One Thing Today in Tech
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PayPal may buy Pinterest; Facebook's name change; Apple's Tech Talks; and a chat with Iron Pillar's Anand Prasanna
PayPal is looking to buy Pinterest as the US payments giant moves to expand into online commerce. PayPal could pay about $70 dollar a share, valuing Pinterest at $39 billion, according to Bloomberg. Facebook is changing its name and restructuring the organisation as per a report by The Verge. Apple is conducting a series of more than 100 online live sessions for developers, called Tech Talks. Startup salaries in India have jumped. Plus, a chat with Iron Pillar's Anand Prasanna on Indian startups going global
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Google launches Pixel 6; Aiven valued at $2 bln; Zoho One enhancements; and a chat with Arcana Network's CEO Mayur Relekar
Google launched its Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro smartphones on Tuesday, equipped with its Tensor AI chip. The new phones have a camera system that takes up an entire bar across the width of the phones, jutting out at the back. Finnish data management company Aiven turns unicorn. Plus, we chat with Mayur Relekar, CEO of Arcana Network, a blockchain tech startup building decentralised storage for Ethereum
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India to encourage more space startups; Apple's new MacBook Pro; and a chat with Dhyanesh Bhatt, CEO of GramCover
India is revising its space industry policies and is also in the process of bringing in new ones to increase private industry participation, K Sivan, chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation and secretary, Department of Space, said at the Dubai 2020 trade fair; TCS wins a large Japanese contract; Apple launches new MacBook Pro; Bumble's 'Moves Making Impact' feature; and a chat with Dhyanesh Bhatt, CEO of GramCover on tech for rural insurance
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China's hypersonic missile; Klarna's UK update; and a chat on Canada's startup visa as a gateway to the US for Indian founders
China has amped-up its military technology race against the US, demonstrating advanced space capabilities with the test of a new hypersonic missile in August. Microsoft's LinkedIn unit is shutting its current app in China. Plus, a chat with Esha Chopra, director of strategy and marketing at Toronto Business Development Centre on how Indian founders and startups can tap Canada as a gateway to the US
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IBM launches climate intelligence suite; Apple announces product event; and a chat with Talview's chief I/O psychologist
IBM has announced a suite of environmental intelligence software that uses AI to help organisations prepare for and respond to weather and climate risks, the company said in a press release. Apple's next hardware event is set for October 18, 2021, according to invites it sent out on Tuesday. In our tech conversation, we ask Fred Rafilson—chief I/O psychologist at Talview—what Indian startups can do to hire the best and retain them
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OneWeb, ISRO strike partnership; 100x.VC calls women founders to pitch; and a chat with the CEO of Mihup Communications
OneWeb, a satellite communications company backed by Bharti Airtel, has partnered with NewSpace India—the commercial arm of the Indian Space Research Organisation—to use ISRO's PSLV rockets and the heavier GSLV-MkIII launch vehicles to place its satellites in space in 2022. VC firm 100x.VC is calling on women founders to pitch for funding. In our tech conversation, we speak to Tapan Barman, CEO of Mihup Communications on the company's latest virtual interactive analyst
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TCS posts strong Q2 results; Apple appealing verdict in Epic case; and a chat with Twin Health's founder Jahangir Mohammed
Tata Consultancy Services, India's biggest software services company, kicked off the fiscal second quarter earnings season on Friday. It reported revenues of $6.33 billion for the three months ended September 30. Revenues grew 15.5 percent over the same period one year ago, in constant currency, the company said in a press release after the close of Mumbai trading on Friday. Profits rose 14 percent to $1.3 billion. And in our tech conversation, we speak with Silicon Valley serial entrepreneur Jahangir Mohammed, founder and CEO of Twin Health
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Education ministry on digital access for children; Google to bar monetising by climate change deniers; a chat with BrainSightAI founders
According to a report by India's ministry of education—called Initiatives by the School Education Sector in 2020-21—large sections of school-going children in seven large states don't have access to digital devices, the Indian Express reports. Google Ads team has announced that advertisers, publishers, and YouTube creators can no longer monetise content that denies the existence of climate change. In our tech conversation, BrainSightAI's founders explain how AI can help treat schizophrenia
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CoinSwitch bags $260 mn from a16z; Telangana's e-voting app; and a chat with founders of 2am VC
CoinSwitch Kuber, a crypto exchange startup in India, has surged in privately-held value to $1.91 billion after it raised $260 million in series C funding from marquee US VC firm Andreessen Horowitz. The funding marks the first investment in an Indian startup for a16z, as the VC firm is popularly known. Telangana is testing an e-voting app. The Mom Project raises $80 million. In our tech conversation, we speak to the founders of 2am VC on their India investments
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Big Tech's 'Big Tobacco' moment; Licious turns unicorn; and a chat with Deep Vision's CEO Ravi Annavajjhala
Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook's founder and CEO, was roundly criticised by US lawmakers on Tuesday at a hearing for employee-turned-whistleblower Frances Haugen. Haugen had gathered evidence from the company's own research on how the social networking giant was harming young people. Notably, US senator Richard Blumenthal said, "Big Tech now faces the Big Tobacco jaw-dropping moment of truth", according to multiple reports on the hearing. In our tech conversation, we talk to Ravi Annavajjahala, CEO at AI chip company Deep Vision, on expansion in India
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Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp outage; first ransomware death lawsuit; and a chat with GalaxEye's founders
Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp all had major outages for many hours on Monday. On Tuesday, they issued statements that services were coming back online gradually. The first lawsuit blaming a death on a ransomware attack has been filed in the US. Byju's is raising more money. In our tech conversation, we talk to the founders of GalaxEye, about their plans for a low earth orbit constellation of satellites