Techmeme River
Techmeme River
Tuesday, April 7, 2020
9:20 PM
In a small experiment, Facebook approved seven scheduled ads with content that violated company rules about COVID-19, indicating flaws in automated ad screening
Consumer Reports
9:10 PM
Toast, a cloud-based restaurant management software provider, cuts ~50% of its staff after raising $400M at a $4.9B valuation in February
TechCrunch
8:45 PM
Inside the global efforts to build a privacy-conscious COVID-19 tracking app, with experts contributing from the US, UK, Australia, Switzerland, and elsewhere
NBC News
8:10 PM
Amazon to suspend Amazon Shipping, its delivery service for Amazon Marketplace sellers that was being beta-tested in some US cities, with last pickups on June 5
Business Insider
7:35 PM
Corporate catering marketplace ezCater, valued at $1.25B last year, lays off more than half of its 750-person workforce
Axios
7:05 PM
Tyto Care, a NYC-based telehealth startup that sells an in-home kit to help doctors remotely diagnose patients, raises $50M in round led by Insight Partners
VentureBeat
6:40 PM
Profile of Min-Liang Tan, the co-founder and CEO of global gaming giant Razer, one of the few companies managing to thrive in the disrupted business landscape
CNBC
5:15 PM
Professional video game streamers, already used to isolation, are seeing increased viewership on Twitch and other platforms as COVID-19 forces people inside
New York Times
4:18 PM
Jack Dorsey says he's moving $1B of his Square equity, ~28% of his wealth, to Startsmall LLC to fund COVID-19 relief, to later focus on girls' health, education
@jack
3:40 PM
Netflix now lets parents remove specific titles and filter shows out based on their ratings, in both the designated kids portal and the general section
The Verge
3:00 PM
Payments processor used by governments in AR and OK to collect court fines and utility payments left years of transactions exposed, now shared on a hacker forum
TechCrunch
2:35 PM
Amazon's self-publishing arm gives white supremacists and neo-Nazis, often banned from other platforms, unprecedented access to a mainstream audience
ProPublica
2:30 PM
Mobile website builder Universe raises $10M Series A from GV as it moves into commerce and looks to compete with Shopify
TechCrunch
2:10 PM
Facebook's experimental product unit debuts Tuned, an iOS app creating a “private space” for couples, letting them keep a photo diary, exchange notes, and more
The Verge
1:50 PM
Shippo, a shipping software and services startup, raises $30M Series C led by D1 Capital Partners, bringing its total raised to ~$60M
TechCrunch
1:20 PM
Facebook Gaming launches Tournaments, a tool for organizing amateur esports tournaments, ahead of schedule due to the pandemic
VentureBeat
12:45 PM
UN says China was the biggest source of applications for international patents last year, with Huawei its biggest filer, pushing US out of long-held top spot
Reuters
12:35 PM
Firefox 75 comes with a revamped address bar designed to make searches faster and a few performance tweaks
VentureBeat
12:25 PM
SoFi says it's acquiring Galileo, a Utah-based financial services API and payments platform, in $1.2B cash and stock deal; sources say Accel's return is 4x
Crunchbase News
12:20 PM
Book excerpt: Apple's Information Systems & Technology group, which makes internal tools, operates in tumult, hampering its output and alienating contractors
BuzzFeed News
12:15 PM
Pinterest adds Shop tabs connected to in-stock inventory, style guides, and more, and says user engagement with Shopping on Pinterest has grown by 44% YoY
TechCrunch
12:10 PM
Cato Networks, which offers a cloud-based security service that protects remote workforces, raises $77M led by Lightspeed Venture Partners
VentureBeat
12:00 PM
WeWork sues SoftBank over alleged breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty, a few days after SoftBank said it would not consummate its $3B tender offer
TechCrunch
11:20 AM
Book excerpt from Sarah Frier's No Filter covers how Mark Zuckerberg's jealousy held back Instagram and drove off founders, who gradually lost independence
Bloomberg
11:10 AM
Sensor Tower: Quibi had more than 300,000 downloads on its launch day; heavily promoted in Apple's App Store, it reached #3 but just #29 on Google Play
TechCrunch
10:50 AM
Microsoft buys corp.com, a domain that receives sensitive info from misconfigured Windows PCs, for an undisclosed sum to keep it out of the hands of bad actors
Krebs on Security
10:35 AM
CyberMDX, which sells software to improve cybersecurity for medical devices and hospital networks, raises $20M led by European insurance provider Sham
TechCrunch
10:20 AM
