Tech Crunch
The Verge
Microsoft to acquire Xoxco as focus on AI and bot developers continues 18 hours ago – Microsoft has been all in on AI this year, and in the build versus buy equation, the company has been leaning heavily toward buying. This morning, the company announced its intent to acquire Xoxco, an Austin-based software developer with a focus on bot design, making it the fourth AI-related comp...
Amazon’s Fire TV Recast is a decent DVR for antenna users 18 hours ago – Amazon’s Fire TV companion DVR, the Fire TV Recast, is available today to the public, after previously having been only offered for pre-order. The new device offers a way for Fire TV owners to easily access free, over-the-air broadcast television directly from the Fire TV’s software. Starting at ...
Home insurance provider Hippo brings in $70M amid a record year in funding for insurtech startups 18 hours ago – Insurtech startups have raised a total of $1.8 billion in venture capital this year.
No display for your Mac Mini? No problem. 14 hours ago – Astropad’s Luna Display isn’t just for your MacBook. It turns out that you can take advantage of that tiny little red dongle to turn your iPad into your one and only Mac Mini display. The Luna Display was designed to extend your laptop display. Many desktop users who travel tend to feel limited w...
No display for your Mac Mini? No problem. 14 hours ago – Astropad’s Luna Display isn’t just for your MacBook. It turns out that you can take advantage of that tiny little red dongle to turn your iPad into your one and only Mac Mini display. The Luna Display was designed to extend your laptop display. Many desktop users who travel tend to feel limited w...
Here’s the teaser trailer for Niantic’s Pokémon GO-style Harry Potter game 15 hours ago – The good news: Niantic/WB Games/Portkey has released a trailer for “Wizards Unite,” the Harry Potter game built in the same spirit as Pokémon GO. The bad news: It… doesn’t show much. If you were hoping for gameplay footage or really anything detailing how the game will work, you’re out of luck. A...
MacBook Pro with updated GPU is now available 15 hours ago – Apple recently unveiled a bunch of new products during a press event in New York. But the company also quietly shared a press release with new configurations for the 15-inch MacBook Pro. Customers can now get a MacBook Pro with an AMD Radeon Pro Vega 16 or Vega 20 graphics processing unit. Before...
Airbnb hosts offer free housing to evacuees displaced by California wildfires 9 hours ago – 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 added free housing listings to serve evacuees affected by the Hill and Woolsey Fires outside Los Angeles ...
RFID stickers could signal contaminated food 9 hours ago – If a food item isn't safe to eat, it's best to find that out before someone eats it. But manual testing of every jar and bottle isn't possible, even when a threat, like the recent baby food scare, is known. MIT researchers have found a way to check many items instantly, non-invasively, and from a...
The Correspondent launches campaign to bring its ad-free journalism to the US 10 hours ago – De Correspondent, a Dutch news organization aiming to “unbreak the news,” is planning to launch in the United States next year as The Correspondent. To fund its efforts, it’s hoping to raise $2.5 million from future readers. Co-founder and CEO Ernst Pfauth (a former tech journalist who previously...
Google is closing its Schaft robotics unit after failing to find a buyer 29 minutes ago – Sad news for anyone into giant robots: Google is closing down Schaft, its secretive unit that develops bipedal robots aimed at helping out in disaster efforts and generally looking badass. The news was first reported by Nikkei, but Google confirmed to TechCrunch that the business will be shuttere...
Legrand acquires smart home startup Netatmo 36 minutes ago – French hardware startup Netatmo got acquired by the biggest manufacturer of switches and sockets in the world, Legrand. Terms of the deal are undisclosed. Legrand and Netatmo already collaborated together on some products. Back in 2017, the company announced that it would work with industrial gro...
Welcome to the awkward future of the open office 2 hours ago – I have seen the future — in fact, I have worn it. It’s big and awkward kind of digs into the top of your head with little metal bars designed to hold it in place. I was like 95 percent sure Wear Space was some viral bit of social commentary the first time it popped […]
The Verge
Verizon says it successfully tested 5G on the Moto Z3 14 hours ago – Verizon just took a big step forward for 5G: the company announced that it has successfully tested the Moto Z3 on a proper, commercial 3GPP 5G NR (New Radio) network — i.e., a real-world 5G test using a functional smartphone with the “real” 5G standard. According to Verizon, the test was conduct...
Amazon Music is now available on Xbox One consoles 13 hours ago – Microsoft’s November update for Xbox One consoles brings a plethora of new capabilities and changes, including the ability to directly stream from Amazon Music. The app is available for Xbox One users today for customers based in the United States, according to a press release. More countries ar...
Politicians and protestors are looking for ways to stop Amazon’s New York HQ2 11 hours ago – When New York’s governor and New York City’s mayor appeared alongside an Amazon executive yesterday to announce Amazon’s HQ2 setting up shop in the city, the mood was celebratory. But some locals are pushing back and considering what would need to happen to scuttle the deal. Amazon’s decision to...
How humans are transforming the hurricanes of the ( :) Fake News alert )
Sharp made a phone with two notches 13 minutes ago – Last year Sharp released the Aquos R Compact, a phone with a tiny camera notch on the top edge and a humongous bezel on the bottom for a fingerprint sensor. It didn’t look great. But for this year’s model, the company has hit upon a novel solution to increase the screen size while keeping the fin...