VW has refreshed its Atlas SUV for 2021.The seven-passenger, three-row SUV has been a big hit for VW in the US.The refreshed Atlas has an upgraded exterior design and a wide range of interior options.There are two engines available: a 2.0-liter, turbocharged, four-cylinder, making 235 horsepower; or a 3.6-liter V6, making 276 horsepower.The base price is unchanged for the 2021 model year, at $31,545.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The Volkswagen Atlas filled a big, big hole in the German automaker's lineup when it debuted for the 2018 model year. Finally, VW had a large SUV that could haul seven people.

Consumers in the US rewarded the company by purchasing over 81,500 of the vehicle last year.

We were quite impressed with the Atlas when it first went on sale, naming it a Business Insider Car of the Year runner-up form 2017. In our review, we wrote that "embracing Americana is the smartest thing Volkswagen has done in a long time," adding that "[w]hile it hasn't completely shed its German heritage, the company finally delivered an off-roader with the power, space, and practicality which caters specifically to the largest and most lucrative SUV market in the world."

On Tuesday, VW announced the refreshed Atlas. The base price hasn't changed — $31,545. But in a statement, VW touted a "bolder design as well as interior upgrades, advanced connectivity, new available driver-assistance features, and broadened powertrain availability."

Original author: Matthew DeBord

Toast, a $5 billion Boston-based startup that makes software for restaurants, cut 50% of its workforce through layoffs and furloughs on Tuesday, a blog post from CEO Chris Comparato announced."We froze hiring, pulled back offers, and halted merit increases. As a leadership team, we will reduce our pay across the board," the post said. "But with limited visibility into how quickly the industry may recover, and facing slower than anticipated growth, we now find ourselves in the unenviable position of reducing our headcount." The startup had just come off a year of 109% revenue growth, and raised $400 million in a Series F funding round in February — but its balance sheets still weren't padded enough to withstand the blow dealt by the coronavirus outbreak. The layoffs illustrate the ripple effects of the coronavirus outbreak, as restaurant sales plunged by 80% in most cities last month, in turn forcing the restaurant software startup to scramble. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Toast, a $5 billion Boston-based startup that makes software for restaurants, just cut nearly 1,000 employees from its work force through a combination of layoffs and furloughs on Tuesday. 

"This morning at Toast we shared the agonizing decision to reduce the size of our company by roughly 50 percent through layoffs and furloughs as a result of the COVID-19 health crisis," a blog post from CEO Chris Comparato announced. The company had well over 2,000 employees earlier, per Pitchbook. 

Although Toast's main source of customers was a restaurant industry hit hard by the coronavirus outbreak, the news still caught some investors off guard. Toast had just raised $400 million in a Series F funding round in February from a series of investors including Bessemer Venture Partners and TPG, so investors assumed its balance sheets were padded enough. 

Investors like Mitchell Green of Lead Edge Capital had even cited Toast's February funding round as a stroke of luck for the company. "Nobody knows how deep this will be, nobody knows how long this will be...If Toast had not raised that round in February, it'd be in big trouble," Green told Business Insider last week. 

(An email from Green to Business Insider on Tuesday said that the outbreak had gotten to the point that most companies would soon be forced to lay off workers). 

Some employees laid off from the company on Tuesday had only been there for a matter of months, according to their posts on LinkedIn — the unfortunate result of a hiring spree taken after Toast grew revenue by 109% in 2019, in anticipation of even more growth in 2020.

But as the coronavirus outbreak hit the country and caused restaurant sales to plunge by over 70% in most cities last month, it forced the restaurant software startup to scramble. 

Over the past month, Toast began by rolling out a series of measures to help support its target customers hit by the coronavirus outbreak — blog posts with financial advice and resources for affected restaurant workers, a month's credit of software fees for Toast customers and an initiative to support all local restaurants by ordering takeout or buying gift cards.  

Toast also begun pulling back on its own costs, by freezing hiring, pulling back on new offers, and halting merit-based raises, Comparato's blog post said. 

But ultimately, continued uncertainty over how long the coronavirus outbreak would last and how long restaurants would be shut, forced it to cut jobs. 

"But with limited visibility into how quickly the industry may recover, and facing slower than anticipated growth, we now find ourselves in the unenviable position of reducing our headcount," Comparato said. 

The company said it was offering a severance package, benefits coverage and mental health support, and an extended window for employees to buy vested stock options. It also said it was developing programs to help laid-off employees search for new roles, but did not share further details on what that would look like. 

Original author: Bani Sapra

To check which version of Firefox you have on your computer, simply open the browser and open the menu in the top-right.If you have an update available for Firefox, you can also update it directly from this menu.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Cutting-edge websites will sometimes require an up-to-date version of Firefox to function at their best — or even at all. 

Other times, you may have a slower computer that demands an older version of Firefox in order to perform optimally.

Whatever the reason, and whatever Firefox version, here's how to check which version of the Mozilla web browser you're using. 

Check out the products mentioned in this article:

Apple Macbook Pro (From $1299.00 at Apple)

Lenovo IdeaPad 130 (From $469.99 at Walmart)

How to check which version of Firefox you have

1. Open Firefox on your Mac or PC.

2. With Firefox open, click the top dropdown menu and select "Firefox," located to the right of "File." 

Original author: Emma Witman

Keeping the apps on your iPhone up to date is important not only for security reasons, but to ensure you have all the latest features. 

