Apple News has a new old mission: Curating political news and analysis by paying a team of experienced human editors to quality-assess journalism, rather than letting unchecked algorithms run wild and exaggerate anything — no matter how awful, obnoxious or untrue. ‘Fakebook’ eat your heart out. Apple says human curation is not a new direction for Apple News — describing it as a “guiding principle” across the product since it launched three years ago. Although it certainly wasn’t shouting so loudly about it back then when algorithmic feeds were still riding high. But the company says Apple News has always had…
Author: geekfenceblogger
Brian Brackeen Contributor Share on Twitter Brian Brackeen is the chief executive officer of the facial recognition software developer Kairos Recent news of Amazon’s engagement with law enforcement to provide facial recognition surveillance (branded ‘Rekognition’), along with the almost unbelievable news of China’s use of the technology means that the technology industry needs to address the darker, more offensive side of some of its more spectacular advancements. Facial recognition technologies, used in the identification of suspects, negatively affects people of color — to deny this fact would be a lie. And clearly, facial recognition-powered government surveillance is an extraordinary invasion…
Uber is in court in the UK today to try to overturn a decision by London’s transport regulator last fall to withdraw its license to operate in the city — where it claims to have some 3.5 million regular users. Its appeal is being heard in Westminster Magistrates Court from today, with the hearing expected to last for several days. The company can continue to operate its service in London while it appeals the decision. Transport for London (TfL) sent shockwaves through the ride-hailing giant last September when it rejected Uber’s application to renew its license on the grounds the company…
By the middle of this week, all Amazon Prime members will have access to discounts at Whole Foods Market stores across the U.S. — finishing a nationwide rollout that’s part of the retailer’s master plan to dominate physical and virtual commerce in America. All Prime members will receive 10% off hundreds of sale items and “deep discounts on select popular products,” the retailer said in a statement. In the six weeks since Amazon first made the discounts available to shoppers in Florida, the company said its Prime members had already saved “millions of dollars”. Starting Wednesday, June 27, Amazon…
It looks like Indonesian ride-hailing firm Go-Jek will finally initiate its long-awaited expansion in Southeast Asia over the next month. The company announced today that it’ll launch businesses in Vietnam and Thailand under the names of Go-Viet and Get, respectively, using a model that sees local founders run each business independently with backing from local partners and the Go-Jek mothership. TechCrunch understands that the Thai and Vietnamese entities will go live for customers from August. The plan is to initially launch motorbike and car-based services. Later, it may introduce services-on-demand as it done with significant success in Indonesia. Go-Jek didn’t provide…
Tencent, the $500-billion Chinese internet giant, is increasing its focus on open source after it became a platinum member of the Linux Foundation. The company has long been associated with the foundation and Linux generally, it is a founding member of the Linux Foundation’s deep learning program that launched earlier this year, and now as a platinum member (the highest tier) it will take a board of directors seat and work more closely with the organization. That works two ways, with Tencent pledging to offer “further support and resources” to foundation projects and communities, while the Chinese firm itself will also…
Singapore’s upcoming licensing for dock-less bike-sharing services has claimed its first scalp after oBike — a Singapore-based company run by Chinese founders — announced that it would cease its service in the country ahead of the implementation of regulations. The Land Transport Authority (LTA) is introducing measures to protect Singapore’s streets from a glut of bicycles left all over the place, as photo essays from China and beyond have cautioned can happen. oBike launched its service at the beginning of 2017, and it claims over one million registered users but still it will end its service today, June 25. “oBike…
After months of speculation, Meituan, the largest service booking app in China, confirmed that it has filed for a public offering. The company’s IPO application was submitted to the Hong Kong stock exchange earlier today and is being sponsored by Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Bank of America Merrill Lynch. A spokesperson for Meituan said the company is currently not disclosing information about fundraising amount or valuation. Reuters reports that Meituan wants to raise more than $4 billion. Meituan was created after Meituan and Dianping, two competitors in the group deals space, merged in 2015 (it is still formally known…
“So what’s going on here then?” I ask. “Two good friends just got even better [friends],” replies TransferWise co-founder Kristo Käärmann laughing, while Monzo co-founder Tom Blomfield, who is also on the video call, smiles approvingly. “Sorry for spoiling your news,” I tell the pair, who I’m interviewing ahead of an announcement today that the two companies are working together. The partnership, which TechCrunch outed nearly three weeks ago, will see TransferWise power international payments for the U.K. challenger bank’s 750,000 customers. It is the second new bank partnership that the fintech unicorn has unveiled this month, after announcing that…
Suppressed in Japan. Championed in New York. Accused of betraying the billion-dollar community he created with an arcane and byzantine ritual, while accidentally solving — maybe — a transnational clandestine mining mystery. All this while leading the rollout of some of the world’s most cutting-edge cryptographic technology into production. It’s been an interesting six months for Zooko Wilcox, cryptographer, engineer, and CEO / driving force behind Zcash, one of the world’s most valuable, technically interesting, and politically fraught cryptocurrencies. Thoughtful, soft-spoken, quick to laugh, and eager to see all sides of every issue, he doesn’t seem like a man to…