Techmeme
December 14, 2021, 10:50 AM

Top News

Tim Starks / CyberScoop:
CISA Director Jen Easterly says the Log4j flaw likely affects hundreds of millions of devices and may be the most serious bug she has seen in her career  —  Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Director Jen Easterly told industry leaders in a phone briefing Monday that a vulnerability …
Bloomberg:
Dan Goodin / Ars Technica:
Lucas Matney / TechCrunch:
Nike acquires RTFKT, an NFT studio founded in 2020, for an undisclosed sum; RTFKT raised an $8M seed in May led by a16z at a $33.3M valuation  —  Nike is taking a plunge deeper into the world of crypto collectibles, announcing that they're acquiring the NFT studio RTFKT (pronounced “artifact").
Sam Byford / The Verge:
Oppo announces Air Glass, an “assisted reality” product that projects 2D info and weighs 30g with claimed three-hour usage, coming to China in Q1 2022  —  Coming to China early next year  —  Oppo has announced the Air Glass, an AR device that'll go on sale early next year.
Bloomberg:
Sources: NSO Group is considering shuttering its Pegasus unit and selling the company, among other options, as it struggles to repay $450M in debt  —  - Moelis tapped to advise on talks with investment funds  — One plan would repurpose product for strictly defensive use
Sami Fathi / MacRumors:
Apple delays macOS Monterey's Universal Control until spring 2022, after saying it would launch in the fall  —  Apple has officially delayed Universal Control, a hallmark feature of macOS Monterey and iPadOS 15 announced in June, until Spring 2022.  —  In an update to the iPadOS 15 …
Financial Times:
US Department of Labor letter shows it is investigating Apple over Ashley Gjovik's claims that she was fired under a false pretext after retaliation complaints  —  US labour department inquiry follows claims by ex-senior engineering program manager  —  The US Department of Labor …
Annie Palmer / CNBC:
US OSHA says it is investigating the deadly collapse of an Amazon warehouse in Illinois caused by a tornado; six workers died, one was injured, 45 were rescued  —  - OSHA is investigating a collapse at an Amazon warehouse in Edwardsville, Illinois.  — The facility collapsed Friday …
BBC:
UK MPs propose changes to the UK's Online Safety Bill, including adding more offenses and fines, mandating tech firms appoint a “safety controller”, and more  —  New criminal offences and major changes have been proposed in the UK's landmark Online Safety Bill, which seeks to regulate social media and tech giants.
Issie Lapowsky / Protocol:
Biden signs an executive order directing 17 US agencies to modernize services and bring more of them online, including passport photo uploads and taxes  —  The White House is hoping to spur a major technological overhaul of government services with a new executive order President Biden will sign Monday.
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Snap says it paid out over $250M to more than 12,000 creators through its Snapchat Spotlight programs in 2021  —  This year, Snap finally caught user-generated content fever: In 2021, the company has paid out more than $250 million to more than 12,000 creators through its Snapchat Spotlight programs.
Louise Matsakis / The Atlantic:
Investors have poured $1B+ into startups looking to turn mom-and-pop stores into digital retailers and mini-tech hubs, especially in South and Southeast Asia  —  Corner stores don't look like much.  Maybe the one nearest to you has dusty shelves lined with bags of chips and cookies …
Eva Dou / Washington Post:
Internal Huawei marketing slides show a broader role in tracking China's population than previously acknowledged, including using voice ID and tracking shoppers  —  The Chinese tech giant Huawei Technologies has long brushed off questions about its role in China's state surveillance …
Romain Dillet / TechCrunch:
Carto, which helps visualize data on interactive maps, raises a $61M Series C led by Insight Partners  —  Spatial analysis platform Carto has raised a $61 million Series C round.  Many companies collect a ton of data with some location element tied to it.  Carto lets you display that data …
Dan Taylor / Tech.eu:
Munich-based Apex.ai, which offers an OS for mobility, smart machines, and IoT, raises a $56.5M Series B led by Orillion  —  Munich-based Apex.ai has raised $56.5 million in a Series B funding round.  The software maker provides solutions for mobility and autonomous applications …
Kyle Alspach / VentureBeat:
Cloud security remediation startup Dazz raises $50M Series A and $10M seed round from Insight Partners and others  —  Cloud security remediation startup Dazz, which today announced it has raised $60 million in funding, said it plans to launch its AI-driven product into general availability …
More: CTech

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Earlier Picks

Victoria Kim / Los Angeles Times:
Vikas Sn / Moneycontrol:
Rana Foroohar / Financial Times:
The Information:
Mark Gurman / Bloomberg:
Ian Sherr / CNET: