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. NC small businesses fared better in the second round of COVID-19 disaster loans; Golden Leaf is offering another $125 million in loans; GE Aviation, which has a big plant in Durham, is cutting more jobs; NC is ranked in the middle among states for COVID restrictions; a Duke University research group has found a more dominant coronavirus strain; local companies roll out plans to reopen; Durham company LCI is delivering over 570,000 face masks to the U.S. Air Force; UNC ranked eighth globally for COVID research in a new report.
In non-COVID news: Red Hat’s new CEO revealed his plans for the company in an exclusive Q&A; four NC universities teamed up to win a $5.7 million federal grant for diabetes research; IBM’s new CEO says there are no plans to break up the company, but he would consider acquisitions; the NC Biotech Center awarded $1.8 million in grants and loans to startups and universities; school buses are now wireless hotspots for remote learning. Plus, it’s earnings season: Here’s our roundup of Q1 results from public companies in NC.
Last week, we launched a new column that summarizes local startup news coverage over the past week. Read this week’s edition here.
- Check out TechWire’s comprehensive resource package for Triangle startups.
And, in national news: An Amazon VP quit his job in protest of the company’s response to whistleblowers; the FDA is requiring antibody test makers to seek emergency authorization; WeWork’s former CEO sued SoftBank for pulling out of the company’s $3 billion bailout; Airbnb is laying off 1,900 employees; Uber is cutting 14% of its workforce.
Keeping with our Monday tradition, here’s a look back at 83 local, state and national headlines as reported by WRAL TechWire last week:
MONDAY | May 4 Headlines:
- All hands on deck: COVID-19 engineering response team assembles from every corner at Duke
- Introducing TechWire’s Startup Rewind: A recap of last week’s NC startup news
- GE Aviation, which has huge plant in Durham, is cutting more jobs
- Golden LEAF offers another $125M in COVID-19 disaster loans for small businesses
- Grifols begins accepting plasma from recovered COVID-19 patients
- June events ‘on the horizon’: Previewing more than 50 events across NC
- Morrisville startup focusing on airborne wind energy raising more cash, is hiring
- NC IDEA: It’s time to rethink economic development priorities
- NC May headliners: 50+ statewide events & deadlines coming up
- Number of NC small businesses landing COVID-19 disaster loans surges in 2nd round
- Our guide to meetups across Triangle: 100+ groups to join (many meeting online)
- Starbucks is set to reopen all stores today with more safety requirements
- TechWire rewind: NC last in COVID-19 support; LabCorp cuts; PPP loans + 82 more headlines
- Triangle headliners: 55 events & deadlines for your May calendar
- Triangle Startup Guide’s latest updates include info about support during COVID-19 crisis
TUESDAY | May 5 Headlines:
- 4 NC universities team up to land $5.7M grant for diabetes research center
- Airbnb laying off 1,900 employees due to travel decline
- Amazon exec quits over firing of whistleblowers
- Duke engineers find light-based deep brain stimulation relieves symptoms of Parkinson’s disease
- Durham startup targeting pancreatitis raises $2.7M from 19 investors
- FDA revamps authorization guidelines for COVID-19 antibody tests
- Fennec Pharma raises $30M through stock offering
- Hot seller: Raleigh brothers – 16, 14 – have a hit on their hands with neckware-mask startup
- How NC’s Crystal Coast is managing COVID-19 – and is reopening for business
- IBM CEO: No plans to split company or make divestitures, will consider acquisitions
- NCSU-led team’s discovery could mean big drop in manufacturing-linked CO2 emissions
- NCSU, pharma firm create database focusing on large molecules, drug discovery
- New lawncare startup Rakemates aims to employ workers displaced by COVID-19
- Ousted WeWork CEO Adam Nuemann sues SoftBank for ditching $3 billion bailout
- Serial founder Patrick Sullivan talks exits to Google, Facebook and new venture, Bonsai, in Raleigh
- Sharing lessons of a serial entrepreneur – from hiring smarter people to innovate fast, fail faster
- Study: North Carolina ranks 28th among the states for COVID-19 restrictions
- Targeting self-driving cars, Intel buys app developer Moovit for $900M
- Tracking the pandemic via apps comes at a price: Privacy loss
WEDNESDAY | May 6 Headlines:
- Back to the office: Practical considerations for your ‘return to work’ plan
- Director of AIDS vaccine research at Duke helps find more dominant coronavirus strain
- Duke engineering students tackle Garmin projects despite COVID-19 challenges
- Durham’s LCI delivering up to 576,000 face masks to the US Air Force
- Durham startup with quantum-based drug platform raises more cash
- FDA says 97% of online pharmacies are fake, pandemic increases these drug scams
- Forecast: 5G network demand receiving a boost from COVID-19 pandemic
- Gig economy is being battered – Uber, Airbnb cutting thousands of jobs
- Greenville-based clean tech firm Kerdea Technologies raises $150,000
- Here’s why Council for Entrepreneurial Development CEO Ravila Gupta is leaving for new job
- Instagram Live emerges as an entertainment destination in days of COVID-19
- Looking for temporary help? ‘Flexible staffing’ startup MyWorkChoice offers services at cost
- Musk in line for $700M payday; lists 2 mansions for sale after vow to sell possessions
- NC Biotech Center awards $1.8M in grants, loans to startups, universities
- School buses to become Wi-Fi hotspots for NC students lacking internet access
- Top Gun heading to space: Tom Cruise, NASA to collaborate on movie
THURSDAY |May 7 Headlines:
- Companies slowly roll out plans to reopen as NC’s ‘Phase 1’ begins
- ChannelAdvisor stock jumps as COVID-19 drives more ecommerce; chart tracks online buying surge
- Disney+ is a blessing and a burden for Disney media empire – here’s why
- Earnings: CommScope, PPD, Aerie, BioCryst, Lending Tree, Chimerix, G1
- Facebook names first 20 members of advisory board
- Global initiative ‘La French Tech’ officially lands in the Triangle
- Guest opinion: Staying safe with telehealth also means maintaining cybersecurity
- In battle between bullish and bearish investors, some unicorn stocks are shining
- LabCorp making COVID-19 antibody tests available to individuals
- Launch Chapel Hill’s new director presses ahead with accelerator’s growth despite COVID-19
- NC Rural Center launches ‘Rural Talk’ virtual panel series; rural broadband is first topic May 7
- NC startup SimpleTix integrates with Zoom to host for-profit ‘virtual’ events
- Numerous tech firms are among winners in COVID-19 economic shutdown
- Orthus Health unveils symptom monitoring system for employers in response to COVID-19
- Venture Asheville raises $25,000 to help launch 5 startups
- Wilson community broadband proves valuable during coronavirus outbreak
FRIDAY | May 8 Headlines:
- 37 startups set to pitch in Venture Connect Online May 11
- All Things Open goes virtual to host ‘Open Source 101 At Home’ event
- Charlotte-based Tradier teams with Forbes company to offer AI-driven investing platform
- ‘Do I need to return my PPP loan?’ Here’s an update on COVID-19 loan requirements
- Durham-based social impact group ReCity Network unveils online platform
- Earnings: Qorvo beats Street with $50M quarter; vTv Therapeutics reports loss
- Endeavor eyes selling minority stake in Cary-based Epic Games: Report
- Lost your job? Here’s what you need to know
- Raleigh’s RedHill Biopharma approved for US COVID-19 study
- Report: Tencent monitors WeChat content outside China for use in censorship
- Sidewalk Labs a no-go: Google abandons smarty city project in Toronto
- Uber loses $2.9B, sells bike-scooter business, to boost food delivery business
- UNC-CH ranks as a world leader in COVID-19 research – here’s why
- Warning: We are going to pay big price for massive COVID-19 economic rescue packages
- Where you can find financial resources in the COVID-19 crisis
- Zoom says deal to buy security firm will ‘significantly’ enhance security
