Techmeme Ride Home

It’s increasingly looking like we might be approaching a tipping point in terms of driverless ride hailing becoming a reality. Twitter will let you set alerts for your name, among other things. Did Elon Musk order everyone back to the office to encourage some people to quit? What to expect from Monday’s WWDC kickoff. And, of course, the weekend longreads suggestions. Links: Cruise can finally charge for driverless robotaxi rides in San Francisco (TechCrunch) Twitter is building a tool for keyword alerts, in case you need more Twitter notifications (The Verge) Elon Musk asks Tesla execs to ‘pause all hiring,’ cut 10% of staff, amid ‘super bad feeling about economy’ (Electrek) Apple Plans to Make the iPad More Like a Laptop and Less Like a Phone (Bloomberg) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: Record Labels Dig Their Own Grave. And the Shovel is Called TikTok. (The Honest Broker) Columbus, Ohio is quickly becoming the Midwest’s tech hub (TechCrunch) The Internet Encyclopedia of Memes (Every.to) Look

Sheryl Sandberg is leaving Meta after 14 years. Who is Javier Olivan, who is replacing her as Meta’s COO? I’ll let you know. Why the feds cracking down on NFT fraud could have big implications. And Google’s doing that thing Google loves to do with its messaging apps. Again. Sponsors: ClickUp.com promocode ride for 15% off Links: Facebook parent Meta COO Sheryl Sandberg is stepping down (CNBC) Sandberg’s Advertising Empire Leaves a Complicated Legacy (Bloomberg) Javier Olivan, who’s replacing Sheryl Sandberg at Meta, built his career on international expansion (CNBC) US Charges Ex-OpenSea Exec With NFT Insider Trading (CoinDesk) Google is combining Meet and Duo into a single app for voice and video calls (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Surface Laptop Go gets a refresh. The Supreme Court has blocked that Texas social media law. For now. Twitter is really gonna take TweetDeck away from us? Really? And the really interesting new Android phone that attempts to strip every Googly thing it can, out of the Android experience. Sponsors: Work Check Podcast Links: Microsoft’s compact Surface Laptop Go updated with 11th Gen Intel processor (The Verge) High Court Halts Texas Law Targeting Social Media Platforms (2) (Bloomberg Law) Twitter shutting down TweetDeck for Mac on July 1, here are alternatives to the web (9to5Mac) TikTok is testing a ‘clear mode’ for a distraction-free scrolling experience (TechCrunch) Fidelity Slashes Reddit, Stripe Valuations After Tech Rout (Bloomberg) The Murena One shows exactly how hard it is to de-Google your smartphone (The Verge) Apple’s Safari browser now has more than 1 billion users (AtlasVPN) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The new fastest computer in the world sees the crown return to the US. Will we not see Sony’s next-gen VR rig until next year? Ride hailing fares are reaching record highs as the players attempt to pivot to profitability. A new ride hailing entrant that lets you haggle on price. And a look at how Paramount is trying to go it alone in the streaming wars. Sponsors: AltoIRA.com/techmeme Links: AMD-Powered Frontier Supercomputer Breaks the Exascale Barrier, Now Fastest in the World (Tom's Hardware) Kuo: PlayStation VR2 Mass Production To Start H2 2022 (UploadVR) China Is Leading the Global Decline in Venture Capital Deals (Bloomberg) Uber and Lyft’s New Road: Fewer Drivers, Thrifty Riders and Jittery Investors (WSJ) Nothing could slow inDriver’s rise from Siberian startup to global Uber competitor. Then Russia invaded Ukraine (Rest Of World) Can Paramount Go It Alone? (NYTimes) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A checkin with Rownd about what it's like to close a round right now, and what actually being on stage at YC Demo Day is like. To book at meeting with Robert at Rownd: https://calendly.com/rob-rownd/mutant-podcast-army Rownd helps companies register and retain more users through frictionless sign-in across all of their websites and apps, with a simple code snippet. We let our customers choose how and where authentication happens, killing the static login page forever.  Rownd link: https://rownd.io Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Microsoft is creating an HDMI dongle to turn any tv or monitor into an Xbox gaming console. Now the lawsuits are popping off in the whole Elon/Twitter thing. If even high profile startups like Substack are having trouble raising rounds, what does that mean for run of the mill startups? And, of course, the weekend longreads suggestions. Sponsors: HubSpot.com Masterworks.io/ride Links: Exclusive: Microsoft continues to iterate on an Xbox cloud streaming device codenamed 'Keystone' (Windows Central) Twitter shareholders sue Elon Musk and Twitter over chaotic deal (CNBC) Twitter director Egon Durban won’t leave the board after shareholders voted to boot him (CNBC) Substack Drops Fund-Raising Efforts as Market Sours (NYTimes) Weekend Longreads Suggestions The big new idea for making self-driving cars that can go anywhere (MIT Technology Review) In India’s Mobile-Payments Boom, Even Beggars Get QR Codes (WSJ) The Collison Brothers Built Stripe Into A $95 Billion Unicorn With Eye-Popping Financia

Apple is attempting to fend off a unionization movement by… paying people more. That Broadcom/VMware deal is real. You can now pay close to $1000 for a Gucci Oura Ring. After a decade of declines, EV battery prices are going up. And the last payphone in New York City is gone. Sponsors: AltoIRA.com/techmeme Smith.ai promocode techmeme for $100 off signup Links: Apple Boosting Pay Budget for Workers Amid Tight Labor Market (WSJ) Leaked Audio: Apple VP Gives Apple Store Workers Anti-Union Speech (Motherboard) Broadcom is acquiring VMware for $61 billion (The Verge) Oura collaborated with Gucci to make an 18 carat gold smart ring (Engadget) Apple to Keep iPhone Production Flat as Market Grows Tougher (Bloomberg) Snowflake stock falls as executives forecast a narrower margin than expected (CNBC) Twitter jumps after Musk increases commitment in takeover bid to $33.5 billion, in talks for other funding (CNBC) After a Decade of Declines, EV Battery Costs Are To Rise 14% This Year (The Electric/T

Seth Green has lost a film role… for his Ape. Cause he lost his Ape to a fishing scam. a16z launches their biggest ever crypto fund. Headlines from Microsoft’s Build conference. The e-bike that helps Ukraine take out Russian tanks. And a desktop grade Windows PC you could put in your pocket. Sponsors: Linkedin.com/ride Composer.trade/ride Links: Someone Stole Seth Green's Bored Ape, Which Was Supposed To Star In His New Show (Buzzfeed News) Andreessen Horowitz bets on crypto ‘golden era’ with new $4.5bn fund (FT) Microsoft’s Power Platform can now build websites and turn images into apps (XDA Developers) Microsoft brings support for Arm-based AI chips to Windows (TechCrunch) Microsoft Dev Box is a cloud-powered developer workstation (The Verge) DuckDuckGo browser allows Microsoft trackers due to search agreement (Bleeping Computer) Do Kwon's plan to rebirth the Terra blockchain gets approved (The Block) Terra Collapse Triggers $83 Billion Decentralized Finance Slump (Bloomberg) Ukraine I

Google Research says to Open AI: “Hold my beer.” They’ve announced a new AI-based text-to-image generator to rival DALL-E 2. Is the shocking earnings warning from Snap a result of Apple’s ATT changes or is this indicative of the broader tech slowdown? Google’s street view turns 15 with some new bells and whistles. And does Apple REALLY want you to repair your own iPhone, or no? Sponsors: CreditKarma.com Work Check Podcast Links: OpenAI: Look at our awesome image generator! Google: Hold my Shiba Inu (TechCrunch) Zoom pops 16% on first-quarter earnings beat and strong guidance (CNBC) Snap plunges 30% after CEO warns company will miss revenue and earnings estimates, slow hiring (CNBC) Google is testing a smaller, modular Street View camera system (Engadget) APPLE SHIPPED ME A 79-POUND IPHONE REPAIR KIT TO FIX A 1.1-OUNCE BATTERY (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is a big mergers and acquisition wave about to hit the tech industry. I make the case from several different angles. AMD releases its next generation Ryzen chips. And a super interesting new startup in the Web 3 space. Is it game? Is it a fitness app? Can you earn money for moving? Yes. Sponsors: Zapier.com/ride LCX.com/ride Links: Broadcom in Talks to Acquire Cloud Company VMware (Bloomberg) Report: EA Looking To Sell Or Merge (Kotaku) Big Tech Is Getting Clobbered on Wall Street. It’s a Good Time for Them. (NYTimes) AMD Ryzen 7000 Announced (AnandTech) 'Move-to-earn' Solana app StepN is latest crypto gaming craze (TechCrunch) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Friend of the show, Chris Dixon (@cdixon) of a16z's crypto and web3 investing initiatives comes on to talk about the recent report: 2022 State of Crypto. We got into all the things, using our favorite lens of tech history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A new high end Snapdragon chip. The Apple AR/VR headset has been demoed, but only 9 people got to see it in action. A YC backed startup is facing lawsuits related to the whole UST blowup. The feds will no longer go after good faith, white hat hackers. And, of course, the weekend longreads suggestions. Sponsors: Composer.trade/ride AthleticGreens.com/ride Links: Qualcomm announces Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1, for when flagship isn’t flagship enough (The Verge) Apple Shows AR/VR Headset to Board in Sign of Progress on Key Project (Bloomberg) Stablegains Faces Lawsuit After Losing $44M on UST (CryptoBriefing) Coinbase Slashes Costs, Freezes Hiring Amid Crypto Crash (The Information) A SpaceX flight attendant said Elon Musk exposed himself and propositioned her for sex, documents show. The company paid $250,000 for her silence. (Insider) Elon Musk’s Twitter Deal Is Proceeding, Not ‘On Hold,’ Executives Tell Staff (Bloomberg) DOJ Announces It Won’t Prosecute White Hat Security Researchers (Motherboar

A code red alert about vulnerabilities in VMware products. TikTok has a clever new program to crowdsource ad content from TikTok users. Oh, and they’re getting into games. FTX gets into regular old stock trading. The dreaded down rounds have arrived. And are there more Airbnb’s available in NYC right now, than there are apartments for rent? Sponsors: Policygenius.com Superside.com/techmeme Links: 2 vulnerabilities with 9.8 severity ratings are under exploit. A 3rd looms (ArsTechnica) TikTok’s new ad product gives creators a chance to partner with marketers on branded content (TechCrunch) EXCLUSIVE TikTok plans big push into gaming, conducting tests in Vietnam -sources (Reuters) FTX US launching zero-commission stock trading (The Block) Defiant Chinese netizens skirt lockdown censorship using blockchain (Financial Times) SoftBank-Backed Fintech Giant Klarna Looks for New Funds at Lower Valuation (WSJ) New York Now Has More Airbnb Listings Than Apartments for Rent (Curbed) Link to tomorrow's

Apple is delaying its recent return to work policy indefinitely. If crypto mining is banned in China, how come it still the second biggest contributor to the global hashrate? Twitter’s board says it’s going to hold Elon’s feet to the fire. And the interesting raise for a startup looking to save encryption from quantum computing? Sponsors: LiveOuter.com/techmeme LCX.com/ride Links: Apple Delays Plan to Have Staff in Office Three Days a Week (Bloomberg) Apple Executive Who Left Over Return-to-Office Policy Joins Google AI Unit (Bloomberg) China Makes a Comeback in Bitcoin Mining Despite Government Ban (Bloomberg) Netflix Hit By Layoffs; About 150 Mostly U.S.-Based Employees Affected (Deadline) Acer Just Revealed External Monitors With Stereoscopic 3D, and I'm Dying to Try Them (Gizmodo) As Musk Tweets, Advisers Labor to Keep Twitter Deal on Track (Bloomberg) Elon Musk Does Not Care About Spam Bots (Matt Levine/Bloomberg) Cornami raises $68M to support quantum encryption (VentureBeat)

Now Elon says he can’t move forward with the deal until he gets solid answers from Twitter about the bot issue, even though, we have the paperwork of his original offer and there were no contingencies about bot numbers, and he totally could have written that into the deal. Will Apple use E Ink on their foldable device? Coinbase is slowing hiring, while Microsoft is boosting pay. And a big test of driver assist systems says they’re still not as reliable as we all hope they are. Sponsors: LCX.com/ride Links: Elon Musk Says Twitter Must Prove Bot Claims for $44 Billion Deal to Proceed (Bloomberg) Apple ‘testing’ foldable with secondary E Ink display, says analyst (The Verge) Apple Now Letting Developers Automatically Charge for Some Subscription Price Increases (MacRumors) Coinbase Expands Features, Allowing Some App Users to Access Ethereum-Based Dapps (CoinDesk) Coinbase slows hiring to help weather market downturn (The Block) Satya Nadella details Microsoft plan for ‘significant additional invest

Is Netflix about to experiment with actual live broadcasts? Where did all the bitcoin go in the whole Luna/UST backstop debacle? Spotify is testing NFTs. Uber Eats gets into the ankle robot delivery game. And the Texas law that has all of big social media platforms worried. Sponsors: AltoIRA.com/techmeme Superside.com/techmeme Links: Netflix Exploring Live Streaming For First Time; Plans To Roll Out For Unscripted Series & Stand-Up Specials (Deadline) LFG Reserves Dwindle to Just 313 Bitcoins From 80K After UST Crash (CoinDesk) Exclusive: Spotify tests letting artists promote NFTs on their profiles (MusicAlly) OpenSea is adding NFT copy detection and verification features (The Verge) Uber Eats pilots autonomous delivery with Serve Robotics, Motional (TechCrunch) Tech groups ask Supreme Court to block Texas social media law (Washington Post) Just How Incredibly Fucked Up Is Texas’ Social Media Content Moderation Law? (TechDirt) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adc

Techpocalypse Now! W/ @EricNewcomer @loganbartlett & @alexrkonrad How bad is it? How bad can it get? How do we get out of this? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ok. Are you sitting down? Would you believe me if I told you Elon Musk is giving signals that the Twitter deal might be off? Could we fix the whole stablecoin mess if we just turn it off and turn it back on again? The refugees from Meta’s failed crypto project have a new startup to call home. And, of course, the Weekend Longreads Suggestions™. Sponsors: Superside.com/techmeme Masterworks.io/ride Sponsors: Elon Musk says Twitter deal ‘on hold’ after spam / fake account report (The Verge) Terraform Again Halts Blockchain Behind UST Stablecoin, Luna (Bloomberg) Ex-Meta crypto chief David Marcus launches Bitcoin payments startup backed by a16z and Paradigm (TechCrunch) Weekend Longreads Suggestions™: Terra: To the Moon and Back (Not Boring) Why financial engineering has gone full circle with Terra (The Blind Spot) Tech workers in Latin America want to make Spanish the primary language of programming (Rest of World) The Thing That Makes It Work Means It Doesn’t (Garbage Day) Learn more

Other algorithmic stablecoins are teetering. Meta is cutting back, even when it comes to the Metaverse. Could an Instacart IPO lead us out of this darkness? Disney’s streaming business is holding up. For now. And the AR demo that was the most exciting thing from the I/O keynote yesterday. Sponsors: Ortto.com Links: Terra Crunch Shakes Foundations of Crypto Stablecoin Complex (Bloomberg) Exclusive: Facebook-owner Meta tells hardware staffers to prepare for cutbacks (Reuters) SoftBank Reports Its Biggest-Ever Full-Year Loss (WSJ) Instacart Files Confidentially for an IPO That Could Happen This Year (Bloomberg) Senate confirms Bedoya to FTC, establishing Democratic majority (The Verge) Disney+ Hits 137.7M Subscribers, Beating Wall Street Expectations in Streaming (The Hollywood Reporter) Google releases Android 13 beta 2 with finer privacy controls and improved Material You (Neowin) Google Glass’s successor teased at I/O (TechCrunch) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/

All the headlines from Google’s I/O keynote this afternoon. The stablecoin fiasco has gotten rapidly worse. More carnage in tech stocks. Is Apple shifting to USB C for the iPhone at long last? And pour one out for the iPod, the product and brand that very much kicked off our modern era of gadgetry. Sponsors: Superside.com/techmeme HubSpot.com Links: Google Maps bringing a new ‘immersive view’ of select cities, Live View’s AR for other apps (9to5Google) Google’s new ‘multisearch’ features hint towards an AR glasses future (TechCrunch) Google will let you talk to Assistant on the Nest Hub Max just by looking at the screen (The Verge) Google announces Pixel 6a powered by Tensor processor for $449 (9to5Google) Google gives us our first glimpse of the Pixel 7 (Android Police) Google unveils the Pixel Buds Pro (9to5Google) Google previews the Pixel Watch, coming this fall with Pixel 7  (9to5Google) Google will release a Pixel Tablet… in 2023 (TechCrunch) As Luna holders watch the token slide,