Category Archives: Google

Google today announced a new feature for its AppSheet automation service that will allow developers on its no-code platform to create custom apps and automation that can interact directly with Gmail. By leveraging dynamic email, developers can now build applications that users can trigger and execute right from inside their Gmail inbox and while that has been the promise of dynamic email since Google announced it in 2019, we havent seen all that many developers really make use of these capabilities yet.

With this, an AppSheet developer could now build an approval workflow or asset management system that users can update right from within an email, for example.

Praveen Seshadri, the CEO and founder of AppSheet who sold the service to Google in 2020, noted that this is a small but important step in the services overall mission to enable more users to convert their idea into working software and to help those developers (or creators, as he likes to call them) reach their users where they are.

What were in the process of doing is saying, how do we let people who are what we call creators people with ideas of how to make things run better or automate things, and so on build those things? Traditionally, there were apps, but of late, were trying to say, how do we integrate that deeper into the experience of those end users? Thats what developers have been doing for a while with the workspace platform and now were broadening that to the non-developers, Seshadri said.

Image Credits: Google

Typically, its the business users who are the closest to the business problems, so as Seshadri noted, they are also usually the ones who know what they want from an automation solution like this. And while they may not be able to code themselves, Seshadri argues that AppSheets focus on a declarative approach lets users focus on outcomes and not the insanely tedious steps to achieve those outcomes. But he also noted that in most businesses, no-code users and traditional engineers work together. Somebody has to build and maintain the database that the no-code application sits on top of, after all.

On top of broadening the capabilities of the AppSheet platform, though, the current focus for the team is on how those efforts are consumed by end users.

Traditionally, if youre building applications, you got to go to the application and do something there, Seshadri said. Ive got to do an expense report. Ive got an expense report application, a web web page or something And I do that. And then I have to do something with recruiting, I go to that application. We tend to transform your context in all these places. What were doing now is taking AppSheet applications built by creators and bringing them into your Gmail, so that the users can stay in the context they are in and the work comes to them, the application comes to them.

He noted that Gmail is an obvious starting point inside of Google Workspace, though the overall goal is to meet the users where they are so they can stay within their current work context as much as possible.

Image Credits: Google

In this context, its also worth noting that Google is also launching a new integration with Atlassian today that brings a Jira integration to Google Chat and Spaces (formerly called Rooms). With this, users will be able to create new Jira tickets right from Chat and Spaces, see previews of their tickets and track active issues. That is pretty much a capability that users of Slack and Microsoft Teams already have access to, so in many ways, Google is simply filling a gap in its tool chest here.

Modern work requires people to switch contexts and tools faster than ever before, said Joff Redfern, chief product officer, Atlassian. We believe an open ecosystem and tight integrations among the tools that users rely on every day is vital to their success. Since 2017, our Trello integration with Gmail has been installed by more than 7 million people. Today, we are excited to build on the partnership between Atlassian and Google to propel work collaboration further with the integration of Jira with Google Chat and Spaces.

Image Credits: Google

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Google brings AppSheet automations to Gmail, Jira support to Chat and Spaces - TechCrunch

Googles Arts & Culture team is today launching a new online experience that lets users virtually walk the Great Wall of China. The Walk the Great Wall of China experience includes an exclusive 360-degree virtual tour of one of the walls best-preserved sections, including 370 images of the Great Wall in total and 35 stories that go into architectural details about the landmark.

As the largest man-made structure in the world, the Great Wall of China is one of the most iconic and popular heritage sites anywhere. Over 10 million people visit each yearbut not everyone has the opportunity to see the Great Wall first-hand, Pierre Caessa, Google Arts & Cultures program manager, said in a blog post. Today, in collaboration with renowned Great Wall expert Dong Yaohui and curators from Gubei Water Town, Google Arts & Culture presents a new theme page enabling people to visit the Great Wall virtually.

The experience gives users the chance to learn more about the Great Walls history and experience parts of it that might be otherwise hard to access. It also aims to give users a better understanding of how the Great Wall is being preserved for future generations.

The virtual experience includes a panoramic view of the wall, along with 360-degree views of the watchtower and different sections of the wall. Users can also learn more about how and when the Great Wall was built.

For those who want to delve even deeper into the history of the Great Wall, you can decode the walls and bricks along the wall. For instance, you can get a closer look at hidden signatures, stamps and mysterious patterns carved on the bricks.

Google has launched numerous 360-degree virtual tours over the past few years and continues to leverage the technology. Back in 2016, the search giant rolled out a virtual experience that allowed users to explore U.S. national parks. Since then, the company has launched similar virtual tours but has also looked at using virtual reality in different ways. For instance, Google launched a virtual reality art gallery in 2017 and also released a Tour Creator tool in 2018 to let students create their own VR tours.

To try out the new experience yourself, you can visit the website Walk the Great Wall of China, or download the Google Arts & Culture app for AndroidoriOS.

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Googles latest virtual tour lets you walk the Great Wall of China - TechCrunch

Google has pulled several stalkerware ads that violated its policies by promoting apps that encouraged prospective users to spy on their spouses phone.

These consumer-grade spyware apps are often marketed to parents wishing to monitor their childs calls, messages, apps, photos and location, often under the guise of protecting against predators. But these apps, which are often designed to be installed surreptitiously and without the device owners consent, have been repurposed by abusers to spy on the phones of their spouses.

The rise in the use of so-called stalkerware (or spouseware) prompted an industrywide response in recent years to combat the spread of phone monitoring apps. Antivirus makers have worked to better detect stalkerware, and federal authorities are taking action against spyware makers that further expose their victims to security threats. Last August, Google banned ads in users search results that promoted apps that are designed with the express purpose of tracking or monitoring another person or their activities without their authorization.

But TechCrunch found five app makers were still advertising their stalkerware apps as recently as last week.

We do not allow ads promoting spyware for partner surveillance. We immediately removed the ads that violated this policy and will continue to track emerging behaviors to prevent bad actors from trying to evade our detection systems, a Google spokesperson told TechCrunch.

Google said its policy on enabling dishonest behavior, which governs the promotion of spyware, bans ads from promoting intimate partner surveillance, but does not extend to ads that promote tracking a childs activity or workplaces monitoring their employees devices, the spokesperson confirmed. The policy also exempts private investigation services, though Google would not say if or how it determines for what purpose an app is used.

Vocal supporters of Googles efforts against stalkerware have expressed concerns with the policys enforcement. Malwarebytes, a founding member of the Coalition Against Stalkerware, a group of companies committed to combating the growing threat of stalkerware, said last year that the policy was incomplete since it allowed stalkerware makers to skirt the rules by changing the face of what theyre selling, without changing the core technology within.

The spokesperson for Google declined to provide specifics of how Googles enforcement works, but said it looks at a combination of factors to determine if an ad violates its policies, such as looking at the text and images of the ad, how the product is promoted and the landing pages of the ads when clicked.

TechCrunch found that several stalkerware apps used a variety of techniques to successfully evade Googles ban on advertising apps for partner surveillance and were able to get Google ads approved.

In one case, mSpy, a spyware app that had a major security lapse in 2018, ran Google ads that linked to an interstitial web page on an entirely separate domain from mSpys website, which tripped up Google from detecting that the app was also being marketed to spy on your kids, husband or wife, grandma or grandpa.

Another stalkerware maker, ClevGuard, which in 2020 spilled the phone data on thousands of victims, ran Google ads that linked to a page on its website that said the app could be used on a spouse to dispel any doubts in a relationship. The page was hidden from Googles search index using a robots file that tells search engines what should and shouldnt appear in search results. TechCrunch found two other stalkerware apps using this same technique to run ads, which Google said also violated its policies.

Other violating ads were more overt. PhoneSpector, a spyware maker based on Long Island, NY, ran ads that promoted the app as a way to catch a cheater.

As of September, Google said it will suspend the accounts of advertisers for three months who repeatedly violate its ad policies, including for promoting spyware for targeting spouses.

None of the stalkerware companies responded to requests for comment.

If you or someone you know needs help, the National Domestic Violence Hotline (1-800-799-7233) provides 24/7 free, confidential support to victims of domestic abuse and violence. If you are in an emergency situation, call 911. The Coalition Against Stalkerware also has resources if you think your phone has been compromised by spyware. You can contact this reporter on Signal and WhatsApp at +1 646-755-8849 or zack.whittaker@techcrunch.com by email.

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Google pulls stalkerware ads that promoted phone spying apps - TechCrunch

There are a lot of resources at your disposal when you need to create a rsum. You can use the templates that accompany Microsoft Word, for example, or try one of the many free or paid rsum builders online.

If you frequently use Google Docs, though, the simplest solution might simply be to make your rsum there. Google includes five rsum templates in Google Docs - here's how to use them.

There are five rsum templates in Google Docs offering a broad variety of rsum styles. Here is how to choose a rsum template and make a rsum in Google Docs.

1. Open Google Docs in a web browser and make sure you are logged into your Google account.

2. On the Google Docs home page, click Template gallery in the top-right corner, to the right of Start a new document.

3. Browse for the row marked Resumes. Here you'll find five rsum formats. You can see what each one likes in thumbnail form. To get a closer look at the rsum (or just start working), click the rsum.

Quick tip: If you don't see any templates or the Temples gallery link on the Google Docs homepage, it is hidden. To show it, click the three-line menu at the top left, choose Settings, and click the checkbox to select Display recent templates on home screens.

When you select a rsum template, Google Docs makes a copy of the template and opens it as a new document titled Resume. You can now personalize it by editing the document as you would edit any document. Be careful to keep the template's formatting intact, though.The easiest way to do that is to work on one small block of text at a time - you can select a small block of text and replace it with your own personalized copy. If you accidentally select too much text and wipe out some of the template's unique formatting, just click the Undo button in the toolbar.

It's a lot more convenient to create a rsum on a computer - the screen is bigger and it's easier to enter a lot of text. But if you want or need to work on a mobile device, Google makes that easy to do.

1. Start the Google Docs app on your phone or tablet.

2. Tap the New Document button (it looks like a plus sign).

3. In the pop-up, tap Choose template.

4. Browse for the row marked Resumes. Here you'll find the same five rsum formats that are available in a browser on the computer. When you find the one you want, tap it.

Google Docs makes a copy of the rsum template and opens it as a new document titled Resume. You can now start editing and personalizing it.

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How to use the Google Docs rsum template to create and edit a professional document for job applications - Business Insider India

We are writing as Google and Amazon employees of conscience from diverse backgrounds. We believe that the technology we build should work to serve and uplift people everywhere, including all of our users. As workers who keep these companies running, we are morally obligated to speak out against violations of these core values. For this reason, we are compelled to call on the leaders of Amazon and Google to pull out of Project Nimbus and cut all ties with the Israeli military. So far, more than 90 workers at Google and more than 300 at Amazon have signed this letter internally. We are anonymous because we fear retaliation.

We have watched Google and Amazon aggressively pursue contracts with institutions like the US Department of Defense, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice), and state and local police departments. These contracts are part of a disturbing pattern of militarization, lack of transparency and avoidance of oversight.

Continuing this pattern, our employers signed a contract called Project Nimbus to sell dangerous technology to the Israeli military and government. This contract was signed the same week that the Israeli military attacked Palestinians in the Gaza Strip killing nearly 250 people, including more than 60 children. The technology our companies have contracted to build will make the systematic discrimination and displacement carried out by the Israeli military and government even crueler and deadlier for Palestinians.

Project Nimbus is a $1.2bn contract to provide cloud services for the Israeli military and government. This technology allows for further surveillance of and unlawful data collection on Palestinians, and facilitates expansion of Israels illegal settlements on Palestinian land.

We cannot look the other way, as the products we build are used to deny Palestinians their basic rights, force Palestinians out of their homes and attack Palestinians in the Gaza Strip actions that have prompted war crime investigations by the international criminal court.

We envision a future where technology brings people together and makes life better for everyone. To build that brighter future, the companies we work for need to stop contracting with any and all militarized organizations in the US and beyond. These contracts harm the communities of technology workers and users alike. While we publicly promise to uplift and assist our users, contracts such as these secretly facilitate the surveillance and targeting of those same users.

We condemn Amazon and Googles decision to sign the Project Nimbus contract with the Israeli military and government, and ask them to reject this contract and future contracts that will harm our users. We call on global technology workers and the international community to join with us in building a world where technology promotes safety and dignity for all.

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We are Google and Amazon workers. We condemn Project Nimbus - The Guardian

Wendys home of the Frosty and the four-cornered burger announced a deal Tuesday that caught our eye. The fast-food chain is partnering with Google Cloud to transform the drive-thru experience as you know it.

As in, voice-recognition software that takes your order directly to cooks, avoiding the whole shouting-at-the-drive-thru-menu thing, or that can politely predict when you might want your next Baconator combo.

Its all part of how the pandemic has forged an even stronger relationship between tech and fast food.

Quincy McClendon hits the drive-thru at a Wendys near Sacramento, California, about twice a week for breakfast. Hes a big fan of the sausage-croissant combo. But he likes it a certain way: No egg, well done on the sausage.

McClendon said hes never had much of a problem with this order. But imagine a world where Wendys knew McClendon didnt want an egg just by looking at him.

Data collection is kind of where the industry is headed, including using tech to predict drive-thru habits, according to Eric Gonzalez, an analyst at KeyBanc, which provides investment-banking services to Wendys.

They know your license plate number or they have your facial recognition so your previous orders [are] all loaded into the algorithm, he said.

To be clear, none of those are things that Wendys or Google has talked about yet, but they already know what you want and when, Gonzalez said.

You know, they say, Well, this guy comes at 2:30 in the morning every Friday night. Maybe he wants the same thing he had last weekend,' he said.

Wendys and other fast-food chains are trying out new tech for more pressing reasons: the labor shortage.

Consumers may be happier with a speedier drive-thru, said Daron Acemoglu, an economist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. But it comes with a cost.

Over the last four decades, we have been investing more and more in automation, technologies, and that has been associated with much greater inequality, he said.

Acemoglu doesnt think Wendys will have anyone tending its drive-thrus in five years.

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You do want fries with that: Wendys and Google bet on drive-thru AI - Marketplace

The days of needing to buy a guitar tuner or download an app for that are gone. Now, Google Search has added its own built-in tuner.

You type Google tuner into the search bar. The user interface is laid out with a microphone button, and itll let you know after strumming a tune if it needs to be tuned up or down.

The new built-in tuner can be used with any phone or a desktop or laptop computer.

Results vary, as they do with other guitar tuning apps, but the website Android Police says Google tuner worked on a Galaxy Z Fold3 and Pixel 5a cellphone. The Verge reported similar good results using an iPhone 12 Pro and a Windows desktop.

The Google Play store has a variety of guitar tuner apps, with many varying between 3.5- to 4.5-star reviews.

Having a way to tune your guitar quickly and easily over the phone or computer is convenient, though you might still have to deal with how to cut out background noise.

Read more at USA Today.

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Google tuner: Need to tune your guitar? Now, you can just Google that - Chicago Sun-Times

A number of startups have emerged aimed at cleaning up low Earth orbit, which is currently crowded with millions of pieces of space junk including anything from broken satellites, to rocket fragments, to debris from vehicle stages or space missions. While the task of cleaning up LEO is an important one, theres one problem, according to Alex Fielding, co-founder of a new space venture alongside Steve Wozniak: We dont know where most of the space junk is actually located.

Orbital cleanup companies, they dont have resolution, or we dont agree on where almost any object in low Earth orbit is with greater accuracy than maybe three or 400 kilometers on any given moment, Fielding said in a recent interview with TechCrunch.

Fielding and Wozniak are aiming to close that knowledge gap with their new company, Privateer. The company, which has been in stealth, got some attention in September after Wozniak tweeted a link to a one-minute promo video on YouTube, and rumors intensified that Privateer would be focused on cleaning up space objects.

Turns out, thats not quite accurate. Privateer actually got started, not with the goal of cleaning up space on day one, Fielding explained. We really got started with the goal of building [] the Google Maps of space.

This is not the first collaboration for Fielding and Apple co-founder Wozniak. The two created Wheels of Zeus in the early 2000s, a hardware company that developed tech to track the location of physical objects.

When we started that, half of the stuff in space 20 years ago was trash, Fielding said. The situation has only gotten more dire since. Youre in a world with many, many, many more things [in orbit], of which those many more things are far more dangerous, theyre almost all in low orbits, theyre moving very, very fast, and theyre not well tracked or understood for the most part.

The dangers of space junk remain all too present. In May, astronauts aboard the International Space Station discovered a five millimeter-wide hole in a robotic arm attached to one of the modules. While that arm remains functioning, the ISS did not perform a maneuver to avoid being hit, which suggests that the object was one of the millions in orbit that are too small to be tracked by the U.S. Space Forces Space Surveillance Network.

In the same way that launch companies like Rocket Lab and SpaceX are now providing services that used to be the exclusive purview of public agencies like NASA, Privateer could fill in these massive data gaps.

Privateer is hitting the ground running. The company will be sending up its first satellite, dubbed Pono 1, on February 11, 2022. The spacecraft, which will be roughly 3U in size (just about half-a-foot), will be equipped with 42 sensors, 30 of which are non-optical and 12 of which are optical cameras. The non-optical sensors will be capable of a precision of as much as 4 microns. The actual body of the satellite will be made of carbon fiber and 3D-printed, using an approach that means its a single, solid piece with the same rigidity of titanium, Fielding said. Instead of propellant, it will be directionally oriented using magnetic torquers, a small device that generates electric current for attitude control.

Pono 1 will only stay up for four months, when it will be deorbited and vaporized back in the Earths atmosphere. The second satellite, Pono 2, is going up at the end of April. Privateer has already chosen a launch provider and received the requisite approvals for both launches.

In addition to the launches, Fielding said Privateer is already working with Astroscale, an orbital logistics and servicing startup thats currently demo-ing a space junk removal satellite. Privateer also signed a partnership with the Space Force.

To not pursue a complete Google Maps of space might not just be negligent it could be fatal, according to Fielding. Im an optimist and I still am very, very, very afraid that were too late, that were probably within 24 months of the first on-orbit human space casualty. And the reason for that is just the proliferation in low Earth orbit.

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Steve Wozniak and Alex Fieldings startup Privateer aims to be the Google Maps of space - TechCrunch

After months of hearings and negotiations, pressure is growing in the Senate to pass new laws banning online platforms from giving preference to their own products and services over those of their competitors. On Thursday, a bipartisan group of senators announced plans to introduce a nondiscrimination bill that could reshape Amazons online marketplace.

The American Choice and Innovation Online Act, led by Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA), would prevent platforms like Amazon, Apple, and Google from using their dominance to disadvantage other companies and competitors that use their platforms. In June, House lawmakers voted out a bill sharing the same name from the Judiciary Committee. Klobuchars Senate version isnt identical to the Houses, but shares similar language.

This announcement follows a Wednesday Reuters report claiming that Amazon used marketplace search data to copy popular products and manipulate results favoring the companys own knockoff products. A Thursday investigation from The Markup also showed that the company places its products ahead of its competitors.

For years, third-party sellers have accused Amazon of similar behavior. These accusations were part of a yearslong House antitrust investigation into Amazon and other tech giants by lawmakers, spurring the original bipartisan bill in the House.

When dominant tech companies exclude rivals & kill competition, it hurts small businesses and can increase costs for YOU, Klobuchar said in a tweet on Thursday. My new bipartisan legislation with [Grassley] will establish new rules of the road to prevent large companies from boxing out their smaller competitors.

Outside of Amazon, the bill could also change how Apple and Google run their app stores, banning the companies from giving preference to their own first-party apps and software. Earlier this year, Apple was ordered to allow app developers to send iOS users to payment options outside of those offered by the iPhone manufacturer in a case brought by Epic Games. Google is facing a similar suit by the Fortnite company.

As of publication, Rep. Ken Buck (R-CO) said that at least five Senate Republicans have signed onto the legislation, including Sens. Cynthia Lummis (WY), Josh Hawley (MO), Lindsey Graham (SC), and John Kennedy (LA). This bipartisan support marks a significant step forward for lawmakers seeking to regulate online marketplaces, showing that both Republicans and Democrats are willing to work together to spur competition in the industry.

Many critics called our bipartisan antitrust bils Democrat bills, Buck said in a tweet. That was false then, and its false now.

Despite the measures broad congressional support, trade groups like Chamber of Progress issued statements Thursday suggesting that the bill will hurt customer experiences online, not enhance them.

Preventing Amazon from selling Amazon Basics and banning Googles maps from its search results isnt going to do anything to make the Internet better for families, Adam Kovacevich, founder and CEO of Chamber of Progress said in a Thursday statement. This is like calling a car mechanic to fix your laptop.

The Chamber of Progress coalition partners with tech companies like Amazon, Facebook, and Google.

Pressure is mounting for Congress to act on online marketplaces and counterfeit products as well. Last week, House lawmakers introduced the INFORM Act, which would require platforms like Amazon to verify the identities of high-volume sellers in order to curb the sale of knockoff products.

Amazon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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Pressure mounts on Amazon and App Store discrimination in new bill - The Verge

Google TV is making finding something to watch in a multiuser household a whole lot less chaotic by adding custom profiles, watchlists, and personalized Google Assistant help.

Previously, Google TV supported the ability to sign into multiple Google Accounts to be able to use services with more than one account. But content suggestions, the watchlist feature, and Google Assistant functionality were all based on the activity of the primary account holder. With personalized profiles, every users recommendations, watchlist, and Google Assistant responses will be tailored to their own interests and activity.

A Google spokesperson told The Verge that profiles will start rolling out next month on Chromecast with Google TV as well as Google TVs from TCL and Sony. To streamline the experience, Google said that any downloaded apps and credentials can be used across different profiles. The company previously introduced kids' profiles on Google TV earlier this year.

After profiles arrive next month, Google will separately introduce glanceable cards on ambient mode. When that support arrives, an idle TV can display personalized information like weather, news, and sports stats, among other tailored-to-you information. This screen will also display shortcuts for things like podcasts, music, and photos.

Separately, the mobile remote app for Google TV that launched on Android last month will soon be available in the Google Home app on Android and iOS, the company told The Verge.

Profiles, an updated ambient mode, and expanded support for the virtual Google TV remote for those times when the couch eats your streaming wand follows news this week that Google TV added support for Philo in its live TV tab. Previously limited to YouTube TV ($65 per month) and Sling TV ($35 per month), Philo is now Google TVs most affordable live TV option and starts at $25 per month.

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Google TV is adding personalized profiles and watchlists soon - The Verge