Aaron McDade / Yahoo Finance: In a now deleted tweet, Elon Musk said verified accounts would get a “few weeks grace” but would lose their badges if “they tell they won’t pay now”  —  – The first day of Twitter’s previously announced axing of “legacy” verified checks nearly passed without incident. Lees verder op Tech Meme

Drew Harwell / Washington Post: Twitter removed the verified badge from the New York Times’ main account after Elon Musk responded to a meme outlining the outlet’s decision not to pay for Blue  —  The Times and other news organizations say they won’t pay for the icon, which is designed to protect against impersonation. Lees verder op Tech Meme

Connie Loizos / TechCrunch: A16Z appears to openly court Saudi capital; Horowitz compared the US unfavorably to the Saudis after the US government appeared unmoved by an Andreessen essay  —  Andreessen Horowitz is now openly courting capital from Saudi Arabia, despite U.S. strains.  —  According to Bloomberg … Lees verder op Tech Meme

Washington Post: Sources: SVB execs bought long-term assets that paid more interest based on a misplaced profit-driven strategy, falling out of compliance with its risk model  —  Focused on profits, leaders made decisions that foreshadowed the bank’s surprise failure  —  Flush with cash from a booming tech industry … Lees verder op Tech Meme