Daniel M. Tellep, Engineer Who Steered Lockheed’s Growth, Dies at 89
A pioneer of aerospace and missile systems, he rose to chief executive, then initiated the Lockheed-Martin merger that formed the world’s la...
Home / Archive for December 2020
The Biggest Trends of TikTok 2020
Business, entertainment, news, activism and social connection will never be the same.
Microsoft Says Russian Hackers Viewed Some of Its Source Code
The hackers gained more access than the company previously revealed, though the attackers were unable to modify code or access emails.
‘Ratatouille,’ the Musical: How This TikTok Creation Came Together
We talked to the Broadway stars behind a virtual performance of the animated film. Inspiration started with quirky TikTok segments circulati...
How Lin Qi's Poisoning Death Shocked China
The “billionaire millennial” Lin Qi was working with Netflix and the “Game of Thrones” creators to bring a Chinese best seller to the screen...
FarmVille Once Took Over Facebook. Now Everything Is FarmVille.
The game, a phenomenon a decade ago, is shutting down on Thursday. But its legacy — for better and for worse — carries beyond gaming.
German Automakers Are Charged Up and Ready to Take on Tesla
As Tesla completes a factory in Berlin, Mercedes-Benz and Audi are introducing electric cars in bids to defend their dominance of the luxury...
Amazon Buys Wondery as Podcasting Race Continues
The deal, valued at $300 million, is the latest in a string of acquisitions as streaming platforms expand beyond music and video.
The 2020 Good Tech Awards
This year, technology firms big and small stepped up to help with the Covid-19 pandemic and other thorny challenges.
Cryptocurrency Start-Up Underpaid Women and Black Employees, Data Shows
An analysis of internal pay data at the San Francisco company Coinbase shows disparities that were much larger than those in the tech indust...
Flawed Facial Recognition Leads To Arrest and Jail for New Jersey Man
A New Jersey man was accused of shoplifting and trying to hit an officer with a car. He is the third known Black man to be wrongfully arrest...
Life Without Amazon (Well, Almost)
For concerned customers, avoiding one of the world’s largest retailers and web service providers is proving harder than expected.
The Lasting Lessons of John Conway’s Game of Life
Fifty years on, the mathematician’s best known (and, to him, least favorite) creation confirms that “uncertainty is the only certainty.”
China Orders Ant Group to Revamp Its Business
The country’s central bank made clear its displeasure with the financial technology company, adding to the growing scrutiny of Chinese inter...
Robinhood’s 2020 Recaps Are a Meme for a Volatile Year
And you thought your Spotify Wrapped was a bummer.
An Oscar Winner Made a Khashoggi Documentary. Streaming Services Didn’t Want It.
Bryan Fogel’s examination of the killing of the Saudi dissident Jamal Khashoggi had trouble finding a home among the companies that can be p...
China Opens Antitrust Investigation Into Alibaba
Jack Ma and other entrepreneurs prospered under Beijing’s laissez-faire attitude toward the business side of the internet. The dynamic is sh...
Why China Turned Against Alibaba's Jack Ma
The Alibaba chief paid for pushing back against Beijing. But the shift in attitude also speaks to a growing wealth gap and diminished opport...
Why China Turned Against Jack Ma
The Alibaba chief paid for pushing back against Beijing. But the shift in attitude also speaks to a growing wealth gap and diminished opport...
Bollywood, Reeling From the Pandemic, Shifts to Streaming
India’s film industry, which relied on theatrical releases, is experimenting with going straight to streaming services such as Amazon, Netfl...
With Money, and Waste, China Fights for Chip Independence
Beijing’s drive to free itself from reliance on imported semiconductors has lifted start-ups and big firms alike. Some have flamed out. But ...
Pennsylvania man is accused of casting Trump vote for his dead mother.
The Trump campaign had circulated the mother’s name while arguing there was widespread voter fraud that helped propel Joseph R. Biden Jr. to...
What We Know About Clubhouse's App Influencer Program
Tech investors have warmed to the idea that being a content creator is a legitimate form of business.
The Tech That Was Fixed in 2020 and the Tech That Still Needs Fixing
From videoconferencing to fitness apps, the best tech helped us endure a hard year. But there were also low points.
Amazon Workers Near Vote on Joining Union at Alabama Warehouse
The election, expected early next year, will be one of the few times that employees of the e-commerce giant have had an opportunity to decid...
Pulse Oximeters and Coronavirus: Devices Have Higher Error Rate in Black Patients
A study showed that the devices, which measure oxygen levels in the blood, were three times more likely to give misleading readings in peopl...
How Retail Online Shops Are Trying Augmented Reality
Retailers are turning to the filtering technology popularized by Snapchat to add a real-world feel to online shopping.
Georgia Senate Runoff Targeted by Misinformation 'Superspreaders'
The conservative social media personalities that spread baseless rumors of election fraud are starting to focus on the races that will decid...
Our Digital Lives Drive a Brick-and-Mortar Boom in Data Centers
Developers and investors see more opportunities in commercial real estate as businesses and consumers gobble up more data.
A Race to Become the Tesla of Delivery Trucks and Vans
Investors are betting that small companies like Workhorse will help popularize electric commercial vehicles. And Tesla aims to extend its re...
Does the Shoe Fit? Try It On With Augmented Reality
Retailers are turning to the filtering technology popularized by Snapchat to add a real-world feel to online shopping.
Cryptocurrency Company Ripple Facing an S.E.C. Lawsuit
Ripple, the company behind the third most valuable digital token, is expecting to be sued by regulators as cryptocurrency values skyrocket.
Google Denies Antitrust Claims in Early Response to U.S. Lawsuit
The company said people use its services because they choose to, not because they lack alternatives.
The Mystery of the Disappearing Manuscripts
A phishing scam with unclear motive or payoff is targeting authors, agents and editors big and small, baffling the publishing industry.
The Antitrust Case Against Big Tech, Shaped by Tech Industry Exiles
Regulators are relying on insiders like Dina Srinivasan, who left her digital ad job after concluding that “Facebook and Google were going t...
Giving Billions Fast, MacKenzie Scott Upends Philanthropy
Through a streamlined operation, Ms. Scott has given away $6 billion this year, much of it to small charities and nonprofits.
Cyberpunk 2077 Was Supposed to Be the Biggest Video Game of the Year. What Happened?
Nearly a decade of hype led to a troubled release riddled with glitches, a livid fan base, refunds for potentially millions of players and a...
Athletes Leaving the Field Are Joining LinkedIn
The platform that put the “network” in “social network” has proved unexpectedly popular with jocks seeking second careers.
Flash Invaders: Another Game for a World on Pause
A free phone app encourages people to explore their surroundings, engage with art and connect across oceans.
How China Censored Covid-19
Thousands of internal directives and reports reveal how Chinese officials stage-managed what appeared online in the early days of the outbre...
The latest attacks on Raphael Warnock take a key phrase out of context.
When Mr. Warnock, a Georgia Senate candidate, quoted the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr.’s use of the phrase “God damn America,” it was part of ...
Zoom Executive Accused of Disrupting Calls at China’s Behest
U.S. prosecutors have charged a company executive based in China with conspiring to terminate online meetings about the Tiananmen Square mas...
Big Tech Should Try Radical Candor
As the power of Google, Apple and other tech giants grows, the companies should do more to explain how they work.
Sony Removes Cyberpunk 2077 From PlayStation Store After Complaints
The company said it would also offer refunds to gamers while the developer of the much-hyped title works to fix bugs and glitches.
More Hacking Attacks Found, Officials Warn of Risk to U.S. Government
Minutes after the government statement, President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. warned that his administration would impose “substantial costs” ...
No, there are no microchips in coronavirus vaccines.
Pfizer’s vaccine has 10 ingredients. None can track your location.
Google’s Legal Peril Grows in Face of Third Antitrust Suit
More than 30 states said that the company downplayed websites that let users search for information in specialized areas.
Microsoft’s Lessons for Google
What the Microsoft case teaches us about antitrust and the power of Big Tech today.
Axios Buys Charlotte Agenda, a Digital Start-Up, as Part of Push Into Local News
The site focuses on service journalism for North Carolina’s largest city. Now it has been scooped up in a deal valued at nearly $5 million a...
The Video Games That Got Us Through 2020
These are not necessarily the best games or the newest games. But these are the games that people across The New York Times played for hundr...
In a Big Year for Games, These Players Are Shifting the Culture
Designers, competitors, streamers, voice actors and labor activists have been working to make video games more inclusive.
The election is over, but Ron Johnson keeps promoting false claims of fraud.
At a Senate hearing, witnesses made legal arguments and claims that courts have called “meritless” or otherwise dismissed.
Facebook Takes the Gloves Off in Feud With Apple
The social network said it opposed changes that Apple was making to the tracking of apps and would provide information for an antitrust comp...
How I Blew My Bitcoin on Sushi
In 2013, this reporter spent 10 Bitcoin, worth $1,000 at the time, on a dinner for dozens of strangers in San Francisco. The owner of the re...
States Plan to Accuse Google of Illegal Monopoly in Online Ads
The Texas attorney general said a coming lawsuit would focus on the advertisements that generate the vast majority of the company’s profits....
Vaccines Need Effective Messengers
How health care professionals and internet companies can help in the fight against misinformation.
Alibaba's Software Can Find Uighur Faces, It Told China Clients
The website for the tech titan’s cloud business described facial recognition software that could detect members of a minority group whose pe...
MacKenzie Scott Announces $4.2 Billion More in Charitable Giving
“She’s disrupting the norms around billionaire philanthropy by moving quickly,” an expert on charities said.
How to Send a Recap of 2020 to Friends and Family
Even if you’ve never done a year-end newsletter, there’s still time to squeeze in a personalized message before the calendar flips the page....
From Voter Fraud to Vaccine Lies: Misinformation Peddlers Shift Gears
Election-related falsehoods have subsided, but misleading claims about the coronavirus vaccines are surging — often spread by the same peopl...
Could Congress overturn Biden’s Electoral College win? Possibly. Will it? No.
While the Constitution gives Congress the final say in the election, there is no chance that it will agree to overturn the results.
Facebook lifts ban on political ads for Georgia runoff elections.
The social network said it made the change because of the“importance of expressing voice and using our tools to reach voters.”
Online Shopping Is Amazing. Or Is It?
So many shower curtains! But with the endless choice comes the risk of being fooled.
Big Fines and Strict Rules Unveiled Against ‘Big Tech’ in Europe
European Union and British authorities released draft laws to halt the spread of harmful content and improve competition.
Tech Companies Shift Their Posture on a Legal Shield, Wary of Being Left Behind
Some of the industry’s critics are skeptical, however, about a new flexibility to changes to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.
So Jeffrey Toobin Had a Zoom Incident. What Now?
How a leading man of legal journalism lost his sweetest gig.
Tech Companies Shift Their Posture on a Legal Shield, Wary of Being Left Behind
Some of the industry’s critics are skeptical, however, about a new flexibility to changes to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.
Russian Hack, Undetected Since Spring, Upends Government Agencies
The Pentagon, intelligence agencies, nuclear labs and Fortune 500 companies use software that was found to have been compromised by Russian ...
Perez Hilton Was Banned From TikTok. Why?
The celebrity blogger was banned from TikTok on Saturday in a move he said was influenced by the app’s biggest stars.
Pinterest Settles Gender Discrimination Suit for $22.5 Million
The suit had been brought by Françoise Brougher, Pinterest’s former chief operating officer, who said she was fired after speaking up about ...
A TikTok Doctor Talks Coronavirus Vaccines
He brings the energy of popular short videos to cancer screenings and infection rates.
Cyberpunk 2077 Developer Apologizes and Offers Refund for Game Glitches
The company behind the long-awaited video game pledged to fix the bugs and crashes after complaints from players poured in over the weekend....
Here’s what went viral online this week.
As Covid-19 killed thousands, the biggest stories on social media were about immigration, K-pop and the death of a “Friday” star.
Google’s apps rash in a worldwide outage.
The tech giant’s popular services like Gmail, Hangouts, Meet and YouTube went offline, halting work across the globe.
Google Dominates Thanks to an Unrivaled View of the Web
As regulators seek ways to curb the company’s power, there is more focus on the vast index — hundreds of billion of web pages — behind its s...
Big Tech Turns Its Lobbyists Loose on Europe, Alarming Regulators
Silicon Valley is building a powerful influence industry in Brussels, which has “never seen this kind of money” spent this way.
Google Delays Return to Office and Eyes ‘Flexible Work Week’
The Silicon Valley company now plans to have employees return to the office in September. It will be different when they get there.
Vaccinated? Show Us Your App
Covid-19 health pass apps could help reopen businesses and restore the economy. They could also unfairly exclude people from travel and work...
WarnerMedia Chief Has Become a Movie Villain to Some in Hollywood
Jason Kilar’s decision to release 2021 movies simultaneously in theaters and on HBO Max has angered many in the industry, including some of ...
Roblox Delays I.P.O. Until Next Year
After witnessing head-turning results for the initial public offerings by Airbnb and DoorDash, the gaming company said it would wait to test...
Give Virus Alert Apps a Shot
These Google and Apple apps work and aren’t stealing all your data. More people should use them.
Norman Abramson, Pioneer Behind Wireless Networks, Dies at 88
His ALOHAnet, designed a half-century ago in Hawaii, was a precursor to the technology used in today’s smartphones and home WiFi networks.
The New Influencer Capital of America
After years of being passed over by brands and management companies despite driving the internet’s biggest trends, Black influencers in Atla...
Two Reasons the Texas Election Case Is Faulty
Texas has asked the Supreme Court to reverse the election results, but the case’s legal argument is flawed and its statistical assertion tha...
Coming Soon on Disney+: A Whole Lot of ‘Star Wars’
The company is working on 10 series from the “Star Wars” universe for its streaming service, which now has 87 million subscribers.
Experts Debate How To Tame Big Tech
A group of experts gathered to debate privacy, competition and what to do — if anything — about tech giants’ growing power.
Airbnb Tops $100 Billion on First Day of Trading, Reviving Talk of a Bubble
The home-rental company’s blockbuster I.P.O. followed that of the delivery company DoorDash. Investors piled into both.
No, There Isn’t Evidence That Pfizer’s Vaccine Causes Infertility
A flurry of rumors online has prompted concern. But scientists assert the claims are baseless.
The Facebook Lawsuits Explained
Regulators accuse Facebook of buying up rivals. Here’s what this means for us and Big Tech.
YouTube is forbidding videos claiming widespread election fraud.
The company said that it was making the change because the deadline for recounts and audits of the election had passed.
‘It’s Hard to Prove’: Why Antitrust Suits Against Facebook Face Hurdles
The U.S. and states cases against the social network are far from a slam dunk because the standards of proof are formidable.
The New Abortion Rights Advocates Are on TikTok
Gen Z activists have been unapologetic and confrontational, a shift in tactics for a movement at a crossroads.
Israeli Group Announces Second Moonshot by 2024
The Beresheet lunar landing ended in a crash last year, but the nonprofit SpaceIL wants to try again with a more complex mission.
Watch SpaceX’s Starship Launch and Explode in Crash Landing
The company described the test of the next-generation spacecraft as “awesome” even though it ended in a fiery blast.
Disney to Reveal Plans to Turbocharge Streaming Offerings
Some big-budget movies will first go to theaters. Other offerings will debut online. All will ultimately strengthen Disney+.
Google Chief Apologizes for A.I. Researcher’s Dismissal
The researcher, one of the company’s best-known Black female employees, said she was fired last week.
Facebook Accused of Breaking Antitrust Laws
Regulators are accusing the company of buying up rising rivals to cement its dominance over social media.
YouTube to Forbid Videos Claiming Widespread Election Fraud
The company said that it was making the change because the deadline for recounts and audits of the election had passed.
A Senate hearing promoted unproven drugs and dubious claims about the coronavirus
Panelists called by Senator Ron Johnson, Republican of Wisconsin, deployed inaccurate information in disputing the need for mask wearing and...
DoorDash Stock Soars After Initial Public Offering
The delivery company’s shares started trading at $182 each, 78 percent above its initial public offering price of $102, in a sign of investo...
Our Delivery System Is Breaking
With the holidays coming and the pandemic raging, we’re shopping online a ton. It’s chaos.
Twitch Cracks Down on Hate Speech and Harassment
The livestreaming site announced new guidelines after contending with claims that its streamers were too easily abused.
Tone Indicators and How to Use Them
We all struggle to communicate on the internet. Now, young people are leading a sincere effort to clear things up.
Amazon Halo Review: The Fitness Gadget We Don’t Deserve or Need
The retail giant claims that its health product is extremely precise at scanning body fat. I found otherwise.
FireEye, a Top Cybersecurity Firm, Says It Was Hacked by a Nation-State
The Silicon Valley company said hackers — almost certainly Russian — made off with tools that could be used to mount new attacks around the ...
Uber Jettisons Flying Car Project
A day after handing its autonomous car project to a Silicon Valley start-up, Uber is ridding itself of another expensive operation.
Who’s Behind the Fight Between Warner Bros. and Hollywood? It’s AT&T
The town is mad about the studio’s decision to put movies on HBO Max and in theaters at the same time. But with a telecom giant running an e...
Why can’t the social networks stop fake accounts?
Facebook, Twitter and other companies have gotten better at catching bots. But fake accounts created by real humans are trickier.
Etsy Was a Twee Culture Punchline. Now It’s a Wall Street Darling.
Shares of Etsy, the online marketplace, are up 250 percent this year, a rise fueled by skyrocketing pandemic mask sales and a yearslong push...
No, the Pfizer and Moderna vaccine development has not been ‘reckless.’
Experts maintain that widespread rollout of these vaccines, which have undergone rigorous testing, is very likely to be safe.
He Pretended to Be Trump’s Family. Then Trump Fell for It.
For months, a 21-year-old Trump supporter impersonated Trump family members on Twitter, spreading conspiracy theories, asking for money and ...
Warner Bros. Trades Box Office for HBO Max, but Stars Still Want Their Money
If studios are no longer trying to maximize ticket sales, what will that mean for often lucrative pay packages tied to a film’s performance ...
Top Georgia election official debunks ‘ridiculous’ claims about election fraud.
The office of Georgia’s secretary of state dedicated part of a news conference to what was called “Disinformation Monday.”
Uber Giving Self-Driving Car Project to a Start-Up
Company executives once said having cars that can drive on their own would be a salvation for their business. But the effort turned into a l...
No, Kelly Loeffler didn’t wear a wire during a debate.
The false claim about the Georgia Republican was shared by some liberals on Twitter.
Top Georgia election official debunks ‘ridiculous’ claims about election fraud.
The office of Georgia’s secretary of state dedicated part of a news conference to what was called “Disinformation Monday.”
Can Body Cameras Improve Policing?
Body cameras are brimming with possibility, but they’re not a magic remedy for misconduct.
Coronavirus Apps Show Promise but Prove a Tough Sell
Technology to alert people exposed to the virus could slow transmission, pilot studies show, but only if people and states sign up. So far, ...
Visa and Mastercard to Investigate Financial Ties to Pornhub
The payment companies said they would investigate financial links after The New York Times reported that videos on Pornhub depict child abus...
‘This Is Insanity’: Start-Ups End Year in a Deal Frenzy
Investors are tripping over one another to give hot start-ups money. DoorDash and Airbnb are going public. The good times are baaack.
How Joe Biden’s Digital Team Tamed the MAGA Internet
The campaign’s empathetic digital strategy held up surprisingly well against President Trump’s passionate digital following.
With 3 Billion Packages to Go, Online Shopping Faces Tough Holiday Test
The season is adding pressure on retailers, strained by a pandemic surge in e-commerce and limited by shippers, to deliver gifts on time.
Police Drones Are Starting to Think for Themselves
In one Southern California city, flying drones with artificial intelligence are aiding investigations while presenting new civil rights ques...
As Deadline Lapses, Trump Administration Continues TikTok Talks
The White House did not extend a Dec. 4 deadline for the Chinese internet company ByteDance to sell TikTok.
What Went Viral This Week
Stories about Elliot Page, BTS and a rare “Christmas Star” dominated social media this week.
Why ‘Wonder Woman’ at Home Matters
The Netflix model is winning, and the entertainment industry may be changed forever.
E.U. Privacy Rule Would Rein In the Hunt for Online Child Sex Abuse
Regulators argue that while abuse imagery on the internet is abhorrent, unchecked scanning for it by tech companies could violate privacy ri...
Warner Bros. Says All 2021 Films Will Stream on HBO Max Right Away
Seventeen movies will each arrive in theaters and on HBO Max simultaneously, the biggest challenge yet to Hollywood’s traditional way of doi...
Google Researcher Says She Was Fired Over Paper Highlighting Bias in A.I.
Timnit Gebru, one of the few Black women in her field, had voiced exasperation over the company’s response to efforts to increase minority h...
Warner Bros. Says All 2021 Films Will Be Streamed Right Away
Seventeen movies will each arrive in theaters and on HBO Max simultaneously, the biggest challenge yet to Hollywood’s traditional way of doi...
Justice Dept. Suit Says Facebook Discriminates Against U.S. Workers
The lawsuit adds to Facebook’s woes in Washington, where the social network also faces antitrust questions.
Think local about the digital divide
DIY internet projects like this one in the Bronx may help us get more Americans online.
Facebook says it will remove coronavirus vaccine misinformation.
The step goes beyond what the social network previously did on vaccine falsehoods by taking down the false claims entirely.
Up to 30 Million in U.S. Have the Skills to Earn 70% More, Researchers Say
The findings point to the potential of upward mobility for people without a college degree.
Federal Labor Agency Says Google Wrongly Fired 2 Employees
The workers were involved in labor organizing at the company and participated in walkouts last year.
No, Barr was not part of a secret plot against President Trump.
After the attorney general said the Justice Department had not found voter fraud, pro-Trump personalities accused Mr. Barr of being part of ...
Why Your Workplace Software Stinks
The person writing the check is still the most important customer.
Marc Benioff Sets His Sights on Microsoft
The Salesforce C.E.O.’s planned acquisition of Slack will have him competing directly with the Goliath that is Microsoft.
In ‘Spider-Man: Miles Morales,’ Harlem Talks Back. Evan Narcisse Helped Make It Happen.
Evan Narcisse, a writer for the new Spider-Man game for PlayStation 4 and 5, worked to make the hero’s connections to his Afro-Latino neighb...
No, it isn’t unusual that Kamala Harris is still in the Senate.
In the past half century, it has been common for vice president-elects to resign from their previous posts in late December or January.
Salesforce to Acquire Slack for $27.7 Billion
The move caps an acquisitive streak by Salesforce and ends Slack’s run as an independent publicly traded company.
Why WhatsApp Matters
What Facebook does to WhatsApp could change how we shop and use the internet forever.
Amazon and Apple Shift From Intel's Chips, Driving Industry Change
Amazon’s cloud computing business and Apple’s Macs are increasingly using the companies’ own homegrown chips instead of those from Intel.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)