GM has just unveiled the PUMA (Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility) vehicle today in NY. The car seats up to two people and can travel up to 35 miles per hour and can operate for up to 35 miles per hour before a charge is needed. The unveiling comes today as part of a plan to demonstrate to the Obama camp that GM is a viable company and is developing greener more eco-friendly vehicles, something that people want. Will it take off? You decide.

Microsoft today has just announced Amalga Unified Intelligence System (UIS) 2009. The system can be used to aggregate patient healthcare data from existing systems to make the data easily accessible for both professionals and patients via Microsoft’s HealthVault technology (HealthVault was firstly announced in 2007).

The new version includes many new features, including added plugins and IT tools that will lower the total cost of ownership, according to Microsoft.

Microsoft today also unveiled new prototypes of applications aimed at assimilating health care patient data on Microsoft Surface tables. Thirteen hospitals in the U.S. are currently testing the technology in a live environment.

There are various included applications that allow doctors to easily access records, utilize images and video to help in better explaining information to patients. With the multi-touch technology, more than one person can use the device at the same time. Doctors can easily zoom, change sizes, and rotate photos.

Microsoft Surface also features the ‘vision system’ that can identify objects placed on the surface of the display. As an interesting side note, Sony recently filed for a printer patent that uses similar technology as the Microsoft Surface vision system, where gadgets placed on the surface of the Sony printer are identified, allowing the user to print directly from supported devices.

A new app in Microsoft Surface for health care lets doctors know the number of beds available, the status of pending laboratory results (with alerts), the number of patients arriving and with what type of emergency, among other useful information for emergency physicians. Another app includes a patient scheduling and check-in system.

Developers can also Read the full story

The Canadian government announced plans today to offer GM, Chrysler up to $4 billion in bridge loans to continue operations.

Under the announced plan today, the Canadian government will earmark $1 billion for Chrysler, $250 million of witch will become available immediately, and an additional $500 million by sometime in April. Part of the deal, Chrysler must interest notes equal to 6.67% of the aggregate loan.

GM would receive the remaining $3 billion. Read the full story

GM CEO Rick Wagoner, 56, has just announced he will be stepping down from his post because of pressure from the Obama administration. Wagoner has worked at GM during his entire career, joining GM’s treasury department in 1977 immediately following earning his MBA from Harvard.

GM and Chrysler have already received $17.4 billion in loans since December 2008. GM and Chrysler collectively say they need an additional $21.6 billion in loans just to survive. Ford says it will not require any more government help to wither out the financial crisis.

The news comes as Obama is set to unveil his new round of emergency government bailout loans for the auto sector Monday 11AM EST. Obama says the big three have not yet done enough to restructure.

It is currently unclear as to who will replace Wagoner.

AIG has said today that its financial products division will in fact return $50 million in bonuses amid a public uproar given the U.S. fed has provided the failing company with $170 billion in aid.

15 AIG executives from the financial products’ is set to return $30 million, and the rest of the $50 million coming from other AIG division.

Obama has been widely criticized for the recent bill passed by The House of Representatives who imposed a 90% tax on bonuses aimed at executives who earned more than $250,000 of firms who got more than $5 billion in government aid.

In Q4 2008, AIG posted the largest corporate loss recorded in America, $61.7 billion.

Update: President Obama rejected the claims of replacing the dollar as the global reserve currency. Obama said that the United States is considered “the strongest economy in the world with the most stable political system,” and described the dollar as “extraordinarily strong”.

Zhou Xiaochuan, the governor of the Chinese Central Bank, is calling to replace the dollar as the main global reserve currency, citing the dangers of the current economic crisis on heavily relying on one currency essentially controlled by the west.

Zhou said, “A super-sovereign reserve currency managed by a global institution could be used to both create and control global liquidity.” Read the full story

The Obama administration today unveiled its new plan the “Public-Private Investment Program”, to buy up to $1 trillion in troubled bank securities including mortgage backed securities, subprime mortgages, and other derivatives. Initially, the plan is to buy up to $500 billion worth of these securities, but the plan earmarks up to an additional $500 million. Announced today, the Obama administration said it would provide up to $100 billion before committing more money pending review.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner today said, “Simply hoping for banks to work legacy assets off over time risks prolonging a financial crisis,”

Under the Public Private Investment Program, the government will use taxpayer money to push partnerships with the private investors who will buy the toxic assets. Essentially, the plan is designed to remove the toxic assets sitting on the banks’ balance sheets.

American International Group (AIG), is planning to pay about $165 million in bonuses. Today, President Obama said at the White House he plans to explore every legal avenue to block the payments. Obama said today at the White House, “This is a corporation that finds itself in financial distress due to recklessness and greed…how do they justify this outrage to the taxpayers,”

However, blocking the payments is a very difficult challenge mainly because of existing contracts already in place between AIG and executives. Others argue failing to pay bonuses will drive the best talent to other firms or even out of the market.

AIG lost $40 billion in 2008. The Fed recently provided $173 billion (80% stake) in emergency government loans to AIG

President Obama has just changed legislation that significantly restricts federal funding of human embryonic stem cells research. Obama also pledged to support scientists and professionals who lead the way in research.

President Obama today said at the White House following a strong applause, “As a person of faith, I believe we are called to care for each other and work to ease human suffering. I believe we have been given the capacity and will to pursue this research…and the humanity and conscience to do so responsibly.”

Obama remains strongly committed against human cloning but believes new developments in the field have significant potential to lead to medical cures and breakthroughs.

Obama failed to release provide regulation details, though has given the National Institutes of Health 120 days to draft guidelines.

Today’s promising announcement raised related company stocks. Geron Corp for example was up about 35% following the news.

Obama is calling for a complete overhaul of the U.S. health care system today at the White House. Obama said medical costs are not only posing a threat to the well being of American families, but also “to the very foundation of our economy.” Obama also said the current health care system “could cause 1.5 million Americans to lose their homes,” Obama says it is now time to fix the health care system.

Obama wants to earmark $634 billion in a reserve fund over the next 10-years in an aim to bring universal health care to America, similar to the Canadian health care system which is entirely funded by the Canadian government. France also entirely pays for its health care system.

According to a recent report by Families USA, 46 million Americans do not currently have any health care, and 65% had no health care at some point between 2007-2008.