Cognition emerges from stealth to launch AI software engineer Devin

Original article: https://venturebeat.com/ai/cognition-emerges-from-stealth-to-launch-ai-software-engineer-devin/ Today, Cognition, a recently formed AI startup backed by Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund and tech industry leaders including former Twitter executive Elad Gil and Doordash co-founder Tony Xu, announced a fully autonomous AI software engineer called “Devin”. While there are multiple coding assistants out there, including the famous Github Copilot, Devin is said to stand out from the crowd with its ability to handle entire development projects end-to-end, right from writing the code and fixing the bugs...

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Amazon Takes a Big Stake in the A.I. Start-Up Anthropic

original article: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/25/technology/amazon-anthropic-ai-deal.html With its investment of up to $4 billion, Amazon is seeking a bigger footprint in A.I. development, one already established by rivals like Microsoft and Google. Amazon said on Monday that it would invest up to $4 billion in the artificial intelligence start-up Anthropic, as the world’s biggest technology companies race to benefit from A.I. breakthroughs that could reshape parts of their businesses — and the economy as a whole. Amazon is trying to keep pace with rivals such as...

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Shopify targets physical retailers after an overly aggressive bet on e-commerce

            Shopify Inc., Canada’s largest e-commerce company, announced Tuesday that it will start selling new hardware for brick-and-mortar retailers, as it attempts to recover from an overly aggressive bet on the speed at which the economy would move online. The device, called POS Go, resembles a smartphone and will allow retailers to provide wireless checkout anywhere in store, while also allowing merchants to view analytics and data on such things as sales, inventory and product information. It’s one of Shopify’s most significant product announcements Read More...

Uber looks to create travel ‘superapp’ by adding planes, trains and rental cars

            Uber is driving ahead with its plan to become a travel “superapp”. The San Francisco-headquartered firm announced Wednesday that it is adding trains, buses, planes and car rentals to its U.K. app this year. The move is part of a pilot that could be expanded to other countries at a later date if it goes well.
While Uber won’t provide these travel services itself, it will allow users to book them through its app following software integrations...

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Warehouses Transform N.Y.C. Neighborhoods as E-Commerce Booms

The region is home to the largest concentration of online shoppers in the country. The facilities, key to delivering packages on time, are reshaping neighborhoods.

An e-commerce boom turbocharged by the pandemic is turning the New York City region into a national warehouse capital.

In just two years, Amazon has acquired more than 50 warehouses across the city and its surrounding suburbs. UPS is building a logistics facility larger than Madison Square Garden on the New Jersey waterfront...

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Direct-to-consumer companies hit severely in US

Brands like Warby Parker, Stitch Fix, FIGS Inc, and Allbirds Inc. Launched a new type of retail by selling "direct to consumer" – on the internet — rather than through traditional retailers. These companies' values rose well into the billions, riding on the promise of little overhead, no intermediaries, and a limitless pool of clients. They appeared to be invincible. Today, however, they're tumbling hard and there's no sign of a bottom in sight. DTC companies are being hit hard by...

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DTC sees renewed investments after pre-covid skepticism

What cooled the DTC market? In short, low barriers to entry, high customer acquisition costs, and the need to generate venture-sized returns brought the entire D2C investment model into question. However, investors seem to be turning their attention back toward the D2C space as we slowly...

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Salesforce announces permanent remote work for most employees

The largest private employer in San Francisco announced today that more than half of its workforce will continue working remotely or on a flexible schedule after the pandemic is over. Salesforce introduced its “Work From Anywhere” strategy, estimating that more than 65% of employees will adopt the new system, based on a company survey. For those that will be coming into an office, the current spaces will be redesigned to accommodate more of a “community hub” feel, focusing on collaboration and breakout...

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Chinese billionaire Jack Ma suspected missing

Ant Group founder Jack Ma has reportedly not been seen in public for months. 
Speculation has swirled around Chinese billionaire Jack Ma’s whereabouts after reports surfaced that the high-profile businessman has not made a public appearance in more than two months. The Alibaba founder also failed to appear as scheduled in the final episode of his own talent show, Africa’s Business Heroes, which gives budding African entrepreneurs...

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San Francisco board rebukes naming hospital for Facebook CEO

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Supervisors in San Francisco overwhelmingly approved a resolution Tuesday condemning the naming of the city's public hospital for Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Dr. Priscilla Chan, in 2015 after the couple gave $75 million toward a new acute care and trauma center. The nonbinding resolution does not have the force of law and does not require the hospital to do anything. The hospital was the first in San Francisco to administer vaccines protecting against the...

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