Techmeme
January 4, 2021, 4:30 PM

Top News

Megan Rose Dickey / TechCrunch:
A group of over 200 Google and Alphabet workers have announced their plan to form a union, open to both employees and contractors  —  A group of more than 200 Google and Alphabet workers have announced the formation of the Alphabet Workers Union, The New York Times first reported.
New York Times:
Executives of the Alphabet Workers Union say discrimination and harassment continue and the company cracks down on those who are to speak out  —  Our company's motto used to be “Don't be evil.”  An organized work force will help us live up to it.  —  Ms. Koul and Mr. Shaw are, respectively …
Joe Rossignol / MacRumors:
Kuo: Apple to release an AR device, AirTags item trackers, its first devices with Mini-LED displays, more Apple Silicon Macs, and new AirPods in 2021  —  Apple plans to release its long-awaited AirTags item trackers, an unspecified augmented reality device, and other new products in 2021 …
Hugh Son / CNBC:
Haven, the Amazon-Berkshire-JPMorgan venture to disrupt healthcare, is disbanding after three years  —  - Haven began informing employees Monday that it will shut down by the end of next month, according to people with direct knowledge of the matter.  — Many of the Boston-based firm's 57 workers …
Kim Lyons / The Verge:
Slack confirms it has suffered a widespread outage since 10am ET but is now returning for some users, who may experience “degraded performance”  —  Users began reporting problems around 10AM ET  —  Slack is down on the first full work day of 2021.
Reuters:
Alibaba founder Jack Ma has not appeared in a public setting since a late October forum in Shanghai, where he was critical of China's regulatory system  —  BEIJING (Reuters) - Alibaba founder Jack Ma's absence from public view in the past two months, including missing the final episode …
New York Times:
A British judge rules against extraditing Julian Assange to the US, which has accused him of violating the Espionage Act, citing mental health concerns  —  U.S. officials want the WikiLeaks founder to face charges of violating the Espionage Act.  But a judge in London ruled that he was at extreme risk of suicide.
Eileen Yu / ZDNet:
Singapore now says local law enforcement can access COVID-19 contact tracing data; 78% of its population has adopted the TraceTogether app and wearable token  —  Under the country's Criminal Procedure Code, the Singapore Police Force can obtain any data — including information gathered …
Matt Stoller / BIG:
SolarWinds hack is an example of private equity firms wrecking software companies and degrading their products' security to the detriment of national security  —  Private equity monopolist Orlando Bravo made billions by putting our whole society at risk.  —  1 hr ago
Darrell Etherington / TechCrunch:
Industrial sensor giant Teledyne says it will acquire thermal imaging sensor maker FLIR for $8B in cash and stock  —  Industrial sensor giant Teledyne is set to acquire sensing company FLIR in a deal valued at around $8 billion in a mix of stock and cash, pending approvals …
Zak Doffman / Forbes:
While Facebook touts e2e encryption on WhatsApp, Apple's privacy labels highlight how much user metadata WhatsApp collects compared to iMessage  —  WhatsApp, the world's leading messenger with 2 billion users sending 100 billion messages each day, popularized secure messaging.

Sponsor Posts

ElevenLabs:
ElevenAgents by ElevenLabs  —  You know us for voice.  Now meet ElevenAgents — featuring Expressive Mode, our most human-sounding AI voice technology in 70+ languages with ultra-low latency.  Hear it for yourself.
Niantic Spatial:
World models need real-world data  —  Scaniverse is the gateway to spatial services — self-serve and built for AI and robotics.  Large-area 3D reconstruction from 360° cameras and precise localization, anywhere machines operate.
Zoho:
Zoho Analytics Now Connects to Tally Prime  —  Most finance teams have two systems.  The one where the numbers live, and the one where the numbers get understood.  Tally Prime handles the first job well.
IDrive:
Protecting your Cloud Applications Data  —  Backing up Office 365, Google Workspace, Dropbox & Salesforce data is critical to preventing data loss or corruption, complying with laws and avoiding critical downtime in case of a disaster.

Featured Podcasts

Cheeky Pint:
The economics and trends of the restaurant industry, with Tony Xu of DoorDash
Stripe cofounder John Collison interviews founders, builders, and leaders over a pint.
Subscribe to Cheeky Pint.
Invest Like the Best:
Alex Karnal - The Trillion-Dollar Health Revolution
The leading destination to learn about business and investing. We do this by showcasing exceptional talent and ideas.
Subscribe to Invest Like the Best.
Big Technology Podcast:
Tim Cook Steps Down — With Joanna Stern
The Big Technology Podcast takes you behind the scenes in the tech world featuring interviews with plugged-in insiders and outside agitators.
Subscribe to Big Technology Podcast.
Grit:
From Airbnb to Linear: How Karri Saarinen Redefined Product Design
Grit explores what it takes to create, build and scale world-class organizations.
Subscribe to Grit.
Lenny's Podcast:
Why half of product managers are in trouble | Nikhyl Singhal (Meta, Google)
Interviews with world-class product leaders and growth experts to uncover actionable advice to help you build, launch, and grow your own product.
Subscribe to Lenny's Podcast.
Tools and Weapons with Brad Smith:
Ryan Roslansky: Turning AI Anxiety into Skills for the Future of Work
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.
Subscribe to Tools and Weapons with Brad Smith.
 

About This Page

This is a Techmeme archive page. It shows how the site appeared at 4:30 PM ET, January 4, 2021.

The most current version of the site as always is available at our home page. To view an earlier snapshot click here and then modify the date indicated.

More News

Earlier Picks

The Verge: