Day: November 21, 2019

You wouldn’t be the first person to roll your eyes if told that a Silicon Valley startup that uses robots to make pizza is worth almost $2 billion.

Nor would you be the first person to question aloud how that same startup, a year later, could soon double in valuation.

But indeed, Recode has learned that this startup, Zume Inc., is in talks with investors to be valued at about $4 billion in a new round of fundraising, according to people familiar with the matter. One part of the story that isn’t so surprising: One of Zume’s biggest investors is …

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been indicted on charges relating to corruption and bribery on Thursday, according to multiple reports in the Israeli and international press.

The official announcement will come from Avichai Mandelblit, Israel’s attorney general, on Thursday afternoon. The charges are serious, relating to three cases of financial and political misconduct, and carry the possibility of jail time. This is not an idle threat: Former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert got caught in a bribery scandal during his time in office in the late 2000s, and eventually served over a year in prison.

This indictment had …

The introverts of the world recently rallied around a viral photo on Twitter of a Europe-based Sephora store. The photo was of two shopping basket options: a red basket to convey the customer needs assistance or a black one to show that they’re fine being left alone.

The replies were flooded with shoppers who thought the baskets were an ingenious customer service idea and the solution to awkward encounters with salespeople. “I hope this person is the CEO now,” one Twitter user said. Others tagged companies like Lush Cosmetics and Victoria’s Secret, which they felt had trained employees to …

In a marked contrast from several past debates, gender equity took center stage at Wednesday’s Democratic debate, which featured wide-ranging discussion about paid family leave, abortion rights, and the higher standards that women candidates must meet.

Though Democrats’ 2020 presidential field is one of the most diverse in history, addressing gender disparities hasn’t always been a major focus on the debate stage, as Vox’s Anna North has written. Previous debates have barely glanced over subjects including equal pay. This week’s debate, only the third primary debate to ever feature an all-female panel of moderators, was different.

It kicked …

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Presidential candidates gear up for DNC debate

• Ten candidates for the Democratic nomination for president will take the stage in Atlanta at 9 pm ET Wednesday. [CNBC / Jacob Pramuk]
• Former Vice President Joe Biden, Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, California Sen. Kamala Harris, New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, entrepreneur Andrew Yang,