Tech Brew Ride Home

The whims of Elon Musk go both ways when it comes to crypto markets. SpaceX signs a deal with Google Cloud to do battle with AWS and the Kuiper Project. Colonial Pipeline reportedly paid the ransom and is getting back online. Will Facebook’s crypto project ever see the light of day, part 12. And the Ethereum creator donates Crypto to help India. Sponsors: Skiff.org/ride Cybereason.com Links: Tesla stops taking Bitcoin for vehicle purchases, citing environmental harm (The Verge) Elon Musk’s SpaceX inks satellite connectivity deal with Google Cloud (The Verge) Biden signs executive order designed to strengthen federal digital defenses (Washington Post) Roku will launch original programming fueled by Quibi’s content on May 20 (Tech Crunch) Apple parts ways with employee amid backlash (Axios) Facebook-backed crypto project Diem abandons Swiss license application, will move to the U.S. (CNBC) Ethereum creator donates meme coins worth $1 billion to help India fight COVID-19 (Tech Crunch) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The US lets Xiaomi out of the blacklist. GitHub ads security key support and wants to move on from the password era. eBay wants in on the NFT action. WhatsApp is gonna turn the screws until you agree to their terms. And speaking of, Brian Krebs outlines how that group suspected to be behind the pipeline hack has sophisticated ways of getting you to pay up. Sponsors: NordVPN.com/ride coupon code: ride LinkedIN.com/ride Links: US agrees to drop Xiaomi from blacklist after lawsuit (Bloomberg) Amazon updates the Echo Show 8 and 5 with better cameras (The Verge) GitHub shifts away from passwords with security key support for SSH Git operations (ZDNet) EBay officially opens its platform to NFT sales (The Block) WhatsApp will gradually stop you calling or messaging contacts if you don't agree to its new privacy policy (Insider) E-scooter company Bird will go public via SPAC (Axios) SoftBank joins corporate heavyweights with $37 bln Vision Fund profit (Reuters) A Closer Look at the DarkSide Ransomware Gang (Krebs on Security) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s new chip day. Intel unveils it’s 11th-gen Core Tiger Lake-H 10nm chips, while Nvidia unveils the RTX 3050 and 3050 Ti laptop GPUs. So expect a bunch of laptop lines to be refreshed. And, oh, look at that. The Dell XPS lineup already has been. Details on the next gen PlayStation VR hardware. And an argument that Apple’s recent privacy movies are a naked and ugly power play that harms the open web. Sponsors: Cybereason.com Kiwico.com promocode ride Links: Intel Launches 11th Generation Core Tiger Lake-H: Eight Core 10nm Mobile Processors (AnandTech) NVIDIA's RTX 3050 and 3050 Ti bring ray tracing to affordable laptops (Engadget) Dell’s new XPS 15 and XPS 17 get upgraded with Intel’s long-awaited 11th Gen H-series chips (The Verge) Next-Gen PlayStation VR Is 4K With Foveated Rendering And Vibration Feature (Upload) Foxconn’s iPhone output in India down amid COVID surge-sources (Reuters) Apple robbed the mob’s bank (Mobile Dev Demo) Graphic Novel by Matthew Bogart: IncredibleDoom.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sony warns that it might be literal years before I can finally win one of those PlayStation 5 sales windows on Walmart.com. The big ransomware attack that threatened fuel supply on the US East Coast, and the hackers allegedly behind it. Clubhouse hits Android. A researcher claims to have already hacked AirTags. And Elon Musk’s SNL appearance, and Dogecoin, and everything. Sponsors: Netgear.com/bestwifi Promocode: Tech10 Cybereason.com Links: Sony warns tight Playstation 5 supply to extend into next year (Bloomberg) Colonial hackers stole data Thursday ahead of pipeline shutdown (Bloomberg) Here’s the hacking group responsible for the Colonial Pipeline shutdown (CNBC) Clubhouse comes to Android after more than a year of iOS exclusivity (The Verge) AirTag hacked for the first time by security researcher [Video] (9to5 Mac) Apple's 2023 iPhone could ditch Qualcomm and launch with its own 5G chip (Laptop Mag) Apple Awards iPhone Glass Supplier Corning Additional $45M From Advanced Manufacturing Fund (Mac Rumors) Tesla privately admits Elon Musk has been exaggerating about ‘full self-driving’ (The Verge) SNL was a good night for Elon Musk — and a bad one for Dogecoin (Protocol) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We talk about the Tip Jar and all the other big changes Twitter has been making. We get into the Basecamp brouhaha and also why I didn’t end up covering it this week. We talk about Dogecoin with someone who was there at the beginning of the project. And we even have an actual newsmaker on the show. At the very end, we talk to Tony Haile, founder of Scroll, which, if you’ll remember, just got acquired by Twitter this past week. Sponsor: Cybereason.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Twitter introduces a tip jar, literally called Tip Jar. Why crypto trading juicing Square’s earnings is worth thinking about. What is the mysterious social space Netflix is surveying users about building? Yes, Substack is letting writers build magazines and newsrooms, so stop pointing out the obvious. And, of course, the weekend longreads suggestions. Sponsors: Skiff.org/ride Cybereason.com Links: Twitter is testing a new Tip Jar feature for sending money to your favorite accounts (The Verge) Square gets a bitcoin boost with revenue up 266% (CNBC) Playlists and podcasts? Netflix is exploring developing ‘N-Plus’ (Protocol) You can now build a “mini media empire” on Substack (Financial Times) Everyone yells at the Oversight Board (Platformer) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: How Much Energy Does Bitcoin Actually Consume? (Harvard Business Review) Crypto pros are getting tired of the 79 billion dollar dogecoin joke (Bloomberg) I'm seeing a lot of people FOMO quit their jobs to join "crypto" (Jon Syu) THE LAST DAYS OF SATOSHI: WHAT HAPPENED WHEN BITCOIN’S CREATOR DISAPPEARED (Bitcoin Magazine) John Swartzwelder, Sage of “The Simpsons” (The New Yorker) Subscribe to the RideHome+ Feed at: tech.supercast.tech Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

IBM says it has created the world’s first 2nm chip. Google really wants everyone to use two factor authentication. Twitter is enacting more speed bumps to get you to stop trolling people in your tweets. Apple’s delicate dance with Netflix over in app payments. And SpaceX finally gets its Mars rocket to… not blow up on landing. Sponsors: AirMedCareNetwork.com/tech offer code TECH Cybereason.com Links: IBM Creates First 2nm Chip (AnandTech) Google is going to start automatically enrolling users in two-step verification (ZDNet) Google relaxes work from home rules to let more staff be remote (Bloomberg) Twitter rolls out improved ‘reply prompts’ to cut down on harmful tweets (Tech Crunch) Emails reveal Apple’s attempts to stop Netflix from dropping App Store In-App Purchase support (9to5 Mac) EXCLUSIVE China's Tencent in talks with U.S. to keep gaming investments -sources (Reuters) SpaceX successfully lands its massive Starship for the first time (New Atlas) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Facebook’s Oversight Board upholds the Trump account suspension. Signal trolls Facebook using its own ad system. An appeals court has ruled that Section 230 does not apply to app design. Kind of. It’s complicated. And the not complicated reason why some exchanges can’t tell you the price of Berkshire Hathaway stock right now. Think: partying like it’s 1999. Sponsors: Kraken.com/techmeme PingIdentity.com Links: Facebook’s Trump ban can stay in place, says Oversight Board (The Verge) Signal Tries to Run the Most Honest Facebook Ad Campaign Ever, Immediately Gets Banned (Gizmodo) Facebook Workplace reaches 7 million paid subscribers (CNBC) Facebook takes on Nextdoor with Neighborhoods tool (Cnet) Dell patches 12-year-old driver vulnerability impacting millions of PCs (The Record) Snapchat Can Be Sued Over Role In Fatal Car Crash, Court Rules (NPR) Epic CEO says he would have taken a special App Store deal if Apple had offered (9to5 Mac) Epic CEO argues Fortnite trial is an existential fight for the future (Protocol) Berkshire Hathaway’s Stock Price Is Too Much for Computers (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Twitter opens up Space more broadly, and buys the startup Scroll. So, what is the larger endgame here with their subscription play? Apple benefits from the turmoil in Google’s AI team. A breakdown of day one of the Apple/Epic Games trial. And how many people still pay a monthly subscription to AOL? Sponsors: Masterworks.io, promocode: ride Cybereason.com Links: Twitter expands Spaces to anyone with 600+ followers, details plans for tickets, reminders and more (Tech Crunch) Twitter is buying Scroll, the subscription service that removes ads from news sites (The Verge) Twitter makes all of its money from ads. It’s trying to change that. (Recode) Apple hires ex-Google AI scientist who resigned after colleagues' firings (Reuters) Ford backed Argo sees new sensor as key for self driving cars (Bloomberg) Apple and Epic go head-to-head in fiery opening remarks of highly-anticipated trial (9to5 Mac) About 1.5 million people still pay for AOL — but now they get tech support and identity theft services instead of dial-up internet (CNBC) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kuo says we’re gonna see a foldable iPhone soon. After the iOS privacy changes, Facebook is giving users popups begging them to turn tracking on. The interesting new “green” cryptocurrency that is launching today. And a backgrounder and breakdown of the Apple/Epic games trial that is kicking off today. Sponsors: PorkBun.com/tld/design use coupon code RIDE Cybereason.com Links: Kuo: Apple to Launch 8-Inch Foldable iPhone in 2023 (Mac Rumors) Verizon sells media businesses including Yahoo and AOL to Apollo for $5 billion (CNBC) Facebook and Instagram notices in iOS apps tell users tracking helps keep them ‘free of charge’ (The Verge) A new green cryptocurrency called Chia uses a less energy-intensive method of minting new coins. Here are 6 things to know about the digital asset before it starts trading on Monday. (Markets Insider) Microsoft explored reducing its Xbox store cut to shake up console gaming (The Verge) Apple’s App Store Had 78% Margin in 2019, Epic Expert Says (Bloomberg) Epic v. Apple: Everything you need to know about the biggest trial in tech (Protocol) 52 Week Newsletter: https://reading-waves.ghost.io/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Last week, the great Ed Zitron (@edzitron) , head of the media relations firm EZPR, put out a post that got a lot of chatter where he laid out a bear case for Clubhouse. So I tweeted out, did anyone want to do a bull case for clubhouse so we could do a bull/bear debate episode? And the great Joseph Flaherty (@josephflaherty) of Founders Collective raised his hand and said he’d be game to do it, so this is what we have today. An episode of two halves. First, Joe makes the bull case, then after the break, Ed gives the bear take. And that’s it? Great conversation. Great points made by both guys. Enjoy. Here is Ed's piece that we refer to throughout: Clubhouse and Audio's Feature Not A Product Problem (And How It Might Possibly Be Meerkat 2) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The EU does indeed charge Apple with antitrust violations. Roku has indeed followed through on its threats to YouTube TV. Will the Magic Keyboard actually work with the new iPad Pros or not? And of course, the weekend longreads suggestions. Sponsors: Red-ID.com/brian AirMedCareNetwork.com/tech offer code TECH Links: EU Charges Apple With App Store Antitrust Violations in Spotify Case (Wall Street Jounal) YouTube TV removed from Roku channel store amid Google contract dispute (Axios) Apple says the new 12.9-inch iPad Pro will work with the old Magic Keyboard, but ‘may not precisely fit when closed’ (9to5 Mac) 'A Perfect Positive Storm’: Bonkers Dollars for Big Tech (New York Times) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: The new wave of crypto users: migrant workers (Rest of World) Europe Is Trying to Reclaim Its Lost Chipmaking Glory (Bloomberg) As Nintendo’s entertainment kingdom expands, it’s still about the games (Fast Company) Spotify’s Surprise (Stratechery) Artificial Intelligence Is Misreading Human Emotion (The Atlantic) mRNA vaccine technology (Peter Attia MD) How mRNA Technology Could Change the World (The Atlantic) Subscribe to the RideHome+ Feed at: tech.supercast.tech Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Another earnings round up leads me to ask, what if the Covid era really is a historical inflection point for tech? AT&T has decided what to charge for HBO with ads, while Verizon is try to get someone to take AOL and Yahoo of their hands. What if we did streaming gaming, but