Google Smart Speakers Now Support Apple Music - Daily Crunch

Apple Music is now compatible with your Google Nest devices, Apple is progressing in its development of chips to surpass Intel’s capabilities, and Cisco has completed the acquisition of Slido. This is your Daily Crunch for December 7, 2020.

Key News: Apple Music Now Available on Google Smart Speakers

Google has announced that its devices, including the Nest Audio, Nest Hub Max, and Nest Mini, can now play Apple Music through voice commands.

While Google’s speaker range already supports various streaming services like Spotify and Pandora, Apple Music was previously unsupported. (Apple’s HomePod and HomePod mini, along with Amazon’s Alexa-enabled smart speakers, already offered this functionality.)

To enable this feature, Google device users must connect their Apple Music accounts within the Google Home app and designate it as their preferred music service. Users can then utilize voice commands such as, “Hey Google, play New Music Daily playlist” or “Hey Google, play Rap Life playlist.”

Major Technology Companies

Reports indicate Apple is developing Apple Silicon chips with a high core count, aiming to outperform Intel processors in upcoming high-end Macs — Bloomberg reports that these new chips feature designs with 16 power cores and four high-efficiency cores.

Cisco is acquiring Slido to enhance Q&A sessions, polls, and overall engagement within WebEx videoconferencing — Slido facilitates the management of questions and interactions from large groups, applicable to both virtual and in-person events.

Tinder is streamlining the reporting of inappropriate behavior by utilizing the ‘unmatch’ feature to conceal victims from offenders — Tinder clarifies that users have always had the ability to report individuals, even after using the unmatch function, though this functionality was not widely known.

Startups, Funding, and Venture Capital

SpaceX has received $885M from the FCC to provide internet service to rural communities via Starlink — This funding stems from the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Phase I auction, which allocates billions to broadband providers to expand internet access to underserved rural areas.

Tech growth fund Highland Europe secures €700M to ‘double-down’ on investments and expands its team — This new fund increases Highland Europe’s total assets under management to €1.8 billion.

Luko obtains $60M in funding to support its home insurance offerings — Luko provides home insurance products for both homeowners and renters.

Insights and Analysis from Extra Crunch

The IPO market demonstrates strength as Airbnb and C3.ai revise their price targets upward — Contrary to expectations, the market has not slowed down in December.

Consider these three questions before implementing microservice architecture — Madison Friedman of Vertex Ventures analyzes “the multiheaded hydra that is microservice overhead.”

An explanation of TechCrunch’s frequent coverage of early-stage funding rounds — TechCrunch writers and editors discuss the importance of funding-round stories to their reporting.

(Extra Crunch is our membership program dedicated to providing accessible information about startups. You can subscribe here.)

Other News

California’s CA Notify app now offers statewide exposure notification utilizing the Apple and Google framework — The state of California has broadened access to its CA Notify app for all residents.

Original Content podcast: Hulu’s ‘Happiest Season’ presents new characters within a familiar narrative — The podcast host shares a personal reaction to the film, noting its emotional impact.

Mixtape podcast: Exploring the creation of accessible technology for all — This episode features a discussion on how advancements in AI and related technologies will shape the future of assistive technology.

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