Techmeme
August 5, 2022, 7:55 PM

Top News

Brian Heater / TechCrunch:
Amazon plans to acquire Roomba maker iRobot in a $1.7B all-cash deal; Colin Angle will remain as iRobot's CEO  —  Amazon this morning announced plans to acquire Roomba maker iRobot for an all-cash deal valued at $1.7 billion.  —  “Since we started iRobot, our team has been on a mission …
Nikkei Asia:
Nikkei Asia:
Lawrence Abrams / BleepingComputer:
Twitter confirms that a now-patched bug was used to link phone numbers and emails to user accounts; a threat actor offered to sell 5.4M records in December 2021  —  Twitter has confirmed a recent data breach was caused by a now-patched zero-day vulnerability used to link email addresses …
The Verge:
After criticism, DuckDuckGo says its browser will now block Microsoft tracking scripts on third-party websites, formerly exempt due to a search syndication deal  —  After an uproar over an exception, DuckDuckGo is promising transparency.  —  After a revelation in May that DuckDuckGo's …
James Vincent / The Verge:
Meta AI creates and releases BlenderBot 3, letting users engage in general chitchat and ask BlenderBot questions to collect feedback on its capabilities  —  What could possibly go wrong?  —  Meta's AI research labs have created a new state-of-the-art chatbot and are letting members …
Elena Schneider / Politico:
A look at FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried's range of US political contributions, including $10M+ to back Biden in 2020, and uncertainty about his goals and leanings  —  NASSAU, Bahamas — One of the biggest donors in Democratic politics this year isn't sure if he really wants to be a Democratic megadonor — at least not on the party's terms.
Omer Benjakob / Haaretz:
A prototype of NSO's Pegasus for Israeli police in 2014 reveals the UI and features, including real-time wiretapping, reading texts, and remote camera control  —  Israel Police planned to present cabinet with the system eight years ago.  It was intended to be capable of turning the infected phone …
Nupur Anand / Reuters:
India's Enforcement Directorate freezes the assets, worth ~$8.16M, of Binance-linked crypto exchange WazirX, citing suspected foreign exchange rule violations  —  India's financial crime-fighting agency said on Friday that it has frozen the assets of WazirX, owned by the world's largest …
New York Times:
A look at Japan's efforts to counter chip supply chain disruptions, including investing in domestic production and seeking a coalition with the US and the EU  —  As it reckons with supply chain vulnerabilities, the country is spending billions to revitalize domestic production and seeking to form a coalition with “like-minded” nations.
Nicola Kelly / The Guardian:
The UK government plans to require migrants convicted of a crime to scan their faces up to five times per day using smartwatches; locations will be tracked 24/7  —  Home Office and MoJ plans will require migrants convicted of crimes to take photos up to five times a day
Joanna Ossinger / Bloomberg:
Crypto bridge Nomad says anyone returning at least 90% of stolen tokens will be viewed as a white-hat hacker and the remaining 10% would become the reward  —  Cryptocurrency company Nomad is offering a bounty to recoup funds spirited away in a $190 million hack that again highlighted security vulnerabilities …

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:
ETL tool evaluation checklist: 6 things to look for before you choose  —  Your data is only as valuable as your ability to move, prepare, and access it efficiently.  Choosing the wrong ETL tool can lead to months of rework …
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

The Nick, Dick and Paul Show:
The Me, Me, Me Generation w/ Joel Stein
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.
Invest Like the Best:
Dylan Patel - The Infinite Demand for Tokens, Claude Mythos, and Supply Constraints
The leading destination to learn about business and investing. We do this by showcasing exceptional talent and ideas.
Subscribe to Invest Like the Best.
Big Technology Podcast:
Are We Too Obsessed With AI Predictions? — With Carissa Véliz
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.
Great Chat:
The hills we'll die on
A podcast mostly about tech. Brought to you weekly by Angela Du, Sally Shin, Mac Bohannon, Helen Min, and Ashley Mayer.
Subscribe to Great Chat.
Channels with Peter Kafka:
Jason Blum Built a Hit-Making Movie Machine. Does It Still Work?
Media and tech aren't just intersecting - they're fully intertwined. To understand how those worlds work, Peter Kafka talks to industry leaders, upstarts and observers.
Subscribe to Channels with Peter Kafka.
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 7:55 PM ET, August 5, 2022.

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

Barry Schwartz / Search Engine Land:

Earlier Picks

Andrew Romero / 9to5Google:
CoinDesk:
Soma Biswas / Wall Street Journal:
Michelle Price / Reuters:
Dan Primack / Axios:
Oliver Knight / CoinDesk:
Bloomberg: