Bryan Chaffin

It turns out that Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh has a track record of being devastatingly wrong on Net Neutrality, as explained by TechCrunch‘s Devin Coldewey:

DC Circuit Court Judge Brett Kavanaugh has been nominated for the position of Supreme Court Justice, and on this occasion I think it warranted that we revisit in detail the sound intellectual thrashing this man suffered at the hands of his colleagues just last year on the topic of the internet and net neutrality. Because Kavanaugh was very, very wrong then and gives every indication that he will take his ignorance unapologetically to the highest court in the land.

It’s one of those times when politics and technology intersect like a 19th Century head on train crash. If you care about Net Neutrality (being restored), understanding this nominee’s position on the subject makes this piece a very good read.

Uber laid off 100 “safety drivers” in Pittsburgh amidst a rejiggering of its aggressive autonomous vehicle testing program. From Quartz:

The company held a meeting earlier today (July 11) to inform about 100 autonomous vehicle operators—people who monitor its self-driving cars—that their jobs were being terminated, a source close to the situation told Quartz. Uber said it was eliminating the position of autonomous vehicle operator, and that operators were free to apply to other roles at the company, the source said.

Uber confirmed it laid off about 100 autonomous vehicle operators in Pittsburgh and eliminated the position. The company plans to replace these jobs with about 55 “mission specialists”—specialists who are trained in both on-road and more advanced test-track operations, and who are expected to provide more technical feedback to self-driving car developers. Uber said affected operators could apply for these positions.

It couldn’t happen to a nicer, Apple and Samsung Settle 7-Year Patent Battle, Terms Not Known, but Samsung’s smartphone sales growth is slowing. This, from Reuters:

South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics Co Ltd estimated on Friday earnings grew at the slowest pace in more than a year in the second quarter, as analysts said weak smartphone sales likely offset record high chip earnings. Samsung shares fell 2 percent as the guidance gave investors insight into how badly the decline in smartphone profitability is hurting the company’s bottom line, after it warned in April of an earnings slowdown amid tougher competition.