Google Staff Told to Work From Home Until Labor Day After COVID-19 Spikes

Google spokesperson Katherine Williams confirmed to Reuters that the company will not reopen its U.S. offices as planned. The decision comes in the midst of a spike in COVID-19 cases in various states.

Williams confirmed a Bloomberg report that cited an internal memo to employees sent by a Google executive. “For all of you that are working from home, please continue to do so unless you are told otherwise by your manager,” Chris Rackow, Google’s vice president of global security, said in the memo. “We don’t expect this guidance to change until Monday, Sept. 7 (Labor Day) at the earliest,” Rackow wrote, adding that the recent rise in coronavirus cases in the United States demonstrates that “COVID-19 is still very much alive”.

Jamf Files For U.S. IPO With $100 Million Valuation

Jamf, which makes software that allows organizations to manage Apple devices, filed for U.S IPO on Tuesday. The initial valuation of the firm was $100 million, Bloomberg News, reported, although this will likely change.

The company was aiming to be valued at about $3 billion in the listing, Bloomberg News reported in January. Jamf, founded in 2002, makes MDM — mobile device management — software that lets organizations manage large numbers of iPhones, Macs, Apple TVs, and iPads. One of its features allows a company to update the software on all of its Apple devices at the same time. Apple itself has been a customer since 2010, the filing shows. Jamf’s dependence on the $1.6 trillion tech giant also features prominently in the section of the filing that outlines potential risks to its business, along with the potential financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic. In 2019, Apple represented less than 1% of Jamf’s total revenue.

Trailer for 'Boys State' on Apple TV+

The trailer for watch Boys State, a new documentary film telling a political coming-of-age story as politically obsessed young-men head to Texas in a bid to be ‘Governor’ was released Tuesday. The documentary film is set to land on Apple TV+ August 14, and it will also be in select theaters from July 31,

What Does AirPods Pro Spatial Audio Mean for Augmented Reality?

Em Lazer-Walker digs into the AirPods Pro spatial audio feature announced at WWDC 2020. What does it mean for AR?

As Apple improves their indoor location technology, [spatial audio] could also easily become a big part of making indoor wayfinding viable before they ship AR glasses, since the ARKit model of “hold your phone out in front of you while you walk through a space” is both socially and physically awkward.

I can’t wait for spatial audio to arrive. I use an app I’ve mentioned before that uses 3D audio, and I wonder if Naturespace will make use of this technology.