Axios

Synthetic biology startups raised some $3 billion through the first half of 2020, up from $1.9 billion for all of 2019, as the field brings the science of engineering to the art of life.

The big picture: Synthetic biologists are gradually learning how to program the code of life the way that computer experts have learned to program machines. If they can succeed — and if the public accepts their work — synthetic biology stands to fundamentally transform how we live.

Google formally introduced its fall crop of hardware Wednesday, including two new Pixel phones, a new Nest smart speaker and an updated Chromecast, although details of the new products had already leaked widely online.

Why it matters: The announcements give Google some new products heading into the holiday season as it looks to compete with the latest offerings from Amazon, Roku, Apple and others.

Palantir Technologies today went public at an initial valuation of more than $21 billion, giving investors a chance to buy into one of Silicon Valley's most talked-about tech companies.

Axios Re:Cap dives into Palantir's mission and controversies with company co-founder Joe Lonsdale.

Experts are seeing malicious groups, both foreign and domestic, shift to more advanced campaigns of disinformation than they had in 2016, Nina Jankowicz, disinformation fellow at the Wilson Center, said Wednesday at an Axios virtual event.

Why it matters: The method, called "disinformation laundering," targets false ideas or conspiracy theories that could become legitimized through media or public figures and politicians.

Some 70% of cyberattacks by cyber criminals are now phishing-related, according to a new report from Microsoft, which also found that attacks on critical infrastructure represent just a small slice of state-backed hacking efforts.

Why it matters: In the past, the report notes, "cybercriminals focused on malware attacks" to compromise their targets. The shift reflects cyber criminals’ skill at quickly adapting, in this case by pivoting to tried-and-true human engineering to trick people into handing over credentials.

The technology to produce fake video and audio has become sophisticated enough to make doctored or wholly fabricated images and sound impossible for the public to detect, Hany Farid, professor at the University of California, Berkeley, Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences & School of Information, said Wednesday at an Axios virtual event.

The big picture: Deepfakes, or computer-synthesized images, audio or video, have caused experts to worry about Silicon Valley's ability to meet the challenge of tracking and stopping these AI-generated clips once they become widespread.

A number of leading children's brands, including Lego and Sesame Workshop, are among the investors pouring $50 million into BEGiN, the New York startup behind the early-learning program HOMER.

Why it matters: Thus far, HOMER has focused on reading apps, but with the new funding and partnerships, the company says it will expand to a full early-learning program combining digital, physical and in-person experiences, tapping some of its investors for both content and distribution.

In recent years, phones have been looking increasingly similar, and so have laptops. Over the last year or so, though, there's been a rise in experimentation, with foldable displays and multi-screen devices coming first to smartphones and now to laptops as well.

Why it matters: New ideas could lead us to whatever is next for computers and phones, but could also point the way to even bigger revolutions, such as the prospect of augmented reality glasses or VR headsets becoming mainstream computing tools.

Apple and Epic Games filed a joint motion on Tuesday requesting that an eventual trial be handled by the judge overseeing the case, rather than a jury.

The big picture: Though a trial is a long way off, the contours of the case are beginning to take shape. At a hearing on Monday, the federal judge hearing the matter established a rough timeline, with a trial possibly taking place in July.