PPP’s Crazy Final Days | Inc.com

June 3, 2021June 1, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

When the Small Business Administration shuttered the Paycheck Protection Program for all lenders other than community financial institutions earlier this month–three weeks before the forgivable loan program’s May 31 end date–it sent shock waves through the system.

Womply, a loan facilitator based in San Francisco, quickly rattled off a report noting that as many as 1.6 million of its small-business customers would be left out. Numerated, the Boston-based digital lending platform for banks, said it had $1.4 billion in outstanding applications from more than 33,000 businesses that had been started but not yet approved by the SBA. Meanwhile, other lenders worked to scuttle their programs and divert borrowers, even as it remained unclear how much money was actually left.

Opting for a debt round can take you from Series A startup to Series B unicorn | TechCrunch

June 3, 2021June 1, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Debt is a tool, and like any other — be it a hammer or handsaw — it’s extremely valuable when used skillfully but can cause a lot of pain when mismanaged. Fortunately, this is a story about how it can go right.

At the beginning of 2020, my company, Quantum Metric, was on a tremendous growth curve. We couldn’t have been more excited — and then COVID hit. Suddenly, everything was up in the air. Customer behavior quickly began to reflect the uncertainty we all felt, and my team wasn’t immune to it, either. Like most, we sweated through the first few months of the pandemic.

Grilling Over Charcoal Is Objectively, Scientifically Better Than Grilling Over Gas | WIRED

June 2, 2021May 31, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

IT’S A BEAUTIFUL day. The family’s in attendance, side dishes and beer in tow. Your sister-in-law brought a trunk full of Super Soakers. It’s BBQ time. Time to kick back in the yard and fire up the … stove?

Hmm, that doesn’t sound terribly exciting, does it? But that’s basically what you’re doing when you cook out on a gas grill, which is powered by the same largely flavorless fuel as your kitchen stove.

True fact: Cooking on a gas grill is more convenient than cooking with charcoal

Uber, Facebook, Instagram and other apps that are slowly killing your smartphone | Entrepreneur

June 2, 2021May 31, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

What is the first thing you do when you launch a new smartphone ? Download all the apps you need, of course. After a few hours (or days) downloading applications, your entry menu ends up covered in colorful squares, giving you the satisfaction that you have everything: apps for social networks, transport, dating, online commerce, for video conferencing and fitness, for name the most popular. However, recent research found that many of them are slowly killing your smartphone.

The pCloud company, which offers cloud storage services, conducted a study to discover which applications are most demanding for our mobile devices.

Surveillance At Work?| Getentrepreneurial.com

June 1, 2021May 31, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

If you’re looking to install a video surveillance system in the workplace, consider a few advantages and disadvantages first.

Installing video surveillance cameras in the workplace can increase security, deter theft and improve employee accountability.
Businesses that wish to install security cameras should consider not only the cost, but potential employee privacy issues and any legal guidelines on workplace surveillance.
The right choice for your company depends on the security risks you anticipate and how your employees and customers feel about being monitored.
This article is for business owners who are considering installing an on-premises video surveillance system at their store or office.

Working Home Hybrid Model | Cool Business Ideas

June 1, 2021May 31, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Dezeen promotion: the majority of employees expect to return to the office for at least four days a week post-pandemic, according to research from workplace leader Steelcase.

The Steelcase Global Report forecasts that hybrid working will become the norm for companies all around the world after Covid-19 safety restrictions are lifted.

Despite the rise of working from home imposed by the pandemic, the research suggests that the office will soon reclaim its status as the primary work location.

Baskin-Robbins’ Vegan Options Now Available At All Locations | Green Matters

May 28, 2021May 27, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Just in time for the warm (almost) summer weather, Baskin-Robbins has decided to expand its menu to accommodate vegans nationwide, by launching oat milk ice cream at all 2,500 U.S. locations. Needless to say, the plant-based community is preparing to get their sweet tooth on, and gearing up for the widely beloved frozen treat.

“We’re a brand that’s all about creating new flavor experiences and with so many people living plant-based or flexitarian lifestyles today, we couldn’t be more excited to launch our new oat milk-based option,” Shannon Blakely, VP of Marketing & Culinary at Baskin-Robbins, said in a press release. “We’re so passionate about this new base and Flavor of the Month as it’s not just an evolution of our offerings, but a sign of our passion and commitment to creating what’s ‘next’ in frozen desserts.”

Amazon will buy MGM, the James Bond studio, in $8 billion deal | Mashable

May 28, 2021May 27, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Amazon’s entertainment empire is about to get a massive boost.

The company announced on Wednesday that it’s signed an agreement to acquire MGM Studios for a purchase price of $8.45 billion. It’s a blockbuster deal that will further bolster Amazon’s already-potent entertainment division, the Emmy- and Academy Award-winning Amazon Studios.

The acquisition turbocharges Amazon’s efforts to make noise in Hollywood, giving the company a massive roster of beloved entertainment properties to support and mine for new ideas. And that’s in addition to an upcoming MGM slate that includes new movies for James Bond and The Addams Family, as well as House of Gucci, and the Aretha Franklin biopic Respect.

Jeff Bezos will step down as Amazon CEO on July 5 | CNN

May 27, 2021May 26, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos will officially step down from his role as chief executive on July 5, he announced during the company’s annual shareholder meeting Wednesday.

Bezos will hand the reins to Andy Jassy, who currently runs Amazon Web Services, after a nearly three-decade run leading the internet giant that made him one of the richest people in the world. Bezos will become Amazon’s executive chair.

The company first announced the leadership change as part of its February earnings report, saying Jassy would take over during the fiscal third quarter. Amazon (AMZN) had not previously shared the precise date of the transition.

Handwritten Einstein letter containing famous E=mc2 equation sells for $1.2 million | Live Science

May 27, 2021May 26, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

A “lost” letter written by Albert Einstein to a rival physicist recently sold to an anonymous collector for $1.2 million at auction. The handwritten letter includes Einstein’s famous E=mc2 equation and is one of just four known examples of the equation in the physicist’s own handwriting, according to archivists from the Einstein Papers Project at Caltech and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

The one-page letter, written in German on paper with Einstein’s blind-stamped personal Princeton letterhead, was sent to Polish American physicist Ludwik Silberstein, a well-known critic of some of Einstein’s theories at the time. The document is signed “A. Einstein” and is dated Oct. 26, 1946.