After attempting to regain contact for nearly two years, NASA has finally reestablished communications with the sun-studying satellite, STEREO-B. At 6:27 p.m. ET, NASA received a downlink signal from the spacecraft using the ground-based communication antennas in the Deep Space Network. STEREO-B is one of two spacecraft that orbit the sun and make up the Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory… Read More
Pax Labs, the folks responsible for the Ploom and the Juul and the Pax loose-leaf vaporizer, have today announced some leadership changes. Former Deezer CEO Tyler Goldman will be taking over as CEO, and Pax co-founder James Monsees will continue on at the company as Chief Product Officer. Pax Labs launched in 2007 with the original Pax vaporizer. The company quickly picked up steam and… Read More
A study from Carnegie Mellon University and subsequent analysis by the Information Technology & Innovation Foundation indicate that the U.K.’s blockage of more than 50 websites was indeed effective at reducing piracy, but neither addresses the fundamental problems with the approach. Read More
Allstate is on a mission to vertically develop its telematics expertise and find new sources of revenue across different sectors by launching a new standalone unit called Arity (dedicated to data collection and analytics). It’s no surprise that Allstate’s own brands, such as Esurance and Answer Financial, are clients. It’s a start on the path to the unknown. Read More
Banks win when the poor lose. Credit cards can trap people in debt and bleed them dry with late fees. But it’s this exploitative experience that makes banks vulnerable to fintech startups like LendUp that are willing to undercut them and make up margin with software efficiency. It’s that strategy of building an enduring consumer banking brand on the principle of compassion that… Read More
Apple has just dropped the 7th developer beta for macOS Sierra, along with the macOS Sierra Public Beta 6, for other early adopters of the new version of the Mac operating system first shown off at this year’s WWDC 2016. The release follows on the heels of the 7th iOS developer beta, which arrived on Friday. At the time, it wasn’t clear if macOS, watchOS, or tvOS would also arrive… Read More
Linux will turn 25 years old on August 25, the day Linus Torvalds sent out his fateful message asking for help with a new operating system. “I’m doing a (free) operating system (just a hobby, won’t be big and professional like gnu) for 386(486) AT clones. This has been brewing since april, and is starting to get ready. I’d like any feedback on things people like/dislike… Read More
A startup called Proxy has raised $1.6 million in seed funding to help people use internet-enabled devices of every kind without all the annoying login processes and standalone apps for each separate device. Proxy’s cofounders Denis Mars and Simon Ratner said they were inspired to create their technology, in part, by the overwhelming number of IoT devices seen in recent years at… Read More
While we all know the best business cards are printed on bone paper with lettering in Silian Rail, the second best business cards are the ones you roll yourself right in front of your intended recipient. This wild 3D printed card roller lets you do just that. Built by maker Paul Myers, the embosser rolls paper between two 3D-printed tubes to press a design onto the card. You can take a look… Read More
Amazon’s same-day delivery service Prime Now, which is today available in more than a couple of dozen U.S. metros, is experimenting with another type of service that goes beyond traditional purchases: it’s offering consumers the ability to test drive cars. Specifically, Amazon has partnered with Hyundai to offer test drives of the 2017 Elantra through a new program called… Read More
Google surprised everyone when it launched a public beta of the Android Nougat back in March. Annual updates are nothing new for Android, but not only did this announcement come very early, it also offered users the option to easily install the beta with an over-the-air update. Now, half a year later, Nougat is out of beta and available for Google’s own Nexus devices (the Nexus… Read More
Chinese smartphone manufacturers are very much on the ascent, but it’s been a pretty mixed bag. Some have offered some truly exciting hardware to market (read: Nexus 6P) and others, well, not so much. Founded in 2003, Meizu is relatively new entrant on the scene, but the company knows how to make a nice piece of hardware. With its latest device, the MX6, the manufacturer has created… Read More
Twitter is rolling out night mode to users of its official iOS app, the company announced today. Night mode turns Twitter’s dark-text-on-light-background interface upside down, giving a darker look that should be easier to read at night or in dimmer indoor environments.
Rolling out today – we're bringing night mode to iOS! https://t.co/XxNZHQdth9… Read More
Microsoft has quietly released a new productivity application to both Google Play and the iTunes App Store called Project Sonoma. The app is aimed at those who work outside of a traditional office environment, like shift workers, waiters, and others who need to keep track of ever-changing schedules and who need to chat with co-workers at times.
The company hasn’t made any official… Read More
The Analogue Nt mini isn’t an NES – it’s better. The third-party system created by designer Christopher Taber is a work of art in its own right, crafted from a solid piece of aluminum and offering internals that boast no-compromise gameplay experience, vs. what you’d get from a home hack using emulation software.
Analogue’s Nt mini is the smaller sibling to the… Read More
We’re excited to announce the full agenda for TechCrunch Disrupt SF. The show runs from September 10-14 and is returning to the wonderful Pier 48 venue. General admission tickets and exhibitor packages are still available.
The event spans five days where we will celebrate entrepreneurship and technology with the best of Silicon Valley appearing on the Disrupt stage. Read More
When Newsela was created in 2012, the edtech startup aimed to help students master reading at their own pace, specifically with news articles adapted to different reading levels. The company’s app has racked up 800,000 teachers, and 7.7 million students as users and counting, according to Newsela CEO and co-founder Matthew Gross. But when it comes to teaching English Language Arts, the… Read More
Researchers at MIT’s Self-Assembly Lab have stepped up their game from an Ikea-like chair that can put itself together: the team built a working cell phone that’s self-building, Fast Company reports, using a basic DIY cell phone design create by MIT professor David Mellis as a model. How can a phone put itself together? The key is actually simplicity – there are six parts,… Read More
Things have been rough going on the home front for Xiaomi of late. According to numbers posted by IDC last week, the Chinese smartphone maker’s marketshare has slipped considerably on its own turf, tumbling to number four as fellow countryman Huawei took top honors.
Even so, the company is still looking toward international expansion, including, notably, a push into the US market… Read More
Microsoft has picked up another productivity app — announcing the acquisition of AI-powered scheduling tool Genee. In a blog post today the software giant said it will be plugging Genee into its cloud productivity suite, Office 365. Read More
