Weekend Tech Innovation Roundup July 27, 2024
'Very few' Democrats are willing to buy a Tesla after Elon Musk endorsed Donald Trump
Elon Musk’s endorsement of former President Donald Trump — the man who has promised the U.S. will “drill, baby, drill” for more oil — isn’t endearing his company to potential Tesla buyers. - William Gavin Read More
A second Trump presidency could mean big changes for EVs. Here’s what to know
Former president Donald Trump isn’t one to mince words. The brash Republican nominee for president has made it clear he’s not a fan of electric vehicles or clean energy and promised to “drill, baby, drill” for more oil. But what would a second Trump administration mean for the EV industry? - William Gavin Read More
Edmunds bought a Tesla Cybertruck and it's already having major issues after just a month
Automotive testing website Edmunds took ownership of its long-term Tesla Cybertruck a little over a month ago and it’s already had a major fault. More specifically, the nearly brand new truck has suffered a “critical steering issue,” which doesn’t sound ideal. - Andy Kalmowitz / Jalopnik Read More
Alexa is losing Amazon billions of dollars
Amazon’s plan to make money through its Alexa-enabled devices has reportedly not paid off — and is actually losing the company billions of dollars.
The online retail giant lost over $25 billion from its Echo, Kindle, and other devices from 2017 to 2021, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing internal documents and unnamed people familiar with the matter. While Amazon counts hundreds of millions of customers for its devices, its Alexa-enabled Echo speakers are reportedly used more for setting alarms and other free apps, and less for shopping on Amazon. - Britney Nguyen Read More
Fixing a totaled Tesla Cybertruck isn't worth it
The Tesla Cybertruck has only been terrorizing America’s roads for a little over six months, but someone has already managed to get their massive electric pickup truck totalled. A plucky engineer bought the wrecked monstrosity and is attempting to bring it back to life, but it doesn’t sound like a fun task at all. - Owen Bellwood / Jalopnik Read More
Spotify's price hikes didn't stop it from scoring more subscribers — and record profits
Spotify reported another quarter of record profits one year after it raised the price of its Premium plans for the first time ever.
The Swedish audio streaming company reported an operating income of 266 million euros ($289 million) in the second quarter, compared with a loss of 247 million euros ($268 million) a year ago. Monthly active users grew 14% annually to 626 million. - Rocio Fabbro Read More
Google's biggest deal ever is off after cybersecurity startup Wiz turned down $23 billion
Google’s shiny offer to buy up a cybersecurity startup seems to have fallen short.
TechCrunch, citing an unnamed source familiar with the matter, reports that Wiz rejected Google’s $23 billion acquisition offer.
“Saying no to such humbling offers is tough, but with our exceptional team, I feel confident in making that choice,” CEO Assaf Rappaport, said in an email to Wiz’s 1,200 employees. He said that although he was flattered by the offer, the company’s leadership team has decided to continue building Wiz — and work towards an IPO. - Rocio Fabbro Read More
The Tesla Cybertruck has never been crash-tested — and it probably never will be
The Tesla Cybertruck sucks. It’s been a reliability disaster, can’t even survive a simple car wash, is incredibly difficult to repair, has edges that are so sharp owners have ended up in the hospital from their injuries, and it looks like it was designed in a lab to crush pedestrians. It also hasn’t been crash-tested and likely never will be. The thing is, though, the Cybertruck isn’t the only car on the road that’s never been crash-tested. As Consumer Reports recently explained, that’s the case for a lot more cars than you might expect. - Collin Woodard / Jalopnik Read More
Wiz backing out of the Google deal could have big implications for Microsoft, analyst says
Wedbush analyst Dan Ives says tech giants are probably looking to beef up their cybersecurity businesses
Elon Musk has a new date for Tesla's robotaxi unveiling
Elon Musk on Tuesday said that Tesla will hold its robotaxi unveiling — which is widely seen as a product demonstration, not a launch — on Oct. 10, slightly more than two months after its planned date. - William Gavin Read More