Techmeme
June 4, 2020, 8:10 PM

Top News

Sara Fischer / Axios:
Facebook will start blocking state-controlled media outlets from buying ads in the US this summer and is rolling out labels for ads and posts from those outlets  —  Facebook said Thursday it will begin blocking state-controlled media outlets from buying advertising in the U.S. this summer.
Jordan Novet / CNBC:
Amazon to license Slack for all employees, while Slack will use underlying tech from AWS's Chime video-calling service to improve its video and audio calls  —  - Slack will draw on the underlying technology for Amazon Web Services' Chime video-calling service to deliver better video calls for millions of Slack users.
Zack Whittaker / TechCrunch:
Google researchers say hackers backed by China recently targeted the Biden campaign while Iran targeted the Trump campaign, but see “no signs of compromise”  —  Google security researchers say they've identified efforts by at least two nation state-backed hackers against the Trump and Biden presidential campaigns.
Moxie Marlinspike / Signal Blog:
Messaging app Signal adds face blurring tool on iOS and Android to help hide protesters' identities  —  Right now, people around the world are marching and protesting against racism and police brutality, outraged by the most recent police murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.
Tim Cook / Apple:
William Gallagher / AppleInsider:
Report: Apple started a robotics lab in 2012 to reduce human labor needed to assemble products, but abandoned it in 2018 when the robots couldn't match humans  —  Apple has spent years and millions of dollars on automating its production lines with technology, and it has always reverted to using skilled human beings instead.
Judd Legum / Popular Information:
Facebook ran an ad for 5 days from a GOP Congressional candidate that urged people to shoot “looting hoards from Atlanta”; ad removed after journalist inquiry  —  Facebook is facing an internal revolt over CEO Mark Zuckerberg's handling of a post by Trump that encouraged shooting “looters.”
Mike Isaac / New York Times:
Ari Levy / CNBC:
Business intelligence service ZoomInfo closes up 62% on its first day of trading, after raising $934.5M in its IPO and valuing the company at about $13.4B  —  - ZoomInfo priced its IPO at $21 per share on Wednesday after raising the range to between $19 and $20.
Reuters:
Sources: Amazon is in early-stage talks to buy a ~5% stake, worth at least $2B, in Indian mobile operator Bharti Airtel  —  NEW DELHI/HONG KONG (Reuters) - Amazon.com (AMZN.O) is in early-stage talks to buy a stake worth at least $2 billion in Indian mobile operator Bharti Airtel (BRTI.NS) …
Brad Artziniega / The Official Medium Blog:
Medium launches Newsletters, to let publications start newsletters on the platform and get replies from readers directly in the publications' inboxes  —  Four years ago, we launched Letters to help Publications connect with their audience directly in their readers' inboxes.
Kirsten Korosec / TechCrunch:
Kitty Hawk shuts down original Flyer program, shifts focus to developing Heaviside, a sleeker electric aircraft that can fly and land anywhere autonomously  —  Kitty Hawk is shutting down its Flyer program, the aviation startup's inaugural moonshot to develop an ultralight electric flying car designed for anyone to use.
Sidney Fussell / Wired:
Protests renew scrutiny of tech companies' ties to law enforcement, as company officials issue statements in support of protesters  —  Amazon executives tweeted support for protesters.  But the company sells a surveillance tool to police that studies say misidentifies darker-skinned people.

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More News

Emiliano Mellino / WIRED UK:

Earlier Picks

Filipe Espósito / 9to5Mac:
Jonathan Stempel / Reuters:
Casey Newton / The Verge:
Ivan Mehta / The Next Web: