciate Your Day,” and “Visualize Rest.”

Artist Spotlight with Beyoncé

The Artist Spotlight series — which dedicates an entire workout playlist to a single artist — expands with new workouts featuring music by Beyoncé, including songs from her latest album, RENAISSANCE, bringing her iconic music to the service. On Monday, January 9, seven new workouts featuring the singer’s music will be available across Cycling, Dance, HIIT, Pilates, Strength, Treadmill, and Yoga. The energy and themes in each workout are inspired by the album’s notion of rediscovering what makes individuals unique and powerful to help uplift users in the new year.

Fitness+ will also roll out two additional Artist Spotlight offerings: the Foo Fighters on Monday, January 16, and Bad Bunny on Monday, January 23.

• Beyoncé’s Artist Spotlight is shown in Fitness+.
• The Foo Fighters’ Artist Spotlight is shown in Fitness+.
• Bad Bunny’s Artist Spotlight is shown in Fitness+.

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Time to Walk

Fitness+ will introduce new episodes of Time to Walk, beginning with acclaimed actor Jamie Lee Curtis. Time to Walk — an inspiring audio experience on iPhone and Apple Watch, designed to help people walk more often — features some of the world’s most interesting and influential people, who share stories, photos, and music with Fitness+ users. Curtis — a producer, bestselling author, activist, and philanthropist — was most recently nominated for a Golden Globe for her role in the film Everything Everywhere All at Once. On this walk, Curtis reflects on the importance of embracing life’s most unexpected moments, the transformative power of serving others in need, and how the death of a beloved public figure led her to a daily ritual of self-reflection.

As the series kicks off its fifth season, new guests will be added each week, including:

• Amber Ruffin, host of the late-night talk show The Amber Ruffin Show and co-author of the New York Times bestseller You’ll Never Believe What Happened to Lacey: Crazy Stories about Racism.
• Jason Segel, the actor, producer, comedian, and screenwriter best known for his role as Marshall Eriksen in the sitcom How I Met Your Mother, who stars in the upcoming Apple Original comedy Shrinking.
• José Andrés, Spanish chef and founder of the World Central Kitchen, a nonprofit devoted to providing meals in the wake of natural disasters.
• Nina Hoss, one of Germany’s biggest stars of the stage and screen, known for her role in the critically acclaimed film Tár.
• Colman Domingo, the actor, writer, and director who gained acclaim and a Tony Award nomination for his performance as Mr. Bones in the Broadway musical The Scottsboro Boys and won an Emmy for his role in Euphoria.
• Nathan Chen, US figure skater, three-time world champion, and 2022 Olympic champion.
• Sheryl Lee Ralph, the actor and singer who most recently won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her role in Abbott Elementary.

Collections

Additionally, Fitness+ will introduce two new Collections, curated content from the Fitness+ library to help users go after their goals or find inspiration:

• 6 Weeks to Restart Your Fitness, designed to motivate users to build a new habit by working out every day, featuring a perfect blend of workouts to help users onramp back into fitness. Available January 9. 
• Level Up Your Core Training, featuring 10- and 20-minute core workouts taken to the next level with the use of dumbbells. Available January 23.

Pricing and Availability

• Apple Fitness+ is available as a subscription service for AED 36.99 per month or AED 149.99 per year, and can be shared with up to five other family members. 
• Fitness+ is included in the Apple One Premier plan, which, where available, also gives customers access to Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, Apple News+, and iCloud+ with 2TB of storage, and can be shared with up to five other family members.
• Fitness+ is available in Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, France, Germany, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Portugal, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Switzerland, the UAE, the UK, and the US. 
• Three months of Apple Fitness+ are included for customers who purchase Apple Watch Series 4 or later, iPhone 11 or later, iPad (9th generation) or later, iPad Air (5th generation) or later, iPad mini (6th generation) or later, iPad Pro 11-inch (3rd generation) or later, iPad Pro 12.9-inch (5th generation) or later, Apple TV HD, or Apple TV 4K (2nd generation). One month of Fitness+ is included for all other new subscribers.
• Fitness+ can be shared with up to five other family members for the same price, making it easy for users in the same household to enjoy the service. 
• Apple Fitness+ requires iPhone 8 or later with iOS 16.1, or Apple Watch Series 3 or later with watchOS 7.2 or later paired with iPhone 6s or later with iOS 14.3 or later.
• To get the newest features, users must make sure their devices are running the latest software version.
• All Time to Walk and Time to Run episodes are available in the Fitness app on iPhone with a Fitness+ subscription. Users can also enjoy the episodes with just their Apple Watch paired with AirPods or other Bluetooth-enabled headphones.
• Starting this month, SilverSneakers, the nation’s leading fitness program for older adults, will offer members a Fitness+ subscription at no additional cost through select Medicare Advantage plans.

Abu Dhabi, 02 January 2023: Wio Bank, the region’s first platform bank, is partnering with First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB), the UAE’s largest bank and one of the world’s largest and safest financial institutions, to offer its Wio Business customers cash and cheque facilities through FAB’s established ATM and CDM network.

As a platform bank, Wio Bank offers a suite of highly targeted digital-first solutions and has a strong focus on meeting the needs of growing start-ups and SMEs. Through its partnership with FAB, Wio Bank is enhancing the tools available to business owners, connecting seamless and secure digital banking solutions with essential cash and cheque deposits, as well as cash withdrawals services, using FAB’s regulated physical infrastructure.

The Wio Business app has been integrated with the FABePay portal to enable users to initiate cash or cheque deposits in a simple and convenient manner directly in the app, providing a unique reference number to be used on every deposit transaction. The code can then be used at any FAB cash deposit machine (CDM) using the ‘Wio deposit’ service to complete the transaction. Information used to generate the reference number is automatically matched with the deposit, ensuring a safe and secure transaction.

Sanjay Sethi, Head of Global Transaction Banking, FAB, said: “FAB believes in the transformative power of technology to deliver a simpler, more convenient and smarter experience for customers, while also meeting specialised banking needs. We’re delighted to partner with Wio Bank to offer a convenient and seamless solution for cash and cheque deposits. Wio Bank has brought a new and innovative approach to banking, and we look forward to working together to support its growth.”

Jamal Al Awadhi, Chief Operating & Experience Officer, Wio Bank, said: “This is a milestone collaboration in our journey towards strengthening our product and service suite under the Wio Business umbrella. As one of the key shareholders of Wio, FAB helps provide Wio customers the benefit of utilitising their wide scale of reach and operations in the UAE. We are very grateful to be partnering with FAB to enhance our service offering and deliver on our promise to bring easy and simplified banking solutions to our customers.”

Wio Bank officially launched in September by offering three key capabilities, namely Digital Banking apps, Embedded Finance and Banking-as-a-Service solutions. Wio Bank’s first digital banking application Wio Business is designed to provide start-ups, freelancers, and SMEs with access to banking services seamlessly, while giving them the opportunity to move forward with innovative beyond-banking services.

15 billion earmarked for landmark decarbonization projects by 2030 including carbon capture, electrification, new CO2 absorption technology and enhanced investments in hydrogen and renewables

Multi-year action plan follows Board approval of ADNOC’s Net Zero by 2050 ambition, and builds on its strong track record in responsible energy production

ADNOC invites global technology and industry leaders to work in partnership and drive real action to embrace the energy transition as it continues to future proof its business 

Strategic program is a key enabler of ADNOC’s Net Zero by 2050 ambition and goal to reduce carbon intensity by 25% by 2030 

Abu Dhabi, UAE – January 5, 2023: ADNOC, a reliable and responsible provider of lower-carbon intensity energy, today announced a bold new strategy to progress the world-scale decarbonization of its operations. 

The announcement follows the guidance by ADNOC’s Board of Directors in November 2022 to accelerate delivery of its low-carbon growth strategy and the approval of its Net Zero by 2050 ambition. This builds on ADNOC’s strong track record as a leading lower-carbon intensity energy producer, which includes its use of zero carbon grid power, a commitment to zero flaring as part of routine operations and deployment of the region’s first carbon capture project at-scale.

Acting on the Board’s guidance, ADNOC has allocated $15 billion (AED55 billion) to advance an array of projects across its diversified value chain by 2030. These projects will include investments in clean power, carbon capture and storage (CCS), further electrification of its operations, energy efficiency and new measures to build on ADNOC’s long-standing policy of zero routine gas flaring. ADNOC will apply a rigorous commerical and sustainability assessment to ensure that each project delivers lasting tangible impact. 

Throughout 2023, a suite of new projects and initiatives will be announced, including a first-of-its-kind CCS project, innovative carbon removal technologies, investment in new, cleaner energy solutions and strengthening of international partnerships. Together with the recent formation of the ADNOC’s new Low Carbon Solutions and International Growth Directorate, these represent tangible and concrete action as the company reduces its carbon intensity by 25% by 2030 and moves towards its Net Zero by 2050 ambition. 

His Excellency Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and ADNOC Managing Director and Group CEO, said: “Under the directives of the UAE’s wise leadership and the ADNOC Board of Directors, ADNOC continues to take significant steps to make today’s energy cleaner while investing in the clean energies and new technologies of tomorrow. Now, more than ever, the world needs a practical and responsible approach to the energy transition that is both pro-growth and pro-climate, and ADNOC is delivering tangible actions in support of both these goals.  

“Cementing our strong track record of responsible and reliable energy production, ADNOC will fast-track significant investments into landmark clean energy, low-carbon and decarbonization technology projects. As we continue to future-proof our business, we invite technology and industry leaders to partner with us, to collectively drive real and meaningful action that embraces the energy transition. This strategic, multi-billion-dollar initiative underscores ADNOC’s industry leadership as a leading global provider of lower-carbon energy.”

Building on ADNOC’s Al Reyadah facility, which has the capacity to capture up to 800,000 tons of CO2 per year, the company will announce plans to deploy technologies to capture, store and absorb CO2 by leveraging the UAE’s geological properties while preparing for its next major investment to capture emissions from its Habshan gas processing facility. Combined with ADNOC’s planned expansion of its carbon capture capacity to 5 million tons per annum (mtpa) by 2030, the UAE will be firmly established as a worldwide hub for carbon capture expertise and innovation. 

ADNOC’s expansion of CCS is planned to support the significant scale-up of hydrogen and lower-carbon ammonia production capabilities in Abu Dhabi as ADNOC advances a world-scale 1 million tons per annum (mtpa) blue ammonia production facility at TA’ZIZ, the industrial services and logistics ecosystem that is enabling the expansion of the Al Ruways Industrial City, as well as Abu Dhabi’s wider chemicals, manufacturing and industrial sectors. To-date, ADNOC has already delivered test cargoes of low-carbon ammonia to Europe and Asia. 

ADNOC’s expansion of its new energy portfolio will largely be delivered through its stake in Masdar, the UAE’s clean energy powerhouse with over 20 gigawatts (GW) of clean energy today and plans to increase its capacity to 100 GW by 2030. Masdar is also spearheading the UAE’s drive to develop a leading position in green hydrogen.  

Since January 2022, ADNOC has received 100% of its grid power supply from Emirates Water and Electricity Company’s (EWEC) nuclear and solar energy sources, making it the first major company in the industry to decarbonize its power at scale through a clean power agreement of this kind. ADNOC also concluded a $3.8 billion deal to build a first-of-its-kind, sub-sea transmission network in the MENA region, connecting ADNOC’s offshore operations to the onshore power network, with the potential to reduce ADNOC’s offshore carbon footprint by up to 50%.

Building on the multi-billion capital investment in decarbonization projects, ADNOC is working closely with its international partners and stakeholders across the energy value chain to collaborate on technology, best practices and policy to support and drive global decarbonization efforts.