Hive, a startup founded by Kevin Guo and Dmitriy Karpman, trains domain-specific artificial intelligence models via its 100 employees and 700,000 workers who classify images and transcribe audio. The company uses the Hive Work smartphone app and website to recruit the people who label the data, and recently introduced three products: Hive Data, Hive Predict, and Hive Enterprise. Shortly after the product launch, Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund and other venture capital firms invested $30 million in the startup. Read more

LG is introducing its first Google Assistant-powered smart display this week. The XBOOM AI ThinQ WK9, which runs the Android Things operating system for IoT devices, will be offered for a $200 promotional price during Black Friday (it is expected to run $100 more beyond the sale). The smart device was first teased at CES in January. The XBOOM AI features an 8-inch HD touch-screen display, Bluetooth streaming, a built-in 5MP camera for video calls, Google Assistant-powered AI features, and easy access to apps such as Google Maps, Google Photos and YouTube via the Android Things platform. Read more

Apple inked a multi-year partnership with studio A24 to make independent features, the first time that it expanded its ambitions to make content beyond TV programming. Last year, Apple announced it had committed $1 billion to create scripted shows, moving into a field dominated by Amazon and Netflix. Prior to the deal, Apple had only signed deals for two films, the documentary “The Elephant Queen” and family-friendly animated film “Wolfwalkers.” A24 is known for its Oscar-winning feature “Moonlight.” Read more

In a conference call with reporters, Facebook chief executive/chair Mark Zuckerberg defended his company against charges that he and chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg hid problems regarding Russian interference and other issues. Politicians have discussed opening a federal investigation into possible campaign finance violations and creating competition laws to curb the company, while shareholders have called for Zuckerberg’s ouster and activists have complained to the Federal Trade Commission. Read more

Cyberattacks could potentially disrupt U.S. infrastructure, from the electric grid to the financial system. In July, the Department of Homeland Security reported that Russian hackers gained access to the control rooms of electric utilities. Now, analysts and policymakers are debating the best way to protect our critical infrastructure. While many believe that federal and state government regulation, funding and oversight are necessary, others argue this tack may actually cause harm and we should consider alternative approaches. Read more