We hope you’ll take a look, ideally learn something new, and perhaps even leave feeling encouraged. Read the full story.
—James Temple
If you want to be among the first to know who’s made this year’s list, join us either in-person at the MIT Media Lab in Cambridge or via our virtual livestream for Emtech MIT between September 30 and October 1. Even better—The Download readers get 30% off tickets with the code DOWNLOADM24!
The must-reads
I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology.
1 The US is considering banning Chinese tech in connected cars
Over concerns the hardware and software could be used to spy. (WP $)
+ Any prospective ban would encompass Russian-made tech, too. (FT $)
+ Neither country’s tech is widely used in US-made cars at the moment. (BBC)
2 Telegram says it’s willing to cooperate with police requests
Instead of ignoring them, as it has done in the past. (Bloomberg $)
+ It’ll hand over IP addresses and phone numbers in response to valid orders. (404 Media)
+ Pavel Durov, Telegram’s CEO, has been accused of dismissing warnings for years. (WSJ $)
3 Why news publishers are cozying up with WhatsApp
Social media and Google just aren’t driving traffic any more. (NYT $)
+ This bot-only social network does not sound like fun. (NY Mag $)