Tech Brew Ride Home

Tim Cook attacks the “data industrial complex,” why political texts are flooding your phone, the US, China and the AI cold war, and how Facebook Messenger got its new look. Links: Apple’s Tim Cook Makes Blistering Attack On the “Data Industrial Complex” (TechCrunch) Why political text messages are flooding your phone (Axios) The AI Cold War That Could Doom Us All (Wired) Messenger redesigns to clean up Facebook’s mess (TechCrunch) How Facebook’s Messenger Got Its New Look in a New Jersey Basement (Wired) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tim Cook demands a retraction from Bloomberg, another founder flees Facebook, Repl.it gets a murder’s row of VC backers and the iPhone XR reviews are in. Links: Amazon cloud chief Jassy follows Apple in calling for retraction of Chinese spy chip story (CNBC) Apple CEO Tim Cook Is Calling For Bloomberg To Retract Its Chinese Spy Chip Story (Buzzfeed) Supermicro CEO Joins Cook in Calling for Bloomberg to Retract Supply Chain Hack Story (MacRumors) Oculus co-founder is leaving Facebook after cancellation of ‘Rift 2’ headset (TechCrunch) Former Facebook engineer quit to build the programming tool he always wanted (CNBC) Apple iPhone XR Review: Better Than Good Enough (The Verge) Now Apps Can Track You Even After You Uninstall Them (Bloomberg) Android: A Visual History of Google’s OS On Its 10th Anniversary (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Facebook wants to buy some cybersecurity, Washington wants to know what Silicon Valley will do for its country, Fred Wilson wants you to ask yourself if your investors are bad actors, and stealing a Tesla by hacking the entry fob. Links: Facebook on Hunt for Big Cybersecurity Acquisition (The Information) Who Are My Investors? (AVC) Thieves steal a Tesla Model S by hacking the entry fob (Engadget) A tech executive's video of his Tesla Model S being hacked and stolen is going viral (Business Insider) Video of the Tesla theft Google Home Hub review (CNET) Google Home Hub review—Awesome hardware for Google’s nascent smart display software (Ars Technica) Google Home Hub Review: At the intersection of useful and just plain cute [Video] (9to5Google) Google Home Hub review: A more personal smart display (Engadget) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Facebook makes a hire that makes British Twitter laugh, here’s how much Google’s going to charge for Android, Google wants China but does China want Google and the Weekend Longreads suggestions. Links: Facebook Hires Nick Clegg, Former UK Deputy Prime Minister, as Head of Global Affairs and Communications, to Succeed Elliot Schrage (Financial Times) Twitter Suspends Pro-Saudi Bots Spreading Propaganda About the Murder of Jamal Khashoggi (Gizmodo) Twitter Pulls Down Bot Network That Pushed Pro-Saudi Talking Points about Disappeared Journalist (NBC News) Powerful Executives Have Stepped Away From the Saudis. Not SoftBank's. (New York Times) Google App Suite Costs as Much as $40 Per Phone Under New EU Android Deal (The Verge) Google Wants China. Will Chinese Users Want Google? (Wired) The Betterment Weekend Longreads Suggestions: Craig Newmark, Newspaper Villain, Is Working to Save Journalism (New York Times) How the West Was Digitized: The Making of Rockstar Games’ Red Dead Redemption 2 (Vulture/New York Magazine) Drone Journalism's Battle for Airspace (Columbia Journalism Review) Mother Earth Mother Board (Wired) The Prophets of Cryptocurrency Survey the Boom and Bust (The New Yorker) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Spotify Premium gets a spit shine, Facebook think it knows who was behind that big hack, why everyone and their mother has a subscription box service, and an Apple event in Brooklyn! Links: Spotify Premium gets personalized artist radio stations and better search (The Verge) Twitter makes it easier to see enforcement taken on reported tweets (Tech Crunch) Facebook Finds Hack Was Done by Spammers, Not Foreign State (WSJ) Android Creator’s Startup Essential Products Cuts About 30% of Staff (Bloomberg) Inside the $2.6 billion subscription box wars (Fast Company) Beddr’s SleepTuner is a powerful standalone alternative to Apple Watch sleep tracking (9to5Mac) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Google bows to the EU’s demands, the biggest thing to happen to Github since the pull request, video game cheaters are getting sued, and Facebook brings back MTV’s The Real World. Links: Google will start charging Android device makers a fee for using its apps in Europe (The Verge) GitHub launches Actions, its workflow automation tool (Github) Fortnite, GTA V hackers face legal action for online cheating (Ars Technica) It turns out that Facebook could in fact use data collected from its Portal in-home video device to target you with ads (Recode) MTV is bringing back 'The Real World' for Facebook Watch, and will let the audience vote on the direction of the show (Business Insider) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Uber’s targeting a blockbuster IPO valuation, cops told to stop looking at iPhones, the Kindle Paperwhite is ready for the bath, the Pixel reviews are in, and remembering Paul Allen.Sponsors:DatadogHQ.com/RideHomeTiny.website99designs.com/techmeme Links:Uber Proposals Value Company at $120 Billion in a Possible IPO (WSJ)Cops Told ‘Don’t Look’ at New iPhones to Avoid Face ID Lock-Out (Motherboard)The Kindle Paperwhite is ready for the bath (Engadget)Google Pixel 3 review: improving on incredible (Charged)GOOGLE PIXEL 3 AND 3 XL REVIEW: THE BEST CAMERA GETS A BETTER PHONE (The Verge)The Google Pixel 3 XL review (TechCrunch)Google Pixel 3 Review: The Other Way to Make a Killer Phone (Gizmodo)Paul G. Allen, Microsoft’s Co-Founder, Is Dead at 65 (NyTimes) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The future of Photoshop is here today, Palm is back to bring us a tiny phone, Apple makes another acquisition, and why we’re doomed to a future of genetic surveillance. Links: FINALLY: REAL PHOTOSHOP ON THE IPAD (The Verge) Adobe launches new AR and drawing tools (TechCrunch) Adobe launches Premiere Rush, a cross-platform video editor (Venture Beat) Apple acquires music analytics startup Asaii (Axios) THE NEW PALM IS A TINY PHONE TO KEEP YOU AWAY FROM YOUR PHONE (The Verge) GENOME HACKERS SHOW NO ONE’S DNA IS ANONYMOUS ANYMORE (Wired) Blockchain isn't about democracy and decentralisation – it's about greed (The Guardian) Tweetstorm about Google+ from @morganknutson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Facebook announces the results of their investigation into that data breach, the market downturn is biting some tech companies, has Spotify ruined music, and, of course, the Weekend Longreads suggestions. Links: An Update on the Security Issue (Facebook) Facebook rolls out 3D photos that use AI to simulate depth (TechCrunch) Tencent Music Pauses IPO Amid Market Turmoil (WSJ) FAANG stocks have seen $600 billion of market value wiped out — here's how much each one is on sale (Business Insider) Tesla sets deadline on new orders to get delivery and full tax credit by end of the year (Electrek) Who Needs German Engineering? Tesla Outsells Mercedes-Benz For The First Time—And Has a Plan to Pass BMW Too (Fortune) Has 10 years of Spotify ruined music? (The Guardian) The Betterment Weekend Longreads Suggestions: This Is How Amazon Loses (NewCo Shift) The Pentagon’s Push to Program Soldiers’ Brains (The Atlantic) Alexa, Should We Trust You? (The Atlantic) Fear and loathing in venture capital (Max Niederhofer) The First Rule of Microsoft Excel—Don’t Tell Anyone You’re Good at It (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Facebook cracks down again, ahead of the election, Apple make some interesting acquisitions, how many cameras does a smartphone need, and Dieter Rams just wants Silicon Valley to slow down. Links: Facebook purged over 800 accounts and pages pushing political messages for profit (The Washington Post) Apple inks $600M deal to license IP, acquire assets and talent from Dialog to expand chipmaking in Europe (TechCrunch) Apple buys machine learning AR firm specializing in mixed realities (Apple Insider) Samsung’s Galaxy A9 is the first quad camera phone (Engadget) Samsung hopes these four cameras will save its mid-range phone lineup (The Verge) Gartner: Microsoft passes Acer to become top 5 PC vendor in the U.S. (Venture Beat) Apple plans to give away original content for free to device owners as part of new digital TV strategy (CNBC) Coinbase's Active Customers Drop 80% in Crypto Slump, Study Says (Bloomberg) Plan to Fix Journalism With Cryptocurrency Draws Skepticism (WSJ) Dieter Rams wants Silicon Valley to stop (Fast Company) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Windows needed a do-over, Snapchat hopes its Originals will give it one too, Minecraft abandons Apple TV, and Andy Rubin can’t quit smartphones. Links: Microsoft begins re-releasing Windows 10 October update after fixing file deletion bug (The Verge) Snapchat becomes the mobile HBO with 12 daily scripted Original shows (TechCrunch) Snap Is ‘Quickly Running Out of Money,’ Analyst Says (Bloomberg) Google Photos adds automated sharing through ‘Live Albums,’ which can stream to Home Hub (TechCrunch) Apple's dream of making the Apple TV a gaming console just took a major hit (Business Insider) A China Veggie-Selling App May Be Worth $7 billion (Bloomberg) Android Creator Is Building an AI Phone That Texts People for You (Bloomberg) AT&T will launch a Netflix rival next year (CNBC) Where the next 10 million miles will take us (Waymo) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The big Made By Google event, follow up on that Google+ bug, WeChat is willing to debunk rumors for you and Saudi Arabia doubles down on Masa Son. Links: First look at Google’s Pixel 3 and 3 XL (The Verge) Exclusive: iPad Pro Face ID details, 4K HDR video over USB-C, AirPods-like Apple Pencil 2 pairing, more (9to5Mac) Google, Exposures, and Breaches; Was Google Wrong?; The Political Considerations (Stratechery) Google Drops Out of Pentagon's $10 Billion Cloud Competition (Bloomberg) Some advertisers are moving half of their search budget from Google to Amazon, say ad industry sources (CNBC) How China's biggest social network fights fake news (Abacus) Saudi Arabia Doubles Down on SoftBank Bet With Extra $45 Billion (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Google has a data scandal and it's a doozy. Facebook portal is real, a Microsoft streaming gaming service is real, next generation Intel chips are manifest, no one knows what to believe in that blockbuster Bloomberg story, and how the Internet Archive works. Links: Facebook launches Portal auto-zooming video chat screens for $199/$349 (TechCrunch) THE NEW AMAZON ECHO SHOW’S IMPROVED SCREEN AND BETTER SPEAKERS AREN’T ENOUGH (The Verge) Microsoft’s xCloud service streams Xbox games to PCs, consoles, and mobile devices (The Verge) Intel Announces 9th Gen Core CPUs (AnAndTech) Google Exposed User Data, Feared Repercussions of Disclosing to Public (WSJ) Supply Chain Security is the Whole Enchilada, But Who’s Willing to Pay for It? (Krebs on Security) The Internet’s keepers? “Some call us hoarders—I like to say we’re archivists” (Ars Technica) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

He said she said on that Bloomberg Bombshell, Evan Spiegel’s plan for survival, new Macs are un-repairable, why are Apple Watch faces such a mess, and the Weekend Longreads Suggestions. Stories from: @jsnell, @bizcarson Tweets: @karaswisher, @AdamMinter Links: Instagram prototypes handling your location history to Facebook (TechCrunch) Instagram is testing the ability to share your precise location history with Facebook (The Verge) 9 highlights from Snapchat CEO’s 6,000-word leaked memo on survival (TechCrunch) iMac Pro and 2018 MacBook Pro Systems Must Pass Apple Diagnostics to Function After Certain Repairs (MacRumors) Facebook’s Oculus Looking to Invest in Location-Based Virtual Reality (EXCLUSIVE) (Variety) Why are Apple Watch faces such a mess? (Macworld) Norway's petabyte plan: Store everything ever published in a 1,000-year archive (ZDNet) The Betterment Weekend Longreads: The iPhone XS & XS Max Review: Unveiling the Silicon Secrets (AnAndTech) Sex Workers Pioneered the Early Internet—and It Screwed Them Over (Motherboard) Raised by YouTube (The Atlantic) Old Unicorn, New Tricks: Airbnb Has A Sky-High Valuation. Here's Its Audacious Plan To Earn It (Forbes) EA announces ‘FIFA 19’ PS4 esports tournament (Engadget) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Did China pull off a hardware hack to end all hardware hacks, is a new Nintendo Switch coming as soon as next summer, the ThinQ has five cameras on one phone, and Movie Pass? Still alive! Links: The Big Hack: How China Used a Tiny Chip to Infiltrate U.S. Companies (Bloomberg Businessweek) Russia cyber-plots: US, UK and Netherlands allege hacking (BBC News) Nintendo Plans New Version of Switch Next Year (WSJ) LG V40 THINQ REVIEW: ONE PHONE, FIVE CAMERAS (The Verge) Verizon’s Severance Offer Goes to About 44,000 Employees (WSJ) Barnes & Noble names board committee to review possible sale, shares soar (CNBC) MoviePass' new funding means it isn't going anywhere just yet (Engadget) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Highlights from the Microsoft Surface event, Uber launches its scooter play, streaming service fatigue might be pushing consumers back toward piracy, did you get your smartphone alert from the president, and the new app startup from a young entrepreneur by the name of Bill Gates. Links: Microsoft has unveiled the $3,499 Surface Studio 2, its super-powerful and gorgeous new competitor to the Apple iMac (Business Insider) Facebook Hack Puts Thousands of Other Sites at Risk (NYTimes) Facebook Login Update (Facebook Newsroom) Facebook Briefs Lawmakers on Breach in Effort to Guard Against Backlash (WSJ) GM and Honda will team up to build an autonomous car (Quartz) First presidential wireless test alert will come to your phone today (Axios) The Rise of Netflix Competitors Has Pushed Consumers Back Toward Piracy (Motherboard) Recommendations startup Likewise emerges from Bill Gates’ private office, letting friends track and share their favorite things (GeekWire) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Amazon raises its minimum wage, Tesla’s hitting its Model 3 marks, another new California law could change the face of Tech Boards of Directors and Netflix wants us to choose our own adventure. Links: Amazon raises minimum wage to $15 for all US employees (CNBC) The Story of Henry Ford's $5 a Day Wages: It's Not What You Think (Forbes) Tesla delivered over 55,000 Model 3s in Q3 (Road Show/CNET) Three US universities now let students use iPhone and Apple Watch as their campus ID card (9to5Mac) THESE TECH COMPANIES WILL NEED MORE WOMEN ON THEIR BOARDS (Wired) Google's Project Stream lets you play Assassin's Creed Odyssey in Chrome (CNET) Netflix Is Planning a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure ‘Black Mirror’ (Bloomberg) Amazon's IMDb will announce this week a new free video service to compete for TV ad dollars (CNBC) The anti-Netflix: Free, ad-supported video streaming services are growing (Digiday) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

California ready to do battle over net neutrality, Instagram under new management, Elon settles with the SEC, and Tim Berners Lee kinda wants a do-over on the whole World Wide Web thing. Links: The Trump administration is suing California to quash its new net neutrality law (The Washington Post) Justice Department Sues to Stop California Net Neutrality Law (NYTimes) SEC settles charges with Tesla's Elon Musk, will remain as CEO but relinquish chairman role and pay stiff fine (CNBC) Internet, social media use and device ownership in U.S. have plateaued after years of growth (Pew Research Center) (SMART) SPEAKING MY LANGUAGE: DESPITE THEIR VAST CAPABILITIES, SMART SPEAKERS ARE ALL ABOUT THE MUSIC (Nielsen) One Small Step for the Web... (Inrupt Blog) Exclusive: Tim Berners-Lee tells us his radical new plan to upend the World Wide Web (Fast Company) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A new Facebook scandal—but this time it’s different, Slack is preparing for an IPO, an exciting new episode of Today in Elon Musk, and, of course, the weekend longreads suggestions. Links: Slack Actively Preparing for Early 2019 IPO (WSJ) Coinbase now lets users buy 'bundles' (TechCrunch) Compound launches easy way to short cryptocurrencies (TechCrunch) Tesla's Musk pulled the plug on a settlement with the SEC at the last minute (CNBC) The Betterment Weekend Longreads: How Uber is getting flying cars off the ground (CNET) Coinbase Wants To Be Too Big To Fail (Fortune) The Apple Watch – Tipping Point Time for Healthcare (Steve Blank) Meet the Community Keeping Obsolete Supercomputers Alive (Motherboard) The first Android phone 10 years later: An annotated review (CNET) Hacker says he'll livestream deletion of Zuckerberg's Facebook page (Engadget) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Facebook said it doesn’t market certain data; surprise, surprise, researchers prove they do, Amazon doesn’t love unions, is the Oculus Quest VR’s iPhone moment, and do ride sharing companies actually make money? Links: Facebook Is Giving Advertisers Access to Your Shadow Contact Information (Gizmodo) Amazon's Aggressive Anti-Union Tactics Revealed in Leaked 45-Minute Video (Gizmodo) Teen Apple Hacker Avoids Jail in Australia After Serious Attacks (Bloomberg) Payment Startup Stripe Is Now a $20 Billion Company (Bloomberg) Masayoshi Son, SoftBank, and the $100 Billion Blitz on Sand Hill Road (Bloomberg Businessweek) Lyft Shows Financial Improvement Ahead of IPO Filing (The Information) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

More fallout from the Instagram departures and some pretty dirty laundry aired from inside Facebook, Google reverses course on Chrome, Coinbase opens its doors to alts, and maybe I was right about Amazon Homes! Links: Exclusive: WhatsApp Cofounder Brian Acton Gives The Inside Story On #DeleteFacebook And Why He Left $850 Million Behind (Forbes) Facebook’s Messing With Instagram Prompted Co-Founders’ Departure (WSJ) Product updates based on your feedback (The Google Chrome Blog) The Temptation of Apple News (Slate) Coinbase will add cryptocurrencies more rapidly, with ratings and reviews (Yahoo Finance) One third of ICOs launched in the past two years aren’t listed anywhere (TNW) Amazon Comes Up With Another Way to Get Alexa Into Your Home (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Instagram’s founders turn in their two weeks notice, Samsung accuses Apple of stealing, lots of changes coming to Google Search, and a “Netflix for open source.” Links: Why Instagram's founders are resigning: independence from Facebook weakened (TechCrunch) Facebook’s Terrible Year Hits a New Low (Bloomberg Opinion) Qualcomm accuses Apple of stealing chip secrets and giving them to Intel (CNBC) Google CEO Sundar Pichai to Meet With Top GOP Lawmakers (WSJ) Google's new activity cards will save your previous searches (Engadget) 'NETFLIX FOR OPEN SOURCE' WANTS DEVELOPERS TO GET PAID (Wired) macOS 10.14 Mojave: The Ars Technica review (Ars Technica) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Office 2019 is here, SiriusXM acquires Pandora, the Chrome browser login controversy, more missed revenue numbers in digital media and Eric Schmidt says there could someday be the regular internet and a separate, Chinese internet. Links: SiriusXM to buy Pandora in all-stock deal valued at $3.5 billion (CNBC) Why I’m done with Chrome (Matthew Green) Uber drivers and other gig economy workers are earning half what they did five years ago (Recode) Vox Media On Pace to Miss Revenue Target as Digital Advertising Disappoints (WSJ) Amazon: Retailers Gonna Retail (Steven Sinofsky) Former Google CEO predicts the internet will split in two — and one part will be led by China (CNBC) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

More fallout from that monster Alexa event yesterday, Facebook is gonna take another swing at Portal, Instagram wants to cut down on #hashtagoverload, Gmail was too willing to say “I love you,” and the Weekend Longreads Suggestions.Sponsors:Ude.my/techTiny.websiteLinks:AMAZON WANTS ALEXA TO HEAR YOUR WHISPERS AND FRUSTRATION (Wired)Amazon just pulled an Apple on the smart home (Stacey on IOT newsletter)Facebook's 'Portal' Video Chat Device to Be Announced Next Week (Cheddar)Instagram may divide hashtags from captions to end overhashing (TechCrunch)Instagram is testing a native resharing feature for the feed (The Verge)Is This Article Worth Reading? Gmail’s Suggested Reply: ‘Haha, Thanks!’ (WSJ)The Betterment Weekend Longreads:Inside Facebook’s Election ‘War Room’ (NYTimes)Bitcoin Miners Flock to New York’s Remote Corners, but Get Chilly Reception (NYTimes)Living The Stream (ESPN The Magazine)A brief history of the numeric keypad (UX Collective)Inside the Dramatic, Painful--and Hugely Successful--Return of Reddit's Founders (Inc)Buy The History of Reddit Book Here Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Amazon announced Alexa for friggin everything, AmazonGos might soon be friggin everywhere, a life insurer will only sell you a policy if you own a smartwatch, and they’ve finally found Spock’s home planet of Vulcan. Links: Amazon Will Consider Opening Up to 3,000 Cashierless Stores by 2021 (Bloomberg) Strap on the Fitbit: John Hancock to sell only interactive life insurance (Reuters) Life Insurance Offering More Incentive to Live Longer (NYTimes) ESPN's new streaming service passes 1 million paid subscribers in five months (CNBC) Google, Facebook Lead Digital’s March to Half of U.S. Ad Market (Bloomberg) Spock’s planet ‘Vulcan’ found years after Star Trek prediction (SlashGear) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Amazon’s ad business is already huge, there’s a new retro Playstation console, Evernote is in our prayers, HQ is moving beyond trivia with a new game and a roundup of the Apple Watch Series 4 reviews. Links: The ACLU Is Charging Facebook With Gender Discrimination In Its Targeted Ads (Buzzfeed News) Facebook Is Letting Job Advertisers Target Only Men (ProPublica) Amazon becoming 3rd-biggest digital ad platform (Axios) Google Home Mini was the best-selling smart speaker in Q2 (TechCrunch) Sony is launching a PlayStation Classic console this December loaded with 20 games (The Verge) Evernote just slashed 54 jobs, or 15 percent of its workforce HQ expands beyond trivia with new ‘Wheel of Fortune’-type game (Digiday) Google Maps for CarPlay in iOS 12 is now available (9to5Mac) iOS 12.1 references ‘iPad2018Fall’, all but confirming new iPad Pro debut next month (9to5Mac) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A reported criminal investigation around Elon Musk’s tweets, Twitter brings back the chronological feed, Alexa for microwaves, and a wrap up of the iPhone XS and XS Max reviews. Links:Tesla Is Facing U.S. Criminal Probe Over Elon Musk Statements (Bloomberg)The Tweet that got Twitter to bring back the chrono-feed (@EmmaKinema)Amazon plans to release at least 8 new Alexa-powered devices, including a microwave, an amplifier, and an in-car gadget (CNBC)Trump Hits China With Tariffs on $200 Billion in Goods, Escalating Trade War (NYTimes)APPLE IPHONE XS AND XS MAX REVIEW: SMOOTHED OUT (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Another Billionaire bails out a major media brand, social network Path is no more, Amazon employees are allegedly taking bribes, Linus Torvalds apologizes for being a jerk, and Steve Jobs had a weird notion about what actually constitutes pizza. Stories from: @cgartenberg Tweets: @laura_nelson, @BuzzFeedBen Links:Are there any other billionaires out there to buy Fortune or Sports Illustrated? (Recode)Mobile social network Path, once a challenger to Facebook, is closing down (TechCrunch)Here are over 150 new features and changes in iOS 12 for iPhone and iPad (Apple Insider)Amazon Investigates Employees Leaking Data for Bribes (WSJ)Amazon Storefronts is a new retail hub exclusively for US small businesses (The Verge)Linus Torvalds apologizes for years of being a jerk, takes time off to learn empathy (Ars Technica)AN ORAL HISTORY OF APPLE'S INFINITE LOOP (Wired) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Literally, what the f*** is up with Tesla? With the Rob Maurer of the Tesla Daily podcast. Subscribe! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

More signs of drama inside Google, how Apple cleared the new Apple Watches through the FDA, how the Weather Channel made that insane flooding video, and the weekend longreads suggestions. Links:Google Employees Are Quitting Over The Company’s Secretive China Search Project (Buzzfeed News)Google’s internal political battles keep spilling out into the public (The Verge)The new heart-monitoring capabilities on the Apple Watch aren’t all that impressive (Quartz)iPhone XS Max and Apple Watch Series 4 shipping dates now slipping into October (9to5Mac)Apple Is Deleting Bought Films From iTunes Accounts - And Don't Expect A Refund (Forbes)Yes, You Can Name A Website “F***nazis.us”HOW THE WEATHER CHANNEL MADE THAT INSANE STORM SURGE ANIMATION (Wired) The Betterment Weekend Longreads:Android 9 Pie, thoroughly reviewed (Ars Technica)Why a Leading Venture Capitalist Is Betting on a Decentralized Internet (Breaker)Olaf Carlson-Wee Rode the Bitcoin Boom to Silicon Valley Riches. Can He Survive the Crash? (WSJ)Memo to the Silicon Valley boys’ club: Arlan Hamilton has no time for your BS (Fast Company)Driverless Hype Collides With Merciless Reality (WSJ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The fallout from the Apple event, Google kills another beloved product, the Nintendo Switch online service comes online, and where in the World is Larry Page? Links:The iPhone Franchise (Stratechery)Making sense of the most confusing new iPhone lineup ever (Fast Company)Inbox, Google’s playground for email innovation, is going bye-bye (Fact Company)The Nintendo Switch online service is launching on September 18th (The Verge)How Procore Built The Cloud’s Hottest Unicorn By Bringing Software To Low-Tech Construction Sites (Forbes)Where in the World Is Larry Page? (Bloomberg Businessweek) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What else? The iPhone event. Also, the EU strikes again, the T-Mobile/Sprint merger is on “pause” and "Gawker" is coming back. Links:EU approves controversial Copyright Directive, including internet ‘link tax’ and ‘upload filter’ (The Verge)European Parliament Passes Copyright Directive Giving Artists Greater Share of Revenue (Variety)FCC says it needs more time to review Sprint-T-Mobile deal (CNBC)Verizon to begin 5G home broadband service sign-ups on Thursday (Axios)Gawker Set to Relaunch Under New Owner Bryan Goldberg (EXCLUSIVE) (Variety) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ICOs now officially securities, some steps backward in the self-driving car space, parsing the Zuckerberg New Yorker profile, and