Tech Roundup: Amazon "Uber for Trucks", Google Waymo & More

[A recurring feature on the latest in Science & Technology.]

Alphabet/Google:

• Rebrands Google Keyboard for Android as Gboard with features like built-in search and faster typing.
• Brings Rich Communication Services in SMS to Rogers users in Canada.
• Spins off six-year old autonomous car project into a standalone business under Alphabet called Waymo; to use a "fleet of 100 modified Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid minivans as research vehicles".
• Rebrands Project Brillo, Android-based Internet of Things OS for connected devices, as Android Things.
• Acquires Cronologics, a smartwatch startup started by ex-Googlers, "to continue pushing the frontier of wearable technology and smartwatches with Android Wear 2.0 and beyond."
• Launches a new reservation service for spas, studios and gyms.
• Updates Google Drive for iOS with backup options (excluding texts and music library) for easier switch to Android.
• To not scan emails for advertising purposes even before they reach users' inbox as part of a proposed settlement in North Carolina District Court.
• Faces scrutiny from consumer watchdogs over its overhauled privacy policy that went into effect last June; allege that the new opt-in setting allows the company to merge users' personal identifiable information on Google sites with their advertising profiles to serve personalised ads and that it did a poo job of explaining these changes to the users.
• Confirms plans for new Android Wear smartwatches for release next year.
• Gets sued by employee (anonymous at the moment) for supposedly leaking confidential information to the press; complainant alleges the company's secrecy policies go too far.
• Investigating speaker issues with Google Pixel phones that produce distorted sounds when playing audio at maximum volume; Nexus 6P owners report a battery problem which causes the phone to power down even with 10-60% battery remaining.

Amazon:

• Launches Prime Video in over 200 countries as it prepares to take on Netflix
• Makes its first drone delivery to a real customer in the U.K., a package containing a bag of popcorn and Fire TV video streaming service.
• Reportedly planning "Uber" for trucks to allow freight booking between potential customers and truck drivers.

Apple:

• Quietly releases AirPods for sale after months of delays; gets a repairability score of zero (out of 10) from repair site iFixit for its low quality build and total lack of repair and recycle options.
• Releases macOS 10.12.2 for MacBooks; removes battery time remaining indicator in response to growing inconsistent battery life complaints.
• To pay US$ 2 million to 20,000 California Apple Store retail employees as part of a class action lawsuit filed in 2011 for failing to give them adequate breaks, pay wages in a timely manner after they left the company and provide accurate wage statements.
• Appeals against European Union's US$ 14 billion tax ruling that accuses Apple of paying low taxes by taking advantage of Ireland's low tax rates.
• Failed to include a larger battery inside new MacBook Pro after failing a key design test, reports Bloomberg, adding macOS no longer has a dedicated development team; CEO Tim Cook assures saying "(i)f there's any doubt about that with our teams, let me be very clear: we have great desktops in our roadmap. Nobody should worry about that."
• Files antirust lawsuit against patent assertion entities Acacia Research Corp and Conversant Intellectual Property Management for colluding with Nokia and trying to extract excessive licensing fees from Apple and other companies; Nokia files a counter lawsuit claiming Apple's infringement of several of its interface and video coding related patents, as Apple removes Nokia Withings-branded accessories from Apple online store.
• To face possible investigation from Korean Agency for Technology and Standards (KATS) for ongoing battery issues with iPhone 6s that causes the handsets to shut down despite battery remaining.

BlackBerry:

• To open a research centre for self-driving cars as part of the handset maker's automotive software unit.
• To license its brand to Chinese electronics giant TCL to sell BlackBerry-branded devices; comes after Canadian handset maker's move to exit smartphone business and focus on software and services.

Facebook:

• Accused of providing misleading information in the European Union during its takeover of WhatsApp (comes after its decision to merge and WhatsApp and Facebook user data for advertising purposes); may possibly face fines of US$ 179 million.
• Adds location stickers and capabilities to save posts on Instagram; photo-sharing social network hits 600 million monthly active users 
• Expands group video chat on Facebook Messenger for up to 50 people; brazenly copies Snapchat (and Prisma) features like emoji and live art filters in new update.
• Partners with The Associated Press, ABC News, Politifact, FactCheck and Snopes to flag fake news on the social network as Germany plans stricter laws (aka fines) if sites like Facebook fail to remove online hate speech within 24 hours.
• To roll out Google Doodles-like picture postcards in News Feeds to highlight events of interest.
• Introduces Facebook Live Audio for those who "want to tell a story on Facebook with words and not video."

Microsoft:

• To bring voice-activated personal assistant Cortana to fridges, toasters and thermostats with Windows 10 Creators Update set for release Spring 2017.
• Encounters a surprise hit in collaborative conference room computer business Surface Hub.
• To block Flash by default in its Edge web browser with Windows 10 Creators Update.
• Releases a new version of Skype for Android called Mingo that can handle SMS messages.

Snap Inc.:

• Adds group messaging in Snapchat with up to 16 friends; chats or snaps sent to a group are deleted after 24 hours and can only be replayed once.
• Doctor Shafi Ahmed performs the world's first surgery live-streamed via Snap Spectacles as a tutorial for his students.

Nintendo:

• 2016 breakout hit Pokémon Go lands in India and South Asia.
• Popular Super Mario Run lands on iOS App Store for US$ 9.99; shares of Nintendo slide after players bemoan lack of free content and the game's hefty price tag.

Twitter:

• Drops plans to shut down Vine; morphs it into a Snapchat-like Vine Camera app in latest update to better integrate with Twitter.
• Reportedly axed a messaging service targeting emerging markets after poor feedback, reports Buzzfeed, adding the app was killed in September after more than a year in development. 
• Integrates Periscope with Twitter; lets users start live broadcasts from within the app.
• Stock price plunges after CTO Adam Messinger quits the company in latest management exodus.

Uber:

• Brings two wheeler bike sharing in India with Moto for Hyderabad.
• Rolls out a fleet of 16 self-driving cars in San Francisco without DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles) approvals; halts pilot program in the state after the department revokes their registrations.
• Faces demands for higher pay in France following the company's move to hike commissions from its drivers from 20 percent to 25 percent without increasing fares; drivers blockade roads to Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris.
• Reportedly made a loss of US$ 800 million in the third quarter ending September on US$ 1.7 billion in net revenue despite China exit, reports Bloomberg.