Intel pledges $50M to fight the coronavirus pandemic, focusing on accelerating access to technology for patient care, scientific research, and online learning
VentureBeat
10:00 AM
Podium, whose software service provides messaging tools for small business raises $125M Series C led by Y Combinator's Continuity fund, valuing it at ~$1.5B
TechCrunch
9:45 AM
CircleCI, which creates tools for automated app testing and deployment, raises $100M Series E co-led by IVP and Sapphire Ventures
VentureBeat
9:30 AM
Source: the 2020 iPad Pros do not have a U1 Ultra Wideband chip
Daring Fireball
9:15 AM
Glassbox, which provides automated tools to optimize web and mobile apps, raises $40M Series C led by Brighton Park Capital, bringing its total raised to $70M
VentureBeat
8:50 AM
Facebook says it will actively remove false claims that link COVID-19 to 5G and could lead to physical harm, but leaves its policy on other 5G theories unclear
The Guardian
8:25 AM
Bringg, which operates a delivery logistics service used by Walmart and others, raises $30M Series D led by Viola Growth, bringing its total raised to $83M
TechCrunch
8:05 AM
The EU is leading the way on AI regulation, but some of the controls it's considering could hinder companies, including those helping to fight the pandemic
Bloomberg
7:50 AM
Kurly, which operates a grocery delivery service in Korea, raises $150M Series E, months after reports claimed the company may be heading for an acquisition
TechCrunch
7:35 AM
Microsoft expands xCloud beta registration to 11 European countries, rolling out the preview gradually to avoid overloading the internet
The Verge
7:15 AM
Italian email service Email.it confirms breach; hackers claim they have data of 600K+ users, including plaintext passwords, and are selling it on the dark web
ZDNet
7:00 AM
Some teachers in the US say under 50% of their pupils participate in online learning; absence rate seems higher in low-income households, marking digital divide
New York Times
6:15 AM
How US health officials have been tracking pandemics since early 2000s via syndromic surveillance using AWS-hosted federal databases of aggregated hospital data
CNBC
5:30 AM
Trump signs an executive order to formalize a committee for evaluating national security concerns that could stem from foreign ownership of US telecom assets
TechCrunch
4:35 AM
WhatsApp now limits forwarding of viral messages, forwarded five or more times, to one group at a time, to fight the spread of misinformation
The Guardian
2:50 AM
A look at Airbnb's challenges amid the pandemic crisis, as global bookings fall and prospects for the travel accommodation industry turn murky
CityLab
1:20 AM
Facebook's automated systems threatened to block some volunteer DIY face mask efforts; Facebook says it was in error and is working to resolve the issue
New York Times
Monday, April 6, 2020
11:25 PM
Montreal-based WorkJam, which makes software that helps companies manage their frontline “non-desk” workers, raises $50M Series C led by Inovia Capital
BetaKit
10:35 PM
Interview with Masayoshi Son on WeWork and the role of the Vision Fund within SoftBank; he expects 15 companies in the Vision Fund portfolio to go bankrupt
Forbes
10:30 PM
Inside two weeks of turmoil at SoftBank, as Masayoshi Son was forced to take drastic action, including share buybacks, to shore up confidence in his tech empire
Financial Times
9:35 PM
GoDaddy is acquiring Neustar's domain name registry services business and renaming it GoDaddy Registry; Neustar has about 12M domains
Domain Name Wire
9:20 PM
Samsung forecasts Q1 2020 operating profit of $5.2B, up 2.7% YoY, beating analyst estimates, and consolidated sales of ~$44B; stock is up 3%+
CNBC
8:55 PM
Supervised autonomous shuttles from Beep are being used to transport COVID-19 tests to the Mayo Clinic's processing location in Jacksonville, Florida
The Verge
8:00 PM
Uber says its app will list job openings in delivery, food production, and grocery industries that its US drivers can access, amid slump in ride-hailing demand
Reuters
7:30 PM
Microsoft hires former Apple exec Ruben Caballero to work on mixed reality hardware and AI; Caballero was in charge of wireless technologies at Apple
Bloomberg
7:05 PM
Google updates Pixel 4 to require open eyes to use the phone's face unlock feature by default, with the option to disable it
The Verge
5:55 PM
Google launches its Local Home SDK out of preview, to enhance smart home integration with Google Assistant by routing commands through local networks
VentureBeat
5:10 PM
SonderMind, a marketplace to find mental health services, raises $27M as demand grows during the pandemic
TechCrunch
4:10 PM
Airbnb raises $1B in debt and equity from Silver Lake and Sixth Street Partners; source: the funding doesn't depend on its performance or a target date for IPO
CNBC
3:30 PM
Facebook says it's releasing new Data for Good tools, including Disease Prevention Maps, to help public health researchers track social distancing efforts
CNBC
3:05 PM
Interviews with over 30 sources highlight Amazon's struggle to combat COVID-19, under pressure as orders rise, as the virus spreads to more than 50 warehouses
New York Times
2:45 PM
A look at law firm Keller Lenkner and startup FairShake, which file arbitration lawsuits against companies en masse, including 2K+ against DoorDash in one day
New York Times
2:37 PM
Foursquare says it's merging with location data company Factual in an all-stock deal; the two companies say they brought in $150M+ in combined 2019 revenue
Wall Street Journal
12:05 PM
IBM names former Bank of America CTO Howard Boville as head of its cloud business, as Arvind Krishna takes over from long-time CEO Ginni Rometty
Reuters
11:45 AM
Foxconn reports ~$11.51B in March revenue, down 7.7% YoY, as January to March revenue dropped 12% YoY to ~$30.74B amid the COVID-19 pandemic
Reuters
10:45 AM
Interview with Atlassian co-CEO Scott Farquhar on bug-tracking tool Jira, the ongoing evolution of enterprise software, and future of the company
Protocol
10:25 AM
London-based Privitar, which aims to help companies utilize big data without compromising privacy, raises $80M Series C led by Warburg Pincus
VentureBeat
10:00 AM
Pure Harvest Smart Farms, which is developing tech-powered greenhouses in the Middle East, raises $20.6M Series A and says it has $100M committed from Kuwait
TechCrunch
9:50 AM
PsiQuantum, which aims to build a commercial quantum computing machine with 1M qubits, raises $215M from Microsoft, Playground Global, and others
Bloomberg
9:30 AM
Sources: EU is focusing the next stage of its Facebook competition probe on whether it is distorting the classified ads market by promoting Marketplace
Financial Times
9:10 AM
After being put on the US trade blacklist, sources say Megvii Technology's revenue grew just 2.7% in H2 2019 after more than tripling sales in the H1 2019
Bloomberg
8:55 AM
Faith leaders across the US have turned to virtual tools, through which they offer individual counseling and stream services, homilies, and text studies
BuzzFeed News
8:30 AM
Researchers: Google searches about symptoms, like loss of smell, can help find places where positive COVID-19 cases were missed and reveal undetected symptoms
New York Times
8:15 AM
Samsung Galaxy Chromebook review: excellent keyboard, beautiful display, thin and light design, and fast performance, but it's pricey and has poor battery life
Engadget
7:50 AM
Uber partners with Flipkart and BigBasket in India to deliver groceries and other essential items in Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Delhi
The Hindu
7:30 AM
Q&A with Javier Soltero, Acompli co-founder and ex-head of Microsoft Office products, on his present role as VP and GM of G Suite, the future of email, and more
Protocol
5:55 AM
Yapily, which offers an API to let enterprises connect to banks offering open banking services, raises $13M Series A led by Lakestar
TechCrunch
2:55 AM
A look at how big tech companies and startups are helping governments around the world tackle COVID-19, with chatbots, supercomputers, hackathons, and more
ZDNet
12:55 AM
Quibi app review: works reliably, auto-flips between landscape and portrait, but no tablet-optimized mode, no family member profiles, and lacks a TV experience
The Verge
12:40 AM
Founder Jeffery Katzenberg and CEO Meg Whitman face challenges as Quibi short-video streaming service launches with $1.8B in funding amid the COVID-19 pandemic
New York Times
Sunday, April 5, 2020
10:50 PM
PwC report: the total number of crypto M&A deals dropped from 189 in 2018 to 114 last year, while the value of M&A deals dropped from $1.89B to $451M
CoinDesk
10:25 PM
Execs at US digital banks say European challengers, like N26, are underestimating the hurdles they will face in the US, like regulation and cultural differences
Protocol
8:10 PM
UK High Court judge says Google will either need to let an SEO expert inspect its ranking algorithms or withdraw evidence from its long-running competition case
The Register
7:35 PM
Twice this week, traffic to 200+ of the world's largest CDNs and cloud hosts was redirected through Russia's telco Rostelecom in likely BGP hijacking attacks
ZDNet
7:20 PM
Skype no longer requires video call participants to have an account or to download software, letting users join a call via a link, similar to Zoom
