Techmeme
March 21, 2020, 5:15 PM

Top News

Dieter Bohn / The Verge:
Google launches a dedicated COVID-19 website, focused on locally relevant info in the US, as well as enhanced Search results for terms related to the disease  —  After lots of complicated drama, a simple website  —  One week ago, President Donald Trump held a press conference wherein …
Taylor Lorenz / New York Times:
A look at the rise of “Zoombombing”, where trolls disrupt public Zoom conferencing calls by using the service's screen-sharing feature to share graphic content  —  As its user base rapidly expands, the videoconference app Zoom is seeing a rise in trolling and graphic content.
Josh Dzieza / The Verge:
Amazon warehouse workers and drivers fear the impact of COVID-19 as Amazon grows into an essential service, warning of uneven enforcement of safety measures  —  Amazon is positioning itself as an ‘essential’ service during the pandemic — a move that benefits the company and puts its warehouse workers and drivers in danger
The Official Microsoft Blog:
Microsoft introduces a Healthcare Bot service using AI to assist frontline organizations, like the CDC, in directing individuals to appropriate medical care  —  In a crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic, it's not only important to deliver medical care but to also provide information to help people …
Ryan Mac / BuzzFeed News:
Twitter, which prohibits denials of established science on the virus' transmission, says Elon Musk's tweet that kids are “essentially immune” is not a violation  —  The journalists at BuzzFeed News are proud to bring you trustworthy and relevant reporting about the coronavirus.
Xinmei Shen / Abacus:
Amid heavy censorship, Telegram became a refuge for WeChat users seeking information outside official channels at the height of the COVID-19 crisis in China  —  Telegram features like channel broadcasts and optional chat encryption have helped some people stay up to date amid heavy censorship on Tencent's WeChat
Sarah Frier / Bloomberg:
Snap Camera, which lets users overlay their faces with AR filters in services like Zoom, Hangouts, and Twitch, has seen 10X surge in downloads since March 1  —  Workers around the world are suddenly confined to their homes and apartments to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
Hartley Charlton / MacRumors:
In an internal doc, Apple informed authorized service providers that some iOS 13 or iPadOS 13 users may experience issues with the Personal Hotspot feature  —  In an internal document distributed to Apple Authorized Service Providers this week, obtained by MacRumors, Apple has acknowledged …
Bloomberg:
Sources: SoftBank-backed car-rental startup Getaround, once valued at $1B+, is actively seeking a sale as it deals with the impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak  —  The car-sharing company Getaround is actively seeking a sale as the coronavirus outbreak has sent demand plunging and left …

Sponsor Posts

Okara:
Meet Okara, the AI platform that doesn't train on your data  —  Chat with 30+ open-source models (Llama, Kimi, Qwen, DeepSeek) through encrypted infrastructure.  Used by teams handling proprietary code and strategy.
Soxton:
AI-powered law for startups  —  Soxton automates startup legal so founders can move faster and sleep better.  We handle incorporation, advisor, employment and commercial contracts.  Join the waitlist for early access!
Zoho:
ERP software from the builders of world-class products  —  Every business starts with a vision.  Sustaining it is a more rigorous and complex pursuit.It lives in reconciled books, accurate inventory, and predictable cash flow.
IDrive:
Protecting your Cloud Applications Data  —  Backing up Office 365, Google Workspace, Dropbox & Salesforce 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 $50 Billion Fundraise, AI Advertising Game Theory, Apple's AI Wearable Pin
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:
Will ChatGPT Ads Change OpenAI? + Amanda Askell Explains Claude's New Constitution
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:
Home robots are coming faster than you think, with Sunday's Tony Zhao
A show about the tech industry's inside conversation, hosted by tech reporter Alex Heath and founder whisperer Ellis Hamburger.
Subscribe to Access.
The Nick, Dick and Paul Show:
An Intro to Data Centers
Nick Bilton, Dick Costolo, and Paul Kedrosky pull back the curtain on AI, startups, and the future rushing toward us, all with healthy dose of irreverence.
Subscribe to The Nick, Dick and Paul Show.
Uncapped with Jack Altman:
Vinod Khosla and Keith Rabois from Khosla Ventures
Conversations with people I admire about things I'm genuinely interested in.
Subscribe to Uncapped with Jack Altman.
Tools and Weapons with Brad Smith:
Special Edition: Key findings from the Microsoft AI Diffusion Report
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.
 

About This Page

This is a Techmeme archive page. It shows how the site appeared at 5:15 PM ET, March 21, 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

Hannah Murphy / Financial Times:
Brandy Betz / Seeking Alpha:
Strategy Analytics:
Brent Lang / Variety:

Earlier Picks

John Gruber / Daring Fireball:
Abner Li / 9to5Google:
Lily Hay Newman / Wired:
Amber Neely / AppleInsider:
CNBC:
Foo Yun Chee / Reuters: