Techmeme
June 17, 2021, 11:45 AM

Top News

Salvador Rodriguez / CNBC:
Facebook says it will begin testing ads on Oculus headsets, starting with the shooter game Blaston, and won't use data stored on devices to target ads  —  - Facebook on Wednesday announced that it will begin testing advertisements that will appear within the company's Oculus virtual reality headsets.
Bloomberg:
Wise, previously known as TransferWise, plans to go public on the LSE via a direct listing, the first company to choose an alternative listing in the UK  —  - Founders, employees get extra voting rights for limited time  — Direct listings are becoming more popular among U.S. startups
Joe Weisenthal / Bloomberg:
Mark Cuban calls for stablecoin regulation, after trading Iron Finance's algorithmic stablecoin DeFi Titanium, which then crashed from $60 to $0 in a day  —  Here's a chart you never want to see.  It's of the DeFi Titanium token, which in one day went from being valued around $60 to $0.
Jordan Novet / CNBC:
Microsoft has named CEO Satya Nadella as chair of its board, replacing independent director John Thompson who succeeded Bill Gates as chair in 2014  —  - Satya Nadella, Microsoft's CEO, is becoming the software company's chair, after running the company for seven years, when he replaced Steve Ballmer.
Reuters:
Russian lawmakers pass legislation that would force US tech giants to open offices in Russia by January 2022 or face punitive measures  —  Russian lawmakers passed legislation on Thursday that would oblige U.S. tech giants to open offices in Russia by January 2022 or face punitive measures …
Ashley Carman / The Verge:
Snap launches Creative Kit for Spotlight, which will let developers put their apps inside Snapchat's TikTok rival Spotlight  —  Ride the wave of virality for downloads  —  Snapchat is making it easier for developers to use viral content to directly promote their apps.
Mike Butcher / TechCrunch:
Akur8, which uses AI to automate insurance claims, raises $30M Series B, bringing its total raised to $42M  —  Automating insurance claims is a big business, and the world of AI is coming at it ‘full pelt’.  The latest is Akur8, an insurtech automating insurance platform whose ‘Transparent AI’ product …
Sarah Krouse / The Information:
Sources: Google is developing a conversational AI product, known internally as Tivoli, which aims to teach foreign languages through Google Search  —  Google CEO Sundar Pichai last month previewed an artificial intelligence model that he said would enable people to have open-ended conversations with technology.
Reuters:
At the summit, Biden told Putin that certain critical infrastructure should be “off-limits” to cyberattacks; Putin agreed to “begin consultations” on the issue  —  U.S. President Joe Biden told Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday that certain critical infrastructure …
Washington Post:
The recent surge in ransomware attacks has upended the cyber insurance industry, increasing costs and requirements just as more companies need it  —  Cyber insurance carriers are raising premiums and limiting coverage in the face of severe ransomware attacks, just as organizations are clamoring for more protection
Igor Bonifacic / Engadget:
In Xbox's June update, Microsoft adds a Stories-like feature to the Xbox mobile app and rolls out text-to-speech and speech-to-text accessibility features  —  June update is here, and Microsoft has  —  detailed the latest software tweaks Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S users can look forward to trying out on their consoles.
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Instagram launches ads in Reels worldwide; the ads can be up to 30 seconds and vertical in format  —  Instagram Reels are getting ads.  The company announced today it's launching ads in its short-form video platform and TikTok rival, Reels, to businesses and advertisers worldwide.
Liza Lin / Wall Street Journal:
Leaked memo: ByteDance says its annual revenue in 2020 grew 111% YoY to $34.3B, while gross profit rose 93% YoY to $19B  —  ByteDance's gross profit rose 93% to $19 billion last year, according to a memo to staff  —  ByteDance Ltd., the owner of popular short-video app TikTok …
Ashley Carman / The Verge:
In an email to creators, Facebook says it will launch its podcast platform on June 22; podcasters can link up RSS feeds and decide if users can clip shows  —  Along with podcast clips  —  Facebook is planning to start rolling out its podcast product next week, on June 22nd, and, eventually …
Nilesh Christopher / Rest of World:
Experts say India's courts, not India's government, have power to decide whether Twitter should keep its safe harbor protections in India under new IT rules  —  India's courts, not the government in New Delhi, have the authority to end ‘safe harbor’ protections for the platform.  —  • BANGALORE, INDIA
Gillian Tan / Bloomberg:
Fleet management software provider KeepTruckin raises $190M led by G2 Venture Partners at a $2.3B valuation  —  KeepTruckin Inc. raised $190 million in a new funding round that values the San Francisco-based provider of fleet management software at $2.3 billion.

Sponsor Posts

Soxton:
Fast, affordable law for startups  —  Soxton automates startup legal so founders can move faster and sleep better.  We handle incorporation, advisor, employment and commercial contracts.  Join the waitlist for early access!
Equals:
Stop vibe coding analytics  —  Equals AI turns questions about your business into auditable spreadsheet models and dashboards.  Build once, iterate for years.
Zoho:
Zoho Mail MCP: Make your inbox work for you  —  Maya is the head of operations at a 500-person B2B software company.  She's sharp, she's busy, and she starts every morning the same way-with her coffee, laptop, inbox.Not to work.
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

Hard Fork:
'The Daily' and 'The Opinions': How A.I. Is Changing Loneliness and Taste
The future is already here. Each week, journalists Kevin Roose and Casey Newton explore and make sense of the latest in the rapidly changing world of tech.
Subscribe to Hard Fork.
The Upstarts Podcast:
Writer's May Habib: Building AI Tools For Corporate 'Normal People' The Labs Leave Behind
Veteran tech reporter Alex Konrad sits down with breakout entrepreneurs taking on the status quo to shake up their fields in AI, design, nuclear energy, space, and more.
Subscribe to The Upstarts Podcast.
The Nick, Dick and Paul Show:
A Nick, Dick, and Paul Buffet!
Nick Bilton, Dick Costolo, and Paul Kedrosky pull back the curtain on AI, startups, and the future rushing toward us, all with healthy dose of irreverence.
Subscribe to The Nick, Dick and Paul Show.
Big Technology Podcast:
Anthropic's Labs Lead On Fable's Capabilities + Building AI-Native Products — With Mike Krieger
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.
Great Chat:
How much data do we actually want about our bodies?
A podcast mostly about tech. Brought to you weekly by Angela Du, Sally Shin, Mac Bohannon, Helen Min, and Ashley Mayer.
Subscribe to Great Chat.
Tools and Weapons with Brad Smith:
AI's Mythos Moment: Rishi Sunak on preparing governments for AI
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 11:45 AM ET, June 17, 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

Ben Sisario / New York Times:
Rebecca Kern / Bloomberg:
Geoffrey Fowler / Washington Post:
Tim Bradshaw / Financial Times:
James Vincent / The Verge:
James Vincent / The Verge:
Dieter Bohn / The Verge:
Lauren Feiner / CNBC: