Fri. 10/18 – Netflix Wins

Facebook and Twitter label political ads, Apple’s self-driving car efforts fizzle, the DOJ is looking at cryptocurrency manipulation, there’s a PornHub VPN, and StumbleUpon is no more. Stories from: @jacknicas, @mat Links:Apple, Spurned by Others, Signs Deal With Volkswagen for Driverless Cars (NYTimes)Google Buys 20,000 SUVs, Apple Gets Two Dozen VW Vans (Bloomberg)The Techie Town Of San Francisco Gets A New Tower As Houses Remain Scarce (BuzzFeed) Credits: Produced by @brianmcc and the @techmeme editors Music by @jpschwinghamer Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

24 Touko 201817min

Facebook helps you find a plumber, Apple lets you download your data, Comcast wants to buy 21st Century Fox, why would Amazon ban you, and Bill Gates’ summer reading recommendations. Stories from: @kottke, @LauraStevensWSJ Links:Next Generation iPhone Chips Go Into Production (Bloomberg)HTC Announces U12 Plus With Pressure-Sensitive Buttons and Sides (The Verge)Banned From Amazon: The Shoppers Who Make Too Many Returns (WSJ) Bill Gates' Summer Reading List Recommendations:Origin Story: A Big History of Everything by David ChristianLeonardo da Vinci by Walter Isaacson.Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders.Everything Happens for a Reason: And Other Lies I’ve Loved by Kate Bowler.Factfulness: Ten Reasons We’re Wrong About the World - and Why Things Are Better Than You Think by Hans Rosling. Credits: Produced by @brianmcc and the @techmeme editors Music by @jpschwinghamer Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

23 Touko 201814min

Another chip flaw found, privacy activists turn their attention to Amazon, ZTE might be saved by the Trump Administration, Zuckerberg’s European sojourn is a damp squib, and now you can mute annoying people on Instagram. Stories from: @katienotopoulos, @sarafischer Links:The Privacy Scandal That Should Be Bigger Than Cambridge Analytica (Slate)Impatient, distracted consumers upend the media landscape (Axios)Overall Q1 US Smartphone Sales Dip 11% YoY, Apple Grows a Record 16% YoY (Counterpoint)Instagram Finally Adds A Mute Button, Saving Countless Friendships (BuzzFeed) Credits: Produced by @brianmcc and the @techmeme editors Music by @jpschwinghamer Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

22 Touko 201814min

Is the government coming after Big Tech, Microsoft doubles down on voice AI, Lyft joins the e-scooter scramble, the Obamas officially join Netflix, and which smartphone is most likely to shatter? Stories from: @TaylorLorenz, @coryweinberg Tweets: @tanayj, @ibogost Links:Lyft Explores Launching Scooter Service in San Francisco (The Information)Electric Scooter Charger Culture Is Out of Control (The Atlantic)We Dropped $18,000 Worth of Phones, and These Are the Toughest (and Weakest) (Tomsguide.com) Credits: Produced by @brianmcc and the @techmeme editors Music by @jpschwinghamer Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

21 Touko 201815min

Today more leakage of your phone’s location data, Fortnite comes to Android, dataplans for seniors’ smartphones, robotic insects, drone sailboats, and the weekend long reads suggestions. Stories from: @briankrebs, @valleyhack Links: Tracking Firm LocationSmart Leaked Location Data for Customers of All Major U.S. Mobile Carriers Without Consent in Real Time Via Its Web Site (KrebsonSecurity)The first wireless flying robotic insect takes off (University of Washington)This Armada of Saildrones Could Conquer the Ocean (Bloomberg) Longreads Suggestions:Death in the alpine (High Country News)How Evan Spiegel Fumbled Snap’s Redesign (The Information)Apple and Its Rivals Bet Their Futures on These Men’s Dreams (Bloomberg)I Tried to Get an AI to Write This Story (Bloomberg) Credits: Produced by @brianmcc and the @techmeme editors Music by @jpschwinghamer Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

18 Touko 201816min

YouTube Music launches next week, Apple too is looking for a major new campus, Mobileye signs a big deal for autonomous car tech and the SEC creates honeypot to teach investors about scammy ICOs. Stories from: @JessConditt, @josephfcox Links:Hacker Breaches Securus, the Company That Helps Cops Track Phones Across the US (Motherboard)Xbox Adaptive Controller first look: A new, necessary gamepad (Engadget)The Autonomous-Car Company That’s Selling Safety First (Bloomberg)Buyer Beware: Hundreds of Bitcoin Wannabes Show Hallmarks of Fraud (WSJ)Howeycoins (SEC) Credits: Produced by @brianmcc and the @techmeme editors Music by @jpschwinghamer Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

17 Touko 201815min

Zuckerberg to testify in Europe, Prime members to get discounts at Whole Foods, low-end tablets possibly coming from Microsoft, a blockchain phone, a connected toothbrush, and all you need to know about the Yanny or Laurel controversy. Stories from: @markgurman, @chrissyfarr Tweets: @backlon, @anindac92 Links:Amazon cuts Whole Foods prices for Prime members in new grocery showdown (Reuters)Microsoft Plans Low-Cost Tablet Line to Rival iPad (Bloomberg)This start-up made connected toothbrushes -- now it aims to overthrow the 'primitive' dental insurance industry (CNBC)Yanny or Laurel? How an Audio Clip Divided the Internet (NYTimes)The True History of 'Yanny' and 'Laurel' (Wired) Credits: Produced by @brianmcc and the @techmeme editors Music by @jpschwinghamer Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

16 Touko 201815min

Everyone says they’re cleaning up their act: Twitter, Facebook, Uber. The Crypto kids crash New York while Coinbase cozies up to Wall Street. The Surface Hub 2 looks pretty sweet, and we might soon be shooting Wikipedia pages to the moon. Stories from: @lorengrush  Tweets: @AaronKlein, @marcoarment, @ballmatthew Links:At NYC’s Big Crypto Conference, the Lamborghinis Are Rented and Protests Are Staged (Bloomberg)Microsoft’s Surface Hub 2 is designed for an office of the future (The Verge)Tweetstorm about Netflix and "originals" (Matthew Ball)This nonprofit plans to send millions of Wikipedia pages to the Moon — printed on tiny metal sheets (The Verge) Credits: Produced by @brianmcc and the @techmeme editors Music by @jpschwinghamer Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

15 Touko 201816min