Get caught up on the latest technology and startup news from the past week. Here are the most popular stories on GeekWire for the week of Jan. 2, 2022.
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Most popular stories on GeekWire
UW computer science school denounces retired professor’s tweet on women hires
Editor’s note: This story has been updated with comments from Pedro Domingos and additional information. … Read More
Napster co-founder leads secretive Seattle startup that just raised $3.5M to ‘supercharge productivity’
The news: A group of experienced entrepreneurs and technologists have teamed up to lead a new Seattle startup that aims to “supercharge your productivity.” The details: Augment AI Corp is still in stealth mode, but GeekWire has learned that the startup just raised a $3.45 million seed round and is spinning out of the incubator at Seattle’s Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence (AI2). … Read More
Amazon to expand further in Seattle region with big new Redmond office lease, filing reveals
Amazon has leased another large office space in Redmond, Wash., according to a permit filing that names the tech giant as the future tenant of a building under renovation in the Redmond Hilltop business park. … Read More
Amazon partners with Washington state to help deliver 3.5M free COVID at-home tests
Amazon is lending a helping hand to its home state of Washington, which announced today that it will distribute 5.5 million rapid tests as COVID-19 case counts hit all-time highs. … Read More
Clutter be gone: This startup will sell your stuff online for a $5.99 flat rate
Nearly all of us have lingering items we don’t want or need, and the recent holidays might have added a few goods to the pile. … Read More
Seattle venture capitalist dies in Oregon ski accident
Birkan Uzun, a former software engineer at Amazon who joined Seattle’s Madrona Venture Group last year and was on a quest to summit the seven highest peaks on seven continents, died in a ski accident outside Bend, Ore., on Friday. … Read More
Office space with an active twist: Founder of Seattle outdoor retailer Evo has big plans for new campus
During a time of increased uncertainty around the future of work and physical office spaces, the founder and CEO behind Seattle outdoor retailer Evo is doubling down on what it might take to lure people back. … Read More
Astronomers breathe a sigh of relief after Webb Telescope unfolds its mirror in space
Two weeks after its Christmas launch, NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope finished unwrapping itself today, delighting astronomers in the process. … Read More
Amazon tests new wireless bridge to extend range of Sidewalk network by up to 5 miles or more
Amazon says it’s testing a new professional-grade device that can extend the reach of a single access point in its Sidewalk neighborhood wireless network by up to 5 miles or more. … Read More
Relativity hires Microsoft’s Scott Van Vliet to boost its Factory Operating System for 3D-printed rockets
Relativity Space, the startup that was founded in Seattle and is now building 3D-printed rockets in Southern California, has brought in a Microsoft executive to lead its growing software engineering team and expand upon its AI-powered “Factory Operating System.” Scott Van Vliet, who headed up the team behind the Microsoft Teams collaboration platform as a corporate vice president, will oversee more than 150 of Relativity’s employees on its Integrative Software and Additive Manufacturing teams as senior vice president of software engineering. … Read More
