Welcome to our our tech roundup this week, readers. It’s been a busy old week in Silicon Valley and beyond. The news is full of controversy courtesy of Uber and Volkswagen. Shares are up and down all over the place as Q3 results continue to trickle in. There are some big winners, and some big losers (let’s just say, you wouldn’t want to be a VW investor right now). If you haven’t had chance to keep up with all our technology news this week, don’t worry. We’ve been taking care of that for you. Here’s what you’ve missed.
Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page
Google cofounder Larry Page opens up about Alphabet
Larry Page is a notoriously secretive fellow. He’s certainly a Silicon Valley founder who likes to fly below the radar. But, this week, he sat down with Fortune editors to discuss Google’s recent restructure. It’s the first time Larry Page or co-founder Sergey Brin have openly discussed the recent brand change to ‘Alphabet’. Unfortunately, we didn’t learn too much. Only that Alphabet should not impact (or even concern) the average consumer or customer. It’s more of an investor’s restructure. Apparently it’s made the internal working much more efficient. Good news.
Uber find themselves in more controversy
Uber has never been a company to keep a low profile. It’s outspoken founder has found trouble in the past for his controversial views and statements. Uber is no stranger to lawsuits either, but there’s a new trial in the works that could do some damage. A high profile attorney, Shannon Liss-Riordan is raising the case against Uber’s classification of drivers as ‘freelancers’. If the case is won, Uber will have to classify them as ‘employees’, and grant all the perks that come with it. It could damage Uber’s bottom line.
Activision buy Candy Crush
Activision are the biggest name in gaming and gaming technology. They own and develop monster franchises like Call of Duty and Destiny. They’ve typically focused on console gaming, but this week they turned their attention to mobile apps. They acquired the devilishly addictive Candy Crush, and the company that makes it, King Entertainment. For a shade under $6 billion, Activision will gain access to some of the planet’s highest-grossing apps. Not to mention an enormous user base of customer information.
Environmental test chambers licensed to FOM technologies
Environmental test chambers are incredibly important to the research and development industry. It allows companies to test products in a range of temperatures, climates and conditions. A recent licensing deal has been struck to give FOM technologies access to the best new test chambers. FOM technologies are one of the biggest R&D companies on the planet, so this is big news in the industry.
The hot new startup: Grability
Silicon Valley is full of thriving startups, but Grability has caught our attention this week. The app seeks to bring the digital e commerce experience closer to a real-life shopping experience. They have just secured more than $1 million in seed 2 funding, and they’re building a huge presence. Keep an eye on this one.
That’s all for this week, folks! In the meantime, keep one eye on our breaking news topics.