just for browsing the web? Say hello to Mighty. And odds are, you’ve probably never gotten millimeter wave 5G on you fancy new phone. Sponsors: Red-ID.com/brian calderalab.com use code TECHMEME (all caps one word) at checkout Links: Facebook Revenue Grows 48% as Ad Prices Increase (The Information) Apple warns of supply shortages likely to impact iPad and Mac in Q3 (9to5 Mac) WarnerMedia plans to charge $9.99 per month for ad-supported HBO Max (CNBC) Verizon Explores Sale of Media Assets, Including Parts of Yahoo and AOL (Wall Street Journal) Amazon to spend $1B to boost pay for 500k operations workers by as much as $3 an hour (Geek Wire) Mighty wants to ‘make Chrome faster’ by streaming a browser from the cloud, starting on macOS (9to5 Google) Verizon “leads” all US carriers in mmWave 5G availability at 0.8% (Ars Technica) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Consumer Technology Association says they’re doing it live! As in, an in-person CES once again. Samsung announces two superlight laptops that are nonetheless, still “pro.” Netflix launches a new interface to take away what to watch fatigue. A roundup of tech earnings. And help Microsoft pick a new default font for Office. Sponsors: Red-ID.com/brian Oracle.com/goto/ride Links: CES will return to Las Vegas as an in-person event in 2022 (The Verge) Samsung’s new Galaxy Book Pro and Galaxy Book Pro 360 are lightweight laptops with OLED screens (The Verge) AirPods demand reportedly falling as Apple cuts production by 25-30% (9 to 5 Mac) Inside Netflix’s Quest to End Scrolling: How the company is working to solve one of its biggest threats: decision fatigue. (Vulture) Huawei reports 16.5% drop in revenues in first quarter, warns of ‘another challenging year’ ahead (CNBC) Microsoft is changing the default Office font and wants your help to pick a new one (The Verge) 52-Week High Newsletter Tool (https://reading-waves.ghost.io/) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is the EU about to bring the hammer down on Apple? Are Apple M2 chips right around the corner? Spotify launches its Podcast Subscription offering, and it is an interesting contrast to Apple’s. A whole slew of new Fire Tablets from Amazon. Lyft exits the self-driving game. And we’re in a dark new world when it comes to ransomware attacks. Sponsors: Skiff.org/ride Cyberreason.com Links: EU to charge Apple with anti-competitive behaviour this week (Financial Times) Spotify launches podcast subscriptions, but you can’t subscribe in-app (The Verge) Apple's follow-up to M1 chip goes into mass production for Mac (Nikkei Asia) Amazon’s new Fire HD 10 tablet has slimmer bezels and better specs (The Verge) Lyft sells self-driving unit to Toyota’s Woven Planet for $550M (Tech Crunch) Ransomware gang threatens to expose police informants if ransom is not paid (The Record) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Facebook rolls out that Spotify integration. Roku accuses Google of making anticompetitive demands for YouTube TV. iOS 14.5 rolls out, and with it that App Tracking Transparency tool. Apple plans a big new campus in North Carolina. And DoNotPay’s latest service helps protect your selfies from the global panopticon. Sponsors: CalderaLab.com use code TECHMEME (all caps one word) at checkout Kiwico.com, Promocode ride for 30 percent off Links: Facebook introduces a new miniplayer that streams Spotify within the Facebook app(Tech Crunch) Zoom launches Immersive View to unify participants in the same virtual room (Venture Beat) Roku says it may lose YouTube TV app after Google made anti-competitive demands (Axios) OnlyFans feels the lockdown love as transactions hit £1.7bn (Financial Times) German groups file Apple antitrust complaint as it makes privacy changes (Financial Times) To Be Tracked or Not? Apple Is Now Giving Us the Choice. (New York Times) Apple will spend $1 billion to open 3,000-employee campus in North Carolina (CNBC) DoNotPay's new tool makes your photos undetectable to facial recognition software (Input) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Figuring out the AirTags play. New iMac lust. And a deep discussion of the Apple Podcasts Subscription thing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Spotify looks like it’s going to quickly counter Apple with a Podcasts Subscription competitor that might be extremely creator friendly. The mystery of the driverless Tesla car crash. Worth noting how quickly things have been turned around for the better over at Snapchat. And of course, the Weekend Longreads Suggestions. Sponsors: Tovala.com/ride AirMedCareNetwork.com/tech offer code TECH Links: Apple, Spotify and the New Battle Over Who Wins Podcasting (Wall Street Journal) Did a Human or a Computer Crash This Tesla? (Intelligencer) Snap reports accelerating revenue growth, strong user numbers for first quarter (CNBC) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: Netflix, Disney and Amazon’s Streaming Wars Heat Up Overseas (Wall Street Journal) The pandemic nearly crushed pet-care startup Rover (Business Insider) Meet Virtual Reality, Your New Physical Therapist (New York Times) TMSC's expansion challenge told in 10 timely charts (Bloomberg) Why the Chip Shortage Is So Hard to Overcome (Wall Street Journal) Designed by Apple in California, Not Assembled in China (Above Avalon) 15 Years of Spotify: How the Streaming Giant Has Changed and Reinvented the Music Industry (Variety) Subscribe to the RideHome+ Feed at: tech.supercast.tech Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dish partners with AWS to build the first public cloud-based 5G network. iPadOS 15 might let you go full widget on the home screen. Some of those stolen schematics suggest we will be getting the MacBook Pros we deserve. I’ve got an interesting raise for a product every Product Manager should know about. And the first reviews of the Apple Air Tags are in. Sponsors: PingIdentity.com NewYorker.com/techmeme, promocode techmeme Links: US satellite company Dish taps Amazon for 5G launch (Financial Times) Apple Plans Notifications, iPad Home Screen Upgrades for iOS 15 (Bloomberg) Stolen MacBook Pro Schematics Confirm Apple's Plans to Add More Ports and Remove Touch Bar (Mac Rumors) Software product planning platform Productboard raises $72M (Venture Beat) AIRTAG LOCATION TRACKERS ARE SMART, CAPABLE, AND VERY APPLE (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The EU proposes a big new regulatory framework for AI. A ransomware gang threatens to release Apple product schematics unless they get paid off. Fallout from yesterday’s Apple event including what you can and cannot put on your AirTags. Netflix has disappointed Wall Street, and Amazon is expanding its “pay with your palm” program to more Whole Foods locations. Sponsors: Skiff.org/ride Tovala.com/ride Classified: RobBettis.com Links: Artificial Intelligence, Facial Recognition Face Curbs in New EU Proposal (Wall Street Journal) Instagram launches tools to filter out abusive DMs based on keywords and emojis, and to block people, even on new accounts (Tech Crunch) Apple announces AirTag accessories that cost more than the device (9 to 5 Mac) Ransomware gang tries to extort Apple hours ahead of Spring Loaded event (The Record) Netflix falls after pandemic boom reverses to rare weakness (Bloomberg) Amazon is bringing palm-scanning payment system to Whole Foods stores (CNBC) (Order your own classified at: https://www.ridehome.info/p/classifieds/) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

All of the headlines from Apple’s “Spring Loaded” event. All of the announcements Mark Zuckerberg made in that Discord room yesterday. Binance hires a former regulator to be its new CEO. And Fitbit wants to sell you a fashion forward Fitness Tracker. Sponsors: ManlyBands.com/techmeme Kracken.com/techmeme Classified: RobBettis.com Links: Apple updates 11" and 12.9" iPad Pros with M1, 8-core GPU, Thunderbolt, up to 2TB storage, 5G, 1080p FaceTime HD camera, and a miniLED screen on the 12.9" model (Techmeme) Apple introduces Podcasts Subscriptions to pay creators for content in redesigned app (9to5Mac) Facebook unveils suite of new audio products (Axios) Clubhouse’s Monthly Downloads Plunged 72% Last Month (The Wrap) Cryptocurrency Giant Binance.US Hires Former Top Bank Regulator (WSJ) Fitbit’s Luxe is a fashion-focused fitness band that costs $149.95 (The Verge) (Order your own classified at: https://www.ridehome.info/p/classifieds/) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mon. 04/19 – Facebook To Announce Going Big On Audio, Via Audio? Facebook has probably just outlined its plans to go big on audio, via a digital audio room. Clubhouse has officially announced that big new raise, probably in reaction to that, to some degree, A16Z did indeed triple down, and I try to outline all the threads for you. Britain might block ARM’s sale to Nvidia. And what to expect from tomorrow’s Apple event. Sponsors: Masterworks.io promocode ride Fundrise.com/techmeme Links: Facebook plans to go after Clubhouse — and podcasts — with a suite of new audio products (Vox) Clubhouse closes an undisclosed $4B valuation Series C round, as tech giants’ clones circle (Tech Crunch) UK invokes national security to investigate Nvidia's ARM deal (Reuters) Tencent's Ma dangles billions in aid as antitrust scrutiny grows (Bloomberg) Microsoft’s xCloud beta arrives on iOS and PC this week (The Verge) What to Expect From Apple's April 20 Event: New iPads, AirTags and More (Mac Rumors) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Chris Fralic of First Round Capital was involved in funding such companies as Ring, Hotel Tonight, Warby Parker, Rec Room, and as you’ll hear today, Roblox. But in addition to being a legend, as you’ll hear, Chris is just an all around good dude... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The biggest semiconductor companies in the world warn than the global chip shortage might roll on for years. Could that recent batch of Facebook accounts showing up on the dark web lead to the dreaded maximal GDPR action? Apple says it pays artists more than Spotify does, but is that really true? Depends on how you run the numbers. And of course, the weekend longreads suggestions. Sponsors: Skiff.org/ride GivingMultiplier.org/techmeme Links: Intel, Nvidia, TSMC execs agree: Chip shortage could last into 2023 (Ars Technica) Facebook faces ‘mass action’ lawsuit in Europe over 2019 breach (Tech Crunch) Apple Music Reveals How Much It Pays When You Stream a Song (Wall Street Journal) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: Dogecoin: The meme that somehow became a real cryptocurrency (Cnet) They were ancient internet memes. Now NFTs are making them rich (Wired) Why did Microsoft spend $19.7 billion to purchase Nuance? The answer may lie beyond health care. (Protocol) A Little-Known Upstart Might Just Beat Google to Autonomous Driving (Bloomberg Business Week) Hip-Hop Loves Cash App, and That Might Be Why Jack Dorsey Bought Tidal (GQ) Why a Chinese invasion of Taiwan would be a catastrophe for China and the world (Doxa) Strong Bad ... thank you: The Flash icon endures as the internet rapidly changes (Polygon) Subscribe to the RideHome+ Feed at: tech.supercast.tech Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jeff Bezos pens his farewell to the troops, and also, the shareholders. A big Google Earth update. Some thoughts on yesterday’s Coinbase debut. DJI updates its mid-level workhorse drone. And Ford is taking baby steps to that sort of super cruise control that I really want while we’re wait for full autonomy. Sponsors: AirMedCareNetwork.com/tech offer code TECH AwayTravel.com/techmeme Links: Jeff Bezos says Amazon needs to do a better job for employees in his final shareholder letter as CEO (CNBC) Google Earth’s historical 3D time lapses show the ravages of climate change (The Verge) Apple announces $200 million investment fund for forest restoration projects (9 to 5 Mac) Parallels 16.5 with native Apple Silicon support now available, up 30% faster VM performance than Intel (9 to 5 Mac) I funded Coinbase in 2012. Making 6000x on my best startup investment yet (Gary Tan) DJI’s new Mavic Air 2S comes with one big upgrade (The Verge) Ford’s hands-free BlueCruise driving feature coming soon to the F-150 and Mustang Mach-E (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Wed. 04/14 – Now It’s the FBI Doing The (Legal?) Hacking The FBI hacked into some Exchange servers to prevent further hacking of Exchange servers. Ming-Chi Kuo thinks the iPhone mini and the notch are both going away after this year. Sony wants you to think of their phones as cameras first. Oculus gets a key new wireless update. And yes, those Boston Dynamics robot dogs have been spotted on the streets of NYC. Sponsors: Startmail.com/Techmeme for 50% off your first year! Blockchain.com Links: FBI Accesses Computers Around Country to Delete Microsoft Exchange Hacks (Vice) Kuo: 2022 iPhones to Feature 48-Megapixel Camera, 8K Video, and 6.1 and 6.7" Sizes With No 5.4" Mini Option (Mac Rumors) Kuo: Apple to Adopt Under Display Face ID Starting With 2023 iPhones (Mac Rumors) Kuo: 2023 iPhones to Feature 'Periscopic' Telephoto Lens (Mac Rumors) Samsung's third Unpacked event of 2021 set for April 28 (Cnet) Sony announces the Xperia 1 III and Xperia 5 III with variable telephoto lenses (The Verge) Oculus Quest 2 owners can start testing wireless PC VR gaming with Air Link (Engadget) NYPD Deploys "Creepy" New Robot Dog In Manhattan Public Housing Complex (Gothamist) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Everyone announced something today. A new Surface Laptop 4. New Nvidia things. New Roku things. Something new from Spotify literally called Car Thing. Oculus is going to hold a product event. Siri leaked the next Apple event. And Grab is going public via a SPAC. Sponsors: LinkedIn.com/ride Fundrise.com/techmeme Links: Microsoft announces Surface Laptop 4 with choice of Intel or AMD processors (The Verge) Siri Reveals Apple Event Planned for Tuesday, April 20 (Mac Rumors) Facebook Announces Oculus Gaming Showcase For April 21 (Upload) Nvidia unveils rental model for DGX Station A100 mini supercomputers (Venture Beat) Roku’s latest streaming device gives 4K, HDR, and a voice remote for $40 (Ars Technica) Spotify’s Car Thing debuts as a limited release for selected US users (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Microsoft acquires the biggest name in speech tech. Apple is maybe developing some home gadgets I feel like they should have done years ago. Might we see new iPads by the end of the month? Google wants to stop you from walking and texting. And a review of the new Mercedes-Benz entrant into the EV wars. Sponsors: Skiff.org/ride Netgear.com/bestwifi and promocode:tech10 Links: Microsoft buys speech recognition firm Nuance in a $16 billion deal (CNBC) Apple Working on Combined TV Box, Speaker to Revive Home Efforts (Bloomberg) Apple Facing Supply Shortage of Upcoming High-End iPad Displays (Bloomberg) Ant to Be Financial Holding Firm in Overhaul Forced by China (Bloomberg) Alibaba’s rivals on alert after China’s regulators hand out record fine (FT) Google starts rolling out “Heads Up” in Digital Wellbeing to stop distracted walking (XDA Developers) THE 2022 MERCEDES-BENZ EQS IS A DECLARATION OF MAXIMUM ELECTRIC LUXURY (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here was our Twitter Space from this week. We ended up talking all about Coinbase, helped by some great analysis from Romeen Sheth, who I think you’ll recall I quoted from when we talked about this on Wednesday. You can follow Romeen on twitter @RomeenSheth, link in the show notes. And also, he has a great podcast called Square One, where he interviews founders and investors, folks like Anthony Pompliano, Li Jin, David Sacks, even Andrew Yang. Give it a listen, search Square One on your podcast app of choice. Sponsors: Today In Digital Marketing podcast GivingMultiplier.org/techmeme Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The counting is finally happening, and not to be all Nate Silver, but it’s looking fairly certain that Amazon won its big union battle. Apple and Epic Games are making their first arguments in that big lawsuit. A big new scraping hack, this time for half a billion LinkedIn users. Neurolink shows a monkey playing Pong with its brain. And of course, the weekend longreads suggestions. Sponsors: Blockchain.com FundRise.com/techmeme Links: Partial tally in Amazon union drive favors ‘No’ votes. (NYTimes) Epic v. Apple discovery details ‘Project Liberty’ scheme to skirt App Store with Fortnite (9to5Mac) Apple Admits Purposely Keeping iMessage Off Android Helps Lock Users In (DroidLife) Hackers scraped data from 500 million LinkedIn users — about two-thirds of the platform's userbase — and have posted it for sale online (Insider) Neuralink's brain-computer interface demo shows a monkey playing Pong (Engadget) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: Silicon Valley Is Flooding Into a Reluctant Austin (Bloomberg Businessweek) Don’t pick up! The rise and fall of a massive industry based on missed calls (Rest of World) DoorDash Drivers Game Algorithm to Increase Pay (Bloomberg Businessweek) Revenge Of The Winklevii (Forbes) Bill Hwang Had $20 Billion, Then Lost It All in Two Days (Bloomberg Businessweek) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If the chip shortage is now biting even Apple, things are getting real, y’all. Twitter apparently took a run at buying Clubhouse. Facebook has a new Clubhouse like product called Hotline. Lenovo’s new phone convinces me gaming phones are truly a thing. And are there signs we’re finally gonna see those Apple AirTags… or do the tea leaves reveal the exact opposite? Sponsors: Calderalab.com code TECHMEME at checkout Blockchain.com Links: MacBook and iPad production delayed as supply crunch hits Apple (NikkeiAsia) Apple MacBook and iPad production may be delayed over global chip shortage (AppleInsider) Twitter Held Discussions for $4 Billion Takeover of Clubhouse (Bloomberg) Facebook tests Hotline, a Q&A product that’s a mashup of Clubhouse and Instagram Live (TechCrunch) Lenovo’s Legion Phone Duel 2 has not one but two cooling fans (The Verge) YouTube is social media’s big winner during the pandemic (CNBC) Uber and Lyft ‘throwing money’ at US drivers to ease shortage (FT) Google I/O 2021 will be virtual and free to attend from May 18-20 (9to5Google) Apple Announces Find My Network With Support for Third-Party Devices (MacRumors) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Coinbase has revealed the number behind their business, and they are brain exploding emoji. A big Patreon raise shows the moneybags are serious about this creator economy thing. Nobody is crying at Plaid over that failed Visa merger. There’s a new king of the gaming laptop hill. And I try my best to unravel the twisted tale of the latest Facebook data scandal. Sponsors: Kiwico.com, Promocode ride for 30 percent off Blockchain.com Links: Coinbase Posts Blowout Q1 Profit of $730-$800 Million, Days Before Public Listing (Decrypt) Patreon’s Valuation Triples to $4 Billion as Platform Draws Creators, Fans (WSJ) Clubhouse Discusses Funding at About $4 Billion Value (Bloomberg) Plaid raises $425M Series D from Altimeter as it charts a post-Visa future (TechCrunch) Global Venture Funding Hits All-Time Record High $125B In Q1 2021 (Crunchbase