3 kids. 2 paychecks. No home. South of San Francisco, in a fertile corner of California that feeds much of the country, working families are sleeping in shelters and parking lots. Frankie’s morning started before the sun came up, as the steadily increasing volume of his parents’ phone alarm, coming from somewhere near the dashboard, jolted … Continue reading 3 kids. 2 paychecks. No home.
Author: Eric
Cryptoqueen: How this woman scammed the world, then vanished
Ruja Ignatova called herself the Cryptoqueen. She told people she had invented a cryptocurrency to rival Bitcoin, and persuaded them to invest billions. Then, two years ago, she disappeared. Jamie Bartlett spent months investigating how she did it for the Missing Cryptoqueen podcast, and trying to figure out where she's hiding. In early June 2016 … Continue reading Cryptoqueen: How this woman scammed the world, then vanished
Why office noise bothers some people more than others
No one likes an office whistler or pen clicker – but for some people, these noises aren’t just a nuisance, they’re a full-blown aural assault. Why? In 2016, the first scientists settled themselves in the Francis Crick Institute in London, a biomedical research facility that cost about £650m ($837m) to build. It took years to … Continue reading Why office noise bothers some people more than others
Sonos acquires voice assistant startup Snips, potentially to build out on-device voice control
Sonos revealed during its quarterly earnings report that it has acquired voice assistant startup Snips in a $37 million cash deal, Variety reported on Wednesday. Snips, which had been developing dedicated smart device assistants that can operate primarily locally, instead of relying on consistently round-tripping voice data to the cloud, could help Sonos set up … Continue reading Sonos acquires voice assistant startup Snips, potentially to build out on-device voice control
PayPal to acquire shopping and rewards platform Honey for $4B
PayPal announced today it has agreed to acquire Honey Science Corporation, the makers of a deal-finding browser add-on and mobile application, for $4 billion, mostly cash. The acquisition, which is PayPal’s largest to date, will give the payments giant a foothold earlier in the customer’s shopping journey. Instead of only competing on the checkout page … Continue reading PayPal to acquire shopping and rewards platform Honey for $4B
The Unparalleled Genius of John von Neumann
“Most mathematicians prove what they can, von Neumann proves what he wants” It is indeed supremely difficult to effectively refute the claim that John von Neumann is likely the most intelligent person who has ever lived. By the time of his death in 1957 at the modest age of 53, the Hungarian polymath had not … Continue reading The Unparalleled Genius of John von Neumann
Three of Apple and Google’s former star chip designers launch NUVIA with $53M in series A funding
Silicon is apparently the new gold these days, or so VCs hope. What was once a no-go zone for venture investors, who feared the long development lead times and high technical risk required for new entrants in the semiconductor field, has now turned into one of the hottest investment areas for enterprise and data VCs. … Continue reading Three of Apple and Google’s former star chip designers launch NUVIA with $53M in series A funding
WeWork Lessons for Startups
When the WeWork IPO went belly up, its primary investor, juggernaut SoftBank Group of Japan, through its Vision Fund, lost a staggering $4.5 billion. WeWork’s spectacular debacle is widely viewed as symptomatic of today’s iteration of irrational exuberance that plumps up “unicorns” — startups valued at $1 billion or more — without just cause. SoftBank’s … Continue reading WeWork Lessons for Startups
Change of Google leadership team in Asia
There’s a changing of the guard within Google’s Asia Pacific business. In recent weeks, personnel changes within two of its most important roles show the search giant is entering a new era of management for its fast-growing business across the continent. Scott Beaumont, a British executive who previously ran Google in China and Korea, stepped … Continue reading Change of Google leadership team in Asia
Google hires former Disney and Star executive to head its India business
Google said on Friday it has appointed Sanjay Gupta, a former top executive with Disney India and Star, as the manager and vice president of sales and operations for its India business. Gupta will be replacing Rajan Anandan, who left the company to serve VC fund Sequoia Capital India as a managing director in April … Continue reading Google hires former Disney and Star executive to head its India business
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