While you can always set your apps to update automatically so you don't have to keep an eye on them, if you prefer to install updates manually, doing so is pretty straightforward. 

However, the way you manually update apps differs slightly in iOS 13 compared to previous versions. In iOS 13, you'll need to go through a few extra steps to find the update page. 

But once you know where to look, a few taps will make sure you're on track with the latest release available. 

Here's how to update your apps manually on an iPhone running iOS 13.

Check out the products mentioned in this article:

iPhone 11 (From $699.99 at Apple)

How to update apps on iOS 13 manually

1. From your iPhone's home screen, tap the App Store icon to open it. In the top-right corner of the screen, tap your profile icon.

Your Apple ID icon will be in the top-right corner. William Antonelli/Business Insider

2. Scroll down until you see a list of apps. The ones that say "Update" next to them can be updated, while the ones that say "Open" have already been updated. 

3. Tap the "Update" icon next to each app you wish to update, and the download/installation process will begin.

How to update apps on iOS 13 automatically

If you want to turn automatic updates on your iOS 13 device on or off, you can do so via the Settings app.

1. Open the Settings app on your device and tap the banner with your name and profile picture at the top.

2. Select the "iTunes & App Store" option.

Open your "iTunes & App Store" settings. William Antonelli/Business Insider

3. Under "Automatic Downloads," toggle the "App Updates" option on or off according to your preference. 

Make sure that the "App Updates" toggle is turned on. William Antonelli/Business Insider

 

Original author: Jennifer Still

Google's bundle of productivity tools for businesses and schools, G Suite, now has 6 million paying customers, up from the 5 million it had in February 2019.The new numbers come as much of the world is working from home and schools turn to online learning, to try and mitigate the spread of coronavirus. Google's Hangouts Meet video meeting tool, part of G Suite, now has 25 times more daily usage than it did in January, according to CNBC.However, Google faces intense competition from Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Cisco WebEx, especially as an increase in remote work creates more demand for these tools.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Google's bundle of productivity tools for businesses and schools, G Suite, now has 6 million paying customers, according to a report from CNBC, which Google confirmed to Business Insider. That represents an increase from the 5 million customers G Suite had in February 2019.

A customer, in this usage, generally means a company or other organization that's using the premium version of G Suite, rather than the free version of tools like Gmail and Google Docs available for consumers. 

Additionally, Google's Hangouts Meet videoconferencing tool, which is part of G Suite alongside enterprise versions of Gmail and Google Docs, has 25 times more daily usage now than it did in January, though it didn't go into specific figures. Hangouts Meet complements Hangouts, the standard chat app that's also available to consumers.

These new numbers come as much of the world is working from home and schools turn to online learning, to try and mitigate the spread of coronavirus. 

Due to the increased need for video conferencing tools amid the coronavirus crisis, Google is made the premium paid features in its Hangouts Meet video-conferencing features free until September 30, extended from the previous end date of July 1.

It's competitors like Zoom and Microsoft Teams have made similar offers to help those in need of communication tools. The increase in remote work has also ramped up usage for those competitors. Zoom said it had 200 million daily active users at the end of March, counting free and paid users. Meanwhile, Microsoft Teams disclosed that it had 44 million daily active users in mid-March. 

On the whole, G Suite faces intense competition from Microsoft's Office 365 suite of cloud based productivity tools, which dominates the market. Google hired former Microsoft executive Javier Soltero to run G Suite last October, as it sought to ramp up its enterprise business. 

As Zoom faces numerous questions about the privacy and security of its product, Google is pitching Hangouts Meet as a secure alternative. When New York City schools decided to stop using Zoom for online learning, Google made Hangouts Meet and Google Classroom available for 1.3 million students, according to CNBC. 

Got a tip? Contact this reporter via email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or Signal at 925-364-4258. (PR pitches by email only, please.) You can also contact Business Insider securely via SecureDrop.

Get the latest Google stock price here.

Original author: Paayal Zaveri

The majority of San Francisco's public transit lines are being shut down amid the coronavirus pandemic.Out of Muni's 68 bus lines, only 17 will be kept open for essential workers.The change is due to over 40% of bus operators being expected to not come to work in the coming week and to instead stay at home as much of the city is already doing.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Much of San Francisco's public transit system is being shut down as the city gears up for an expected surge in cases of the coronavirus disease, known as COVID-19. 

Of the 68 bus routes that are part of the city's Muni system, only 17 will be kept open. The decision to shutter 51 public transportation lines is necessary as more than 40% of bus operators will stop coming into work to instead stay at home to help in curbing the spread of the virus, according to a post on the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency website. Many of the operators have underlying conditions and are considered high-risk of contracting the virus.

The 17 bus routes will focus on continuing to serve essential workers, such as healthcare workers and grocery workers, who cannot stay at home during the shelter-in-place order as others can. 

"As a lifelong advocate of transit and director of the SFMTA, I never thought I'd say this, but please, if you have any other option getting around, please do not ride Muni," the agency's transportation director Jeffrey Tumlin said in a Monday news conference. The changes will go into full effect on Wednesday.

Public transit has remained open during the shelter-in-place order for those providing essential services. But since the coronavirus and its impact reached San Francisco in late February and early March, ridership on Muni as well as other transit systems, such as BART, have plummeted as workers have migrated to working remotely in their homes. 

Muni has reported an estimated weekly loss of $1 million since residents have been directed to stay in their homes to inhibit the spread of the coronavirus disease, known as COVID-19. On March 26, Muni announced it was shuttering its train and light rail lines and replacing them with buses. 

