Techmeme
September 7, 2020, 1:30 AM

Top News

New York Times:
Nonparent staffers at companies like Twitter, Facebook, and Salesforce are increasingly voicing grievances over the extra benefits for parents working from home  —  Pandemic policies at tech companies have created a rift between parents offered more benefits and resentful workers who don't have children.
Maureen Dowd / New York Times:
Interview with Reed Hastings, on the future of Hollywood, the US election and social media, his new book about Netflix's aggressive company culture, and more  —  Netflix started with sending DVDs — remember them? — through the mail, but now the streaming pioneer sits atop a Hollywood it has thoroughly upended.
Sean Hollister / The Verge:
In court filing, Epic says Fortnite has 116M iOS users, a third of the game's 350M users, and iOS DAUs declined by 60%+ since its removal from the App Store  —  Epic is formally asking for a preliminary injunction  —  Shortly before midnight on the Friday before Labor Day weekend …
Paul Mozur / New York Times:
A look at the role of WeChat in China and abroad, its differences with TikTok, and how its features are inextricably woven with surveillance and censorship  —  A vital connection for the Chinese diaspora, the app has also become a global conduit of Chinese state propaganda, surveillance and intimidation.
Jeanne Whalen / Washington Post:
US government is considering adding Chinese chip manufacturer SMIC to the Entity List, which would block US companies from selling SMIC tech without a license  —  Pentagon says the Trump administration is weighing possible trade sanction on SMIC  —  The Trump administration …
Wall Street Journal:
Amazon bans foreign plant sales in the US, after mystery seeds sent to households this summer led US officials to raise alarm over ease of e-commerce seed sales  —  Shift by the e-commerce giant comes as agricultural authorities investigate the delivery of thousands of packets of seeds
Steven Levy / Wired:
Qualcomm founder Irwin Jacobs on the “Holy Wars of Wireless” and why there is no US equivalent to Huawei that is pioneering next gen wireless infrastructure  —  Plus: Wireless at the turn of the century, a highly anticipated question, and a surprise in the stratosphere.
Andy Chalk / PC Gamer:
Twitch says it is shutting down Twitch Sings, a live streaming karaoke game it had co-developed with Rock Band studio Harmonix, on January 1, 2021  —  Twitch said it's being shuttered to ‘invest in broader tools and services’ for its music community.  —  Twitch Sings has sung its last …
PYMNTS.com:
Fashionphile, an ecommerce site for pre-owned goods, raises $38.5M Series B led by NewSpring Growth  —  Pre-owned online shopping firm Fashionphile has raised $38.5 million in NewSpring Growth-led Series B funding.  The infusion comes after the April 2019 minority investment of Neiman Marcus in the company …

Sponsor Posts

ElevenLabs:
ElevenAgents by ElevenLabs  —  You know us for voice.  Now meet ElevenAgents — featuring Expressive Mode, our most human-sounding AI voice technology in 70+ languages with ultra-low latency.  Hear it for yourself.
Niantic Spatial:
World models need real-world data  —  Scaniverse is the gateway to spatial services — self-serve and built for AI and robotics.  Large-area 3D reconstruction from 360° cameras and precise localization, anywhere machines operate.
Zoho:
Introducing the sandbox environment: Safely test and optimize e-signature workflows  —  Changes are an inevitable part of any workflow.  The average agreement workflow involves recipients across organizations …
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:
Anthropic's Mythos Dilemma, Violence Against AI, Tokenmaxxing at Meta
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:
Anthropic's Cybersecurity Shock Wave + Ronan Farrow and Andrew Marantz on Their Sam Altman Investigation + One Good Thing
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.
The Upstarts Podcast:
Decagon's Jesse Zhang: Closing Customer Service Doom Loops With AI Concierges
Veteran tech reporter Alex Konrad sits down with breakout entrepreneurs taking on the status quo to shake up their fields in AI, design, nuclear energy, space, and more.
Subscribe to The Upstarts Podcast.
Access:
OpenClaw for normies is here
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:
When AI Kills
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.
Tools and Weapons with Brad Smith:
Ryan Roslansky: Turning AI Anxiety into Skills for the Future of Work
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 1:30 AM ET, September 7, 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

Carl Miller / WIRED UK:
Karen Hao / MIT Technology Review:
Laura Hautala / CNET:

Earlier Picks

Aroon Deep / MediaNama:
Zeynep Tufekci / The Atlantic:
Jeremy B. Merrill / ProPublica: