The FTC sues to block Nvidia's acquisition of Arm, arguing the chip deal is anticompetitive; the $40B deal has risen to ~$75B due to Nvidia's share price
The agency alleges the semiconductor deal is anticompetitive — WASHINGTON—The Federal Trade Commission on Thursday sued … Source: Federal Trade Commission .
Microsoft backtracks on Windows 11's controversial default browser changes, adding a button to easily change default browsers
Windows 11 will now make it easier to change default browsers — Microsoft is backtracking on changes it made to Windows 11 that made it more difficult to switch default browsers.
Report: Google's Pixel hardware group is working on the company's first smartwatch, internally codenamed “Rohan”, which it plans to launch next year
A Pixel Watch is finally in the works — Google is finally making its own in-house smartwatch that's set to launch in 2022 … Source: Insider .
An anti-fascist researcher says her Twitter account was suspended after someone reported a 2019 tweet of hers following Twitter's new “private media policy”
Researchers fear the new ban on posts sharing people's private information will be ‘emboldening to the fascists’ eager to keep their identities concealed.
Didi Global says it will begin the process of delisting from the NYSE and listing on the Hong Kong stock exchange, in an attempt to appease Chinese regulators
Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Global (DIDI.N) said on Friday it will start work on delisting from the New York stock exchange …
Google says it will not require employees to return to US offices on January 10 as expected, but encourages employees to come in to build “muscle memory”
- Google's security VP, Chris Rackow, sent a companywide email Thursday that said Google will not require employees to return to offices on Jan. 10 as expected.
DeFi protocol BadgerDAO is investigating after security researchers say $120.3M was stolen from users via its compromised front end
Quick Take — DeFi protocol BadgerDAO was exploited earlier today for $120 million. — It appears that its front end was compromised and users were tricked into making unwanted transactions.
AI researcher Timnit Gebru, who left Google last year, launches Distributed Artificial Intelligence Research, an institute focused on the responsible use of AI
The researcher, who says Google fired her a year ago, wants to ask questions about responsible use of artificial intelligence.
Instagram has quietly rolled out a pop-up over the past year encouraging users to “try a new account” to help them “keep up with a smaller group of friends”
An in-app notice calls on users to ‘try a new account.’ Can a fresh start keep people from losing their enthusiasm for the platform?
Journalists and activists worry Twitter's new privacy policy will be weaponized and make their jobs harder, due to vague terms like “the public interest”
On Tuesday, Twitter said it is expanding its privacy policy to include what the company calls “private media.”
Sources: Apple notified at least nine US State Department employees that their iPhones were hacked using NSO's software in the past several months
Apple Inc iPhones of at least nine U.S. State Department employees were hacked by an unknown assailant using sophisticated spyware developed …
Analysis: SoftBank could lose ~$74B if the Nvidia-Arm deal is blocked; an IPO for Arm would likely value it well below Nvidia's offer
- U.S. antitrust enforcers seek to block sale of Arm to Nvidia — SoftBank faces potentially less lucrative Plan B: an Arm IPO
Streamer Ludwig Ahgren has been banned from YouTube days after his highly publicized move from Twitch, amid speculation the ban is a result of DMCA strikes
The 26-year-old has been the talk of the streaming world these past few days, after he signed an exclusive streaming deal with Twitch arch-rivals YouTube.
Insurance company Sogaz, founded by state firm Gazprom, gains control of Russia's largest social media network VKontakte after buying a 45% stake in the company
VK's CEO has also resigned as part of sweeping changes that boost Kremlin's control of VKontakte.
DocuSign reports Q3 revenue of $545.5M, up 42% YoY, with subscription revenue of $528.6M, up 44%, and 1.11M customers; stock is down 35%+ after weak Q4 guidance
- DocuSign said it expects fourth-quarter revenue of $557 million to $563 million, trailing the average analyst estimate of $573.8 million.
In a filing in the Epic lawsuit, Apple says it “could charge a commission” if developers use a competing payments platform, following a similar Google policy
Benjamin Mayo / 9to5Mac :
Square is changing its name to Block, effective December 10, and renaming Square Crypto to Spiral, as its business shifts toward technologies like blockchain
Kate Rooney / CNBC :
Records show at least three US federal agencies bought Lorex video surveillance equipment from Chinese firm Dahua Technology despite a government ban
Lorex is owned by Dahua, a technology maker linked to human rights abuses. — At least three U.S. federal agencies, including the military … Tweets: @brendancarrfcc , @adam_k_levin , and @zackwhittak...
Some citizens are skeptical of China's digital yuan, e-CNY, preferring Alipay and WeChat Pay; e-CNY has seen 150M transactions worth nearly $10B so far
Policy makers world-wide are watching to see how Beijing goes about replacing cash — China has convinced financial policy makers everywhere …
A draft EU proposal would force food delivery and ride-hailing apps to reclassify as many as 4.1M workers as employees, costing the sector up to $5.1B per year
- Up to 4.1 million couriers, drivers could be made employees — Customers might see increase in costs for delivery and drivers
US prosecutors charge two men with running a music royalty scam, collecting $20M+ from YouTube, by falsely claiming rights to 50,000 Spanish language songs
Prosecutors say the men claimed rights to 50,000 Spanish-language songs they didn't own, using the royalty money to buy mansions, fancy cars and jewelry. Tweets: @tedgioia Tweets: Ted Gioia / @tedgioi...
British asset manager Abrdn to buy Interactive Investor, an online investment platform, for $1.98B in cash
Sources: Apple, which cut its projected iPhone 13 production targets for 2021 by up to 10M units, tells suppliers that it may not make up the shortfall in 2022
Bloomberg :
Singapore-based LingoAce, which helps students learn Mandarin from native speakers, raises a $105M Series C led by Sequoia Capital India
Kul Bhushan / Tech in Asia :
Clarity AI, which uses AI to assess the environmental impact of companies, raised $50M in August, from Vision Fund 2, Jony Ive, and others, at a $450M valuation
Softbank Group Corp's (9984.T) Vision Fund 2 has led the latest funding round for sustainability data technology platform Clarity AI …
Interviews with 16 current and former Apple retail, support, and sales employees detail harsh working conditions, poor pay, and little interest from HR
Square's Block rebranding comes after years of making crypto integrations mainstream, although Block has downplayed the crypto elements so far
Facebook makes 2FA mandatory for high-risk accounts, an expansion of Facebook Protect, which covers 1.5M accounts and will be in 50 countries by the end of 2021
Carly Page / TechCrunch :
The four leading virtual worlds recorded over $100M in NFT land sales in the past week, with The Sandbox alone seeing trading volumes of over $86M
but investors are increasingly looking at Solana as well.” https://twitter.com/... @binancekiller : 📈 According to DappRadar, Over $100 million in Metaverse Land Sales Last Week. A year from now that ...
A look at the Xbox Series X and PS5 markets, as holiday shoppers navigate a world of “purchase bot” resellers, retail memberships, and social media tips
New York Times : Tweets: @kellen_browning , @ennisnyt , @bernstein , @jake_randall_yt , and @johnpaczkowski Tweets: Kellen Browning / @kellen_browning : Extreme supply chain shortages have spawned a ...
Meta partners with UK nonprofit Revenge Porn Helpline to let victims get their intimate images “hashed” and prevent them from appearing on online platforms
Sources: Goldman Sachs is among a handful of tier-one US banks working on ways to use bitcoin as collateral for cash loans to institutions
Ian Allison / CoinDesk :
Uber says it is launching an optional audio recording pilot program to enhance safety in three US cities this month, following a Latin America rollout in 2019
Tina Bellon / Reuters :
Marketers are reacting to privacy laws and Big Tech policy changes with quizzes and other events to collect their own customer info and build detailed profiles
Suzanne Vranica / Wall Street Journal :
Panther Labs, which helps companies detect and respond to security threats in real time, raises a $120M Series B led by Coatue at a $1.4B valuation
Mehnaz Yasmin / Reuters :
Uber adds ride booking via WhatsApp in India, starting with the city Lucknow, in a first for Uber and an expansion of WhatsApp's capabilities in the country
on WhatsApp Tweets: Dara Khosrowshahi / @dkhos : Getting a ride in India is now as easy as sending a @WhatsApp message. Thank you @wcathcart and team! ✉️ ➡️🚙 https://twitter.com/... Sri Jalasutram / @...
AWS announces Amplify Studio, a Figma-connected low-code service to help developers build cloud apps, as an extension of its AWS Amplify service
Frederic Lardinois / TechCrunch :
Grab closes down 20.53% in its Nasdaq debut, after a SPAC merger valuing it at $40B and raising $4.5B, the largest US listing by a Southeast Asian company
Crunchbase: investments in crypto-based gaming and commerce startups increased 26x YoY, totaling $3.7B so far in 2021
Berber Jin / The Information : Tweets: @berber_jin1 and @amir Tweets: Berber Jin / @berber_jin1 : .@sarahtavel says NFTs will be a key building block for the “next generation of consumer applications...
Meta's NPE team recently set up an office in Lagos and plans another in Asia as it changes strategy to include making seed investments in small teams
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch :
London-based Glorify, a Christian app that offers audio prayers and more, raises a $40M Series A led by a16z at a $250M valuation
Jokr, a rapid grocery delivery service in the US and Latin America, raises a $260M Series B at a $1.2B valuation, five months after raising a $170M Series A
Shopify's new AI commerce stack
Their VP of Product digs into just-launched products to help entrepreneurs and developers build with the latest AI and tech.
Email fatigue is real: Here's how smart email tools help you regain control
Picture this: It's Monday morning. You walk into the office feeling energized and ready to take on the week.
Protecting your Cloud Applications Data
Backing up Office 365, Google Workspace, Dropbox & Box data is critical to preventing data loss or corruption, complying with laws and avoiding critical downtime in case of a disaster.