Business, Spoken
2,353 episodes — Page 13 of 48
On Depop, Sellers Are Pushing Shady Secondhand Pills
The popular ecommerce site is riddled with half-used packets of diet pills and harmful health supplements, highlighting the need for tougher regulation. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Activists Are Reaching Russians Behind Putin's Propaganda Wall
Apps like Tinder, Google Maps, and Telegram give activists a way to share what's really going on in Ukraine—for now. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
How a New Digital Dollar Could Shake the US Financial System
The Biden administration is looking into a government-issued digital currency. The implications would be profound. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
The Great Tech Hub Exodus Didn't Quite Happen
Two years into the pandemic, US tech jobs remain concentrated in a handful of coastal hubs. But a new set of cities is gaining ground. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
The Problem With Big Tech's Wartime Push Against Putin
Plus: Silicon Valley’s response to Snowden, stories that shift reality, and a culmination of catastrophes. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
In Ukraine, Online Gig Workers Keep Coding Through the War
The country is a large supplier of contract labor through platforms such as Upwork and Fiverr. The ongoing crisis with Russia exposes weaknesses in that system. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
High Above Ukraine, Satellites Get Embroiled in the War
While the Russian invasion rages on the ground, companies that operate data-collecting satellites find themselves in an awkward position. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Today's Startups Are Flush With Cash—and Watching Every Penny
Investors have poured money into startups the past few years. Now, founders worry about a changing market and the rising cost of retaining employees. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
How to Move Your Shop or Business Online
The pandemic prompted entrepreneurs to move their brick-and-mortars into the digital sphere. Here's what worked for me and other small business owners. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
The Original Hybrid Workers Can Teach Us How to Do It Right
Over 50 years ago, they trialed “part-time telecommuting.” The pandemic-driven model has problems, but early adopters think they can be fixed. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
The Governor of Colorado Is High on Blockchain
Can Jared Polis turn the Rockies into the next crypto paradise? Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Australia's Standoff Against Google and Facebook Worked—Sort Of
A year after Australia forced tech giants to pay news outlets for the content they display, other countries want to follow suit. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
YouTube's Captions Insert Explicit Language in Kids' Videos
The AI that transcribes spoken dialog on the platform's standard version can render “corn” as “porn,” “beach” as “bitch,” and “brave” as “rape.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Energy Firms Are Going ‘Green’ by Offloading Dirty Coal Plants
In the EU, phasing out emissions often means paying someone to take over polluting plants—and keep them running. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
An NFT Bubble Is Taking Over the Gig Economy
Two-thirds of freelancers on Fiverr say they’re servicing the NFT industry. But is it sustainable? Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Why Cities Want Old Buildings Taken Down Gently
A growing number of US cities are adopting “deconstruction” policies that involve taking structures apart by hand in the name of sustainability. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
China Is About to Regulate AI—and the World Is Watching
Sweeping rules will cover algorithms that set prices, control search results, recommend videos, and filter content. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
TikTok Wants Longer Videos—Whether You Like It or Not
The company knows that clips over 60 seconds in length stress users out. That won't stop it from chasing the lucrative long-video market. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Grocery Apps Hoped to Win Over Amsterdam. Then Things Turned Sour
The "dark stores" that popped up in Dutch cities have triggered turf wars with residents and citywide crackdowns. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
The Elusive Hunt for a Robot That Can Pick a Ripe Strawberry
It's a tricky, delicate task that combines machine vision and robotics. Progress has been slow, but entrepreneurs and farmers continue to invest. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
The Psychology of Placing EV Chargers Along Roads Less Traveled
Just seeing a map of charging stations in rural areas can help alleviate “range anxiety”—and help get more EVs on the streets. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
After the Great Resignation, Tech Firms Are Getting Desperate
Faced with a shortage of qualified workers and fierce competition, companies are offering candidates money to interview and plush perks if they stay. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Face Recognition Is Out. So How Will the IRS Verify Identity?