9to5Mac
6:45 PM
Tim Cook says Apple has now sourced 20M+ masks for healthcare workers from its supply chain and has designed and will ship face shields at a rate of 1M/week
9to5Mac
6:30 PM
Report: the live streaming e-commerce market in China saw more than $61B in transactions in 2019 and is expected to double this year due to the pandemic
Abacus
6:05 PM
Huawei joins the Open Invention Network, the leading US-based patent non-aggression group covering Linux and related open-source tech
ZDNet
5:20 PM
Bengaluru-based digital payments startup JusPay raises $21.6M Series B led by Vostok Emerging Finance
Inc42 Media
4:20 PM
YouTube says it will remove content spreading conspiracy theories linking 5G and coronavirus, but will leave content that is simply conspiratorial about 5G
The Guardian
2:05 PM
NetMarketShare: Microsoft Edge becomes the second most popular desktop browser for the first time, with a market share of 7.59%, beating Mozilla Firefox's 7.19%
BleepingComputer
11:50 AM
After some UK cell towers were set on fire, the government will meet Facebook, YouTube, Twitter to stop the spread of a conspiracy theory linking 5G to COVID-19
The Guardian
11:10 AM
In internal email lists Amazon corporate employees express dismay over the firing of Christian Smalls and a report that management discussed a plan to smear him
Vox
8:05 AM
Some independent movie theaters are launching “virtual cinemas” to let patrons stream first-tier films from home as a temporary revenue source amid the pandemic
Variety
5:00 AM
India's Unified Payments Interface eliminated most of the fees apps like Paytm charged for transactions, forcing them to search for other sources of income
TechCrunch
1:55 AM
How Silicon Valley food caterers, event planners, venue owners, models, DJs, and others who relied on tech parties and events are coping with the loss of income
CNBC
1:25 AM
Washington state's facial recognition law, which is championed by Microsoft, was sponsored by State Sen. Joe Nguyen, who is also a program manager at Microsoft
OneZero
12:25 AM
Uber Eats waived delivery fees in the name of supporting local restaurants, but some restaurants say Uber's 25% commission for take-out orders is too high
Wired
Saturday, April 4, 2020
11:40 PM
Zoom is being banned over security concerns by some US school districts, including NYC, which is directing teachers to switch to Microsoft Teams
Washington Post
10:55 PM
Critics say bug bounty programs buy researcher silence, may violate labor law, and are less effective when they are closed and have NDAs placed on them
CSO
7:50 PM
Apple's deal with Amazon to allow the Prime Video app to process some in-app payments on its own shows how arbitrary, unfair, and outdated App Store rules are
The Verge
4:25 PM
iOS 14 code indicates that Apple is working on a new feature codenamed “Avocado” to enable real, movable widgets on iPad and iPhone home screens
9to5Mac
4:00 PM
US Small Business Administration issues new guidance for the $350B stimulus program that still seems to exclude most VC-backed startups
TechCrunch
2:50 PM
Sources: Apple is in the process of acquiring the California-based VR startup NextVR in a deal valued around $100M
9to5Mac
1:35 PM
China's efforts to track COVID-19 cases using personal data has been messy, partly due to sporadic coordination between different agencies and local governments
Financial Times
11:55 AM
Report: Russia delays the implementation of a law banning devices not pre-installed with Russian software, by six months until January 1, 2021
Reuters
9:55 AM
Analysis: thousands of people are organizing via private group chats, message boards, Twitter, Instagram, more to execute coordinated “Zoombombing” campaigns
New York Times
7:10 AM
Telecom engineers, considered essential workers in the UK, are facing harassment from anti-5G conspiracy mongers, linking the deployment of 5G to coronavirus
The Guardian
4:35 AM
4Paradigm, a China-based startup providing AI-powered real-time data analytics, raises $230M from Cisco, Lenovo, and others, at a post-money valuation of ~$2B
South China Morning Post
12:40 AM
Zoom apologizes for routing some calls made in N. America through China, says it “mistakenly” allowed Chinese data centers to accept calls due to traffic spike
TechCrunch
12:05 AM
A look at how tech's lobbying efforts in the US are quietly pushing for long-held goals in the frantic political and economic environment amid COVID-19 outbreak
New York Times
Friday, April 3, 2020
11:05 PM
UK researchers are using Google's mobile location data collected from apps like Google Maps to help track and predict the spread of COVID-19 across Europe
