Daily LA: Uber CTO is leaving, Scopely acquires Scrabble Go, Coronavirus vaccine could be ready by this fall
U.S. coronavirus-related deaths reached a somber milestone on Tuesday, surpassing the number of Americans killed in the Vietnam War. More than 58,300 Americans have died from COVID-19, according to a tally kept by Johns Hopkins University. That compares with the National Archives’ figure of 58,220 deaths from the Vietnam War, which lasted more than a decade. Read on
Here’s your Daily LA for April 28, 2020.
Happening in LA
Scopely acquires Scrabble Go developer PierPlay
Scopely has acquired game development studio PierPlay, the maker of the recently launched Scrabble Go mobile word game. The deal follows a pattern where Scopely partners with an external game studio, launches a game and then acquires the studio if the game is particularly successful.
LA’s Health Department Will Publish List of Restaurants With Confirmed COVID-19 Cases
Earlier this week, Los Angeles County officials announced that restaurants with confirmed cases of COVID-19 will be posted on the Los Angeles County of Department of Public Health website. This is similar to the County’s running lists for nursing homes, jails, prisons, shelters, treatment centers, and institutional settings, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Here are the 4 stages of Newsom’s plan to gradually reopen California
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday announced four different stages for easing California’s stay-at-home orders, saying the state is “weeks” away from making the first changes. The governor said California’s residents have largely abided by stay-at-home orders and hospitalizations for COVID-19 have remained stable over the past few weeks.
Headlines
Thuan Pham, who fled Vietnam as a child and became Uber’s CTO in 2013, is leaving the company
Thuan Pham, hired as Uber’s chief technology officer by former CEO Travis Kalanick back in 2013, is leaving the company in three weeks, the ride-share giant revealed today in an SEC filing that came out as a piece in The Information reported that massive layoffs at Uber are being proposed to preserve some of the company’s dwindling capital reserves.
California’s Next School Year Could Start in July, Gavin Newsom Says
While students across the state will end this academic year without setting foot back in a classroom, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced that he is working on plans to reopen schools for a new term starting as early as July.
“We are considering the prospect of an even earlier school year into the fall, as early as late July, early August,” Newsom said.
Starbucks to reopen 90% of US company-operated stores by early June, leveraging digital capabilities
Starbucks, which closed stores across the US and Canada amid the COVID-19 outbreak, says it plans to start reopening in early May and expects to have 90% of company-operated US stores back in business by early June “with enhanced safety protocols and modified schedules.”
Google Parent Alphabet Beats Q1 Revenue Expectations Despite Coronavirus Downturn
Shares of Google parent, Alphabet, rose by more than 4% after the company reported first-quarter earnings that beat revenue expectations, despite headwinds from the global spread of the coronavirus.
Apple adds COVID-19 testing sites to Maps across the US, and shares more mobility data
Apple has now added COVID-19 testing sites to its Apple Maps app across the U.S., covering all 50 states and Puerto Rico. The update provides testing locations including hospitals, clinics, urgent care facilities, general practitioners, pharmacies, and more, as well as dedicated COVID-19 testing sites, where tests are available.
Ford delays self-driving taxis to 2022
The COVID-19 pandemic is creating many problems for the car industry, and that extends to Ford’s self-driving taxis. While discussing its quarterly earnings, the company revealed that its autonomous vehicle services have been delayed from 2021 to 2022.
Pfizer: Coronavirus vaccine could be ready by this fall for emergency use
To combat the coronavirus pandemic, Pfizer Inc. said it could have a vaccine ready for emergency use by the fall, according to a report. Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla told The Wall Street Journal Tuesday that the company could further be ready for a broader rollout by the end of the year.
Founder, Editor-In-Chief // A native Angeleno. John studied engineering at UCLA; founded Schmoozd, an offline social tech networking event in LA with 30,000 subs; ran a startup accelerator (StartEngine). Worked for several major brands like Toyota, DIRECTV, Hitachi, ICANN, and Raytheon. A mentor at Loyola Marymount University (LMU) Entrepreneur School, Dr. David Choi. And advises a dozen local LA startups building amazing tech in various industries; and invested in some. // Let's Connect: john@lastartups.com
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