Techmeme
February 19, 2020, 7:50 PM

Top News

Abner Li / 9to5Google:
Google launches Android 11 Developer Preview earlier than expected, with new display types, improved messaging, biometrics, and more; final release expected Q3  —  Following an inadvertent tease last week, Google today officially launched the Android 11 Developer Preview.
Natasha Lomas / TechCrunch:
EU issues proposals to drive digitization across industries and sectors, including rules for high risk AI systems and a regulatory framework for data governance  —  European Union lawmakers have set out a first bundle of proposals for a new digital strategy for the bloc …
Alex Kantrowitz / BuzzFeed News:
Inside the FBI's complaint against two ex-Twitter employees who allegedly accessed personal info of thousands of users on behalf of Saudi Arabia for $300K+  —  Ali Alzabarah was panicked.  His heart raced as he drove home from Twitter's San Francisco headquarters in the early evening on Dec. 2, 2015.
Joseph Menn / Reuters:
Sources: following Brexit, Google plans to move UK user accounts out of EU's jurisdiction and into the US', where privacy protections are weaker  —  SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Google is planning to move its British users' accounts out of the control of European Union privacy regulators …
Juli Clover / MacRumors:
Apple sends a cease and desist letter to the author of “App Store Confidential”, published in Germany by an ex-Apple employee, claiming it reveals trade secrets  —  Apple is aiming to stop the sale of a new insider book called “App Store Confidential,” written …
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
TikTok announces new Family Safety Mode parental controls to limit kids' usage with screen time management, DM limits, and more, coming first to the UK  —  TikTok announced today the introduction of a new set of parental controls, called “Family Safety Mode,” designed to let parents set limits …
Michael del Castillo / Forbes:
Coinbase becomes a Visa Principal Member, allowing it to issue bitcoin debit cards for other crypto companies and traditional firms  —  Credit card giant Visa has granted its principal membership to a cryptocurrency company for the first time.  Officially awarded to cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase …
Tom Warren / The Verge:
Microsoft launches a unified Office app for iOS and Android, combining Word, Excel, and PowerPoint into a single app; standalone versions will remain available  —  Even more mobile features are on the way soon  —  Microsoft is releasing its new unified Office app for iOS and Android today …
Sean Hollister / The Verge:
An in-depth look at Samsung's Ultra Thin Glass, used on the Galaxy Z Flip: how its thinness allows it to fold but requires a plastic protective layer  —  On February 11th, 2020, Samsung introduced the world's first folding glass phone: the Galaxy Z Flip.  Samsung declared that it had broken …
Andrew Liszewski / Gizmodo:
Larry Tesler, an influential figure at Xerox PARC and Apple who coined “cut, copy, paste” and advocated for modeless computing, has died at 74  —  The advent of the personal computer wasn't just about making these powerful machines available to everyone, it was also about making …
Abner Li / 9to5Google:
Google begins rolling out two Google Docs features: autocorrect, enabled by default, and Smart Compose, for paying customers  —  Last November, Google Docs started testing autocorrect and Smart Compose as part of leveraging machine learning to improve user productivity.
Katie Paul / Reuters:
IRS lawsuit against Facebook, alleging the company owes $9B+ in taxes after shifting profits to Ireland, begins in San Francisco  —  SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Facebook Inc is slated to begin a tax trial in a San Francisco court on Tuesday, as the Internal Revenue Service tries to convince …
Catalin Cimpanu / ZDNet:
Home addresses and other data of 10.6M+ guests who stayed at MGM Resorts hotels before 2018, including Jack Dorsey, were posted on a hacking forum this week  —  MGM Resorts said security incident took place last summer and notified impacted guests last year.
Joseph Cox / VICE:
Yodlee, America's largest financial data broker, says the data that it sells is anonymous, but a leaked Yodlee doc shows millions of people could be unmasked  —  Yodlee, the largest financial data broker in the U.S., sells data pulled from the bank and credit card transactions of tens …
Dave Gershgorn / OneZero :
Profile of Japan-based NEC, which has been a longtime provider of facial recognition services globally and garners less scrutiny than new entrants in the space  —  July 2018, the mayor of Irving, Texas, signed a contract that would dramatically expand how the city's police department could investigate crimes using facial recognition.
More: Vox and VICE
Billy Steele / Engadget:
As Photoshop turns 30, Adobe begins rolling out new desktop and mobile features, including bringing the Object Selection tool to iPad  —  Photoshop turns 30 today, and Adobe is celebrating with some worthwhile updates to the photo-editing app on both the desktop and iPad.
Christine Negroni / New York Times:
Current US air traffic systems are ill equipped to deal with the coming surges in air congestion from drones and urban air mobility vehicles  —  As aviation technology becomes more integrated into everyday life, providers of new services brace for the unknown.
Cynthia Koons / Bloomberg:
Family planning telehealth startup Maven raises $45M Series C from Icon Ventures, Sequoia, others, and launched its Wallet service to manage benefits this year  —  Family-planning benefits are often difficult to navigate.  A tech company is trying to change that.

Sponsor Posts

Google:
Try Gemini 3 Pro  —  Google's newest and most intelligent AI model that helps you bring any idea to life
Shopify:
Shopify: Revolutionizing Commerce with Winter Edition '26  —  Over 150+ new features transform how merchants build, design, and grow—with technology that amplifies creative vision.
Zoho:
The best time to become a Zoho Partner  —  The business world is not only changing but it is being rebuilt.  Customers want connected ecosystems that will help them automate, unify their data, and do more with less.
IDrive:
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.

Featured Podcasts

Big Technology Podcast:
OpenAI's 2026 Priority, Disney's AI Play, Datacenter Buildout Trouble
The Big Technology Podcast takes you behind the scenes in the tech world featuring interviews with plugged-in insiders and outside agitators.
Subscribe to Big Technology Podcast.
Hard Fork:
Australia Kicks Kids Off Social Media + Is the A.I. Water Issue Fake? + Hard Fork Wrapped
The future is already here. Each week, journalists Kevin Roose and Casey Newton explore and make sense of the latest in the rapidly changing world of tech.
Subscribe to Hard Fork.
Access:
Why the next AI frontier is phone calls, with Beside CEO Maxime Germain
A show about the tech industry's inside conversation, hosted by tech reporter Alex Heath and founder whisperer Ellis Hamburger.
Subscribe to Access.
Great Chat:
So what happens after AGI?
A podcast mostly about tech. Brought to you weekly by Angela Du, Sally Shin, Mac Bohannon, Helen Min, and Ashley Mayer.
Subscribe to Great Chat.
Tools and Weapons with Brad Smith:
Ted Sarandos: Netflix and how tech changed storytelling
Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith speaks with leaders in government, business, and culture to explore the most critical challenges at the intersection of technology and society.
Subscribe to Tools and Weapons with Brad Smith.
Channels with Peter Kafka:
Lachlan Cartwright Started in Tabloids. Now He's a Must-Read Media Gossip.
Media and tech aren't just intersecting - they're fully intertwined. To understand how those worlds work, Peter Kafka talks to industry leaders, upstarts and observers.
Subscribe to Channels with Peter Kafka.
 

About This Page

This is a Techmeme archive page. It shows how the site appeared at 7:50 PM ET, February 19, 2020.

The most current version of the site as always is available at our home page. To view an earlier snapshot click here and then modify the date indicated.

More News

Cameron Wilson / BuzzFeed:

Earlier Picks

Richard Cooke / Wired:
Josh Constine / TechCrunch:
Kurt Wagner / Bloomberg: