Techmeme
March 19, 2023, 2:59 AM

Top News

Tom Warren / The Verge:
An interview with Microsoft CVP of Design and Research Jon Friedman about the company's vision for Microsoft 365 Copilot, Bing AI lessons, AI ethics, and more  —  Copilot is more than just a chatbot.  Microsoft is slowly building an AI assistant that it has dreamed about for years.
Inside Higher Ed:
A group of librarians argue the Internet Archive is a library, saying that the four major publishers' lawsuit threatens the development of digital collections  —  A lawsuit against the Internet Archive threatens the most significant specialized library to emerge in decades, say a group of current and former university librarians.
Maria Bustillos / The Nation:
A look at four publishers' lawsuit against the Internet Archive, which hinges on defining the legal ownership of ebooks, ahead of oral arguments on March 20  —  Or that they haven't already started to pollute Google searches.  And if publishers win their lawsuit against the Internet Archive …
Sergiu Gatlan / BleepingComputer:
Early screenshots show Microsoft is testing a non-custodial Ethereum crypto wallet built into Edge that lets users send and receive cryptocurrencies and NFTs  —  Microsoft is working on a non-custodial built-in Ethereum crypto wallet for Microsoft Edge to allow users to send and receive cryptocurrency and NFTs.
Bloomberg:
The FBI arrests “Pompompurin”, a New York man who allegedly ran BreachForums, a dark web site that hosted the stolen databases of almost 1K companies and sites  —  Federal agents have arrested a Peekskill, New York, man they say ran the notorious dark web data-breach site “BreachForums” under the name “Pompompurin.”
Cameron Kaiser / Ars Technica:
A look back at PLATO, an educational computer system released in 1960 that some consider a precursor to graphics, touchscreens, messaging apps, games, and more  —  Forums, instant messaging, and multiplayer video games all started here.  —  Bright graphics, a touchscreen, a speech synthesizer …
Connie Loizos / TechCrunch:
After SVB froze its deposits, HR software startup Rippling raised a $500M Series E at an $11.25B valuation, same as Series D, taking its total funding to $1.2B  —  As a serial entrepreneur who has famously endured some ups and downs, Parker Conrad has nearly seen it all.  Or so he might have thought until last week.
Financial Times:
Some investors are concerned that SVB's collapse and its US government rescue, after Silicon Valley investors' lobbying, could lead to tougher tech regulation  —  Late last Saturday night, Jason Calacanis, a prominent internet entrepreneur and investor, hit the caps button on his keyboard …
Bloomberg:
Sources: Coinbase is exploring setting up a crypto trading platform overseas for institutional clients outside of the US, amid increased US scrutiny of crypto  —  Institutional clients of Coinbase Global Inc. have been contacted by the firm about plans to potentially set …
Kris Holt / Engadget:
Meta debuts Verified in the US for $12/month on the web or $15/month on Android/iOS, with a blue badge, proactive impersonation protection, and customer support  —  Meta's paid verification program is available in the US starting today, CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote on his Instagram channel.
Anna Tong / Reuters:
Replika and Character.AI, who offer AI companions, are no longer allowing adult content, angering some users who have become deeply involved with their chatbots  —  After temporarily closing his leathermaking business during the pandemic, Travis Butterworth found himself lonely and bored at home.
Rebecca Jennings / Vox:
A look at YouTube and TikTok “hustle gurus” claiming to teach followers how to earn passive income through dropshipping, crypto schemes, AI companies, and more  —  YouTube and TikTok are plagued with 20-something “passive income” bros who want your attention — and your money.
Georgia Wells / Wall Street Journal:
Sources: some lawmakers and tech executives like Peter Thiel are mobilizing against China's involvement in US tech, ahead of the TikTok CEO's US House testimony  —  Group to meet ahead of TikTok's testimony before Congress  —  A group of Silicon Valley executives, including investor Peter Thiel …
Hailey Fuchs / Politico:

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Earlier Picks

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