Techmeme
October 19, 2021, 1:45 PM

Top News

YouTube:
Livestream of Google's Pixel 6 virtual event  —  Shop Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro beginning at 10 am PT: https://goo.gle/3FVoHXH We're officially introducing you to Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro—the completely reimagined Google phones.  Powered by Google Tensor, Google's first custom mobile chip, they're fast, smart and secure.
The Verge:
Live blog of Google's event, where Pixel 6 and 6 Pro are expected, with Tensor custom SoC, improved cameras, bigger batteries, and more colors  —  The biggest Pixel in years — literally  —  After leaks and pre-annoucements, ads and yet more leaks, the time has come for Google to officially launch the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro.
Dan Seifert / The Verge:
Google launches $599 Pixel 6, with 90Hz 6.4" display, and $899 Pixel 6 Pro, with 120Hz 6.7" display, both featuring an upgraded 50MP rear camera, coming Oct. 28  —  Google claims to finally be ready to take on Apple and Samsung  —  After many leaks, official teases, and months of waiting …
Nikkei Asia:
Kif Leswing / CNBC:
MacBook Pro updates show Apple listened to pro users, who never warmed to the Touch Bar or lack of ports  —  - Apple's new MacBook Pro models, announced on Monday, conspicuously lack many of the least popular features from the 2016 design.  — They include ports for connecting cameras and displays …
Jon Porter / The Verge:
Apple confirms its 140W charging brick, bundled with the 16-inch MacBook Pro, uses the USB-C PD 3.1 standard and is its first gallium nitride (GaN) charger  —  The charging brick is USB-C PD 3.1 compliant  —  Apple's new 140W charging brick, which works with a new MagSafe charging cable …
Steven Sinofsky / @stevesi:
[Thread] A look at Apple's history with CPUs, from PowerPC to x86 to A-series to M1, and how its vertical integration helped beat Intel, Qualcomm, and others  —  Apple's M1 Pro/Max is the second step in a major change in computing. What might be seen as an evolution from iPhone/ARM is really part of an Apple story that began in 1991 with PowerPC. And what a story of innovation 💡 1/ [Quick thoughts] https://twitter.com/...
Chance Miller / 9to5Mac:
Nikhilesh De / CoinDesk:
Facebook starts testing its Novi wallet in the US and Guatemala, letting users trade the Paxos Dollar; Coinbase will provide custody services  —  Facebook's Novi wallet is ready to launch - but it won't be launching with the Diem (formerly Libra) stablecoin.
Juli Clover / MacRumors:
macOS Monterey release candidate reintroduces Safari's old tab design as the default and Monterey's original Safari design as a “Compact” option  —  Apple has admitted defeat on the Safari design changes that have been present for the entire macOS Monterey beta …
Financial Times:
Celsius Network CEO Alex Mashinsky says Tether has issued USDT in return for cryptocurrencies, calling into question Tether's claim that it only accepts USD  —  Stablecoin operator accepts crypto in return for some loans, big customer says  —  A major customer of Tether has said the company lends …
Lauren Feiner / CNBC:
Facebook settles with DOJ over claims it discriminated by favoring temporary visa holders over US workers; Facebook will pay $4.75M and up to $9.5M for victims  —  - Facebook settled claims that it refused to recruit or hire U.S. workers for positions it set aside for temporary visa holders with the Department of Justice.
Mark Bergen / Bloomberg:
An in-depth look at Google's moonshot plans to run entirely on clean energy by 2030, going beyond pledges by Apple, Amazon, and others  —  Sundar Pichai wants to head the first giant company run without emissions around the clock.  It will take far more than money to achieve
Nicole Lee / Engadget:
Facebook Portal Go review: portable with decent ~6 hour battery life and good camera tracking, but too few apps and requires a Facebook or WhatsApp account  —  The main selling point of Facebook's line of Portal devices has always been its video chat capabilities.
Edward Ongweso Jr / VICE:
Facebook posts an odd thread attacking 30+ unnamed journalists “finishing up a coordinated series of articles based on thousands of pages of leaked documents”  —  The company decried the use of embargoes to coordinate a coming series of reporting on thousands of pages of leaks, despite regularly using embargoes itself.
Bloomberg:
Alibaba unveils a 5nm server chip using ARM architecture, coming to its data centers in the “near future” and not to be sold commercially for now  —  - Cloud giants are increasingly designing their own silicon  — China is trying to foster self-sufficiency in semiconductors
More: ZDNet
Reuters:
Wise reports Q2 revenue of £132.8M, up 25% YoY, as nearly 4M users transferred £18B, up 36% YoY  —  Money transfer company Wise Plc (WISEa.L) said on Tuesday that its revenue was 132.8 million pounds ($182.97 million) in the second quarter, a rise of 25% from the same period last year.

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Featured Podcasts

The Upstarts Podcast:
Blitzy's Brian Elliott: Cursor And Claude Code Are Looking At Your Enterprise Code 'Through A Straw'
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.
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The Nick, Dick and Paul Show:
Re-Release: The Death of Hollywood? W/ Allan Loeb
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.
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Great Chat:
Maybe Twitter isn't real life
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:
OpenAI's Plan To Merge Chat And Agents — With Greg Brockman
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:
Encore: Inside Joe Weisenthal's brain
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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Tools and Weapons with Brad Smith:
Connecting the Unconnected: Doreen Bogdan-Martin
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.
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Earlier Picks

Chris Welch / The Verge:
Wall Street Journal: