Month: April 2020

A German research institute that’s involved in developing a COVID-19 contacts tracing app with the backing of the national government has released some new details about the work, which suggests the app is being designed as more of a “one-stop shop” to manage coronavirus impacts at an individual level, rather than having a sole function … Continue reading Germany’s COVID-19 contacts tracing app to link to labs for test result notification Continue Reading →

Virgin Orbit  has secured an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its ventilator, which the small satellite launch company designed and prototyped within the past few weeks in response to growing need for ventilator hardware to address the most severe cases of COVID-19 infection. Virgin Orbit anticipates deliveries of the ventilator … Continue reading Virgin Orbit’s ventilators gain FDA authorization, deliveries to hospitals will start within days Continue Reading →

Even as Mark Zuckerberg touted the “hundreds of thousands of pieces of misinformation related to COVID-19” that the site had pulled in recent months, Facebook continued to offer targeted ads classified as “pseudoscience.” It was an odd choice from a social network so publicly declaring its own campaigns to remove junk science amid a global … Continue reading Facebook pulls ‘pseudoscience’ from its list of targeted ad categories Continue Reading →

With another major round of COVID-19 federal financial assistance around the corner, two lawmakers in states with previously booming cannabis businesses are asking for the federal government to bring the industry in from the cold. The legislation, proposed by Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) and Ed Perlmutter (D-CO), would make cannabis companies eligible for the Paycheck Protection … Continue reading New bill calls for cannabis companies to be eligible for federal COVID-19 help Continue Reading →

Instacart’s  aggressive hiring spree is continuing due to COVID-19 shelter in place orders. Today, the company announced it is adding 250,000 more shoppers to meet consumer demand, and to help the company return to “one-hour and same-day delivery,” according to a statement. Along with the hiring announcement, Instacart is implementing a slew of new policies, including … Continue reading Instacart announces new COVID-19 policies and plans to hire 250,000 more shoppers Continue Reading →

Digits, a fintech startup hailing from the same team that built and sold Crashlytics to Twitter, is officially launching today after two years of development. It’s also announcing a $22 million Series B round of funding led by GV, as it makes its public debut. While the company had been fairly quiet about product details while in stealth … Continue reading Digits launches a free expense monitoring dashboard for small businesses, closes on $22M Series B Continue Reading →

Fresh off a successful earnings report, Snap  announced today that it was looking to raise $750 million in a new debt offering. This upcoming offering will consist of $750 million in convertible senior notes that will mature May 1, 2025. It will be a private placement to qualified institutional buyers and Snap is looking to give buyers the … Continue reading Snap looks to load up on cash in sizable debt offering Continue Reading →

U.S. companies rely on Mexican manufacturers for goods ranging from automotive and aerospace parts, to avocados and other produce, to electronics and furniture. But the trucking system that transports these things across the border relies on an inefficient mix of paper, phone calls, faxes and too many stakeholders who drive up costs. These snarls congesting … Continue reading Nuvocargo, a trucking managed marketplace, raises $5.3M in seed funding Continue Reading →