Wednesday, 27 October 2021

10 things in tech you need to know today

10 THINGS IN TECH YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY

Good morning and welcome to 10 Things in Tech. If this was forwarded to you, sign up here. Plus, download Insider's app for news on the go – click here for iOS and here for Android.

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1. Social media companies: We're not Facebook. During a congressional hearing on kids' online safety yesterday, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube execs testified about their platforms' roles in teens' lives — and tried to distinguish themselves from Facebook.

Much of the focus was on TikTok. The Wall Street Journal reported that the committee pressed the Chinese-owned video app on whether or not its algorithm feeds harmful content to young users.
"We do not prioritize profits over safety," YouTube exec Leslie Miller said in a direct dig at Facebook, referring to claims by whistleblower Frances Haugen.

2. Elon Musk slammed a new Democratic tax proposal that would target billionaires. The Tesla CEO took to Twitter to criticize the plan, which could slap him with a $10 billion annual tax bill if it's implemented. See what Musk said about the plan.

3. Mark Zuckerberg is being sued by former household employees. A security worker and household manager are suing Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan over allegations of harassment and discrimination — including racist and homophobic abuse — inside their family office. Read our exclusive report on the lawsuit.

4. Apple kept the design of the first iPod a secret by making prototypes look ridiculous. Photos show a rare prototype of a near-final iPod model that's massive and looks nothing like the final product — so Apple could hide the design from its own staff. Check out photos of the clunky prototype.

5. Amazon is luring workers in India with the chance of winning prizes. Amazon's part-time Flex program gamifies delivery driving, and drivers can compete to win phones, motorcycles, and gift cards as a prize for spending more time on the road. Get the rundown on the program, which has a 15,000-person waitlist.

6. GameStop is pushing into the future of the internet. The gaming retailer is hiring a team of NFT and Web3 specialists to help it "accelerate the future of gaming and commerce." More on GameStop's push into the internet's next frontier.

7. Facebook's metaverse investment will reduce its profits by about $10 billion. The company is pouring resources into its Reality Labs project — to the tune of at least $10 billion this year. Whistleblower Frances Haugen said the investment reflects Facebook's skewed priorities, and that she's shocked by the scale of its metaverse plans.

8. Amazon is putting Alexa next to hospital beds throughout the US. Hospitals from Boston to Houston will start using the Alexa speakers, a move Amazon says will boost productivity because staff can go into patients' rooms less. How the hospitals will use Alexa.

9. The CEO of Instacart challenger Point Pickup wants to save the gig economy. By creating GigPoint, a digital platform for gig workers, he hopes to win over employees with features like planning recurring shifts with predictable income. How he hopes GigPoint will make gig work a viable way of life.

10. Microsoft's famous MIT card-counting blackjack whiz prompted an exodus of senior women. Insiders said Jeffrey Ma treated women unfairly at work, demoted employees in front of colleagues, and denied some women the opportunity to apply for leadership roles. Get the scoop on Ma, the vice president of Microsoft for Startups.

Compiled by Jordan Erb. Tips/comments? Email jerb@insider.com or tweet @JordanParkerErb.

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Monday, 25 October 2021

10 things in tech you need to know today

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10 THINGS IN TECH YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY

Good morning and welcome to 10 Things in Tech. If this was forwarded to you, sign up here. Plus, download Insider's app for news on the go – click here for iOS and here for Android.

Let's get started.

1. A third Facebook whistleblower has emerged. The anonymous former employee told The Washington Post that Facebook exempted right-wing outlet Breitbart from certain rules because it didn't want to "start a fight with Steve Bannon."

The new whistleblower also filed a complaint with the SEC, claiming Facebook enabled criminal activity, such as drug trades, within Groups. After raising the issues with the company, the whistleblower was reportedly told to "focus on the good."
Facebook's streak of bad press isn't over just yet. In an internal post obtained by Axios, Facebook's VP warned staff that worse coverage could be on the way: "We need to steel ourselves for more bad headlines in the coming days, I'm afraid."
Frances Haugen led a "meticulous" media rollout of her trove of Facebook documents. The New York Times outlined how the whistleblower offered to share more inside details from the tech company with 17 media outlets after a "boutique rollout" with the Wall Street Journal.

2. Elizabeth Holmes trial Week Seven recap: A juror was sent home for playing Sudoku, a former staffer testified he was told to change numbers to make test results seem normal, and there were plans for a $1 billion IPO. Here's what else you might have missed last week.

3. Ex-employees are slamming Apple with lawsuits. Two former high-level employees have filed separate lawsuits accusing Apple of age and gender discrimination amid an unprecedented wave of worker activism within the company. We have the details on the lawsuits here.

4. A handwritten letter by Steve Jobs will go up for auction — and could sell for $300,000. The note, which will be auctioned on Nov. 3, features Jobs' thoughts on Zen Buddhism and his desire to travel to India. More on the letter, written by a teenage Jobs in search of "the meaning of life."

5. A Harvard freshman's social-networking app sparked a debate about facial recognition. The app, called "The FaceTag," lets users sign up, scan the face of another user, and exchange contact information — but it's sparked a debate online, with some people are saying the app is unethical, and that he shouldn't have made it at all.

6. Facebook and Google worked together to circumvent Apple's privacy measures. Twelve state attorneys general allege that Google worked with Facebook to undermine Apple's attempts to offer its users great privacy protections, according to an updated antitrust lawsuit against the search engine. What we know so far.

7. Twitter's algorithm shows bias toward right-wing politicians, internal researchers find. Research published last week found Twitter's algorithm amplifies right-wing political content more readily than similar left-wing content for users in the US. A look at what else the company's researchers discovered.

8. Tesla just raised the prices of two models. Weeks after increasing prices on its most popular vehicles, Tesla has hiked the price on two more models — the Model X Long Range and Model S Long Range — by $5,000. Why Tesla's prices are going up.

9. We obtained YouTube's leaked org charts. The company's org charts outline the people who report to CEO Susan Wojcicki and her top three execs, revealing dozens of the most powerful people within YouTube's walls. These are the 49 most important people running YouTube.

10. Black founders and execs are investing in each other to create their own networks and wealth. Angel investing is on the rise among Black founders and execs who've found success in tech — and they're looking to back other up-and-coming founders who've often struggled to gain backing from VCs. Five angel investors share how they're building their investing networks.

Compiled by Jordan Erb. Tips/comments? Email jerb@insider.com or tweet @JordanParkerErb.

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Friday, 22 October 2021

Inside YouTube’s controversy machine

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TECH

Inside YouTube's controversy machine

Susan Wojcicki has kept YouTube largely insulated from the bruising scrutiny other Big Tech companies have faced.

All the while, the YouTube money machine has quietly minted billions.

But as YouTube becomes ever more central to Google's future, this balancing act may become more difficult for Wojcicki and YouTube to pull off.

Read now →

Thursday, 21 October 2021

10 things in tech you need to know today

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10 THINGS IN TECH YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY

Good morning and welcome to 10 Things in Tech. If this was forwarded to you, sign up here. Plus, download Insider's app for news on the go – click here for iOS and here for Android.

Let's get started.

1. PayPal is reportedly exploring an acquisition of Pinterest. Pinterest soared as much as 19% on Wednesday after reports surfaced that PayPal is considering buying the social-media company for around $39 billion. Everything we know about the potential deal.

2. Donald Trump says he's planning to launch a new online platform called TRUTH Social in 2022. The social-media app is a response to the major US tech firms continuing to ban Trump from their services. More on his pitch here.

3. Facebook's recent trademark filings hold clues to the company's new name. After news broke that Mark Zuckerberg wants to change Facebook's name, we looked at the company's past few filings — and found ones for a logo and a word that might offer a glimpse at Facebook's next steps.

4. Activision Blizzard fired 20 employees over harassment and discrimination. The company also disciplined an additional 20 employees and announced a variety of internal changes. The changes follow a lawsuit, SEC investigation, and employee walkout. Here's what's changing.

5. Elon Musk is back with another booze endeavor. After creating a $250 tequila in a lightning-bolt bottle that sold out in hours, Musk announced he wants to sell Tesla "Giga Beer" in a Cybertruck-inspired bottle. Get the full rundown on "Giga Beer."

6. A former Virgin Galactic test pilot is joining Blue Origin. Mark Stucky, who says he was fired after six years with Virgin Galactic, told CNN he's joining Jeff Bezos' aerospace company. More on that here.

7. Social media users are speculating about Facebook's new name. People on Twitter have a lot of suggestions for what Mark Zuckerberg's company should be called. From "Three Facebooks in a Trench Coat" to simply "Face," here are some of their ideas.

8. Hoping to buy a Tesla Model 3? You'll have to wait 10 more months. The wait time for Tesla's most inexpensive model has ballooned — but if you add on options or choose a pricier model, the wait time shrinks considerably. We explain why.

9. Amazon created six "tenets" during talks with Starbucks about a new cashierless cafe. While discussing launching a coffee shop — which would combine its cashierless Go stores with Starbucks lounges — Amazon came up with six tenets, including that it'd need to deliver a "wow" factor. Read the other five tenets Amazon created for the partnership.

10. Some Silicon Valley tech recruiters are skeptical of coding boot camps' value. The intensive short-term classes have helped people quickly find careers in tech — but boot camps still receive mixed reception from recruiters at Silicon Valley companies. Top recruiters weigh in.

Compiled by Jordan Erb. Tips/comments? Email jerb@insider.com or tweet @JordanParkerErb.

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Wednesday, 20 October 2021

10 things in tech you need to know today

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10 THINGS IN TECH YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY

Good morning and welcome to 10 Things in Tech. If this was forwarded to you, sign up here. Plus, download Insider's app for news on the go – click here for iOS and here for Android.

Let's get started.

1. Facebook faces $14 million in fines tied to a federal probe. The company settled claims with the US government that it illegally reserved lucrative jobs for immigrant workers, rather than seeking out US workers for the roles. More on the settlement, the latest in a string of blows for Facebook.

2. Amazon and Starbucks held talks to launch a cafe together. The co-branded lounge would sell Starbucks craft beverages and food products sold at Amazon Go stores — and would utilize "Just Walk Out" technology so customers could skip the line. What we know about the project, codenamed "Verde."

3. Facebook is reportedly looking to change its name as it wants to become known for its focus on the 'metaverse'. The Verge reported the tech giant was planning a rebrand that could be revealed as early as this week. More details on the move here.

4. Apple is selling a piece of cloth for $19. In addition to the next-gen AirPods and updated MacBook Pro released yesterday, Apple unveiled another gadget: a piece of cloth designed to clean your tech (but most devices don't actually need it). Check out the $19 "Polishing Cloth."

5. Seven in 10 tech workers are considering quitting their job. A new survey found that 72% of IT, software, and tech workers are thinking about leaving their jobs within a year, citing working hours, limited career progression, and toxic work environments as reasons. The survey results reflect a wider trend of tech and healthcare workers leaving their jobs. Here's how to tell if your employees will get swept up by "The Great Resignation."

6. Amazon-owned Zoox will start testing driverless cars in Seattle. The self-driving robotaxis need to learn to cope with lots of rain — so they're headed to Seattle, the company told Bloomberg. More on Zoox's bad-weather training grounds.

7. Martha Stewart is selling her viral "thirst trap" selfie as an NFT. The lifestyle guru is reportedly releasing a line of non-fungible tokens, the first of which will be Halloween-themed, eventually followed by her pool-side selfie. More on Stewart's contribution to the NFT craze.

8. Amazon is offering up to $3,000 in signing bonuses as it tries to hire 150,000 seasonal workers. The jobs have a base pay of $18 — but some offer an additional $3 as well as bonuses up to $3,000. From Arizona to Virginia, these 20 states are hiring for the most seasonal roles.

9. Exclusive: Google says it had its lowest attrition rate in a decade in 2020 — but the number is picking up. According to a recording of an all-hands meeting obtained by Insider, employees are beginning to wonder whether "the Great Resignation" is coming for Google. Here's what else we learned from the meeting.

10. Tech salaries, revealed. We analyzed federal pay data to figure out how much tech companies are paying their engineers, analysts, marketers, and more. Most key Facebook employees, for example, make upwards of six figures. The same is true for Dell — see how much workers at the hardware giant are paid.

Compiled by Jordan Erb. Tips/comments? Email jerb@insider.com or tweet @JordanParkerErb.

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