Techmeme
February 13, 2018, 9:20 AM

Top News

Dave Lee / BBC:
UK government has spent £600K on an AI tool that can algorithmically block extremist content, claims it is capable of detecting 94% of IS's online activity  —  The UK government has unveiled a tool it says can accurately detect jihadist content and block it from being viewed.
Benjamin Mullin / Wall Street Journal:
Google launches dev preview of AMP stories for publishers today with Snapchat-like swipeable text, photos, and videos, considers integrating stories into search  —  The format doesn't support advertising yet, which could slow its adoption among publishers  —  Alphabet Inc.'s GOOGL .79% Google unveiled …
Josh Constine / TechCrunch:
Facebook to allow publisher paywalls in its iOS app starting 3/1; users get five articles before being asked to pay, publishers get 100% subscription revenue  —  Apple is allowing Facebook to bend the subscription rules.  Starting March 1st, news publishers will be able to use their paywalls inside Facebook's iOS app.
Natasha Singer / New York Times:
Harvard, MIT, NYU among growing crop of US universities offering computer science ethics courses in the wake of fake news and other troubles at tech companies  —  PALO ALTO, Calif. — The medical profession has an ethic: First, do no harm.  —  Silicon Valley has an ethos: Build it first and ask for forgiveness later.
Tweets: @pariseautt
Taylor Lorenz / The Daily Beast:
600K+ people sign Change.org petition calling for Snapchat redesign to be reverted as celebs including Chrissy Teigen, Kylie Jenner, MKBHD criticize update  —  Last week Snapchat rolled out its biggest redesign since the app launched in 2011.  —  The company split the app into two sections …
Mary Jo Foley / ZDNet:
Microsoft says it will add Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection support for Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 this summer  —  Microsoft is adding Windows 7 SP1 and Windows 8.1 to the list of protected end-points covered by Windows Defender ATP, starting this summer.
Catherine Shu / TechCrunch:
San Francisco-based customer support software startup UJET raises $25M Series B led by GV with participation from Kleiner Perkins and others  —  UJET, a startup that makes software to improve customer support, said today that it's raised a $25 million Series B led by GV (formerly known as Google Ventures).
Nicole Perlroth / New York Times:
Researchers: cyberattack caused disruption to Pyeongchang2018.com and local internet, which grounded drones and more during Winter Olympics' opening ceremony  —  A cyberattack caused the internet disruptions during the Winter Olympics' opening ceremony on Friday night, Olympic officials and security experts said.
Egill Bjarnason / Associated Press:
Iceland is expected to use more energy “mining” bitcoin and other digital currencies this year than it uses to power its homes, says a local energy expert  —  KEFLAVIK, Iceland (AP) — Iceland is expected to use more energy “mining” bitcoins and other virtual currencies this year than it uses to power its homes.
Matt Day / The Seattle Times:
Source: in a rare cutback, Amazon is laying off several hundred corporate employees in Seattle and hundreds elsewhere across its global operations  —  Amazon is cutting several hundred jobs in Seattle, and hundreds elsewhere, a rare layoff that appears to fall predominantly on its established consumer retail business.
Nick Statt / The Verge:
IDC research director says Essential shipped 88,000 smartphones in the first six months after its May 2017 launch  —  Andy Rubin's Essential Phone faces a harsh reality in the high-end market  —  Essential, Android co-founder Andy Rubin's new smartphone venture, had a rough go of it last year trying …
iFixit:
Teardown finds HomePod has great build quality, but a saw is needed to open the device; some parts, including the fabric mesh, can be easily removed  —  Tools Featured in this Teardown  —  Introduction  —  Apple's beloved voice assistant is back again, this time in more of a Mac Pro wearing a jacket.
Andrew J. Hawkins / The Verge:
Uber will require drivers in the US to take six-hour breaks after driving a total of 12 hours in a single shift  —  The app will use GPS and telematics to track driving time  —  In an effort to combat drowsy driving, Uber announced today that it would require its most frequent drivers …

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