Paul Asel is the San Francisco-based investor and managing partner at NGP Capital, and has invested in startups for around 25 years. Over the past few market downturns, including the Asian financial crisis and the financial crisis of 2008, Asel has distilled five key pieces of advice he gives to portfolio companies to help them through tricky periods. "A downturn is actually a better environment for companies to develop, most other businesses are distracted so it provides an opportunity to innovate quietly and to take time to perfect models," he told Business Insider in an interview. Click here for more BI Prime stories.

Going through a financial crisis isn't easy for fledgling startups, but market downturns have previously birthed giants such as Airbnb and Uber.

Paul Asel is a San Francisco-based investor and the managing partner at NGP Capital who has invested in startups for around 25 years. 

He has seen downturns from the Asian financial crisis in the late 1990s to the dotcom bubble and the 2008 financial crisis.

He has distilled five key pieces of advice he gives to portfolio companies to help them through tricky periods. 

"A downturn is actually a better environment for companies to develop, most other businesses are distracted so it provides an opportunity to innovate quietly and to take time to perfect models," he told Business Insider in an interview. 

There are signals that current nationwide lockdowns, brought in to counter the coronavirus pandemic, could last through 2020 and beyond. Asel is telling portfolio firms to hunker down. "We are advising our companies that this is going to be deeper and longer than anticipated," he said.

In recent years, he has focused his investing in smart mobility propositions having been an investor in Lime's 2017 Series B and Indian car rental startup Zoomcar. The current crunch on travel has put the sector under pressure.

"We have gone through the 50 companies in our portfolio and over 80% have been negatively impacted by coronavirus, but we believe over 80% will come out better if they can survive next 12 months," Asel predicted. 

Here's the advice that Asel is giving his portfolio companies:

Original author: Callum Burroughs

Buzzy AI security startup Onfido is in talks to help the US government roll out "immunity passports" for those that have recovered from COVID-19.On Friday, Dr Anthony Fauci said the federal government was considering issuing Americans with immunity certificates.In documents seen by Business Insider, Onfido said its immunity passport would "include test results tied to a person's identity", and claimed it could rapidly scale up to nationwide distribution.Business Insider approached the Department of Homeland Security for comment.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

UK security startup Onfido has held talks with the US government to discuss rolling out coronavirus "immunity passports" throughout the country.

As COVID-19 pushes the global economy further into the depths of recession, officials around the world have mooted the idea of immunity passports for those who have recovered from the disease.

Experts including Dr Anthony Fauci, who is helping to lead the US response to the pandemic, have expressed confidence that recovered patients would be immune to the disease, thereby allowing them to return to work.

"This is something that's being discussed," he told CNN on Friday. "I think it might actually have some merit under certain circumstances."

Business Insider has learned US government officials have held talks on the matter with Onfido, a London-based security startup that helps clients verify users' identities through a combination of ID documents, selfies and AI algorithms.

In documents seen by Business Insider, Onfido said its passport design would "include test results tied to a person's identity", and claimed it had "over a dozen partners" that could help it scale up distribution rapidly.

"The immunity passport... needs to be recognizable to law enforcement and other agencies to prove that the person is immune, and that the result belongs to them, and not to someone else," it said.

"We [already] use AI to catch fake IDs better than the human eye...We also work with over a dozen partners who can assist in bringing about an immunity passport program that is scalable, effective and can be piloted and rolled out quickly."

Speaking to Business Insider, Onfido cofounder and CEO Husayn Kassai confirmed he had taken part in discussions with US officials.

"We're already at a point where thousands of people have had the disease and recovered," he said. "But they have no way to prove it... That's where we come in."

Kassai told Business Insider the firm had also submitted proposals for immunity passports to at least one European government but declined to comment when asked which one. 

The UK government is currently mulling plans for such passports, with health secretary Matt Hancock saying they would allow many people to return to "normal life".

Business Insider approached the Department of Homeland Security, the Health Department and the National Institutes of Health for comment. 

Original author: Martin Coulter

President Donald Trump. Associated Press

Good morning! This is the tech news you need to know this Wednesday.

Amazon has seen its first warehouse-worker death from COVID-19 as calls for safer working conditions mount. The employee in question worked at Amazon's Hawthorne warehouse in California.
Apple has released a tool that shows how whether people are obeying lockdown and social distancing rules. The tool gathers location data from Apple Maps users to glean trends in people's movements.President Trump said Apple and Google's COVID-19 tracing tech posed "big constitutional problems" thought he didn't explain what. Google and Apple partnered last week to create a contact-tracing system for detecting the spread of coronavirus, which will gradually be rolled out in the coming months.Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates has suggested travel for work will never be the same after the coronavirus. He told a podcast that business trips were among the areas that he doubted "will ever go back."A source told Business Insider that Airbnb is raising $1 billion in debt, its second fundraising round in just two weeks, as the company tries to navigate a tough economic landscape. Airbnb's business has been hit hard by coronavirus lockdowns, and the funds could help the company as it tries to survive the pandemic.Facebook blocked two 5G conspiracy groups with thousands of members after users celebrated the destruction of phone masts. Facebook said it was taking "aggressive steps" to halt misinformation around the coronavirus and 5G.Sequoia Capital global managing partner Doug Leone is advising President Trump on how to restart American businesses during the coronavirus-led economic shutdown. Leone is the sole Silicon Valley investor to be advising the president as part of his coronavirus task force.Google healthcare subsidiary Verily told five US senators that it has run more than 7,000 tests for COVID-19. Verily has been screening and testing people for coronavirus, but some senators are worried over how it collects and uses data.SoftBank warned its tech-focused Vision Fund will book a $17 billion annual operating loss. The Vision Fund has posted operating losses for three consecutive quarters, pushing the entire group into the red.Tech companies like Apple and Blue Origin and universities like Duke are using their arsenals of 3D printers to produce millions of face shields for medical workers. Universities like Duke, Harvard, and Northwestern are using their 3D-printing facilities to produce up to 1,000 face-shield components per day.

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Original author: Isobel Asher Hamilton

An emergency measure just passed in San Francisco that will require the city to find and rent 7,000 hotel rooms to house and protect the city's homeless population during the COVID-19 public health crisis.The city's Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to pass the ordinance, which gives San Francisco until April 26 to procure the rooms.Now, Mayor London Breed will decide whether to sign or veto the measure.The estimated cost to find and rent the 7,000 hotel rooms for unhoused residents for 90 days is $105 million.Doing so would give the city's homeless community space to shelter in place alongside the rest of the city.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

An emergency ordinance was just passed in San Francisco requiring the city to procure and rent 7,000 hotel rooms for its entire homeless population.

In a virtual meeting on Tuesday, San Francisco's Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to pass the emergency proposal that gives the city until April 26 — the projected date for the number of confirmed cases to hit its peak in the state of California — to find the hotel rooms.