Fighting fraud is important. But so is respecting privacy and guarding against bias. Â It's a “no-win situation,” one former official says. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Assange’s NFT Clock Sale Rides a Wave of DAO Crowdfunding
The WikiLeaks founder raised $50 million for legal fees, making him the latest public figure to benefit from decentralized autonomous organizations. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Sony's AI Drives a Race Car Like a Champ
The company built GT Sophy to master the game Gran Turismo, but it may help the development of real self-driving cars. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
The IRS Drops Facial Recognition Verification After Uproar
Privacy advocates and lawmakers from both major parties objected to the agency's use of a third-party system to confirm taxpayers' identities. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Battery-Powered Trains Are Picking Up Speed
Electric locomotives could cut emissions of greenhouse gases and toxic pollutants that harm people living near rail yards. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
A Fight Over the Right to Repair Cars Turns Ugly
In the wake of a voter-approved law, Subaru and Kia dealers in Massachusetts have disabled systems that allow remote starts and send maintenance alerts. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Thousands of Planes Are Flying Empty and No One Can Stop Them
A pre-pandemic policy on airport usage is pressuring airlines to keep "ghost flights" in the air. The climate impact is massive. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Big Tech Needs to Stop Trying to Make Their Metaverse Happen
From Microsoft to Meta, the race is on to sell an amorphous concept that no one really wants them to build. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
HP Wins Huge Fraud Case Against Autonomy’s Mike Lynch
The ruling by the UK’s High Court could also lead to Lynch’s extradition to the United States, where he faces further charges. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
It's Not Just the IRS—the US Government Wants Your Selfies
A controversial new program that uses facial recognition is part of a national effort to verify identities and reduce fraud. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Now Physical Jobs Are Going Remote, Too
Advances in artificial intelligence and other technology allow machines to be operated from far away. The trend could spell trouble for workers. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Synthetic Voices Want to Take Over Audiobooks
Publishers hope computer-generated voices can help them tap surging demand, but some fans—and Amazon—are resisting the robots. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Latino Founders Have a Hard Time Raising Money From VCs
Despite diversity pledges, funding to Latino-founded startups in the US still lags—accounting for only 2 percent of venture investments last year. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Everyone Wants to Be an Entrepreneur
Applications for new businesses rose 20 percent last year, after languishing for a decade. Many newly minted founders attribute it to the pandemic. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Meta and Twitter's NFT Landgrab Could Backfire
A new plan to lure social media users to the metaverse could legitimize NFTs, but it could also ruin them. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Guts, Not Guidelines, Will Stop Tech Mergers
Plus: Microsoft’s bid for Yahoo, Silicon Valley’s approach to history, and Tonga’s disastrous eruption. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
China’s ‘People’s Courts’ Resolve Online Disputes at Tech Firms
No garlic on the oysters? Soup stained a blanket? Panels of users hear the complaints and can order refunds or removal of critical reviews. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
When It Comes to Health Care, AI Has a Long Way to Go
Medical information is more complex and less available than the web data that many algorithms were trained on, so results can be misleading. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Cities Want Ebikes to Stay in Their Lane—but Which One?
From New York to Moab, Utah, bicyclists and municipal officials are divided over whether ebikes should be permitted on bicycle trails. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Who Do Young Entrepreneurs Look Up To? Elon Musk
Steve Jobs is dead, Mark Zuckerberg is tarnished. For the next generation of startup founders, the contributions of Bill Gates feel like ancient history. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
As Kazakhstan Descends into Chaos, Crypto Miners Are at a Loss
The central Asian country became No. 2 in the world for Bitcoin mining. But political turmoil and power cuts have hit hard, and the future looks bleak. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Accessible Cars Aren’t Born, They’re Made
Car buyers looking for specific mobility features have limited options, but customizers and manufacturers are trying to change that. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
You May Be Able to Own a Self-Driving Car After All
For years, automakers focused on using autonomous technology for “robotaxis,” akin to a shared Uber. A GM announcement this week shows that’s changing. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Facebook’s Data Center Plans Rile Residents in the Netherlands
The country has become a magnet for Big Tech facilities, but locals say they will syphon away all their green energy. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Self-Driving Vehicles Are Here—If You Know Where to Look
Glossy visions of an autonomous future always seem just out of reach. But two insiders say the technology is available on farms, and on clear, dry streets. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Public Transit Systems Refocus on Their Core Riders
In the wake of the pandemic, officials are shifting bus and rail service toward lower-income neighborhoods, while some agencies are eliminating fares. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
A Move for 'Algorithmic Reparation' Calls for Racial Justice in AI
Researchers are encouraging those who work in AI to explicitly consider racism, gender, and other structural inequalities. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
Advice to Startup Founders: Prepare to Fail
Three new books explore why fledgling companies flounder—and what to do about it. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices