Hello everyone and welcome back to Week in Review! Natasha here, replacing Lucas while he's out. This week we'll talk about the loneliness that raises money and how Zoom's fatigue is fueling innovation.
For all those who celebrate, happy holidays! Keep your eyes peeled next week for more festive content, including the launch of our annual ProWellTech gift guides.
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The big story
Over the past month, I've spent time working on virtual headquarters. Dozens of founders use space technology and gamification to create online worlds. Consumers are encouraged to come together and create some of the spontaneity of events in person, such as the workday or weddings. The founders are testing whether the metaverse can be brought into the mainstream. After throwing a few succulents around me, I was impressed (especially as a non-player) at how intuitive the platform was. It's special to meet someone in 2020.
You can read more of my story here, which includes a demonstration video and images to give you an idea of the space. For today, though, I want to talk about what I think the rise of virtual headquarters is telling us in a not-so-subtle way.
The founders are trying to break the loneliness in this chapter of the coronavirus pandemic. There's a shift in what technology is trying to solve, and it's a bit of a dynamic one called zoom fatigue.
For example, in March, we saw startups vying to try to bring remote work to the masses. Now, in November, we are seeing startups racing to fix the broken and weary world of remote working.
The problem here, I think, is that the founders are trying to innovate a solution to the lack of spontaneity and solidarity in our lives. Spontaneity, by definition, cannot be forced. And the community will always feel different in person. These inherent clashes cause us, or at least I, to wonder what the constraints of technology are. That said, the Hopin virtual event platform and its $ 2 billion valuation put me to rest.
However, as we see startups chasing to solve the next big pain point that everyone can agree on, it will be important to keep track of what is a sustainable and more existential problem.
The roundup
A White House in transitionIt's been a busy week for the shifting White House and big tech. President Trump fired US cybersecurity official Chris Krebs for exposing false election claims. Meanwhile, two platforms that have fueled misinformation fires, Facebook and Twitter, have had yet another testimony before Congress. Big tech is likely to continue to suffer backlash when the Biden administration takes the lead, especially when it comes to antitrust regulation. However, it's not all bad news for tech: President-elect Joe Biden's infrastructure plan and pro-technology transition team could help startups. More here.
The race for a COVID-19 vaccineThis week Pfizer and BioNTech sought emergency approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for its COVID-19 vaccine, which is 95% effective. The news follows Moderna's report that his vaccine is 94.5% effective. While the proposed approval could bring vaccines into the hands of high-risk populations, widely used vaccines are likely not to be available until 2021. Read on here.
The latest Intel from AppleAs my colleague Brian Heater puts it, "every update can't be a revolution" in hardware product updates. That said, Apple's latest trio of Macs impressed. We have reviews on the Mac mini, Macbook Air, and MacBook Pro. Most notably, the line is powered by the Mac's internal microchips, prompting an effort that has been underway since 2008. It's a win for Apple and a loss for Intel, which until now had powered Macs. However, Intel seems to be taking the break with Apple well since it announced its own white-labeled laptop.
TC: Sessions Space is fast approachingNASA and SpaceX have successfully launched four astronauts - and one special guest - into space for their first operational Dragon Crew mission. History has been made, which makes our next event even more exciting and timely. This year, ProWellTech will host its first ever dedicated space event on December 16th and 17th. The TC: Sessions Space agenda is packed and includes fireplace chats with the US Space Force chief, NASA executives, and more. Buy your tickets now.
Other stories
Thanks for reading,
