Tech Meme

Bloomberg: SoftBank reports a ~$5B loss for its Vision Fund in Q3, its fourth straight quarterly loss, and investments of less than $350M in only a few startups  —  SoftBank Group Corp.’s startup investment unit reported another quarterly loss, hurt by sluggish valuations throughout the technology landscape. Lees verder op Tech Meme

Aisha Malik / TechCrunch: Tinder rolls out incognito mode, a step up from fully hiding profiles, for Tinder+, Gold, and Premium users, profile blocking, and other safety features  —  Tinder is rolling out new features aimed at making it easier for users on the dating app to control how they interact with others. Lees verder op Tech Meme

Brian Quarmby / Cointelegraph: Document: prosecutors and SBF’s lawyers agree to let SBF use Zoom, email, WhatsApp with restrictions, and more, but not Signal and other ephemeral apps  —  The agreement comes as a result of federal prosecutors looking to ban SBF from contacting current or former FTX and Alameda employees while on house arrest. Lees verder op Tech Meme

Masha Borak / Wired: A look at Moscow’s Safe City, an AI surveillance system with 217K connected cameras designed to catch criminals that is now seen as a tool of digital repression  —  Moscow promised residents lower crime rates through an expansive smart city project.  Then Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine. Lees verder op Tech Meme

Ben Jiang / South China Morning Post: JD.com joint ventures in Thailand and Indonesia will cease operations in March amid fierce competition, as the company refocuses on logistics and China growth  —  Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com is pulling the plug on its Thailand and Indonesian platforms in a major setback … Lees verder op Tech Meme

AJ Vicens / CyberScoop: Kaspersky: from January 2020 to June 2022, hacker groups offered salaries from six figures to $1.2M, bonuses, and paid leave to attract talent on the dark web  —  Despite the obvious risks, tech jobs with hacking groups can be alluring for those who need the money or want to do the work. Lees verder op Tech Meme

Stephanie Murray / The Block: Alameda Research sues Voyager Digital for $445.8M, seeking to recover loan repayments that Alameda made after Voyager filed for bankruptcy in July 2022  —  – Alameda Research is suing Voyager Digital for $445.8 million, seeking to recover loan repayments it made after Voyager filed for bankruptcy protection in July. Lees verder op Tech Meme

Matt Tamanini / The Streamable: Paramount Global plans to merge its Showtime streaming service with Paramount+’s ad-free tier later in 2023 and call the new offering Paramount+ with SHOWTIME  —  It’s been a long time coming, but later this year, Paramount Global will finally fully integrate the streaming arm … Lees verder op Tech Meme

New York Times: Sources: Stripe is aiming to raise ~$2.5B at a $55B to $60B valuation, led by Thrive Capital, which has committed $1B; Stripe was valued at ~$95B in March 2021  —  Thrive has committed $1 billion, which would value the payments provider Stripe at about $55 billion to $60 billion, people with knowledge of the matter said. Lees verder op Tech Meme

Kim Jaewon / Nikkei Asia: Samsung reports Q4 operating profit down 69% YoY to ~$3.5B, its lowest since Q3 2014, and revenue down 8% YoY to ~$57.3B, citing weak chip and smartphone demand  —  South Korean tech giant’s slump expected to continue in first half of this year  —  SEOUL — Samsung Electronics said Tuesday … Lees verder op Tech Meme