Techmeme
December 6, 2021, 11:00 AM

Top News

Mark Gurman / Bloomberg:
Many customers complain that T-Mobile and Verizon have failed to deliver promised rebates for promoted Apple products in a straightforward manner  —  Some customers are finding that wireless carriers are denying rebates used to promote Apple Inc.'s newest iPhones, iPads and watches.
Reuters:
Alibaba appoints a new CFO and will reorganize its e-commerce businesses under two new divisions, one domestic and one international  —  Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (9988.HK) said Toby Xu, will succeed Maggie Wu as the company's chief financial officer from April, a move it described as part of the company's leadership succession plan.
Julian E. Barnes / New York Times:
The head of US Cyber Command says the US military has “taken actions” against ransomware groups, the first public acknowledgement of the offensive measures  —  Gen. Paul M. Nakasone, the head of Cyber Command, said a new cross-functional effort has been gathering intelligence …
Ben Smith / New York Times:
A document from TikTok's engineering team in Beijing details the product's addictive algorithm, which optimizes for “retention” and “time spent”  —  It's the most successful video app in the world.  Our columnist has obtained an internal company document that offers …
Emma Roth / The Verge:
Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile all have programs that collect additional customer data, like app usage and web history, and they are generally opt-out  —  Verizon says it's to better “understand your interests”  —  The My Verizon app might be collecting information about your browsing history …
Bloomberg:
Investigation: Swiss company Mitto, which offers automated text messages to companies in 100+ countries, helped governments secretly surveil mobile phone users  —  Mitto AG's network used to track people via mobile phones, former employees say.  —  The co-founder of a company that has been trusted …
Benedict Evans:
Overview of macro tech trends, with a focus on Web3, metaverse, and the move to the cloud, which is just beginning as on-prem IT spend still dwarfs cloud spend  —  The most exciting themes in technology today are transformative visions for 2025 or 2030: crypto, web3, VR, metaverse... and then everything else.
Alistair Gray / Financial Times:
GroupM: global ad revenue will reach $763B in 2021, up 18.7% from 2019; Alphabet, Meta, and Amazon control 80-90% of the digital ad market outside China  —  Alphabet, Meta and Amazon have doubled their share of ad revenues in past 5 years, industry estimates
Ben Thompson / Stratechery:
Amazon's extensive supply chain investments, mostly focused on domestic US logistics, make it very attractive to third-party merchants and customers  —  It seems like a Christmas miracle.  From CNBC: … The intended takeaway of this article — which originated as a digital special report …
The Guardian:
The EU has spent hundreds of million euros over the past decade on tech, including drones and sensor systems, to track down refugees at its borders  —  We map out the rising number of high-tech surveillance and deterrent systems facing asylum seekers along EU borders
Financial Times:
Researchers describe Meta's roadblocks, including pre-publication review and restrictive contracts, to stifle research that might cast it in a negative light  —  Last March, Orestis Papakyriakopoulos, a researcher at Princeton University, applied to use a special data access tool that allows academics to do research on Facebook.

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Featured Podcasts

Cheeky Pint:
The history and future of AI at Google, with Sundar Pichai
Stripe cofounder John Collison interviews founders, builders, and leaders over a pint.
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Big Technology Podcast:
More OpenAI Executive Drama, Is Siri Seriously Broken?, Meta's Elusive Next Hit
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Grit:
How Kevin Mandia Built the Most Trusted Name in Cybersecurity
Grit explores what it takes to create, build and scale world-class organizations.
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Lenny's Podcast:
Head of Growth (Anthropic): "Claude is growing itself at this point" | Amol Avasare
Interviews with world-class product leaders and growth experts to uncover actionable advice to help you build, launch, and grow your own product.
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Hard Fork:
The Future of Addictive Design + Going Deep at DeepMind + HatGPT
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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.
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Earlier Picks

Issie Lapowsky / Protocol:
David Streitfeld / New York Times:
Christopher Mims / Wall Street Journal:
RT:
Emma Roth / The Verge:
Tim Copeland / The Block: