Microsoft ‘Skinput’ project prescient in light of new AI gadget | Amazon’s satellite prototypes working as planned

Adaptive Biotech considers ‘strategic alternatives’ for business lines | Rad Power Bikes closing NYC store ADVERTISEMENT [GeekWire]( SPONSOR MESSAGE: Explore our immersive expo: [Meet and learn from hundreds of AWS Partners all in one place.]( TODAY'S TOP STORIES A month after the launch of its first prototype Project Kuiper satellites, Amazon reports that the spacecraft have demonstrated controlled maneuvering in orbit using their custom-built electric propulsion systems. That suggests Amazon’s Project Kuiper team — headquartered in Redmond, Wash. — is on track in its multibillion-dollar effort to create a 3,236-satellite constellation that would eventually provide broadband internet access for millions of people around the globe. [Read more](. - More space news: Tukwila, Wash.- based startup Starfish Space has halted efforts to put its Otter Pup spacecraft back on track to demonstrate an on-orbit satellite rendezvous. [Read more.]( ChatGPT or not ChatGPT? That was the question, briefly, at Microsoft on Thursday as employee access to OpenAI’s signature tool was inadvertently blocked, raising alarm about just how the tech giant regards its multibillion-dollar investment. [Read more.]( Thirteen years too early? Microsoft "Skinput," circa 2010, was a research project that projected light onto a user's skin, using sensors to detect different inputs. It's looking downright prescient in light of a newly unveiled AI gadget from a San Francisco startup. [Read more](. Another cutback at Rad Power Bikes: The Seattle e-bike maker is closing a retail store in New York City. The latest organizational change at the startup comes after a series of layoffs and plans to pull out of Europe. [Read more.]( Seattle giant Adaptive Biotechnologies hired Goldman Sachs to explore “strategic alternatives” for two separate business lines. Adaptive CEO Chad Robins said the businesses are at different stages of maturity, with different capital and development needs. [Read more](. AI meets M&A: Seattle-area startup Wokelo, started by two former management consultants (Saswat Nanda, above left, and Siddhant Masson) uses AI to produce detailed, multi-page due-diligence reports in a matter of minutes. The company has landed $1.5 million from prominent investors, serving customers including venture capital and private equity firms, corporate development teams at large companies, and investment banks. [Read more](. Amazon Fashion chief departs: Muge Erdirik Dogan, president of Amazon Fashion & Fitness and a 16-year veteran of the tech giant, is leaving to pursue an external opportunity. She’ll be replaced by Jenny Freshwater, a longtime marketing leader at Amazon. [Read more in our latest Tech Moves update](. The Paul G. Allen Frontiers Group, a division of the Seattle-based Allen Institute, is launching a research center in New York to focus on interactions between the nervous system and the immune system. It will receive $10 million in funding over four years. [Read more](. Hot Links: - Meta is working with Amazon on a new feature that lets customers buy products directly within Amazon ads that pop up in Facebook and Instagram feeds. ([TechCrunch]( - Kieran Snyder, CEO of Seattle startup Textio, and Jenny Lay-Flurrie, chief accessibility officer at Microsoft, made Forbes’ “Future of Work 50” list, honoring leaders who are rethinking the world of work. ([Forbes]( - “Software is still pretty dumb.” Bill Gates makes that blunt assessment in a new blog post on why he thinks AI will completely upend how we use computers in the next five years. ([GatesNotes]( - The battle for top AI talent is getting heated between OpenAI and Google as the ChatGPT maker pitches millions in stock compensation as a luring tactic. ([The Information]( Thanks for [subscribing]( to the GeekWire newsletter, and have a great weekend. — GeekWire managing editor Taylor Soper, taylor@geekwire.com; co-founder Todd Bishop, todd@geekwire.com; and reporter Kurt Schlosser, kurt@geekwire.com. SPONSOR MESSAGE [Trust For Public Land & SAL Present: An Evening with the Full Circle Everest Team on Wednesday, November 15th]( Join [Trust for Public Land]( with the Full Circle Everest Team, the first all-Black team to summit the highest mountain on earth on November 15th. The event will highlight inclusion and equity in outdoor recreation. Get tickets [here](. LATEST HEADLINES [Flashback: Microsoft’s ‘Skinput’ research project in 2010 foreshadowed an AI gadget of 2023]( [Starfish Space scrubs plan for a satellite rendezvous after thruster suffers anomaly]( [ChatGPT or not ChatGPT? That was the question, briefly, as Microsoft cut employee access to AI tool]( [Amazon Fashion chief steps down, replaced by longtime marketing leader]( [Rad Power Bikes closing retail store in New York in latest cutback for Seattle e-bike maker]( [Amazon says Project Kuiper satellites are maneuvering the way they were built to do]( [Adaptive Biotech hires Goldman Sachs to explore ‘strategic alternatives’ for key business lines]( [AI meets M&A: How these former management consultants are upending due diligence]( [ALLtech and GeekWire want to help your company offer competitive health and wellness benefits]( GEEKWORK: TODAY'S TECH JOBS - [City of Portland Water Bureau: Technology Manager]( - [City of Redlands: Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Analyst]( - [City of Redlands: Network Engineer]( - [City of Newport: Systems Administrator I or II]( - [City of Redlands: IT Systems Supervisor]( - [Seattle Sounders FC: Director of Lifecycle Marketing]( [FIND MORE JOBS ON GEEKWORK]( [HIRING? 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