February 19, 2019

In 2017 Amazon announced that it would open a second headquarters somewhere in the U.S., setting off a bidding war between cities all across the country. Then this past November the e-commerce giant shared its decision with the public: the new HQ would be split in two between New York City and Arlington, Virginia. But while many politicians and business leaders celebrated the announcement, activists, unions, and some local lawmakers in New York blasted the decision to give Amazon nearly Continue reading

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January 31, 2019

Over the last few decades, the technological capabilities of American companies have increased significantly with each passing year. In fact, the trade group CompTIA expects global spending on information technology (IT) to increase by more than $200 billion in 2019, which would put total IT spending for the year over the $5 trillion mark. Unlike in the past, though, many of today’s companies are focused on using the tech currently at their disposal rather than searching for the “next big Continue reading

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January 25, 2019

Since launching in 2016, the group video chat app Houseparty has attracted a dedicated userbase of young people looking to talk with their friends wherever they please. “Houseparty is basically the third place for Generation Z and young millennials,” said co-founder Sima Sistani. “What they’re doing there is hanging out in the way we used to in the backyard, the basement, or in my case — the Waffle House.” And unlike many other Silicon Valley startups, Houseparty doesn’t plan to Continue reading

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January 22, 2019

When Netflix launched its video streaming platform in the late 2000s, all of the titles featured on the service came from other movie studios and production companies. If you boot up your account these days, though, most of the TV shows and films listed on the homepage are owned and produced by Netflix itself. Over the last few years the streaming giant has invested heavily to create its own content. By one estimate, Netflix spends more than $8 billion annually Continue reading

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January 17, 2019

Nearly four years ago, we published a blog post centered on companies like Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat who claimed to be creating the future of food. Both of these startups developed plant-based alternatives to meat that looked and tasted similar to the real thing, an idea which seemed straight out of science fiction at the time. Fast forward to 2019, though, and now consumers can purchase Beyond Meat’s burger patties at any Whole Foods location that manages to keep Continue reading

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January 10, 2019

For thousands of years, people have been baking bread by largely following the same procedure: dough is kneaded into a loaf and then placed in a hot oven until it’s done. And while this may sound simple enough, baking a perfect loaf of bread actually requires a great deal of skill and years of experience. That is unless you have a BreadBot, a new machine that automates nearly every aspect of the baking process.

Recently unveiled at the annual Consumer Continue reading

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January 8, 2019

Apple started the new year on the wrong foot following a surprise announcement that last quarter’s iPhone sales will likely fall short of projections. While the company had originally planned to bring in between $89 billion and $93 billion, CEO Tim Cook said last week that overall revenue would likely tally at just $85 billion. “Lower than anticipated iPhone revenue, primarily in Greater China, accounts for all of our revenue shortfall,” Cook wrote in a letter to investors. As a Continue reading

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January 3, 2019

At the bottom of every product page on Amazon sits a collection of user reviews that serve as a resource for those who need a second opinion before making a purchase. And while regular customers write many of these reviews, there are also plenty of others who receive free products in exchange for their perspective. The following video shows the positives and negatives behind this system and how Amazon tries to filter out the worst offenders.

Questions:

  1. Do you think Continue reading
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December 13, 2018

While airports can be tense places at any time of year, they’re especially stressful during the holiday season. As crowds of travelers rush from security checkpoints to their gates, doing something as simple as buying a magazine or a bite to eat can become nearly impossible. That’s why Amazon is reportedly looking to expand its line of Amazon Go brick and mortar stores into airports. At these cashier-free retail outlets, customers simply grab items they want off the shelves and Continue reading

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December 11, 2018

For most of the 20th century, the AM radio band served as the country’s main source for mass media. And while broadcasters eventually moved on to higher quality options like FM and satellite radio, the AM dial remains packed with all sorts of talk, sports, and music programs. And just like in the early days, anybody can tune in as long as they own a radio. That is unless you want to listen while riding in your Tesla or Chevrolet Continue reading

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