Bloomberg
10:05 PM
Zoom will require passwords to enter calls via Meeting ID and will turn on Waiting Rooms by default to prevent trolls from disrupting calls, starting April 5
TechCrunch
8:50 PM
US federal law enforcement warns that invading Zoom meetings to broadcast “disruptive content” will result in fines or possible imprisonment
The Verge
8:15 PM
Global online music streaming grew 32% YoY in 2019, reaching 358M total subs; Spotify led with 31% market share of paid subs, followed by Apple Music at 19%
Counterpoint Research
6:55 PM
Google temporarily rolls back its SameSite policy in Chrome, to allow stability for essential service websites that may not meet third party cookie requirements
The Verge
6:30 PM
Qcraft, which is developing simulation software to help train autonomous vehicle systems, raises a seed round in the “dozens of millions”, led by IDG Capital
VentureBeat
5:55 PM
Apple has acquired Dublin-based AI startup Voysis, which developed a platform for digital assistants to better understand people's natural language
Bloomberg
5:05 PM
Apptopia and Braze study: with 59M global installs, Netflix led rivals YouTube, Amazon Prime, and Disney+ in Q1, but more time was spent on YouTube Kids
TechCrunch
4:10 PM
Insight Partners closes its $9.5B Fund XI, says it will be “hyper-focused on supporting its portfolio companies” with ongoing and near-future funding
TechCrunch
3:20 PM
Four Democratic senators send a letter to Apple asking whether its COVID-19 app and website comply with HIPAA, and seeking info on its government agreements
Bloomberg
2:15 PM
Internal docs: Amazon to postpone Prime Day at least until August, expects a potential $100M hit from excess devices it may now have to sell at a discount
Reuters
1:45 PM
Justin Trudeau says Canada has signed an agreement with Amazon to distribute critical medical supplies across the country
Yahoo Finance
12:50 PM
Thousands of Zoom video calls found via web search using Zoom's default file naming scheme after users saved them in unprotected spaces like open AWS S3 buckets
Washington Post
11:45 AM
OctoML, which wants to use machine learning to make ML models run more efficiently on different types of hardware, raises $15M Series A led by Amplify
TechCrunch
11:45 AM
Apple Arcade launches new RPG Legend of the Skyfish 2
CNET
10:43 AM
In a court filing, CEO of NSO Group says Facebook representatives approached NSO in 2017 to buy parts of Pegasus to monitor phones of users who installed Onavo
VICE
9:58 AM
Profile of Zoom CEO Eric Yuan, who says the company will “probably” suspend all tracking on Zoom's sites and consider open-sourcing its code in the future
Forbes
9:35 AM
The new iPad Pro gets a privacy feature, first introduced on 2018 MacBooks, that disconnects hardware microphones when an attached MFi compliant case is closed
9to5Mac
9:00 AM
Civil liberties advocates say a data-driven approach to pandemic response is compatible with individual rights, but with limits and justifications at every step
The Intercept
8:10 AM
Source: Airbnb CEO told staff at a company-wide meeting that the company lowered its internal valuation to $26B, a 16% drop since its last funding round
Financial Times
7:25 AM
Researchers: Zoom sometimes uses encryption keys issued by servers in China, uses a flawed encryption method, and hence is not suited to communicate secrets
The Intercept
7:00 AM
Pinterest CEO and a team of multi-disciplinary scientists launch How We Feel app to collect global COVID-19 data daily while respecting user privacy
TechCrunch
4:40 AM
Microsoft's Azure Cognitive Services gets new voice styles designed to help developers tailor the voice of their apps and services to their brand or scenario
SiliconANGLE
3:03 AM
Google uses aggregated anonymized location data from 131 countries to show which places are complying with social distancing and which aren't
The Verge
1:05 AM
Researchers are using Facebook's location data to provide daily updates to US cities and states evaluating the effectiveness of social distancing amid COVID-19
Reuters
12:03 AM
Leaked memo: Apple told employees that its retail stores in the US will remain closed and work-from-home procedures will remain in place until early May
Bloomberg
Thursday, April 2, 2020
11:15 PM
Facebook announces new measures to help businesses including a gift card registry, says applications for its $100M SMB grant program will open next week
Social Media Today
10:15 PM
Twitter deletes 20K fake accounts linked to governments of Serbia, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Honduras, and Indonesia for “attempt to undermine public conversation”
The Guardian