TECH CORNER
Here’s a weekly roundup of what’s happening in the tech world.
By Colin Smith
A weekly roundup of global and local tech news and events:
An Uber vehicle with a lidar autonomous sensor on the roof (Photo- Timtempleton).
– Uber Halts Self Driving Car Program After Pedestrian Death
Uber has halted its self-driving car program in all locations after a crash resulted in the death of woman in Tempe, Arizona. The woman was walking across the street in a crosswalk at night when she was reportedly struck and killed. No passengers were in the vehicle at the time.
Mark Zuckerberg f8 Keynote (Photo – Brian Solis).
– Another Scandal Hits Facebook
Facebook suspended Cambridge Analytica, a data analysis firm that consulted for the Trump campaign. Cambridge Analytica had violated Facebook rules when it collected info on 50 million Americans…and lied to Facebook about deleting all of it.
Cambride Analytics worked with a professor to set up a personality quiz app that was granted access to users’ profiles (friends, likes, etc.) in the name of academic research. Cambridge Analytica then collected the data to use for hyper-targeted ads.
Facebook tried to clean up the mess, saying, “This was unequivocally not a data breach.” But this seems like one mess too many for legislators. Senator Amy Klobuchar tweeted, “This is a major breach that must be investigated…Mark Zuckerberg needs to testify before the Senate Judiciary.” (Read More).
Broadcom headquarters (Photo – Coolcaesar).
– White House Blocks Broadcom Deal, Hints At Technology Race With China
The White House has blocked a $117 billion dollar takeover of Qualcomm by Singapore-based Broadcomm due to national security concerns. The 5G technology is considered one of tech’s biggest arms races, charting the future for high-speed cellular technology. The move addresses fears that China might pressure companies like Broadcomm to hand over American engineered technologies in order to retain access to massive Chinese Markets. (Read More).
A screen grab of Cora, Kitty Hawk’s prototype air taxi (Photo – YouTube).
– Kitty Hawk’s Self-Flying Planes Cleared for Takeoff in New Zealand
New Zealand wants to be known for something else: the Silicon Valley of self-flying taxis. And it got off to a strong start, unveiling a collaboration with Kitty Hawk, a startup backed by Alphabet CEO Larry Page. In a video and a blog post, the company introduced Cora, an electric, self-flying taxi that could become commercialized within five years. (Read More).
Fitbit Ionic with Moment clock face (Photo – DReifGalaxyM31).
– Fitbit takes a second swing at smartwatches with the $199 Versa
After disappointing sales of the Ionic smartwatch, Fitbit has released yet another smartwatch called the FItbit Versa. Priced more modestly at $199, the Vera is now in pre-order. The features have been paired down, without LTE or built-in GPS. The Versa still has a heart rate monitor, runs on the Pebble-inspired Fitbit OS, and is waterproofed for swimming. It comes preloaded with Fitbit Coach, which offers a handful of guided exercise routines and automatically time them as you train. (Read More).
Spotify (Photo – downloadsource.fr).
– Music streaming company Spotify will begin trading shares April 3
Spotify, the music streaming app that has taken the world by storm is going public. Controlling 36% of the music streaming market, the company will begin trading its shares on the New York Stock Exchange on April 3. (Read More).
Local tech events
THIS WEEK'S HIGHLIGHT: - Service and Personal Robots: Cuddly or Creepy? Join the conversation at Caltech ($)(Read More).
- Thinkful: HTML/CSS Crash Course – 03/20/2018 – 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm
- WordPress Pasadena Developer Edition – 03/20/2018 – 7:00 pm
- Pasadena Startup Grind Hosts Peggy Kelley – 03/22/2018 – 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm
- The von Kármán Lecture Series – 03/22/2018 – 7:00 pm
- Friday Coffee Meetup: Patricia Huang & Albert Chu – 03/23/2018 – 8:15 am – 9:30 am
- The von Kármán Lecture Series – 03/23/2018 – 7:00 pm
- Service and Personal Robots – Cuddly or Creepy? – 03/24/2018 – 9:00 am – 11:30 am
- Year of Science: Dr. John Mulchaey – 03/24/2018 – 11:00 am – 1:00 pm
Colin Smith is the CEO and founder of Terminus Agency, a Pasadena based boutique web development and SEO agency with over a decade of experience in content production, design, and web development. Colin is passionate about helping businesses build strategies to grow profits on the web.
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