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YSplit wants to make it so you never owe your friends money again Mar 15, 2019

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YSplit wants to make it so you never owe your friends money again When you live with roommates or go out often with friends, it’s common for someone to front the payment — be that for utilities, the cable bill, rent or the restaurant bill — and have everyone else pay them back via cash, Venmo or Apple Pay. But YSplit, a company launching out of Y Combinator, wants to make it so you never have to owe anyone ever again.

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Fitbit Versa Lite review Mar 14, 2019

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It’s a tricky proposition for a product launch: last year’s model, but with fewer features. But sometimes the rules of consumer electronic update cycles were made to be broken — or at the very least, a little bent. Last year’s Versa was itself a paring down from the company’s first true smartwatch, the Ionic. In that case, things worked out great.

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Salesforce at 20 offers lessons for startup success Mar 12, 2019

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Salesforce is celebrating its 20th anniversary today. The company that was once a tiny irritant going after giants in the 1990s Customer Relationship Management (CRM) market, such as Oracle and Siebel Systems, has grown into full-fledged SaaS powerhouse. With an annual run rate exceeding $14 billion, it is by far the most successful pure cloud application ever created. Twenty years ago, it was just another startup with an idea, hoping to get a product out the door.

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Foursquare’s Hypertrending helps you spy on the coolest local happenings Mar 12, 2019

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Ten years after the launch of Foursquare at SXSW, the company is laying its technology bare with a futuristic version of its old app that doesn’t require a check-in at all. The godfather of location apps is returning to the launchpad with Hypertrending, but this time it hopes to learn what developers might do with real-time info about where people are and where they aren’t.

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My little robot dude Mar 11, 2019

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It was only a matter of time before I let a robot enter my apartment and run wild. Roomba’s have been around since 2002, so it’s somewhat odd that it took me so long to get on board the robot vacuum train. But, alas, I’ve been testing the Roborock S5, a combo vacuum and mop, in my apartment for the last few weeks. TL;DR: I love him.

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Over a quarter of U.S. adults now own a smart speaker, typically an Amazon Echo Mar 11, 2019

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Over a quarter of U.S. adults now own a smart speaker, typically an Amazon Echo U.S. smart speaker owners grew 40 percent over 2018 to now reach 66.4 million – or 26.2 percent of the U.S. adult population – according to a new report from Voicebot.ai and Voicify released this week, which detailed adoption patterns and device market share.

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Elton John’s farewell tour marks the beginning for an audio augmenting wearable Mar 08, 2019

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Elton John’s farewell tour marks the beginning for an audio augmenting wearable The good and bad of attending the legendary musician’s MSG show with headphones in your ears It’s not a great time to be a live venue. Once the only game in town, clubs, arenas and other live event spaces now have to compete with the seemingly endless on-demand entertainment options. Competing with the convenience of 4K Netflix on a 50-inch screen is a big ask, even for the biggest stars.

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France’s tax on tech giants is happening Mar 08, 2019

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Is it happening? Is it not happening? After years of back and forth, it looks like the new tax on tech giants in France is about to become a law. Big tech companies that generate significant revenue in France will be taxed on their revenue generated in France. France’s Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire has been lobbying for a new tax so that tech giants would stop optimizing their European corporate structure to lower their effective tax rate.

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Trump called Apple’s CEO ‘Tim Apple’ by mistake Mar 07, 2019

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The president has to remember a lot of names! Some he remembers, some he forgets. But we will never forget today in the Year of Our Lord 2019 when President Trump called Apple CEO Tim Cook “Tim Apple.” Maybe we’re just losing our minds waiting for a good meme, but there’s something relentlessly good and pure about calling the executive formerly known as Tim Cook “Tim Apple.” Tim Cook: Great guy, great phones.

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Court dismisses Paris lawsuit against Airbnb for illegal listings Mar 07, 2019

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A court in Paris has dismissed a case against Airbnb, as Le Monde reported. Last month, the City of Paris sued Airbnb for 1,010 illegal listings. According to the mayor’s office, Airbnb failed to comply with regulation in Paris. Paris has been trying to limit the effect on Airbnb on the housing market in Paris. Paris is one of the top cities for Airbnb in the world. A few years ago, many people stopped renting their apartments the traditional way in favor of Airbnb.

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