March 5, 2018
Qualcomm is pushing back its pivotal shareholder meeting this week amid a regulatory review
Massive chipmaker Qualcomm, currently targeted by aggressive acquisition attempts by Broadcom, is now delaying a pivotal meeting with shareholders this week that would determine its fate going forward by at…
Meal kits come to Walmart stores and online grocery service
On the heels of Amazon’s launch of Whole Foods grocery delivery through Amazon Prime Now, Walmart today is rolling out a new option for its grocery pickup and delivery service…
Seven years after picking up Zagat for $151 million, Google is selling off the perennial restaurant recommendation service. The New York Times is reporting this morning that the technology giant…
Apple’s glass walls result in 911 calls
Apple should definitely avoid throwing stones as its glass houses have been causing some problems of late. The lights inside the new Apple Store in Chicago were attracting birds to…
Tinkerer Jonathan Zufi talks about design and Escape From New York
This week on Technotopia I talked to Jonathan Zufi, creator of the LifeClock One, a replica of the watch worn by Snake Pliskin in Escape From New York. Zufi loves…
Shogun wants to help businesses easily build a better online storefront
Finbarr Taylor and Nick Raushenbush had started a little side project that was making just about enough money to keep the site’s lights on while they were working on their…
RedDoorz raises $11M to grow its budget hotel network in Southeast Asia
RedDoorz, a budget hotel startup focused on Southeast Asia, has closed $11 million in new funding to expand its presence. The three-year-old startup is a number offers a network of…
Shape is an app to help you learn how to invest the ethical way
Recently launched out of beta, U.K. startup Shape wants to create a more educational trading experience for a new generation of traders, including those who might be concerned with the…
Waze Carpool’s new app lets riders get more choosy about their drivers
Waze’s carpooling app for commuters is relaunching with a number of new features designed to make it easier and safer to use. The company says it will now allow people to…
A year after announcing a partnership with Caliburger, Miso Robotics’ resident chef has finally graduated Hamburger University. The AI-enabled line cook starts today, joining the the human crew at the…
Virtru’s new API brings encryption tech built by ex-NSA engineer to third-party developers
Virtru co-founder Will Ackerly developed the company’s underlying encryption technology while he was working as an engineer at the NSA, so it’s fair to say he knows a thing or…
As Disney’s streaming service nears, Netflix rolls out improved parental controls
Netflix this morning announced a series of updates that will make its service more family-friendly, including an additional option to set a PIN code on individual series or movies, as…
When venture capital becomes vanity capital
I’ve written a lot about the benefits of efficient entrepreneurship. I’ve explained my view conceptually, tried to illustrate the mechanics of how excess capital kills promising companies, and shared data…
Taking on the Big 4 accounting giants, Paro receives $5m for its labor marketplace for financial professionals
Accounting and financial controls are some of the most important functions of a modern company, but they are also serious cost centers. Hiring a full-time bookkeeper can be prohibitively expensive,…
Lyft commits to cutting the problem of health care transportation in half by 2020
In the wake of Uber’s entry into the healthcare transportation market, Lyft wants to remind people that’s a space it’s been working at for years, with partnerships across brokers of…
Xiaomi phones could finally go on sale in the US before the end of this year
Chinese smartphone giant Xiaomi could make its debut in the U.S. as soon as this year, according to its CEO. Lei Jun, the serial entrepreneur who leads the phone maker,…
The UK’s data protection bill is facing fresh controversy and the threat of legal action if the government does not ditch an amendment which removes data protection rights in instances where…
Zen Rooms, Rocket Internet’s budget hotel network in Asia, faces fire sale or closure
Zen Rooms, a budget hotel network funded by Rocket Internet among others, is facing shutdown if investors are unable to sell the loss-making business. The two-year-old company offers a network of…
