GeekWire Mid-Week Update

Read the top tech stories so far this week from GeekWire [GeekWire Mid-Week Update] Top stories so far this week [Report: Departing Microsoft exec Panos Panay set to lead Amazon’s Alexa and Echo business]( Amazon is expected to name Panos Panay, the longtime Microsoft Windows and Devices leader, as the new executive in charge of the division that includes its Alexa voice assistant and Echo smart devices, Bloomberg News reports, citing unnamed people familiar with the situation. [Stoke Space puts its test rocket through a successful hop in central Washington state]( A four-year-old startup called Stoke Space has executed a successful up-and-down test of its "Hopper" developmental rocket vehicle. [Amazon to hire 250k U.S. holiday workers, up 100k from last year, projecting strong shopping season]( Amazon says it will seek to hire 250,000 people for the holiday season, a significant increase from past years, citing projections for a strong holiday shopping season. [Longtime Microsoft hardware leader Panos Panay is leaving the company after 19 years]( UPDATE: Report: Departing Microsoft exec Panos Panay set to lead Amazon’s Alexa and Echo business Panos Panay, the Microsoft chief product officer who oversees the Windows and Devices division, is leaving the company in a surprise departure. [Should Amazon be ‘pumped’ to land Panos Panay? A closer look at longtime Microsoft devices leader]( Microsoft developed its first Surface tablet more than a decade ago under strict secrecy to give then-CEO Steve Ballmer the option to pull the plug shortly before it launched if the company’s PC partners objected. [New Starbucks CEO calls Seattle the ‘crucible’ of artificial intelligence for the world]( Some of Seattle’s tech leaders have been doing their best to get the word out about the region’s artificial intelligence prowess. [Seattle-area game studio collective ProbablyMonsters lays off employees]( ProbablyMonsters, the Bellevue, Wash.-based studio collective that raised a $200 million Series A funding round in 2021, has laid off an undisclosed number of employees. [Amazon vets raise $12.5M for Griptape, a Seattle startup that helps companies build AI apps]( A pair of Amazon alum raised $12.5 million for a new startup that helps enterprises build and deploy secure artificial intelligence applications, preventing company data from slipping through the cracks. [Tech Moves: Remitly exec to step down; Yoky Matsuoka named CEO of new Panasonic division]( — Kim Vu, vice president of environmental social governance at Seattle digital remittance giant Remitly, will step down from her role at the end of the third quarter. [Clean aviation startup ZeroAvia lands more cash from Amazon, Bill Gates, Alaska Airlines]( ZeroAvia announced Monday that it has raised its largest round of funding to date. GEEKWORK: TODAY'S TECH JOBS - [Submittable: Staff Front End Software Engineer – Employee Engagement]( - [Submittable: Senior Software Engineer (Backend) – Employee Engagement]( - [City of Redlands: Network Engineer]( - [GeekWork: Senior Backend Engineer]( - [Submittable: Senior Machine Learning Scientist]( - [Submittable: Senior Software Engineering Manager]( - [Submittable: Senior Software Engineer (Back End) – Data]( - [Council for the Advancement of Science Writing: Communications Coordinator]( - [INRIX: Product Marketing Manager, Public Sector]( - [INRIX: Lead Software Engineer]( [FIND MORE JOBS ON GEEKWORK]( [HIRING? BUY A FEATURED LISTING TO APPEAR HERE]( [About GeekWire]( [Contact Us]( [Advertise]( Copyright © 2023 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](