Taylor Hatmaker
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Gift Guide: 6 rugged gifts for outdoorsy friends and family
Shopping for someone who prefers hiking and camping to the great indoors can be tricky. Not only are outdoor enthusiasts usually less impressed by traditional gifts (clothes, games, etc.) but their pr
With Congress focused on political bias, Google’s CEO gets off easy
Google may have evaded the first few rounds of grill-a-tech-exec, but its CEO Sundar Pichai wound up in the hot seat on the Hill after all. Pichai appeared today, weathering a three-and-a-half-hour he
Sheryl Sandberg knew more of Facebook’s work with Definers than she let on
Two weeks after The New York Times revealed Facebook’s controversial work with Republican opposition research firm Definers Public Affairs, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg has changed her story in sign
Polyteia launches to help European city governments put their data to work
Local governments collect a lot of data, but they aren’t always great at organizing and using it efficiently. Instead of letting useful municipal insights sit around in disparate databases, some
It turns out some Google staff do believe in controversial plan to re-enter China
Google’s controversial plan to launch products custom-made for China has been panned by politicians, free speech advocates, ex-staff and many others, but there appears to be some support within
Google’s Sundar Pichai will face Congress next week
Google may have dodged a raised right hand moment on the Hill this year as top executives from Twitter and Facebook faced Congress, but the company will now have its own time in the hot seat. First re
Zuckerberg won’t step down as Facebook chairman
In a short but amply hyped interview with CNN, Facebook’s founder and chief executive again responded to criticism over the company’s most recent crisis. The interview, excerpted from a lo
Facebook has other ties to Definers, the GOP-led opposition research group
In the wake of a fairly catastrophic behind the scenes glimpse into Facebook’s high-level decision making, one question remains: Who brought a controversial Republican opposition research firm i
Zuckerberg denies knowledge of Facebook’s work with GOP opposition research firm
Today in a call with reporters preceded by a frantic if fairly uneventful distraction-pushing media blitz, Facebook responded to a damning New York Times story published yesterday that cited interview
Airbnb hosts offer free housing to evacuees displaced by California wildfires
With California’s recent cluster of devastating wildfires destroying homes and claiming lives, Airbnb is offering some shelter to displaced residents in its home state. This week, the company ad
Facebook launches Lasso, its music and video TikTok clone
Done cloning Snapchat, Facebook is now chasing Chinese short-form video sensation TikTok with the launch of its knock-off Lasso. Available now for iOS and Android, Lasso is Facebook’s answer to
Hours before US Election Day, Facebook pulls dozens of accounts for ‘coordinated inauthentic behavior’
Facebook has pulled the plug on 30 accounts and 85 Instagram accounts that the company says were engaged in “coordinated inauthentic behavior.” Facebook’s head of cybersecurity polic
2018 Midterms: 4 resources every voter should know about
Voting in the U.S. can be confusing. By design, every state is different. On top of that, disinformation meant to discourage voting is rampant this election. Cut through the noise, arm yourself with t
Some law enforcement drones are dropping out of the sky
The U.K.’s Civil Aviation Authority is cautioning police departments and other emergency services to suspend operations of a specific drone model after some of the devices lost power unexpectedl
Facebook bans the Proud Boys, cutting the group off from its main recruitment platform
Facebook is moving to ban the Proud Boys, a far-right men’s organization with ties to white supremacist groups. Business Insider first reported the decision. Facebook confirmed to TechCrunch the
Alphabet exec Richard DeVaul is out after sexual harassment story
As Axios first reported, Richard DeVaul, a director at the entity formerly known as Google X, has left the company. An incident involving DeVaul behaving inappropriately toward a Google interviewee wa
Twitter’s U.S. midterms hub is a hot mess
Today, Jack Dorsey tweeted a link to his company’s latest gesture toward ongoing political relevance, a U.S. midterms news center collecting “the latest news and top commentary” on t
Department of Justice launches a new hate-crime resource portal
Following an alarming week of domestic terrorism, the U.S. Department of Justice has consolidated into a single online hub resources and reporting tools for hate crimes. According to a DOJ press rele
Google Discover begins to replace the iconic search box on mobile
It’s not broke, but Google is fixing it. As it announced last month, Google is rebranding Google Feed, its news landing page on Android and in the Google app, to be called Google Discover. Throw