General
Uber proposes policy that would pay drivers a minimum wage of $21 per hour
Megan Rose Dickey, TechCrunch
On the heels of a driver-led protest outside Uber’s San Francisco headquarters, where drivers showed their support for gig worker protections legislation (via Assembly Bill 5) and demanded a union, Uber is circulating a petition urging people to “protect ridesharing in California.” In the petition, Uber advocates for a policy that would offer drivers a minimum of $21 per hour, paid time off, sick leave and compensation if they are injured while driving, as well as a collective voice and “the ability to influence decisions about their work.”
Google to shift Pixel smartphone production from China to Vietnam
Cheng Ting-Fang and Lauly Li, Nikkei Asian Review
Google is moving aggressively to shift production of its Pixel smartphone from China to Vietnam as it seeks to build a low-cost supply chain in Southeast Asia that will serve as a springboard for its growing hardware ambitions. Working with a partner, Google started work this summer to convert an old Nokia factory in the northern Vietnamese province of Bac Ninh to handle production of Pixel phones, two people familiar with the company’s plans said.
The world’s biggest women’s tech conference just dropped Palantir as a sponsor
Shirin Ghaffary, Recode
The world’s largest conference for women in technology, the Grace Hopper Celebration, is dropping Palantir as a sponsor due to concerns over its work for US Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE). ICE’s role in separating families at the border, detaining children in cages, and deporting people seeking refuge back to dangerous places has raised deep concerns with humanitarians, politicians, and the general public.
Former Google employee details affair with company’s top lawyer, alleging he neglected their child
Lauren Feiner, CNBC
A former employee in Google’s legal department released new details and allegations Wednesday related to her relationship with her former boss and current Alphabet Chief Legal Officer David Drummond.
Elon Musk: Computers will surpass us ‘in every single way’
Jordan Novet, CNBC
Tesla CEO Elon Musk on Wednesday said that computers are getting smarter than humans in more and more spheres and that the trend will continue. “We will be far, far surpassed in every single way. I guarantee it,” Musk said to Jack Ma, chairman of Alibaba, at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai.
A Conservative Senator’s Crusade Against Big Tech
Gilad Edelman, The Washington Post
President Trump’s social media summit in July featured pretty much what you’d expect: improbable anecdotes, boasts about the economy, a discourse on the failed Arnold Schwarzenegger “Apprentice” reboot.
Going to Burning Man—and Expensing It
Sarah McBride, Bloomberg
When heading to Burning Man, the nine-day bacchanal-cum-art installation in the Nevada desert, people tend to bring along their friends, lovers or drinking buddies. Others go with their coworkers—and they expense it.
U.S. Stock Futures Advance on China Trade Optimism: Markets Wrap
Yakob Peterseil, Bloomberg
U.S. equity futures climbed with European stocks while Asian shares pared declines after China indicated it wouldn’t immediately retaliate against the latest American tariff increase. Treasuries edged down, while a dollar gauge held near a nine-month high.
Intellectual Property and Antitrust
Aggressive Amazon tactic pushes you to consider its own brand before you click ‘buy’
Jay Greene, The Washington Post
Amazon has introduced a feature that pitches its own private-label brands right before customers add rival products to their shopping carts, illustrating the e-commerce giant’s power on the country’s dominant online retail site. In dozens of product searches by The Washington Post, offers for a “Similar item to consider” featuring Amazon brands appeared just above the spot where shoppers click to add an item to their cart.
Ticketmaster and Live Nation fees draw ire of Senate Democrats
Brian Fung, CNN
Two Democratic senators are calling for a federal antitrust investigation of Live Nation and its online concert ticket platform, Ticketmaster, in light of what they say are “nefarious practices” and “sky-high fees” levied on consumers. Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a Democratic presidential contender, and Connecticut Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal sent a letter to the Justice Department that they have “serious concerns” about the online ticketing industry.
Steve Wozniak Says Big Tech Companies Like Apple Should Be Broken Up
Matt Novak, Gizmodo
Steve Wozniak has always been a straight-shooter who speaks his mind. And the Apple cofounder is not shying away from some bold statements this week, telling Bloomberg News that he thinks the Big Tech companies should be broken up. And that includes Apple.
Telecom, Wireless and TV
FCC dismisses Warren’s attacks as ‘hot air’
Harper Neidig, The Hill
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) dismissed Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s (D-Mass.) criticism of the agency’s chairman as “hot air,” after the Democratic presidential candidate accused him of advancing the interests of the telecom industry.
Sprint delivers 5G coverage in NYC, despite delayed rollout
Bevin Fletcher, FierceWireless
As Sprint launched commercial mobile 5G service in New York City on Tuesday, executives indicated they weren’t concerned about the slightly delayed rollout that had previously been expected by mid-2019. Sprint CEO Michel Combes, speaking in NY at a 5G launch event today, said he’s “very proud” with what the team has accomplished, noting the carrier has the biggest 5G footprint among all of its competitors.
FCC’s Pai Names New Chief Economist
John Eggerton, Broadcasting & Cable
FCC chair Ajit Pai has named Jeffrey Prince the commission’s chief economist, succeeding Babette Boliek. Prince is currently the professor of business, economics and public policy at Indiana University.
Wi-Fi 6 Will Be Here Soon. What Is It?
Lauren Goode, Wired
In January of this year, at the annual multithousand-square-foot madhouse of consumer electronics in Las Vegas, manufacturers started slipping a new claim into their spec sheets: Supports Wi-Fi 6. New laptops and routers from HP, Dell, Asus—they would all support this new standard.
Mobile Technology and Social Media
Pinterest makes aggressive new move in fight against vaccine misinformation
Julia Carrie Wong, The Guardian
When Pinterest realized in 2018 that the search results for many health-related terms – such as “vaccines” or “cancer cure” – were polluted with non-scientific misinformation, the visual social media site took a radical step: it broke the search function for those terms. “If you’re looking for medical advice, please contact a healthcare provider,” a message on the otherwise blank page read.
Three Prominent Video Game Developers Accused of Sexual Assault in One Day
Lauren Kaori Gurley, Motherboard
In a single day this week, three prominent men in the video game development industry were independently accused of sexual assault. On Monday, Nathalie Lawhead, an independent video game designer from California, published a 6,800 word blog post.
These “Canadian” Websites and Facebook Pages Are Actually Run From Overseas
Craig Silverman and Jane Lytvynenko, BuzzFeed News
One of the top science articles promoted by Google News to Canadians last Sunday was awkwardly headlined “Are we Ready for Defending Earth from a Killer Asteroid?” The story was published by Advocator.ca, a website that says it “provides news on issues for affecting minorities in Canada.”
On Instagram, ‘Unlink Account’ Won’t Unlink You From Facebook
Paris Martineau, Wired
The settings on Instagram include a page devoted to the “Linked Accounts” feature. As you might expect, it displays … your linked accounts. Users have the option to connect to Twitter, Tumblr, and, of course, Instagram’s parent company, Facebook, among others.
Inside the Most Ambitious Push Yet to Make iPhones Outside China
Saritha Rai, Bloomberg
On a steamy summer morning, dozens of buses pull up outside a cluster of low-slung, blue buildings in the south Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Women dressed in colorful salwar kameezes disembark, their dupatta body scarves billowing as they make their way past hibiscus bushes and posters proclaiming, “Our aim, no accident.”
Cybersecurity and Privacy
Maryland was never in play in 2016. The Russians targeted it anyway.
Dana Priest et al., The Washington Post
Russia’s Twitter campaign to influence the 2016 presidential election in Maryland began in June 2015, 17 months before Election Day, when the St. Petersburg-based Internet Research Agency opened an account it called @BaltimoreOnline and began tweeting about local news events.
Federal grand jury indicts Paige Thompson on two counts related to the Capital One data breach
Catherine Shu, TechCrunch
The Department of Justice said today that a federal grand jury has indicted software engineer Paige Thompson on two counts related to the Capital One data breach that affected over 100 million customers. The charges in the indictment carry penalties of up to 25 years in prison.
American Airlines has launched facial recognition at the boarding gate, part of a trend sweeping US airports
Sinéad Baker, Business Insider
American Airlines has started using facial recognition technology on passengers at boarding gates, part of a growing industry trend that airlines and airports say will make travelling faster and more secure.
Opinions, Editorials and Perspectives
Big Tech’s ‘Innovations’ That Aren’t
Josh Hawley, The Wall Street Journal
Men landed on the moon 50 years ago, a tremendous feat of American creativity, courage and, not least, technology. The tech discoveries made in the space race powered innovation for decades. But I wonder, 50 years on, what the tech industry is giving America today.
Social Media Surveillance Alone Won’t Prevent Hate-Fueled Mass Shootings
April Glaser, Slate
Since the bloody early August weekend in which shooters killed 31 people in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, there have been more than 20 arrests around the country that involved threats of violence on social media. As with the alleged El Paso shooter, some of their posts apparently targeted Walmarts or expressed racist ideas, or they were found to possess white supremacist or neo-Nazi paraphernalia.
US Space Command: A vision for the final frontier
Peter Garretson, The Hill
Tomorrow, the Trump administration will formally inaugurate the newest U.S. Combatant Command, U.S. Space Command. The occasion is a momentous one, because it marks the first, and long overdue, step toward a serious space policy on the part of the United States.
Research Reports
Most U.S. teens who use cellphones do it to pass time, connect with others, learn new things
Katherine Schaeffer, Pew Research Center
Nearly all U.S. teens (95%) say they have access to a smartphone – and 45% say they are “almost constantly” on the internet. That amount of screen time has raised concerns from parents, educators and policymakers across the country, and even many teens worry they use their phone too much.
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