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☆ Amazon's AWS appeals to corporate customers with new chatbot, AI safety measures
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The new software arrives roughly a year after OpenAI’s ChatGPT burst onto the scene, setting off a frenzy of investment in generative AI startups. AWS CEO Adam Selipsky, at Amazon’s annual cloud computing conference in Las Vegas, announced a new safeguard against objectionable content on generative AI applications, called Guardrails for Bedrock. Because generative AI is trained on publicly available content, offensive words or other objectionable content can slip through into results from users’ prompts. Selipsky said the new service was important for customers to put limits they see fit on the generative AI they use. Also at the conference, Amazon announced it would indemnify its customers against lawsuits based on the misuse of copyrighted materials.

Persons: Vincent West, Slack, OpenAI’s, Adam Selipsky, Selipsky, ”, Greg Bensinger, Marguerita Choy Organizations: REUTERS, Facebook, Amazon, Getty, Thomson Locations: Trapagaran, Spain, Las Vegas, Seattle

☆ GM Cruise cofounder, senior exec Dan Kan quits day after CEO exit
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Elijah Nouvelage/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 20 (Reuters) - General Motors' (GM.N) Cruise co-founder and chief product officer Daniel Kan has resigned, the company told Reuters on Monday, a day after Cruise CEO Kyle Vogt quit. A spokesperson for Cruise said Kan announced his resignation in a Slack message. In his message to employees, seen by Reuters, Kan noted that Cruise had been serving 10,000 rides per week. GM shuffled leadership at Cruise including naming general counsel Craig Glidden as chief administrative officer, bringing in a third-party safety officer and appointing co-presidents. U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told reporters on Monday the federal government will do everything it can using existing regulatory powers to ensure that Cruise and other autonomous vehicles are deployed safely.

Persons: Elijah Nouvelage, Cruise, Daniel Kan, Kyle Vogt, Kan, Vogt, Kan didn't, Craig Glidden, Pete Buttigieg, Greg Bensinger, Chizu Nomiyama, Chris Reese, Cynthia Osterman Organizations: GM Bolt, REUTERS, General Motors, Reuters, Cruise, GM, U.S . Transportation, Thomson Locations: San Francisco , California, U.S, United States, San Francisco

☆ Sam Altman's firing at OpenAI reflects schism over future of AI development
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

To many, he was considered the human face of generative AI. Those worries over generative AI came to a head with the surprise ousting of Altman, who was also OpenAI's cofounder. “Does the future then belong to the machines?”Sutskever reportedly felt Altman was pushing OpenAI’s software too quickly into users’ hands, potentially compromising safety. The fate of OpenAI is viewed by many technologists as critical to the development of AI. He advocated on social media in September for a "slowing down" of AI development.

Persons: Sam Altman, Altman, Ilya Sutskever, –, ”, Connor Leahy, Sutskever, OpenAI, Biden, Emmett Shear, Greg Bensinger, Kenneth Li, Matthew Lewis Organizations: FRANCISCO, Microsoft, European Union, Thomson Locations: OpenAI, San Francisco

☆ CEO of GM's Cruise robo-taxi unit resigns amid US safety review
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Nov 19 (Reuters) - - Kyle Vogt, the CEO of General Motors' robot-taxi unit Cruise, has resigned from the company a day after apologizing to staff as the company undergoes a safety review of its U.S. fleet. The Cruise board met on Nov. 13 and the next day named GM general counsel Craig Glidden as Cruise's chief administrative officer. The board also said it would retain a third-party safety expert to assess safety operations and culture. Former Tesla President Jon McNeill, a GM director since 2022, was named vice chairman of the Cruise board alongside Barra, who is the chair. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in October opened an investigation into pedestrian risks at Cruise and the Cruise board hired law firm Quinn Emanuel to review Cruise management's responses to regulators investigating the Oct. 2 accident.

Persons: Kyle Vogt, Vogt, Cruise, Vogt's, Craig Glidden, Stephen Lam, Mary Barra, Glidden, Mo Elshenawy, Jon McNeill, Barra, Quinn Emanuel, Greg Bensinger, David Shepardson, Kenneth Li Organizations: General Motors, Reuters, GM, Cruise, Honda, REUTERS, California Department of Motor Vehicles, Traffic Safety Administration, Thomson Locations: United States, San Francisco , California, U.S, San Francisco

☆ GM's Cruise robo-taxi CEO resigns from company
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Kyle Vogt, chief technology officer, president & co-founder of Cruise, a Honda and General Motors self-driving car partnership, speaks on stage at the launch of the Cruise Origin autonomous vehicle in San Francisco, California, U.S. January 21, 2020. REUTERS/Stephen Lam/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 19 - The CEO of General Motors' robot-taxi unit Cruise, Kyle Vogt, has resigned from the company a day after apologizing to staff as the company undergoes a safety review of its U.S. fleet. "The last 10 years have been amazing, and I'm grateful to everyone who helped Cruise along the way," he wrote in the email. Cruise in recent months had touted ambitious plans to expand to additional cities offering fully autonomous taxi rides. Cruise competes with Alphabet’s (GOOGL.O) Waymo in deploying autonomous vehicles and had been testing hundreds in several cities across the U.S., notably its home of San Francisco.

Persons: Kyle Vogt, Cruise, Stephen Lam, Vogt, Greg Bensinger, Kenneth Li Organizations: Honda, General Motors, Cruise, REUTERS, Reuters, California Department of Motor Vehicles, Thomson Locations: San Francisco , California, U.S, Vogt, San Francisco

In an email to staff reviewed by Reuters, Cruise CEO Kyle Vogt also said the firm would make a new tender offer to allow employees to sell shares, just two days after cancelling an earlier offer. "As CEO, I take responsibility for the situation Cruise is in today. Vogt also noted that the company's approach to working with regulators, press and the public "must improve." Cancelling the program helped to cut costs for GM after it had to pause Cruise operations. Cruise has said it showed officials of the California DMV the complete video of the accident multiple times and provided a copy to officials.

Persons: Heather Somerville, Cruise, Kyle Vogt, Vogt, We've, Greg Bensinger, Hyunjoo Jin, David Shepardson, Cynthia Osterman, Tom Hogue Organizations: General Motors Corp, REUTERS, General Motors, Reuters, Cruise, Cruisers, GM, California Department of Motor Vehicles, California DMV, Thomson Locations: San Francisco, California, U.S, United States, Washington

☆ In ousting CEO Sam Altman, ChatGPT loses its best fundraiser
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-18 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman testifies before a Senate Judiciary Privacy, Technology & the Law Subcommittee hearing titled 'Oversight of A.I. But on Friday it was the earnest Altman who was upended after OpenAI’s board, in a surprise move, stripped him of his CEO title and directorship. Directors of the company, now worth about $80 billion, cited a failure to be "consistently candid in his communications." Further details of what finally led to the ouster of Altman were not immediately clear Friday. “You and a small group of rebels get the space to solve an important problem that might otherwise not get solved."

Persons: Sam Altman, Elizabeth Frantz, Sam Altman’s, Altman, Elon Musk’s, “, what’s, ” Altman, Satya Nadella, OpenAI, ”, Greg Bensinger, Diane Craft Organizations: Privacy, Technology, Intelligence, REUTERS, Microsoft, Wednesday, Google, Stanford, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, OpenAI, San Francisco, St, Louis , Missouri

☆ Cruise testing continues in Japan, Dubai, even as vehicles parked in US
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

At issue is an Oct. 2 accident in which a Cruise vehicle dragged a pedestrian in San Francisco after striking her. As recently as October, it had hundreds of autos carrying passengers around San Francisco with no drivers and had announced aggressive expansion plans. In Dubai, Cruise vehicles have primarily been seen recently on a couple of islands on the outskirts of the main city. In Japan, Honda (7267.T) and Cruise have jointly been testing self-driving vehicles on public roads in the city of Utsunomiya - a regional hub of about 513,000 people - and the adjacent Haga town. Reporting by Greg Bensinger in San Francisco; Additional reporting by Daniel Leussink in Toyko and Rachna Uppal in Dubai Editing by Ben Klayman and Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Elijah Nouvelage, General Motors, Cruise, ”, “, Bryant Walker Smith, Greg Bensinger, Daniel Leussink, Ben Klayman, Matthew Lewis Organizations: GM Bolt, REUTERS, FRANCISCO, General, Reuters, University of South, National, Traffic Safety Administration, California Department of Motor Vehicles, Cruise, Honda, Thomson Locations: San Francisco , California, U.S, Dubai, Japan, University of South Carolina, Arizona, San Francisco, California, Utsunomiya, Haga town, Toyko

☆ Amazon.com to cut 'several hundred' Alexa jobs
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Steve Marcus/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 17 (Reuters) - Amazon.com (AMZN.O) on Friday announced it is trimming jobs at its Alexa voice assistant unit, citing shifting business priorities and a greater focus on generative artificial intelligence. Many companies are shifting resources to generative AI, which can create software code and lengthy text responses from short prompts. Alexa is a voice assistant that can be used to set timers, ask search queries, play music, or as a home automation hub. In particular, people familiar with the matter pointed to the Alexa voice assistant, now nearly a decade old, as having failed to keep pace in the age of generative artificial intelligence. The Seattle-based online retailer's voice assistant products compete with offerings from Alphabet (GOOGL.O) and Apple (AAPL.O).

Persons: Steve Marcus, Daniel Rausch, Panos Panay, David Limp, Jeff Bezos, Rausch, Greg Bensinger, Kenneth Li, Chizu Nomiyama, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: REUTERS, Alexa, Fire, Reuters, Devices, Microsoft, Amazon, Origin, Echo, Amazon.com, Apple, Thomson Locations: Las Vegas , Nevada, U.S, Panay, Seattle, San Francisco

A Cruise self-driving car, which is owned by General Motors Corp, is seen outside the company?s headquarters in San Francisco, California, U.S., September 26, 2018. In an email to staff seen by Reuters, Cruise CEO Kyle Vogt said the company will re-evaluate the employee equity program in light of the suspension, which "pushed out our commercialization and revenue generation timelines." The regulator said Cruise had not initially disclosed all video footage of an Oct. 2 accident where Cruise's car dragged a pedestrian in San Francisco. The unlisted Cruise unit last year introduced the equity program under which current and former employees can sell their vested equity to GM and other investors every quarter. Asked about the Thursday's email from Vogt, a Cruise spokesperson said, "GM and Cruise are working together on what competitive compensation packages at Cruise will look like going forward."

Persons: Heather Somerville, Kyle Vogt, Cruise, Sam Abuelsamid, Vogt, Hyunjoo Jin, Greg Bensinger, David Shepardson, Jonathan Oatis, Matthew Lewis, Daniel Wallis Organizations: General Motors Corp, REUTERS, General Motors, GM, Reuters, Cruise, California Department of Motor Vehicles, United Auto Workers, UAW, Thomson Locations: San Francisco , California, U.S, California, San Francisco, California , Arizona, Washington

☆ Alphabet CEO, in Play store trial, acknowledges some materials not retained
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

He largely stuck to one-word answers but was occasionally admonished by Epic Games' attorney for straying beyond simple answers. Pichai, in examination by a Google attorney, denied he had ever tried to keep any document hidden from a lawsuit. Epic Games has alleged in its lawsuit that app store policies amount to an illegal monopoly and have caused consumers to pay artificially high prices. Google has said changing its systems would cause its Android-based app store to be less secure and damage its ability to compete with Apple (AAPL.O). Google has settled claims over its app store with dating app maker Match Group and from U.S. consumers and U.S. states.

Persons: Sundar Pichai, Joe Biden, Narendra Modi, Evelyn Hockstein, Pichai, ” Pichai, Epic's, “ Fortnite ”, Cary, Greg Bensinger, Matthew Lewis Organizations: Google, U.S, India's, White, REUTERS, Alphabet's Google, Epic Games, Games, Apple, Supreme, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, San Francisco, North Carolina, U.S

☆ Amazon cuts jobs in games unit, part of broader restructuring
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-13 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Pascal Rossignol Acquire Licensing RightsNov 13 (Reuters) - Amazon.com (AMZN.O) has cut around 180 jobs in its games division, at least the second round of cuts in under a week, as part of a broader restructuring, according to an email viewed on Monday by Reuters. It represents the second cut to the division this year. Amazon last week also began cutting jobs in its streaming music and podcast division, according to people familiar with the matter. The games division offers downloadable versions of many video games, on a monthly rotation, as well as some Twitch channels and other services. In April, Amazon cut about 100 jobs in the games unit.

Persons: Pascal Rossignol, Christoph Hartmann, Hartmann, We've, Greg Bensinger, Sayantani Ghosh Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, Amazon Games, Amazon, Technology, Gaming, Thomson Locations: Lauwin, France, Seattle, United States

☆ Exclusive: Amazon.com previews FTC defense at companywide meeting -transcript
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Nov 7 (Reuters) - Amazon.com's (AMZN.O) top lawyer on Tuesday previewed the broad outlines of the company's possible defense against the U.S. Federal Trade Commission's antitrust lawsuit against the retailer, at a private companywide meeting. The lawsuit, which was joined by 17 state attorneys general, was filed in federal court in Seattle and follows a four-year investigation into the company's practices. The FTC takes "issue with us refusing to show prices that are higher than our biggest competitors," Zapolsky said on Tuesday, according to the transcript. "It’s not that we don’t let customers sell at these prices, we just don’t feature that product at that price." Amazon has said it disagrees with the FTC and would defend itself in court.

Persons: David Zapolsky, Taylor Swift, Zapolsky, Andy Jassy, Ty Rogers, Greg Bensinger, Kenneth Li, Matthew Lewis, Leslie Adler Organizations: U.S . Federal Trade, Reuters, Amazon, U.S . Federal Trade Commission, Big Tech, FTC, Thomson Locations: Seattle, San Francisco

☆ Amazon cuts jobs in music streaming unit
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The logo of Amazon is seen on the door of an Amazon Books retail store in New York City, U.S., February 14, 2019. Employees in Latin America, North America and Europe received notices that their jobs had been eliminated Wednesday, according to people familiar with the matter. “Some roles have been eliminated on the Amazon Music team. Amazon has been quietly trimming jobs, including communications staff in its Studios, Video and Music divisions last month. Amazon Music, which also includes podcasts, competes with Spotify , Pandora, Alphabet’s (GOOGL.O) Google and Apple (AAPL.O) in offering unlimited music streaming services for a fee.

Persons: Brendan McDermid, Greg Bensinger, Peter Henderson, Lisa Shumaker Organizations: Amazon, REUTERS, Employees, Reuters, Amazon Music, Studios, Spotify, Google, Apple, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, Latin America, North America, Europe, Washington, California, New York

☆ Exclusive: Amazon previews FTC defense at companywide meeting
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-07 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Nov 7 (Reuters) - Amazon.com's (AMZN.O) top lawyer on Tuesday previewed the broad outlines of the company's possible defense against the U.S. Federal Trade Commission's antitrust lawsuit against the retailer, at a private companywide meeting. The lawsuit, which was joined by 17 state attorneys general, was filed in federal court in Seattle and follows a four-year investigation into the company's practices. The agency asked the court to issue a permanent injunction ordering Amazon to stop what it called unlawful conduct. Amazon has said it disagrees with the FTC and would defend itself in court. "The whole complaint is based on a very constrained and manufactured view that Amazon is a monopoly," said Zapolsky.

Persons: David Zapolsky, Taylor Swift, Zapolsky, Andy Jassy, Ty Rogers, Greg Bensinger, Kenneth Li, Matthew Lewis Organizations: U.S . Federal Trade, Reuters, Amazon, U.S . Federal Trade Commission, Big Tech, FTC, Thomson Locations: Seattle, San Francisco

Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chair Lina Khan testifies before a House Judiciary Committee hearing on "Oversight of the Federal Trade Commission," on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., July 13, 2023. Surrounded by tech workers and VC investors in San Francisco, Khan reiterated her focus on artificial intelligence, an area her agency has been tasked with looking into by President Joe Biden's executive order this week. "We’re very much focused on using our laws to protect everybody: Consumers, but also workers," she said in a standing-room-only nightcap appearance in San Francisco on Thursday. Big Tech companies, particularly Amazon (AMZN.O) and Meta, view Khan, who rose to prominence after publishing a 2017 academic article pointing to Amazon’s practices as anticompetitive, as an impediment. Reporting by Krystal Hu and Greg Bensinger in San Francisco; Editing by Jamie FreedOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Lina Khan, Kevin Wurm, Khan, Kahn, Joe Biden's, he'd, “, Krystal Hu, Greg Bensinger, Jamie Freed Organizations: Federal Trade Commission, REUTERS, FRANCISCO, Federal Trade, Big Tech, D.C, Mission, Stanford University, Meta, Republican, Activision, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, Silicon, New York, San Francisco

☆ US probes GM's Cruise robocars over pedestrian close calls
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-27 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

NHTSA previously made public another Oct. 20 letter in which it raised concerns over several hard-braking incidents by Cruise vehicles that resulted in collisions. Safety officials cited two videos where Cruise vehicles came close to pedestrians in crosswalks and appeared to nearly strike them. Cruise had been operating an Uber-like service with unmanned vehicles, primarily in San Francisco, but the company halted that service this week. As of Friday, Waymo vehicles continued driverless passenger operations in San Francisco, its main hub. Reporting by Greg Bensinger in San Francisco Additional reporting by David Shepardson in Washington Editing by Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Heather Somerville, Cruise, Greg Bensinger, David Shepardson, Matthew Lewis Organizations: General Motors Corp, REUTERS, FRANCISCO, General Motors, National, Traffic Safety Administration, NHTSA, Cruise, California Department of Motor Vehicles, Teamsters, Thomson Locations: San Francisco, California, U.S, crosswalks, Arizona, Texas, Washington

Microsoft's chief financial officer Amy Hood said on a conference call with analysts that higher-than-expected AI consumption was responsible for a 3 percentage point boost to its cloud business. Alphabet has prioritized snaring AI startups as customers for its cloud division, while Microsoft has relied on its existing relationships to secure larger customers. Azure revenue rose 29%, higher than a 26.2% growth estimate from market research firm Visible Alpha. RBC Capital Markets has previously estimated that Microsoft will clock over $3 billion in revenue from generative AI offerings this fiscal year. Quite surprising to see strong growth reacceleration in the Azure Cloud segment, which is clearly driven by AI-as-a-service related demand," said Global X analyst Tejas Dessai.

Persons: Microsoft's, Bob O'Donnell, Bing, Bard, Amy Hood, Krishna Chintalapalli, capex, Akash Sriram, Anna Tong, Max Cherney, Yuvraj Malik, Greg Bensinger, Stephen Nellis, Sayantani Ghosh, Sonali Paul Organizations: Microsoft, Wall, Microsoft's, TECHnalysis, Parnassus Investments, DAZZLES, Alpha, RBC Capital Markets, Reuters Graphics Microsoft, Tejas Dessai, AWS, Thomson Locations: Bengaluru, Anna, San Francisco

☆ Amazon plays catch-up with Alexa generative AI, shows off new, refreshed hardware
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-20 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

It will also be able to compose and recite poems, Amazon showed at the company's annual product launch in Arlington, Virginia. At the event, Amazon also introduced refreshed versions of children's Fire tablets, a soundbar for televisions and new search capabilities on the FireTV service to find free content. Among the new devices Amazon announced is the $180 Echo Hub wall-mounted touchscreen for controlling gadgets throughout the home. Amazon also showed off a new feature for its Alexa app that can map out internet-connected devices throughout a user's home for easier control. Additional announcements included updates to the Echo Frames eyeglasses, with Alexa embedded, and refreshed versions of its Blink outdoor security cameras and Eero Wi-Fi extenders.

Persons: Bard, Alexa, longform, Dave Limp, Limp, Eero, Greg Bensinger, Richard Chang Organizations: Amazon.com Inc, Wednesday, Amazon, Reuters, Alexa, Thomson Locations: Arlington , Virginia, Seattle

☆ Amazon devices unit morale wanes amid cuts, weak development pipeline
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-19 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

Amazon hopes consumers will install Alexa-enabled devices in more rooms of their homes and become accustomed to using the system throughout the day, the sources said. Amazon has said its devices and services business is not profitable, without providing figures. Amazon is set to name as successor Microsoft's Panos Panay who oversaw development of the Surface, according to Bloomberg. Alexa employees were included in rounds of layoffs beginning last year resulting in 27,000 job cuts across Amazon. For years, Amazon has said it can sell devices for close to production cost and see a profit through services offered on them.

Persons: Jeff Bezos, Dave Limp, Alexa, Kinley Pearsall, Amazon, hasn’t, “, ”, Avi Greengart, Limp, Microsoft's Panos Panay, Gregg Zehr, Tom Taylor, Ken Washington, Andy Jassy, Siri, That’s, Bruno Borges, I‘m, Greg Bensinger, Ken Li, Claudia Parsons Organizations: FRANCISCO, Reuters, Alexa, Amazon, Devices, Google, Microsoft, Echo, “, Bloomberg, Astro, Medtronic, Intelligence, Amazon.com, Lightform, Thomson Locations: Amazon’s, Lab126, Alphabet’s, Vancouver, Canada

On Friday, Tiger Global reached out to its investment partners about the document, which has been seen by venture capitalists, hedge funds and in media circles. “These attacks are packed with lies, which we strongly believe were written and pushed by a disgruntled former employee with whom we parted ways,” Tiger Global said in its letter to investors. It was unclear how far the document has spread, but the Tiger Global letter said the firm has been aware of it for several months. Tiger told investors it had engaged "experts" to help it respond to the allegations in the document, without providing further details. Tiger Global has roughly $50 billion of assets under management, but saw its portfolio significantly trimmed last year as tech stocks faltered.

Persons: Tiger, Helen Coster, Greg Bensinger, Kenneth Li, David Gregorio Our Organizations: Investment, Tiger Global Management, Meta, Spotify, Reuters, New Yorker, Tiger Global, Global, Thomson

☆ San Francisco moves to center of robotaxi universe after California agency vote
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-11 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Cruise and Waymo have been running experimental services limited by times and geographic areas within San Francisco. The approval “marks the true beginning of our commercial operations in San Francisco,” said Tekedra Mawakana, Waymo co-CEO, in a prepared statement. San Francisco is important as both a symbolic hub of tech and, with hundreds of AVs already in operation, the largest test lab for the experimental cars. The vehicles, with empty driver seats and self-turning steering wheels, have become a common sight around San Francisco. Commissioner Genevieve Shiroma advocated for a delayed vote noting the volume of public comment and her lingering concerns following evidence that the vehicles have obstructed emergency vehicles in San Francisco.

Persons: Heather Somerville, Waymo, Motors ’, John Reynolds, AVs, Cruise, ”, Tekedra Mawakana, Prashanthi Raman, Uber, Genevieve Shiroma, Greg Bensinger, Jamie Freed, Diane Craft Organizations: General Motors Corp, REUTERS, FRANCISCO, Motors, California Public Utilities Commission, Transportation, Cruise, Locals, San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, Technologists, Thomson Locations: San Francisco, California, U.S, San Francisco's, Francisco

☆ California agency to vote on San Francisco robotaxi expansion amid heavy opposition
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

A Cruise self-driving car, which is owned by General Motors Corp, is seen outside the company's headquarters in San Francisco where it does most of its testing, in California, U.S., September 26, 2018. REUTERS/Heather Somerville/File PhotoSAN FRANCISCO, Aug 10 (Reuters) - Amid strenuous pushback from San Francisco officials and many residents, a California state agency is set to vote on Thursday on a proposal to allow the city to be blanketed in self-driving taxis at all hours. But the vote at the meeting that begins at 11 a.m. PDT (1800 GMT) comes amid vigorous opposition from transportation and safety agencies in San Francisco. The CPUC has twice delayed the vote, in part because of the mounting opposition. Outfitted with spinning sensors, Waymo and Cruise vehicles are an arresting sight around San Francisco, particularly to visitors unaccustomed to cars with no human driver behind the wheel.

Persons: Heather Somerville, Cruise, Waymo, Greg Bensinger, Jamie Freed Organizations: General Motors Corp, REUTERS, FRANCISCO, San Francisco, Motors, California Public Utilities Commission, San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, Thomson Locations: San Francisco, California, U.S, San

☆ San Francisco drives tech; will it drive away robot taxis?
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-07 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

[1/3] A Cruise self-driving car, which is owned by General Motors Corp, is seen outside the company?s headquarters in San Francisco where it does most of its testing, in California, U.S., September 26, 2018. Futuristic test vehicles from Cruise and Waymo are a common sight in some parts of San Francisco. The vote comes at a critical time for San Francisco, which is grappling with thousands of tech job losses, firms leaving the city, and COVID-era work-from-home policies that have contributed to a hollowed out downtown. loadingRamón Iglesias, another San Francisco resident, said that though he’d seen the videos and some erratic behavior from the cars, he supports the expansion and worries any further obstacles could drive tech companies away. “We have a very strong Luddite segment here in San Francisco and you see places like Las Vegas and Miami go out of their way to embrace tech,” said Iglesias, a data scientist.

Persons: Heather Somerville, Waymo, ”, Kyle Vogt, X, ” Cruise, San Francisco, Cruise, Julia Ilina, Mike Smith, Ramón Iglesias, he’d, Iglesias, “, London Breed, Greg Bensinger, Peter Henderson, Diane Craft Organizations: General Motors Corp, REUTERS, FRANCISCO, Motors, San, San Francisco County Transportation Authority, Cruise, California Public Utilities Commission, Las, Ford, Tesla, Francisco, FIRST, ”, London, Thomson Locations: San Francisco, California, U.S, Francisco, San, San Francisco County, State, dazzled, Dallas, Miami, Las Vegas, Los Angeles

July 25 (Reuters) - Artificial intelligence is expected to pay off big for tech giants including Microsoft (MSFT.O) and Alphabet (GOOGL.O) someday. Microsoft is bearing AI costs in two ways, analysts said: to power its own products such as its forthcoming $30-a-month Copilot AI assistant, and to serve companies wanting to use its Azure cloud computing services to create AI products. "They're buying a bunch of H100s," said Ben Bajarin, chief executive and principal analyst of Creative Strategies, referring to Nvidia's flagship chips for AI. Microsoft may be "aggressively buying Nvidia chips, given Microsoft does not have its own silicon as an alternative," said Atlantic Equities analyst James Cordwell. "The message on inflection point was the same," from Microsoft and Google, said Gene Munster, managing partner at Deepwater Asset Management, "but the difference was Microsoft investors wanted to see more."

Persons: Ben Bajarin, Ruth Porat, Scott Kessler, James Cordwell, Porat, Gene Munster, Stephen Nellis, Akash Sriram, Anna Tong, Max Cherney, Yuvraj Malik, Greg Bensinger, Sayantani Ghosh, Richard Chang Organizations: Microsoft, Nvidia Corp, Creative, Google, Deepwater Asset Management, Thomson Locations: Atlantic, San Francisco, Bengaluru, New York

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