Technology
- Interview with Garry Kasparov, the first chess world champion to be defeated by a computer, about chess, AI, and a strategy for staying a step ahead of machines (Will Knight/Wired)
- iMerit raises $20M Series B for its platform that helps enrich and annotate large datasets that power advanced algorithms in fields such as machine learning (FinSMEs)
- Swedish game developer Embracer to buy US-based Saber Interactive, maker of the game World War Z, for up to $525M in cash and stock, most of which is deferred (Johannes Hellstrom/Reuters)
- CB Insights: fintech startups across the world raised $33.9B across 1,912 deals in 2019, which is down from $40.8B raised across 2,049 deals in 2018 (Manish Singh/TechCrunch)
- Sources: Intuit is nearing a deal to buy personal finance portal Credit Karma for about $7B in cash and stock; the deal could be announced as soon as Monday (Wall Street Journal)
- Enveil, a startup working on homomorphic encryption, raises $10M Series A led by C5 Capital, with Mastercard, Capital One Ventures, and others participating (Kyle Wiggers/VentureBeat)
- Reggora, a residential appraisal software platform, raises $10M Series A, led by Spark Capital with Boston Seed Capital participating (FinSMEs)
- After exiting Colombia in January, Uber relaunches in the country after finding a legal loophole, says customers will now rent vehicles with drivers via its app (Reuters)
- Decentralized Finance (DeFi), the best performing sector in crypto today, feels more like cosplaying a financial system than an actual viable alternative to it (Jon Evans/TechCrunch)
- Study: smart speakers accidentally activate to random words between 1.5 and 19 times per day on average, with HomePod and Cortana devices activating the most (Mon(IoT)r Research Group)
- Companies are using social media influencers' faces without consent to promote products because recourse on even US-based platforms is somewhat complex (Emma Grey Ellis/Wired)
- Alphabet and Softbank ally with telcos like China Telecom and vendors like Nokia to promote industry-wide standards for balloon, drone network tech (Sam Nussey/Reuters)
- Canalys: global PC shipments are expected to decline between 3.4% and 8.5% YoY in 2020, taking into account the impact of the coronavirus outbreak (Canalys)
- Profile of computer scientist Xia Peisu, who is called the "Mother of Chinese Computing" for shaping some of China's first computer science institutions (Leila McNeill/BBC Future)
- Researchers detail "SweynTooth" bugs, which could allow hackers in radio range to crash Bluetooth Low Energy-based devices like pacemakers and fitness trackers (Lily Hay Newman/Wired)
- Ethos Capital, prospective buyer of .org TLD, proposes rules that would ban steep fee increases for nonprofits, establish an independent "stewardship council" (Adi Robertson/The Verge)
- In the EU, Google is now showing alternate directory sources above the map in search results pages to comply with antitrust decision in shopping search (Greg Sterling/Search Engine Land)
- Twitter is suspending 70 accounts linked to Michael Bloomberg's campaign for violating its policies, citing platform manipulation and duplicative content (Los Angeles Times)
- Sources: the Trump campaign has bought exclusive nationwide masthead ads on YouTube for days leading up to and on election day; ads may cost up to $1M+ a day (Bloomberg)
- A look at current innovations in higher ed, including ongoing subscriptions instead of tuition, AI tutors, and transcripts that can help students find work (Jon Marcus/New York Times)
- With iOS 14, Apple may start opening its walled garden, beginning with allowing third-party apps as defaults, which could ease antitrust pressure (Tom Warren/The Verge)
- Sources: Google has reached a settlement with state AGs over outside consultants hired to work on the states' antitrust investigation (CNBC)
- Sources: Comcast's NBCUniversal is in advanced talks to acquire streaming-video service Vudu from Walmart (Wall Street Journal)
- A history of EU's efforts to create a standard for device chargers, and how Apple used a loophole to keep using Lightning, but may have to move to USB-C soon (Tim Hardwick/MacRumors)
- An EU report, circulated among EU and national officials in November 2019, calls for the creation of a network of national police facial recognition databases (The Intercept)
- CBS All Access and Showtime have 11M subscribers; Pluto TV had 22.4M MAUs in Q4 2019, up 75% YoY; revenue from all three hit $1.6 billion in 2019 (Cynthia Littleton/Variety)
- Lyft has acquired Halo Cars, a small startup that lets ride-hailing drivers earn money via ad displays mounted atop their cars (Kia Kokalitcheva/Axios)
- Feather, an NY-based furniture subscription service, raises $30M Series B led by Cobalt Capital with Kleiner Perkins, YC, SV Angel, and others participating (FinSMEs)
- Samsung Galaxy Z Flip review: the best hinge on a folding phone so far but the screen's plastic covering scratches easily and the cameras are disappointing (Dieter Bohn/The Verge)
- Source: Facebook considers transparency measures around posts from political campaign staffers, due to concerns around Bloomberg campaign's use of its platform (Julia Boorstin/CNBC)