Techmeme
February 25, 2020, 9:55 PM

Top News

Kurt Schlosser / GeekWire:
Amazon opens Amazon Go Grocery in Seattle, its first full sized grocery store without cashiers or checkout lines  —  Amazon Go is going full grocery.  —  Two years after launching a chain of convenience stores without cashiers or checkout lines, Amazon is opening its first “Amazon Go Grocery” …
Salesforce:
Salesforce says Keith Block has stepped down as co-CEO but will still advise Marc Benioff; Gavin Patterson named President and CEO of Salesforce International  —  Salesforce (NYSE: CRM) today announced that Keith Block has stepped down as co-CEO of Salesforce and Marc Benioff is Chair and CEO of the company.
The Walt Disney Company:
Bob Chapek has been named CEO of The Walt Disney Company, effective immediately; Bob Iger will serve as executive chairman through 2021  —  Robert A. Iger Assumes Role of Executive Chairman through 2021 Mr. Iger Will Direct the Company's Creative Endeavors Mr. Chapek Brings 27 Years …
Reuters:
Ex-Apple employees and supply chain experts say preparation for new iPhone production, which usually starts early in the year, may be delayed due to COVID-19  —  SAN FRANCISCO/TAIPEI (Reuters) - Travel restrictions to China because of the coronavirus have come just as Apple Inc's (AAPL.O) …
Tom Krisher / NBC Bay Area:
NTSB says the driver in a 2018 Tesla accident was distracted by a game on his phone and that the NHTSA's hands-off approach to self-driving tech is “misguided”  —  Just before the crash, the Tesla steered to the left into a paved area between the freeway travel lanes and an exit ramp
Jon Brodkin / Ars Technica:
Firefox begins rollout of encrypted DNS over HTTPS (DoH) by default for US-based users to thwart snooping ISPs  —  US-based Firefox users get encrypted DNS lookups today or within a few weeks.  —  Firefox will start switching browser users to Cloudflare's encrypted-DNS service today and roll …
Rebekah Valentine / GamesIndustry.biz:
Facebook has acquired Sanzaru Games, developer of Asgard's Wrath, for an undisclosed amount; the game studio will remain independent under Oculus Studios  —  Studio behind Asgard's Wrath to join Oculus Studios and continue VR development  —  Facebook has acquired Asgard's Wrath developer Sanzaru Games for an undisclosed amount.
Mark Gurman / Bloomberg:
Review of Apple's Chinese Store websites shows around 30 of 42 have reopened, most with shortened hours, as the company seeks to rebound from COVID-19's impact  —  - Company's store website shows 29 of 42 locations are opening  — Apple recently pulled March quarter guidance on virus impact
Biz Carson / Protocol:
Bird says it's testing Bird Pay, a feature that lets users buy products from local businesses by scanning a QR code in the Bird app, as it looks to stem losses  —  Investors want to see profits.  Is adding payments to products the solution?  —  Bird, the scooter company, is pivoting into payments — kind of.
Catalin Cimpanu / ZDNet:
Firefox for Mac and Linux will begin using a newly-developed security sandbox system called RLBox to minimize impact of errors in its largely C/C++ codebase  —  Firefox's new RLBox sandbox system to ship to Linux users in Firefox 74 and Mac users in Firefox 75.
Sarah Emerson / OneZero :
Survey of 11,500+ H-1B visa holders at US tech companies finds discomfort with Trump's policies, with many feeling their place in the US is highly conditional  —  OneZero conducted a 10,000-person poll to shed light on the plight of H-1B workers  —  This article is part of Into the Valley …
Will Oremus / OneZero :
In-depth look at the iOS App Store and the potentially anti-competitive ways it restricts consumers and third-parties, an increasing area of regulatory scrutiny  —  Its App Store has a choke hold on your devices.  That may not last much longer.  —  ou've just dropped $500 on a new iPad Air.
Cyrus Farivar / NBC News:
A county judge in San Diego has ruled that Instacart's classification of its California workers is not compliant with AB5; Instacart says it will appeal  —  The judge says Instacart is not complying with the new “gig economy” law that requires workers to be considered employees, not independent contractors.
Reuters:
Sources: autonomous vehicle startup Pony.ai has raised around $500M in its latest funding round led by Toyota at a valuation of around $3B  —  HONG KONG/BEIJING (Reuters) - Autonomous driving firm Pony.ai has raised around $500 million in its latest funding round, led by an investment …

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Gabe Bullard / Nieman Reports:
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