10 things in tech you need to know today

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1. Trump barred transactions with 8 Chinese apps. The ban includes Alipay, and escalates tensions with Beijing during Trump's final weeks in office.
   
   
2. Jack Ma is laying low, but not vanished. CNBC anchor David Faber said the Alibaba founder has not been "captured" or "taken," but is likely staying out of the public eye in Hangzhou, where Alibaba is based.
   
   
3. Trump's ex-economic adviser Gary Cohn is joining IBM. Cohn served as the director of the National Economic Council from 2017 to 2018.
   
   
4. Government internet blackouts are lasting longer. The duration of government-imposed internet shutdowns around the world shot up by 49% in 2020 compared to the previous year, according to a report from Top10VPN.
   
   
5. Nintendo plans to acquire the studio behind "Luigi's Mansion 3." The vast majority of Nintendo's internal game development is handled within Japan, and it rarely buys third-party game studios.
   
   
6. We spoke to the Google union organizers. The union will focus largely on workers' freedom and ethical concerns, though it will also pressure for better rights for contract workers.
   
   
7. The death of a Pinduoduo employee triggered backlash over Chinese work culture. A 22-year-old employee of the Chinese e-commerce giant collapsed and died after leaving work at 1:30 a.m. on December 29.
   
   
8. Exclusive: Only 20 US IPOs have been led by women. Even during 2020's record set of IPOs, only five of those were companies founded and led by women, according to research by Business Insider and information provided by Nasdaq.
   
   
9. Exclusive: Amazon's new device might help with sleep disorders. The new device is expected to be contactless, using radar-based technology to track sleeping and breathing patterns, people familiar with the product said.
   
   
10. Amazon-backed Deliveroo posted a loss for 2019. The food delivery firm trumpeted its increased revenue and healthier gross profit margin as its considers an IPO.