Now that the board has approved the ordinance, Mayor London Breed has 10 days to decide whether to sign or veto it, though the board could override that ruling as the San Francisco Examiner reports.

The measure requires the city to find 7,000 hotel rooms for its unhoused residents. But in total, 8,250 rooms are included in the ordinance that would also house first-responders and healthcare workers who require self-isolation. 

The purpose of the ordinance was in part to give the city's homeless population space to shelter in place alongside the rest of the city as the coronavirus, which causes the disease known as COVID-19, continues to spread. When the regionwide shelter-in-place order went into effect on March 17, those who are homeless were exempt and instead instructed to wait until officials could find ways to house them during the public health crisis.

In addition to housing and protecting the city's most vulnerable residents, doing so would also help mitigate an outbreak, which would prevent the healthcare system from potentially being overwhelmed.

But an outbreak has already hit the homeless community.

On April 2, the first positive case in a San Francisco homeless shelter was found at the city's Division Circle Navigation Center. And on April 6, two more cases were confirmed at MSC South, the city's largest homeless shelter. Then on April 10, 70 people at that shelter were reported to have tested positive, a number that has since swelled to at least 100.

At least 23 residents living in SRO hotels have also tested positive.

For weeks, San Francisco has been pushing forward with a mission to identify temporary housing and treatment sites that would prioritize isolation housing for those on the frontlines of the coronavirus pandemic, as well as the estimated 8,000 who are unhoused.

Since the city's travel and tourism industries have been hit hard amid the coronavirus pandemic, the thousands of empty hotel rooms have become a viable solution. 

The five supervisors — Matt Haney, Hillary Ronen, Aaron Peskin, Dean Presto, and Shamann Walton— that cosponsored the proposal have been advocating for the housing of all of the city's homeless individuals as a preventive measure, regardless of exposure to the virus or having been tested positive for it. 

 

As the plan previously stood, those who are homeless in San Francisco who would be moved to the hotel rooms are those who have tested positive for COVID-19 or who have been tested and are waiting for results to return. The most vulnerable within the homeless community, people over the age of 60 with underlying health issues, also qualify to be housed in a hotel room designated for this purpose.

But Mayor London Breed said despite the pandemic, there are limits to how officials can house people. "We are not going to be able to solve our homeless problem in San Francisco with this crisis," Breed said on April 3.

The city had previously toyed with housing its homeless community in mega shelters with congregate living conditions in an effort to increase social distancing in existing shelters. San Francisco's Moscone Center and Palace of Fine Arts were involved in those plans, which have since been scaled back.

At a Board of Supervisor's budget meeting last Wednesday, City Controller Ben Rosenfield said the estimated cost to rent the estimated 7,000 units for 90 days is $105 million, much of which could be refundable according to Supervisor Haney during the Tuesday meeting.

Rosenfield previously said that more than half of the estimated $105 million will likely be covered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, but the rest of the $50 million is "part of the puzzle we're trying to get put together," as Curbed SF reports. Human Services Agency Director Trent Rhorer said that the city may also be able to use some of the $150 million in emergency funds allocated to counties throughout the state of California. 

The estimated costs include the cost of security, cleaning services, and other resources for the homeless.

During the Tuesday meeting, Supervisor Aaron Peskin — one of the co-sponsors of the measure — said he would rather invest in this at the front end than pay for it at the back end. 

Original author: Katie Canales

One of Silicon Valley's biggest venture investors, at one of its most storied venture firms, has teamed up with the Trump Administration to help in efforts to restart the American economy.

Sequoia Capital global managing partner Doug Leone is participating as part of President Trump's task force to "reopen" the United States economy in the coming weeks as businesses publicly struggle with statewide shelter-in-place orders. During his daily press briefing Tuesday, Trump said Sequoia was among the companies advising him on strategies to restart the economy by the end of April, and a list released by the White House later confirmed Leone's participation.

The administration sought out Leone specifically, a source familiar with the matter told Business Insider. Officials were hopeful that Leone's resilience during the previous three economic recessions over his 32-year career would be an advantage and his firm's level-headed approach to business strategy was appealing, the source said.

Leone has publicly bucked a widespread trend among Silicon Valley's upper echelon — although some have privately expressed support for Trump, few have been willing to do so publicly within the Democratic stronghold where they reside. Peter Thiel, who founded Los Angeles-based VC firm Founders Fund and controversial data analytics company Palantir, is still Trump's most visible supporter among tech investors, but a Recode report from Teddy Schleifer in September outlined a more nuanced picture of the President's private supporters. Recode reported that Leone and his wife donated $100,000 to Trump's reelection campaign.

Leone, a registered Republican, is the only venture investor publicly identified on the list of participating financial services advisors on the task force, which includes investment banking heavyweights Stephen Schwarzman of Blackstone, Paul Singer of Elliott Management, and Chuck Schwab of Charles Schwab.

Sequoia Capital declined Business Insider's request for comment. The notoriously image-conscious VC firm wrote a widely-cited blog post on March 5 calling the novel coronavirus "the black swan of 2020." The post, addressed to founders and CEOs of companies, outlined the business risks the emerging novel coronavirus posed to the startup and larger business communities, and cautioned startups to cut costs and batten down the hatches in preparation for a sustained economic downturn. It was one of the earliest public warnings from a Silicon Valley VC, although the firm had already changed its investment strategy in China months before as the virus swept through Wuhan, and many Chinese cities went on lockdown.

"Having weathered every business downturn for nearly fifty years, we've learned an important lesson — nobody ever regrets making fast and decisive adjustments to changing circumstances," the Sequia post read. "In downturns, revenue and cash levels always fall faster than expenses. In some ways, business mirrors biology. As Darwin surmised, those who survive 'are not the strongest or the most intelligent, but the most adaptable to change.'"

Original author: Megan Hernbroth

The $967 million data management startup DataStax laid off about 15 employees last week, two sources told Business Insider. This is DataStax's fourth round of layoffs in the past year and third since Chet Kapoor replaced Bill Bosworth as CEO in October 2010. DataStax was reportedly heading towards an IPO in spring 2019, but the year since has been marked by management shake-ups and job cuts. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

DataStax, an enterprise software startup valued at an estimated $967 million, laid off about 15 employees last week – its third round of layoffs in less than six months. 

DataStax builds data management software using Apache Cassandra, a popular open source database originally started at Facebook. In spring 2019, DataStax was reportedly heading towards a IPO, but the company has since faced a management shake-up and multiple cuts: This was the third round of layoffs since the arrival of new CEO Chet Kapoor in October 2019. 

The most recent layoffs took place the second week of April and affected between 15 and 20 people, primarily in sales and solutions engineering, including several high-ranking employees, two sources with knowledge of the cuts told Business Insider.

A DataStax spokesperson declined comment.

Because there had already been two rounds of layoffs recently, the most recent job cuts caught employees by surprise, one source said. 

That same source said that Kapoor told employees that the company wasn't growing quickly enough to justify its headcount. The layoffs come less than a month after DataStax acquired the consulting and services firm The Last Pickle in early March.

The latest layoffs follow a spate of leadership departures and structural changes at DataStax in the past year. 

In July 2019, former CEO Billy Bosworth laid off a little less than 10% of the company's staff and restructured the company moving some employees into new teams. 

Kapoor, known for taking Apigee public and then selling it to Google in 2016, replaced Bosworth in October 2019. Soon after, Kapoor brought several former Apigee employees onto the leadership team and started to steer the company towards building its appeal for developers, former employees say. Less than a quarter into his tenure, DataStax laid off between 60 and 100 people in December.

Then, a few months later in February, DataStax had another round of layoffs, four former employees told Business Insider. That round affected about 20 to 30 employees, across sales, marketing, and business development, those sources said. 

Do you work at DataStax? Got a tip? Contact this reporter via email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Signal at 646.376.6106, Telegram at @rosaliechan, or Twitter DM at @rosaliechan17. (PR pitches by email only, please.) Other types of secure messaging available upon request. 

Original author: Rosalie Chan

Airbnb is set to raise $1 billion in debt financing, a source familiar with the matter told Business Insider.The deal is Airbnb's second in two weeks, following its announcement last week that it had raised $1 billion in debt and equity from Silver Lake and Sixth Street Partners.Airbnb will pay 7.5% interest plus LIBOR on the five-year loan as part of Tuesday's deal, which will involve no equity or warrants.Airbnb's business has been hit hard by coronavirus lockdowns, and the funds could help the company as it tries to survive the pandemic.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Airbnb is hoping to raise $1 billion in debt, the company's second infusion of new capital in just two weeks, a person familiar with the matter told Business Insider on Tuesday.

Airbnb will pay 7.5% interest on the five-year loan, in addition to the London interbank offered rate, at a discount of 97.5 cents on the dollar.

Private equity firm Silver Lake Partners has a major role in the deal, the person told Business Insider, while Bloomberg, which first reported news of the deal, reported that Apollo Global Management, Benefit Street Partners, Glade Brook Capital Partners, Oaktree Capital and Owl Rock Capital are also involved.

Reports of the deal come just a week after Airbnb announced it had raised an initial $1 billion in debt and equity from Silver Lake and Sixth Street Partners in a deal that valued the company at $18 billion, according to the The Wall Street Journal. That's a drop of nearly 50% since Airbnb's last private valuation of $31 billion in 2017, according to PitchBook, and less than the $26 billion internal valuation the company reportedly reached last week.

Investor demand for Tuesday's $1 billion financing deal, which will be debt only and won't include equity or warrants, was more than $2.5 billion, according to the person familiar with the matter. 

Airbnb has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, which has all but halted travel globally, and was reportedly losing money even before the pandemic, threatening to delay the company's plans to go public this year.

Original author: Tyler Sonnemaker

Americans see infectious diseases as the biggest threat to the US, according to a survey from the Pew Research Center.Amid the unprecedented coronavirus pandemic, 79% now say outbreaks of diseases are a major threat, up from 52% during the 2014 Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa.Infectious diseases beat out terrorism, nuclear weapons, cyberattacks, and climate change among Americans' top concerns.Concerns about the power and influence of China and Russia, as well as climate change and the condition of the global economy, have also been on the rise.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Americans say the spread of infectious diseases poses the biggest threat to the well-being of the country, according to a survey from the Pew Research Center published Monday.

"Nearly all US adults (98%) say this is at least a minor threat, with roughly eight-in-ten (79%) naming outbreaks of disease as a major threat to the country," the survey authors wrote.

As US coronavirus cases surpass 580,000, deaths reach 23,500, and more than 10% of the workforce having filed for unemployment, Americans are growing increasingly worried about the risk COVID-19 and other infectious diseases pose to the country's health and prosperity.

In 2014, as the Ebola virus spread across countries in West Africa, eventually leading to 11 cases in the US, 52% of Americans said they viewed disease outbreaks as a major threat. When Pew surveyed people in late March of this year, that number had jumped to 79%.

Concerns about diseases also crossed the political aisle: Democrats and Republicans were equally likely to say outbreaks pose a threat, both in Pew's most recent survey as well as in 2014 and 2016.

However, Americans with lower incomes were 9 percentage points more likely to express concerns about diseases, and those earning less than $50,000 per year were about 10 points more likely. Those differences in opinion come as the coronavirus pandemic is revealing stark divides in American society and who is impacted most by the virus.

Original author: Tyler Sonnemaker and Shayanne Gal

Arsonists have targeted a phone mast serving a newly-built coronavirus hospital in the UK, as the conspiracy theory linking 5G technology to the virus continues to spread.40 phone masts have so far been targeted by arsonists and vandals since the pandemic began.Communications workers have been harassed on the street with videos of the incidents shared on social media.The discredited theory has been boosted by prominent figures in the UK.However, scientists have thoroughly debunked the claims, with UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson's spokesperson on Tuesday describing the theory as "complete nonsense."Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Arsonists have targeted a mobile phone mast serving a newly-built hospital in the UK as conspiracy theorists pushing the false claim of a link between 5G technology and the coronavirus trigger a wave of attacks across the country.

Vodafone UK Chief Executive Nick Jeffery on Tuesday, April 14 revealed in a LinkedIn post that a phone mast serving Birmingham's Nightingale Hospital, created to treat COVID-19 patients, had been attacked.

Jeffery said that the arson attack might have damaged the mast to the extent that critically-ill patients in the hospital and their relatives might not be able to have call their loved ones.

He wrote: "It's heart-rending enough that families cannot be there at the bedside of loved ones who are critically ill.

"It's even more upsetting that even the small solace of a phone or video call may now be denied them because of the selfish actions of a few deluded conspiracy theorists."

He added: "Burning down masts means damaging important national infrastructure.

"In practice, this means families not being able to say a final goodbye to their loved ones; hard-working doctors, nurses, and police officers not being able to phone their kids, partners or parents for a comforting chat.

"Arsonists, please think about what you are doing and stop."

The Birmingham incident is the latest in a string of arson attacks on mobile phone masts across the UK amid the continued spread of a conspiracy theory linking 5G technology to the coronavirus pandemic.

More than 40 masts have so far been targeted by arsonists and vandals as of Wednesday morning, with 20 attacks taking place last weekend alone.

Attacks have taken place on phone masts in locations including  Liverpool, Belfast, Yorkshire and London.

A spokesperson for the UK prime minister on Tuesday described the 5G theory as "complete nonsense," adding that "we have been working with social media companies to ensure that these entirely bogus claims are not circulated."

Communications workers have also been targeted by 5G conspiracy theorists with videos of the incidents spreading rapidly across social media.

Scientists say there is no evidence that 5G is harmful to people. Fact-checkers have also debunked claims at the heart of the conspiracy theory, such as the claim that Wuhan, the Chinese city where the coronavirus outbreak began, is also where 5G was first rolled out.

Countries without any 5G coverage whatsoever have also been severely affected by the virus.

Despite this,  the theory has been given rapid exposure by prominent figures in the UK.

British TV presenter Eamonn Holmes this week prompted an investigation by media regulator Ofcom into comments he made casting doubt on claims that the conspiracy theory was false, after his on-screen colleague described it as "not true" and "incredibly stupid".

Speaking while presenting ITV's This Morning, he told Alice Beer: "I totally agree with everything you are saying but what I don't accept is mainstream media immediately slapping that down as not true when they don't know it's not true.

"No-one should attack or damage or do anything like that, but it's very easy to say it is not true because it suits the state narrative. That's all I would say, as someone with an inquiring mind."

He later made a statement claiming his comments had been "misinterpreted" and denying any link between the technology and the virus.

Original author: Adam Payne

Google's Verily division has been screening and testing participants for COVID-19, but lawmakers are concerned over how it is collecting and using people's data.The company has now responded to senators, in a letter seen by Business Insider. It says more than 7,000 people have been tested at its sites as of April 9. It also said data collected was not in compliance with HIPAA privacy rule.Verily says it has no intention of removing the Google sign-in, which is currently required for using its screening service.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Verily, the Alphabet life sciences division that launched its COVID-19 screening and testing program last month, is still under scrutiny from lawmakers over how it is collecting users' data, as well as its plans to expand its test sites outside of California.

At the end of March, five US senators wrote to Verily asking, among several other things, whether its screening website was compliant with the HIPAA Privacy Rule, and whether Verily intended to remove the requirement that all users who screen for COVID-19 have a Google account.

Verily has now addressed those questions in a letter sent to the same senators and obtained by Business Insider. In it, Verily assured the senators that any data collected wouldn't be used for commercial purposes or sold to third parties.

But it also confirmed that its screening site was not in compliance with the HIPAA privacy rule.

"Verily has focused on the protection of the security and privacy of personal health information since the inception of its Baseline COVID-19 Program," the company wrote. "With respect to its Baseline COVID-19 Program, Verily is not acting as a covered entity or a business associate as defined by HIPAA. As the Program expands, we will continue to prioritize the protection of individual health data. However, in the future if we engage in a program where we do become a covered entity or we are required to sign a BAA we will take all the appropriate steps to ensure compliance with HIPAA."

Verily did confirm that should it expand its COVID-19 testing sites beyond California, it would apply the protections of the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) in states where the laws are less stringent.

But the company also has no intention of removing the requirement of having a Google account in order to use its screening and testing services – something that lawmakers are concerned could create a hurdle to testing.

"Verily uses Google Account as a secure way to authenticate individuals for use of the Baseline COVID-19 Program," it wrote. "Given that Google Account provides best in class authentication and that quickly developing alternative methods of authentication runs the risk of being less secure for participants, currently Verily cannot make this a priority as we don't have the mechanism at hand to provide a different, equally secure method for authentication in the Baseline COVID-19 Program."

In response to a question about whether the mandatory Google sign-in had prevented participants from using Verily's service, the company said it was unable to quantify that data. 

Verily also provided some data on how many people had used the service. As of April 9, Verily says 68,406 people had completed the screener, 14,711 were eligible for testing, and 7,390 have completed testing, with 6,636 results.

As this number grows, so do concerns about what Google may do with the data after participants have screened and tested at their sites. Responding to a question about this, Verily pointed senators to the company's privacy policy on its website.

But it also added that it may contact individuals in the future to "ask if they would like to share data collected through Verily's COVID-19 Baseline Program for research purposes." If so, Verily says authorization for further holding onto that user's data would happen via a separate opt-in process.

This is an important point, as Verily had previously said that it would delete all information collected through the program "unless an individual separately authorizes further retention and use of their information" but failed to explain how this might work. 

Finally, Verily was asked to expand on the "multiple government agencies" it claimed to be working with. The company said it is working with the California governor's office as well as state and local agencies that include the California Department of Public Health, Health and Human Services, and the California Office of Emergency Services.

At the federal level, it said it is working with the US Department of Health and Human Services and with FEMA. Verily said it has "had communications" with the White House to update it with the status of its program.

The question now is whether this will satisfy concerned lawmakers. In a statement, Democratic Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey, who co-wrote the letter to Verily, told Business Insider:

"I'm glad we received a firm commitment from Verily that personal data collected during the COVID-19  pandemic won't be used for commercial purposes, or be sold to third parties. Yet, I remain concerned that the company cannot quantify the number of people who were denied the opportunity to participate in its pilot COVID-19 screening program in California simply because they didn't have a Google account.

"Most concerning, they seem to not have a plan to fix this.  If Verily is seriously considering expanding these sites to other states –or nationally—my hope is that they address this question and provide an alternate authentication method to ensure that anyone interested in accessing a testing site can use the program."

Menendez did not comment on whether the senators will follow up with further questions for Verily.

Original author: Hugh Langley

Google is reportedly working on a custom chip for its range of smartphones and tablets, which would give the company more control over building future phones and laptops.However, the company faces many other challenges if it wants to succeed in hardware. The division has faced an identity crisis for several years.Rick Osterloh currently oversees Google's hardware efforts, and took charge of the division in 2016.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

For the past four years, Google, a company that built its kingdom on search and data, has puffed out its chest and told the world it's now a serious hardware company.

But its efforts have often been clumsy and confusing.

Yet there are signs that the company isn't abating. According to a new report from Axios, Google's 2021 lineup of phones and laptops could be powered by silicon that the company builds itself.

The report claims Google has made "significant" progress in making its own processor that would power future Pixel smartphones and Chromebook laptops, replacing the Qualcomm silicon that runs inside them today.

That chip would also be optimized to power Google's machine-learning technology and improve the performance of Google Assistant, the company's voice AI. 

All told, it would give Google power to better tailor its future products, while placing the company on a more even playing field with Apple, which has long had a unified approach to software and hardware in its phones.

To date, Google's Pixel phones, which are rolled out annually, have showcased the company's most cutting-edge software features, but they've not proven to be huge sellers. The Pixel 4, the latest in the range, was also a surprising disappointment among reviewers. While CEO Sundar Pichai boasted about strong sales across other products in the company's last earnings call, he downplayed the success of the Pixel 4, suggesting it hasn't been a huge performer for the company. 

Will a custom chip launch the Pixel 5 or Pixel 6 into the big time? It will certainly help, but it also risks further confusing Google's relationship with the third-party companies it leans on to sell the majority of Android phones – companies that are both an ally  — and increasingly — a competitor.

Google is gradually unifying its overall hardware line of products, which includes phones, laptops, wearables, and smart home devices – but it's taken the company years to get its ducks in a row, and even now it's not clear that there is a cohesive strategy going forward.

"Made by Google as a tagline is something that has just come about in the last 18 months, whereas Google has been trying to sell hardware for a very long time," said Rohit Kulkarni, an Alphabet analyst at MKM Partners. 

Google's entire hardware line is currently overseen by Rick Osterloh, who commanded Google's first "Made by Google" product launch in October 2016 to kick off the company's hardware play. 

But Google is yet to generate the same level of buzz that Apple manages to create around its annual iPhone launches. "Think about what Apple does when it launches a new phone. We don't see the same amount of marketing muscle from Google," said Kulkarni.

"I also think from a regulatory standpoint they are to some degree handicapped, given Android's position in the marketplace," Kulkarni added, referring to Android's current stronghold of over 86% of the global smartphone market. That, he believes, could limit Google's ability to leverage Android's popularity for its own hardware, or otherwise attract attention from regulators.

Outside of the Pixel line, Google's to-ing-and-fro-ing on branding has also caused much confusion over the past few years. When the company structure was blown up to form Alphabet in 2015, Nest, the smart home company it acquired just a year before, was kept at arms length from Google's own smart home efforts.

But last year the division was finally rolled into Google, with some Nest products launched just months before getting a rebrand while still on the shelf.

Google has used its smart home products in particular to demonstrate the benefits of "ambient computing" that come from its AI software and services, but some analysts believe the company needs to evolve its software-first mindset if it wants to win at hardware.

"I think it's evolving through slow baby steps," said Kulkarni. "If and when they close the Fitbit acquisition I think that will be the third muscle hardware acquisition the company will have taken, [following Motorola and Nest]."

Google's wearable platform was too rebranded, in 2018, from Android Wear to WearOS, a way to better signify that the watches also worked with iPhones. But its wearable play has still failed to resonate among users, something it hopes will be fixed by its acquisition of Fitbit, though it faces increasing scrutiny from regulators over the deal. And even if the deal goes through, it faces another brand challenge: keep Fitbit and WearOS together, or keeps them as two separate and competing product lines?

Sources inside the company have described a particularly messy approach to Google's wearable strategy, with a lack of direction for several years. The company came close to launching its own Pixel Watch in 2016, but pulled the plug, and is yet to deliver a smartwatch of its own.

As of right now, employees at both Google and Fitbit tell Business Insider that little has changed since the announcement of the acquisition, and will likely remain that way until it is completed.

For Google's wearables, a better chip would actually be more valuable, as Qualcomm's sluggish iteration in smartwatch chips has kept Google's WearOS partners behind while Apple has whizzed ahead. If Google is working on a new chip for its phones and laptops, it would do well to build one for its wearables too.

Google has plenty of muscle in software and services, but when it comes to building the hardware around it, it needs to formulate a better long-term plan and stick with it.

"I think they're forcing themselves into creating a hardware muscle," said Kulkarni, "but it's TBD whether they can grow that, no matter what the company does."

Original author: Hugh Langley

Hi and welcome back to the Advertising & Media Insider newsletter, where we bring you the latest in BI Prime advertising and media coverage. I'm Lucia Moses, deputy editor for advertising and media.

The agency world braces for cuts

Emmanuel Dunand/AFP via Getty Images

This week, the economic devastation caused by the pandemic sped up with ad giants Omnicom and Dentsu announcing layoffs and other cost-cutting measures across their agency networks as advertisers slash spending. Meanwhile, layoffs and belt-tightening continued to wrack publishers from Condé Nast to Group Nine Media.

The scale of the changes is unclear, but analysts say this recovery will be longer and harder for the ad industry than the last economic downturn, in 2008. For perspective, Omnicom laid off at least 5% of its global workforce then.

Everyone has a take on how the post-pandemic world will look, and we're starting to see the seeds of one change in how ads are being pitched and made, as Patrick Coffee reported.

Tech platforms like Tongal, Communo, and Mofilm and networks like We Are Rosie that help freelancers get commercial work are booming as brands scramble to make new campaigns. If the shift lasts, it could speed up the undoing of traditional ad agencies.

But don't cheer for freelancers just yet, since that work has traditionally meant lower pay and less stability than permanent gigs.

Read further: Freelance job platforms are thriving in the pandemic, and their rise could further erode ad agencies

Digital media's reckoning

Mike Blake/Michael Kovac/Lara O’Reilly/INSIDER

Digital media, which was supposed to be entering a period of stabilization and profitability, is facing a reset. That has people asking which companies will be best positioned to survive.

Some of it's timing. Companies that recently raised money or are close to profitability are in a safer place, as are founders who have raised before and have a track record, media investors told me.

More vulnerable are those that haven't gotten funding in a while and were aiming to raise money this year. Those that are most reliant on advertising also face a harder road. 

Investors said beyond cutting to preserve cash until the economy comes back, there are some proactive things media operators can do, like testing new forms of paid content and super serving advertisers.

"Be as creative and test as many different ways, like deep content to monetize, as possible," Rachel Lam of Imagination Capital said. "Are there ways to sell to a smaller percentage of your audience? How much would they pay? Or would they pay microtransactions? Use this window to try things in a limited test. You might be surprised and see things that do work."

Read more: Digital media companies are facing a major ad downturn. Here's what VCs including Lerer Hippeau and Comcast Ventures say they should do to survive

Sports authority

Louisville offensive lineman Mekhi Becton speaks during a press conference at the NFL football scouting combine in Indianapolis, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2020. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy) Associated Press

No one wants to appear to be capitalizing on a crisis, but one obvious opportunity for some of those media companies is to pick up some of the millions of ad dollars that would normally have gone to live sports audiences. NFL ad revenue alone in the 2019 regular season totalled $4.5 billion, data from analytics firm iSpot.TV found. The problem for advertisers is replicating the size and composition of those live sports audiences elsewhere, as Lauren Johnson reported.

Go deeper: This year was supposed to be a banner year for sports TV. Now advertisers are scrambling to figure out where to put their money as live events get scrapped or postponed.
 
Here are other great reads from media and advertising:

So long for now. Stay safe, and as always, if you're new to this email, sign up for your own and share it with others by clicking here.

Original author: Lucia Moses

Lightspeed Venture Partners raised $4.2 billion across three funds to fund early and growth-stage startups, the VC firm announced Tuesday. The announcement comes at a time when the coronavirus outbreak has been wreaking havoc on the startup ecosystem, forcing furloughs, layoffs and business shutdowns. "In an environment like the one we're seeing now, the velocity at which investment decisions are getting made has slowed for sure. And we are trying to be really deliberate," in investing, Lightspeed partner Ravi Mhatre told Business Insider. Lightspeed is the third VC firm to announce it raised billions in April, after Index Ventures and Insight Partners. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Menlo Park VC giant Lightspeed Venture Partners has raised $4.2 billion distributed across three funds, even  amidst the coronavirus downturn, it announced Tuesday.

The billions break down into both early-stage and later-stage investments. Lightspeed's early-stage fund has a fresh $890 million, while $1.83 billion is assigned to a growth fund for companies ready to scale up, and another $1.5 billion is allocated to an opportunity fund for doubling down on "breakout" companies around the world. 

Lightspeed's announcement comes as the coronavirus pandemic has laid waste to the US startup ecosystem — startups are being forced to cut costs, furlough and lay off workers, and even shutter their businesses entirely. Meanwhile, VCs are telling startups to brace themselves and plan for the worst as a 10-year bull-run market comes to an end. 

Although Lightspeed's new funds signal that the VC firm is open for business, it is still adjusting its strategy to a slower-paced investment environment, according to Lightspeed partner Ravi Mhatre. 

"Our strategy is always to try to find these founders who have disruptive and transformational ideas and visions," Mhatre said. "In an environment like the one we're seeing now, the velocity at which investment decisions are getting made has slowed for sure. And we are trying to be really deliberate, to say if we are going to invest in a company, we really believe their commitment to building something that can be durable and can succeed [in the downturn]." 

As for Lightspeed's existing portfolio companies, Mhatre said that the VC firm is advising each one to examine its business model, and formulate strategies to adjust to a new environment. And in the event a startup needs to shift to a new model, Mhatre confirmed that Lightspeed had carved out the capital to be able to support it. 

"If companies need to shift from one operating model to a new one, there's capital required to help with that transition and we've absolutely planned out our funds to be able to support our companies," Mhatre added. 

The VC firm began talks to raise new funds with its limited partners back in January, before the coronavirus outbreak began to wreak havoc on the economy. But even as Lightspeed's talks with investors proceeded amid a sharp downturn, Mhatre says, investors were reassured by the VC firm's long-view strategy. 

"Our LPs generally have been with us a long time, over multiple fund cycles, and even as people were kind of having questions about what the current environment was, that didn't really materially affect the discussions we were having because I think they take a long view of the kinds of investments Lightspeed makes," Mhatre said. 

And Lightspeed's track record with investors has been particularly impressive: 19 of its 21 IPOs have happened in the past decade, including Snap. Forbes reported that Lightspeed has returned $1.5 billion to its limited partners on an annual basis, for the past three years.

Fundraising and deal flow are expected to dry up in the upcoming months, according to an April report from the Natural Venture Capital Association.  But Lightspeed's latest round adds to a growing pile of evidence that mega-funds may not be as vulnerable to the downturn as smaller fund managers. Index Ventures announced it raised $2 billion in funds and Insight Partners raised a whopping $9 billion in new funds. 

For the time being, Lightspeed appears optimistic about its strengthened ability to support startups and entrepreneurs amid the downturn.

"We think now is actually going to be a great time to double down on people who take the long view and who want to grow and build durable, independent businesses," Mhatre added. "Ultimately if we're taking a long view, this was a time when I think, you know, the vintage of companies that are born could ultimately be incredibly successful."

Original author: Bani Sapra

On Tuesday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom unveiled the state's tentative plan for modifying its stay-at-home order to contain the coronavirus disease.But a few things need to happen before state leaders can begin moving forward with the modifications, such as an increase in testing, contact tracing, and better protecting vulnerable residents, such as those who are homeless.Newsom did not say when these changes would occur, but even if these modifications are made, life would still look very different.Newsom said restaurants could open but with fewer tables and disposable menus, and schools could open but with staggered student cohorts in the morning and afternoon, for example.The state's plans come a day after California announced its partnership with Oregon and Washington to develop a regional plan for loosening up on stay-at-home order restrictions and to restart the state's economies.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

In a Tuesday news briefing, California Gov. Gavin Newsom outlined the state's plan for eventually loosening stay-at-home order restrictions.

The governor acknowledged that residents are eager to know when life could return to normal as the statewide stay-at-home order reaches its fourth week but Newsom said multiple factors would need to be considered before modifications could be made to the order's restrictions.

"There's no light switch here," Newsom said in a Tuesday news briefing. "It's more like a dimmer."

He said it will be more of a matter of "toggling" between loosening restrictions and tightening them again as the state explores how best to exit the stay-at-home order. Residents would need to continue to comply with the stay-at-home order, and hospitalization and ICU numbers would need to not only flatten but decline.

The governor did not attach a timeline to it, but he did say this was an "optimistic" plan for California. Newsom invited reporters to "ask me the question again," in two weeks to see how the state was doing relative to meeting the minimum requirements to consider loosening the restrictions.

"This can't be a permanent state, and I want you to know that it's not," Newsom said.

Here's what would need to happen before state leaders and public health officials could begin modifying the stay-at-home order that went into effect on March 19.

Original author: Katie Canales

With millions of Americans staying home because of the coronavirus pandemic — many with children who are out of school — the Nintendo Switch is sold out practically everywhere.Retailers across the board are sold out, including Amazon, Walmart, GameStop, Target, and Best Buy. Nintendo confirmed the supply issue in an email to Business Insider.Worse still: Retailers like Amazon allows third-party resellers to jack up the price and overcharge people by hundreds of dollars. You can buy a Switch on Amazon right now starting at $550. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

I was working on a news story on Monday when my phone buzzed, as phones do.

"Hey, question for you," my sister-in-law texted. "Do you know why I can't find a Nintendo Switch to buy that isn't price jacked to over $500?"

I did, in fact, know. I even wrote a piece about it a few weeks ago. Nintendo has been unable to keep up with demand for the Switch, and the console is sold out everywhere.

"All the ones that are $299 are all out of stock," she continued. "I've tried Amazon, Best Buy, Target, Walmart, GameStop — all online stores."

She was experiencing the same thing that people all over America, stuck at home during the coronavirus pandemic, are experiencing: It's nearly impossible to buy a Nintendo Switch right now without paying nearly double the $300 asking price. It's similarly difficult to find the handheld-only Nintendo Switch Lite.

Nintendo confirmed as much a few weeks back, and things haven't improved since then. Company representatives sent over the same statement they did previously: "Nintendo Switch hardware is selling out at various retail locations in the US, but more systems are on the way. We apologize for any inconvenience." Weeks later and the situation hasn't changed.

Worse: Resellers on Amazon and eBay are listing the normally $300 console "jacked to over $500," as my sister-in-law put it. On Amazon, the least expensive Nintendo Switch I could find was $549.98.

Amazon

Nintendo's Switch console is sold out for all the reasons you can probably guess: It was already a popular console, and everyone's currently stuck inside. 

Nintendo also had tremendously fortuitous timing with the recent launch of "Animal Crossing: New Horizons" — a game that was already poised to be a hit, but has absolutely exploded with a dedicated audience of people stuck at home looking for a digital escape.

"It's huge. It's a system seller," Niko Partners senior analyst Daniel Ahmad said in a phone interview on Tuesday.

He also pointed to the ongoing pandemic — "in-home gaming is surging, because what else do you do?" — and the fact that Nintendo admitted to Switch supply issues, which "led to people rushing out to buy one." 

But problems began earlier, in February. "In February, there were no consoles produced," Ahmad said, due to the impact of coronavirus on China's manufacturing sector. 90% of Nintendo's Switch consoles made for the United States are made in China, he said. 

Though production has largely resumed, Nintendo is still playing catch up from the time it wasn't producing the console — thus, there are no consoles available to buy at the moment. "Because of this initial impact in February, and the fact that sourcing every single part is going to be more difficult now, that is leading to some of the supply issues you're seeing. And of course the increase in demand is beyond I think what even Nintendo expected."

The Nintendo Switch was a hit at launch, back in March 2017, and has remained popular since. AP/Koji Sasahara

Wedbush managing director Michael Pachter put it succinctly: "It's kind of the same story with toilet paper: we're not pooping more, but we're doing more of it at home instead of in restaurants and offices, so demand for in-home consumption rose before the supply chain was equipped to fulfill it."

According to Pachter, Nintendo planned to produce "20 million or so" Switch consoles in 2020. But with the coronavirus suddenly pushing millions of Americans indoors, demand for the console unexpectedly leapt.

"If [Nintendo] are making 20 million, that's around 1.7 million a month," Pachter said, "and they probably saw demand spike to 2.5 million in March and continue in April." With such a huge increase in demand relative to Nintendo's production rate, the console is simply sold out everywhere.

"It doesn't take a ton of incremental demand to throw Nintendo off of its production plan," Pachter said.

As for when things will return to normal, and the Nintendo Switch will become readily available again at its standard retail price? It may be a few weeks, if not longer.

The Nintendo Switch is both a home game console and a handheld game console. Nintendo

Both Pachter and Ahmad said Nintendo is unlikely to ramp up production of the Switch in response to the current supply issues, and we're unlikely to see a replenished supply earlier than late May or June at the earliest.

The cost for Nintendo to add extra production to meet unexpected, unpredictable demand simply isn't worth it, according to Pachter. "The problem is that a production 'line' probably makes 3 million [units] a year, so if they add another line, they're committing to that many new units," he said. "I doubt they will increase capacity due to the pandemic."

Moreover, Ahmad pointed to the ever-important holiday season as Nintendo's annual bread and butter — a critical sales season that Nintendo is likely to focus on over the temporary spike in interest.

"We have to remember that, even though demand is very strong right now, the majority of Nintendo's sales are always in the fourth quarter of the year," he said. "Even though right now it's hard to find these products, they're still selling extremely well and they're selling more than they did last year."

Original author: Ben Gilbert

Verizon's Get More Unlimited plan is our pick for the overall best unlimited smartphone data plans, because it offers the strongest balance of coverage, unrestricted data, and perks.AT&T and T-Mobile's unlimited plans are also quality, and offer different perks that might be a better fit for you. For example, T-Mobile has the best international perks, and AT&T offers an incredible amount of unrestricted data.Regardless, the ultimate, all-important factor when deciding the best unlimited plan is coverage. 

When deciding which unlimited phone plan is the best, there is one undeniable and objective factor that must be considered, even beyond how much unrestricted data you get in the plan.

That factor is coverage.

Quite simply, coverage is the most important thing in a mobile phone network. It doesn't matter how much unlimited data you have if you can't use it where you live, where you work, or where you're going. And, if we're talking about unlimited data plans, we're specifically looking for 4G LTE coverage — the most widely available mobile network with speeds suited for data-heavy things like streaming videos and music, shopping online, or browsing the web and social media.

With that in mind, I can already spoil the secret: Verizon's Get More unlimited data plan is the best overall, as Verizon has the most coverage compared to its competitors.

That doesn't necessarily mean you should gravitate straight towards Verizon. Its plans tend to be more expensive than its competitors, and it might not offer as much as the others, depending on the plan. For example, Verizon has lower data caps before it slows down your data's speeds than some of its competitors, and another carrier has better international perks.

Original author: Antonio Villas-Boas

The market downturn and increased uncertainty surrounding the impact of the coronavirus pandemic has seen startup investors pull term sheets, slash valuations, and pull out of deals.Many startups are laying off staff and risk closure — but some will thrive in challenging circumstances. Major tech companies like Uber, Spotify, Airbnb, and Square were all founded between 2006 and 2009 during the last financial crisis proving that great businesses can still come from a downturn. We asked investors with experience investing in downturns what to look for in a downturn and where they see opportunity. Click here for more BI Prime stories.

Increased uncertainty surrounding the impact of the coronavirus pandemic has seen startup investors pull term sheets, slash valuations, and pull out of deals.

Many startups will be forced into mass layoffs or could close altogether, but others will thrive in challenging circumstances. 

Uber, Airbnb, and Square were founded during the last financial crisis, suggesting that strong startups can still weather a downturn.

We asked investors what to look for in a downturn and where they see opportunity. 

"Each downturn is peculiar," Paul Asel, partner at NGP Capital told Business Insider in an interview. "History doesn't repeat itself, but it rhymes. There are consistent reasons why we see the best companies coming out of a downturn because there's less competition, less capital available, and more time to innovate."

Asel cites the formation of Cisco, founded in 1984, and its development despite the 1987 market crash and the events of Black Monday, and the success of Google amid the dotcom bust in the late 1990s and early 2000s as good examples of companies coming through adversity. 

Paul Asel, managing partner at NGP Capital NGP Capital

The decisions that companies take now to ensure that they survive the crisis will make the difference come the end, according to Michiel Kotting, a partner at Northzone. During the dotcom bust he was the founder of AI company Digital Jones which was later sold to Shopping.com. "In 2001, we had to layoff two thirds of our staff but it helped us focus and we went from $9 million in revenue to $100 million in revenue and a sale in the next three years," Kotting said. "Survival is the most important thing because you want to come out of the gate flying when this is over."

The 'batshit crazy' founders survive the tough times

In a downturn, personality and resilience count.

"When the tide rolls out, all that's left are the batshit crazy people that want to start a company under any circumstances, and those are the people you want to invest in," said Rob Hayes, a venture capitalist at First Round Capital who invested $510,000 in Uber's seed financing round, in an interview with the Wall Street Journal.

"You want entrepreneurs responding to the challenge," Kotting added. "Being creative, working hard, and taking quick decisions are key traits for founders who are grabbing the bull by the horns."

There were, of course, unique circumstances that helped the likes of consumer services like Uber, Airbnb, and Spotify. 

Investors cited the explosion in the app economy and the rise of online marketplaces as key to the success of companies founded during the last downturn.

The current batch will need to be equally adept at identifying equivalent trends.

Less capital may be good for resetting the ecosystem

The market that emerges from the pandemic will look different to the one that came before. There will likely be a curtailment to the mega-rounds that have become more common.

"It's been harder for VCs to invest when there are so many tech giants casting long shadows," Asel said. "Most of our top investments came from the 2007-09 period and the same could be true here where the pricing environment is much healthier. If less capital is needed to succeed it's good for both entrepreneurs and investors."

Seedcamp

Sectors that hold promise include educational tech and healthtech, both sectors venture capitalists have been talking up in recent years.

Startups in these sectors are seeing a spike in usage and demand — but were already rising in popularity, according to Reshma Sohoni, founding partner at early-stage London fund Seedcamp, an investor in TransferWise and Revolut. 

"We are still looking for long-term indicators of growth and genuine product market fit," Sohoni told Business Insider in an interview. "We don't want companies that are only successful now which have 'pandemic fit.'"

Historically, there has been a 25% to 30% drop in the number of early-stage deals after an economic downtown, and median valuations decrease 10% to 20% per year for several years post-crisis, according to Daniel Li, a VC at Madrona Venture Group, in a Medium blog post. 

Valuations are already being slashed in startup land. Investors have sought to regroup to better understand the market they find themselves in, even reneging on terms or pulling term sheets for some startups.  

"The bar goes up and there will a shakeup between better-performing companies and those that struggle," said Northzone's Kotting. 

Original author: Callum Burroughs

Former acting Navy secretary Thomas Modly was angered by the videos of sailors cheering for their recently-fired commander, according to The New York Times.Modly then took a jet to fly to Guam to address the ship's crew — a trip that reportedly cost over $243,000.Modly was not the only Navy official vexed by the circumstances: Adm. Robert Burke, the vice chief of naval operations, reportedly told the ship's senior medical officer that they failed as a leader, two crew members told The Times.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Former acting Navy secretary Thomas Modly was angered by the videos of sailors aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt cheering for their recently-fired commander, according to a New York Times report published Sunday.

Modly, who on April 2 fired the aircraft carrier's commander, Capt. Brett Crozier, was angry after several videos showed dozens of crew members gathering to send off Crozier with applause and cheers, Navy officials told The Times. Videos of the incident trended online and have since garnered support for the departed commander, who was removed after his letter pleading Navy leaders for help with a coronavirus outbreak leaked to the press.

Modly then took a jet to fly to Guam to address the ship's crew — a trip that reportedly cost over $243,000. Using the ship's announcement system, Modly defended his decision to fire Crozier in a 15-minute profanity-laced speech and expressed continued support for the crew. Audio of the all-hands call were eventually leaked to news organizations.

"That's your duty. Not to complain. Everyone's scared about this thing," Modly said in the call. "But I'll tell you something, if this ship was in combat and there were hypersonic missiles coming at it, you'd be pretty f---ing scared too. But you do your jobs. And that's what I expect you to do."

Modly was not the only Navy official vexed by the circumstances. Adm. Robert Burke, the vice chief of naval operations, reportedly told the ship's senior medical officer that they failed as a leader, two crew members told The Times.

Capt. Brett Crozier, commanding officer of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, addresses the crew during an all-hands call on the ship’s flight deck, November 14, 2019. US Navy/MCS 3rd Class Nicholas Huynh

Modly fired Crozier after the captain warned about the coronavirus outbreak aboard his ship. The warning, which came in the form of a four-page letter, was sent by email to over 20 people; and eventually leaked to the San Francisco Chronicle.

According to Modly, Crozier violated military protocols, circumventing the chain of command by sending the letter to a group of people. Modly said that while he did not know how the letter got to the media, there was a "proper way" for Crozier to handle his concerns.

"If he didn't think ... that if he didn't think that information wasn't going to get out into the public, in this information age that we live in, then he was either A: too naive, or too stupid to be a commanding officer of a ship like this," Modly said of Crozier. "The alternative is that he did this on purpose."

Modly's comments immediately sparked intense backlash from lawmakers and the ship's sailors. Modly later walked backed his comments and apologized. He resigned on April 7.

In his final message to the entire Navy, Modly admitted his comments were "a poor use of words."

"You are justified in being angry with me about that," Modly said in the message, according to the Navy Times. "There is no excuse, but perhaps a glimpse of understanding, and hopefully empathy."

"But what's done is done," he added. "I can't take it back, and frankly I don't know if I walked back up that quarterdeck today if I wouldn't have the same level of emotions that drove my delivery yesterday."

Crozier has since been in quarantine after testing positive for the coronavirus. Over 580 of the USS Theodore Roosevelt's crew of 4,800 tested positive as of Sunday, according to the Navy. Nearly 4,000 of the crew members have since evacuated the ship into Guam, where many of them are under quarantine in hotels.

Original author: David Choi

Netflix announced on Friday that Jerry Seinfeld's next comedy special, "23 Hours to Kill," will debut globally on the platform on May 5.It's part of a huge deal that Seinfeld struck with the streaming giant in 2017 that's worth an estimated $100 million, according to The Hollywood Reporter.Seinfeld isn't the only comedian that Netflix has paid huge amount of money to. They include Ellen DeGeneres, Dave Chappelle, and more.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Netflix has established itself as the premier home for stand-up comedy over the past few years, and it has accomplished this by shelling out millions to some of the top names in the industry.

The streamer announced on Friday that Jerry Seinfeld's new comedy special, "23 Hours to Kill," will debut on the platform on May 5. It's part of a huge deal Seinfeld struck with Netflix in 2017 that's worth an estimated $100 million, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The deal includes the rights to Seinfeld's series "Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee" and two Netflix specials. The first special, "Jerry Before Seinfeld," debuted in 2017.

Seinfeld isn't the only comedian that Netflix has paid huge amounts of money to.

Ellen DeGeneres made $20 million to $25 million from her Netflix comedy special "Relatable," which debuted last December, Variety reported in December.

Seinfeld and DeGeneres follow stand-ups like Amy Schumer, Dave Chappelle, and Chris Rock in netting multimillion-dollar deals from the streaming service.

It should be noted that Netflix has also drawn criticism for under-paying some comics. Comedian Mo'Nique came into a pay dispute with the company in 2017 when they reportedly offered her $500,000 for a special. She sued Netflix last month alleging race and sex discrimination regarding the special.

John Lynch contributed to a previous version of this post.

Here are the six comedians Netflix has paid huge amounts of money:

Original author: Travis Clark

Every week, Parrot Analytics provides Business Insider with a list of the nine most in-demand original TV shows on streaming services in the US.This week's list includes Netflix's "Tiger King" and "Money Heist."Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Netflix's hit true-crime docuseries "Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madness" continues to enthrall audiences, as does its Spanish language crime drama "Money Heist," which debuted its fourth season on April 3.

Every week, Parrot Analytics provides Business Insider with a list of the nine most in-demand TV shows on streaming services in the US.

The data is based on "demand expressions," Parrot Analytics' globally standardized TV-demand measurement unit. Audience demand reflects the desire, engagement, and viewership weighted by importance, so a stream or a download is a higher expression of demand than a "like" or a comment on social media, for instance.

Below are this week's nine most popular original shows on Netflix and other streaming services:

Original author: Travis Clark