Journals

Financial Times: The DOJ compares Apple’s 2023 $77B buyback program with the company’s half as much spend on R&D and highlights it as a lack of incentive for Apple to innovate  —  DoJ is highlighting what it believes is iPhone… Read More »The DOJ compares Apple’s 2023 $77B buyback program with the company’s half as much spend on R&D and highlights it as a lack of incentive for Apple to innovate (Financial Times)

John Markoff / New York Times: A look at SRI’s Future Concepts division, a research organization comprised of SRI and PARC researchers, as some argue that basic tech research labs are passé  —  Two research labs known for some of… Read More »A look at SRI’s Future Concepts division, a research organization comprised of SRI and PARC researchers, as some argue that basic tech research labs are passé (John Markoff/New York Times)

Ryan Weeks / Bloomberg: Blockchain game Munchables, which lets players earn rewards by looking after digital creatures, loses an estimated ~$63M worth of ETH in a hacking incident  —  – Blockchain-based Munchables game confirmed a security incident  — Hacks and… Read More »Blockchain game Munchables, which lets players earn rewards by looking after digital creatures, loses an estimated ~$63M worth of ETH in a hacking incident (Ryan Weeks/Bloomberg)

Zoe Denenberg / Wall Street Journal: Hands-on with Journal on iPhone: first suggestions can be jarring but get better with time; experts say the app can do more to help users set goals and reflect  —  The new app is… Read More »Hands-on with Journal on iPhone: first suggestions can be jarring but get better with time; experts say the app can do more to help users set goals and reflect (Zoe Denenberg/Wall Street Journal)

Manish Singh / TechCrunch: Jakarta-based online personal insurance marketplace Qoala raised a $47M Series C co-led by PayPal Ventures and MassMutual Ventures, for $130M+ in total funding  —  PayPal Ventures’ latest investment is in an Indonesian startup that provides personal… Read More »Jakarta-based online personal insurance marketplace Qoala raised a $47M Series C co-led by PayPal Ventures and MassMutual Ventures, for $130M+ in total funding (Manish Singh/TechCrunch)

Joann Muller / Axios: DroneUp unveils an autonomous drone “ecosystem” for last-mile deliveries, with Walmart, 7-Eleven, and Chick-fil-A the first retailers to pilot the system  —  – It includes an automated, climate-controlled storage locker called DBX where drones can pick… Read More »DroneUp unveils an autonomous drone “ecosystem” for last-mile deliveries, with Walmart, 7-Eleven, and Chick-fil-A the first retailers to pilot the system (Joann Muller/Axios)

Brian Heater / TechCrunch: NYC-based Viam, which offers an automation software platform for robotics, IoT, smart homes, and more, raised a $45M Series B, taking its total raised to $87M  —  Since the last time we spoke, Viam didn’t pivot… Read More »NYC-based Viam, which offers an automation software platform for robotics, IoT, smart homes, and more, raised a $45M Series B, taking its total raised to $87M (Brian Heater/TechCrunch)

Elizabeth Howcroft / Reuters: Portugal’s data regulator orders Worldcoin to stop collecting biometric data for 90 days, after receiving complaints about unauthorized collection from minors  —  Portugal’s data regulator has ordered Sam Altman’s iris-scanning project Worldcoin to stop collecting biometric… Read More »Portugal’s data regulator orders Worldcoin to stop collecting biometric data for 90 days, after receiving complaints about unauthorized collection from minors (Elizabeth Howcroft/Reuters)

Mary Ann Azevedo / TechCrunch: Robinhood launches Gold Card, a 3% cashback credit card for Robinhood Gold members, eight months after it acquired credit card startup X1 for $95M  —  Eight months after acquiring credit card startup X1 for $95… Read More »Robinhood launches Gold Card, a 3% cashback credit card for Robinhood Gold members, eight months after it acquired credit card startup X1 for $95M (Mary Ann Azevedo/TechCrunch)

Paul Alcorn / Tom’s Hardware: Intel shares Microsoft’s “AI PC” requirements, such as including a Copilot key, and expands its AI PC acceleration program to help devs and hardware vendors  —  Meteor Lake dev kits use Asus NUCs optimized for… Read More »Intel shares Microsoft’s “AI PC” requirements, such as including a Copilot key, and expands its AI PC acceleration program to help devs and hardware vendors (Paul Alcorn/Tom’s Hardware)