Taylor Hatmaker
The Latest from Taylor Hatmaker
Facebook is launching smart glasses in 2021, its ‘next step’ to an AR device
At Facebook’s first big event since moving away from the Oculus brand and rebranding its AR and VR efforts as “Facebook Reality Labs,” it announced a new consumer wearable and dove i
Twitter debuts US election hub to help people navigate voting in 2020
Twitter debuted its election hub on Tuesday, introducing a set of tools to help Americans prepare for the most uncertain election in modern U.S. history. The platform will add a new “US Election
The Black List’s Franklin Leonard on why picking winners doesn’t mean making losers
Tech and Hollywood don’t cross-pollinate that often, but when it comes to Franklin Leonard’s way of looking at things, maybe they should. Leonard is best known as the creator of The Black
Facebook launches poll worker recruitment push in the News Feed
With the election looming and a pandemic still raging through the U.S., a shortage of poll workers is just one of many threats to voting this November — but it’s a big one. In a Facebook post
Anduril launches a smarter drone and picks up more money to build a virtual border wall
The company building the virtual border wall has a new version of its stealthy fast-flying drones — and a fresh contract with Customs and Border Protection to match. Anduril, a young defense-friendl
Twitter’s rules address worries over ‘peaceful transfer of power’ in US election
Twitter announced expanded efforts to fight misinformation ahead of the U.S. election — with at least a few hair-raising lines that throw November’s stakes into sharp relief. The company is ma
Portland passes expansive city ban on facial recognition tech
The city council in Portland, Oregon passed legislation Wednesday that’s widely regarded as the most aggressive municipal ban on facial recognition technology so far. Through a pair of ordinance
TikTok is trying to remove a disturbing video showing up on people’s For You pages
A graphic video of a man committing suicide spread across TikTok early this week, and the company is still working to remove it. Originating on Facebook Live, the clip was uploaded onto TikTok over th
Facebook boots Patriot Prayer, a far-right group with a history of violence
Facebook removed accounts belonging to far-right group Patriot Prayer and its leader Joey Gibson on Friday, citing a new effort to eradicate “violent social militias” from the platform. Th
Twitter and Facebook wrestle with Trump telling Americans to vote twice
President Trump’s recent suggestion that North Carolina voters should cast multiple ballots has run afoul of Twitter’s election integrity rules. In a series of tweets Thursday morning, the
Twitter flags Republican leader’s video as ‘manipulated’ for altering disabled activist’s words
Twitter flagged an inflammatory video by House Republican Whip Steve Scalise on Sunday for altering footage of a conversation between progressive activist Ady Barkan and Joe Biden. The video is now la
Facebook removes ‘Kenosha Guard’ militia account after shooter kills two at protest
Facebook has removed a local self-declared militia’s page and a related event following the events that unfolded last night in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Two people were killed and another was wounded
White House announces $1B investment for AI and quantum computing hubs
Building out its previous commitment, the White House is announcing a $1 billion investment into two of tech’s most promising frontiers, AI and quantum computing. Last year, the Trump administra
Palantir’s S-1 alludes to controversial work with ICE as a risk factor for its business
Palantir’s mysterious work and its founding origins with Trump ally and anti-press crusader Peter Thiel have inspired a number of controversies in recent years, none as divisive as its ongoing
Palantir moves its HQ from Palo Alto to Denver as plans to go public percolate
Between the IPO buzz and a raft of new federal contracts for COVID-19 work, it’s been a year of big moves for Palantir. Now, the company is making a more literal one: decamping from its Palo Alt
Border wall crowdfunding scheme leads to Trump ally Steve Bannon’s arrest
One of President Trump’s former top political advisors was arrested in connection with a crowdfunding scheme to build a U.S. border wall, according to charges unsealed by federal prosecutors Thu
At the first-ever virtual DNC, Democrats play it safe
The first all-virtual Democratic National Convention is in full swing, but don’t expect fireworks. The event runs through Thursday in a truncated-for-TV two hours a night that’s apparently
Epic files motion for injunction against Apple over threat to revoke all developer access
After taking a stand against Apple’s hefty cut of the money developers make through the App Store, Fortnite maker Epic Games shows no signs of backing down. The company filed a motion for an inj
Clearview AI landed a new facial recognition contract with ICE
The controversial facial recognition software maker Clearview AI has a new contract with ICE, the most controversial U.S. government agency. Clearview was already known to work with the branch of Home
Fortnite for Android just got axed from the Google Play Store too
After Epic Games picked a fight with Apple over the sizable chunk of fees the company takes on transactions in its mobile ecosystem, it looks like the Fortnite developer will be waging a war on two fr