Shayan Vyas Contributor Dr. Shayan Vyas is an associate professor of pediatric medicine at the University of Central Florida and an adviser to healthcare companies. I first got a glimpse of technology’s potential back in 2010. As a pediatrician at Miami Children’s Health System, I flew to Haiti in the aftermath of the devastating 2010 […]

One of the top use cases for Amazon Alexa is its ability to quickly summarize the day’s headlines via its customizable “Flash Briefing” skill. Now, Amazon is rolling out a new feature that will allow Alexa device owners to get more in-depth news from their preferred news provider, with this week’s launch of “long-form news.” […]

At today’s House Judiciary hearing addressing “Hate Crimes and the Rise of White Nationalism,” hate appears to have prevailed. As the hearing’s livestream aired on the House Judiciary’s YouTube channel, comments in the live chat accompanying the stream were so inflammatory that YouTube actually disabled the chat feature mid-hearing. Many of those comments were anti-semitic […]

As Google Cloud Next opened today in San Francisco, Accenture announced its intent to acquire Cirruseo, a French cloud consulting firm that specializes in Google Cloud intelligence services. The companies did not share the terms of the deal. Accenture says that Cirruseo’s strength and deep experience in Google’s cloud-based artificial intelligence solutions should help as […]

A new piece of bipartisan legislation aims to protect people from one of the sketchiest practices that tech companies employ to subtly influence user behavior. Known as “dark patterns,” this dodgy design strategy often pushes users toward giving up their privacy unwittingly and allowing a company deeper access to their personal data. To fittingly celebrate […]

The lower house of the French parliament has voted in favor of the new tax on tech giants without any modification. Big tech companies that generate significant revenue in France will be taxed on their revenue generated in France. Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire has been lobbying other European countries so that big tech companies […]

Labelbox, a provider of services to create, manage, and maintain data sets for machine learning applications, has raised $10 million in a new round of funding. The financing came from Gradient Ventures, Google’s AI-focused venture fund, with participation from previous investors, Kleiner Perkins, First Round Capital, and Sumon Sadhu, an angel investor. Labelbox manages the process […]

Texas may have suffered a heartbreaking defeat during last night’s NCAA men’s championship game, but the state does have something to celebrate today. Local outfit LiveOak Venture Partners, a venture firm focused exclusively on Texas-based startups, has closed a new fund with $105 million in capital commitments. It’s the second vehicle for the firm, formed […]

UpCodes wants to fix one of the building industry’s biggest headaches by streamlining code compliance. But the Y Combinator-backed startup now faces a copyright lawsuit filed against it by the International Code Council, the nonprofit organization that develops the code used or adopted in building regulations by all 50 states. The case may have ramifications […]

How much does transportation cost you? In most cities, bus or subway fare might set you back $3 or so. A tank of gas, maybe $30 or $40 depending on your car. An hour of street parking? Sometimes it’s free, sometimes it’s a few bucks. And you can usually snag an economy seat on a […]