As Monday morning rolls in, we’re providing TechWire readers with a quick recap of the past week’s news headlines.
The coronavirus pandemic continued to dominate news coverage last week. Local business leaders and experts weighed in on COVID-19 impact and response in North Carolina, including Spiffy CEO Scot Wingo, NCSU economist Mike Walden, experts from UNC’s Kenan-Flagler Business School, John Samuel of LCI Tech, Tom Snyder of RIoT, Jay Bigelow of CED and Jodi Coverly of Hutchison PLLC. A huge wave of tech and life science events were canceled or rescheduled across NC and local companies changed their work policies to promote social distancing measures. The Small Business Administration also approved disaster relief loans for small businesses.
Other top stories from last week (March 16-20) included: Wake County and RTI International are surveying businesses to gauge talent needs; Amazon is hiring 100,000 workers nationwide, including some in the Triangle; American Underground brought on new executive leadership; two local startups announced new funding rounds: Raleigh-based Gryppers ($215,000) and Durham-based Tavros Therapeutics ($1 million).
- Check out TechWire’s comprehensive resource package for Triangle startups.
And, in national news: Coronavirus containment measures are driving the U.S. into a recession; companies like Apple, Google Fiber and wireless service providers are closing their retail offices; in our new ‘social distancing’ reality, ecommerce and streaming are taking center stage; the coronavirus pandemic leads to high demand for telehealth services; new data shows that young people are more at risk for COVID than we thought; governments across the world are looking to hand out emergency cash directly to citizens.
Keeping with our Monday tradition, here’s a look back at 72 local, state and national headlines as reported by WRAL TechWire last week:
MONDAY | March 16 Headlines:
- As Frozen 2 hits Disney+, will Hollywood turn to streaming for new movies during pandemic?
- France fines Apple $1.2B for ‘abusively’ exploting partners to keep prices high
- Here’s why Tim Cook has closed Apple stores through March 27
- Latest Triangle events update: Some still on schedule, some going online or via streaming
- Looking for a meetup? Here’s your guide to 141 tech & business groups across the Triangle
- Medicago, which has Durham plant, developing vaccine that could smoke out coronavirus
- NC headliners: Some events still on schedule despite virus; several are going online
- On the event horizon: 70+ events & program deadlines coming up in April
- Talent crunch: Wake County surveys businesses to find out needs for tomorrow’s jobs
- TechWire rewind: Coronavirus hits NC’s tech community; stock market plunge; virus testing efforts
- Triangle Startup Guide updates: More resources for local entrepreneurs
- UNC Health deploys coronavirus test
- U.S. internet well-equipped to handle work from home surge
- Veteran exec of 2008-9 crisis warns companies: Take steps now to deal with coronavirus crisis
- Virus fallout: Feds grant more bandwidth to T-Mobile; Internet providers step up
- Wingo’s advice to startups during virus crisis: Prepare for the worst, pray for the best
- Yoga instructors offer classes online for those stuck at home during coronavirus pandemic
TUESDAY | March 17 Headlines:
- Amazon to hire 100,000 workers – help already wanted at Triangle, NC operations
- American Underground ‘transitions’ to new executive leadership
- Cisco to pay nearly $5M to settle job discrimination dispute
- Coronavirus: Apple retail stores closed ‘until further notice’
- Coronavirus fallout: UNC Kenan-Flagler experts urge aid package for ‘small businesses, working poor’
- Durham software startup offers free trial of new platform to help teams go remote
- Goldman Sachs: Virus creates ‘unprecedented financial and societal disruption’
- Google Fiber: We’re shutting our offices but continuing installations – for now
- How virus is affecting Triangle tech sector – here’s the latest update
- Internet of Things group RIoT plans webinar to discuss using tech, data in virus fight
- Medicare announces support for telemedicine – here’s how this tech can help fight contagion
- NCCU gets $330,000 grant to stop biological threats, like COVID-19, at the border
- Plant-based protein startup Impossible Foods raises $500M
- Raleigh-based sports tech startup Gryppers lands 9 investors, $215K in equity
- Report: Virus puts millions of jobs at risk; economist predicts ‘5 digit’ losses in NC
- Where to go for entertainment in midst of virus? Streaming takes center stage
- Winston-Salem’s New Ventures Accelerator seeks startups for 2020 cohort
WEDNESDAY | March 18 Headlines:
- Animation pioneers share tech’s Nobel – the Turing Award
- Big brother vs. coronavirus in Israel: Spy agency tracks sick citizens
- Blind exec: Highlighting digital accessibility is ‘silver lining’ of coronavirus crisis
- Coronavirus and you: Apply engineering principle ‘Factor of Safety’ in your actions today, tomorrow
- Durham quantum-computing startup launches drug discovery platform it says is much faster
- Facebook bug blocks links to news stories about coronavirus
- How to stay online during coronavirus crisis – 5 tips in an infographic
- Joan Siefert Rose: LaunchBio taking Larger Than Life Science events virtual
- Survey: More people embrace e-commerce as worries grow about virus impact
- TARGET PharmaSolutions begins asthma study; appoints new CEO, advisor
- Trackpads on an iPad? Yes, says Apple
- Wireless providers shuttering, reducing hours at retail stores due to virus
THURSDAY | March 19 Headlines:
- Bank of America, JPMorgan see big losses coming in jobs as virus hammers economy
- Cash handouts are coming as countries do ‘whatever it takes’ to survive the pandemic shock
- Durham biotech startup founded by Duke grad raises nearly $1M in equity
- Feds approve disaster loans for small businesses – up to $2M available
- How to combat the online spread of misinformation during the coronavirus crisis
- Jay Bigelow: How to manage in difficult times? Mindsharing can help
- Need something now during virus? ‘Gopher’ app can help you get it
- Paradox: Economic lockdown to combat coronavirus is driving US into recession
- Raleigh-based MobileSmith Health launches virus response mobile apps to help hospitals, patients
- Telehealth demand getting a boost from coronavirus – but what is it exactly?
- Think you are safe from virus because you are young? Think again, hospitalization data shows
FRIDAY | March 20 Headlines:
- Attention, biz execs: Here’s what you need to know about Families First Coronavirus Response Act
- Ex-Cisco CEO John Chambers predicts economic aftershocks from coronavirus to last ’12-18 months’
- LabCorp sets aside first hour at labs for non-coronavirus tests of seniors, ‘higher risk’ patients
- Lenovo’s smart manufacturing factory already open in China; all factories expected to be up by month-end
- March 20 coronavirus update: Here’s the latest on tech events across NC
- NC-based LabCorp doubles COVID-19 testing capacity to 20,000 tests per day
- Raleigh research startup launches project monitoring industries affected by COVID-19
- Tasty alternative: NC plant meat startup ‘No Evil Foods’ now in 5,500 stores nationwide
- Walmart, Amazon look to hire 250,000 people in response to pandemic
- What a pivot: How startup Skillpop changed from an in-person business in just 14 days
Weekend Headlines:
- Amazon warehouse workers fear catching virus as they help deliver packages
- AT&T waives wireless overage fees as service providers react to coronavirus
- From boom to bust: Coronavirus in 30 days drives world’s economies into recession
- IBM commits world’s most powerful supercomputer to fight coronavirus
- Layoffs costing hundreds of people their jobs in NC
