SMS is terrible, yet it’s still the way more than half of video gets shared on mobile. Meanwhile, Facebook is trying to turn everyone into famous broadcasters when most people just want to show close friends what they’re up to. That’s why Facebook’s product manager for Live, Vadim Lavrusik, defected from the social network to start his own video streaming iOS app… Read More
Tableau Software‘s shares soared 13 percent on Tuesday following the announcement that the data analytics provider has partnered with Narrative Science, a Chicago-based company that develops natural language generation (NLG) tools. The result of the partnership is Narratives for Tableau, a free Chrome extension that automatically creates written explanations for Tableau… Read More
The country faces a plethora of issues that affect millions of people every day. Although there has been some progress as a society around pro-LGBTQ legislation and healthcare, there is a lot left to be done around poverty, criminal justice reform, federal statistics around LGBTQ people, youth solutions, mental health, the environment, education and inclusion in tech. Today at the White… Read More
The FBI is reportedly looking into hacking attempts against U.S. journalists that may have been orchestrated by Russian intelligence services. New York Times journalists were among those targeted, CNN and the AP report. The New York Times confirmed that its Moscow bureau was targeted, but said the paper has no reason to believe the attack was successful. It’s not yet clear why the… Read More
It’s in the country’s best interest to stay at (or at least near) the forefront of advanced computing techniques, and the National Science Foundation has just put $110 million down to make sure that happens. Read More
CoinTent might be the solution for publishers worried about the money they’re losing to ad blockers. The San Francisco-based company started with a focus on paywalls, but it’s recently moved into offering publishers (including GQ) a broader range of solutions to deal with ad blockers. That doesn’t just mean inserting more ads. CEO Bradley Ross described CoinTent as… Read More
It can be tough going to the movies as a cybersecurity expert. Films handling the very real issues of internet security and modern computer science are overwhelmingly unrealistic. As we get our tickets and popcorn ready for “Snowden,” it’s a good time to take a look at the handful of film and TV projects that actually got hacking, and the complicated business of security in… Read More
It’s a sign that we’re living in the future when using our own genetic machinery as a form of calculator or storage is nothing new — but make no mistake, it’s still very early days in this field and there are plenty of surprises ahead. Today’s surprise, for instance, is the use of DNA to do exact arithmetical calculations entirely in analog. Read More
Content management systems are boring until you have to use one. You can install a little Drupal or WordPress, pick up some Squarespace, or just dump to Medium, the graveyard for posts about protein shakes and VC funding. But what if you could roll your own CMS? And what if you made it really cool? That’s what Cory LaViska did. LaViska is the founder of SurrealCMS and has been making it… Read More
Virtual reality is quickly earning a reputation in Hollywood beyond its nerdy niche, with many industry professionals shifting resources and attention to catching this platform wave early.
STX Entertainment, the Hollywood TV and film studio behind flicks like Bad Moms and Free State of Jones, has just acquired VR content producer Surreal to begin powering some of their own efforts in the… Read More
EVEN Electric may be based in Ottawa, Ontario, but it has its sights set on selling electric vehicles from multiple brands worldwide. The sales and distribution network — not a dealership — will have new and pre-owned EVs available via centralized processing centers in several countries. Buyers order their car online, and it will be shipped from the nearest processing center to a… Read More
The joy that comes from listening to music with friends is something that’s been around ever since…well, ever since music. But today, thanks to digital services that let you listen anytime, anywhere, music is now more often a solo experience. A new app called Lisn wants to change that, by offering you a way to listen to music with a friend, no matter how far apart you are, and… Read More
What’s really going on at Hyperloop One – the futuristic transportation system proposing to shoot humans from point A to B at 750 miles-per-hour? The startup changed its name from Hyperloop Transportation to Hyperloop One and began testing in the Nevada desert this spring; announced $80 million in Series B funding; suffered an executive leadership shake-up and the former… Read More
Tesla has a new, larger battery option for the Model S and Model X line of electric vehicles, which includes an improved Ludicrous Mode that boasts a 2.5 second 0-60 mph time on the Model S, which is 0.1 second faster than the Model S’s previous max, and only 0.2 seconds off one of the fastest accelerating production cars available. The 100kWh battery option isn’t just for speed,… Read More
One of the few new top-level domains that actually makes sense, .blog, is starting the process of registration. Automattic, which runs WordPress and a number of other useful web apps, owns .blog and is handling applications at get.blog. Read More
PlaySation Now, the all-you-can game subscription service that provides access to classic PlayStation titles on-demand, is making its way to Windows PCs, starting now in Europe and rolling out soon in North America. Sony’s also making it easier to game on your PC, with a DualShock 4 USB wireless controller adapter, letting you use your PlayStation 4 gamepads on both Mac and Windows… Read More
As the venture funding landscape continues to flourish, entrepreneurs who want to build a sustainable business should proceed with caution before heading down the VC path. As a veteran in the startup space, I’ve done and seen a lot. As a result, I’ve become educated about the pros and cons of venture funding, along with the keys to understanding when it’s the right time to… Read More
Disrupt SF 2016 is right around the corner, and soon thousands of the best and brightest entrepreneurs and tech enthusiasts will make their way to San Francisco’s Pier 48 for the show.
But one of our favorite parts of Disrupt actually happens before the show floor opens up for the week — the Disrupt Hackathon. We’re happy to announce that the third wave of tickets to the… Read More
One user’s bloatware is another’s feature. And really, depending on where you fall on Microsoft productivity software, this could go either way, really. Lenovo announced today that it’ll be preloading the software giant’s offerings on future handsets – namely Office, Skype and OneDrive. No word on specific hardware, only that the deal includes… Read More
A controversial data-sharing agreement between Google-owned AI company DeepMind and the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) has caught the eye of the National Data Guardian — the government appointee who works with the Department of Health to try to ensure citizens’ confidential health data is safeguarded and used properly. Read More