News) Alienware’s M15 R5 is its first AMD-based gaming laptop in over a decade (The Verge) What Really Caused Facebook's 500M-User Data Leak? (Wired) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Clubhouse isn’t messing around when it comes to flipping the monetization switch. TikTok translation might make that platform even more global. Yahoo Answers circles the drain. Are NFT prices already dropping? And with the new digital Yuan, would the Chinese government be able to literally turn off the money in your wallet? Sponsors: Today In Digital Marketing Podcast Kraken.com/techmeme Links: Clubhouse’s new direct payments let you toss a coin to creators, and they get 100 percent (The Verge) TikTok adds automatic captions to videos in accessibility push (The Verge) Yahoo Answers will be shut down forever on May 4th (The Verge) The NFT bubble might be bursting already (CNN Business) China Creates Its Own Digital Currency, a First for Major Economy (WSJ) E3 2021 Will Take Place as a Free Virtual Conference, In-Person L.A. Event Targeted for Next Year (Variety) Streaming Services Have Finally Run Out of New Shows. Kind of. (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Supreme Court has ruled on APIs in a way that should make most developers happy. Though, the punted on the President blocking people on Twitter. LG is exiting the smartphone business. And we already knew half a billion people’s Facebook data was out in the wild, but now that we’ve SEEN it in the wild, I’ll tell you why you should take notice. Sponsors: Blockchain.com NewYorker.com/techmeme promocode techmeme Links: Supreme Court rules in Google’s favor in copyright dispute with Oracle over Android software (CNBC) Supreme Court vacates lower court decision on Trump blocking Twitter followers (Axios) LG Electronics to end loss-making smartphone business (NikkeiAsia) Amazon Illegally Fired Activist Workers, Labor Board Finds (NYTimes) 533 million Facebook users' phone numbers and personal data have been leaked online (Insider) Is Apple's Privacy Push Facebook's Existential Threat‪?‬ (Kara Swisher's Sway Podcast) Sideloading Apps Would 'Break' the Security and Privacy of iPhone, Says Tim Cook (MacRumors) Tim Cook says Apple is committed to AR, TV+ and privacy but not to Apple Car (Cult of Mac) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We didn’t go as long as last time because after about 45 minutes, somehow no one could hear me, even though I was the space commissar, or whatever they term it. Anyway, as you’ll hear, we ended up talking about that big AR story with Microsoft and the HoloLens and the Pentagon. Robert Scoble, who has been on this beat for years showed up serendipitously, to give us some schooling in the space. Enjoy… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Coinbase is going public and sharing its numbers ahead of time, which is rare and probably a sign of confidence. The App Store has started rejecting apps ahead of that big new privacy change. Has Tencent’s gaming studio become the biggest in the world? Another Clubhouse clone, this time from Discord. And of course, the weekend longreads suggestions. Sponsors: MasterWorks.io promocode ride GivingMultiplier.org/techmeme Links: Coinbase To Go Public on April 14, Announce Q1 Earnings Beforehand (Decrypt) Apple Rejecting Apps With Fingerprinting Enabled As iOS 14 Privacy Enforcement Starts (Forbes) Apple knew it was selling defective MacBook displays, judge concludes (The Verge) Discord’s new Clubhouse-like feature, Stage Channels, is available now (The Verge) Exclusive: Tencent's Timi gaming studio generated $10 billion in 2020, sources say (Reuters) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: People's Expensive NFTs Keep Vanishing. This Is Why (Motherboard) 5 Years After the Oculus Rift, Where Do VR and AR Go Next? (Wired) How a Chip Shortage Snarled Everything From Phones to Cars (Bloomberg) Why Computers Won’t Make Themselves Smarter (New Yorker) Graphene and Beyond: The Wonder Materials That Could Replace Silicon in Future Tech (WSJ) Turing Award Goes to Creators of Computer Programming Building Blocks (NYTimes) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Microsoft’s big HoloLens deal with the Pentagon is maybe the big bang for the augmented reality industry. Amazon says their folks can come back to work soon, and in fact, they’d prefer if you did. Bearish signs for the work remotely movement? Why these are boom times for chip makers. And why Siri’s new voices think of gender as a spectrum. Sponsors: Today In Digital Marketing Podcast AirMedCareNetwork.com/tech offer code TECH Links: Microsoft wins U.S. Army contract for augmented reality headsets, worth up to $21.9 billion over 10 years (CNBC) Amazon says it expects some employees to return to the office this summer, most will return in fall (CNBC) TSMC to Spend $100 Billion Over Three Years to Grow Capacity (Bloomberg) Apple adds two brand new Siri voices and will no longer default to a female or male voice in iOS (TechCrunch) Comcast Weighs Pulling Universal’s Movies From HBO Max, Netflix (Bloomberg) Thrasio raises $100M for its Amazon roll-up play, appoints retail CFO for its next steps (TechCrunch) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Facebook has announced News Feed changes to bring chronology back. LinkedIn is working on a Clubhouse rival and I think that makes total sense. Apple actually leads an interesting investment round. Deliveroo has a disastrous first day on the public markets. And how about Roblox, but inside the Unreal Engine? Sponsors: PingIdentity.com TinyCapital.com Links: Facebook Adds New 'Most Recent' Timeline to Switch to Chronological Posts (MacRumors) LinkedIn confirms it’s working on a Clubhouse rival, too (TechCrunch) Apple invests $50M into music distributor UnitedMasters alongside A16z and Alphabet (TechCrunch) Android sends 20x more data to Google than iOS sends to Apple, study says (ArsTechnica) Deliveroo drags on the LSE; closes down 44% on debut (TechCrunch) Maker of NBA Top Shot Scores $305 Million in New Funding (WSJ) ConsenSys Lines Up Damien Hirst to Launch New NFT Art Protocol (Decrypt) Manticore Games raises $100M for user-generated games in the ‘multiverse’ (GamesBeat) RideHome+ Feed: tech.supercast.tech Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s actually a nutso butso news day. Spotify is launching a Clubhouse competitor. Amazon is spinning up a new line of custom silicon. Big updates to Google Maps. We know the