Startups Weekly: This year in startups

Welcome back to Startups Weekly, a weekend newsletter that dives into the week’s noteworthy startups and venture capital news. Before I jump into today’s topic, let’s catch up a bit.…

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Citizen has a fancier alternative to Amazon’s Alexa wall clock

The Citizen clock is considerably more expensive than the Echo Wall Clock at $80, and that's for the standard metal frame. The price climbs to $90 if you want a wooden frame, and that's not including the four C batteries you'll need (and aren't included) to keep either model powered for roughly a year. Nonetheless,…

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The crowdfunded cult of Amanda Palmer

It's not as if Palmer invented crowdfunding or single-handedly spun Patreon into a billion-dollar business, but she helped shape the digital landscape that made it possible for this model to thrive. Patreon was founded in 2013, and by then, Palmer had already spent years evangelizing the benefits of crowdfunding and direct, digitally driven communication between…

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Philips seems to be working on more Hue outdoor lights

New to the collection are the Philips Hue Nyro, an angular light available as a path lamp or wall lamp; the Hue Resonate, a box that will cast light up and down the wall; and the Philips Hue Appear, a tubular version of the Resonate. Other new wall lights will include the circular Daylo and…

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Porsche dreams up a Star Wars ship inspired by its Taycan EV

The starfighter aimed to scream "Porsche" while also being instantly recognizable as a Star Wars ship. "The basic shape of the cabin, which tapers towards the rear, and a highly distinctive topography from the cockpit flyline to the turbines establish visual parallels with the iconic design of the 911 and the Taycan," said Porsche design…

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The New Xbox Has a Name and a Questionable Shape

Greetings, and welcome to Replay, WIRED's collection of all of the week's biggest gaming news. This particular installment is the Game Awards edition, featuring a bevy of new announcements, and the newly named next-gen Xbox console. Let's get to it.The New Xbox Console Has a Name and a Questionable ShapeCongratulations, Microsoft. You've given birth to…

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Greta Thunberg Takes on the World

Seas rage and the land grows weak. Pollutants cake the air. Fires, droughts, and outbreaks surge with a kind of unsympathetic wildness. The very earth oozes an irreversible, clotting heat. It’s agitated, ailing, and on the brink of complete and ineluctable devastation. From this hellish man-made calamity, one voice ruptures the breach. Sometimes, one voice…

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When a Mantis Shrimp Fights a Disco Clam, It Meets Its Match

The mantis shrimp is one of evolution's greatest hits—literally. This pugnacious crustacean (not technically a shrimp) cocks back its hammer-limbs and smashes prey with such ferocity, a shockwave blows the claws clean off crabs and crumples clamshells like they were papier-mâché. Really, there isn't much on the tropical seafloor that the mantis shrimp can't destroy…

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Nike’s Victory Swimsuit Steals Tricks From Fish Gills

By most accounts the Nike Pro Women's Hijab has been a success. Launched in December 2017 and targeting female Muslim athletes, the lightweight headpiece has been worn by German boxer Zeina Nassar, American fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad, and Emirati figure skater Zahra Lari, all of whom fed into Nike's prototypes. The $35 sports hijab remains popular,…

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Utility Executives Kept Flint’s Tainted Water a Secret

This story originally appeared on The Guardian and is part of the Climate Desk collaboration.Executives at one of the world’s largest utilities companies knew that families in Flint, Michigan, might be at risk of being poisoned by lead in their tap water months before the city publicly admitted the problem, according to internal company emails.Email…

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