Techmeme
October 4, 2018, 1:25 PM

Top News

Bloomberg:
Sources: Chinese spies inserted tiny chips onto products from US-based motherboard giant Supermicro to infiltrate almost 30 US companies like Amazon and Apple  —  In 2015, Amazon.com Inc. began quietly evaluating a startup called Elemental Technologies, a potential acquisition to help …
Bloomberg:
Amazon, Apple, Supermicro, and the Chinese government issue statements disputing the allegations of Bloomberg Businessweek's hacking story  —  Complete text.  —  In emailed statements, Amazon, Apple, and Supermicro disputed summaries of Bloomberg Businessweek's reporting.
Takashi Mochizuki / Wall Street Journal:
Sources: Nintendo plans to release a new version of Switch in the latter half of 2019, perhaps as soon as summer  —  Updated console isn't expected to adopt the OLED panels used in Apple's iPhone X series  —  TOKYO— Nintendo Co. NTDOY -1.78% plans to release a new version …
BBC:
US DOJ indicts seven GRU officers with charges relating to cyberattacks on the global chemical weapons watchdog, anti-doping agencies, and a US nuclear company  —  Russian spies have been accused of involvement in a series of cyber-plots across the globe, leading the US to level charges against seven agents.
Valentina Palladino / Ars Technica:
Dell unveils the 15.6-inch Alienware m15, its thinnest and lightest gaming laptop, with Nvidia Max-Q GPUs, available October 25 starting at $1,099  —  Dell hopped on the ultra-portable gaming-PC bandwagon with a revamped Alienware laptop designed to appeal to serious and wannabe gamers alike.
Dan Seifert / The Verge:
LG V40 ThinQ review: 6.4" QuadHD display, 6GB of RAM, Snapdragon 845, available for preorder now for $900+; five camera system is versatile but not high-quality  —  The V40 gives you a camera bag full of lenses in one device  —  All too often, when we evaluate smartphone cameras, we are looking at incremental improvements.
Chris Velazco / Engadget:
Frank Chaparro / The Block:
TD Ameritrade and a slew of Wall Street firms invest an undisclosed amount in cryptocurrency exchange ErisX, which plans to launch spot trading in Q2 2019  —  Brokerage giant TD Ameritrade, a slew of high-speed traders, and a long list of Wall Street firms are getting behind a brand new market …
Ryan Gilliam / Polygon:
Blizzard co-founder Michael Morhaime steps down as president, will remain an advisor, is succeeded by World of Warcraft executive producer J. Allen Brack  —  World of Warcraft executive producer J. Allen Brack is new president  —  Mike Morhaime, co-founder of Blizzard Entertainment …
Paul Sawers / VentureBeat:
DevOps platform JFrog raises $165M Series D led by Insight Venture Partners, at a valuation “way north” of $1B, says CEO  —  DevOps platform JFrog has raised $165 million in a series D round of funding led by Insight Venture Partners, with participation from Battery Ventures …
CNBC:
Barnes & Noble to look at strategic alternatives including a possible sale, after receiving interest from multiple parties including Chairman Leonard Riggio  —  - The announcement follows expressions of interest from multiple parties, including its chairman Leonard Riggio, it said in a statement.
Zack Whittaker / TechCrunch:
Senate passes FAA Reauthorization Act, designed to modernize US aviation rules, which lets authorities shoot down drones without a warrant  —  U.S. authorities will soon have the authority to shoot down private drones if they are considered a threat — a move decried by civil liberties and rights groups.
More: Engadget and epic.org
Lucas Matney / TechCrunch:
VR workplace training startup STRIVR raises $16M led by GreatPoint Ventures, bringing total raised to $21M  —  Though some of the biggest names in tech are wholly focused on getting consumers to strap into VR, there has been an increasing amount of movement in companies adopting virtual reality to help train employees.

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Featured Podcasts

Access:
Is Roblox making the internet better or worse? We asked the CEO
A show about the tech industry's inside conversation, hosted by tech reporter Alex Heath and founder whisperer Ellis Hamburger.
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Lenny's Podcast:
Why LinkedIn is turning PMs into AI-powered "full stack builders" | Tomer Cohen (LinkedIn CPO)
Interviews with world-class product leaders and growth experts to uncover actionable advice to help you build, launch, and grow your own product.
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Great Chat:
Code red: our favorite tech rivalries
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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Big Technology Podcast:
How An AI Model Learned To Be Bad — With Evan Hubinger And Monte MacDiarmid
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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Channels with Peter Kafka:
PBS Lost a Billion Dollars. Now what? With CEO Paula Kerger
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.
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More News

Brian Fung / Washington Post:

Earlier Picks

Spencer Soper / Bloomberg: