Is it ‘Day 2’ at Amazon? | More layoffs at Rad Power Bikes

FTC sues Microsoft over Activision deal | AI’s next frontier | Tech Moves | Latest startup fundings ADVERTISEMENT [GeekWire]( SPONSOR MESSAGE: EVOLVE 401(k): The retirement plan for business that dream big: [Enhance your employee benefits with ALLtech, available exclusively to GeekWire member companies.]( TODAY'S TOP STORIES “It’s past time to admit that Amazon is not the same place it was when I was there, and someplace along the way of becoming the everything store, they forgot their playbook.” - John Rossman, a former Amazon executive, wrote a guest commentary that details his proposed turnaround plan for the Seattle tech giant. [Read it here](. This just in: The FTC is suing Microsoft over its massive $69 billion deal to acquire Activision Blizzard. - The FTC said the acquisition “would enable Microsoft to suppress competitors to its Xbox gaming consoles and its rapidly growing subscription content and cloud-gaming business.” [Read more](. Rad Power Bikes conducted layoffs for the third time this year, citing the need to reduce costs amid the economic downturn. - The cuts come a day after the Seattle-based e-bike company announced the launch of a new three-wheeled bicycle. [Read more.]( Amazon expanded its senior leadership team with four additional leaders. - With the latest additions, Amazon’s senior leadership team numbers 28 people. [Read about the new “Steam” members](. The Pentagon split a giant cloud contract among Microsoft, Amazon, Google and Oracle. - The U.S. Department of Defense’s “Joint Warfighting Cloud Capability” will have a potential value of up to $9 billion for the companies. [Read more.]( AlphaCode, from Google’s DeepMind, has proven that it can keep up with the average human software coder. - The performance in standardized programming contests points to a new frontier in AI applications as AlphaCode relies on a “data-driven” approach to writing code. [Read more.]( Tech Moves: - GitHub hires an AWS veteran; ex-RealSelf leader joins Oggvo; former Adaptive Biotechnologies CFO joins Capella Space; [and more key personnel changes](. Seattle startup fundings: - Health tech startup Pebble [landed $17.3 million]( and publicly launched its software that creates health benefits plans for small companies. - Engineering company First Mode and mining company Anglo American have followed through on a [$200 million business combination agreement](. - Cabana [raised $3 million]( to fuel production of its luxury travel vans. Zillow Group acquired VRX Media to broaden its suite of listing services that it sells to agents and brokers. - The Milwaukee-based marketing service offers real-estate focused content such as drone photography, virtual staging, 3D tours and more. [Read more.]( Photos: Recapping the GeekWire Gala and rebooting two techies with a style makeover. - Our annual holiday party for Seattle’s tech community returned in epic fashion on Wednesday night as we danced, sang, toasted and more. [Read the recap.]( - Two lucky winners had a day of pampering at Nordstrom, where they were made over and dressed for success before attending the big party. [See the before and after looks.]( T[hanks for reading, and have a great day. — GeekWire managing editor Taylor Soper,]( and GeekWire reporter Kurt Schlosser, kurt@geekwire.com. SPONSOR MESSAGE [Acumatica Cloud ERP provides the best business management solution for transforming your company to thrive in the new digital economy.]( Built on a future-proof platform with open architecture for rapid integrations, scalability, and ease of use, Acumatica delivers unparalleled value to small and midmarket organizations. Connected Business. Delivered. [Watch demo video →]( LATEST HEADLINES [FTC is suing Microsoft to block $69 billion Activision deal]( [AI’s next frontier: AlphaCode can match programming prowess of average coders]( [Rad Power Bikes lays off employees for the third time this year]( [GeekWire Gala recap: Seattle community celebrates the holidays in a big way at our annual party]( [Rebooted in style: See the before and after as two techies put on fresh looks for the GeekWire Gala]( SPONSORED: GEEK REAL ESTATE [New Condo in the Heart of Belltown!]( [Fresh fuel: Seattle camper rental service Cabana lands $3M to expand fleet]( [Tech Moves: Ex-RealSelf leader joins Oggvo; ex-Adaptive CFO lands at Capella Space; and more]( [Zillow acquires real estate marketing company VRX Media to boost listing services]( [Is it ‘Day 2’ at Amazon? A former executive’s turnaround plan for the tech giant]( [Pentagon splits giant cloud contract among Amazon, Microsoft, Google, and Oracle]( [Amazon expands ‘s-team’ with addition of four executives to senior leadership group]( [Anglo American follows through on $200M combination agreement with First Mode]( [Seattle startup Pebble, which helps create health benefit plans for small businesses, lands $12M]( GEEKWORK: TODAY'S TECH JOBS - [Remitly: Senior Software Development Engineer – North American Product (Seattle Or U.S. Remote)]( - [San Jose State University: Systems Analyst]( - [Periscopic: Full Stack Developer]( - [Switchee: Fullstack Developer]( - [MedBridge: Software Engineer III (Back end)]( - [Remitly: Senior Mobile Software Development Engineer – B2B Platform (Seattle or U.S. Remote)]( - [Plus: GTM Strategy and Ops Lead]( - [Remitly: Principal Software Development Engineer- Passbook (Seattle or U.S. Remote)]( - [Government of Canada Trade Commissioner Service: Senior Trade Officer (International Business Development)]( [FIND MORE JOBS ON GEEKWORK]( [HIRING? 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