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Texas is poised to ban red light cameras
Texas is set to become the 11th state in the country to ban the use of red light cameras. The Dallas News reported the state Senate passed a bill that would outlaw the devices designed to catch drivers speeding through red lights by a 23 to eight vote last week. It now awaits the signature of Republican Governor Greg Abbott, who is expected to sign the bill into law. Abbott campaigned on ditching the cameras last year as he ran for re-election.
Google will have offices and data centers in 24 states by the end of 2019
Google is still closely associated with California to many people (and to a lesser degree New York), but it's determined to change that reputation. The company is launching a $13 billion expansion in 2019 that will give it a total US footprint of 24 states, including "major expansions" in 14 states. The growth includes its first data center in Nevada, a new office in Georgia, and multi-facility expansions in places like Texas and Virginia. This is on top of known projects like its future New York City campus.
Texas bill would make it illegal to throttle data in disaster areas
The revelation that Verizon (Engadget's parent company) throttled California firefighters' data is prompting new legislation... in Texas. State Representative Bobby Guerra has submitted a bill that would make it illegal for wireless carriers to "impair or degrade" mobile data in declared disaster areas. In other words, a provider couldn't throttle any service in crisis-struck regions, for emergency crews or otherwise. It wouldn't preclude throttling in normal circumstances.
SpaceX isn't moving Starship development to southern Texas (update)
SpaceX's decision to construct its Starship test vehicle in Texas may have just been the harbinger of things to come. The LA Times has claimed that development and assembly of Starship and its Super Heavy booster system will take place in southern Texas, not the Port of Los Angeles. It'll maintain existing design, manufacturing, launch and recovery operations in the area (plus Vandenberg Air Force Base), but that's only a partial consolation when existing projects like the Falcon 9 rocket have a limited lifespan.
Apple's latest expansion puts it closer to its biggest rivals
Apple is on track to become the largest private employer in Austin, Texas, after announcing plans to invest $1 billion in a new campus less than a mile away from its existing facilities there. The 133-acre site will initially be home to 5,000 new employees, with the potential to grow to 15,000. The company has also announced plans to establish new sites in Seattle, San Diego and Culver City and expand in cities across the United States including Pittsburgh, New York and Boulder, Colorado over the next three years, with the potential for additional expansion elsewhere in the US over time.
Texas will soon provide inmates with 3D-printed dentures
Texas prisons were notorious for denying inmates access to dentures, because chewing isn't considered a medical necessity. That might no longer be the case in the near future, all thanks to 3D printing. Starting in the spring, the state's prison system will start providing toothless inmates with 3D-printed dentures, according to Houston Chronicle. It'll avoid the need to transport prisoners to dental facilities across the state, since technicians can simply scan the mouth of the inmate and then send the images to the 3D printing facility. The process will take weeks instead of months, cutting down wait times significantly.
Lyft expands its scooter service to Austin
Lyft continues to expand its scooter service, announcing today that it's now available in Austin, Texas. This is the the fifth region where Lyft has deployed its scooters and its first launch in Texas. While the company struck out earlier this year when it tried to get a permit to operate in San Francisco, it has since launched its scooter service in Denver, Santa Monica, Washington, DC and, as of yesterday, Arlington.
Drive.ai launches second autonomous ride-hailing pilot in Texas
Drive.ai's autonomous ride-hailing pilot is now available beyond one town, if only just. The startup has launched its promised second pilot in Arlington, Texas, a short distance away from Frisco. If you're in the downtown area, you can hop in one of the company's self-driving vans (complete with displays to signal their intent) along fixed routes. This might be your choice if you're a sports fan -- the routes can take you to and from Dallas Cowboys games at AT&T Stadium, and Texas Rangers games at Globe Life Park.
Drive.ai’s autonomous ride-hailing service is now operating in Texas
Drive.ai's autonomous ride-hailing service has launched in Frisco, Texas, providing transportation between Hall Park offices and The Star. The company announced in May that the service was on the way, and while a safety driver will be present in the vehicle at launch, Drive.ai plans to transition to a passenger seat chaperone and then passenger-only rides going forward. "Today is the exciting start to our on-demand ride service, which we hope will benefit a community and increase understanding of and confidence in self-driving technology," the company said in a blog post today.
Drive.ai to launch first autonomous ride-hailing service in Texas
Texas is no stranger to self-driving car tests, but actual service? Not yet, although it's just around the corner. AI startup Drive.ai is launching the state's first autonomous ride-hailing service in Frisco this July in a pilot program with support from both the city and the Hall Group. This isn't a city-wide service. Instead, the company's vans will drive on public roads between Hall Park offices and The Star to help workers get to dining and shopping that's too far to walk, but a waste to drive.
Texas court rules 2015 revenge porn law is unconstitutional
Revenge porn is getting attention across the nation as state, regional and even federal lawmakers wrestle with how to deal with the practice of posting private, intimate photos of people without their permission. A 2015 Texas law that made revenge porn a misdemeanor with up to a year of jail time and a $4,000 fine was struck down by the 12th Court of Appeals as violating the First Amendment. The court also dropped a charge against Jordan Bartlett Jones, who challenged the law after he was denied a Writ of Habeas Corpus last year.
Austin test uses blockchain to improve ID for the homeless
Many people take identification for granted, but it's a serious challenge if you're homeless. If you lose what's on your back, you might lose everything -- and recovering that ID is much harder when you have no fixed address or easy transportation to government offices. Austin might have a technological solution. The Texas city is piloting a system that uses blockchain identifiers to safeguard the IDs and vital records of homeless people in a way that's more accessible for service providers.
Texas city drops its bus service in favor of ridesharing vans
Ridesharing companies often dream of changing the face of public transportation, but one of them is going a step further -- it's becoming the only option for public transportation in one community. Arlington, Texas is replacing its bus service with Via's ridesharing platform. Pay $3 per trip ($10 for a weekly pass) and you can hop in a Mercedes van that will take you where you need to go, whether your hail it through a smartphone app or a phone call.
We're live from SXSW 2018!
We have arrived in Austin, Texas for the 2018 edition of SXSW, the festival that showcases some of the best things in the tech (interactive), film and music industries. This year, we'll be taking a look at HBO's Westworld installation here on the ground, which promises to be one of the most exciting events at the show. We'll also attend panels featuring Apple's Eddy Cue and YouTube's CEO Susan Wojcicki, among others, as well cover new gadgets like Bose's audio-focused augmented-reality glasses. You can keep up with all the news from SXSW by bookmarking this page here.
AT&T will launch mobile 5G in Atlanta, Dallas and Waco
AT&T is finally willing to say exactly where you'll see mobile 5G in 2018. The carrier has confirmed that "parts" of Atlanta, Waco and its home turf of Dallas will adopt the standards-based service when it goes live before the end of the year. It'll name the remaining nine cities "in the coming months." There's no mention of the first devices (many of those will have to wait until 2019), but it's clear that this will be a cautious first step into the future rather than a full-on leap.
Modern copyright law can't keep pace with thinking machines
This past April, engineer Alex Reben developed and posted to YouTube, "Deeply Artificial Trees", an art piece powered by machine learning, that leveraged old Joy of Painting videos. It generate gibberish audio in the speaking style and tone of Bob Ross, the show's host. Bob Ross' estate was not amused, subsequently issuing a DMCA takedown request and having the video knocked offline until very recently. Much like Naruto, the famous selfie-snapping black crested macaque, the Trees debacle raises a number of questions of how the Copyright Act of 1976 and DMCA's Fair Use doctrine should be applied to a rapidly evolving technological culture, especially as AI and machine learning techniques approach ubiquity.
Texas authorities serve Apple a warrant for mass shooter's iPhone (updated)
Authorities are persisting in their efforts to get access to the Texas mass shooter's iPhone despite having missed an early opportunity. The San Antonio Express-News has learned that Texas Rangers served Apple warrants for data on both the perpetrator's iPhone SE and a basic LG cellphone. In the case of the iPhone, the state law enforcement unit wants access to both local and iCloud info (such as calls, messages and photos) produced since January 1st, 2016.
Embark's semi-autonomous trucks are hauling Frigidaire appliances
Last year, Otto made a 120-mile beer run. Now Frigidaire and Ryder have partnered with autonomous trucking company Embark to deliver smart fridges from Texas to California. You know, so you have a place to store the brews. Embark thinks that freeways are the ideal test grounds for its autonomous efforts because there aren't any traffic lights, pedestrians or oncoming traffic to deal with. Which makes sense. All a truck needs to do, basically, is stay in its lane, maintain speed and keep a safe distance from other cars.
Google showed misinformation about Texas shooter in search results
In the wake of a national tragedy, Google's search results were once again peppered with misinformation and conspiracy theories. Searching for the Sutherland Springs, Texas shooter by name last night as the news came out, you'd see tweets from Info Wars editor at large Paul Joseph Watson and far-right Twitter account Stock Monster USA, Gizmodo reports. The Stock Monster tweet that was surfaced read "Sutherland Springs, Texas Killer Devin Patrick Kelley is being said to be a Radical Alt-Left Antifa member. - Lots of Facebook posts" with images of the shooter and a rifle attached, but without links to any sources.
Stream Austin City Limits performances live this weekend
Summer might be over, but there's still a couple music festivals on tap. If you can't make it to the Lone Star State, Austin City Limits is partnering with Red Bull TV to stream a weekend of music starting at 3:05 PM ET today with Asleep at the Wheel. The stage keeps rocking through the weekend with Louis the Child, Gorillaz (above), Run the Jewels and Teaxs' own The Black Angels, among a smattering of other performers.