Techmeme
February 6, 2020, 11:55 AM

Top News

Dane Glasgow / The Keyword:
Google Maps turns 15, updates its app with five tabs: Explore, Commute, Saved, Contribute, and Updates, new transit features, and more  —  In 2005, we set out to map the world.  Since then we've pushed the limits of what a map can do: from helping you easily navigate from point A to B …
Nick Statt / The Verge:
Report: Apple shipped 30.7M Watches worldwide in 2019, up 36% YoY, outselling the entire Swiss watch industry, which shipped 21.1M units, down 13% YoY  —  The Apple Watch continues to dominate the market  —  The Apple Watch wasn't just the best-selling smartwatch last year …
Sam Byford / The Verge:
Huawei is suing Verizon, accusing it of using 12 patents relating to its network technology without authorization  —  US carrier accused of using 12 patents without authorization  —  Huawei has announced that it's suing Verizon for alleged patent violations, marking the latest twist …
Ingrid Lunden / TechCrunch:
Twitter Q4: revenue of $1.01B, up 11% YoY, net income of $119M, down from $255M in Q4 2018, monetizable DAU of 152M compared to 126M a year ago; stock up 15%+  —  As Twitter continues to try to find the right balance between making its platform easier to use while also less prone to toxicity and abuse …
Filipe Espósito / 9to5Mac:
Apple releases the first iOS 13.4 beta, which includes a “CarKey” API, making it possible to unlock, lock, and start a car with an iPhone or Watch  —  Apple today released the first beta version of iOS 13.4 for developers, and now 9to5Mac has found evidences to a new feature …
Juli Clover / MacRumors:
Apple adds universal purchases for iOS and macOS apps to the Xcode 11.4 beta, letting developers bundle apps  —  The new Xcode 11.4 beta update, released today alongside the iOS 13.4, tvOS 13.4 and macOS Catalina 10.15.4 betas, includes support for universal purchases …
David Kirton / Reuters:
Sources: Xiaomi, Huawei, Oppo, and Vivo are creating a platform to let developers outside China upload apps onto all of their app stores simultaneously  —  SHENZHEN, China (Reuters) - China's Xiaomi, Huawei Technologies, Oppo and Vivo are joining forces to create a platform for developers outside China …
Robert Heaton:
Software engineer finds that Wacom drawing tablets track the name of every application opened on a user's computer and send the data to Google Analytics  —  Chapter 1: The discovery  —  I have a Wacom drawing tablet.  I use it to draw cover illustrations for my blog posts, such as this one:
The Guardian:
Dutch court rules that a surveillance system used to detect welfare fraud violates human rights; called SyRI, it used a secret algorithm to run risk modeling  —  Government told to halt use of AI to detect fraud in decision hailed by privacy campaigners  —  A Dutch court has ordered …
Linda Kinstler / protocol:
An in-depth look at the role of ethicists within tech companies, spurred by scandals like Cambridge Analytica, and their somewhat limited power to effect change  —  Fifty-two floors below the top of Salesforce Tower, I meet Paula Goldman in a glass-paneled conference room where the words EQUALITY OFFICE …
Christina Farr / CNBC:
After layoffs at 23andMe, Ancestry says it is laying off 6%, citing slowdown across entire DNA testing category, now that most of early adopters have enrolled  —  - Ancestry, following 23andMe, made the decision to lay off some employees.  It confirmed to CNBC that the cuts affected 6% of its workforce.
Abner Li / 9to5Google:
Google says Chrome's ad blocker will expand to target disruptive video ads in August, including long pre-roll ads, mid-roll ads, and overlays ads on video  —  Last year, Google made Chrome's standards-backed ad blocker fully available around the world.  The Better Ads Standards today announced a …
Jeff John Roberts / Fortune:
Lightning Labs, which wants to speed up bitcoin transactions, raises $10M Series A led by Craft Ventures and rolls out its first enterprise product  —  Elizabeth Stark stands out in the digital currency world.  The 30-something entrepreneur is at ease among crypto's tribal subcultures …
Stephen Nellis / Reuters:
In a filing, Qualcomm discloses it is being investigated by the European Commission for anti-competitive behavior over its radio frequency chips  —  (Reuters) - Qualcomm Inc on Wednesday detailed the first significant sales gains from a new category of chip it is selling to mobile phone makers …
Caleb Henry / SpaceNews.com:
France-based IoT startup Kinéis, which wants to launch a constellation of 25 satellites to connect IoT devices and track ships, raises €100M  —  WASHINGTON — French Internet of Things startup Kinéis has raised 100 million euros ($110.5 million) from private and public investors …
Maddie Stone / VICE:
Lawyers and repair advocates say Apple's contract for its independent repair provider program is onerous for shops and invasive for consumers  —  Last August, in what was widely hailed a victory for the right-to-repair movement, Apple announced it would begin selling parts, tools …
More: iMore and AppleInsider
Matt Marshall / VentureBeat:
Dallas-based spatial AI company Worlds, which lets enterprises model their physical spaces in 3D and then observe them using AI, raises $10M Series A  —  Worlds, whose AI helps large organizations observe their physical spaces to ensure security, safety, and productivity, has raised $10 million in a first round of funding.
More: Axios and PR Newswire

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Earlier Picks

Tom Warren / The Verge:
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Alfred Ng / CNET:
Nicholas Thompson / Wired:
Ingrid Lunden / TechCrunch: