Google Avoids Another Breakup Attempt; FTC Alleges Amazon Rigged Ad Auctions; Uber Deleting 3,000 Jobs; Apple Joins Google in Shameful ‘Lake America’ Label

Posted: September 2, 2026 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

When I read about attempts to break up Google…or for that matter, Meta or Amazon, I keep coming back to the government’s years long work on breaking up AT&T. How’d that work out? The pieces of AT&T basically reassembled as a couple large telcos, and now we have really 3 big cell companies…two of which are Verizon and AT&T…both large chunks of the old AT&T that was supposedly broken up. With that said, Google has dodged the bullet on another break up attempt by the government. Theverge.com reports that a US district Judge, Leonie Brinkema, has declined the Justice Departments’s request to make Google sell off parts of its ad tech business. The court DID say it would adopt most of the behavioral changes proposed by the parties, with some modifications. But those won’t become public until the parties meet to work out any additional proposed revisions and to review the judge’s opinion for confidential information that must be redacted. They could include proposals like restricting Google from using self-preferencing ad auction tactics or letting third-party ad tech tools access the same real-time information as Google. Google can still appeal, but they may really want to go with this deal, and at least put off risking a ruling that does force them to spin off part of their very lucrative ad business.

The Federal Trade Commission and 22 states have sued Amazon, alleging that it has conducted a secret scheme to overcharge advertisers for seven years. According to arstechnica..com, the filing asserts that Since 2019, Amazon.com, Inc. has secretly and systematically overcharged its approximately 1.2 million advertising customers by manipulating the ‘auctions’ that it uses to set the price of ads on its platform,” the lawsuit said. “Amazon represents, and advertisers believe, that competitive auctions set the prices for advertising on its leading e-commerce website. But, in reality, Amazon overrides and replaces the actual auction results with higher prices set by Amazon to increase its profits.” Amazon says the ‘FTC cherry-picked’ details, and that the lawsuit is ‘misguided.’ The FTC says customers paid more than they would have if Amazon operated the auction in the way it claimed it did. This should be an interesting trial to follow, unless the online giant decides to settle…with the Feds and 22 states after them, that might be their best option. 

Uber has chopped about 3,000 jobs, as it moves to what it claims is a more efficient organization. This will be close to 10% of the 34,000 employees of the ridesharing firm. Engadget.com says they are removing management layers and aiming to be  “simpler and faster.” Uber will continue to have its global teams based in New York and San Francisco, and will continue to have tech hubs, as well as regional and country-based teams. 

Apple has joined Google in caving to the whims of Donald Trump and his latest antic of renaming Lake Ontario to Lake America. They had previously done so with the renaming of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. Techcrunch.com reports that the foolish name will only appear on the Maps app in the US, and not elsewhere. Reportedly, this came after a call direct from the White House to the C Suite at Apple. Also according to reports, rank and file Apple employees are furious that the top suits gave in to Trump on this ridiculous move. This has also caused Apple Maps users….like Google Maps users…to leave in sizable numbers and switch to Mapquest, which has stayed at the top of Apple’s App Store downloads, besting ChatGPT…which had been at the top for some time. It is rather appalling that huge tech firms fear a megalomaniacal president enough that they feel like they have to go along with such foolish and childish moves. It’s sad for us that we will have to put up with this clownish behavior for the next two years. As for me, I am unaffected…I will just keep using the Inrix map software in my car that I haven’t paid to update…so the lake will remain Ontario, as the gulf has stayed Mexico!

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now. 

Facebook Plans ‘Community Notes’; Samsung’s Z Fold 8 is Sold Out Temporarily; Amazon Data Center Might Be Worst US Polluter; Europe-Free Sat Service Eases Tracking Wildfires

Posted: August 10, 2026 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , | Leave a comment

It’s been a feature…albeit a dubious one…on X for a while, and now Facebook appears poised to roll out Community Notes. I got a notice for this over the weekend and clicked on their waitlist. Facebook positions it as a way to ‘allow people across a diverse range of perspectives to decide when posts are potentially misleading or need more context.’ That’s all well and good, but if things work out like on X, a lot of the notes may contest actual facts, and present what a former Trump administration Press Secretary called ‘alternative facts.’ As long as we have them, check with Associated Press, Reuters, and other legitimate news sources if you are in doubt about the factuality of a topic. Snopes is always pretty good as well. 

After just putting along for years…no doubt a lot of that is due to the high price tags…folding phones are picking up steam. According to androidpolice.com, Samsung’s new Z Fold 8 is sold out for now. You can still order one through Amazon, although you get no estimated delivery date now for the $1900 buck handset.. You will get a $350 gift card though, useable at any Amazon retailer. It is expected that Apple will roll out their first folder in September, so expect the market to heat up on these high dollar phones with the nice big screen inside when unfolded. 

Amazon is installing 35 natural gas turbines to power a giant West Texas data center. Theverge.com notes that this gas-burning monster plant could become the largest single producer of greenhouse gas in the US. The GW Ranch secured a permit from Texas allowing emissions of up to 33 million tons of CO2…more than even the largest coal burning plant in the country! A number of huge data centers, after being rebuffed due to strain on the grid and the associated jacking up of electrical rates for rate payers…that’s us…are now looking to natural gas, coal, and other non-renewables. Alternatively, China is using more wind and solar power for their data centers. So much for the US being a leader in clean energy and protecting the climate. 

Having had a number of wildfires nearby, this sounds pretty interesting. Arstechnica.com is reporting that you can use the Copernicus Browser and get the latest satellite imagery from the European Space Agency’s Sentinel satellites to monitor wildfires. The resolution is as tight as 10 meters…or 32 feet. The images are only updated every few days, but the resolution is amazing…another tool to keep track of and fight wildfires. With climate change, this is becoming more and more of an issue.

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now. 

OpenAI Announces IPO; China Bows Wind Powered Underwater AI Data Center; FCC Lifts Deadline on Amazon Leo Satellites, Judge Blocks Trump’s $100 Grand H-1B Visa Fee 

Posted: June 9, 2026 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , | Leave a comment

OpenAI, makers of ChatGPT, has filed for its initial public offering. Benzinga.com reports that the AI firm decided to announce as the information was going to be leaked anyway. OpenAI plans on evolving ChatGPT into something of a ‘Superapp,’ which they say “…will transcend the actual surface…  what we’re building towards is where you have your own personal agent that is capable of helping you… across everything in your life, be it personally or at work.” OpenAI plans to give the US government early access to its new AI models. President Trump, meanwhile, has said that the government will take stakes in the AI companies like OpenAI. 

China has launched the first wind-powered underwater data center. According to the guardian.com, the 24 megawatt facility is a joint project of HiCloud Technology and China Communications Construction, a company owned by the Chinese government. The plant is 6 miles off the coast of Shanghai, and is powered by a nearby offshore wind farm. The natural cooling from the ocean saves a vast amount of power. On land, anywhere between 25% and 40% of the total electrical demand for AI data centers comes from the need to pipe chilled water around the servers to keep them from overheating. This setup solves the problem of data centers syphoning off water for family and agriculture use, as well as that of the centers pushing up power costs for consumers. It should be noted that Microsoft did a pilot underwater data center project off the coast of Scotland in 2018, but that project stalled out. China admits the US firm was first. “Microsoft was earlier in proving the concept, while China moved further on commercial deployment because it was able to bring together market demand, industrial capability, marine engineering and policy support more quickly into a commercial project,” said Dr Hanjiang Dong of Hong Kong Polytechnic University. 

The clock had been ticking, but now the FCC has kicked the can down the road for Amazon. Arstechnica.com says that a deadline had been coming for Amazon to get half its system of Leo satellites in orbit by the end of this July, but now has given them until July 30th, 2029 to get half of its some 3232 satellites in orbit. Right now, Amazon is the only company that can realistically get satellites in orbit to supply a broadband service that competes with SpaceX’s Starlink satellite network. The FCC considers it it the public interest to have a competitor for Starlink.

A court has blocked Trump’s $100,000 H-1B visa fee scheme. Thenextweb.com reports that US District Judge Leo Sorokin ruled yesterday that the fee is an unlawful tax and must be vacated. The court noted that Congress has not delegated the power to levy such a tax to the executive branch. It already costs several thousand dollars to get an H-1B visa, which is generally paid by a sponsoring employer. The tech industry and other sectors have used these visas for years to bring in cheaper engineers and scientists. At present, there is a cap of 85,000 visas per year. 

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now. 

Prime Day (Week) in June; User-Replaceable Batteries; Microsoft Surface Ultra-Their 1st MacBook Pro Competitor; Florida Sues OpenAI & Sam Altman

Posted: June 2, 2026 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Amazon has moved summer Prime Day up a month to June…June 23rd, specifically. Now, zd.com notes that Prime ‘Day’ has ballooned to 4 days…up from two the last few years. Amazon has Prime Big Deal Days in October, and Big Spring Sales in March…but the summer sale is their biggest. They will offer Big Deal Drops at 12 am, 8 am, and 1 pm Pacific…with generally up to 50% off on brands like LG, Ninja, and Stanley…as well as others. Amazon will also have 60% off on Alexa devices, and up to 65% off on Kindle, Echo, Ring, Fire TV, Blink, and eero devices. 

The US government has been very hands-off on this, but the Europeans have been steaming right along, passing regulations on electronic devices that benefit consumers. Think of USB charging ports..which even made Apple give up their proprietary charging ports. Now, Theverge.com says the EU is stepping things up on reparability. New rules go into effect on February 18th, 2027. Users have to be able to remove and replace batteries with basic tools, or specialized tools that are provided with the product for free, and compatible spare batteries must be sold for at least five years. The tool requirement means swapping the battery doesn’t need to be as simple as popping off a clip-on cover, but can’t be much more complicated than removing a few standard screws. The regulation applies to headphones, e-readers, portable game consoles, laptops, and more. If it’s got a battery, it’s probably covered. There are two huge exceptions. Smartphones and tablets. They are covered by other laws. As a lot of phones are water resistant or even waterproof, the requirements only mandate that batteries must be replaceable by professional repair shops…but the batteries must be available to them to do the repairs. This is a real win against the ‘planned obsolescence’ the tech gadget manufacturers have borrowed from auto makers.

With the New Nvidia RTX Spark we just reported on, the upcoming Microsoft Laptop Ultra, which bows later this year, is expected to be Redmond’s first laptops that will really be able to compete with Apple’s MacBook Pro line. According to arstechnica.com, the new Ultra will be priced above the other laptops Microsoft sells, and will have plenty of accessory slots…USB-A, USB-C, HDMI, and also an SD card slot and headphone jack. For comparison, the MacBook Pro I write these reports on is several years old. It has Apple silicon, and besides a charging port, it rocks 3 USB-C ports, headphone jack, HDMI port, and and SD card slot. I use 3-4 of these slots regularly, so I think Microsoft has something here…all the slots you need, and a very powerful processing system that will run AI apps right on the machine. For those that are in the PC world and don’t love Macs, but need the power…the Ultra may be just the thing. 

Florida is suing OpenAI and Sam Altman personally over the safety of ChatGPT. Thenextweb.com reports that there will likely be other states that will be suing OpenAI and Altman. This suit accuses OpenAI of violating product liability laws, engaging in deceptive trade practices, and releasing ChatGPT while knowing it was harmful to users. The state is seeking civil penalties and a court order blocking the company from collecting data from children under 13 without parental consent. This is the first government action that names Altman personally…seeking to hold him liable for what Florida calls “reckless and willful conduct” and “utter disregard for the risk to human life.”  Stay tuned, there will be more of these filed by other states. 

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.

Amazon-Class Action Over No Tariff Refunds; Upgraded Siri May Launch in Beta; Next Wearable May Be Hairclip; Meta-Virtual Writing Coming to Meta-Ray Bans

Posted: May 18, 2026 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

A class action suit is going after Amazon, demanding that the online giant refund money to users that was collected under the now held illegal Trump tariffs. Engadget.com reports that the suit…which was filed Friday in Seattle, accuses Amazon of profiting from “hundreds of millions of dollars in unlawful tariff costs.” Amazon is legally entitled to recover the costs after the Supreme Court decision ruling the taxes illegal. As of last week, companies started to receive money back from the US government. The suit says Amazon hasn’t engaged in this refund process, since it’s looking to “curry favor with Trump by allowing the federal government to retain the funds.” The suit continues, saying “Amazon has not returned any portion of those costs it passed on to consumers, and it has no intention of doing so. It has, in short, generated and retained a windfall from unlawful government action, and consumers — not Amazon — are the ones left paying for it.” Shipping companies such as FedEx, UPS, and DHL have already stated the process of getting refunds, and will pass the proceeds on to affected users. 

After a couple years’ delay, the new, improved Siri may just launch in beta. Apple’s WWDC is coming up very soon, and the new Siri will certainly be an important component. According to appleinsider.com, the beta version will be able to be switched off, so you can use good old…make that bad old…regular Siri. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman said the on-off button will be part of the iOS 27 release initially. Earlier this year, we reported that Apple was partnering with Google to use Gemini to bulk up the sorry Siri. Apparently, it is taking more time to get this done. I have ranted enough here about how terrible Siri is compared to Google, Alexa, and other assistants…so I suppose I will turn new Siri on…even in beta, it can’t be worse than what Apple has now. 

It’s just sometimes fun to cover some of the hairbrained ideas that turn into improbable devices. This is one of those. Androidpolice.com says that a startup called Computer Angel has a prototype of a new wearable. It’s less obtrusive at capturing video than Meta’s Ray-Bans or the defunct Google Glass. Are you ready? It’s the DC Mini hair clip camera. While this looks to be a way to bring tech to more women…which is great…it is a long way from being anything but dorky. The hair clip camera is about a half inch thick, and 3 inches long. It not only looks silly, but with that size, it probably will be sliding down the hair constantly, and will need to be moved back in place. It is being sold as a ’stylish alternative to smart glasses.’ Well, no. It’s a dorky alternative. The startup is touting is as a storytelling device, to document your life…so-called personal vlogging. We’ll let you know if this thing makes it out of development. Computer Angel feels like it will be a big hit in China. 

New features are rolling out to all users of Meta’s Ray-Ban smart glasses.They have been available in a developer preview. Theverge.com reports that you will now be able to write messages with just hand gestures. You do need to use the included so-called ‘neural’ wist band. Another feature being dropped is what Meta calls ‘Display Recording. With that, you’ll be able to capture a video that combines what you’re seeing in the lens display, what you see in the real world, and the audio around you. Walking directions are now available “throughout the entire US” and in “major international cities like London, Paris, Rome, and more.” And live captions will be available on WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and with voice messages in Instagram DMs.

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now.

FCC Reviews ABC Licenses After Kimmel Jokes; EU Finds Meta Not Doing Enough to Keep Kids From Facebook and Instagram; OpenAI Models Now on Amazon Web Services; Supremes Look Split over ‘Geofence’ Search Warrants

Posted: April 29, 2026 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

For decades, radio and TV stations have worked hard to avoid violating FCC rules, wanting to avoid fines, or the most serious penalty…cancellation of station licenses. Now, the FCC under this Trump administration seems to have become a tool of vengeance for the president…as is also true of the Department of Justice. That department just filed what looks like a very thin and really frivolous indictment of James Comey for a picture of sea shells spelling out 86 47. You are probably all aware of that Now, arstechnica.com reports that The FCC is reviewing licenses of ABC TV stations over jokes Jimmy Kimmel told that offended and enraged Donald Trump and his wife Melania. In one, Kimmel called Melania an ‘expectant widow.’ It is notable that none of the ABC stations’ licenses are even up for renewal until 2028, and that the legal process for revoking licenses is so difficult that it’s been described as nearly impossible. But the FCC today issued an order instructing ABC owner Disney to file early license renewal applications for all of its licensed TV stations by May 28. An ABC probe could examine DEI, Kimmel’s comedy, and other shows. Carr threatened ABC station licenses in September 2025, alleging at the time that airing Kimmel’s show might violate the rarely enforced news distortion policy. A group of former FCC chairs and commissioners asked a federal appeals court to compel the FCC to respond to a November 2025 petition to repeal the agency’s 1960s-era news distortion policy. It is such nonsense for this FCC to apply this to what is widely known as a comedy show, and not a news broadcast. 

The European Commission has found that Meta is breaching Europe’s Digital Services act  rules by failing to prevent children under 13 from using Facebook and Instagram, According to theverge.com, this is a preliminary ruling, but after a 2 year investigation, the Commission found that Meta hasn’t put into place adequate measures to keep kids under 13 from creating accounts on Facebook and Instagram. Minors can simply enter a false birth date when signing up for Facebook and Instagram to falsely declare they’re over 13 years old — the minimum age outlined in Meta’s own terms and conditions — with no effective controls to verify their real age. If Meta doesn’t take corrective action, they could be slammed with fines of up to $12 billion.

Well, that didn’t take long. No sooner did OpenAI cut an amended deal with Microsoft to use other tech companies’ servers, their models have appeared on Amazon Web Services! CNBC.com says A new service called Amazon Bedrock Managed Agents powered by OpenAI will enable the construction of sophisticated customized agents that incorporate memory of previous interactions….this according to both companies. As we previously reported, Microsoft will continue to have non-exclusive licenses to all of OpenAI products through 2032. 

The US Supreme Court heard arguments this week in a case dealing with the government’s use of so-called “geofence” search warrants. Law enforcement and federal agents use these warrants to compel tech companies, like Google, to turn over information about which of its billions of users were in a certain place and time based on their phone’s location. TechCrunch.com reports that those opposed…virtually all civil liberties advocates have argued that geofence warrants are inherently overbroad and unconstitutional as they return information about people who are nearby yet have no connection to an alleged incident. My own view is that they are both over broad and void for vagueness…as they don’t name persons or premises with specificity…as and old judge taught me in law school. Some of the more justices seem ok with casting such a wide net, so it could be that they will allow further erosion of the 4th Amendment…which is pretty much like a lace doily already. Google has moved to store location data on peoples’ devices instead of their servers. Apple already does keep much personal info in a secure enclave on the user’s phone. Just be aware if this case is upheld, you could be grabbed as an innocent bystander who was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now. 

Cook Retiring, Ternus Will Helm Apple; Anthropic Gets Another $5 Billion from Amazon; CA Accuses Amazon of Price Fixing; OpenAI Releases Codex for Macs

Posted: April 21, 2026 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Big Apple news dropped yesterday afternoon…Tim Cook is retiring as CEO, and Senior VP of hardware engineering John Ternus will take over that big chair. Engadget.com reports that this will happen September 1st. Cook will segue into an Executive Chairman role, so won’t completely disappear from the Apple universe. This is notable in one way as Ternus is 50…the same age as Cook when he took the reins in Cupertino, AND…Ternus worked for Steve Jobs at Apple. He will now be the last CEO of Apple who has had a direct connection to Steve Jobs. Ternus has kept a low profile, although he was featured in the rollout of the new MacBook Neo. He is credited with turning around the Macs and also had a big hand in Apple’s AirPods and Watch. 

Anthropic has announced that Amazon will pump another $5 billion into the company, bringing their total investment to $13 billion. There could be another $20 billion later, depending on benchmarks. According to tehcrunch.com, Anthropic has agreed to spend over $100 billion on Amazon Web Services over then next 10 years, getting them a new 5 gigawatts of computing capacity to train and run Claude. The deal specifically covers Amazon Trainium2 through Trainium4 chips, too…even though the 4 chip isn’t yet available. With ChatGPT now worth some $730 billion, venture capitalists have been offering Anthropic additional capital that would bring Anthropic’s valuation to $800 billion or more!

In other Amazon news, California is accusing Amazon of price fixing. Gizmodo.com says California Attorney General Rob Bonta is accusing the online giant of pressuring brands to increase prices for their products on other retailers’ websites so that Amazon would have a more competitive price. The allegations, which were made in a filing that is part of California’s ongoing antitrust lawsuit against Amazon and was unsealed on Monday, lay out a scheme in which Amazon used the leverage of its massive e-commerce platform to pressure companies into raising prices with other retailers or face punishment for failing to do so. According to the attorney general, Amazon demands a vendor “fix,” “correct,” “increase,” “raise,” or “look into” the prices of products on other retailers’ websites. The expectation is that the vendor will ultimately raise its prices everywhere but Amazon. To get that outcome, Amazon would allegedly threaten to punish the brand by restricting their advertising, demanding they pay compensation, or removing their products from Amazon altogether.

OpenAI has released Codex Chronicle for Macs. 9to5mac.com notes that this is something of a ‘super app.’ Right now, it is especially made for agentic coding. ChatGPT remains the more general AI chatbot app. The idea of Chronicle is to make Codex more aware of context without repeating details or being super specific with each prompt. It builds on memory, and that lets Codex learn from conversation history for context. It also can learn from recent screen context. In terms of privacy, Chronicle can be paused or disabled at any time from Codex’s menu bar app. However, OpenAI warns that Chronicle consumes rate limits quickly based on its current design.

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now. 

Amazon Merges with Sat Provider Globalstar; Google Chrome AI ‘Skills’; OpenAI Buys Hiro-AI Personal Finance Startup; Lucid Gets New CEO & Cash Infusion 

Posted: April 14, 2026 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Amazon is merging with satellite internet provider Globalstar. Engadget.com reports that this move should at some muscle to Amazon’s rival to Starlink, Leo. Globalstar is the satellite company behind Apple’s emergency SOS feature on iPhones and Apple Watches. Interestingly, Apple already owns 20% of Globalstar. Amazon and Apple have agreed Leo will “power satellite services for supported iPhone and Apple Watch models.” And that this support will continue as Leo’s network evolves, as well as collaborating “with Apple on future satellite services using Amazon Leo’s expanded satellite network.” Leo’s own direct to device service won’t start until 2028…the deal actually closes next year. 

Google Chrome has a new generative AI feature, and this is pretty cool. It’s called Skills. I know, really original name. At any rate, according to wired.com, Skills  are repeatable AI prompts you can run in Chrome with a keyboard shortcut. That sort of feature ought to attract a lot more people to AI who don’t want to learn or mess with trying to write and refine prompts. You can set up your own Skill using Gemini, Google’s chatbot, through the Chrome browser, or you can choose from the premade Skills Google released alongside this feature. The more than 50 presets in the Skills library cover a range of prompts that instruct Gemini to summarize YouTube videos, maximize your protein intake via recipe substitutions, or evaluate job listings. If you want to try out Skills, open up the Gemini in Chrome sidebar by clicking on the “Ask Gemini” sparkle icon in the upper-right corner of the screen. Then, type a forward slash in the prompt box to pick which Skill you would like to run. Have fun!

OpenAI has bought an AI personal finance startup called Hiro. Thenextweb.com notes that all 10 of the startup’s staff will join OpenAI. Hiro has built an app that offers AI-powered financial planning for consumers: users entered information about their salary, debts, and monthly costs, and the platform modeled different what-if scenarios to support financial decision-making. 

Silvio Napoli is the new CEO of Lucid Motors, the EV maker, after a year long search. TechCrunch.com reports that Napoli has mainly managed at Schindler Group, which makes elevators and escalators. Hey…they’re electric! Napoli will join the board. In another related story, Lucid has gotten another $200 million cash infusion from Uber, which will buy up to 25,000 of Lucid’s upcoming mid-sized vehicles to use as robotaxis. The majority owner of Lucid, Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund, has also kicked in by buying another $550 million of the company’s shares. Lucid’s upcoming mid sized vehicle will sell in the $50,000 range, a much larger pool of customers than the $100,000 or really $150,000 plus subset of buyers. 

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now!

Amazon Testing New Fast Delivery Setup; Folding iPhone-May be $2400; Landlord Rent Setting Tool Gets Gutted; Amazon Web Services- $50 Billion to Build Government AI Infrastructure 

Posted: November 25, 2025 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Amazon is trialing a new rapid delivery idea in Seattle. Geekwire.com reports that Amazon is using a closed Amazon Fresh site as a mini warehouse for  most popular and fast moving items. It is something like a convenience store…open 24/7 but not to you. It functions as a pick up site for  Amazon Flex drivers. Amazon employees will fulfill online orders…picking and bagging items from a stock room, then putting them on shelves for Flex drivers to pick up and deliver to the nearby neighborhoods within hours of ordering. Flex drivers are independent contractors who deliver packages using their own vehicles, signing up for delivery blocks through the Amazon Flex app. The program has often been described as Uber for package delivery. 

We’ve heard price rumors ranging from the $1900 plus level up to $2500 for the upcoming folding iPhone. Now, according to mac rumors.com, analyst Arthur Liao is postulating it will be $2399. Noted analyst Ming-Chi Kuo had previously said it would land at between $2000 and $2500, and Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman has predicted it will be somewhere around $2000. The foldable ‌iPhone‌ will be expensive because of the premium components that Apple plans to use. The display panel and hinge will push pricing toward the upper end of market expectations, Fubon Research suggests. One truly big deal is that the iPhone is expected to be the first folder with no crease at all in the middle of the screen. Fubon Research sees Apple selling about 5.4 million of the folders in 2026. That is a pretty modest number compared to 228 million total iPhones sold in 2024, the last full year we have figures for. 

A controversial tool used by landlords to set rental prices has had its ears pinned back after a settlement with the Department of Justice. The DOJ said in a press release that the proposed settlement “would help restore free market competition in rental markets for millions of American renters.” The antitrust settlement is with RealPage. For years since the pandemic started, rental prices outpaced inflation, and the DOJ suspected that RealPage was the dominant force driving a market that never favored renters. Under the settlement, RealPage admits no wrongdoing, and doesn’t pay a fine. Arstechnica.com notes that if the court approves the deal, however, RealPage has agreed to update its software so that rival landlords cannot access “competitively sensitive information to determine rental prices in runtime operation.” Additionally, RealPage will “remove or redesign features that limited price decreases or aligned pricing between competing users of the software.” And the company will “cooperate in the United States’ lawsuit against property management companies that have used its software.”

Amazon is spending an eye-watering $50 billion to build out AI infrastructure for the US government. Techcrunch.com reports that it will be a ‘high performance computing infrastructure’ built specially for the feds. It will expand government agency access to AWS AI services. Amazon will break ground on the data centers in 2026. Amazon has long supplied cloud infrastructure to the US government…starting back in 2011. 

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ’Technified’ for now. 

Amazon to Lay Off 30,000 Corporate Staffers; Apple & Microsoft Now Worth More than $4 Billion; Musk’s Grokipedia is Live Now; Feds Investigating Tesla Mad Max Mode

Posted: October 28, 2025 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Amazon is getting ready to lay off up to 30,000 corporate employees. Geekwire.com reports that the reduction is to reduce expenses, and it is intended to compensate for what Amazon terms overhiring during the pandemic. Emails are going out today. The company hasn’t put out a workforce number lately, but had about 350,000 employees in early 2023. At that number, this cut would be about 8.5% of the workforce. The cuts will be across logistics, payments, video games, and Amazon Web Services.

As the tech sector continues to dominate much of the financial markets, two tech titans have passed another milestone…one that is hard to wrap your head around. According to techcrunch.com, both Apple and Microsoft are now worth over $4 trillion bucks. It’s the first time Apple has surpassed the $4 trillion mark. Microsoft did it in July, then dropped a bit…but is now over $4 trillion.The only other company that is worth that much right now is Nvidia…but Alphabet…the parent company of Google, is getting a bit close. It is at $3.25 billion. Wouldn’t you love to have the interest on that amount of money for just a few minutes? An hour at 4.26% interest would add up to $19.4 million!

Along with a number of other right-leaning folks, Elon Musk has railed against Wikipedia as being too liberal and too ‘woke.’ Now, he’s unveiled Grokipedia. Gizmodo.com notes that it looks like Wikipedia with dark mode turned on. The site claims to have just under 900,000 articles. Wikipedia, on the other hand, has about 7 million English articles. A quick take: Overall, Grokipedia gives off the impression of a site where topics and people that Elon Musk likes or supports are presented without framings that cast any doubt on their validity, and those he dislikes are presented with criticism front-and-center. If that’s your cup of tea, have at Grockipedia.

The National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration is looking into Tesla’s Full Self Driving Mad Max mode. Engadget.com reports that Tesla says it offers “higher speeds and more frequent lane changes” than its Hurry speed profile. Apparently, it is a little too much like Mad Max…reports have it speeding, running red lights, and driving against the flow of traffic. Tesla has given the disparaging description ‘Sloth Mode’ to the regular, no hurry, follow the speed limit mode. 

I’m Clark Reid and you’re ‘Technified’ for now. 

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