Techmeme
December 2, 2020, 12:30 PM

Top News

TechCrunch:
Salesforce announces it's buying Slack in a $27.7B deal  —  Salesforce, the CRM powerhouse that recently surpassed $20 billion in annual revenue, announced today it is wading deeper into enterprise social by acquiring Slack in a $27.7 billion megadeal.  —  Every worker at every company needs …
Larry Dignan / ZDNet:
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Apple announces Best of 2020 apps and most downloaded apps: home workout app Wakeout! won App of the Year for iPhone, Zoom for iPad, Disney+ for Apple TV  —  Apple today released its highly anticipated annual list of the best apps and games of 2020.  As in previous years …
Sean Hollister / The Verge:
Researcher details a now patched zero-click iOS device exploit using Apple's AWDL protocol which would grant attackers access to device hardware and data  —  A Google Project Zero researcher found a stunning vulnerability  —  Ever watch that movie, or play that video game …
Tony Romm / Washington Post:
Trump threatened in a tweet on Tuesday to veto the annual defense bill, which authorizes nearly $1T in military spending, unless Congress repeals Section 230  —  President Trump on Tuesday threatened to veto an annual defense bill authorizing nearly $1 trillion in military spending unless Congress opens …
Michael del Castillo / Forbes:
Visa says it's connecting its global network of 60M merchants to the US Dollar Coin, a stable coin created by Circle Internet Financial on ethereum's blockchain  —  Credit card giant Visa today announced it is connecting its global payments network of 60 million merchants to the U.S. Dollar Coin …
Ashley Carman / The Verge:
Spotify says Anchor powered 80% of its new podcasts, or 1M+ shows, in 2020; overall, Anchor powers 70% of Spotify's total podcast catalog of over 1.9M shows  —  Anchor powered more than 1 million show launches in 2020  —  Spotify's $100 million-plus Anchor acquisition is seemingly paying off.
Dave Lee / Financial Times:
Amazon unveils Monitron, a service that uses ML and low-cost sensors to monitor industrial machinery, as it looks to push into the industrial sector  —  Sensor and computer vision hardware come as tech giant looks to push into industrial sector  —  Amazon is rolling out cheap new tools …
Natalie Gagliordi / ZDNet:
Frederic Lardinois / TechCrunch:
Mike Wuerthele / AppleInsider:
Ming-Chi Kuo: Apple to release two new MacBook Pros with an all-new design in 2021 and a more affordable MacBook Air in 2022, all with mini LED panels  —  Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes that as part of Apple's mini LED push, the company will release a pair of new MacBook Pro models …
Sam Byford / The Verge:
Apple's MagSafe Duo charger is now available to order online for $129, charging brick not included  —  Don't forget the power brick  —  Apple's MagSafe Duo charger is now on sale online, after initially having been announced without a release date as part of this year's iPhone launch.
Igor Bonifacic / Engadget:
Google Maps rolls out a new community feed section within Explore tab, featuring posts from local experts, food and drink merchants, and publishers you follow  —  Google is introducing a new community feed to Maps that the company says will help keep you informed of all the latest developments in your city …
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
YouTube upgrades Premieres, which gives scheduled videos a landing page, with trailers, themes, and live stream pre-shows that later redirect to the main event  —  YouTube today is launching three new features designed to improve its “Premieres” experience, including trailers, themes …
More: The Verge
Ingrid Lunden / TechCrunch:
Adobe: Cyber Monday online spending in the US was at the lower end of expectations at $10.8B, but 15.1% higher YoY, with 37% of sales made on smartphones  —  Cyber Monday, traditionally the biggest shopping day online in the year, followed in the footsteps of Thanksgiving and Black Friday this year …
Ingrid Lunden / TechCrunch:
Google announces it is acquiring Actifio, a data management and continuity company that was valued at over $1B in 2014 and has raised over $460M  —  In the same week that Amazon is holding its big AWS confab, Google is also announcing a move to raise its own enterprise game with Google Cloud.
John Tozzi / Bloomberg:
Virta Health, a telehealth startup that helps people manage diabetes with frequent monitoring and dietary counseling, raises $65M, valuing the company at ~$1.1B  —  - Telehealth firm uses monitoring, counseling to optimize care  — Series D round of $65 million brings equity to $231 million
PYMNTS.com:
Stripe extends its business lending service Stripe Capital to online platforms, offering an “end-to-end lending API” to provide customers with financing options  —  Payments giant Stripe is taking Stripe Capital, its push into online business finance and lending, to the next level.
Mary Ann Azevedo / FinLedger:
Amount, which helps banks modernize and provide mobile experiences, raises $81M Series C led by Goldman Sachs Growth, after being spun off from Avant this year  —  Chicago-based startup's clients include financial institutions collectively managing nearly $2 trillion in US assets
The Citizen Lab:
Report details the use of telecom snooping tools provided by Circles, an NSO Group affiliate, by 25 nations, some of which have a history of human rights abuses  —  Summary & Key Findings  — Circles is a surveillance firm that reportedly exploits weaknesses in the global mobile phone system …

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Earlier Picks

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Shara Tibken / CNET:
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BBC: