News of Note—ZTE, SoftBank and Google

Here are some other stories we're following today:

> ZTE launched the HPUE-enabled Blade Force on Boost Mobile for $130. Android Central story

> SoftBank led a $93 million Series B funding round for the AI startup Petuum. VentureBeat report

> Google paid $7.2 billion last year to install apps on smartphones. Android Central article