did Facebook disrespect the memory of Burt Reynolds? Stories from: @eosnos Tweets: @ezraklein, @BrendanNyhan Links:US Judge Rules ICO Frauds Fall Under Securities Law (CoinDesk)Renesas in $6.7 billion deal for IDT to boost chips for self-driving cars (Reuters)GM's Plan to Test Autonomous Cars in New York City Seems to Have Gone up in Smoke (Jalopnik)How to prepare your iPhone for a trade-in program (The Verge)Can Mark Zuckerberg Fix Facebook Before It Breaks Democracy? (The New Yorker)Facebook Apologizes For Taking Down Your Horny Burt Reynolds Posts (Vulture) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Some juicy new Apple rumors for Wednesday, the end of the Jack Ma era is nigh upon us, there were some naughty apps in the Mac App Store and why following people whose politics you disagree with might not lead to peace in our time. Links:Kuo: USB-C on 2018 iPad Pro, Touch ID on 2018 MacBook, EKG and Ceramic Backs on All Apple Watch Series 4 Models, More (MacRumors)Snap just lost its chief strategy officer (Fast Company)Alibaba announces Jack Ma succession plan: CEO Daniel Zhang to take over as chairman in a year (CNBC)Additional Mac App Store apps caught stealing and uploading browser history (9to5Mac)No. 1 paid utility in Mac App Store steals browser history, sends it to Chinese server (9to5Mac)Twitter’s Flawed Solution to Political Polarization (NYTimes Opinion)Can Mark Zuckerberg Fix Facebook Before It Breaks Democracy? (The New Yorker) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tim Armstrong might be on his way out of Oath, Alex Jones is permanently off of Twitter, a Cambridge Analytica figure is officially no longer a Facebook employee, Elon Musk smokes a blunt and the weekend longreads suggestions! Links:Verizon’s Internet Boss Tim Armstrong in Talks to Leave (WSJ)Tim Armstrong is headed out of Verizon. What happens to the $9 billion content company he is leaving behind? (Recode)Charlie Warzel Twitter ThreadHOW THAT MAGICAL JACK DORSEY–ALEX JONES PHOTO HAPPENED (Wired)A Facebook scientist tied to Cambridge Analytica has quietly left Facebook (Fast Company)Weed, whiskey, Tesla and a flamethrower: Elon Musk meets Joe Rogan (CNN Tech)Tesla Erupts in Chaos After Senior Execs Leave, Musk Tokes Up (Bloomberg) The Betterment Weekend Longreads:Inside the World of Eddy Cue, Apple’s Services Chief (The Information)Bezos Unbound: Exclusive Interview With The Amazon Founder On What He Plans To Conquer Next (Forbes)The Super Rich of Silicon Valley Have a Doomsday Escape Plan (Bloomberg)What went wrong at Social Capital (Axios)How Android Pie’s Adaptive Battery and Adaptive Brightness work (Venture Beat)The man who won the lottery 14 times (The Hustle) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 2014 Sony hacker gets charged, Lyft beats Uber to the scooter punch, why Roblox is the biggest thing since Minecraft, Spotify plays chicken with the music industry, and let’s play another round of Apple event rumor bingo. Links:U.S. charges North Korean operative in conspiracy to hack Sony Pictures, banks (The Washington Post)Lyft rolls out its first electric scooters in Denver (The Verge)You Will Soon Be Able to Control Your Xbox With Alexa and Cortana (Thurrott)Walmart partners with delivery logistics platform Bringg on last-mile grocery delivery (TechCrunch)The new Roomba could be the end of vacuuming (Quartz)Kids' gaming platform Roblox raises $150M (TechCrunch)The video game turning teens into millionaires has raised a whopping $150 million, making it a $2.5 billion company (Business Insider)A New Spotify Initiative Makes the Big Record Labels Nervous (NYTimes)The Tension Is Building Between Spotify and the Music Industry (Bloomberg)‘iPhone Xs Max’ likely name for 6.5-inch OLED flagship, sources say (9to5Mac) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tech CEOs hauled before Congress again, Theranos is no more, Google mulls big changes to URL’s and maybe the whole the-teens-are-abandoning-Facebook is a real thing after all? Links:Video of the Hearings (The US Senate)Facebook and Twitter testified before Congress. Conservative conspiracy theorists lurked behind them. (The Washington Post)Blood-Testing Firm Theranos to Dissolve (WSJ)HOW GOOGLE CHROME SPENT A DECADE MAKING THE WEB MORE SECURE (Wired)GOOGLE WANTS TO KILL THE URL (Wired)Americans are changing their relationship with Facebook (PEW Research)Instagram is building a standalone app for shopping (The Verge)Snap launches new styles of Spectacles that look more like traditional sunglasses (The Verge)Vimeo pivots business from media to tech (Axios)Vimeo launches stock video marketplace starting at $79 per clip (Venture Beat) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Amazon hits a trillion, the EU is giving Netflix quotas, gaming out various Apple rumors ahead of next week’s event and the robots are coming to the drive through window. LinksAmazon falls off $1 trillion market cap, leaving Apple the only public US company above the benchmark (Bloomberg)Local Product Quotas for Netflix, Amazon to Become Law, EU Official Says (EXCLUSIVE) (Variety)Ethereum in BigQuery: a Public Dataset for smart contract analytics (Google Cloud)Major cryptocurrency exchange delists Bitcoin Gold following $18M hack (TNW)2018 iPad Pro redesign is both brilliant and stupid (Cult of Mac)Samsung teases foldable smartphone launch for later this year (The Verge)China's Silicon Valley Threatens to Swallow Up