Thursday, April 25, 2024

Google Meet rolls out an update to let users seamlessly transfer calls between devices "without hanging up and rejoining" via its Android, iOS, and web apps (Abner Li/9to5Google)

Abner Li / 9to5Google:
Google Meet rolls out an update to let users seamlessly transfer calls between devices “without hanging up and rejoining” via its Android, iOS, and web apps  —  Let's say you start a call on your phone because you're not at your desk yet.  Once you get to a computer …



Garry's Mod is removing "all Nintendo related stuff" from its Steam Workshop, covering "20 years of uploads", after receiving a takedown request from Nintendo (Andy Chalk/PC Gamer)

Andy Chalk / PC Gamer:
Garry's Mod is removing “all Nintendo related stuff” from its Steam Workshop, covering “20 years of uploads”, after receiving a takedown request from Nintendo  —  Fans aren't happy, as you can imagine.  —  Following a takedown request issued by Nintendo …



Interviews with 24+ current and ex-ByteDance staff: the Beijing-based company has increasingly taken a grip over TikTok's operations, leading to a culture clash (Financial Times)

Financial Times:
Interviews with 24+ current and ex-ByteDance staff: the Beijing-based company has increasingly taken a grip over TikTok's operations, leading to a culture clash  —  Insiders say ByteDance exerting increasing influence over platform despite US pressure over ownership



Monday, April 22, 2024

UK-based users sue Grindr in the UK, alleging the app shared personal data, including HIV status, with ad companies like Localytics between 2018 to 2020 (Katharine Gemmell/Bloomberg)

Katharine Gemmell / Bloomberg:
UK-based users sue Grindr in the UK, alleging the app shared personal data, including HIV status, with ad companies like Localytics between 2018 to 2020  —  - LGBTQ+ dating app accused of breaking data protection laws  — Grindr was previously fined $6 million in Norway over breaches



A profile of Aleksanteri Kivimäki, a prolific hacker wunderkind with a mean streak, who stood trial over a ransomware attack on Finnish health provider Vastaamo (Drake Bennett/Bloomberg)

Drake Bennett / Bloomberg:
A profile of Aleksanteri Kivimäki, a prolific hacker wunderkind with a mean streak, who stood trial over a ransomware attack on Finnish health provider Vastaamo  —  Aleksanteri Kivimäki was a hacker wunderkind with a mean streak.  Now he's on trial for the largest crime in Finland's history.



Researchers: files on a misconfigured North Korean server suggest local animators worked on upcoming Prime Video and HBO TV shows, possibly via a Chinese front (Matt Burgess/Wired)

Matt Burgess / Wired:
Researchers: files on a misconfigured North Korean server suggest local animators worked on upcoming Prime Video and HBO TV shows, possibly via a Chinese front  —  Thousands of exposed files on a misconfigured North Korean server hint at one way the reclusive country may evade international sanctions.



African tech investor TLcom Capital raised $154M for a new fund, attracting US and Europe investment; Africa-focused VCs have raised $655M since November 2023 (Aanu Adeoye/Financial Times)

Aanu Adeoye / Financial Times:
African tech investor TLcom Capital raised $154M for a new fund, attracting US and Europe investment; Africa-focused VCs have raised $655M since November 2023  —  TLcom Capital doubles previous amount to raise $154mn for continent's start-ups in a move that could help ease sector gloom



Sunday, April 21, 2024

A look at Home Assistant, an open-source smart home platform with an estimated 1M users, as its creators announce a foundation to help it reach the mainstream (Jennifer Pattison Tuohy/The Verge)

Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge:
A look at Home Assistant, an open-source smart home platform with an estimated 1M users, as its creators announce a foundation to help it reach the mainstream  —  How Home Assistant plans to transition from an enthusiast platform to a mainstream consumer product.



Tesla cuts the price of its Full Self-Driving software to $8K from $12K in the US, following a price cut from $15K to $12K in September 2023 (Jameson Dow/Electrek)

Jameson Dow / Electrek:
Tesla cuts the price of its Full Self-Driving software to $8K from $12K in the US, following a price cut from $15K to $12K in September 2023  —  Tesla has once again lowered the price of its Full Self-Driving software by $4,000, now costing $8,000, down from a previous price of $12,000 in the US.



Antenna: 29M+ people, or ~25% of US streaming subscribers, canceled 3+ services over the last two years as Americans increasingly jump between services (John Koblin/New York Times)

John Koblin / New York Times:
Antenna: 29M+ people, or ~25% of US streaming subscribers, canceled 3+ services over the last two years as Americans increasingly jump between services  —  Many more people are jumping from one streaming subscription to another, a behavior that could have big implications for the entertainment industry.



How some parents, seeking the ability to reach their kids at all times, have become unexpected but forceful opponents of schools' attempts to ban phones (Julie Jargon/Wall Street Journal)

Julie Jargon / Wall Street Journal:
How some parents, seeking the ability to reach their kids at all times, have become unexpected but forceful opponents of schools' attempts to ban phones  —  Students' phone use is disruptive, but teachers and administrators seeking a fix face an unlikely opponent  —  A rural school district in Colorado tried to ban smartphones.



Google Meet rolls out an update to let users seamlessly transfer calls between devices "without hanging up and rejoining" via its Android, iOS, and web apps (Abner Li/9to5Google)

Abner Li / 9to5Google : Google Meet rolls out an update to let users seamlessly transfer calls between devices “without hanging up and re...