Austin-based NXP Semiconductor said it would likely lose $100 million thanks to a month-long shutdown in the wake of Texas' cold-weather-driven electricity-grid collapse, the Austin American-Statesman reports.
Why it matters: A global chip shortage — stemming from pandemic-related supply-chain disruptions and climate-change-related disasters — has hobbled U.S. auto manufacturing and could threaten the vigor of a post-pandemic economic recovery.
A year of pandemic living drove U.S. consumers to spend an additional $183 billion online, according to a new study from Adobe released Monday. That's roughly the amount they spent during e-commerce's peak November-December holiday shopping season last year.
The big picture: Adobe is predicting 2021's total e-commerce sales to land between $850 billion and $930 billion, with the figure topping a trillion for the first time in 2022. That's compared to $813 billion in 2020, which was a big leap up from $573 billion in 2019, the last pre-pandemic calendar year.
Tinder, along with its parent company Match Group, is working with a non-profit called Garbo to help customers find out if their potential dating partner has a criminal record.
Why it matters: Most people know very little about the person they have just met online. Garbo allows people to find out whether someone they are interacting with has a criminal record or other court actions, such as a restraining order.
While the Biden administration has been slow to appoint the key decision makers at agencies overseeing technology issues, a handful of people are on the inside track to lead them.
Between the lines: By and large, these likely appointees do not have direct ties to Big Tech companies and have advocated for tougher measures against the industry. Many also previously served in the Obama administration and fall in the progressive camp.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Monday that Facebook is building a tool to connect people to information about where and when to get a COVID-19 vaccine.
The big picture: Facebook has been blamed for the spread of anti-vaccination misinformation during the COVID-19 crisis and beyond.
Digital payments giant Stripe said Sunday that it's raised $600 million in new funding at a $95 billion valuation.
Why it matters: This makes Stripe the most highly-valued U.S. "unicorn," topping SpaceX. It's also a massive increase over the $36 billion valuation Stripe secured last April.
