Google announces upgrades to Google Meet, Amazon brings its palm scanner to Whole Foods, and Microsoft analyzes the effect of video calls on our brains. This is your daily crisis for April 21, 2021.
Great story: Google Meet will have a new look and new features
Google Meet receives a number of updates, including a new user interface that should make commands more visible (rather than hide them in menus), the ability to set multiple video streams, and auto-zoom automatically in the center of the frame) and background replacement, starting with just a few scenes.
It seems that these changes do not happen all of a sudden, but they will be launched gradually in the next few months. Google said the goal is to make online meetings “more engaging, inclusive and productive.”
The technology giants
Wisconsin’s Foxconn plans have dropped dramatically – the Taiwanese manufacturing giant is slashing its investment from $ 10 billion to $ 672 million.
Amazon brings its Amazon One scanner to select Whole Foods as a payment option – This means that Whole Foods customers could choose to scan their palm over the reader to pay for their purchases.
Instagram launches keyword and emoji-based abusive DM filtering tools – It will also allow users to proactively block people, even if they try to contact from a new account.
Start-ups, financing and venture capital
Deel’s remote start-up raises $ 156 million to $ 1.25 billion after a 20-fold increase in 2020 – Deel aims to enable companies to “hire anyone, anywhere, in a compliant manner” .
Misfits Market for Discount Food Launches $ 200 Million – This round moves the startup known for selling “ugly” unicorn fruit and vegetables.
AppOmni raises $ 40 million for enterprise SaaS security tools – Startup has built a platform to help monitor SaaS applications and their activity, providing guidance to warn or block situations where things could goes wrong and fixes problems when they arise.
Tips and analysis from Extra Crunch
Four ways to change the gear in 2021 – First, differentiation will be imperative.
Micromobility’s next big deal is software, not vehicles. The days of the common model of micromobility without docks are numbered, at least according to Puneeth Meruva from Trucks Venture Capital.
Dear Sophie: How can I get my startup and visit the US? – The latest issue of Dear Sophie, the advice column that answers questions about immigration about working for technology companies.
(Extra Crunch is our membership program, which helps founders and start-up teams move forward. You can sign up here.)
Anything else
This is your brain on Zoom – Microsoft did a little brain science and found out that yes, constant video calls increase your stress and brain noise.
A new privacy law would put an end to law enforcement practice of buying data from brokers – A new bill known as the Fourth Amendment Act is not for sale would seal a gap that news agencies and law enforcement uses it to obtain sensitive and identifying information.
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