In the news … January 10, 2019

Nine innovations creeping us out in 2019

As reality in tech-heavy economies blends further into an unending choose-your-own adventure episode of Black Mirror, the biggest, creepiest innovation may be the big data economy built on the back of the black mirror in your hand. It’s not just Google and Facebook and Amazon and the rest of Silicon Valley sucking up our digital exhaust: A vast array of companies are increasingly capturing information about your every move for profit, and in ways that can adversely and quietly impact you.

FAST COMPANY

Google Assistant will soon be on a billion devices, and feature phones are next

As CES kicks off, Google has a massive presence: monorails, a booth that’s three times larger than last year, and likely a giant pile of news to announce. But ahead of all the actual product news, the company wants to beat its chest a little by announcing some numbers. By the end of the month, it expects that Google Assistant will be on 1 billion devices — up from 500 million this past May.

THE VERGE

Bought for a buck, now priceless: Indigenous Alberta media archive digitized

Now, “boxes and boxes and boxes” of old audiotape and film that Bert Crowfoot has safeguarded for decades are turning out to be a priceless trove of Indigenous stories, culture and language.

“This is a continuation of our oral traditions,” said Crowfoot, who’s helping direct a project to turn a roomful of old interviews, talk, music and movies from a defunct Indigenous media organization into a searchable digital archive.

In the early 1980s, Crowfoot worked for a group that had for 20 years produced Indigenous programming for a provincial public broadcasting network.

From a studio in west Edmonton, it beamed interviews with Indigenous leaders, stories from elders and talk shows. It also shot abundant video and film.

CHRONICLE HERALD

What Does Your Corporate Brand Stand For?

Companies are extremely good at defining their product brands. Customers, employees, and other stakeholders know exactly what an iPhone is and means. But organizations are often less sure-footed when it comes to the corporate brand. What does the parent company’s name really stand for, and how is it perceived and leveraged in the marketplace and within the company itself?

FAST COMPANY

Zuckerberg To Hold Nationwide Talks About Facebook, Tech

Following a year when it seemed like Facebook couldn’t do anything right, Mark Zuckerberg is reaching out to users for guidance.the auspices of his annual personal challenge, Facebook’s cofounder-CEO plans to host a series of public discussions about the future of technology.

Following a year when it seemed like Facebook couldn’t do anything right, Mark Zuckerberg is reaching out to users for guidance.

Under the auspices of his annual personal challenge, Facebook’s cofounder-CEO plans to host a series of public discussions about the future of technology.

MEDIA POST