Hong Kong (Bloomberg)Clinc is building a voice AI system to replace humans in drive-through restaurants (TechCrunch) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How those iPhone leaks happened (maybe), the scooter permits happened and some big names got snubbed, Google’s secret deal with MasterCard, and the weekend long reads suggestions. Links:Exclusive: This is ‘iPhone XS’ — design, larger version, and gold colors confirmed (9to5Mac)Exclusive: Apple Watch Series 4 revealed — massive display, dense watch face, more (9to5Mac)Huawei’s AI Cube is a 4G router and Alexa speaker, not a cube (The Verge)Huawei's Google Home clone has Alexa inside (Engadget)Scooters will return to San Francisco, but Bird and Lime aren’t invited (The Verge)Mozilla announces Firefox will block trackers by default (Venture Beat)Google and Mastercard Cut a Secret Ad Deal to Track Retail Sales (Bloomberg) The Betterment Weekend Longreads:Franken-algorithms: the deadly consequences of unpredictable code (The Guardian)Logged off: meet the teens who refuse to use social media (The Guardian)How Big Tech Swallowed Seattle (Bloomberg Businessweek)The Mystery of People Who Speak Dozens of Languages (The New Yorker) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An Apple acquisition suggests they’re serious about AR, Uber is serious about escooters, Google lets Kubernetes leave the nest, your IP address is not enough to finger you for a crime, and a fully functional Bugatti made out of Legos. Links:Apple buys startup focused on lenses for AR glasses (Reuters)Apple’s AR lenses purchase also sees future mobile storage (ComputerWorld)Google takes a step back from running the Kubernetes development infrastructure (TechCrunch)Uber Is Building Its Own Scooter to Compete in Frenzy (Bloomberg)Microsoft Requires Paid Parental Leave for Subcontractors (Bloomberg)Important Appeals Court Ruling States Clearly That Merely Having An IP Address Is Insufficient For Infringement Claims (TechDirt)FIRST EVER LIFE-SIZE AND DRIVABLE LEGO® TECHNIC BUGATTI CHIRON IS A PIONEERING PIECE OF ENGINEERING AND DESIGN (Lego) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A bunch of new laptops from Dell, Amazon might jump into the free tv game, Google updates Wear OS, and why the world’s oldest blockchain has been hiding in plain site since 1995. Links:Dell tempts Pixelbook lovers with premium $599 Inspiron Chromebook 14 (ArsTechnica)Dell shows its fall lineup of Alexa-ready Inspiron, XPS, and Vostro laptops and 2-in-1s (VentureBeat)Amazon Plans New Video App, Latest Step Into TV Ad Market (The Information)Google is revamping the Wear OS smartwatch user interface (TheVerge)The rise of giant consumer startups that said no to investor money (Recode)'World Computer' Project Dfinity Raises $102 Million (Fortune)The rise of crypto in higher education (Coinbase Reports)The Hot New Subject on Campus? It's Blockchain (Fortune)The World’s Oldest Blockchain Has Been Hiding in the New York Times Since 1995 (Motherboard) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Trump accuses Google of rigged search results, Instagram updates its identity systems, Yahoo scans your mail for marketing purposes, BuzzFeed tests memberships and the rarest Apple device in the world comes to auction. Links:You can now apply to be verified in Instagram (The Verge)Yahoo, Bucking Industry, Scans Emails for Data to Sell Advertisers (WSJ)Toyota Investing $500 Million in Uber in Driverless-Car Pact (WSJ)AutoX is using its self-driving vehicles to deliver groceries (TechCrunch)BuzzFeed News quietly tests a membership program (Digiday)Buzzfeed, With Nearly $500M In Funding, Asks For Contributions (Crunchbase News)How ‘Grand Theft Auto’ Is Changing the Way the World Experiences Music (Rolling Stone)First Apple Computer Goes Up For Auction, Expected to Fetch More Than $300,000 (Paleofuture) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The three new iPhones Mark Gurman says are coming our way, Warren Buffet invests in an Indian tech company, Palmer Luckey pans Magic Leap and why Uber thinks e-scooters are cool. Links:Apple to Embrace iPhone X Design With New Colors, Bigger Screens (Bloomberg)Berkshire Hathaway in talks for a stake in Paytm (Economic Times)Microsoft Announces Xbox All Access (Thurrott.com)Public Bravado, Private Doubts: Inside the Unraveling of Elon Musk’s Tesla Buyout (WSJ)Why Elon Musk Reversed Course on Taking Tesla Private (NYTimes)Epic's first Fortnite Installer allowed hackers to download and install anything on your Android phone silently (Android Central)Magic Leap is a Tragic Heap (PalmerLuckey.com)Uber plans shift from cars to bikes for shorter trips (The Financial Times) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tech’s version of the five families met today to get on the same page over election security, 23andMe shuts down its API just to be safe, robot puppies, and the weekend longreads suggestions. Links:Google finds evidence of attack linked to Iran state media (Axios)Tech Companies Are Gathering For A Secret Meeting To Prepare A 2018 Election Strategy (Buzzfeed News)Microsoft Hit With U.S. Bribery Probe Over Deals in Hungary (WSJ)23andMe will no longer let app developers read your DNA data (CNBC)The Impossible Job: Inside Facebook’s Struggle to Moderate Two Billion People (Motherboard) The Betterment Weekend Longreads Suggestions:Late to the Driverless Revolution (WSJ)Posting Instagram Sponsored Content Is the New Summer Job (The Atlantic)THE UNTOLD STORY OF NOTPETYA, THE MOST DEVASTATING CYBERATTACK IN HISTORY (Wired)The Vanishing Idealism of Burning Man (The New Republic)Welcome to the Age of Privacy Nihilism (The Atlantic)A monstrous primer on the works of H.P. Lovecraft (Polygon) Bonus Link!Sony Aibo hands-on: An adorable robo-pup that needs training (Engadget) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Australia bans Chinese telecoms equipment, Microsoft might offer an Xbox subscription that includes the whole console, new DJI drones, Alex Stamos on hacking the 2018 election and the backlash against the “app store tax.” Links:Australia Bars China’s Huawei From Building 5G Wireless Network (NYTimes)'Xbox All Access' looks like a new subscription service with Xbox Live, Game Pass, and a console (Windows Central)DJI Mavic 2 Pro, Mavic 2 Zoom add Hasselblad quality and optical zoom to folding drones (CNET)How the U.S. Has Failed to Protect the 2018 Election--and Four Ways to Protect 2020 (Lawfare)Apple and Google Face Growing Revolt Over App Store ‘Tax’ (Bloomberg)The 30% Tax (Fred Wilson/AVC) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The fake Russians are back and they’ve brought some fake Iranians with them, Verizon throttles firefighters, Google wants to tell you something good, and day two of the Y Combinator demo days. Links:Sprawling Iranian influence operation globalizes tech’s war on disinformation (The Washington Post)Verizon throttled fire department’s “unlimited” data during Calif. wildfire (Ars Technica)Google Assistant's latest feature delivers just the 'good news' (TechCrunch)Walmart takes another jab at Amazon as it begins selling e-books for first time (USA Today)How Teens and Parents Navigate Screen Time and Device Distractions (Pew Research Center)‘Bitcoin Jesus’ Is Having a Hard Time Winning Over True Believers (Bloomberg)All 59 startups that launched today at Y Combinator’s S18 Demo Day 2 (TechCrunch) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Microsoft uncovers more Russian political hacking, a possible MacBook Air successor, Netflix “tests” bypassing the App Store, and are you paying for Amazon’s electricity bill? Links:New Russian Hacking Targeted Republican Groups, Microsoft Says (NYTimes)Apple Is Planning a New Low-Cost MacBook, Pro-Focused Mac Mini (Bloomberg)Netflix Tests Promotional Videos but Users See ‘Commercials’ (NYTimes)Netflix tests a bypass of iTunes billing in 33 markets (TechCrunch)Facebook is rating the trustworthiness of its users on a scale from zero to 1 (The Washington Post)Amazon Isn’t Paying Its Electric Bills. You Might Be (Bloomberg Businessweek)Here are the 63 startups that launched today at Y Combinator’s S18 Demo Day 1 (TechCrunch) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Fitbit doubles down on fitness trackers, new EU regulations might be coming for web platforms, Karma is a startup selling excess food, Trip Advisor has its own fake news problem, and are women the most valuable mobile gaming consumers? Links:With Charge 3, Fitbit blurs the smartwatch line (TechCrunch)EU Weighs Regulations For Terrorist Content (Financial Times)‘Minecraft: Education Edition’ comes to iPad, as education features expand to mainstream version of game (GeekWire)Karma raises $12 million for marketplace that helps restaurants and supermarkets reduce food waste (Venture Beat)Farfetch files for IPO to trade on NYSE as FTCH; has nearly 1M active users of its luxury goods marketplace (TechCrunch)Arm Unveils Client CPU Performance Roadmap Through 2020 - Taking Intel Head On (AnAndTech)How TripAdvisor changed travel (The Guardian)Women are 79 percent more likely to spend money on mobile games (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A Google smart speaker with a screen, the crypto mining fad is fading, Silicon Valley has lost a piece of its history, the secret Netflix categories and the weekend longreads suggestions. Links:Google to debut display-equipped AI speaker before holidays (Nikkei Asian Review)APNewsBreak: Google clarifies location-tracking policy (The Associated Press)Crypto crash: Despite a strong quarter, Nvidia shares fall on disappointing forecast (SiliconAngle)Wish, an Internet Dollar Store, Struggles to Keep Customers (The Information)Silicon Valley is dismantling a priceless piece of its history (Fast Company)The Netflix ID Bible – Every Category on Netflix (What's on Netflix) The Betterment Weekend Longreads:VIRGIN GALACTIC’S ROCKET MAN (The New Yorker)Inside Evernote’s brain (Fast Company)LET’S ALL GO BACK TO TUMBLR (The Outline)Why Can’t Europe Do Tech? (Bloomberg Businessweek)To Get Ready for Robot Driving, Some Want to Reprogram Pedestrians (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Amazon might buy a chain of movie theaters, why the Saudis invest the way they do, Twitter pisses everyone off because… what else is new? And reviews of the Note 9 and Android Pie are in. Links:Amazon in Running to Acquire Landmark Movie Chain (Bloomberg)Saudi Arabia Goes High-Tech in Approach to Investing (WSJ)Twitter company email addresses why it’s #BreakingMyTwitter (TechCrunch)Samsung Galaxy Note 9 review: A better Note for most of us (Engadget)You Can Really Feel the Samsung Note 9's $1000 Price Tag (Gizmodo)Samsung Galaxy Note 9 review: Sleek and new, but too much déjà vu (BGR)ANDROID 9 PIE REVIEW: THE PREDICTIVE OS (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices