I like Digital Reader editor Nate Hoffelder. He is one of the few bloggers about publishing who doesn’t suck up to the industry, nor does he particularly gild the lily. He basically believes that books are great, publishing is probably doomed and that writing is really important. That’s why I was happy that he surfaced and debunked the claims of Chip McGregor, an agent who… Read More
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The IEEE unearthed a fascinating 2013 study that showed that a cute dog tail does more than just amuse — it can communicate. The study, created by Ashish Singh and James Young, posited that a Roomba with a tail attached could communicate quickly and easily with a human — a fast, excited wag means things are going OK, while a slow side to side motion shows disdain. “Any… Read More
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WhatsApp could put the brakes on Snapchat’s international growth with today’s launch of WhatsApp Status, a new tab for sharing decorated photos, videos and GIFs that disappear after 24 hours. It’s another Facebook-owned Snapchat Stories copycat, but the twist is that it’s end-to-end encrypted like WhatsApp messaging. Read More
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Last year, Mobile World Congress surpassed the 100,000 attendance mark, according to its parent body, the GSMA, and this year’s event shows no sign of slowing down. Companies have been teasing their big reveals since January, with some far more willing to spill the beans than others in an attempt to drum up hype before the conference. Here’s what you can expect next week from the… Read More
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Monzo, one of a number of new digital-only, or so-called “challenger,” banks in the U.K. aiming to re-invent the current account, is closing in on new Series C funding, which could be announced as early as this week. According to multiple sources, U.S.-based Thrive Capital is leading the round. Read More
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Project CSX was a nice enough idea: Get the smartphone community engaged and excited and maybe even gather some good, outside-the-box ideas for mobile devices. In a sense, the project was ZTE’s attempt to foster the sort of community excitement we’ve seen around young companies like OnePlus. It started off well enough — but then things sort of fell apart at the seams. Read More
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Deep in a rural village in India outside the city of Jhansi, children play on dirt roads where goats and cows roam. The humble and colorful homes have mud floors, and women collect drinking water from wells. All the sights and sounds are quintessential aspects of the region, with the exception of one feature — the use of smartphones to save lives. Read More
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Flying from SF to LA every week sucks, and so Sriram Krishnan is leaving a big financial opportunity at Snap to ditch the commute. The former Facebook Audience Network executive spent the last year running Snap’s Ads API and platform, and now he’s leaving. The move was reported in Recode today, saying “The timing here isn’t great for Snap”. But that immediately… Read More
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Snap wants to prove to investors in its upcoming IPO that Spectacles can earn money for its business, not just be a brand stunt. So today, Snap begins selling its video-recording sunglasses Spectacles openly online for $129.99 in the U.S. at Spectacles.com. 
Former Uber site reliability engineer Susan Fowler accused the company of rampant sexual harassment and human resources negligence in a blog post published today. It’s the latest in a series of events that point to serious questions about Uber’s company culture.