A recent report revealed that the newly-announced Surface Laptop 3 would be repairable, but still challenging for those who prefer self-repairing their devices.
Source: Digital trends
The Trump administration’s attacks on the whistle-blower aren’t just baseless—they could have a corrosive long-term effect.
Source: Wired
This discount on the HP Spectre x360 13 lets you get the best convertible 2-in-1 for less. Order yours on the HP store during the Fall Blowout Sale.
Source: Digital trends
What do you do when your current business model is so staggeringly loss-making you’re having to warn investors it may never turn a profit, at the same time as it’s under increasing legal and regulatory attack?
One answer might be to pivot. Uber isn’t doing that, exactly. Not yet anyway. But it has just officially announced the launch of a new app for matching shift workers with shifts, called Uber Works, working in partnership with staffing agencies.
The announcement confirms a report by the Financial Times a year ago, which reported Uber was working on an on-demand staffing business. The company declined to comment at the time.
The tech giant is best know for its ride-hailing platform but has been diversifying its business for some time — getting into food delivery (Uber Eats) and buying into the micromobility trend (with Jump e-bikes and scooters).
Becoming a matchmaker for shift work looks to be the next step on Uber’s quest for sustainability — both of its core business and, well, its reputation for exploiting labor.
In a blog post about the Uber Works launch, which is starting in Chicago but slated to be expanding to more areas “soon”, the company writes that it’s “committed to deliver services that support skill up-leveling and promote work re-entry”, saying it will be partnering with “various organizations that support workers in their employment journey”.
A month ago Uber’s home turf state of California signed into law a gig worker protections bill that squarely targeted at ride-hailing giants.
The new law means gig economy workers who are managed algorithmically via platforms will very likely be entitled to minimum wage, workers’ compensation and other benefits because it requires employers to apply the ABC test in order to classify a worker as an independent contractor — meaning they will need to prove the worker is free from the control and direction of the hiring entity; performs work outside the scope of the entity’s business; and is regularly engaged in work of some independently established trade or other similar business.
The law is due to take effect January 1, 2020. Uber is not going gentle into that goodnight, and has continued to deny the law applies to its business — saying it will do what’s necessary to keep the contractor status.
It is pushing against the tide, though. At home and abroad. In Europe it’s already been forced to offer a number of concessions (such as free insurance and caps on working hours) after a series of legal and regulatory challenges, as well as close political scrutiny of how its business operates — including the pay and conditions it provides workers.
The regulator of Uber’s most important regional city — London — continues to withhold a full licence renewal. Transport for London denied its application to renew its licence in 2017, citing safety concerns and questions over its corporate governance and culture. And Uber’s ride-hailing business remains on a very short leash, with just a two-month extension granted last month — along with fresh conditions.
Safe to say, the costs of ride-hailing aren’t shrinking.
Uber Works looks like an attempt to find a less bumpy path to profitability — via a matchmaking platform for workers who are employed by staffing agencies, which Uber’s blog post is careful to note “employ, pay and handle worker benefits”. Ergo Uber doesn’t have to.
What it wants to be is a technology provider to staffing agencies, offering a platform that matches agency workers to available shifts — in roles such as prep cook, warehouse worker, commercial cleaner and event staff — while also carrying out time-tracking, tied to a carrot for workers of more “timely” payments.
The platform’s ability to track their work will also clearly be working for agencies, though — with Uber suggesting its “technology-first approach” will lead to a “more efficient marketplace… [b]y providing a reliable pool of vetted and qualified workers”. So that’s code for workers who slack off will be seen by the technology to be slacking — and likely won’t get matched to great shifts if they do.
Here’s how Uber is pitching the play:
Today, millions of Americans use staffing agencies to find work. Yet the status quo is not ideal, for workers or for businesses.
Workers face rigid scheduling and opaque information about where they can pick up shifts and how much they can expect to earn. Businesses struggle to staff up to meet peak demand, and have to grapple with missed shifts and high turnover.
We believe a new, technology-first approach can provide faster and easier means for people to get work, while offering greater insight into the many opportunities for work that are out there—improving the experience for workers and businesses alike.
That’s why over the past year, we’ve studied and built tech solutions that can help positively impact a workers’ shift experience and eliminate bottlenecks to finding work.
There is — it must be said — more than a little irony here. In that lawyers for Uber, the ride-hailing giant, have been repeatedly instructed to argue it’s just a technology platform, not a transportation company. (Two years ago Europe’s CJEU blew that argument out of the water.)
With Uber Works, Uber is again hoping to cast itself as a technology platform. Though by partnering with staffing agencies it’s hope will be that there’s less legal risk involved.
Uber says the year-long Uber Works project grew out of its business incubator — tapping into its “marketplace technology and operational know-how to help solve pain points that exist in connecting workers with businesses”, as it puts it.
There’s no word on where in the US it might expand Uber Works to next.
The tech giant is certainly entering an already crowded field.
There are a large number of shift, temp and blue collar work finder apps targeting a similar fast-paced, high turnover employment need in the the US and Europe — including the likes of Bacon, Catapult, Gig, JobToday, Limber, Rota, Shiftgig, Shiifty, Snag and Syft to name a few.
Source: TechCrunch
Notches, screens and the foldable phone’s hinge. Here’s what really matters with Samsung’s Galaxy Fold.
Source: CNET
Google Shopping is getting a redesign with several new features, including options to shop local stores, track prices and even find style inspiration through Google Lens. Already, Google Lens’ smart image recognition technology can help identify objects, translate text, and find similar items. Now, using a photo of an outfit you like — for instance, something you found on Instagram — Google Lens will be able to pull up other “style ideas” from around the web.
These style ideas are focused on showing you how other people are wearing the item in question, not just returning matches of similar items, Google explains.
For example, if you found a skirt on social media, you could take a screenshot then use Lens in Google Photos to see how other people have been photographed wearing that same skirt.
But Lens isn’t limited to photos of new clothes posted online. You can also photograph an item hanging in your own closet, or seen on a store rack, and get suggestions of people wearing similar pieces.
The feature complements Lens’ existing item suggestions for things like home décor and individual items of clothing.
It’s also clearly meant as a challenger to Pinterest, which has been heavily investing in its own image recognition technology. This has allowed it to capture consumers’ interest long before their placing items in their online shopping cart — an existential threat to Google’s business, potentially.
Pinterest users often browse the site for inspiration, whether that’s what to wear or how to wear it, or how to decorate their home, or even where to travel. Later, those interests and desires may translate to clicks and purchases. The challenge for Pinterest is being able to connect the inspirational browsing with the checkout process.
Pinterest’s latest efforts on that front is the launch of its own “shop” tab, designed to showcase products.
Google, meanwhile, is doubling down on Google Shopping.
Its big redesign has now rolled out in the U.S. on both web and mobile, following the merger with Google Express earlier this year, and last month’s final shutdown of the Google Express brand and destination.Â
The new version of Google Shopping aims to make itself a one-stop-shop for everything that’s around the web…and not on Amazon.
The updated Google Shopping experience includes a personalized homepage based on your habits and purchases, a price tracker for getting notifications of changes and drops, and the ability to shop from both online and local retailers. (Buying locally means you’ll have the option to go pick it up — great for last-minute gifts.)
Google says you can now shop from over 1,000 stores through Google Shopping and check out using the information saved to your Google account. It also offers a “Google guarantee,” on the items you purchase, which includes customer support and help with things like returns and exchanges.
Google is pitching the new experience as a redesign. And to some extent, it is, thanks to new features like price tracking and universal shopping carts. However, at the root of it, you’ll find it’s still very much the same concept that once was Google Express. That is: it’s an online Google-branded destination where shopping is meant to be as convenient as on Amazon.
But Google Express failed to capture consumers’ attention the first time around because of what Google lacks: a Prime competitor. There is no subscription that promises fast, 2-day (or less) shipping on millions of items, nor the wider perks program that Amazon Prime offers.
That said, it’s smart for Google to capitalize on the shopping search traffic it does have, and make that experience feel more connected and seamless. After all, Amazon doesn’t have everything — especially when it comes to specific fashion brands. That will see users turn to Google to search instead.
Google says the new Google Shopping is live in the U.S. on web and mobile today.
Google Lens is also live in the U.S. only for now.
Source: TechCrunch
Despite being riddled with problems, the Galaxy Fold proves that a foldable phone future could work.
Source: CNET
Here’s a solid shout-out to early-stage startup founders who love the word “free.” You have just two weeks left to apply to be a TC Top Pick and exhibit in Startup Alley at Disrupt Berlin 2019 for — you guessed it — free.
Attending Disrupt Berlin as a TC Top Pick is a VIP experience and an incredible opportunity to showcase your business to the startup world’s influential movers and shakers. The Top Picks application window closes on 18 October at 12 p.m. (PT). Don’t wait — apply today.
Here’s how it all works. We accept applications from early-stage startups that fall into one of the following tech categories: AI/Machine Learning, Biotech/Healthtech, Blockchain, Fintech, Mobility, Privacy/Security, Retail/E-commerce, Robotics/IoT/Hardware, CRM/Enterprise and Education.
Our discerning TechCrunch editors will review every qualified application searching for high-potential startups. They’ll choose up to five to represent each category. Each TC Top Pick receives a free Startup Alley Exhibitor Package that includes, among other perks, one day exhibiting in Startup Alley, three Founder passes, access to programming on all stages, the complete attendee list (via TC Events Mobile App) and CrunchMatch — our business networking platform.
As VIPs, Top Picks receive plenty of attention from investors, global press and potential customers. If that’s not enough exposure for you, listen up. A TechCrunch editor will interview every Top Pick startup — live on the Showcase Stage — and we’ll record that interview and promote it across our social media platforms. Talk about a great sales and marketing tool.
Did you know that every startup that exhibits in Startup Alley has a shot at being chosen as a Wild Card? It’s true — even Top Picks. And the startup selected as a Wild Card gets to compete in the Startup Battlefield for the $50,000 prize. Case in point: Legacy, a startup focused on helping men freeze and store their sperm for future use (yes, you read that correctly) exhibited in Startup Alley at Disrupt Berlin 2018. Legacy earned the Wild Card slot, and then it won the Startup Battlefield competition. Crazy big dreams do come true.
Disrupt Berlin 2019 takes place on 11-12 December, but you have only two weeks left if you want a chance to exhibit in Startup Alley for free. Don’t wait — apply to be a TC Top Pick before the deadline strikes on 18 October at 12 p.m. (PT). Come and show the world what you’ve got!
Is your company interested in sponsoring or exhibiting at Disrupt Berlin 2019? Contact our sponsorship sales team by filling out this form.
Source: TechCrunch
How Microsoft’s dual-screen Surface phone could beat Samsung’s foldable phone screen.
Source: CNET
With its powerful V8 engine and a number of performance goodies, the GTS makes a strong case for being the sweet spot of the Porsche Panamera range.
Source: CNET