Travis Rush grew up in the tiny seaside town of Gold Beach in Southern Oregon. With a population of only 1,576 — as was proudly proclaimed on the sign coming into town — healthcare resources there were limited. The nearest medical lab was over an hour a way. Rush is now CEO and co-founder of Reperio Health, a Portland, Ore.-based startup providing in-home health screenings, essentially bringing basic lab services to people in small communities like Gold Beach and in major metros alike. Reperio recently raised $14 million in new funding to expand its growth and services. The startup offers… Read More
Washington is leaning into the fight against climate change. Seattle-area tech giants Microsoft and Amazon have set ambitious carbon reduction targets and invested millions to meet those goals. The state is home to a multitude of climate tech startups tackling batteries, nuclear power, green aviation, hydrogen fuel and other clean energy challenges. Elected leaders have vowed to cut the state’s carbon emissions and passed groundbreaking policies to hit those targets. An initiative on Washington’s ballot this November threatens those efforts. Initiative 2117 would strike down regulations requiring most of the state’s largest greenhouse gas emitters to pay for their pollution… Read More
A new SEC filing reveals that Cynthia Williams plans to step down as president at Hasbro-owned game company Wizards of the Coast. No specific reason has been publicly offered for Williams’ departure, which is effective April 26. “We’re excited for Cynthia to take the next step in her career and grateful for the contributions she has made in her more than two years at Wizards and Hasbro,” a Hasbro representative told GeekWire. “We wish her the absolute best in her next endeavor. We have started the search for our next President of Wizards of the Coast and hope to have… Read More
NanoString announced Wednesday that it will be acquired by Bruker, ending the company’s restructuring process that included a Chapter 11 bankruptcy plan. Bruker, a Massachusetts-based publicly traded life sciences research and diagnostic giant founded in 1960, will pay $392.6 million to buy Seattle-based NanoString. The deal is expected to close next month. NanoString said in February that it initiated a Chapter 11 bankruptcy plan and was exploring a potential sale following its loss in a patent infringement case against 10X Genomics. The company said Wednesday that it received a “stalking horse” bidder in March as part of the bankruptcy process,… Read More
Shein, the fast-fashion e-commerce retailer that recently announced plans to open an office in Bellevue, Wash., is hosting a pop-up experience in Seattle next week. The event will take place April 26-29 at the O’Shea Building at the corner of Fifth Avenue and Pine Street in downtown Seattle. Shein plans to offer a variety of merchandise for women and men, including clothing, shoes, handbags, and accessories. An online promotion for the pop-up promises “1,000+ spring styles” and fashions from Shein collections including Essnce, EZwear, Sxy, Glowmode and more. New and existing Shein Club members will be given priority access for… Read More
More than 100 companies, tribal groups, union organizations, environmental nonprofits and political groups are backing a campaign to defeat a November ballot initiative that would scuttle Washington state’s most impactful climate policy. Amazon, Microsoft, REI, BP America, the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and the CleanTech Alliance, as well as climate startups including First Mode, Myno Carbon, and multiple solar companies are all supporting No on 2117. “We cannot afford the cuts Initiative 2117 would inflict on our efforts to reduce carbon emissions and secure healthy air, water, and forests for future generations,” said Marc Berejka, REI’s divisional vice president of… Read More
Sarah Bird, the Seattle tech veteran who led SEO software startup Moz for seven years, is the new CEO of Canvas, a software company that builds technology for remodeling, architecture and interior design. A former lawyer who started at Moz as chief operating officer in 2007, Bird left the company in November 2021 after it was acquired by J2 Global. She spent almost two years on a sabbatical that she said was filled with travel, startup investing, volunteering, remodeling her home and more. She also got engaged, she wrote on LinkedIn on Wednesday. Feeling “powered up,” Bird called the Canvas… Read More
Validated, a Seattle startup that uses AI to help companies figure out what product features and messaging resonates with customers, raised more investment and released a new product.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A former software engineer at Google has been charged with stealing artificial intelligence technology from the company while secretly working with two companies based in China, the Justice Department said Wednesday. Linwei Ding, a Chinese national, was arrested in Newark, California, on four counts of federal trade secret theft, each punishable by […]
LONDON (AP) — Europeans scrolling their phones and computers this week will get new choices for default browsers and search engines, where to download iPhone apps and how their personal online data is used. They’re part of changes required under the Digital Markets Act, a set of European Union regulations that six tech companies classed […]
DETROIT (AP) — America’s muscle car culture will live on as the country transitions to electric vehicles, but the gas-powered performance car will last for at least a few more years. Dodge on Tuesday unveiled two battery-powered versions of the Charger muscle car that will still roar like a big V8 engine without pollution from […]
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Treasury Department announced Tuesday it has sanctioned two people and a Greece-based commercial spyware company headed by a former Israeli military officer that developed, operated and distributed technology used to target U.S. government officials, journalists and policy experts. The sanctions target Intellexa Consortium, which the U.S. says has sold and distributed […]
DENVER (AP) — While artificial intelligence made headlines with ChatGPT, behind the scenes, the technology has quietly pervaded everyday life — screening job resumes, rental apartment applications, and even determining medical care in some cases. While a number of AI systems have been found to discriminate, tipping the scales in favor of certain races, genders […]
Former senior executives of Twitter are suing Elon Musk and X Corp., saying they are entitled to a total of more than $128 million in unpaid severance payments. Twitter’s former CEO Parag Agrawal, Chief Financial Officer Ned Segal, Chief Legal Counsel Vijaya Gadde and General Counsel Sean Edgett claim in the lawsuit filed Monday that […]
Whenever Madonna sings the 1980s hit “La Isla Bonita” on her concert tour, moving images of swirling, sunset-tinted clouds play on the giant arena screens behind her. To get that ethereal look, the pop legend embraced a still-uncharted branch of generative artificial intelligence – the text-to-video tool. Type some words — say, “surreal cloud sunset” […]
DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — Gueva Ba tried to reach Europe by boat 11 times from Morocco, failing each attempt. Then, in 2023, the former welder heard about a new route to the United States by flying to Nicaragua and making the rest of the journey illegally by land to Mexico’s northern border. “In Senegal, it’s […]
WASHINGTON (AP) — For Vladimir Putin, victory in Ukraine may run through Texas’ Rio Grande Valley. In recent weeks, Russian state media and online accounts tied to the Kremlin have spread and amplified misleading and incendiary content about U.S. immigration and border security. The campaign seems crafted to stoke outrage and polarization before the 2024 […]
NEW YORK (AP) — Some doorbell cameras sold by Amazon and other online retailers have security flaws that could allow bad actors to view footage from the devices or control them completely, according to an investigation published Thursday by Consumer Reports. Researchers from the product-review organization said they found major vulnerabilities in cameras manufactured by […]
The U.S. economy is humming and there are hundreds of thousands of jobs being added every month. In a stunning burst of hiring to start the year, the nation added 353,000 jobs in January, shrugging off the highest interest rates in two decades that have been put in place by the U.S. Federal Reserve in […]
Electronic Arts is cutting about 5% of its workforce, or approximately 670 employees, as layoffs in the technology and gaming sector continue after a surge of hiring in recent years. The video game maker said in a regulatory filing that its board approved a restructuring plan that includes the layoffs, as well as closing some […]
WASHINGTON (AP) — Citing potential national security risks, the Biden administration says it will investigate Chinese-made “smart cars” that can gather sensitive information about Americans driving them. The probe could lead to new regulations aimed at preventing China from using sophisticated technology in electric cars and other so-called connected vehicles to track drivers and their […]
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — After two false starts, the billionaires behind a plan to build an eco-friendly city from scratch are behind schedule and off to a bumpy start to put their proposal before California voters this November. Former Goldman Sachs trader Jan Sramek unveiled his closely guarded ballot initiative for the proposed community between […]
DETROIT (AP) — Owners of Ford electric vehicles can now use much of Tesla’s charging network in the U.S. and Canada, but there’s a hitch. They’ll need to get an adapter that Ford will provide for free, although the company won’t start shipping those until the end of March. Last May, Ford became the first […]
