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June 16, 2021, 4:00 PM
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Rolfe Winkler / Wall Street Journal:
Sources: some of Apple's healthcare efforts, including a pilot primary healthcare service with Apple-employed doctors, have stalled due to internal concerns  —  Tech giant has envisioned hiring doctors to offer primary care, now focused on Watch  —  Apple Inc. Chief Executive Tim Cook …
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Spotify launches Greenroom, an app that lets Spotify users worldwide join or host live audio rooms and turn those conversations into podcasts  —  In March, Spotify announced it was acquiring the company behind the sports-focused audio app Locker Room to help speed its entry into the live audio market.
Rebecca Kern / Bloomberg:
Democratic Rep. David Cicilline, leading a push for a new antitrust package targeting Big Tech, says Apple would be banned from pre-installing its own apps  —  - Cicilline comments on intent of antitrust legislation  — Proposal would prohibit companies from self-prefering products
Ben Thompson / Stratechery:
Overview of House lawmakers' recent antitrust-focused bills, which target consumer tech giants, vary in radicalness, and at times conflict with each other
Darrell Etherington / TechCrunch:
Interview with Apple's VP for Technology Kevin Lynch on Apple Watch's evolution, future health capabilities through sensor fusion with AirPods, and more  —  Apple VP of Technology Kevin Lynch charts a path from Apple Watch's early days to the sophistication of Health today.
Ashley Carman / The Verge:
In an email to creators, Facebook says it will launch its podcast platform on June 22; podcasters can link up RSS feeds and decide if users can clip shows  —  Along with podcast clips  —  Facebook is planning to start rolling out its podcast product next week, on June 22nd, and, eventually …
New York Times:
Biden names Lina Khan, an antitrust expert who wrote the “Amazon Antitrust Paradox”, as FTC chair, after the Senate voted 69-28 to confirm her as commissioner  —  Ms. Khan, who first attracted notice as a critic of Amazon, was confirmed by the Senate as a commissioner on the agency on Tuesday.
James Vincent / The Verge:
Facebook launches a new suite of tools for admins of Groups, including AI-powered Conflict Alerts that identify “contentious or unhealthy conversations”  —  Part of a suite of new tools for managing Facebook communities  —  Facebook is launching a suite of new tools to help group admins get a grip on their communities.
Salvador Rodriguez / CNBC:
Facebook says it will begin testing ads on Oculus headsets, starting with the shooter game Blaston, and won't use data stored on devices to target ads  —  - Facebook on Wednesday announced that it will begin testing advertisements that will appear within the company's Oculus virtual reality headsets.
Mathew Olson / The Information:
Around 150 of Mapbox's 222 US staff have signed CWA union cards; they assert maps are political, and workers should be able to refuse to work on some projects  —  San Francisco-based Mapbox offers tools and navigation data that can power just about any use of digital maps you can imagine, including augmented reality.
Lauren Feiner / CNBC:
Waymo raises $2.5B from Alphabet, a16z, Tiger Global, and others, to advance its autonomous driving tech and grow its team  —  - Google sibling company Waymo announced a $2.5 billion investment round Wednesday, which will go toward advancing its autonomous driving technology and growing its team.
James Vincent / The Verge:
Facebook partners with Michigan State University to create a method for reverse-engineering deepfakes by using AI to reveal the ML model that created it  —  The work could help future deepfake investigations  —  Deepfakes aren't a big problem on Facebook right now, but the company continues …
Tim Bradshaw / Financial Times:
Harry Stebbings, a 24-year-old Londoner with a popular podcast about tech investing, raises $140M fund from MIT, RIT Capital, and founders of Spotify and Calm  —  Harry Stebbings secures investment from MIT and Rothschild-backed RIT Capital Partners  —  A 24-year-old law school dropout …
Dieter Bohn / The Verge:
After years of pop-up experiments, Google says its first retail store, located in the Chelsea neighborhood of NYC, will open on June 17  —  Pixel, Nest, Fitbit, and third-party accessories will be on sale  —  After years of pop-up experiments, Google is finally dipping its toes …
Jon Porter / The Verge:
Honor says Google apps will return to its phones, starting with the 50 series, announced in China today, after Huawei sold off the brand at the end of last year  —  Officially announced today in China  —  The Honor 50 series will be able to ship with Google's apps and services …
Joe Light / Bloomberg:
US lawmakers and Fed officials have expressed concern over the risk to US financial system posed by stablecoins, as their total market cap crosses $100B  —  - So-called stablecoins cited as a risk to financial system  — Consumers' money isn't adequately protected, lawmakers say
Hayden Field / Morning Brew:
Sources detail Airbnb's failures to prioritize anti-discrimination outside of talking points, including its Smart Pricing algorithm, which widened inequalities  —  Sources say the company prioritizes anti-discrimination in its talking points, but not in its spending.
Bloomberg:
Amazon's planned new African HQ, located in Cape Town, has met with fierce resistance and protests by indigenous people, with 50,000 objections  —  - Khoisan group trying to stop building of $291 million project  — City of Cape Town says venture will add jobs, boost economy

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From Mediagazer

Benjamin Mullin / New York Times:
Arkansas PBS severs ties with the PBS network, the first state public TV system to do so since Congress cut CPB funds, citing the annual $2M+ membership cost

Pamela McClintock / The Hollywood Reporter:
Disney's Zootopia 2 surpasses $1B at the global box office, the fastest PG-rated film to do so after just 17 days in release

Sam Roberts / New York Times:
Arthur L. Carter, who started a Connecticut newspaper in 1981, bought and sold The Nation, and founded the New York Observer in 1987, has died at 93

More News

Lily Hay Newman / Wired:
Privacy activists worry about the lack of transparency and detailed info on how Apple plans to implement driver's licenses and other digital IDs on its devices

Earlier Picks

Kaitlyn Tiffany / The Atlantic:
Examining the commercialization of ideas and interactions via newsletters, NFTs, and tip jars, where money empowers but reduces expression to mere commerce
Wall Street Journal:
Alibaba's Taobao was clandestinely scraped by a web crawler for 8 months, leading to a leak of 1.1B pieces of user data, including user IDs and phone numbers
Bloomberg:
Japan Display, which sold its smartphone screen factory last year, is pivoting to VR; LCDs are projected to dominate the VR headset market over the next 5 years
David Cohen / Adweek:
The Oversight Board accepts its first policy advisory opinion request from Facebook, on the sharing of private residential info, issues call for public comments
Benjamin Mayo / 9to5Mac:
UK's CMA says it will launch an investigation into Apple and Google's mobile ecosystems over whether their market power is harming users
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