Technology

Instagram Will Test Hiding 'Likes' On Some U.S. Accounts Starting Next Week

"The idea is to try to 'depressurize' Instagram, make it less of a competition," the company's CEO Adam Mosseri announced on Friday.

Feds Say Self-Driving Uber SUV Did Not Recognize Jaywalking Pedestrian In Fatal Crash

The death of a pedestrian struck by the self-driving vehicle in Arizona last year highlights safety concerns and calls for regulating the testing of such vehicles.

FCC Clears T-Mobile/Sprint Merger Deal

The next hurdle is a federal trial in December in which a coalition of state attorneys general are challenging the merger as anti-competitive.

FTC Issues Rules For Disclosure Of Ads By Social Media Influencers

The consumer watchdog agency is trying to protect users from deceptive ads on social media. The influencer market on Instagram is expected to reach more than $2.5 billion in 2020.

Social Media Sites Under Pressure To Prep For Census Trolls And Interference

Civil rights groups and lawmakers are pushing tech companies to prepare for an onslaught of disinformation that could turn people off from the 2020 census, especially among communities of color.

Primed

There's a neighborhood of Amazon 'smart homes' south of Seattle

This week's Primed podcast explores Amazon's smart home technology. You can listen to the episode here. In the first part of the story, we baked muffins with Alexa in Amazon's smart home lab. Here, we talk to people who live in an Amazon smart home development in Black Diamond, WA. We also explore some very troubling consequences of having a fully wired home.