In a move that prompted a fair amount of head-scratching, Facebook's plan to combat revenge porn involves people sending their nude pictures directly to Facebook. On Thursday, Facebook offered more details on how that process will work, at least in Australia, where it is being tested.
Our thought bubble: This still seems like it could backfire, but it isn't as crazy as it first sounded.
Jeremy Conrad, co-founder of hardware-focused VC firm Lemnos, is stepping down as general partner to launch a robotics company with a former Apple iPad engineer. He will remain a venture partner with the San Francisco-based firm, which also plans to invest in Conrad's startup.
Robotics renaissance: "There's no better time to start a robotics company," explains Conrad, citing cheaper sensor prices and wider Internet connectivity.
Ramy Adeeb, most recently known for founding digital bookmarking service Snip.it, is quietly raising a $75 million venture capital fund called 1984 Ventures, according to an SEC filing.
Background: Adeeb founded Snip.it, which lets users collect news articles, photos, videos and other links into online collections in 2011. After raising money from firms like True Ventures and Khosla Ventures, he sold the company to Yahoo for $10 million in 2013 as part of the tech giant's acqui-hire spree. Prior to that, Adeeb spent seven years at TellMe Networks before a stint at Khosla Ventures as a principal.
"Zuckerberg nears end of US tour, wants to boost small biz," by AP Tech Writer Barbara Ortutay. "Facebook says more than 70 million small businesses use its service. Only 6 million of them advertise."
What's next: After a pilot in Detroit, Zuckerberg announced a new program, Community Boost, to help small businesses and "bolster individual technical skills both on and off Facebook" The group "will visit 30 U.S. cities next year and offer ... free training on a range of digital skills ... coding, building websites and ... using Facebook for their business." (Axios' Sara Fischer has more on the announcement here.)
We all know that people have become addicted to their smart phones — and now Silicon Valley insiders say this is exactly what the tech giants wanted. Founding Facebook president Sean Parker told Mike Allen yesterday that he has become "something of a conscientious objector" to social media, joining the small group of insider voices exposing and criticizing Silicon Valley's operations.
The big picture: The shiny newness and mystery of Silicon Valley is wearing off. Inner operations of the most powerful tech giants are being exposed — Facebook pitches partisan data to help election advertisers, foreign actors can easily manipulate Twitter, and now developers have always intentionally designed apps to keep our brains addicted. The insiders who are speaking up are turning on the tech world they helped create — as if they're trying to clear their guilty consciences.
UK Home Secretary Amber Rudd said that even as ISIS and its terror cells suffer military and territorial defeats in the Middle East, "their ability to upload and re-upload" propaganda "has remained consistent."
Why it matters: Rudd, who has criticized tech companies in the past for not doing enough to collaborate with governments to access encrypted material in the wake of terrorism events, said tech companies can and should play a role in helping governments around the world to police terrorist content. That includes helping to identify that content and take it down in time to help thwart attacks on our soil. "What we have now is an online arms race. And we need our best technical experts to step up to the challenge."
