Facebook Acquires ID Verification Startup Confirm.io
(Reuters) — Facebook Inc is buying a software firm that specializes in authenticating government-issued identification cards, the two companies said on Tuesday, a step that may help the social media company learn more about the people who buy ads on its network.
U.S. lawmakers have expressed alarm at Facebook’s limited ability to know who is buying advertisements, including election-related ads, on the world’s largest social network.
Boston-based Confirm Inc, which is...
Companies race to gather a newly prized currency: Our body measurements
The first step for a shopper buying a suit at the fast-growing menswear retailer Indochino is sharing his personal information: A salesperson armed with an iPad measures nearly everything on his body, from the distance between his belly button and rear to the circumference of his knees.
The next step is getting a customized, made-to-measure suit delivered to his home within a few weeks. But his body data lives on:...
Commentary: The Trend That’s Killing Startup Innovation
Mergers and acquisitions in the high-tech sector have reached historic levels. Deloitte projects “M&A activity to continue accelerating” in 2018, driven mostly by technology acquisition as the big players gobble up the smaller innovators. Big tech is flush and ready to buy out any upstarts with technology that represents a threat. In this competitive landscape, tech startups face a dilemma: take the deal or go it alone?
There is no easy answer...
Republicans Question Current Tax Models
For a long time now, old tax models have been quite popular, particularly among members of the ruling party. In 1994, those of the Republican Party, who had been newly elected and were in charge of congress, conducted a series of hearings that would later on come to be known as the dynamic scoring bills’. According to them, such legislation needed to be evaluated using...
Walmart vs Amazon vs Delivery Apps, Who Wins the Grocery Wars?
The Automated Grocery War Between Walmart, Amazon and Delivery Apps
Amazon is making big strides to compete with Walmart for the grocery market, having purchased Whole Foods for $13.7 billion. This acquisition puts the company in direct competition with Walmart's established online business, currently offering online grocery shopping, delivery (for most), and pickup. Read More...The Brutal Fight to Mine Your Data and Sell It to Your Boss
On May 23, an email landed in the sales inbox of a San Francisco startup called HiQ Labs, politely asking the company to go out of business. HiQ is a “people analytics” firm that creates software tools for corporate human resources departments. Its Skill Mapper graphically represents the credentials and abilities of a workforce; its Keeper...
What to Eat Before You Exercise, According to Science
When it comes to exercise, what you eat and drink beforehand matters. After all, no one wants to cut a workout short because of a food-induced cramp, or call it quits because they haven’t eaten in hours and have no energy. Torey Jones Armul, RD, a spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, notes that “the benefit to eating before a workout is that research has shown that...
The Amazon-Whole Foods Deal Could Have Killed Instacart. Instead, The Startup Is Stronger Than Ever
As the obits piled up, Apoorva Mehta couldn't help but shake his head. It wasn't his death that the press was heralding, but that of his startup, Instacart, a five-year-old grocery and retail delivery service valued at $3.4 billion. That morning in mid-June, Amazon stunned the world by announcing its purchase of Whole Foods for $13.7 billion. As shares of grocery chains plunged, many in the tech press noted that few...
A counterintelligence expert says there are 4 types of people — and you can’t earn someone’s trust without knowing theirs
At some point during his career with the FBI, Robin Dreeke abandoned the "golden rule" — the old adage that you should treat others as you would like to be treated.
He replaced it with another guideline, this one from author and speaker Tony Alessandra, called the "platinum rule": Treat others as they want to be treated. Talk in terms of what's important to them, in a...