BART, the Bay Area's largest transit operator, has seen ridership drop and is losing an estimated $57 million a month in sales taxes, fares, advertising revenue, and parking fees.

The SFMTA has taken other precautions amid the outbreak, like replacing the city's beloved cable cars with buses to provide operators with a closed cab. The open-air vehicles didn't have any such partition protecting operators from riders. Operators can also use their discretion and skip bus stops if they deem their vehicles too full of passengers to allow social distancing.

Public transit ridership across the country has dropped, as The New York Times reports. Some transit stations in Washington D.C., Maryland, and Virginia have shuttered due to staff shortages, according to WTOP. Transit service in Boston has also been limited in response to the spread of the virus.

Original author: Katie Canales

Jack Dorsey cofounded Twitter in 2006 and the company has made him a billionaire.He is famous for his unusual life of luxury, including a daily fasting routine, regular ice baths, and a penchant for dating models.Dorsey holds two CEO jobs at Twitter and Square, and activist investors Elliott Management have threatened to oust him from Twitter.The CEO announced that he was putting an estimated 28% of his total wealth, or $1 billion, into relief efforts for the global coronavirus pandemic.Visit Business Insider's home page for more stories.

From fighting armies of bots to quashing rumours about posting his beard hair to rapper Azealia Banks, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey leads an unusual life of luxury.

Dorsey has had a turbulent career in Silicon Valley. After cofounding Twitter in 2006, he was booted as the company's CEO two years later, but returned in 2015 having set up his second company, Square.

Since then, he has led the company through the techlash that has engulfed social media companies, at one point testifying before Congress alongside Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg.

His latest threat comes from Elliott Management, an activist investor seeking Dorsey's removal from Twitter, per Bloomberg reporting. The firm holds substantial stock in Twitter and four board seats.

Dorsey has elsewhere provoked his fair share of controversy and criticism, extolling fasting and ice baths as part of his daily routine. His existence is not entirely spartan, however. Like some other billionaires, he owns a stunning house, dates models, and drives fast cars.

Although he recently announced he would be using his wealth for more philanthropic efforts. The CEO posted his intentions on Twitter to put $1 billion of his own equity in Square into a new charity fund that would help fight the global coronavirus pandemic. The financial backing, Dorsey estimated, amounts to roughly 28% of his total wealth.

Scroll on to read more about the fabulous life of Jack Dorsey.

Rebecca Borison and Madeline Stone contributed reporting to an earlier version of this story.

Original author: Isobel Asher Hamilton and Katie Canales

Google is making the premium paid features in its Hangouts Meet video-conferencing features free until September 30, extended from the previous date of July 1, to help businesses and schools keep operating remotely as they're impacted by the coronavirus.Those features include being able to have up to 250 participants per call, live streaming for up to 100,000 viewers within a domain, and the ability to record meetings and save them to Google Drive. "As more employees, educators, and students work remotely in response to the spread of COVID-19, we want to do our part to help them stay connected and productive." Google wrote in a blog post.Zoom, a leading competitor to Google's chat tools, lifted time limits on its free product for users in China and made its product free for schools. Analysts say that cloud software tools that help people stay connected could actually benefit from increased usage due to the coronavirus, as more people work remotely.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Google is giving everybody free access to its advanced Hangouts Meet video-conferencing features for free until September 30, to help businesses and schools that have been impacted by the coronavirus disease, COVID-19. 

At the beginning of March, Google said it would make its premium Hangouts Meet features free until July 1. On Tuesday, that was extended to September 30. G Suite also now has over 6 million paying businesses as of March, up from 5 million in February 2019, the company told CNBC on Tuesday.

In a blog post, the company said "as more employees, educators, and students work remotely in response to the spread of COVID-19, we want to do our part to help them stay connected and productive." 

Hangouts is part of Google's G Suite set of productivity tools, alongside Google Docs and Sheets. It also has an education focused version of its product and an enterprise version for large businesses called Hangouts Meet, in an paid enterprise version of G Suite. It's that premium version that will be made free until the end of September.

Those features include being able to have up to 250 participants per call, live streaming for up to 100,000 viewers within a domain, and the ability to record meetings and save them to Google Drive. 

This comes well after Zoom, a competitor to Google's Hangouts Meet tool, lifted time limits on its free product for users in China and made the product free for schools. 

As the coronavirus pandemic continues, many schools and offices have been closed. Tools like Google Hangouts, Zoom, and Cisco's WebEx are being used to allow classes to continue remotely for students of all ages and grade levels. Zoom, for its part, has seen a tremendous spike in usage, even as it faces scrutiny over its security and privacy practices, going from 10 million daily active users in December to 200 million by the end of March.

"We're committed to supporting our users and customers during this challenging time, and are continuing to scale our infrastructure to support greater Hangouts Meet demand, ensuring streamlined, reliable access to the service throughout this period," Google said in a blog post in March.

Got a tip? Contact this reporter via email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or Signal at 925-364-4258. (PR pitches by email only, please.) You can also contact Business Insider securely via SecureDrop.

Original author: Paayal Zaveri

Uber drivers have told Business Insider the company's restrictive and inconsistent coronavirus sick pay policy is forcing them to choose between their health and their bank accounts.Public health officials have instructed older Americans, those with serious underlying health conditions, and people experiencing common coronavirus symptoms to stay home to avoid catching or spreading the disease.But Uber has refused to pay drivers facing those circumstances, even as it deactivates their accounts in an apparent acknowledgement of the risk they may pose to passengers.By denying sick pay to those most at risk of spreading or developing serious infections from COVID-19, drivers say Uber is discouraging them from following public health guidelines even if they're sick.An Uber spokeswoman told Business Insider the company made mistakes in rolling out the policy and that it's working to improve the policy and process for receiving compensation."We have paid more than $3 million in financial support to drivers and delivery people in the US," the spokeswomen said.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Uber's restrictive coronavirus sick pay policy is putting many drivers in a bind: tell the company that they're at higher risk of catching or spreading the virus and lose their main source of income — or continue driving and potentially put others at risk.

In early March, Uber announced a financial assistance program, effectively a sick pay policy, that promised up to 14 days of compensation to drivers diagnosed with COVID-19 or told by a public health agency to self-quarantine.

After the initial policy was criticized for making it nearly impossible for drivers to meet the requirements given the limited availability of tests, Uber started using additional language on its website and in communications with drivers to clarify that those who had a doctor's note telling them to self-isolate due to their "risk of spreading COVID-19" or who had their accounts restricted after Uber received information from a public health agency that they had "been exposed to someone diagnosed with COVID-19" were also eligible.

Last week, Business Insider reported that several drivers' claims were denied even though they met those eligibility criteria. While Uber ultimately paid the drivers after learning about their situations from our reporting, more than 60 additional drivers have since contacted Business Insider to say their claims have also been denied.

At-risk individuals need not apply

A few of the drivers who reached out do appear to meet one of Uber's criteria, including Daniel H., a driver in Los Angeles who tested positive for COVID-19 but couldn't get paid because his test result documentation came from the test provider instead of a doctor or public health agency.

An Uber spokeswoman told Business Insider that the company is re-visiting cases where it deemed drivers ineligible and will reverse those it incorrectly denied.

But the vast majority of drivers don't appear to qualify. Uber's policy only covers those who are told by a doctor to self-isolate because they're at a higher risk of "spreading" the disease, but not a higher risk of "catching" it. That nuanced distinction has been a source of confusion and frustration among many drivers who spoke to us, as they believed they should qualify given the increased health risks.

While it's not possible to publish all of their stories here, a common theme was outrage at the technicalities on which Uber had refused to pay them as well as its decision to deactivate their accounts almost immediately (apparently as a precaution to protect passengers) even as it took days or weeks to ultimately deny them compensation.

(Many requested anonymity out of fear that Uber would retaliate by terminating their accounts.)

Some drivers had a doctor's note instructing them to stop driving because they're older or have underlying health issues — such as diabetes, chronic lung diseases, and heart conditions — that may make them more susceptible to severe COVID-19 infections, while some live with or care for such individuals and said they worry about exposing them.

Other drivers had given rides to passengers who were showing coronavirus-like symptoms — or were experiencing symptoms themselves. 

A driver in Boston told Business Insider that his girlfriend, who also drives for Uber, had picked up a doctor who had just returned from Italy and was coughing, sneezing, and complaining of a headache. While she got tested for coronavirus and Uber eventually paid her, the Boston driver has Type 1 diabetes, asthma, and three heart conditions.

Despite his doctor's note ordering him to quarantine, Uber never responded to his claim. "We each gave a combined 213 rides in the six days after that ride all on Uber's platform," he said.

A driver in Dallas told Business Insider that a passenger he picked up from the airport in mid-March "was coughing the whole 26 minutes to downtown Dallas." But his doctor's note citing his exposure to the passenger, who ultimately tested positive for COVID-19, didn't make him eligible for the policy either.

"This [policy] isn't something Uber should publicly say and not honor it to the ones who need it most," said the Dallas driver, who has been in self-quarantine since March 30 and is struggling to make mortgage payments.

An Uber spokesperson told Business Insider that the company acknowledges it made mistakes in rolling out its policy and that it has taken steps to improve the customer support experience, though she confirmed the eligibility criteria have not changed.

"We have paid more than $3 million in financial support to drivers and delivery people in the US. As this pandemic continues to evolve, our policy will continue to evolve, too, so we can help support as many of those who are driving and delivering food as possible," the spokesperson said in a statement to Business Insider.

Dangerous incentives

Public health authorities have advised Americans over 65, those with certain health conditions, and those experiencing coronavirus symptoms to stay home to protect themselves and others in their communities. Meanwhile, Uber explicitly states on its website that such individuals — even they're ordered by a doctor to self-quarantine — are not covered under its policy.

A majority of the drivers who contacted Business Insider said Uber is their main or only source of income, so having their accounts suspended has put them in a desperate financial situation.

Larry Carroll, a Los Angeles-based driver who has completed more than 6,000 rides over the past two years, submitted a doctor's note ordering him to self-quarantine, but after initially saying it would disburse his payment within 2-5 days, Uber backpedaled and denied his claim.

"I have officially run out of money," said Caroll, who is homeless and has been living out of his car, "and now, despite any risk to myself or anyone else, am forced to have to get up and try and find a job or risk even worse financial ruin."

Drivers who haven't yet submitted claims say Uber's narrowly defined policy and the risk of deactivation is discouraging them from getting off the road, despite public health guidelines urging them to do so.

"I wish I could stay home safe because I know if I get coronavirus I have a small chance of making it," a driver in Hartford, Connecticut, who has Addison's disease, told Business Insider. "I'm afraid they will deactivate me," she said, "so I work and pray I don't get the coronavirus. If I don't work I lose my car and my house."

Another driver in Illinois told Business Insider that they're putting themselves and others at risk by continuing to drive for Uber, but that the economic pressure is too great to stop.

"It is staggering the amount of sick people I drive around these days. I am in conditions that violate public health authorities' recommendation for social distance," they said, adding: "This is my only source of income. In order to make a living I must put myself and my community in danger by disregarding the guidelines given by every public health authority."

Read Uber's full statement below:

"In a time of great hardship and uncertainty, we are doing our best to provide some relief and certainty to drivers, which is why we took action early on to help support those who were providing essential services to their communities. 

On March 6, we announced a financial assistance package for drivers and delivery people who were diagnosed with COVID-19 or had been ordered to self-quarantine or self-isolate by a doctor or public health authority because they were at risk of spreading the disease.

"To date, we have paid more than $3 million in financial support to drivers and delivery people in the US. As this pandemic continues to evolve, our policy will continue to evolve, too, so we can help support as many of those who are driving and delivering food as possible."

Original author: Tyler Sonnemaker

A new venture fund is offering grants of $10,000 to $500,000 to coronavirus researchers, and every grant decision will be made in less than 48 hours.The fund, Fast Grants, has raised $10 million from 10 backers including Paul Graham, Stripe cofounders John and Patrick Collison, and LinkedIn cofounder Reid Hoffman.Backers say they were inspired by the World War II-era National Defense Research Committee, which sidestepped traditional grant approval processes to fund scientific research quickly. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

A group of tech entrepreneurs and venture capitalists have committed $10 million to COVID-19 research, aiming to sidestep the lengthy grant approval process that academics typically face.

The fund promises "Fast Grants" of $10,000 to $500,000 that will go to researchers that focus on coronavirus prevention and treatment. Starting April 12, every grant application will be approved or denied in less than 48 hours, after which researchers will receive payment "as quickly as your university can receive it."

Backers include Y-Combinator cofounder Paul Graham, billionaire entrepreneur brothers John and Patrick Collison, and venture capitalist Reid Hoffman, among other entrepreneurs and VCs. The grants will be administered by George Mason University's Emergent Ventures.

Typically, the grant approval process for academics can take months or years — but the Fast Grants fund prioritizes speed.

"Science funding mechanisms are too slow in normal times and may be much too slow during the COVID-19 pandemic. Fast Grants are an effort to correct this," the fund's website says. "We'll prefer projects that are cheap (so that our fund dollars go further) and that will yield results quickly (during COVID-19, days matter)."

The fund was inspired by the National Defense Research Committee, an organization created during World War II that aimed to fund emergency scientific research as quickly as possible. From 1940 to 1941, it allocated $6.5 million, or over $120 million when adjusted for inflation.

Researchers can apply at the Fast Grants website.

Original author: Aaron Holmes

There are three major new features in the DualSense that the PlayStation 4 gamepad doesn't have: haptic feedback, adaptive triggers, and a built-in microphone array.

The first is an extension of already existing rumble — haptic feedback makes controller rumble feel more realistic, "such as the slow grittiness of driving a car through mud," the blog post says. What this could mean for, say, a driving game is that you'll feel the car driving through said mud more directly.

The second, adaptive triggers, is another evolution of an existing gamepad feature. The left and right triggers on current-generation gamepads act, more or less, like buttons. They may look like triggers, but they're not pressure sensitive — after a certain amount of pressure is exerted, they activate (like a button), rather than gradually reacting depending on how hard you pull.

But with the DualSense's adaptive triggers, you could use a trigger the same way a gas pedal in a car works. The more you push down a pedal, the harder your car works to accelerate — adaptive triggers provide the same function.

And in the case of the built-in mic array, Sony says it can be used in lieu of a gaming headset. It "will enable players to easily chat with friends without a headset," the blog post says.

Original author: Ben Gilbert

Venture-backed startups have begun laying off employees, as the coronavirus and the subsequent economic shutdown has wreaked havoc on companies large and small. Business Insider is keeping a list of running list of startups that are slashing headcount. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

$1.5 billion ZipRecruiter just laid off hundreds only days after the CEO said the economy was headed for a steep increase in hiring after the end of the coronavirus

The CEO of Voi, scooter rival to $2.5 billion Bird, goes public on why it furloughed and laid off staff to cope with COVID-19

Electric scooter startup Bird has laid off 30% of the company in a scramble to preserve a 'cash runway' to last until the end of 2021

TripActions, the $4 billion Andreessen Horowitz-backed corporate travel startup, just laid off 296 employees as the travel industry grinds to a halt

Andreessen Horowitz-backed Wonderschool just laid off 75% of staff on a Zoom call, telling employees the coronavirus could dry up any more funding for 2 years

O'Reilly Media, known for its influential open source conferences and books about coding, has laid off 75 people and shuttered its events business

Pay-by-the-minute fitness app Popin has shut down, according to an email sent out to its users

Buzzy luggage startup Away has furloughed half of its staff and laid off 60 employees as the coronavirus continues to crush the travel industry

ThirdLove, the buzzy lingerie upstart that challenged Victoria's Secret's dominance, just laid off nearly 30% of its workforce as the coronavirus crushes DTC companies

Iris Nova, the buzzy direct-to-consumer startup backed by Coca-Cola, has laid off half its staff as the coronavirus pandemic hits its retail business

Startups like ClassPass and The Wing have cut significant portions of their workforce

A leaked memo reveals that the Kevin Durant-backed sports media startup Overtime just laid off 20% of its staff, and won't give affected employees healthcare or severance unless they sign a confidentiality agreement

Flex-space unicorn Knotel just laid off 30% of workers and furloughed another 20% as the coronavirus cripples a once buzzy industry

SoftBank-backed real estate brokerage Compass just slashed 15% of staff and is pausing marketing as coronavirus slams the housing market

Days after laying off 20% of its workforce, Brookfield-backed Convene furloughs more than half of remaining employees due to coronavirus closures

Airbnb-backed Zeus Living just laid off 30% percent of staff as the coronavirus upends travel and hospitality startups

Original author: Business Insider

Rideshare drivers for Uber and Lyft say their income has collapsed amid coronavirus, and support from the rideshare companies has been sparse.Business Insider surveyed over 1,000 rideshare drivers and gig workers. Drivers who are still working said their weekly earnings have dropped by anywhere from 50% to 80% in the past month. Many have stopped driving altogether due to safety concerns. Others are pivoting to delivery work, which they say has remained more profitable amid the quarantine.Uber and Lyft have promised to give drivers disinfectant supplies, and Uber promised paid sick leave, but drivers say those benefits are unreliable and difficult to access.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Eddie, a 66-year-old Honolulu Uber driver, regularly works 10 hours a day on the app.

A month ago, he could net $200 per day from Uber. But by late March, his income had plunged to just $25 per day spread across 10 hours. The money has become so negligible that Eddie finally decided to stop driving altogether.

"I currently earn $2.50 per hour, on top of the exposure to riders who possibly carry the virus," he told Business Insider. "I cannot for my own sanity justify to myself why I would jeopardize the health and well being of other riders and of course my own family's."

Lockdowns amid the coronavirus outbreak have been financially devastating for rideshare drivers across the country. More than 1,000 rideshare and delivery workers responded to a Business Insider survey this week — drivers quoted in this article, whose employment Business Insider has verified, described drops in income that mirror Eddie's.

Both Uber and Lyft, which have near-identical business models and pricing, have rolled out measures to support drivers through the coronavirus outbreak — both companies say they provide free disinfectant supplies to drivers, and Uber has vowed to cover two weeks of paid sick leave for drivers. But drivers told Business Insider that the free cleaning supplies are often hard to find, and that Uber's sick pay is unreliable.

A Lyft spokesperson told Business Insider that cleaning supplies are delivered in bulk shipments, and drivers will be notified when they arrive.

An Uber spokesperson told Business Insider that the company is "committed to working with drivers and delivery people around the world to help support them," but declined to answer specific questions about cleaning supplies or sick payments. Uber SVP Andrew Macdonald tweeted Thursday that shipments of disinfectants are "now starting to make their way to drivers."

In the immediate term, drivers are poised to get some relief from the newly-passed CARES Act, which extends unemployment benefits to gig workers for the first time ever. Some drivers also told Business Insider they're pivoting to delivery work, which they say has remained profitable amid social distancing measures. 

Here's exactly how much of a financial toll coronavirus is taking on rideshare work, according to drivers.

Original author: Aaron Holmes

Instagram said in January it was starting to roll out direct-messaging on desktop computers and web browsers, but many users are just starting to see the change this week.Direct Messages have long been a feature only available via Instagram's mobile app, but many users now have the ability to start, read, and send DMs on their laptops and computers.Here's how to see if you're one of the users who has Instagram DMs on their desktop as the company completes the feature's global rollout.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Instagram is continuing to roll out a crucial feature to desktop computers and web browsers that has up until now been limited to the platform's mobile app: Direct Messages.

A "small percentage" of users have had access to DMs on their desktop since January, when Instagram first told The Verge it was testing the feature. However, it seems that Instagram has ramped up the rollout of the test, with dozens of users taking to Twitter this week to share the discovery of having DMs on their desktops.

An Instagram spokesperson told Business Insider that the feature is not yet available to the "entire global community," but said the company is "working on it."

Accessing Instagram DMs via desktop will be a welcomed addition for influencers, brands, and others who heavily rely on direct messaging on a regular basis. Users will be able to start one-on-one and group chats, read and send to messages, share photos, and double-tap to react to responses. However, you're still unable to video chat via Instagram, which you're able to do through DMs on the mobile app.

Facebook, Instagram's parent company, has made a series of changes in the last year to prioritize private messaging across its family of platforms. A standalone app launched in late 2019, called Threads, for Instagram users to exchange messages and photos with those on their Close Friends list. Facebook debuted a desktop app for Messenger just last week. All of this comes after the New York Times reported in early 2019 that Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg had directed employees to integrate private messaging services across Facebook, Instagram, and Messenger. Zuckerberg later said that the integration wouldn't come until 2020 at the earliest.

Here's how to check if you're one of the users given the ability to send and receive Instagram DMs on their desktop:

Original author: Paige Leskin

Microsoft is "temporarily pausing recruitment" for some roles amid uncertainty caused by the coronavirus crisis, the company confirmed Tuesday.It's still hiring for "certain strategic areas," a spokesperson said, but declined to disclose which teams or roles that might refer to.Employees who spoke to Business Insider said the company is still hiring within its Azure cloud business and "prioritizing consumer-facing and critical roles." Click here to read more BI Prime stories.

Microsoft is freezing hiring for some roles, citing uncertainty related to the coronavirus crisis, the company confirmed on Tuesday, except in unspecified "strategic areas."

"We continue to seek industry-leading talent in a range of disciplines as we continue to invest in certain strategic areas," a Microsoft spokesperson said. "However, in light of the uncertainties presented by COVID-19, we are temporarily pausing recruitment for other roles."

Microsoft declined to provide more information about for which positions it's still hiring, and which roles are seeing a pause in hiring.

According to employees who spoke with Business Insider, Microsoft is still hiring for roles within its massive cloud computing business, and the company was holding virtual hiring events for software engineers as recently as last week. Some groups, one employee said, are "prioritizing consumer-facing and critical roles." 

Microsoft-owned LinkedIn also enacted a companywide pause on new hires, according to an internal memo obtained by Business Insider.

The coronavirus will likely cause hiring freezes and layoffs across many industries, according to experts.

Microsoft has more than 150,000 employees. Microsoft has handled the coronavirus crisis internally by mandating that most of its US employees to work from home "until further notice," streaming company-wide town halls from executives' homes, expanding benefits like paid leave for parents, and even delivering food and medications to employee homes.

Meanwhile, Microsoft is seeing a huge surge of new customers because of the crisis. The company, for example, clocked a 775 percent spike in usage of its Teams chat app in an area of Italy that implemented a lockdown. 

With all those new users have come issues with capacity. In response, Microsoft said it will place a "few temporary restrictions" for Azure customers, such as limits on free offers and "certain resources" for new subscriptions. 

Are you a Microsoft employee? Contact this reporter via email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., message her on Twitter @ashannstew, or send her a secure message through Signal at 425-344-8242.

Original author: Ashley Stewart

Shayanne Gal/Business Insider

Original author: Shana Lebowitz

Brightfield

Jesse Levin is CEO of Brightfield, a New York-based workforce analytics company, and his biggest fear is the rise of a "herd mentality" where startup leaders try to navigate the crisis based on a singe playbook.

He's particularly critical of the so-called "Black Swan" letter that Sequoia Capital published about a month ago as the coronavirus crisis was unfolding.

In the letter, Sequoia warned that "in downturns, revenue and cash levels always fall faster than expenses" and that, in terms of  headcount, "this might be a time to evaluate critically whether you can do more with less and raise productivity.

Levin lamented that the Sequoia letter "became gospel immediately and resulted in deep cuts across the same companies that they had encouraged to over-raise and overspend."

For startup founders and CEOs, now is the time to "reset your ambition to target a great return with more reasonable risk," Levin said. 

In a downturn that is in many ways more severe and unpredictable than past crises, Levin said startup CEOs should encourage their team leaders to be comfortable with uncertainty instead of intimidated by the blurry path ahead of them

"Ensure your leaders are comfortable with imposter syndrome," he said, referring to the psychological pattern of doubting one's ideas and abilities. "The pandemic recession has some attributes that are similar to past cycles, and many that are not.  Thus, your leaders must exhibit confidence and clarity even when they don't know what's next."

Another tip: focus on customers, accommodate their needs, even if doesn't boost your bottom line in the short-term.

"Customers and prospects do remember who invested in them at the bottom of a cycle and, in my experience, do find ways to balance the karma scales when the market comes back, Levin said.

Original author: Benjamin Pimentel

 

Welcome to Wall Street Insider, where we take you behind the scenes of the finance team's biggest scoops and deep dives from the past week. 

If you aren't yet a subscriber to Wall Street Insider, you can sign up here.

Wall Street had to quickly adapt to a new work-from-home reality, and firms are already thinking about how the coronavirus will transform the way they work in the long run — Tradeweb's CEO called the shift to remote work a "fundamental game changer" when it comes to business and personnel impact.

Banks have been forced to rewrite continuity plans, including testing and deploying remote-working capabilities to their vast trading ranks. Dakin Campbell and Alex Morrell talked to more than a dozen insiders about the exact steps firms have taken to replicate trading floors at home.  

Read the full story here:

And as Casey Sullivan reports, top law firms are seeing a "great reset" that could reshape office needs and how they use tech to interact with clients. That's not to say everyone is looking to redefine business as usual — Dan DeFrancesco talked with NYSE's COO about how the exchange is thinking about its iconic trading floor.

Wishing everyone a healthy and safe weekend. As always, my line is open at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. 

-Meredith 

'Hope for the best, but plan for the worst'

Original author: Meredith Mazzilli

As the coronavirus crisis forces people to work remotely, tools that help them stay connected and productive are booming in popularity.We asked a select group of VCs to name enterprise startups that could take off this year as a result of the changing work environment.Each investor named two "future of work" startups: one in their portfolio, and one company they admire but have no financial interest in.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The coronavirus outbreak has changed not only where people work from, but how they work and what tools they use.

Already, apps like Zoom and Slack have seen huge increases in usage in the past few weeks, as users grab onto ways to stay connected in their work and personal lives while social distancing.

The urgent need for better work tools could catapult some enterprise startups into the pantheon of unicorn startups, as their users multiply and venture capital investors jump to fund them.

We wanted to find the startups that are already transforming the future of work, defining the new ways in which people are doing their everyday jobs. We reached out to a select group of venture capitalists with enterprise bets in their portfolios and asked them to name the startups that are positioned to have very good years.

When we spoke to each investor, we set some ground rules for participation: 

The VC had to tell us about one startup in their portfolio. After all, they had enough conviction in the company to write it a check.We also asked them to name one "future of work" startup where they have no financial interest. Those are the companies they're closely watching, maybe with a bit of envy.

Their nominations cover all aspects of work, from processes like recruiting and onboarding to products such as video conferencing, chatbots, and email.

Here are the 30 startups they named, listed in alphabetical order:

Original author: Melia Russell and Paayal Zaveri

Amazon told sellers in a note this week that its price gouging rules could be confusing given the different state laws.The note comes a week after 32 US attorneys general told Amazon to fix price gouging activities on its marketplace.Amazon's always had a "zero tolerance" policy against sellers who exploit "an emergency by charging excessively high prices on products and shipping."But sellers say Amazon has now become too aggressive, often suspending sellers and products that are not engaged in price gouging.Amazon's spokesperson said the note was meant to provide "even more detailed guidance" on price gouging, but sellers say the guidelines on gouging are still unclear.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Just a week after 32 US attorneys general told Amazon to fix price gouging on its site, Amazon acknowledged in a letter to sellers that its system may be difficult to understand. But sellers now say Amazon is overcompensating and pushing too hard, leading to a surge in unfair product and seller suspensions.

In a note sent to sellers on Wednesday, obtained by Business Insider, Amazon said its policy over what products or sellers get suspended for excessive price increases could lead to a "confusion" because it looks into a number of different factors. Amazon's system, which is mostly automated, has been kicking off groups of sellers and products from its marketplace lately for profiteering on items like hand sanitizers and face masks during the coronavirus pandemic.

"We recognize there may be some confusion as to what may trigger offer removal or account suspension for price gouging under this policy," Amazon said in the note.

Amazon said that it's difficult to set a one-size fits all policy because states have varying rules over price-gouging. For example, some states have a 10% ceiling on price increases during a national emergency, while others may have more vague guidelines, like banning unconscionably "excessive" price increases without a fixed cap, it said.

"Our systems attempt to account for these variations in state law while recognizing that the costs of many goods are increasing due to the worldwide effects of the COVID-19 pandemic," Amazon said in the note.

Amazon's response to sellers shows the difficulty in cleaning up its marketplace of bad actors that try to take advantage of consumers in need of essential items during the pandemic. As demand for online shopping has increased amid COVID-19, some sellers have set unreasonably high price increases on not just essentials but also everyday grocery products, like rice and milk.

Amazon has always had a "zero tolerance" policy against sellers who exploit "an emergency by charging excessively high prices on products and shipping." To combat the surge in price gouging, Amazon recently said that it had suspended over 3,900 US sellers for violating its fair pricing policy and removed over half a million products due to coronavirus-based price gouging. 

Amazon's representative told Business Insider in an email that the note was meant to provide "even more detailed guidance" on price gouging, as laws vary by state. Sellers who feel they were unfairly suspended should reach out to Amazon directly for a separate investigation, the spokesperson said.

"Amazon has always prohibited price gouging," the spokesperson said. "Our objective is to protect customers from clearly egregious price increases."

Price gouging is just one of the many challenges facing Amazon as the coronavirus pandemic continues to put a deeper strain across its business. The slowing supply chain has delayed shipments of some products by a month, while warehouse workers have staged walkouts demanding better safety measures at their facilities. Meanwhile, Amazon executives have come under fire following Thursday's report by Vice that showed them engaged in an internal discussion to smear a fired warehouse employee who led one of the strikes last week.

The note to sellers is Amazon's first response to sellers following last week's letter signed by US attorneys general in 32 states, including Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and California, that demanded Amazon and other retailers like Walmart come up with stronger protective measures to prevent price gouging. In the letter, the attorneys general urged for better policies and restrictions, and a new "fair pricing" portal where consumers can directly report price gouging incidents.

But some sellers say Amazon has now become too aggressive in enforcing its anti-price gouging policies, often unfairly suspending sellers and products that haven't engaged in any price manipulating activities.

Ed Rosenberg, who runs an online seller group called ASGTG, told Business Insider that there's been significant increases lately in sellers who got suspended, including those who haven't raised prices all year. He said Amazon seems to be struggling to find the right balance in enforcing its price gouging policy, given the complex nature around it.

"Amazon seems to have gone to the other extreme blocking items and suspending accounts that are not close to price gouging," Rosenberg said. "They need to find a middle ground."

For sellers, it's difficult to keep track of every state's different price gouging rules. For example, California and New York prohibits 10% price increases in national emergencies, while Pennsylvania and Kansas have a price cap of 20% and 25%, respectively. Texas, meanwhile, doesn't have a hard cap.

Amazon's vague guidelines are also a challenge, sellers say. In the note, Amazon told sellers to refer to Amazon's Marketplace Fair Pricing Policy before setting their own prices. But that page doesn't offer specific price guidelines, simply saying sellers shouldn't "mislead" consumers or set prices that are "significantly higher" than recent prices offered on or off Amazon.

One seller, who wanted to remain anonymous out of fear of retribution, said it's unclear how to calculate the past average sales price that serves as a baseline for determining price gouging. Another seller said that there's inconsistency across Amazon's different marketplaces, as a product banned in Italy was still being sold on its Spanish marketplace.

"The problem is defining price gouging. At the state and Amazon level, there is no clear definition for e-commerce sellers," this seller said.

Original author: Eugene Kim