Tech Bytes – Week in Review: Vance’s Silicon Valley ties, Prime Day injuries and Starbucks bets on EVs
Just in time for this year’s sales event, a Senate report finds Amazon Prime Day is also prime time for warehouse injuries. The probe found that nearly 45 out of 100 workers were injured during the Prime Day sales week in 2019.
Amazon called the report “misleading,” saying its safety data — which the e-commerce giant releases publicly — shows injuries declining.
Plus, Starbucks is teaming up with Mercedes-Benz to supercharge electric vehicle infrastructure. The plan to provide drivers with jolts and cups of joe comes as many automakers reconsider their EV expansion hopes amid underwhelming growth in the market.
But first, several Silicon Valley billionaires have thrown their support behind former President Donald Trump in his quest to reclaim the White House, thanks in part to his pick for vice president, J.D. Vance.
The senator from Ohio became known as a voice of the working class thanks to his best-selling memoir, “Hillbilly Elegy.” But Vance is no stranger to the Patagonia vest scene in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Vance spent about five years working as a venture capital investor, garnering powerful allies like billionaire Peter Thiel.
Marketplace’s Meghan McCarty Carino spoke with Jewel Burks Solomon, a managing partner at Collab Capital, for her take on this major shift in politics and her views on other top tech news in Marketplace Tech Bytes: Week in Review.
More on everything we talked about
“How a Network of Tech Billionaires Helped J.D. Vance Leap Into Power” from The New York Times
“Trump’s VP candidate JD Vance has long ties to Silicon Valley, and was a VC himself” from TechCrunch
“What Trump VP pick J.D. Vance means for Silicon Valley” from The Washington Post
“J.D. Vance’s short career in venture capital” from Axios
“Amazon Prime Day is a major cause of injuries for warehouse workers, Senate review says” from The Associated Press
“The hidden cost of your Prime Day purchases” from Vox
“Prime Day isn’t just for Amazon anymore” from Vox
“Peak Seasons, Peak Injuries: Amazon Warehouses Are Especially Dangerous During Prime Day and the Holiday Season—and the Company Knows It” — Report From the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee
“Mercedes-Benz and Starbucks team up to expand EV fast charging” from Tech Brew Benz’s
“Mercedes-Benz’s 400kW EV chargers are coming to Starbucks” from The Verge
“Slow Rollout of National Charging System Could Hinder E.V. Adoption” from The New York Times
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