dates for WWDC. Amazon seems to be doing some Twitter sock puppetry. A bunch of new phones from Xiaomi. Substack is raising another big round. And that’s not all. There’s so much that happened today in the world of tech, that I can’t even promo it all, so let’s just get to it. Sponsors: TinyCapital.com Metalab.com Links: Spotify is launching its own Clubhouse competitor (The Verge) Spotify acquires Betty Labs, creator of live audio app Locker Room (Axios) Amazon Steps Up Silicon Ambitions With New Networking Chip (The Information) Google is making some big upgrades to directions in Google Maps (The Verge) Apple officially announces virtual WWDC 2021 for June, iOS 15 and more expected (9to5Mac) Amazon is sending employees into the trenches on Twitter as it battles its first union vote and reports about workers peeing in bottles (Insider) There's Something Fishy About Amazon's Anti-Union Twitter Army [Updated] (Gizmodo) Cameo Aims to Connect Celebrities With Fans and It’s Now Valued at $1 Billion (WSJ) Volvo and Aurora team up on fully autonomous trucks for North America (The Verge) Xiaomi announces the Mi Mix Fold, its first folding phone (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

New York, Japan, China and the EU are all gonna try out digital vaccine passports. Visa is gonna try out a stablecoin to settle transactions. The official PHP Git repository was hacked. Boston Dynamics has a new robot that isn’t as scary… unless you’re a warehouse worker. And what is Amazon’s aggressive PR recently all about? Sponsors: Fundrise.com/techmeme Grammarly.com/techmeme Links: New York launches nation's first 'vaccine passports.' Others are working on similar ideas, but many details must be worked out. (USAToday) Exclusive: Visa moves to allow payment settlements using cryptocurrency (Reuters) PHP's Git server hacked to add backdoors to PHP source code (BleepingComputer) Boston Dynamics unveils Stretch: a new robot designed to move boxes in warehouses (The Verge) OpenAI’s text-generating system GPT-3 is now spewing out 4.5 billion words a day (The Verge) Amazon keeps trying to troll US Congress members in perplexing new PR strategy (The Verge) Amazon Union Vote Ends as Both Sides Brace for Contentious Count (Bloomberg) Amazon started a Twitter war because Jeff Bezos was pissed (Recode) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is the clubhouse room from Monday, March 22nd. Topics discussed here include the situation with the Dispo app. Zoom’s new SDK. The fate of the HomePod and that secret new gizmo inside the HomePod Mini, and a deep dive into two of the longreads from LAST week: Moore's Law for Everything post and Tim O’Reilly’s piece The End of Silicon Valley as We Know It? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

So, as I said, this is one of the clubhouse rooms we did this week. In fact, it’s the one from last night. Chris convinced me to split the two rooms into two episodes, so I’m releasing this one, from Friday first, and tomorrow I’ll post the one we did Monday night. Topics for this episode: Slack getting into social audio, Microsoft buying Discord, what the heck is BitClout! The great Brady Dale @BradyDale from Coindesk helped us out with that. And more explication of my rant concerning the whole Medium situation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The House tech hearings were a nothing burger, but I’ll try to explain what that means for us. Apple is considering a more rugged Apple Watch. Slack is doing a Clubhouse clone and… stories. WeWork is back, with a SPAC. And of course, the weekend longreads suggestions. Sponsors: EditorX.com ThoughtWorks Technology Podcast Links: Yes or no: Are these tech hearings doing anything? (The Verge) Apple Considers Launching Rugged Watch for Extreme Sports (Bloomberg) Slack is getting new audio features (Protocol) WeWork Agrees to SPAC Deal That Would Take Startup Public (WSJ) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: Intel Unleashed, Gelsinger on Intel, IDM 2.0 (Stratechery) The long, complicated, and extremely frustrating history of Medium, 2012–present (NeimanLab) Microsoft CEO Hunts Anew for Creator Hub After TikTok Bid Fails (Bloomberg) The fuss about BitClout (Axios) Crypto social network BitClout arrives with a bevy of high-profile investors — and skeptics (TechCrunch) Analysis: Money no object as governments race to build chip arsenals (Reuters) Buffer overruns, license violations, and bad code: FreeBSD 13’s close call (ArsTechnica) VC Firms Have Long Backed AI. Now, They Are Using It. (WSJ) The Hard Truth About Bitcoin's Energy Consumption (Decrypt) Mac OS X Turns 20: A Look Back at the Operating System That Helped Save Apple (PCMag) Subscribe to the RideHome+ Feed at: tech.supercast.tech Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Remember that Onion headline, F- Everything, We’re Doing Five Blades? Well, Samsung says welcome to the DDR5 era. There’s more tech testimony on Capitol Hill today. That Arizona bill that would have regulated the App Store mysteriously disappears. Deliveroo is facing a full on revolt. And my wife covers the Chrissy Teigen twitter news. Sponsors: Calderalab.com use code TECHMEME (all caps one word) at checkout Masterworks.io, promocode ride Links: Samsung Announces 512GB DDR5 Memory That Is Twice As Fast As DDR4 (HotHardware) Zuckerberg suggests how to tweak tech's liability shield (Axios) Genshin Impact Races Past $1 Billion on Mobile in Less Than Six Months (SensorTower) Arizona Senate skips vote on controversial bill that would regulate Apple and Google app stores (The Verge) Independent cloud provider DigitalOcean drops in Wall Street debut (CNBC) Deliveroo Hit by Investor, Rider Revolt Ahead of London IPO (Bloomberg) Twitter’s ‘unofficial mayor’ Chrissy Teigen quits platform after years of harassment (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You can now use Bitcoin to buy a Tesla. You can now DM anyone on Slack. Intel is now doing what Ben Thompson has been telling them to do for years. What Medium is doing to journalists is dumb. What Verizon is doing with Yahoo+ is dumb. And is the Chief Impact Officer title a real role, or is it… dumb? Sponsors: The Hello, User Podcast From Ping Identity BuyRaycon.com/tech for 15% off Links: Elon Musk says people can now buy a Tesla with bitcoin (CNBC) WhatsApp for work: Slack is turning into a full-on messaging app (Protocol) Trading App Robinhood Says It Filed Confidentially for IPO (Bloomberg) Intel invests $20 billion into new factories, will produce chips for other companies (The Verge) Exclusive: Qualcomm is planning an Android-powered Nintendo Switch knockoff (Android Police) Medium Tells Journalists to Feel Free to Quit After Busting Union Drive (Motherboard) Verizon to center media arm around new subscription platform Yahoo+ (Axios) Amazon hires former executive Adam Selipsky to run AWS (CNBC) Prince Harry Is Taking on a New Job Title: Chief Impact Officer at BetterUp (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Microsoft is reportedly in talks to buy Discord but Discord might just take itself public instead. A ton of video game news including an Xbox rebranding, a new Niantic partnership with Nintendo, and new rumors of that upgraded Nintendo switch. A new consortium wants to take the pain out of browser compatibility and Apple faces a class action lawsuit over the butterfly keyboards. Links: Microsoft in Talks to Buy Discord for More Than $10 Billion (Bloomberg) Microsoft rebrands Xbox Live to Xbox network (The Verge) Pikmin is the next AR game from the makers of Pokémon Go (The Verge) Nintendo to Use New Nvidia Graphics Chip in 2021 Switch Upgrade (Bloomberg) Microsoft, Google, and others join forces to improve browser compatibility (Neowin) Facebook will bring back F8 on June 2 as a pared-back, single-day, virtual-only conference for developers (TechCrunch) Angry MacBook owners get class action status for butterfly keyboard suit (The Verge) Jack Dorsey’s first tweet sold as an NFT for an oddly specific $2,915,835.47 (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Red hot app Dispo is losing some big name investors and the founder is leaving the startup’s board. As anticipated, Zoom goes platform. Microsoft is beginning a soft HQ reopening. The secret sensor found in the HomePod mini. And the smart startup that has cloned Amazon’s biggest competitive moats, to make them available to everybody. Sponsors: Kiwico.com, promocode "ride" for 30 percent off! BuyRaycon.com/tech for 15% off Links: David Dobrik, Losing Sponsors and Fans, Steps Down From App He Co-founded (NYTimes) Spark Capital decides to “sever all ties” with David Dobrik’s Dispo app weeks after leading deal (TechCrunch) Zoom introduces new SDK to help developers tap into video services (TechCrunch) Microsoft to start reopening headquarters on March 29th, with hybrid workplace focus (The Verge) Apple’s HomePod Mini Has a Secret Sensor Waiting to Be Switched On (BLoomberg) Inside the Democrats' strategy to bombard Big Tech (Axios) On-demand logistics and fulfillment startup Flowspace raises $31M (VentureBeat) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Last weekend a listener to this show, Ti Zhang, (@zero_chill_tea) tagged me on twitter around a conversation they were having about NFTs and the degree to which, lots of folks in the art world are not so thrilled with the advent of NFTs. They said, sure, we see all the headlines around famous artists and celebrities and all the money being made. But was I aware that artists were seeing their work stolen and sold as NFTs? That artists were taking their work down from the internet to make sure it wasn’t scraped and used on a blockchain somewhere? I was not. They started sending articles and links, some of which I posted in the show notes and I was like, hey, instead of just educating me about the NFT thing from the artist perspective, come on the show real quick and educate us all. So, the first half of the show is that. Thank you Ti, for being such a great resource. Then, after a break, the second half of the show will be just some of the Interesting Raises from the Interesting Raises episode that RideHome+ subscribers got this weekend. Less than half the content. If hearing these gives you a bit of FOMO, of course you can always sign up for the RideHome+ feed anytime, at tech.supercast.tech. As always, link to sign up for that feed is in the bottom of the show notes. Sponsors: ManlyBands.com/techmeme Subscribe to the RideHome+ Feed by tapping this link, right here in your podcast app: tech.supercast.tech Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s app platform product news day! Instagram is working on a version of the service suitable for kids. Twitter wants you to watch YouTube in-stream. Telegram is basically adding all the Clubhouse features I’ve been dreaming of. Was an anti-Apple rebel alliance born last night in a Clubhouse room? Why China is banning Tesla in some cases. And of course, the weekend longreads suggestions. Sponsors: EditorX.com Molekule.com, code "techmeme" at checkout to save as much as $120! Links: Facebook Is Building An Instagram For Kids Under The Age Of 13 (BuzzFeed News) Twitter begins testing a way to watch YouTube videos from the home timeline on iOS (TechCrunch) Telegram takes on Clubhouse with Voice Chat 2.0 (XDA Developers) Zuckerberg: Facebook may actually be in a ‘stronger position’ after Apple’s iOS 14 privacy changes (CNBC) China to Restrict Tesla Use by Military and State Employees (WSJ) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: The End of Silicon Valley as We Know It? (O'Reilly) Moore's Law for Everything (SamAltman.com) Empathetic Robots Are Killing Off the World’s Call-Center Industry (Bloomberg Businessweek) Loans that hijack your phone are coming to India (Rest of World) How a social app you’ve never heard of became a haven for Gen Z (Protocol) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s an Apple rumor Thursday from both the boys, Gurman and Kuo. Sony is taking what it’s learned from the DualSense controllers and bringing that to VR. YouTube rolls out its TikTok rival. Spotify wants you to know it gets artists paid. And I do my best to explain the whole creator economy controversy that has sprung up over at Substack. Sponsors: Tovala.com/ride Links: Apple Nears Launch of New iPads After Stay-At-Home Sales Boost (Bloomberg) PS5's VR 2.0: First Look At New Controllers (GameSpot) YouTube Shorts arrives in the US to take on TikTok, but the beta is still half-baked (The Verge) Spotify says over 13,000 artists’ catalogs earned at least $50K in royalties last year (The Verge) Here's why Substack's scam worked so well (The Hypothesis) Substack is for independent writers (Substack Blog) Crypto marketplace OpenSea raises $23 million to be the ‘Amazon of NFTs’ (Fortune) Intel puts Apple’s ‘I’m a Mac’ guy into new ads praising PCs (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices