Techmeme
December 17, 2015, 11:45 AM

Top News

Apple:
Jeff Williams named Apple COO, Phil Schiller takes over App Store leadership  —  Apple Names Jeff Williams Chief Operating Officer  —  Johny Srouji Named to Executive Team; Phil Schiller Adds Ecosystem Responsibilities  —  Tor Myhren Joins Apple  —  Apple® today announced …
Hayes Brown / BuzzFeed:
Brazil imposes 48-hour block on WhatsApp for failing to cooperate in criminal investigation; rival app Telegram says it gained 1.5M+ users there in a day  —  Brazil Just Blocked WhatsApp Despite Almost Everyone In Brazil Using It  —  A court has blocked the app that 93% of Brazil's internet users depend …
Adi Robertson / The Verge:
Microsoft opens a HoloLens playground for developers at its New York store  —  Millions of people have seen Microsoft's astonishing HoloLens videos.  Far fewer have seen the limited, but still impressive, reality.  And that's something Microsoft wants to change.
Gabe Nelson / Automotive News Automaker:
Google says proposed DMV rules requiring steering wheel, pedals, and licensed drivers with special certification would inhibit progress  —  California DMV proposes ban on ‘driverless’ cars  —  Google ‘gravely disappointed,’ says rules would hold back progress
Wall Street Journal:
Blake Ross / Medium:
Katie Roof / TechCrunch:
Tastemade Raises $40 Million From Goldman Sachs To Make Food Videos  —  Tastemade, the maker of food and lifestyle videos, has raised a $40 million financing round led by Goldman Sachs.  Participating investors in the Series D round include, Redpoint Ventures, Comcast Ventures, Liberty Media and Scripps Networks.
New York Times:
Facebook partners with Uber to let users in US request rides from within Messenger, first Uber ride's free; Facebook says more ride-hailing services to be added  —  Facebook and Uber Follow Asian Rivals in Plan to Enhance Messenger App  —  For years, Asia's technology giants have been one step ahead …
Ashlee Vance / Bloomberg.com:
Early iPhone hacker George Hotz is building a self-driving system using off-the-shelf components that controls an Acura ILX  —  The First Person to Hack the iPhone Built a Self-Driving Car.  In His Garage  —  George Hotz is building a self-driving car by himself.
Laura Kusisto / Wall Street Journal:
Sources: three of the nation's largest apartment landlords in talks with Airbnb on revenue sharing partnership  —  Rent Your Place on Airbnb?  The Landlord Wants a Cut  —  Revenue-sharing model would allow apartment dwellers to market rooms through lodging website
More: Fortune
Daniel Bader / MobileSyrup.com:
Canada's Shaw Communications to buy Wind Mobile in deal valued at C$1.6B  —  Shaw Communications set to purchase Wind Mobile for $1.6 billion  —  Shaw Communications has announced that it plans to purchase Wind Mobile, which turned six years-old today, for $1.6 billion CAD.
Lance Whitney / CNET:
Spotify adds curated party playlists and a “mood tuner”, available now for Android and iOS  —  Spotify can play DJ at your next party  —  A new feature called Spotify Party plays a lineup of professionally picked tunes and lets you choose your music based on the mood you're hoping to set.

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Featured Podcasts

Big Technology Podcast:
Anthropic's Mythos is Back, OpenAI Releases GPT 5.6, Apple's Price Increases
The Big Technology Podcast takes you behind the scenes in the tech world featuring interviews with plugged-in insiders and outside agitators.
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Hard Fork:
'The Daily' and 'The Opinions': How A.I. Is Changing Loneliness and Taste
The future is already here. Each week, journalists Kevin Roose and Casey Newton explore and make sense of the latest in the rapidly changing world of tech.
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The Upstarts Podcast:
Writer's May Habib: Building AI Tools For Corporate 'Normal People' The Labs Leave Behind
Veteran tech reporter Alex Konrad sits down with breakout entrepreneurs taking on the status quo to shake up their fields in AI, design, nuclear energy, space, and more.
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The Nick, Dick and Paul Show:
A Nick, Dick, and Paul Buffet!
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.
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Great Chat:
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A podcast mostly about tech. Brought to you weekly by Angela Du, Sally Shin, Mac Bohannon, Helen Min, and Ashley Mayer.
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Tools and Weapons with Brad Smith:
AI's Mythos Moment: Rishi Sunak on preparing governments for AI
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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More News

Joe Mullin / Ars Technica:

Earlier Picks

Dan Goodin / Ars Technica:
Russell Brandom / The Verge:
Alex Kantrowitz / BuzzFeed: