
Thu. 01/27 – Apple To Block Block (Née Square)?
Apple is coming for Block’s Square dongle with a new ability to accept payments just using your iPhone. The dilemma that is the Spotify/Neil Young situation. OpenAI is an interesting raise. Fireblocks is an interesting raise. And why has the r/antiwork subreddit suddenly gone private? Sponsors: Smith.ai promocode techmeme for $100 off signup Linkedin.com/ride Links: Apple to Rival Square by Turning iPhones Into Payment Terminals (Bloomberg) Spotify Takes Down Neil Young’s Music After His Joe Rogan Ultimatum (WSJ) Facebook’s Cryptocurrency Venture to Wind Down, Sell Assets (WSJ) OpenAI co-founder Sam Altman ridicules start-up fundraising process (CNBC) Fireblocks raises $550 million in Series E funding, now valued at $8 billion (The Block) Anti-Work Subreddit Suddenly Goes Private to Clean Up After ‘Brigading’ (Bloomberg) Anti-work subreddit implodes after rough Fox News interview (Mashable) Valve will start selling the Steam Deck on February 25th (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
27 Jan 202216min

Wed. 01/26 – Diem Dead?
Is Mark Zuckerberg abandoning his crypto dreams and looking to sell off Diem? The IMF is subtly suggesting El Salvador abandon bitcoin. Microsoft is gonna play nice with Activision exclusives. For now. Mark your calendars for the next Samsung event. And has YouTube figured out how to beat TikTok at its own game? Sponsors: Masterworks.io/ride EditorX.com Links: Mark Zuckerberg’s Stablecoin Ambitions Unravel With Diem Sale Talks (Bloomberg) Ditch Bitcoin: IMF Urges El Salvador to Rethink Crypto (Bloomberg) Activision’s Next Three Call of Duty Games Will Be on PlayStation and Xbox (Bloomberg) Samsung's first Unpacked of 2022 will take place February 9th (Engadget) Log4Shell: No Mass Abuse, But No Respite, What Happened? (Sophos News) YouTube Shorts Tops 5 Trillion Views to Date, Platform to Test Shopping and Branded Content for TikTok-Style Videos (Variety) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
26 Jan 202217min

Tue. 01/25 – Is The Nvidia/Arm Deal Off?
That already fraught tie-up between Nvidia and Arm increasingly looks like it’s running out of time. Google kills its cookie-killer. Twitter is developing a close friends feature. Meta’s new Machine Learning supercomputer. And why the situation in Ukraine might be a black swan event that is nigh. Sponsors: Do.co/trh Wix.com Links: Nvidia Quietly Prepares to Abandon $40 Billion Arm Bid (Bloomberg) Google kills off FLoC, replaces it with Topics (TechCrunch) Twitter's new Flock feature takes aim at Instagram Close Friends (Input) Meta has built an AI supercomputer it says will be world’s fastest by end of 2022 (The Verge) Hactivists say they hacked Belarus rail system to stop Russian military buildup (ArsTechnica) DHS warns of Russian cyberattack on US if it responds to Ukraine invasion (ABCNews) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
25 Jan 202219min

Mon. 01/24 – Do We Even Have The Infrastructure To Make The Metaverse Happen?
States sue Google for data shenanigans. Europe passes a landmark ad targeting and data law. Apple’s 2022 lineup according to Mark Gurman. A look at the state of the crypto crash, and to what degree it is affecting NFTs. And all this talk of metaverses led to record VC investment in AR and VR startups, but what some folks are starting to ask is, even if we build it, do we have the infrastructure that will even allow the people to come? Sponsors: OurCrowd.com/ride EditorX.com Links: Google deceived consumers about how it profits from their location data, attorneys general allege in lawsuits (Washington Post) MEPs adopt Digital Services Act with significant last-minute changes (Euractiv) European Parliament approves initial proposal to ban some targeted ads (The Verge) Apple Nears First Product Launch of 2022, With 5G iPhone SE and New iPad on Tap (Bloomberg) Solana Slides 17% to Lead Losses Amid Crypto Market Plunge (CoinDesk) Despite the Drop in Crypto Prices, Weekly NFT Sales Reach $4.7 Billion, Increasing 81% (Bitcoin.com) VR/AR Investments Increase Just As Metaverse Talk Heats Up—But That May Not Be The Only Reason (Crunchbase News) The titans of the metaverse have a bandwidth issue (Financial Times) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
24 Jan 202218min

(TWTR SPC) The State Of VC And Startups In 2022
Weirdly, this turned into a sort of education on VC and startup investing episode? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Sponsors: Wix.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
22 Jan 20221h 52min

Fri. 01/21 – Intel Bringing Silicon Back (To Ohio)
The trend of re-onshoring silicon production domestically and Intel’s turnaround plans collide in a way that is very good for Ohio. Twitter will let you NFT-up your profile picture. Google’s doing the AR headset thing too. That Apple education discount has gotten harder to spoof. And of course, the weekend longreads suggestions. Sponsors: DeVry.edu/engineering EditorX.com Links: Exclusive: Intel Reveals Plans for Massive New Ohio Factory, Fighting the Chip Shortage Stateside (Time) Twitter Embraces NFTs With New Profile-Picture Feature (WSJ) GOOGLE IS BUILDING AN AR HEADSET (The Verge) Netflix Falls Short of Q4 Subscriber Target, Stock Tumbles on Weak Forecast (Variety) We regret to inform you that Apple now verifies anyone asking for educational discounts (The Verge) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: How Did ID.me Get Between You and Your Identity? (Bloomberg Businessweek) The SPAC Ship Is Sinking. Investors Want Their Money Back. (WSJ) THE INSIDE STORY OF IBEER, THE UNDERDOG BEER APP THAT MADE MILLIONS (MelMagazine) The Rise of A.I. Fighter Pilots (The New Yorker) How Tumblr Became Popular for Being Obsolete (The New Yorker) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
21 Jan 202218min

Thu. 01/20 – Meta Wants To Bring NFTs To Your Insta Profile
Meta is working on NFTs for Instagram and Facebook while Google is starting a blockchain team. Instagram Subscriptions launches. Google Play Games launches on Windows. Amazon launches its first physical fashion store. And why, by this summer, you will only be able to pay the IRS your taxes online by doxing yourself? Sponsors: NewRelic.com/techmeme Wix.com Links: Facebook owner Meta dives into NFT digital collectibles craze (FT) Google Forms Blockchain Group Under Newly Appointed Executive (Bloomberg) Instagram launches early test of creator subscriptions in the US (TechCrunch) Google Play Games for PC starts limited beta for Android games on Windows, sharing system requirements (Android Police) Amazon to try another tech-infused retail concept with ‘Amazon Style,’ its first physical fashion store (GeekWire) Crypto.com Says Regulators Haven’t Reached Out After Hack (Bloomberg) Web3 ‘Proof of attendance’ startup raises $10M to mint shared memories as NFTs (TechCrunch) IRS Will Require Facial Recognition Scans to Access Your Taxes Online (Gizmodo) IRS Will Soon Require Selfies for Online Access (KrebsonSecurity) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
20 Jan 202218min

Wed. 01/19 – The 5G Flight Issue Comes To A Head
Today is the big day for the showdown between 5G and the airlines. Nobody’s blinked yet, but both sides have sort of blinked. An interesting raise in the NFT space. And I’ve heard of autonomous road cars, but autonomous rail cars? More fallout from the Activision/Microsoft tie-up, and how literally fallout from that undersea volcano may have knocked Tonga off the internet. Sponsors: EditorX.com do.co/trh Links: Airlines Cancel Some Flights Ahead of U.S. 5G Wireless Launch (WSJ) Major airlines cancel, change flights to US over 5G dispute (AP) Coinbase NFT Marketplace Will Enable Purchases With Mastercard (Decrypt) OpenSea confirms acquisition of Dharma, sets sights on fiat onramps (The Block) Michael Jordan, Multicoin Back Solana NFT Firm Metaplex in $46M Round (Decrypt) Former SpaceX engineers bring autonomous, electric rail vehicle startup out of stealth (TechCrunch) Activision Blizzard’s Workplace Problems Spurred $75 Billion Microsoft Deal (WSJ) Microsoft is buying one of the biggest names in games — if Washington lets it (Recode) Tonga’s volcano blast cut it off from the world. Here’s what it will take to get it reconnected. (MIT Technology Review) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
19 Jan 202219min





















