Cosmos DB, Microsoft’s managed database cloud service, received several updates today aimed at making it useful for a wider variety of users. One key addition is a preview of support for using the Cassandra NoSQL database API for running operations inside the system. That provide … | Continue reading
Microsoft unveiled a trio of updates to its suit of developer tools today that are designed to improve the workflows for people building modern applications. Visual Studio Live Share will allow developers to collaborate on projects with one another. The feature shares code betwee … | Continue reading
When city or state leaders talk about increasing their community’s share of “tech jobs,” they’re often referring to developers or engineers. But that doesn’t begin to account for the variety of jobs that require tech skills in today’s digital economy. A new report out today from … | Continue reading
(Reuters) — Microsoft’s online communication service Skype lost an appeal in Belgium after it failed to comply with a court request to share data from messages and calls. The case bears similarities to the privacy dispute between the U.S. Justice Department and Microsoft over whe … | Continue reading
Health IQ, a startup that collects data to let health-conscious people save an average of $1,238 a year on their life insurance premiums, has raised $76 million more in venture capital. The company said it secured $34.6 million in a Series C, led by Andreessen Horowitz, and also … | Continue reading
Google has announced a number of updates designed to help job hunters in the U.S. find gainful employment directly through Google Search. By way of a quick recap, the internet giant announced the Google for Jobs program at the company’s annual I/O developer conference back in May … | Continue reading
Tobii has created its eye-tracking technology for controlling games and virtual reality applications. But it has come up with another idea in the name of safety: tracking how alert or sleep a worker is in a manufacturing setting. Tobii’s research division, Tobii Insight Pro, is r … | Continue reading
Amazon has announced that it’s finally launching its voice-controlled Echo speakers in Canada. The Echo Dot, Echo, and Echo Plus are open for pre-order today for $69.99, $129.99, and $199.99 respectively, though early orders will qualify for up to $30 off the sticker price. Amazo … | Continue reading
MekaMon is a real-life robot battler. Players use a mobile app on their iOS or Android devices to control a physical machine that looks something like a tiny Protoss Dragoon from Starcraft. An augmented reality mode in the app also creates a virtual world for the robot to inhabit … | Continue reading
EXCLUSIVE: Trying to work out how to improve your landing page’s conversion rate is difficult at best. While a select few experts use a data-only approach, the process is fairly subjective. Like being an art critic. Or estimating the chances of Donald Trump’s impeachment. Today, … | Continue reading
LinkedIn is expanding its efforts across the Economic Graph to help its more than 530 million members maximize their professional relationships. On Wednesday, the company announced Career Advice, a peer-to-peer mentorship program. At launch, it’s going to be available in the Unit … | Continue reading
(Reuters) — The U.S. government on Tuesday issued a technical alert about cyber attacks it said are sponsored by the North Korean government that have targeted the aerospace, telecommunications and financial industries since 2016. The alert, from the FBI and Department of Homelan … | Continue reading
The Game Awards revealed its 2017 nominees today, and that upcoming show from media personality Geoff Keighley has broken the seal on a contentious Game of the Year conversation: is PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds eligible for end-of-the-year awards if it is still in the Early Acce … | Continue reading
GUEST: Once upon a time and not so long ago, photography — even of the most casual sort — required serious effort. You created a checklist long before going to a national park or a friend’s wedding, starting with the camera itself. Next, you added film, batteries, and maybe some … | Continue reading
Silicon Valley may still be the most well-known tech hub in the United States, but startup leaders New York City and Toronto are betting that by building a super connected “east coast corridor” that they can lure more talent and money from the west coast. Earlier this month, New … | Continue reading
Seven months after introducing lead generation forms to sponsored posts, LinkedIn is adding support for the data collection tool to Sponsored InMails, creating an opportunity to target users of the professional social network both publicly in the news feed and privately via messa … | Continue reading
REVIEW: You wouldn’t be wrong if you called Far From Noise a sitting-in-your-car-on-the-edge-of-a-cliff simulator. You play an unnamed protagonist whose car has somehow ended up hanging off a ledge far from the rest of civilization. It’s slow and zen, and if you pay attention, yo … | Continue reading
Google today launched TensorFlow Lite to provide app developers the ability to deploy AI on mobile devices. The mobile version of Google’s popular open-source AI program was first announced at the I/O developer conference. TensorFlow Lite is available to both Android and iOS app … | Continue reading
GUEST: One of the most important skillsets in today’s digital world is knowing how to work with remote teams — because today’s office has no walls. The walls began dissolving when technological advances shifted us from manufacturing to more knowledge-based work. More walls fell a … | Continue reading
Rocket League is one of the best games of the generation. It has established itself as one of the most played releases on PC and consoles through rock-solid mechanics and a dedication to performance. Now, all of those elements are available on Nintendo’s Switch, and the experienc … | Continue reading
GUEST: Frank is a divorcé who suffers from early symptoms of dementia. Growing weary of weekly visits, his son gifts him a shiny white robot butler designed to handle daily chores and provide health care updates for the aging man. Does this scenario sound familiar? This quirky st … | Continue reading
Nintendo is partnering with Illuminations on a new Mario Bros. movie, according to The Wall Street Journal. Mario is Nintendo’s biggest brand and gaming’s most recognizable icon. Mario games, including platformers, sports, kart racers, and more, have sold more than 500 million co … | Continue reading
Robot marketing has evolved. Today, Anki’s Cozmo robot will participate in a livestream that turns all of the social networking site Reddit into a kind of virtual escape room. The event is an homage to Reddit and its culture, and it represents a new way for people to interact wit … | Continue reading
Poshmark, which provides an online marketplace to buy and sell fashion items, announced today that it has raised $87.5 million in a round led by Temasek. Mayfield, Menlo Ventures, GGV Capital, Inventus Capital, Uncork Capital, Union Grove Venture Partners, and Cross Creek Advisor … | Continue reading
Google updated its Cloud Spanner database service today to allow its customers to distribute their databases across multiple of the company’s cloud regions, living up to the promise that it set forth when it released the product earlier this year. Customers will benefit from dist … | Continue reading
Pinterest will begin to roll out a new series of features today, including Lens Your Look, which allows you to add a photo to any text query. With this feature, you can, for example, pair a photo of a favorite jacket with the search term “autumn fashion” to come up with new outfi … | Continue reading
Twitter is offering a solution for developers who are angry about limitations imposed on their apps when they use the service’s free APIs. The company has now introduced premium APIs to bridge the gap between the free service and the enterprise-level tools it provides through Gni … | Continue reading
Google has launched Android Pay in Brazil and the Czech Republic, the 16th and 17th countries, respectively, to get the internet giant’s mobile payments service. We already knew that Android Pay would land in Brazil sometime in 2017, and today’s launch comes just a few weeks afte … | Continue reading
Sleep Tight is a shooter for the kid in all of us, going back to the days when we had overactive imaginations at night and feared monsters coming out of the walls. This inaugural game from indie studio We Are Fuzzy is an arcade-style, twin-stick shooter. The main character, who’s … | Continue reading
While Spotify, Apple Music, and similar audio-streaming services are popular conduits for finding new (and old) music, YouTube is often the first port-of-call for those partial to a little visual stimulation to go with their tunes. YouTube, it is fair to say, is a major destinati … | Continue reading
PRESS RELEASE: Israeli startup Medigate today announced $5.35 million in seed funding for its mission to secure the use of the millions of connected medical devices on healthcare provider networks. Backing for the technology platform, which lets CISOs... | Continue reading
Mozilla today launched Firefox 57, branded Firefox Quantum, for Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS. The new version, which Mozilla calls “by far the biggest update since Firefox 1.0 in 2004,” brings massive performance improvements and a visual redesign. The Quantum name signa … | Continue reading
Cloudflare announced today that it has acquired Neumob to help improve the network performance of mobile apps by overhauling the way data is sent on the internet. The deal nets Cloudflare interesting technology that’s focused on improving the network performance of mobile applica … | Continue reading
EXCLUSIVE: ScanTrust wants to add a layer of security to business supply chains by providing real-time data through a unique QR code. The Lausanne, Switzerland-based startup announced today that it has raised $4.2 million in a round led by Credit Suisse’s SVC. Innogy Ventures, Ca … | Continue reading
(Reuters) – U.S. automaker Tesla on Monday was hit with a class-action lawsuit claiming its California production plant is a “hotbed for racist behavior.” The lawsuit filed in California state court in Oakland is at least the third filed this year by black workers who say they we … | Continue reading
Bossa Nova, a company that builds robots to track inventory on store shelves, announced today that it raised a $17.5 million round of series B funding. Paxion Capital Partners led the round, which included participation from Intel Capital, WRV Capital, Lucas Venture Group, and Co … | Continue reading
Indianapolis’ Lessonly, a startup that develops educational software for teams, announced that it has raised an $8 million Series B round. The round was led by OpenView, and investors include Indianapolis-based High Alpha Capital and edtech VC firm Rethink Education. Lessonly has … | Continue reading
PRESS RELEASE: Enevate Corporation, a lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery technology company, has been named a Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2018 Innovation Awards Honoree in three categories-Vehicle Intelligence & Self-Driving Technology, Eco-Design... | Continue reading
Skype is introducing a new version of its telecommunications app geared toward online tutors and small businesses. Known as the Skype Professional Account, the new service will initially only be available on desktop and will be landing shortly in preview for U.S. users, who can … | Continue reading
When This War of Mine first launched in 2014, it offered a raw perspective on war and its horrors. Developer 11 Bit Studios is releasing a series of downloadable content tales that will shift the focus to personal stories rather than just trying to eke out an anonymous living in … | Continue reading
Apple’s release of a smartwatch with cellular connectivity is proving to be a hit with consumers. As a result, Apple is once again the market leader for wearables on the wrist. According to the latest report from Canalys, Apple shipped 3.9 million smartwatches in Q3 2017. The new … | Continue reading
(Reuters) — Amazon.com is selling off the hardware from its public cloud business in China, amid tightening regulation over online data that is creating a hurdle for technology firms operating in the world’s second-largest economy. Beijing Sinnet Technology, Amazon’s China partne … | Continue reading
Imagine if you could make your own games for the Nintendo 3DS. That’s some of the idea behind Pip, a “playful handheld” based on the Raspberry Pi do-it-yourself computer. You can use it to create and play your own video games. Curious Chip, an educational technology startup, is l … | Continue reading
GUEST: The consumer electronics industry is evolving every day, and the world of cameras is no exception. We’re seeing incredible things happen with photography, and recent products like the GoPro Fusion and Ricoh Theta V are pushing the industry forward. But despite all of their … | Continue reading
There’s a new company on the block that aims to help businesses better manage the complexity of massive application portfolios. LightStep emerged from stealth today with software that is designed to take information about how applications are performing and provide businesses wit … | Continue reading
Genesis Noir explores a mysterious liminal space that somehow feels both small yet expansive. The protagonist, No Man, travels through the history of the universe, and it’s all for the sake of saving the love of his life. It’s the debut from two-person studio Feral Cat Den, and i … | Continue reading
Another under-monitor soundbar is hitting store shelves and online retailers, but this time it is from expert capture-card manufacturer AVerMedia. The company is introducing its SonicBlast Soundbar in two configurations with varying wattage. It is also selling a separate subwoofe … | Continue reading
GUEST: Mobile gaming communities provide publishers with an opportunity to engage users who want to become better players, share experiences, and discuss the nuances of games. For developers and marketers alike, communities can be a means to monetize games while also improving us … | Continue reading