GeekWire

Tech ethicist on why healthcare isn’t ready for ambitious AI overhaul

Seattle Public Library says personal information of some staff compromised in cyberattack

by Kurt Schlosser on June 27, 2024June 27, 2024 at 2:53 pm

In its latest update about the ransomware attack that took out its tech systems and services last month, the Seattle Public Library said Thursday that the personal information of some… Read More

Tech Moves: Google exec departs; Syndio adds engineering leader; JPMorgan CTO leaves F5 board

by Taylor Soper on June 27, 2024June 28, 2024 at 7:21 am

— Nimrod Vered, a longtime engineering leader in Seattle, joined Syndio as senior vice president of engineering. Vered was most recently CTO at engineering insights startup Uplevel. He previously held engineering… Read More

News Brief

Seattle-based RareCyte raises $20M for cell analysis products

by Taylor Soper on June 27, 2024June 27, 2024 at 12:09 pm

Seattle-based life sciences company RareCyte announced $20 million in new funding to advance its applications for the analysis of cells.

Microsoft and Amazon team up to launch Xbox cloud gaming app on Fire TV devices

by Thomas Wilde on June 27, 2024June 27, 2024 at 10:43 am

Microsoft and Amazon announced Thursday that they are partnering to bring the Xbox gaming app to two models of Fire TV devices in July. This allows Xbox Game Pass subscribers… Read More

Contributor Content

Harnessing Technology: The Future of Entertainment in the Digital Age

Over the past fifteen years, the entertainment sector has seen sizeable transformations because of rapid technological advancements. While in a pre-2010s era, entertainment was primarily all about physical media and… Read More

Another logistics startup emerges in Seattle as former Amazon, Flexport execs reveal Freightmate

by Taylor Soper on June 27, 2024June 27, 2024 at 1:44 pm

The list of Seattle-area logistics startups continues to grow with the addition of Freightmate.ai, a new company that came out of stealth mode Thursday. Led by former execs at Amazon… Read More

VIPs cut the ribbon at the grand opening of Amazon’s Project Kuiper satellite factory

by Alan Boyle on June 27, 2024June 27, 2024 at 2:24 pm

KIRKLAND, Wash. — Amazon gave U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell and other VIPs a sneak peek at the company’s Project Kuiper satellite factory, where thousands of spacecraft are to be manufactured… Read More

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They gave machines to Living Computers for preservation, but museum’s closure is a bitter end

by Kurt Schlosser on June 27, 2024June 27, 2024 at 12:39 pm

Computer enthusiasts who sold or donated vintage items to Paul Allen and Seattle’s Living Computers Museum + Labs are concerned that their contributions could be auctioned off, scattered, discarded, or… Read More

Cancer screening tech startup Ezra opens two locations in Seattle area

by Taylor Soper on June 27, 2024June 27, 2024 at 8:08 am

Ezra, a New York City-based health technology startup offering cancer screening, opened two locations in the Seattle area this week. Founded in 2018, Ezra has 37 locations across the U.S.… Read More

Next-gen battery startup Sila raises $375M to fund completion of Eastern Wash. factory

by Lisa Stiffler on June 27, 2024June 27, 2024 at 8:27 am

Battery startup Sila has raised $375 million, which will help fund the completion early next year of its manufacturing facility in Eastern Washington. It broke ground on the plant in… Read More

Doxo fires back at FTC lawsuit, asserting that it ‘centers on a disagreement about font size’

by Todd Bishop on June 27, 2024June 27, 2024 at 7:51 am

Doxo asked a federal judge to dismiss the U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s lawsuit against the Seattle-based bill payment company, denying wrongdoing and saying it nonetheless resolved the issues raised by… Read More

Bot or Not

AI has trouble identifying sarcasm from Seattle satirical news site The Needling

‘We know something big is happening’: Tech vets encourage experimentation, education with AI

Providence created new gen AI tool in 18 days to speed and improve responses to patient messages

How a photo of OpenAI’s Sam Altman, enhanced by AI, sparked a journalistic debate at GeekWire

For more about the evolving relationship between humans and machines, check out Bot or Not.

Amazon joins the $2 trillion club

by Taylor Soper on June 26, 2024June 26, 2024 at 3:30 pm

Amazon reached a $2 trillion market capitalization on Wednesday for the first time ever, joining a short list of U.S. tech companies to achieve the milestone. Amazon’s stock is up… Read More

Microsoft chief brand officer, Xbox CMO departing; Google, Amazon execs join Redmond giant

by Taylor Soper on June 26, 2024June 26, 2024 at 12:57 pm

Kathleen Hall, who spent 16 years at Microsoft and was most recently the tech giant’s chief brand officer, announced Wednesday she is departing the Redmond company. “After 16 years at… Read More

Civic

Here are the 18 members of Washington state’s new Artificial Intelligence Task Force

Climate projects land $75M to boost environmental justice, job training in Washington state

UW disinformation researchers will continue work amid reports of Stanford group crisis

City and state leaders in talks to create Seattle-based AI-focused incubator for startups

Read more about tech policy, urban development, transportation, housing, the environment, regulation, and issues impacting the innovation economy.

Video

Starfish Space signs contract with Intelsat for satellite servicing beginning in 2026

by Alan Boyle on June 26, 2024June 26, 2024 at 11:04 am

Tukwila, Wash.-based Starfish Space has signed a contract with Intelsat to provide on-orbit life extension services to a geostationary satellite beginning in 2026. It’s the first commercial contract for Starfish’s… Read More

Fans upset by closure of Living Computers question why Seattle museum couldn’t be saved

by Kurt Schlosser on June 26, 2024June 26, 2024 at 9:11 pm

Fans of the Living Computers Museum + Labs in Seattle reacted with disappointment to the news Tuesday that Paul Allen’s estate won’t be reopening the facility, as some questioned whether… Read More

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Loti, a Seattle startup that helps public figures spot and squash deepfakes, raises $5.1M

by Taylor Soper on June 26, 2024June 26, 2024 at 11:40 am

Seattle startup Loti raised $5.1 million to grow its technology platform that helps public figures scour the internet for fake social media accounts, fake endorsements, or deepfakes that misuse their… Read More

Under fire in the U.S. and Europe, Microsoft tests its new approach to government scrutiny

by Todd Bishop on June 26, 2024June 26, 2024 at 8:19 am

In the giant dog park of global government regulation, Microsoft is showing its belly. What happens next remains to be seen. But the company’s recent response to scrutiny in the… Read More

Data warehousing startup SDF, led by Microsoft and Meta vets, comes out of stealth mode

by Taylor Soper on June 26, 2024June 26, 2024 at 9:14 am

SDF Labs, a Seattle startup aiming to help software developers manage their enterprise data warehouse systems, this week announced public availability of its product and revealed $9 million in seed… Read More

Clearbrief, which uses AI to help lawyers find and verify facts in legal docs, raises $4M

by Taylor Soper on June 26, 2024June 25, 2024 at 11:11 pm

Seattle legal tech startup Clearbrief is raising more cash to boost its technology aimed at helping lawyers find, summarize, and verify facts for cases. Clearbrief’s software, which works inside of… Read More

Seattle Art Museum’s new CEO brings innovation mindset — with an openness to AI and other tech

by Taylor Soper on June 25, 2024June 25, 2024 at 3:21 pm

Scott Stulen studied studio art in college. He’s a DJ and plays pickup baseball. Some of his notable accomplishments include producing a viral Internet Cat Festival and building a mini… Read More

Former Amazon and Microsoft exec Marc Whitten named CEO at self-driving company Cruise

by Taylor Soper on June 25, 2024June 25, 2024 at 2:09 pm

Marc Whitten, a longtime Seattle-area tech executive, was named CEO at Cruise, the GM-backed self-driving company. Whitten was most recently chief product and technology officer at gaming giant Unity Software. He… Read More

Legislation would honor Seattle’s Museum of Pop Culture as a national museum ‘of great importance’

by Kurt Schlosser on June 25, 2024June 25, 2024 at 12:06 pm

Seattle’s Museum of Pop Culture (MoPOP) is seeking a national designation through a bill introduced in Congress that would honor the institution “as a place of great importance” in the… Read More

Investors hope to bring expansion team to Seattle for new tech-fueled TGL golf league

by Taylor Soper on June 25, 2024June 25, 2024 at 7:38 am

Ackerley Sports Group, a sports-focused arm of Seattle-based investment firm Ackerley Partners, is among the backers revealed this week of a new company called TMRW Sports that’s behind a highly… Read More

Topicflow raises $1.8M to rethink performance reviews, with help from AI

by Taylor Soper on June 25, 2024June 26, 2024 at 2:51 pm

Vancouver, B.C.-based startup Topicflow raised $1.8 million from Seattle venture capital firms Founders’ Co-op and Ascend to fuel growth of its software platform that aims to help companies manage how… Read More

Seattle’s Living Computers Museum logs off for good as Paul Allen estate will auction vintage items

by Kurt Schlosser on June 25, 2024June 27, 2024 at 4:10 pm

Living Computers Museum + Labs, the Seattle institution created by the late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen as a hands-on showcase for rare computing technology and interactive displays, will not reopen,… Read More

Digital youth safety startup k-ID raises $45M to help developers comply with age regulations

by Thomas Wilde on June 25, 2024June 24, 2024 at 11:00 pm

k-ID, a startup headquartered in Singapore and Seattle that’s building tools for online youth safety, announced Tuesday that it raised a $45 million Series A funding round. Billed as a… Read More