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2020: A MONUMENTOUS YEAR FOR APPLE

Whatever your background, there’s no denying that 2020 has been a challenging year for us all. COVID-19 has impacted virtually every aspect of our lives, yet for Apple, it’s been a year of monumental growth, cementing the company’s market dominance.

POP CULTURE IN (UGH) 2020, FROM THE BIZARRE TO THE SUBLIME

And now, for our annual look at the year in pop culture…. Oh, wait. This was 2020. The year everything stopped cold.

WRAPPED UP: THE BEST GIFTS FOR APPLE LOVERS THIS CHRISTMAS

It’s hard to go wrong with a gift from Apple. Whether you’re looking to treat your daughter to the latest iPad, your husband to a new Apple Watch, or get grandma set up with a HomePod mini, Apple’s ever-expanding ecosystem means there’s something for everyone.

Q & A: WHAT'S NEXT FOR FACEBOOK IN THE ANTITRUST CASE?

Could Facebook be forced to spin off WhatsApp and Instagram?

IN WALL STREET YEARS, 2020 FELT LIKE A DECADE FOR MARKETS

While lockdown life has kept time standing still for nearly everyone through 2020, Wall Street has been locked in at super fast-forward.

GMAIL, YOUTUBE DOWN BRIEFLY AS GOOGLE SUFFERS BRIEF OUTAGE

Google users in the U.S., Europe, India and other parts of the world were briefly unable to access their Gmail accounts, watch YouTube videos or get to their online documents during an outage this Monday.

FCC AWARDS $25M TO EXPAND INTERNET IN RURAL NEW HAMPSHIRE

Internet providers in New Hampshire will receive more than $25 million in federal funding over 10 years to expand broadband access across in rural parts of the state, the Federal Communications Commission announced this week.

CHINA'S ALIBABA, TENCENT UNIT FINED UNDER ANTI-MONOPOLY LAW

China’s market regulator on Monday said it fined Alibaba Group and a Tencent Holdings-backed company for failing to seek approval before proceeding with some acquisitions.

APPLE'S APP STORES OPEN NEW PRIVACY WINDOW FOR CUSTOMERS

Apple has begun spelling out what kinds of personal information is being collected by the digital services displayed in its app stores for iPhones and other products made by the trendsetting company.

AS LEADERS SET FRESH CLIMATE GOALS, BIDEN PLEDGES US SUPPORT

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden pledged to rejoin the Paris climate accord on the first day of his presidency, as world leaders staged a virtual gathering to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the international pact aimed at curbing global warming.

AMAZON'S ZOOX UNVEILS AUTONOMOUS ELECTRIC VEHICLE

An autonomous vehicle company acquired this year by Amazon has unveiled a four-person “robo-taxi,” a compact, multidirectional vehicle designed for dense, urban environments.

GOOGLE AI RESEARCHER'S EXIT SPARKS ETHICS, BIAS CONCERNS

Prominent artificial intelligence scholar Timnit Gebru helped improve Google’s public image as a company that elevates Black computer scientists and questions harmful uses of AI technology.

NBA COACHES ATTIRE: MASKS ARE IN, JACKETS ARE OPTIONAL

For NBA coaches, masks are required this season. Jackets are not.

TWILIO CEO DISCUSSES WHY PANDEMIC LIFTED TECH TO NEW HEIGHTS

Twilio has emerged as a technological backbone for thousands of companies during the pandemic. Its users rely on its digital tools to connect with customers through mobile apps, call centers and messaging services as the shift to online commerce and curbside pickup accelerates.

GENE-EDITING TREATMENT SHOWS PROMISE FOR SICKLE CELL DISEASE

Scientists are seeing promising early results from the first studies testing gene editing for painful, inherited blood disorders that plague millions worldwide, especially Black people.

CALIFORNIA RELEASES SMARTPHONE VIRUS TOOL AS CASES SOAR

California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a voluntary smartphone tool to alert people of possible coronavirus exposure as cases soar higher, new restrictions are imposed and many people still say they won’t heed the pleas to stay home.

AURORA TO BUY UBER'S SELF-DRIVING VEHICLES ARM

Uber is selling off its autonomous vehicles development arm to Aurora as the ride-hailing company slims down after its revenues were pummeled by the coronavirus pandemic.

APPLE TO TIGHTEN APP PRIVACY, REMOVE APPS THAT DON'T COMPLY

Apple is stepping up privacy for app users, forcing developers to be more transparent about data collection and warning they could be removed if they don’t comply with a new anti-tracking measure, a company executive and regulators said this week.

AIRPODS MAX: ALL THE SOUND TECH YOU CAN GET

Apple may not have hosted an all-bells, all whistles event to show off its new headphones, but it didn’t need to: the company’s letting the sound speak for itself.

ANOTHER JUDGE BLOCKS TRUMP'S TIKTOK BAN; APP STILL IN LIMBO

A federal judge has blocked President Donald Trump’s attempts to ban TikTok, the latest legal defeat for the administration as it tries to wrest the popular app from its Chinese owners.

AMERICANS CAN PAY THEIR CREDIT CARD BILLS, BUT FOR HOW LONG?

The coronavirus pandemic hasn’t stopped Americans from keeping up with their credit card payments, thanks in large part to government relief programs passed by Congress earlier this year.

POWERFUL M1: BENCHMARKS REVAL INCREDIBLE POWER OF NEW CHIP

Though it was always Apple’s intention to create leaner, faster machines when it transitioned to its own custom chip, even Craig Federighi revealed he was shocked when benchmarks were revealed. M1 takes the Mac in a whole new direction, revolutionizing computing once again.

HAWAII SEEKS TO BE SEEN AS A REMOTE WORKPLACE WITH A VIEW

Software engineer Raymond Berger begins his work day at 5 a.m., before the sun comes up over Hawaii.

THE PANDEMIC IS CHANGING HOLLYWOOD, MAYBE FOREVER

“No New ‘Movies’ Till Influenza Ends” blared a New York Times headline on Oct. 10, 1918, while the deadly second wave of the Spanish Flu was unfolding.

UK AUTHORIZES PFIZER CORONAVIRUS VACCINE FOR EMERGENCY USE

British officials authorized a COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use on Wednesday, greenlighting the world’s first shot against the virus that’s backed by rigorous science and taking a major step toward eventually ending the pandemic.

SALESFORCE TO BUY WORK CHAT SERVICE SLACK FOR $27.7 BILLION

Business software pioneer Salesforce.com is buying work-chatting service Slack for $27.7 billion in a deal aimed at giving the two companies a better shot at competing against longtime industry powerhouse Microsoft.

GM RETHINKS PLANNED STAKE IN ELECTRIC VEHICLE MAKER NIKOLA

General Motors will not be taking a stake in the electric vehicle company Nikola, and the company said that it was scuttling one of its marquee vehicles, an electric and hydrogen-powered pickup, after GM pulled technological support from the project.

DOORDASH LOOKING FOR A VALUATION OF NEARLY $30B

DoorDash is looking for a valuation of nearly $30 billion when it takes itself public, reflecting how integral food delivery has become in millions of people’s lives during the pandemic.

CHINA'S SPACE AMBITIONS: ROBOT ON MARS, A HUMAN ON THE MOON

China’s landing of its third probe on the moon is part of an increasingly ambitious space program that has a robot rover en route to Mars, is developing a reusable space plane and is planning to put humans back on the lunar surface.

CALIFORNIA PROVIDING $500M IN VIRUS AID FOR SMALL BUSINESSES

California will provide temporary tax relief and $500 million in aid to small businesses struggling because of coronavirus outbreak restrictions, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced this week.