Techmeme
August 21, 2017, 7:20 PM

Top News

Emil Protalinski / VentureBeat:
Google's Android O is named Oreo, rolls out soon to Nexus/Pixel devices; update includes background activity limits, picture-in-picture, notification channels  —  Timed with the total solar eclipse today, Google revealed Android O stands for Android 8.0 Oreo.
Peter Bright / Ars Technica:
Intel unveils first 8th gen processors, dubbed “Kaby Lake refresh”, based on an updated Kaby Lake architecture, claims 40% performance increase over 7th gen  —  No Coffee Lake or Cannonlake here; these are doubled up Kaby Lake parts.  —  The first “8th generation” …
John Herrman / New York Times:
After wave of neo-Nazi bans, tech firms' censorship policies were shown again to be arbitrary, not derived from moral awakening or newfound sense of civic duty  —  White supremacist marchers had not yet lit their torches when the deletions began.  The “Unite the Right” Facebook page …
Khari Johnson / VentureBeat:
WhatsApp adds colorful text status updates, just like Facebook  —  WhatsApp today began to roll out Status updates you can make by writing text on a colorful image background, a company spokesperson has informed VentureBeat.  While Status debuted as a text-only feature, it grew to include photos and videos.
Jon Fingas / Engadget:
HTC cuts Vive VR headset's price by $200, to $599, to remain competitive with Oculus Rift  —  You knew HTC wouldn't let the Oculus Rift's price cut go unanswered for long.  As of today, HTC has permanently lowered the price of the Vive headset by $200, to $599.
Ellen Pao / The Cut:
An excerpt from Ellen Pao's book “Reset”: This is how sexism works in Silicon Valley. My lawsuit failed. Others won't.  —  In December 2010, Sheryl Sandberg gave a talk about women's leadership in which she mentioned “sitting at the table.”  Women, she said, have to pull up a chair …
Jacob Kastrenakes / The Verge:
Facebook launches a dedicated tab for Safety Check, where it lists crises from around world, rolling out over the coming weeks  —  Facebook has made a permanent page for Safety Check, its feature for letting others know that you're safe during an emergency.  —  The results are pretty eerie.
More: The Next Web and EngadgetFacebook: Facebook
Kirsten Korosec / The Verge:
Inside Argo AI, an autonomous vehicle technology startup in which Ford pledged to invest $1B  —  In the race to launch autonomous vehicles, artificial intelligence expertise is the prize  —  Somewhere between the 14th and 15th floors in a concrete stairwell, Bryan Salesky pauses …

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Brian Heater / TechCrunch: