GeekWire Mid-Week Update, Presented by Wells Fargo

Read the top tech stories so far this week from GeekWire [GeekWire Mid-Week Update] Top stories so far this week [COVID-19 weekly deaths drop another 40% in Seattle area, cases reach lowest total in two months]( Seattle and King County reported 15 deaths from COVID-19 during the past week, down 40% from the week before, while the number of confirmed cases in the region fell to 325 for the week, the lowest total since early March, according to GeekWire’s calculations from Public Health — Seattle & King County data. [Weather forces delay for SpaceX’s historic launch of NASA’s first Dragon riders to the space station]( Today's launch of the SpaceX Crew Dragon is being postponed until May 30, due to unacceptable weather. [NASA and SpaceX rehearse for big launch day, complete with a Tesla ride to the pad]( NASA and SpaceX put their teams through a "dry dress rehearsal" today in preparation for next week's historic launch to the International Space Station. SPONSOR MESSAGE [What to ask prospective tech bankers]( Tech companies should ask these questions to find a financial institution that can help alleviate business pressures from the beginning. [Read it here.]( [This governor alarmed professors 22 years ago with his vision for distance learning in 2020 — here’s what he says today]( "Virtual-Classes Trend Alarms Professors." That was the headline on a 1998 New York Times story about an open letter to then-Gov. Gary Locke from University of Washington professors “worried about the enthusiasm he and one of his advisers are showing for instruction via CD-ROM's and the Internet.” More than 20 years later, with the pandemic making distance education an unavoidable reality, we revisit the topic with Locke and one of those professors on a special episode of the GeekWire Podcast. [Amazon group that created Kindle and Echo is working on technology for COVID-19 testing]( Amazon is enlisting its cutting-edge Lab126 hardware group, best known for creating its Kindle e-readers, Fire tablets and Echo smart speakers, to help build out its own COVID-19 testing capabilities. [Seattle startup DefinedCrowd lands $50M to help Mastercard, BMW, others improve their AI services]( Artificial intelligence services require mountains of reliable data to reach their full potential. [Extreme social distancing: Why camping is poised for a ‘huge jump in popularity,’ fueled by technology]( After months confined in their homes, many people who would normally hop on an airplane or crowd into popular tourist destinations are instead rediscovering the joys of camping, with help from technology. [NASA signs off on historic SpaceX crewed launch, leaving weather as final uncertainty]( Mission managers have cleared the final paperwork for SpaceX's Crew Dragon launch on Wednesday. Now the big question is whether the weather will clear. [Virgin Orbit’s LauncherOne rocket misses going to space during its first air launch]( A new breed of launch vehicle had a shaky first outing today when Virgin Orbit released its LauncherOne rocket from a modified Boeing 747 jumbo jet. [After crises and confusion, health officials are closing the coronavirus testing gap]( Ten days after Washington Gov. Jay Inslee took the Trump administration to task for failing to send supplies for coronavirus test kits, the gap is closing. GEEKWORK: TODAY'S TECH JOBS - [Compete To Create: Technical Lead / Principal Software Engineer]( - [INRIX: Senior Front End UI Developer]( - [ALLEN INSTITUTE FOR ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI2): Deep Learning Engineer // Co-Founder]( - [ALLEN INSTITUTE FOR ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI2): CTO-in-Residence // Co-Founder]( - [INRIX: Senior UX Designer]( - [ALLEN INSTITUTE FOR ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI2): Technical Co-Founder // CTO (Stealth Startup)]( - [SimpliGov: Platform / Product Support Engineer]( - [INRIX: Engineering Director – SaaS Platform]( [FIND MORE JOBS ON GEEKWORK]( [HIRING? BUY A FEATURED LISTING TO APPEAR HERE]( [About GeekWire]( [Contact Us]( [Advertise]( Copyright © 2020 GeekWire LLC, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you opted to receive emails from GeekWire LLC.  Our mailing address is: GeekWire LLC 123 NW 36th St, Suite 203 Seattle, WA 98107  [change email frequency or address]( | [unsubscribe](