Hello from a sunny London, readers. Nathan Rennolds, an associate editor, here.
It's a scary time at Google. The company's search monopoly is looking like it's finally coming under some real pressure.
With Microsoft's AI-supercharged Bing looming ominously and TikTok's emergence as a serious threat, news that the EU could force the tech giant to break up its ad business may come as a particularly heavy blow.
Now, let's get to today's tech.
1. Google's WFH crackdown. Last week, Google ramped up its back-to-the-office policy, warning workers that attendance would be factored into performance reviews. Perhaps unsurprisingly, that hasn't gone down all too well, according to discussions with several employees and internal materials viewed by Insider.
- One employee said that one of the key reasons for joining Google was its reputation for flexibility, but they said the company was now "crushing that at every turn."
- Another said there was a "lot of frustration" among staff over the new rules. "We don't like being micromanaged like school kids," they said.
- Others have turned to Google's internal meme generator, Memegen, to air their grievances.
More from Google's back-to-work fallout here.
In other news:
2. Mass layoffs are creating a new generation of founders. Tech layoffs are fueling an influx of new founders building climate, health, and fintech startups. Insider spoke to former employees at Patreon and Delivery Hero about creating new companies. More here.
3. Uber and DoorDash warn of huge changes. NYC announced a new minimum wage of nearly $18 an hour for delivery drivers. But some of the industry's key players say the law may increase workloads, limit flexibility, and reduce workforces. Get the full story.
4. Jack Dorsey's Apple Vision Pro worry. The Twitter cofounder and former CEO voiced his concerns over the future of augmented and virtual reality, saying humans were heading towards becoming "WALL-E" characters — glued to chairs and plugged into constant entertainment. More on his comment's here.
5. The one question the Microsoft CEO asks to test AI's smarts. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said he liked to test AI using a poetry prompt to see if it had the "subtlety" to translate "deep meaning." More on Nadella's approach here.
6. Uber is going toe-to-toe with Instacart. Uber is planning to work with health plans and providers to prescribe food as medicine as it becomes the latest big firm to bet on prescribing food as a way to cut medical costs. Find out more.
7. How AI is going to change sales and marketing. A top CMO revealed how AI will alter the divisions across every company within 12 months. Twilio's Joyce Kim said "predictive AI is going to be a core part of every tool that they use." Read more.
8. Europe plans to put guardrails on ChatGPT and other AI apps. The European parliament has voted to take steps to regulate AI technology such as ChatGPT, with its parliament backing a ban on the technology for biometric surveillance, emotion recognition, and predictive policing. More on the ban here.
Odds and ends:
9. The most common career mistake young people make. Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi says the most common mistake he sees young people make is overplanning. Here's why.
10. The 14-year-old hired by Elon Musk's SpaceX is too young for LinkedIn. Kairan Quazi, SpaceX's newest software engineer, posted on his Instagram a screenshot of a message from LinkedIn that said his account had been restricted since he did not meet the platform's age requirements. The full story.
Today's team: Nathan Rennolds and Hallam Bullock in London