What does breaking up Big Tech really mean?

 Your guide to what's happening with vaccine passports in the US

Sponsored by Medidata The Download Your daily dose of what's up in emerging technology Antitrust fever 07.01.21 Good morning! Today we have a fascinating feature about what it would mean to break up Big tech as well as our list of what every state in the US is doing with vaccine passports. There is no Download tomorrow but Charlotte will be back, refreshed and raring to go on Monday. See you then!  What does breaking up Big Tech really mean? For Apple, Amazon, Facebook, and Alphabet, covid-19 was an economic blessing. Even as the pandemic sent the global economy into a deep recession, the “Big Four” of technology thrived. Yet at the same time, they have come under unprecedented attack from politicians and government regulators in the US and Europe. They are facing lawsuits, proposed bills, and regulations.  We’re in the middle of a radical shift in the intellectual discussion—one that has made it much easier to go after Big Tech. We seem to be going back to the antitrust vision that determined US policy toward big companies for much of the 20th century, a vision that’s much more skeptical of the virtues of size and much more willing to be aggressive in keeping companies from exercising monopoly power. Read the full story here.  —James Surowiecki NB: This story from the latest print issue is for subscribers only, but it only costs 50 for full digital access (including The Algorithm newsletter) and $80 to get the glossy print magazine too. You can read the rest of the Change issue here.   Your guide to what’s happening with vaccine passports in the US A year ago, vaccines to tackle the covid pandemic seemed like a far-off idea. Today, though, doses have been delivered to almost one-quarter of the world’s people—and some are being asked to prove they’re among them, leading to the rise of so-called vaccine passports.  The details of these credentials vary from place to place, but at their heart they are the same: digital health records, stored on your phone, to use as proof that you are a low risk to others. Often the debate over the technology seems like a proxy for a larger question: Should governments and businesses be allowed to require vaccination for covid?  With that in mind, we looked at the status of digital vaccine systems in all 50 states. See the full list here. – Bobbie Johnson, Adriana Fraser and Mia Sato We can still have nice things A place for comfort, fun and distraction in these weird times. (Got any ideas? Drop me a line or tweet 'em at me.) + This is NPR’s Joy Generator. It’s basically this section of the newsletter, distilled and automated. + A very loud walrus clapping. + It’s Debbie Harry’s birthday today. Here’s to an icon.  + A quite beautiful disc golf shot. (What? Yes, disc golf. Yes it IS a thing, promise.) + An oral history of Terminator 2 (the best Terminator). Sponsor Message Clinical trials are better, faster, cheaper with big data Researchers are using analytics and existing patient data to ease recruitment, reduce costs, and accelerate timelines. Learn more here. The must-reads I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology. 1 America’s infrastructure wasn’t made for this heat The Pacific Northwest is baking, and nowhere is ready. (Atlantic)   + Seattle is obliterating heat records. (New Yorker)   + Hundreds of heat deaths have been reported in Canada. (BBC)   + Yes, it’s climate change. (WaPo)   + New York is facing blackouts, too. (Gizmodo)   + How can we survive extreme heat? (Rolling Stone) 2 Global covid cases are on the rise thanks to the Delta variant Countries that thought they’d seen the worst are being hit hard again. (NYT)   + New long-covid clinics are springing up. (SciAm)   + Covid may impact cognition and consciousness. (New Scientist)   + How long does covid immunity last? (BMJ)   + What the media gets wrong about red-state vaccine hesitancy. (Undark) 3 SpaceX has just launched another 88 satellites into orbit And nailed another rocket landing. (Verge)   + But its broadband is probably not for you, says Musk. (Fast Company)   + CRISPR gene-editing has been carried out in space. (Vice) 4 Israel used AI-guided drones in the Gaza attack This could be the first time a drone swarm has been used in combat. (New Scientist) 5 Could miniature forests help air-condition cities? This Japanese botanist thinks so. (Economist) 6 The internet is rotting Dead links are actual holes in human collective knowledge. (Atlantic) 7 Remote working has a sexual harassment problem It’s moved from the office to video chats—and not enough is being done. (Wired UK) 8 SARS-CoV-2 is just one of nonillions of viruses on our planet And scientists are discovering more every day. (Nature) 9 The code that built the web is now a $5 million NFT I’m just glad Charlotte isn’t here to see this. (Wired) 10 Here’s how to organize your Slack sidebar Procrastinating? Moi? (TNW) An offer this good won't last. Get 2 additional months FREE when you purchase a subscription to MIT Technology Review. With thought-provoking perspectives and insightful analysis, our journalism will help deepen your understanding of the world. Subscribe now and save. Offer ends Friday. Quote of the day “You’re not crazy. You’re human.” Lucy McBridge, a doctor in Washington D.C., writes for The Atlantic about how burnout has made us feel vulnerable. Top image credit: ANDREA DAQUINO Please send your disc golf tutorials to hi@technologyreview.com. Follow me on Twitter at @niallfirth. Thanks for reading! —Niall Was this newsletter forwarded to you, and you'd like to see more? Sign up today Leading with Innovation. Join us virtually September 28-30. For a limited time, get early bird savings when you register by July 8. Register now   Follow us: MIT Technology Review One Main Street Cambridge, MA 02142

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