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Amazon's quest to become a startup again; Driverless cars, 6 years later Sep 21, 2024

Show notes

Amazon's decision to bring its employees back to the office five days a week is a window into the challenges facing the e-commerce and technology giant, and CEO Andy Jassy's larger plan to get the company to operate like "the world's largest startup" again.

Plus, GeekWire's John Cook gets into the back seat of a driverless car for the first time since 2018, and has a very different experience.

Coverage of Amazon's announcement:

Waymo links and related stories:

NPR: Armed with traffic cones, protesters are immobilizing driverless cars
GeekWire in 2018: We rode in Uber’s self-driving car, and now we’re less confident in the future of autonomous vehicles
Video of John's Waymo ride this week.
The Verge: Waymo and Uber expand their robotaxi partnership to Austin and Atlanta

With John Cook and Todd Bishop; Edited by Curt Milton.

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Who is the real Bill Gates? Examining the evolution of a tech icon Sep 14, 2024

Show notes

Our guest this week is Anupreeta Das, author of the new book, "Billionaire, Nerd, Savior, King: Bill Gates and His Quest to Shape Our World." Das is the South Asia correspondent for The New York Times. This week's guest host, Ross Reynolds, is an interviewer and moderator who is well-known in the Seattle region from his 34 years at KUOW, the public radio station from which he retired in 2021.

Edited by Curt Milton.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

E Ink's 'Wizard of Oz' moment: Color arrives on writing tablets and e-readers Sep 07, 2024

Show notes

The market for E Ink tablets reached a pivotal moment this week with reMarkable's unveiling of its new Paper Pro — now with color E Ink, not just black-and-white. Now the big question is whether Amazon will join the trend with a color Kindle e-reader or Kindle Scribe. The technology enabling the shift from black-and-white to color is the Gallery 3 color display, from E Ink Holdings, a company that spun out of the MIT Media Lab in 1997. On this episode of the GeekWire Podcast, we learn more from Timothy O’Malley, associate vice president of U.S. operations at E Ink, about the evolution of the technology and the growing applications for E Ink displays.

Related links:

Challenged by Amazon, reMarkable unveils new ‘Paper Pro’ color tablet.
Launch event video for the reMarkable Paper Pro.
Here's the color-changing car mentioned by Tim on the show.

With GeekWire co-founder Todd Bishop

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New Starbucks CEO's supercommute, SeaTac cyberattack, more on AI music generators Aug 31, 2024

Show notes

This week on the GeekWire Podcast, we revisit the controversy over Starbucks' hybrid work policy for its new CEO, Brian Niccol; discuss the cyberattack that crippled computer systems at Sea-Tac Airport in the Seattle area this week; and provide an update on last week's episode about AI text-to-music generators.

Articles and topics discussed on this episode:

With Todd Bishop and Taylor Soper. Edited by Curt Milton.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

GeekWire's quest for an AI theme song Aug 24, 2024

Show notes

Our regular GeekWire Podcast segment “My AI” didn’t have a musical jingle. So of course, we decided to use AI to create one.You can hear the results and our reactions on this week’s show. It's a glimpse into the issues rattling the music industry. Even when the music isn't great, the technology is pretty incredible. But as we discuss, the underlying issues are a lot more complicated.

With John Cook, Todd Bishop, and Taylor Soper; Audio editing by Curt Milton.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What the new Starbucks CEO could mean for the coffee giant's digital future Aug 13, 2024

Show notes

The naming of Chipotle CEO Brian Niccol as the new Starbucks CEO on Tuesday gives the Seattle-based coffee giant a new leader from the restaurant and fast casual industry with experience leading a digital transformation. We discuss what that could mean on this special mid-week episode of the GeekWire Podcast.

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What the Google ruling means for Microsoft Bing; Amazon delivery dilemma; Seattle's return to office Aug 10, 2024

Show notes

This week on the GeekWire Podcast, we look at the implications of the Google antitrust ruling for Microsoft Bing, and conclude that they probably aren't as rosy for the Redmond company as they might have appeared initially.

Plus, a rural community offers a window into Amazon's relationship with the independent companies that deliver its packages around the world.

And finally, the City of Seattle gets support from Amazon and resistance from workers in response to its decision to bring them back to the office for three days a week, up from two days previously.

Related coverage

With GeekWire co-founder Todd Bishop and editor Taylor Soper.

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Zillow CEO transition: A conversation with Rich Barton and Jeremy Wacksman Aug 07, 2024

Show notes

Zillow Group named a new CEO, longtime company executive Jeremy Wacksman, announcing that co-founder and two-time CEO Rich Barton will be shifting to the new role of co-executive chair of the real estate media and technology company, joining co-founder Lloyd Frink in the role. Barton and Wacksman join GeekWire co-founders John Cook and Todd Bishop to talk about the transition on this special episode.

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Microsoft, Amazon, AI, the economy, and another bad tech ad Aug 03, 2024

Show notes

This week on the GeekWire Podcast, we take a closer look at the earnings reports from Microsoft and Amazon this week, as a litmus test for artificial intelligence demand and the state of the economy. We also consider the implications of Boeing's new CEO being based in the Seattle region, discuss a new AI tool that aims to streamline marketing tasks, and weigh in on the backlash to Google's Olympics ad for its Gemini AI chatbot

With GeekWire co-founder Todd Bishop and editor Taylor Soper.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Microsoft's misunderstood era: Ben Gilbert of 'Acquired' on the tech giant's most pivotal years Jul 27, 2024

Show notes

This week on the GeekWire Podcast, our guest is entrepreneur and investor Ben Gilbert, co-founder and co-host of the hit podcast Acquired.

Ben and his colleague David Rosenthal have developed a huge following for their deep-dive, long-form podcasts telling the stories behind some of the most successful companies in the world, and they recently released Microsoft Volume II, the second installment in their epic exploration of the Redmond-based technology giant.

We talk about Microsoft's misunderstood era, with help from some archival highlights from GeekWire co-founder Todd Bishop's interviews with Bill Gates over the years. It’s a timely topic given Microsoft’s 50th anniversary in 2025 and the company's resurgence as one of the most valuable and relevant companies in the tech industry with the rise of AI.

Before we jump in, we ask Ben to catch us up on all things Acquired. The podcast is the talk of Silicon Valley and Wall Street, as documented in a Wall Street Journal profile. Acquired just announced a live arena show coming up on Sept. 10 featuring Mark Zuckerberg at Chase Center in San Francisco, the home of the Golden State Warriors.

Edited and produced by Curt Milton.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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