Uber sues Seattle to block driver unions | Microsoft buys 3D tech startup | Big movers on the GeekWire 200

Read the latest tech headlines from GeekWire [View this email in your browser]. January 17, 2017 [Top Stories] [Find a Job] [GeekWire Events] [GeekWire 200] [Become a Member] Love GeekWire? Join the club! [Our members support independent journalism and receive perks and access to GeekWire’s events] Today's top stories [Amazon patents system to help autonomous vehicles handle traffic shifts] By Alan Boyle A newly issued patent suggests that Amazon is putting a lot of thought into how to manage the comings and goings of self-driving delivery trucks. [Uber sues city of Seattle to block landmark driver union ordinance] By Nat Levy Seattle's landmark law that lets drivers for ride-hailing companies decide if they want to bargain collectively was set to go into effect today, but an Uber subsidiary has sued to block parts of the ordinance governing which drivers get to vote on unionization and other key rules. 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Email us at [info@level11.com] [Technology’s frantic speed will create ‘digital refugees’ with no clear fix, Salesforce’s Benioff warns at Davos] By Dan Richman Technology, and especially artificial intelligence, is advancing so rapidly that it will create “digital refugees,” pushed out of jobs with no training or experience to find new positions, and there’s no easy solution to the problem, warned Marc Benioff, chairman and CEO of Salesforce, during a panel discussion today at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland. [How big data can improve cities and save lives: UW and Seattle brainstorm solutions on education, homelessness, and transportation] By Taylor Soper Using data and analytics to help improve the bottom line is now common practice in the technology and business worlds. Home of the Week - Sponsored Post [Sun drenched Madison Valley townhome offers peaceful escape from surrounding cityscape] Sun-drenched 3 bedroom 3.5 bath corner townhome with high ceilings, an open floorplan, outdoor space on every floor, territorial views, a garage, and a private garden with a patio & custom hot tub! The large living rm with a gas fireplace accesses the deck and is perfect for entertaining, along… [Stay Alfred raises $15M to expand lodging business that rents apartments like hotels] By Monica Nickelsburg Stay Alfred, a Spokane, Wash. lodging startup that operates short-term rentals out of the downtown neighborhoods of major U.S. [Microsoft doubles down on 3D with acquisition of Swedish company Simplygon] By Nat Levy At its big press conference in New York last year, Microsoft unveiled its upcoming Windows 10 Creators Update, promising “3D for Everyone.” Now it appears the company is doubling down on that promise. [GeekWire Poll: Do you still have a landline phone? Survey finds 52 percent of U.S. adults are cell only] By Kurt Schlosser Increasingly, and unsurprisingly it seems, the only time you’re going to hear a telephone ring that sounds like a landline is when someone has his cell phone ringtone set up that way — because, nostalgia! [The latest Amazon-occupied building sale shows how far Seattle real estate has come in last decade] By Nat Levy Investors from around the world continue to pay top dollar to get their hands on Amazon-occupied office buildings. [GeekWire 200 January update: New products, big deals and rapid growth propel startups up the list] By Nat Levy Expect a lot of activity from the GeekWire 200 list of privately-held Pacific Northwest startups in 2017. [Baidu hires ex-Microsoft exec Qi Lu as president, to lead new AI push for Chinese search giant] By Todd Bishop Baidu, the leading Chinese search engine, has hired former Microsoft executive Qi Lu as its group president and chief operating officer, four months after he officially left the Redmond, Wash.-based technology giant. [New CityBldr valuation tool aims to help homeowners unearth hidden land value] By Nat Levy CityBldr, a Seattle-based real estate startup, has released a new tool to help property owners get maximum value out of their homes and other properties when selling. [Here are the ‘missed opportunities’ soccer legend Landon Donovan sees with sports technology] By Taylor Soper LAS VEGAS — Major League Soccer clubs, like many other pro sports franchises, are using data analytics and technology more than ever to help players prepare and perform at higher levels. [Oracle to open 3 new cloud regions this year, escalating challenge to AWS and Azure] By Dan Richman Database giant Oracle today moved to strengthen its position as a full-service cloud provider, using CloudWorld, a one-day conference convening in New York City, to announce new products and plans to open several new regions this year and next. [Realtor.com’s new features bring augmented reality, image recognition to home-buying] By Nat Levy Realtor.com has released a pair of new features for its Android mobile app that use image recognition and augmented reality to give people more information about homes on the market and surrounding neighborhoods. [Apana raises $3.5M to help businesses save money by controlling water use] By Nat Levy Water is becoming increasingly scarce, and a startup based in Bellingham, Wash., has raised $3.5 million to help businesses monitor and cut down on water usage and save money. [Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella gets the message about AI’s down side for jobs] By Alan Boyle Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella acknowledges that the rapid rise of artificial intelligence and automation will pose "pressing challenges" for democracies. [Where’s your flying car? Airbus Group just might be testing it in Oregon this year] By Alan Boyle Airbus Group says it's on track to test its prototype self-piloted flying car by the end of the year, and those tests may well take place in Oregon. [‘Hidden Figures’ inspires hundreds of girls at special MLK Day showing] By Clare McGrane Changing the world isn’t all about “giant leaps” and single moments of innovation. [Last man to walk on the moon, Gene Cernan, leaves behind a dying wish] By Alan Boyle Gene Cernan, the last human to leave footprints on the moon, passed away today – but his family says his dying wish remains to be fulfilled. [Xbox One tops PlayStation 4 for U.S. sales in second half of 2016] By Taylor Soper More than three years after debuting, Microsoft’s Xbox One console still continues to rack up the sales. [Read more of today's news on GeekWire >] Today's top jobs - [OfferUp: Software Development Engineer – Android] - [The Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence (AI2): Young Investigator] - [Delta Dental of Washington: Front-End Development Lead] - [OfferUp: Sr. Software Development Engineer – Backend] - [GeekWire: GeekWire Sales Professional] - [OfferUp: Sr. Software Development Engineer – Backend] - [OfferUp: Senior Site Reliability Engineer] - [Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence: DevOps Lead] - [OfferUp: Software Development Manager – Backend] - [OfferUp: Security Engineer] [Hiring? 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