Techmeme: Tim Cook says Apple is focusing on autonomous systems, which he sees as “the mother of all AI projects” and can be used for developing self-driving cars (Bloomberg)

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June 13, 2017, 1:15 PM

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Bloomberg:

Tim Cook says Apple is focusing on autonomous systems, which he sees as “the mother of all AI projects” and can be used for developing self-driving cars — For the first time, CEO elaborates on Apple's car plans — The company's automotive program has experienced turmoil

Bloomberg:

Verizon officially closes the $4.5B Yahoo deal; combined assets form a Verizon unit called Oath led by Tim Armstrong, and Marissa Mayer steps down — Combined assets form Verizon unit called Oath led by Armstrong — Yahoo is renamed Altaba with Thomas McInerney named CEO

More: Marissa's Tumblr, Verizon Fios & Custom TV, TechCrunch, USA Today, Engadget, Business Insider, CNBC, and CNBC

Tweets: @marissamayer, @edbott, @sfiegerman, and @pkafka

See also Mediagazer

Eric Newcomer / Bloomberg:

Travis Kalanick says that he is taking leave from Uber for an undetermined time to deal with family tragedy, in email to employees — Travis Kalanick will hand off some duties to COO, chair — He plans to take a leave without disclosing return date — Uber Technologies Inc. Chief …

More: Recode, New York Times, Engadget, Business Insider, CNBC, BuzzFeed, and Marketing Week

Tweets: @mikeisaac, @mikeisaac, and @andyjayhawk

Katie Benner / New York Times:

When an Uber employee sells stock back to the company under a repurchase program, Travis Kalanick gets voting rights to all of that employee's shares — SAN FRANCISCO — Travis Kalanick, the chief executive of Uber, already wields plenty of control over the company because it is structured to favor its founders.

More: 512tech, BuzzFeed, Fortune, and Pando

Tweets: @ericnewcomer, @nytimesbusiness, @holman, @danprimack, and @ktbenner

Kara Swisher / Recode:

Sources: Bill Gurley favors leave for Uber CEO, Arianna Huffington thinks Kalanick should decide, while Uber co-founder Garrett Camp opposes leave — Only hours before the Holder report is released and an all-hands meeting that paints an ugly picture of the car-hailing company under his leadership, the CEO mulls his own fate.

More: Business Insider and The Verge. Tweets: @ericnewcomer

Bloomberg:

Sources: Emil Michael believes a weak board and lax legal team at Uber, plus his friendship with Travis Kalanick, led to his ouster, not scandals

More: New York Times, Silicon Republic, The Next Web, Washington Post, Global Nerdy, and Recode

Tweets: @rjonesy, @joefernandez, @sarahcuda, @sarahcuda, @carnage4life, and @ellenhuet

Johana Bhuiyan / Recode:

David Richter, who joined Uber in January 2014, replaces Emil Michael as Uber's SVP for business, having previously served as VP of strategic initiatives

More: Wired. Tweets: @mdudas

Eric Newcomer / Bloomberg:

Sources: Uber adds Nestlé executive and Alibaba board member Wan Ling Martello to its board, after Holder probe recommended more independent directors

More: Wall Street Journal, Breitbart, East Bay Times, Seeking Alpha, CNNMoney, Fortune, Wall Street Journal, Morning Consult, New York Times, Gizmodo India, Mercury News, Recode, New York Times, and Axios

Bloomberg:

Source: Russia's cyberattack on the US electoral system hit voter databases and software systems in a total of 39 states, twice as many as previously reported — Hackers said to take measure of voting systems, databases — A ‘red phone’ warning to the Kremlin from Obama White House

More: Ars Technica, CNET, The Verge, Gizmodo, CNBC, Engadget, and The Daily Caller

Tweets: @tedlieu, @fivefifths, @davidfrum, @johnrbielski, @lschmeiser, @vermontgmg, @sarahkendzior, and @braddjaffy

Janko Roettgers / Variety:

Sources: Google hires Manu Gulati, who led Apple's chip development for almost eight years, as Lead SoC Architect — Google has hired a veteran chip architect away from Apple and is now looking to build its own chips for future versions of its flagship Pixel phone, Variety has learned from sources familiar with the hire.

More: The Verge, Digital Trends, MacRumors, 9to5Google, iDownloadBlog.com, CNBC, Seeking Alpha, and MacDailyNews. Tweets: @jank0. Thanks:@jank0

Dan Seifert / The Verge:

Eero upgrades its mesh router with more power and tri-band WiFi and launches Eero Plus, a $9.99 per month subscription service for parental control and security — A smaller Eero that can hide in more places is also coming — Eero is back: a little over a year after kickstarting …

More: TechCrunch, Axios, Engadget, Digital Trends, CNET, TechHive, Gizmodo, Wired, and SlashGear

Dieter Bohn / The Verge:

Microsoft Surface Laptop review: balances power and thinness well, has a beautiful touchscreen, but few apps on Windows 10 S, and Alcantara fabric requires care — Windows heir — Finally. It's a word that's famously overused in tech, and it's understandable.

More: The Verge, Windows Central, Engadget, Windows Central, Softpedia News, Wall Street Journal, Telegraph, CNET, Business Insider, Windows Central, ZDNet, and Peter O'Kelly's Reality Check

Tweets: @pierce and @cnet

Jacob Kastrenakes / The Verge:

Instagram launches out of beta its Archive feature that hides old posts without deleting them — Instagram is releasing its Archive feature to all users today, after testing it with a smaller group of people last month. — The feature lets anyone on Instagram hide their old posts without deleting them.

More: Instagram, GeekWire, The Next Web, Adweek, SlashGear, and Fortune

Matthew Hughes / The Next Web:

Twitter now lets brands add up to 3 action buttons to Direct Messages; actions include following another Twitter account, visiting a web page, tweeting, more — Twitter just souped up Direct Messages, in the process making them more useful for brands when it comes to customer service and growing engagement.

More: Axios, Marketing Land, Engadget, and TechCrunch

Tweets: @darth and @jyarow

Emma Lee / TechNode:

Chinese cloud computing company QingCloud raises about $160M Series D as it prepares for IPO — Just a few years ago, billion-level funding would be beyond the imagination of Chinese cloud computing companies. But now it is becoming more and more tangible as the market matures.

More: GeekWire and China Money Network

Todd Bishop / GeekWire:

Amazon rolling out update to Alexa app that allows users of its voice-calling feature to block specific contacts — Amazon is rolling out an update to its Alexa app that lets users of its voice-calling feature block specific people from calling them using the company's voice-activated assistant.

More: The Verge, Digital Trends, Mashable, Engadget, Ubergizmo, and Phandroid

Ryan Lawler / TechCrunch:

Online finance startup SoFi has applied for a new-bank charter under the name of SoFi Bank to offer FDIC-insured account and credit-card product — In May, SoFi CEO Michael Cagney told TechCrunch the company would be applying for a bank charter “in the next month.”

More: Reuters and Wall Street Journal

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