Amazon is finishing off the year strong, selling "tens of millions of Alexa-enabled devices." The Amazon Alexa app tops the U.S. Android and iOS app stores, suggesting it did better than its competitors over the past month.
Can Google and Apple catch up in the home assistant market? Sascha Segan, Lead Analyst at PCMag.com, thinks it could be tough. Segan says that the Alexa network is far more integrated than its competitors. Amazon's cheapest home assistant, the Echo Dot, is currently sold out. It was the first home assistant to sell for $30, putting pressure on Google to lower the price of its cheapest option to match Amazon.
Segan also takes a look at the rumors surrounding Apple and Samsung's flagship phones. Reports are circulating that sales of the iPhone X were lower over the holiday season than expected. Couple that with rumors that Samsung could launch the Galaxy S9 sooner than expected, and you could have a battle brewing in the mobile phone market.
Almost four dozen Venezuelan workers who had temporary protected status have been put on leave by Disney after the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to strip them of legal protections.
The Republican-controlled Federal Trade Commission is abandoning a Biden-era effort to block Microsoft’s purchase of “Call of Duty” video game maker Activision Blizzard.
The Justice Department has reached a deal with Boeing that will allow the company to avoid criminal prosecution for allegedly misleading U.S. regulators about the 737 Max jetliner before two of the planes crashed and killed 346 people.
After a bumpy ride, the ride-hailing app is back in the good graces of investors. Plus: OpenAI, Google, Apple, Target, Moody's, Paramount, and Golden Dome.
