Author: Tech Support

    • Tech companies funding journalism projects deepens their codependence and implies the media is the exception that should be protected from tech's disruption (James Ball/Columbia Journalism Review)

    James Ball / Columbia Journalism Review: Tech companies funding journalism projects deepens their codependence and implies the media is the exception that should be protected from tech’s disruption  —  Yesterday, Facebook announced it would spend $300 million over three years on journalistic content, partnerships, and programs. Tech companies funding journalism projects deepens their codependence and

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    • Google Maps rolls out ability to see user-reported speed traps via small camera icons, in North America, UK, Australia, Russia, Brazil, India, and Indonesia (Matt Binder/Mashable)

    Matt Binder / Mashable: Google Maps rolls out ability to see user-reported speed traps via small camera icons, in North America, UK, Australia, Russia, Brazil, India, and Indonesia  —  Drivers will soon have an extra set of eyes on the road, courtesy of Google.  —  Google’s navigation app, Google Maps … Google Maps rolls out

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    Always Have A Square to Spare

    Some aspects of humanity affect all of us at some point in our lives. Whether it’s getting caught in the rain without an umbrella, getting a flat tire on the way to work, or upgrading a Linux package which somehow breaks the entire installation, some experiences are truly universal. Among these is pulling a few

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    • Japanese hotel, trying to replace all of its staff with robots, ended up creating more work for staff and frustrated guests as robots didn't perform as expected (Wall Street Journal)

    Wall Street Journal: Japanese hotel, trying to replace all of its staff with robots, ended up creating more work for staff and frustrated guests as robots didn’t perform as expected  —  The robot revolution will have to wait at the Henn na Hotel in Japan, which is laying off low-performing droids Japanese hotel, trying to

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    • Strategy Robot, founded by the creators of an AI bot that beat four top professional Texas Hold 'Em players, signs a $10M two-year contract with the US Army (Tom Simonite/Wired)

    Tom Simonite / Wired: Strategy Robot, founded by the creators of an AI bot that beat four top professional Texas Hold ‘Em players, signs a $10M two-year contract with the US Army  —  IN 2017, A poker bot called Libratus made headlines when it roundly defeated four top human players at no-limit Texas Hold ‘Em.

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    • Voicebot survey estimates that about 77M US adults use voice assistants in their cars at least monthly, compared with 45.7M using them on smart speakers (Rani Molla/Recode)

    Rani Molla / Recode: Voicebot survey estimates that about 77M US adults use voice assistants in their cars at least monthly, compared with 45.7M using them on smart speakers  —  Voice assistants are more habit-forming in cars than on smartphones.  —  As smart speakers take off in the home … Voicebot survey estimates that about

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    • DaDa, a Chinese online tutoring service that helps children aged 4 to 16 learn English from native speakers, raises $255M Series D led by Warburg Pincus (Quynh Nguyen/DealStreetAsia)

    Quynh Nguyen / DealStreetAsia: DaDa, a Chinese online tutoring service that helps children aged 4 to 16 learn English from native speakers, raises $255M Series D led by Warburg Pincus  —  Global private equity firm Warburg Pincus has led a $255-million Series D round in China’s online English tutoring platform DaDa … DaDa, a Chinese

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    • Chainalysis: Bitcoin transactions on darknet markets rose throughout 2018 to an average of $2M/day, nearly double the activity measured at the start of the year (Anna Irrera/Reuters)

    Anna Irrera / Reuters: Chainalysis: Bitcoin transactions on darknet markets rose throughout 2018 to an average of $2M/day, nearly double the activity measured at the start of the year  —  NEW YORK (Reuters) – Use of bitcoin as a form of payment doubled in 2018 on darknet market sites, where users can buy anything …

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    • How IoT-enabled scooters, bikes, and cars are making streets safe

    The flurry of anti-dockless electric scooter headlines reached critical mass last summer. “This town seriously hates electric scooters,” screamed the link to a story focused on Santa Monica, Calif. “San Francisco Is Fighting the Scooter Trend With Poop and Vandalism,” blared another. There’s even an Instagram account devoted to images of destroyed rideshare scooters. And, of

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    • Report: $5.3B was invested in cybersecurity companies in 2018, up 81% from 2016, with California alone accounting for 46% of VC investments worldwide (Zack Whittaker/TechCrunch)

    Zack Whittaker / TechCrunch: Report: $5.3B was invested in cybersecurity companies in 2018, up 81% from 2016, with California alone accounting for 46% of VC investments worldwide  —  2018 wasn’t all bad.  It turned out to be a record year for venture capital firms investing in cybersecurity companies. Report: .3B was invested in cybersecurity companies

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