Techmeme
March 23, 2016, 6:20 PM

Top News

Frederic Lardinois / TechCrunch:
Google debuts Cloud Machine Learning Platform to assist in developing pre-trained machine learning models and building new models from scratch  —  Google launches new machine learning platform  —  Google today announced a new machine learning platform for developers at its NEXT Google Cloud Platform user conference in San Francisco.
Steve Kovach / Tech Insider:
Pebble lays off 40 employees, about 25% of staff, blames tough fundraising climate, has raised $26M over last 8 months on top of $20M Kickstarter campaign  —  Smartwatch company Pebble is laying off 25% of its staff  —  Pebble, the buzzy startup credited for being one of the first companies …
Kwame Opam / The Verge:
Pornhub launches new channel devoted to VR porn, offers free 180-degree, 360-degree content  —  Pornhub launches a new channel devoted to VR porn  —  Pornhub, one of the largest porn sites online, has just launched a new section devoted to VR porn.  The company is partnering …
Alex Kantrowitz / BuzzFeed:
Microsoft introduces Tay, an AI chatbot that's learned how to behave from young adults' online conversations and is debuting on Kik, GroupMe, and Twitter  —  Microsoft's New AI-Powered Chatbot Mimics A 19-Year-Old American Girl  —  Microsoft's new AI-powered chatbot, Tay …
New York Times:
Apple's lack of bug bounty program bucks industry norms of openness with security community  —  Apple Policy on Bugs May Explain Why Hackers Would Help F.B.I.  —  SAN FRANCISCO — After a third party went to the F.B.I. with claims of being able to unlock an iPhone, many in the security industry …
Joseph Cox / Motherboard:
US Government Charges Three Suspected Members of Infamous Syrian Electronic Army  —  On Tuesday, the Department of Justice (DoJ) unsealed myriad computer hacking charges against three men for their alleged links to the hacking group Syrian Electronic Army (SEA).
Joe Pompeo / Politico:
Blendle launches pay-per-story app in the US with articles from The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Economist, and Financial Times, starting at $.09 each  —  Paid journalism startup Blendle launches in the U.S.  —  Blendle, the Dutch journalism start-up developing an iTunes-style payment method …
Abner Li / 9to5Google:
Google Photos will automatically suggest new albums, curate what it thinks are the best shots, tag location, and add maps in new update  —  Albums in Google Photos get smarter, now let you add maps, locations, and captions  —  Google Photos launched last year with numerous smart features …
Brendan Klinkenberg / BuzzFeed:
Tinder introduces feature to let US users swipe through political issues and “match” with a presidential candidate  —  Tinder Adds “Swipe The Vote” So You Can Hook Up With Candidates  —  The dating app is introducing a feature to swipe through various issues and match with a presidential candidate.
Ian Cutress / AnandTech:
Intel says in 10-K filing it will move away from “tick-tock” development cycle as it utilizes process technologies for longer  —  Intel's ‘Tick-Tock’ Seemingly Dead, Becomes ‘Process-Architecture-Optimization’  —  As reported at The Motley Fool, Intel's latest 10-K / annual report filing …
Jordan Kahn / 9to5Mac:
Report: Apple is developing at least six cloud infrastructure projects, driven partly by the suspicion that servers from third parties can be compromised  —  Report: Apple developing at least 6 cloud infrastructure projects incl. servers to prevent snooping
Yoree Koh / Wall Street Journal:
Source: Pinterest, which projected $3B in 2018 revenues, made about $100M in US ad revenue in 2015, expects non-US users to become majority of audience in 2016  —  Pinterest Works to Pin Down Path to Wider International Audience  —  In an effort to grow, the company is trying to make the image-discovery site less U.S.-centric
Emil Protalinski / VentureBeat:
Google will kill its Chrome app launcher for Windows, Mac, and Linux in July  —  Google today announced plans to kill off the Chrome app launcher for Windows, Mac, and Linux in July.  The tool, which lets users launch Chrome apps even if the browser is not running, will continue to live on in Chrome OS.

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Chris Williams / The Register:
Andy Greenberg / Wired:
Casey Newton / The Verge:
Stuart Dredge / Music Ally: