GeekWire

Here's what we're talking about this week on the GeekWire Podcast.

“Picture restaurants that only seat people at every other table, and airplanes where every middle seat is empty.” That is what the “semi-normal” next phase of the pandemic will look like, Bill Gates says, offering a starkly pragmatic take that contrasts with predictions from President Trump that the economy will come “roaring back.” But Gates also points to the potential for a new wave of innovation the likes of which hasn’t been seen since World War II.

“If there’s life, there’s travel,” says Expedia chairman Barry Diller, expressing optimism about the future even as the Seattle-based online travel giant makes a series of dramatic moves to shake up and shore up its business amid the economic crisis.

Speaking of shaking things up, GeekWire co-founder John Cook returns to the show and offers his own Richter Scale to help understand how the pandemic is stirring some companies to greatness, and shaking others to their core.

Pivoting During a Pandemic: In our final segment, we share highlights from our members-only webinar on "Pivoting in a Pandemic," with two experienced Seattle CEOs who are in the thick of it right now: Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman, who is leading the tech-powered real estate brokerage through a period of unprecedented economic turmoil; and Tokki CEO Jane Park, the former Julep CEO, who quickly pivoted her eco-friendly gift wrap startup Tokki to adjust to the realities of the pandemic shortly after launching earlier this year.

We’ll be hosting these types of discussions regularly with newsmakers and leaders in business, science, technology and startups, and our members get to tune in and participate live. Go to geekwire.com/memberships to learn more.

Our podcast producer is Curt Milton. Our theme music is by Daniel L.K. Caldwell.

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For startup leaders accustomed to building their businesses in boom times, the economic impact from the COVID-19 pandemic goes beyond mere setback, into the realm of complete shock. But even in these unprecedented times, there are lessons to be learned from past downturns, and from the steps other startups are taking to navigate the current crisis.

"We have a whole generation of people who never went through anything that looked like a dislocation or a downturn," says Dan Rosen, chair of the Alliance of Angels, an investor, biophysicist and veteran tech executive who has been through multiple economic cycles. "This is a change in mindset from, 'I need to grow my business as quickly as possible' to 'I need to survive'."

Rosen, who authored a widely read column on the topic, joined entrepreneur Xiao Wang, President and CEO of Boundless Immigration, on a recent webinar from the University of Washington’s CoMotion innovation hub in Seattle, part of its “Fundamentals for Startups” series.

The webinar, recorded on April 10, was moderated by Seattle-area tech and business leader Ken Myer, interim executive and UW lecturer and commercialization advisor, who urged startup leaders to see the crisis as an opportunity to grow. "This is a phenomenal development experience for you as a leader," Myer said. "Crucible moments in our lives are what shape leadership moments. If you can see it as a learning opportunity, you're going to come out of this thing a much more effective leader today and down the road."

The discussion, on "Negotiating Startup Life through a Crisis," was full of specific guidance and long-term perspective for startups and their leaders. We at GeekWire learned a lot from the conversation, and we asked if we could share edited highlights on a special episode of the GeekWire Podcast.

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Here's what we're talking about this week on the GeekWire Podcast:

As numbers on COVID-19 improve, the debate begins over when and how Seattle, Washington state and the country will return to normal life. Gov. Jay Inslee and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos have some thoughts. Washington’s attorney general sues Facebook for violating the state’s law on political ads. Microsoft says Amazon has only itself to blame for losing the Defense Departments JEDI cloud contract. And the return of our Random Channel! We’ll talk about the finale of Lego Masters (spoiler alert) and see what else is ringing our bell this week.

As Washington state COVID cases keep falling, here’s the data driving the ongoing ‘stay home’ order

• Washington state had its lowest daily total of new cases in a month on Wednesday, 89, but has since seen cases rise again.
• If we relax social distancing now, projections show new cases could jump to 300 daily by mid-May, Inslee says. Deaths could also jump. The projections are from the two Seattle-area groups: the Institute for Disease Modeling and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, or IHME, which has come under criticism for its approach.
• We need more testing before we can begin to gradually reopen, Inslee says. He says it’s “unknowable” if he’ll be able to lift the stay-at-home order on May 4.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos calls for regular COVID-19 testing ‘on a global scale across all industries’

• In his annual investor letter, Bezos says that regular testing of everyone globally (not just at Amazon) is the key to returning to normal.
• He pointed to Amazon’s efforts to build its own testing capability and other efforts to protect workers’ safety.
• First known COVID-19 death among Amazon’s workforce took place two weeks ago, company announced Tuesday.
• Amazon's stock hit an all-time high this week, reflecting increased demand for its products and services.
• Can Amazon keep its huge and growing workforce safe?

Gates Foundation’s CEO worries about pandemic politics — and says ‘we have nothing to hide’

• Gates Foundation is allotting $150 million more to fight the pandemic, $250 million total.
• Critics claim the foundation is stoking fears and pushing vaccines as part of a “Big Pharma” agenda.
• Bill Gates decried Trump’s stated intention this week to stop U.S. funding of the WHO, saying blocking funds right now would be “as dangerous as it sounds.”

In other news ... 

• Washington AG sues Facebook for violating state political ad law
• Amazon ‘bid high and lost’ on JEDI, Microsoft says after release of DoD watchdog report
• As coronavirus consumes world, Microsoft unveils biodiversity initiative to address challenges that will outlast COVID-19
• Amazon fires two employees who called for climate change reform and better warehouse conditions

And in our Random Channel discussion ... 

• Oh, baby, ‘LEGO Masters’ finale lands like a brick on outraged fans who dispute choice of winner
• Goat 2 Meeting
• Nature Is Bouncing Back During the Coronavirus Crisis—but for How Long?

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Here’s what we’re talking about this week on the GeekWire Podcast.

Bill Gates talks about how work will change after the coronavirus ... and how school shouldn't. A Seattle startup that is trying to make a safer football helmet gets a new lease on life. And Lego and Nintendo bring Super Mario into the physical world in a surprising way.

We have a lot of tech news to discuss on this week's episode:

• Vicis assets sold for $2.85M to Schutt investor, promising to revive failed startup’s helmet tech
• No Neo in 2020: Microsoft pauses work on dual-screen device running Windows 10X
• The quest for a better blockchain: Former Microsoft AI chief invests in Seattle startup Asensys
• Ray Ozzie’s latest project: Former Microsoft exec raises $11M for IoT startup Blues Wireless

News about the COVID-19 pandemic:

• COVID-19 crisis sparks ‘inflection point’ for online grocery — and huge revenue for Amazon
• Startup stimulus? How logjams and ethics are impacting federal loans for tech companies
• Internet should be an ‘essential utility,’ WA schools chief says as state pulls plug on rest of term

Microsoft says its Teams collaboration software hit another record in usage, but the number isn't quite what it seems:

• Microsoft reports new spike in Teams usage as work habits change around the world

Bill Gates talks about how some forms of work will never go back to "normal" after the virus, and why he thinks school shouldn't change too much:

• Bill Gates says coronavirus will forever alter work, but face-to-face school is ‘totally irreplaceable’

A Seattle startup is selling games for Slack but ... isn't that what ruined Facebook?

• Games on Slack: Seattle startup Polly looks to unite remote teams with shared interactive activities

Super Mario moves out of your game system and into the real world of Lego and it's kind of cool:

• Pre-orders start for LEGO and Nintendo ‘Super Mario’ set that interacts with the physical world

And how a rant about reheating a fancy Seattle takeout meal turned into a viral force for good:

• Seattle restaurant delivery complaint in ‘reply all’ email turns into $10K donation to food charity

With GeekWire’s Todd Bishop, Monica Nickelsburg, Kurt Schlosser and Taylor Soper. Our podcast producer is Curt Milton. Our theme music is by Daniel L.K. Caldwell.

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Here’s what we’re talking about this week on the GeekWire Podcast.

Amazon is under pressure as workers in dozens of its warehouses test positive for the coronavirus, and an Amazon exec makes a major blunder in employee relations. Amid the gloomy COVID-19 news, there are some stories that fill us with hope. And it was never a dull moment with John Legere as CEO of T-Mobile. As the company merges with Sprint and he departs, we remember a leader who is as colorful as his wardrobe.

Among this week's events: There are encouraging signs that social distancing is helping to flatten the virus curve in Washington. Governor Jay Inslee says the state will get tough with businesses that don't honor his stay-at-home order. And Bill Gates outlines three steps he thinks the U.S. must take to control this outbreak.

Amazon's power and resilience could leave it in a dominant position once the coronavirus outbreak is over. But can it keep its workers safe?

• Amazon faces unprecedented challenges as dozens of its warehouses grapple with COVID-19 outbreaks

Follow our live blog for up-to-date news: Coronavirus Live Updates: The latest COVID-19 developments in Seattle and the world of tech

More from the podcast: Even in these grim times, there are stories that give us hope. Here are a few.

• With high school’s 3D printers in his house, student runs mask production line for Seattle-area hospitals
• Maker Mask launches in Seattle using 3D-printing technology to produce protective gear
• Whale experts launch free, virtual marine biology camp to entertain and inform kids
• High school student near Seattle builds website to serve as a leading place for coronavirus information

John Legere has departed as CEO of T-Mobile. We look back at his colorful career with an epic highlight from his 2014 appearance at the GeekWire Summit.

• T-Mobile completes $26.5B Sprint merger, capping two-year struggle to create new wireless giant

With GeekWire’s Todd Bishop, Taylor Soper, Monica Nickelsburg and Kurt Schlosser. Our podcast producer is Curt Milton. Our theme music is by Daniel L.K. Caldwell.

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Kevin Scott is Microsoft’s chief technology officer, its executive vice president of AI and Research, and the author, with Greg Shaw, of the new book, “Reprogramming the American Dream: From Rural America to Silicon Valley, Making AI Serve Us All."

Scott, who joined Microsoft with its acquisition of LinkedIn, goes back to his roots in rural Virginia in the book, making the case that there is a middle ground between the extreme viewpoints about the future of artificial intelligence -- one in which short-term disruption is followed by long-term benefits of technology augmenting and improving human endeavors.

But first, he says, we must ensure equal access to technology, starting with rural broadband, the importance of which is underscored by the rise of remote work in the COVID-19 crisis.

Scott spoke with us via phone this week about his vision for the future of artificial intelligence and technology, in advance of the book's release on Tuesday, April 7. Scott will also be participating in a live stream with "Hillbilly Elegy" author J.D. Vance, who wrote the forward to the book, at 10 a.m. Pacific on Monday, April 6.

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Here’s what we’re talking about this week on the GeekWire Podcast.

Seattle’s latest week under the cloud of the coronavirus began with Gov. Jay Inslee’s long-expected shelter-at-home announcement. It requires all but essential workers to stay at home and limits what everyone else can do outside of home.

We also take a look at how Seattle’s big tech firms are responding to the COVID-19 crisis. Many are laying off staff and cutting expenses, while some, like Amazon, find their business is booming.

And we offer our own reading of the Walt Whitman poem that Gov. Inslee quoted when he announced the stay-at-home order.

Continue reading for highlights.

• Gov. Jay Inslee announces a long-expected stay-at-home order.
• Bill Gates says the U.S. acted too slowly on confronting the coronavirus and missed its chance to avoid mandatory stay-at-home orders.
• Workers test positive at 14 Amazon warehouses around the country.
• Congress passes a $2 trillion aid bill that includes benefits that might help Boeing.
• U.S. workers file a record 3.28 million new claims for jobless benefits last week.
• Data from mobile apps, search engines and smart thermometers show testing and social distancing are the best short-term strategies to contain the virus.
• Several Seattle tech firms, such as Leafly, Compass, Textio and more, laid off workers.

Follow our live blog for up-to-date news: Coronavirus Live Updates: The latest COVID-19 developments in Seattle and the world of tech

More from the podcast: We take a deep dive into how Seattle tech firms are responding to the crisis, and how it might impact them in the future.

• Internal memo: Jeff Bezos tells Amazon employees he’s ‘wholly focused’ on the COVID-19 crisis
• Redfin’s coronavirus response: CEO forgoes salary for 2020; agent base pay increases; and more
• Rich Barton lays out Zillow’s coronavirus playbook: Freeze hiring; cut expenses; pause home-buying
• Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella says tech giant ‘will weather the storm’ amid COVID-19 outbreak
• ‘America needs our help’: Q&A with OfferUp CEO Nick Huzar after Seattle-area startup lands $120M

Governor Inslee read some lines from a poem by Walt Whitman, “Song of Myself, 33,” when he announced his stay-at-home order on Monday. We read a longer excerpt from the poem and discuss.

With GeekWire’s Todd Bishop, Taylor Soper and Monica Nickelsburg. Our podcast producer is Curt Milton. Our theme music is by Daniel L.K. Caldwell.

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Here’s what we’re talking about this week on the GeekWire Podcast.

It was another tumultuous week in Seattle, the epicenter of the coronavirus crisis, with restaurants and bars ordered closed, gatherings of more than 50 people banned, and the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths continuing to climb.

Among the week’s events: A worker at a tech company in Seattle became the first person injected with a possible COVID-19 vaccine;  Amazon says it wants to hire 100,000 workers to deal with demand, the city and state brace for a possible shelter-in-place order, and much more.

Listen above, subscribe in any podcast app, and continue reading for highlights.

• Gov. Jay Inslee closed all restaurants and bars, recreation places, entertainment venues, beauty salons and barbershops, and many more. Many restaurants and coffee shops have gone to takeout only.
• Gatherings of more than 50 people were banned and Monday President Trump asked people to limit gatherings to 10 or less. However, Gov. Inslee has so far avoided a full "shelter in place" mandate. 
• The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Washington state as of Friday was 1,524 with 148 deaths. 
• An Amazon warehouse worker in Queens, NY, tested positive for COVID-19, the company’s first known positive case in a warehouse employee.
• COVID-19 vaccine trials start in Seattle.
• Numerous retailers have closed: Microsoft and Apple stores, REI, Nordstrom, and many more. T-Mobile was closing 80% of their stores. Seattle businesses have taken a huge economic toll, with a report from the Seattle Metro Chamber showing that nearly 40% of all jobs in King, Pierce and Snohomish counties will be severely impacted by the virus.
• Washington Gov. Jay Inslee signed a $200M emergency funding bill. President Trump signed a federal relief bill, with discussion of direct payments to Americans to stimulate the economy.
• Use of Microsoft Teams went up 37% in the last week, from 32 to 44 million users, spurred by demand as more people work from home.
• The NYTimes obtained a 100-page report prepared by the federal government that warns the pandemic “will last 18 months or longer” and could include multiple waves of infection, stressing the healthcare system, critical infrastructure and state and local governments.
• Testing is ramping up. Inslee said the state had received federal approval for private labs to test. The University of Washington opened a drive-through testing station.
• Amazon says it wants to hire 100,000 additional warehouse workers to help with demand. Amazon told third-party sellers it will bar shipments of non-essential items to its warehouses so it can prioritize medical supplies and household goods.
• Traffic in the Seattle area has vanished as people are either working from home or they have lost their job due to the economic downturn. 
• The US and Canada closed their border except for cargo and “essential” traffic.
• And schools remain closed, with parents attempting to fill in as teachers and keep kids occupied. Rumors abound that schools might stay closed through the end of this school year or even the end of 2020. University of Washington classes will be remote for spring quarter.

Follow our live blog for up-to-date news: Coronavirus Live Updates: The latest COVID-19 developments in Seattle and the world of tech

More from the podcast: It’s a tough time to be a worker in the gig economy. We interviewed gig workers who expressed fear, desperation and uncertainty.

• Pandemic exposes cracks in US labor market, leaving gig workers feeling desperate and exposed

And don’t believe that story about Bill Gates trying to woo Tom Brady to play in Tampa. But do believe what Gates has been saying for years about preparing for a pandemic.

• Bill Gates calls out federal government for disorganized COVID-19 testing in Reddit AMA

With GeekWire’s Todd Bishop, Taylor Soper and Monica Nickelsburg. Our podcast producer is Curt Milton. Our theme music is by Daniel L.K. Caldwell.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Here’s what we’re talking about this week on the GeekWire Podcast.

The gravity of the COVID-19 virus outbreak hit home hard in Seattle this week: Large events were banned, schools were closed, and thousands of people struggled to adjust to working from home. Restaurants began to feel the pinch – some even closed temporarily – as people stayed home. The Seattle Archdiocese said it would suspend celebration of the Eucharist at services. Amazon will hold its annual shareholder meeting online … a first.

Over three dozen people have died from the virus and over 500 cases of the disease were reported. The number of infections and the death toll continued to rise. And testing for the disease continues to be a problem.

We discuss several angles to this fast-moving story:

Children in Seattle-area schools will be home at least until April 24. Nicole Tanner talks with us about what the experience of learning in a virtual classroom is like for her second-grade daughter … and herself:

• ‘Classroom to Cloud’: What happened when coronavirus forced my kid’s school to go online

Alan Boyle has been reporting on what testing for COVID-19 can tell us about the disease:

• Researcher says more coronavirus testing will help manage outbreak, but travel bans? Not so much

Kurt Schlosser visited the eerily quiet South Lake Union neighborhood, where Amazon is headquartered:

• Photos: Seattle’s tech hub goes quiet as businesses struggle to cope with effects of COVID-19

And Monica Nickelsburg wrote about Amazon taking its annual shareholder meeting into the cloud:

• Amazon moves shareholder meeting online, cancels in-person event where investors and protestors gather in Seattle annually

The GeekWire Podcast team recorded this episode remotely … and we talk about that as well.

With GeekWire’s Todd Bishop, Monica Nickelsburg and Kurt Schlosser, and special guest, contributing writer Nicole Tanner. Audio editing and production by Curt Milton. Music by Daniel L.K. Caldwell.

• Follow Nicole Tanner on Twitter: https://twitter.com/nicoletanner

Her former podcast co-hosts can be found here:

• Regina McMenomy at The Geek Embassy
• Stephen Duetzmann at Engaged Family Gaming

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Here’s what we’re talking about this week on the GeekWire Podcast.

Seattle became ground zero in the U.S. coronavirus outbreak this week and tech firms were trying to adjust. Meetings and conferences were cancelled or moved online and many firms told employees to work from home for the rest of the month. GeekWire was no exception: Our annual awards event has been postponed.

How will the virus impact Seattle’s tech scene in the short term and in the long run? Will it change the way many of us work? We discuss …

• Coronavirus Live Updates: The latest COVID-19 developments in Seattle and the world of tech
• GeekWire Awards update: Event postponed until May 19

We inaugurate a new feature: Tweet of the Week! We have two this week and both are focused on … you guessed it … the coronavirus.

And Microsoft renewed a big deal that has their surface tablets playing a key role at NFL games.

• Surface stays on the sidelines: Microsoft and NFL expand tech partnership, add Teams tool to deal

With GeekWire’s Todd Bishop, John Cook and Monica Nickelsburg. Audio editing and production by Curt Milton. Music by Daniel L.K. Caldwell.

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