Foundering

Moscow-based Kaspersky Lab's software is everywhere in the U.S., keeping ordinary consumers as well as banks and power plants safe from cyber attacks. But some within the U.S. government are getting worried about the Russian company's connections with its own government, questioning whether Kaspersky Lab can be trusted to safeguard key parts of the U.S. digital infrastructure. This week, Bloomberg Technology's Jordan Robertson reveals details from his investigation outlining Kaspersky Lab's connections with the Kremlin. Jordan will also play clips of a conversation with the company's founder Eugene Kaspersky that have never been aired before.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In January, we brought you the story of a cyber weapons deal involving the government of the West African nation Mauritania. It was a deal that ultimately fell apart. But while the Indian businessman brokering the deal managed to walk away with about a million dollars, Mauritanian officials have been holding hostage one of his bodyguards for nearly two years. If you haven't heard the original episode, go back and listen. Because this week, Bloomberg Technology's Jordan Robertson and Aki Ito have a spoiler for you. This episode is an update to "Inside A Multinational Cyber Weapons Deal That Went Bust."

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A new generation of fitness gadgets is just starting to reach consumers, and they do so much more than track your activity -- they actually tell you what to do, just like a personal trainer. This week, Bloomberg Technology's Aki Ito tests 17 devices and sees if any of them are as good as the real thing: working out with a human trainer.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One day, driving a truck could look pretty similar to a call center job. From a desk in an office, "drivers" will remotely monitor one or several trucks as they haul cargo around the country. Or at least that's the future that Starsky Robotics envisions. This week, Bloomberg Technology's Max Chafkin takes a ride down a Florida highway in a truck being driven by a computer to see how close we really are to seeing self-driving technology roll out in the real world. He and Brad will also discuss the implications for the millions of Americans currently employed in the transportation sector.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On November 22, 2015, 47-year-old Victor Collins was found in a hot tub, apparently strangled and drowned. Investigators seized an Amazon Echo device at the scene of the crime, hoping the voice-activated speaker may have captured key evidence. This week, Bloomberg Technology's Nico Grant speaks to friends of the victim as well as digital forensics and privacy experts to put this new kind of evidence under the spotlight. As we surround ourselves with more and more of these internet-connected devices, Nico and Aki will discuss how our data should be used and why consumers should care.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Charles Chao knew his social media platform had potential. But the parent company of Weibo, often referred to as the Twitter of China, was getting slammed in the stock market. That's when Chao decided to go all in. This week, Bloomberg Technology's David Ramli meets the man who cobbled together much of his personal wealth, and took out a loan for a quarter of a billion dollars, to bet on his business' rise just as others were predicting its decline. The gamble paid off, and Chao today is on track to become one of China's newest billionaires.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Masayoshi Son is already one of the Japan's most successful businessmen, and now he's making his biggest gamble yet: To invest a record $100 billion in the technology that will power our future. This week, Bloomberg Technology's Peter Elstrom and Brad Stone trace the life of the billionaire, from his childhood as an immigrant and outsider in Southern Japan to the huge risks that Son took to grow SoftBank into an ever larger company. Peter and Brad also play some old tapes of Son from 30 years ago, back when he was a relatively unknown entrepreneur, that have never been released before.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the U.S., free content -- whether that's cooking tutorials on YouTube or the latest news on Twitter -- is supported by advertising. In China, however, companies have succeeded in getting people to directly pay for what they consume, opening up a new source of revenue for the booming app industry and lucrative opportunities for content creators. This week, Bloomberg Technology's Selina Wang speaks to a former magazine editor who has earned millions of dollars from the weekly column that he publishes on the app De Dao. We'll also hear from two of China’s top tech investors on whether U.S. companies can learn from China’s success.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you have young kids, you may already know the mobile game Talking Tom. What you might not know is that in January a Chinese hydrogen peroxide company announced plans to buy the maker of the app for $1 billion. This is just one of several similar deals. This week, Bloomberg Technology's Adam Satariano and Aki Ito take a look at why a slew of unlikely Chinese buyers - mining and construction firms, even a poultry company - are buying up mobile gaming businesses. This search takes Adam to the home of Lisa Pan, a young Beijing investor who has made millions from gaming investments and is now helping a Chinese chemicals company make the same leap. Is this a smart business strategy to adapt to a new economy, or is it a sign of a bubble?

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Francisco Riordan suspected his company of breaking the law last year, he secretly reached out to government regulators. His actions set in motion events that left Rothenberg Ventures the object of a government investigation and multiple lawsuits -- and, according to Riordan, cost him his own job. This week, Bloomberg Technology's Adam Satariano and Aki Ito meet Riordan, who's now ready to speak publicly about his experiences for the very first time. In an industry where corporate governance sometimes takes a backseat to rapid growth, Riordan says he wants to encourage more people to speak up when they see signs of wrongdoing.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.