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Technology |
In today’s letter: How to sweat it in the metaverse; fast groceries, quick losses; Elon Musk idles new vehicle push; FTC reframes Big Tech antitrust battle; Facebook’s not-so-free internet access; friendship tips for lonely parents; and more. But first... |
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| New Covid Tests Bring Lab Tech Home |
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Back in December, I saw an article about a new at-home Covid-19 test from Detect, a startup run by Hugo Barra. Since the guy led Android at Google and VR at Facebook (before it became Meta), I figured I should pay attention. Plus, Covid was everywhere thanks to the Omicron variant. A month later, I was glad I did. After being exposed to someone with Covid, I had a headache and a scratchy throat. A BinaxNow rapid antigen test said I was negative. The Detect system, which took about an hour, said positive. The next morning I packed the family up for a trip to our favorite PCR Covid testing center. Confirmed: Positive all around. The Detect Covid-19 Test and another product I tried called the Cue Health Monitoring system are molecular testing systems, which, similar to PCR testing, can spot the virus earlier than those rapid antigen tests. I explain how they work—and why you might want them—in my column and video this week. But this is about more than just Covid testing. It’s about how our personal technology and our personal health care are colliding. Maybe it took a pandemic to put something as complicated as infectious-disease testing computer in our homes, but because of this, it might not be long before all sorts of affordable diagnostic equipment are at our fingertips. “Detect was an opportunity to apply all that I’ve learned at Google and Facebook to a different set of problems that hasn’t gotten the same love, attention, design and cost-obsessed focus,” Mr. Barra told me. Unfortunately, with all this tech, you still need to stick a swab up your nose. —Joanna Stern, the Journal’s Senior Personal Technology Columnist, is now Covid free and roaming around New York Keep reading and watching: 📖 As Omicron Spreads, New PCR-Like At-Home Covid Tests Provide Fast, Accurate Results 🎬 The Best Covid-19 Home Test: PCR-Like Gadgets vs. Rapid Antigen Kits |
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CONTENT FROM OUR SPONSOR: Auth0 | | Okta (Auth0) recognized as Leader in Gartner Magic Quadrant CIAM should do more to balance security, privacy and convenience—not just keeping the bad actors out, but also driving customer loyalty, conversion, and revenue to create great experiences. Learn more |
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| New From Nicole Nguyen: Virtual Workouts, Real Sweat—Exercising in the Metaverse |
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| CREDIT: CHAYA HOWELL/THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, ISTOCK |
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With a Meta Quest 2 headset and virtual-reality workout apps like Supernatural, FitXR and Holofit, you can burn a lot of calories in the metaverse. Just mind the motion sickness, and wear a sweatband. 👉 Read Nicole’s full column here. |
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Apple Pie: Apple’s latest record holiday quarter came in part because of excitement for the iPhone 13 in China, where homegrown Huawei has seen a decline in its market share following U.S. sanctions. |
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Meta Math: Meta says that its research team built a new AI supercomputer that it maintains will soon be the fastest in the world. Meta says it is using the computer to train AI models in language processing and computer vision. |
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| 📖 Read This: Losses Mount for Startups Racing to Deliver Groceries Fast and Cheap |
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| CREDIT: JUTHARAT PINYODOONYACHET FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL |
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Since Hayoung Park moved to Manhattan last year, he estimates he has taken in more than $400 of free cookies-and-cream ice cream, laundry detergent and other groceries delivered to his door, all courtesy of a wave of rapid-delivery grocery startups offering generous referral and discount codes. Such consumer-friendly offerings have brought surging sales, but losses are heavy given the high cost of prolific advertising and paying couriers to hand-deliver potato chips, soap and eggs in a short time frame, industry investors and executives said. 👉 Read Eliot Brown and Preetika Rana’s full report here. |
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| 🎬 Watch This: It’s Time to Ditch Your Old Remote. Here’s Why. |
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• The Battle for the World’s Most Powerful Cyberweapon (NYT) • Shady Network of Fake Mossad Job Sites Targets Iranian Spies (Daily Beast) • Unmasking Poopsenders, the Anonymous Website That Sends People Fake Poop (Vice) • Caroline Spiegel’s Porn Revolution (The Information) |
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| Latest from Christopher Mims: The FTC’s New Antitrust Argument Against Tech Giants |
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For years, activists, lawmakers, lobbying groups, think tanks and most Americans have agreed something should be done about giant tech companies’ power. With minor exceptions, no one has figured out how to do it. Now Federal Trade Commission chief Lina Khan has developed an innovative way to frame the issue. Whether she has the tools to see it through remains to be seen. 👉 Read Christopher’s full column here. |
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| 📖 Read This, Too: Facebook Promised Free Internet Access, but Users Got Charged Anyway |
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| CREDIT: SAIYNA BASHIR FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL |
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Facebook says it’s helping millions of the world’s poorest people get online through apps and services that allow them to use internet data free. Internal company documents show that many of these people end up being charged in amounts that collectively add up to an estimated millions of dollars a month. 👉 Read Justin Scheck, Tom McGinty and Newley Purnell’s report here. |
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| 📖 Read One More: Elon Musk’s Decision to Slow New Tesla Models Risks Backfiring |
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| CREDIT: JEENAH MOON/REUTERS |
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Elon Musk is betting that he can turn Tesla into one of the world’s largest car makers while selling just a handful of models, challenging a long-held auto-industry belief that it takes a diverse stable of updated models to attract buyers. It is another example of Mr. Musk’s defiance of industry orthodoxy—at a time when electric-vehicle competition has never been fiercer. 👉 Read Rebecca Elliott’s full report here. |
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| Latest From Julie Jargon: How to Find and Keep Friends—A Guide for Middle Age |
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| CREDIT: TRENT DAVIS BAILEY FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL |
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Loneliness is a reality for many of us, now more than ever. After my recent column on the loneliness felt by moms in middle age, my inbox began overflowing with emails from readers, many of whom asked for solutions. While there’s no magic wand to fix loneliness, there are things you can do to make new friends, and to rekindle or sustain the friendships you already have. Tech can help, but some of these methods are old school with a pandemic-era update. 👉 Read Julie’s full column here. |
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We want to know what you think! Reply to this email and share your feedback. Brought to you by tech news editor Robert Wall, Personal Tech news editor Shara Tibken and Personal Tech bureau chief Wilson Rothman. You can reach them by replying to this newsletter, and follow them on Twitter: @R_Wall, @sharatibken and @wjrothman. |
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