Apple and Google said on Wednesday that they have finished the initial version of their exposure notification technology and are making it available to health authorities to build their apps. Android and iOS are both getting updates today to enable the technology.
Why it matters: The Bluetooth-based technology is designed to augment human contact tracing and offer a way for people to find out when someone they have been in close proximity with has tested positive for COVID-19.
Google Cloud has landed a deal to help the Defense Department detect, protect against, and respond to cyber threats, Axios has learned. The deal, with the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), is in the "seven figures," Google said, declining to be more specific.
Why it matters: It's a far cry from the controversial $10 billion JEDI deal, but Google hopes the win will lead to a broader deal down the road, as the Pentagon seeks to securely work with multiple public cloud providers.
Big tech companies, including Facebook and Google, have made much of their efforts to help small businesses hurting from the pandemic. But the same programs that make life easier for those businesses today could end up separating them from their customers and ultimately hand even more power over to the tech giants.
Why it matters: Lockdowns imposed to prevent the spread of the coronavirus have devastated America's small businesses, and the fate of any economic recovery following the crisis will hang on whether they can be revived.
Google will no longer develop new artificial intelligence tools to help oil and gas companies extract crude, the company announced Tuesday.
Why it matters: The tech giant is breaking away from Microsoft and Amazon, both of which have also developed AI in recent years to expedite oil production and make services more efficient for companies like Chevron and GE Oil & Gas. Google's 2018 contract with Total was in place as of February, a Total spokesperson confirmed to Axios at the time.
Facebook is launching a new online shopping marketplace called Facebook Shops, CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced Tuesday.
Why it matters: To date, most Facebook commerce has taken place between users via its Marketplace tab, a Craigslist-like feature, but Facebook Shops is at the center of its push to create an e-commerce platform for businesses.
The long-simmering debate over encryption has come to a boil once more, as Attorney General Bill Barr again attacked Apple on the issue and a leading Senate encryption critic now has law enforcement looking to get into his own device.
The big picture: Although they're not viable in all cases, there are a number of ways for law enforcement to get suspects' data. That, however, hasn't stopped pressure on companies like Apple to build backdoors to let law enforcement access encrypted devices.
The Federal Communications Commission will vote next month on a plan to get U.S. 5G networks built out faster by clarifying rules on updating existing wireless infrastructure.
The big picture: The plan builds on past action the agency has taken over the objections of cities. The FCC's GOP majority says rule changes, including preempting cities in some cases, will make it quicker, cheaper and easier for wireless carriers to build out their 5G networks.
The payment tech company Stripe is funding four carbon dioxide removal projects as part of its plan announced last year, which advocates had called a pioneering corporate foray into these nascent markets.
Why it matters: Pulling CO2 out of the atmosphere — not only cutting new emissions — will be an important tool for limiting global temperature rise, a major UN-led scientific report concluded in late 2018.
The New York Times will no longer use 3rd-party data to target ads come 2021, executives tell Axios, and it is building out a proprietary first-party data platform.
Why it matters: Third-party data, which is collected from consumers on other websites, is being phased out of the ad ecosystem because it's not considered privacy-friendly.
TheSkimm is planning to launch a full-fledged digital membership model later this summer called "Teal Memb’rship," Axios has learned.
Why it matters: The company has been affected by the coronavirus crisis, with 20% staff layoffs a few weeks ago. Like many media companies, its heavy reliance on advertising revenue left it exposed to the economic downturn.
A large majority of Americans say they're likely to cooperate with contact tracing and isolation efforts — as long as that doesn't involve handing over their cellphone location data, according to the latest installment of the Axios-Ipsos Coronavirus Index.
Why it matters: Basing contact tracing efforts around voluntary cellphone programs is only effective if people are willing to use those programs — which Americans generally aren't, as we reported last week.
The coronavirus pandemic has upended the adult content industry, pushing thousands of new people to present adult performances online to make money while also creating more ways for viewers seeking intimacy while in lockdown to make personal connections with performers online.
Why it matters: The result has been a shift in power from the big porn producers and distributors to thousands of individual performers and models. Executives at several adult websites tell Axios that they're seeing explosive growth in part because the industry is moving to more individual engagement as a result of the pandemic.
