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Microsoft makes boring pay dividends, Trump says he’ll use JEDI mind tricks to examine a Pentagon bid, Orlando ends a controversial facial-recognition test with Amazon, and your weekend long read suggestions. Sponsors Castro Fireside Links: Microsoft beats on earnings, stock ticks up (CNBC) Trump says he’s looking into a Pentagon cloud contract for Amazon or Microsoft because ‘we’re getting tremendous complaints’ (CNBC) Republican lawmakers urge Trump not to delay the $10 billion Pentagon cloud contract Amazon and Microsoft want (CNBC) Orlando cancels Amazon Rekognition program, capping 15 months of glitches and controversy (Orlando Weekly) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: 50 Days to the Moon (Fast Company) Is It Okay to Laugh at Florida Man? (Washington Post) TikTok Stars Are Preparing to Take Over the Internet (The Atlantic) Grindr Wanted To Make The World Better For Queer People. Then A Chinese Gaming Company Bought It. (Buzzfeed) Andy Ngo Has The Newest New Media Career. It’s Made Him A Victim And A St

Netflix's growth disappoints, but Stranger Things have happened. The Democratic National Committee tells candidates to avoid the photo-aging simulator FaceApp. Don't expect driverless cars any time soon, despite the hype. Can 5G networks give you cancer? No, no they can't. Finally, go ahead! Start that podcast. Don't listen to the naysayers. Sponsors: SVB.com/next Castro Links: Netflix subscription adds disappoint, stock drops (Variety) DNC warns candidates to stop using FaceApp, citing Russian danger (CNN) FaceApp developer describes privacy policy (TechCrunch) Tesla's plans for self-driving cars worry those who know best (Washington Post) Self-driving cars remains "way in the future" (New York Times) The 5G Health Hazard That Isn't (New York Times) Have we hit peak podcast? (New York Times) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Google says Project Dragonfly is dead, Apple might be producing its own original podcasts, the Switch regular gets a refresh, and two long-time interesting companies: Neuralink and Boston Dynamics are ready for the spotlight. Sponsors: Castro SVB.com/next Links: Antitrust: Commission opens investigation into possible anti-competitive conduct of Amazon (The European Commission) A Google VP Told The US Senate The Company Has “Terminated” The Chinese Search App Dragonfly (BuzzFeed News) Apple Plans to Bankroll Original Podcasts to Fend Off Rivals (Bloomberg) New Nintendo Switch model will have much better battery life (Polygon) Microsoft wins multibillion-dollar cloud deal from AT&T (CNBC) Elon Musk’s Neuralink Takes Baby Steps to Wiring Brains to the Internet (NYTimes) BOSTON DYNAMICS’ ROBOTS ARE PREPARING TO LEAVE THE LAB — IS THE WORLD READY? (The Verge) Education publisher Pearson to phase out print textbooks (BBC News) Get a podcast classified of your own. CLASSIFIED: Should users be allowed to gain val

Facebook explains Libra to Congress, Amazon might be next in the EU’s woodshed, Google might be next in Trump’s woodshed, another Tesla lineup shakeup, a couple of interesting raises and Microsoft opens Windows up to all your digital assistants. Sponsors: SVB.com/next Firesideconf.com/ride Links: Senators aren’t sold on Facebook’s Libra project (The Verge) Highlights from Facebook's Libra Senate hearing (TechCrunch) Facebook Cryptocurrency Plans Have a Problem: Facebook’s Reputation (NYTimes) Amazon in EU Crosshairs as Vestager Fights Big Tech to the End (Bloomberg) Trump threatens to ‘take a look’ at Google for China ties (Washington Post) Silicon Valley’s Right Wing Is Angry And Punching Back (BuzzFeed News) Tesla updates pricing and options across lineup, discontinues several variants (Electrek) Newsletter platform Substack raises $15.3M round led by a16z (TechCrunch) Patreon raises $60M Series D, targets international growth and more customization (TechCrunch) Subscribe to the ad-free feed! Order up y

The FTC is readying a record fine for Facebook, but is it just a parking ticket? Qualcomm refreshes the Snapdragon lineup, governments want to make money off of selling your data also, Microsoft Office quietly winning in mobile, and the Air Force warns: do NOT storm Area 51! Sponsors: Rhone.com/ride Promocode RIDE for 20% off! Firesideconf.com/ride Links: FTC Approves Roughly $5 Billion Facebook Settlement (WSJ) YouTube's Trampled Foes Plot Antitrust Revenge (Bloomberg) Qualcomm's Snapdragon 855 Plus chip is built for gaming and VR (Engadget) I-Team: Florida DMV sells your personal information to private companies, marketing firms (ABC Action News) Microsoft Word for Android has been installed more than 1 billion times (The Verge) Microsoft Word passes 1 billion installs on Play Store (Android Police) Who Needs Amazon HQ2? Not New York Real Estate’s Tech Boom (WSJ) AT&T to auto block fraud robocalls for free, but blocking spam calls will cost extra (ZDNet) Facebook-Driven Area 51 Storming May Be C

Remember that longread from Friday? I knew lots of physical retail was under threat from ecommcerce, but do we have to worry about the grocery store too? As I said, this was something I’ve never considered. So read the piece because I got in touch with the author, Joe Fassler to see what the story is. And yes, there are larger societal and cultural and even cyclical shifts imperiling the traditional grocery market, but yes, it’s tech and ecommerce too. A deeper dive into all this, plus at look at the star of Joe’s piece, the grocery store architect who is trying to blow up the grocery in order to save it. The man who’s going to save your neighborhood grocery store (The New Food Economy) Sponsors: CognitoHQ.com Stamps.com, click on the Microphone at the TOP of the homepage and type in RIDE Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Remember the whole Superhuman kerfuffle of the last week or so? Mike Davidson wrote a blog post calling out some shady stuff in the Superhuman email product, all of silicon valley debated it, Superhuman walked things back a bit, and actually, I didn’t mention this, but Mike had a second post about this, which was even more in depth an eloquent than the first one. So, I reached out to Mike to talk about this whole thing, not because I wanted to re-litigate it, but because I wanted to poke at… well, what I said last week… what does this whole debate say about the discourse in tech at the moment? Mike's 2nd post on this that I didn't mention on the podcast Sponsors: Wix.com/podcast Capterra.com/ride Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Amazon is developing a high-end Echo speaker, the PC market’s not dead yet, Postmates is having second thoughts about going public and might shop itself around instead, and of course, the weekend longreads suggestions. Sponsors: Metalab.co Lightstream.com/ride Links: Amazon Plans High-End Echo, Ramps Up Work on Alexa Home Robot (Bloomberg) Gartner: PC shipments grew 1.5% in Q2 2019 (VentureBeat) Ford-VW alliance expands to include autonomous and electric vehicles (The Verge) Postmates has explored a sale to Uber or DoorDash instead of going public (Recode) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: The man who’s going to save your neighborhood grocery store (The New Food Economy) Disney Won. Now What? (BuzzFeed News) You’re Hired. Now Wear This Headset to Learn the Job. (NYTimes) New Coke Didn’t Fail. It Was Murdered. (Mother Jones) ROAD-TRIPPING WITH THE AMAZON NOMADS (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apple quietly brings the hammer down on Zoom’s hidden web server, Apple also turns off Walkie Talkie in order to fix it, Google Assistant is listening in on you also, Amazon Music is a streaming dark-horse and dang is Bird losing a lot of money. Sponsors: SVB.com/next Metalab.co Links: Apple has pushed a silent Mac update to remove hidden Zoom web server (TechCrunch) Apple disables Walkie Talkie app due to vulnerability that could allow iPhone eavesdropping (TechCrunch) WHO’S LISTENING WHEN YOU TALK TO YOUR GOOGLE ASSISTANT? (Wired) OneTrust raised $200M at a $1.3B valuation to help organizations navigate online privacy rules (TechCrunch) Amazon becomes fastest-growing music steaming service (Financial Times) Hit by Big Loss, Bird Seeks $300M in New Funds (The Information) Blockstack wins first-ever SEC approval for a token offering under Reg A+ listing (The Block) 2020 iPhone to reduce TrueDepth notch, full-screen display rumored for 2021 (Apple Insider) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit mega

The Nintendo Switch Lite is a smaller cheaper Switch that doesn’t “switch,” HBO Max is ready for the streaming thunderdome, is Slack falling behind Microsoft Teams, and an effort to close a funny tax loophole for crypto investors. Sponsors: SVB.com/next Metalab.co Links: Nintendo announces a handheld Nintendo Switch Lite for $199 (TechCrunch) HBO Max will be the exclusive streaming home of 'Friends' (Engadget) BET Streaming Service Taps Netflix Alum as Leader (Exclusive) (The Hollywood Reporter) AT&T says it will automatically block robocalls ‘in the coming months’ (The Verge) Microsoft might crush Slack like Facebook crushed Snapchat (ReCode) Snapchat announces new shows from Serena Williams, Arnold Schwarzenegger and others (TechCrunch) Next on Facebook’s Shopping List: Acquisitions to Beef Up Gaming (The Information) Bill to provide “safe harbor” for crypto fork taxpayers reintroduced in Congress (The Block) Buy a podcast classified ad at ridehome.info/classifieds TODAY'S CLASSIFIED: The Fortnite Chall

Apple culls the MacBook herd, YouTube returns to FireTV, a weird zero day exploit in Zoom’s video conferencing app, Elon Musk shakes up his autopilot team, and Stranger Things 3 breaks records for Netflix. Sponsors: SVB.com/next Metalab.co YouTube.com/jacksontaylortv Links: Apple stops selling 12-inch MacBook and previous generation MacBook Air (9to5Mac) YouTube is back on the Fire TV, and Prime Video launches on Chromecast starting today (The Verge) Instagram will test a feature that allows users to shadow ban their bullies (The Verge) Inside Instagram's War on Bullying (Time) Zoom Zero Day: 4+ Million Webcams & maybe an RCE? Just get them to visit your website! (InfoSec Write-Ups) More than 1,000 Android apps harvest data even after you deny permissions (CNET) Frustrated Musk Shakes Up Autopilot Team (The Information) If you'll pay more, new Uber Comfort offers Quiet Rides (TechCrunch) Spotify Lite is now officially out for 36 markets around the world (Engadget) ‘Stranger Things 3’ Breaks Netfli

Your driver’s license is already being used for facial recognition surveillance, VC investment in Chinese startups is plummeting, I have an answer to my question around cities paying ransom to hackers, and if this podcast thing goes away, I know my next hustle: professional dungeon master. Sponsors: Metalab.co Legacybox.com/ride Links: FBI, ICE find state driver’s license photos are a gold mine for facial-recognition searches (The Washington Post) Apple tests Face ID and Touch ID sign-in for iCloud․com on iOS 13 and macOS Catalina betas (9to5Mac) China's Venture Capital Boom Shows Signs of Turning Into a Bust (Bloomberg) This Chrome extension lets you disguise Netflix as a Hangout to slack off at work (The Verge) Aircraft lands itself truly autonomously for the first time (Engadget) A City Paid a Hefty Ransom to Hackers. But Its Pains Are Far From Over. (NYTimes) Now Some Families Are Hiring Coaches to Help Them Raise Phone-Free Children (NYTimes) The Rise of the Professional Dungeon Master (Bloomberg Busi

Part Two of the legendary Gary Kildall Story... Sponsors: Tiny.website CognitoHQ.com Subscribe to the ad-free feed!   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Part One of the legendary Gary Kildall Story...  Sponsors: CognitoHQ.com Tiny.website Subscribe to the Ad-Free Feed! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A Superhuman mea culpa, no mea culpa but Apple might be ready to tacitly admit the butterfly keyboards were a mistake, inside Walmart’s turf battles over ecommerce, HQ Trivia lays off staff, and the weekend longreads suggestions. Sponsors: CognitoHQ.com Tiny.website Firesideconf.com/ride Links: Read Statuses (Superhuman) Kuo: Apple to include new scissor switch keyboard in 2019 MacBook Air and 2020 MacBook Pro (9to5Mac) HQ Trivia lays off ~20% as it preps subscriptions (TechCrunch) Inside the conflict at Walmart that’s threatening its high-stakes race with Amazon (Recode) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: The Real Cloud Wars: The $6 Billion Battle Over The Future Of Weather Forecasting (Forbes) Catalyst deep dive: The future of Mac software according to Apple and devs (Ars Technica) Android Q(&A): Android Engineers take us on a deep dive of Android Q (Ars Technica) How To Game Google To Make Negative Results Disappear (BuzzFeed News) Hayflick limit (QZ) Books Recommendations: The Dog Stars Orphan X Subsc

Telsa sold a lot more Model 3’s than anyone expected, more signs of tech manufacturing fleeing China, Uber’s new Dine-In service is kinda brilliant, and have you seen the whole tech world arguing over Superhuman? Sponsors: TinyCapital.com Instacart.com Promocode RIDE at checkout. Links: Tesla sold a lot more Model 3’s than anyone expected in latest quarter (Digital Trends) HP, Dell and Microsoft join electronics exodus from China (Nikkei Asian Review) House lawmakers officially ask Facebook to put Libra cryptocurrency project on hold (The Verge) Amazon Alexa keeps your data with no expiration date, and shares it too (CNET) Uber Eats invades restaurants with Dine-In option. (TechCrunch) Superhuman is Spying on You (Mike Industries) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We know when the Galaxy Note 10 is coming, we don’t know why Microsoft is teasing Windows 1.0, Nvidia refreshes the RTX line, meditation app Calm is finding success in an interesting way, and Loon is about to have its first big test. Sponsors: FiresideConf.com/ride TinyCapital.com Links: Samsung confirms next Unpacked event will be Aug. 7 in New York (CNET) Microsoft is teasing Windows 1.0, and everyone is confused (Engadget) Microsoft finally details its plans for Windows 10 19H2 (WindowsCentral) Nvidia refreshes RTX line: “Super” GPUs add performance at same MSRP (ArsTechnica) Tim Cook disputes 'absurd' reports about Jony Ive's departure from Apple (NBCNews) Calm raises $27M to McConaughey you to sleep (TechCrunch) PlayStation Vue raises prices by $5 per month, following its recent content deals (TechCrunch) Google Stadia's Data Cap Challenge Will Be Addressed By ISPs, Says Phil Harrison (GameSpot) Google internet balloon spinoff Loon still looking for its wings (Reuters) The Ad Free Premium Feed Is HER

Was Jony Ive burned out at Apple or was he burned out BY Apple? Again, Roku as the quiet mega-player in the streaming wars, how TikTok is spending its way to ubiquity (on the backs of those it wants to supplant) and how tech is revolutionizing Archeology. Sponsors: FiresideConf.com/ride Pantheon.io/ride Links: Jony Ive Is Leaving Apple, but His Departure Started Long Ago (WSJ) Roku Will Soon Have 70% More OTT Devices in Global Streaming Market Than Next Closest Competitor (Multichannel News) Streaming Overload? Nielsen Report Finds Average Viewer Takes 7 Minutes To Pick What To Watch; Just One-Third Bother To Check Menu (Deadline) TikTok’s Videos Are Goofy. Its Strategy to Dominate Social Media Is Serious. (WSJ) RealWear AR Closes Series B, Total Funding Over $100M (Forbes) Exclusive: Intel launches blockbuster auction for its mobile portfolio (iam-media.com) New electric cars sold in Europe must be fitted with noise-making device (TechSpot) How Cutting-Edge Tech Is Empowering Ancient Archaeology (O

I didn’t cover it, but you might have noticed that this week, bitcoin did indeed cross that magical $10,000 mark, in fact, got to $13,000 a coin only to flash crash back down again almost to $10,000. But look, seemingly the crypto spring is upon us and I was just curious as to why, so I asked Aaron Lammer, co-host of the only crypto podcast I listen to, CoinTalk to try to find out what is behind this rally. TLDR, it’s a little bit market cycles and a little bit Facebook Libra. Sponsors: HappyCog.com/ride Wix.com/podcast Subscribe to the CoinTalk podcast! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is it really different this time? Is the regulatory hammer about to come down on Silicon Valley? Matt Stoller is a fellow at the Open Markets Institute; he’s writing a book on the history of Monopoly power; and he has direct experience with this stuff. He was a Senior Policy Advisor and Budget Analyst to the Senate Budget Committee. He also worked in the U.S. House of Representatives on financial services policy, including Dodd-Frank, the Federal Reserve, and the foreclosure crisis. How is monopoly power different (or not) in the era of Big Tech? Sponsors: CognitoHQ.com GetKeySmart.com and use the promocode techmeme Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices