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TECHNOLOGY Friday 21 July 2017
Amazon’s new social network is looking a lot like Pinterest

By BARBARA ORTUTAY, app, suggesting that the Instagram, but it’s unclear
AP Technology Writer company is not pushing it if it will be a threat to ei-
NEW YORK (AP) — Take hard — at least not yet. To ther. Tech companies like
Amazon Prime, mix it with use it, go to the “programs Amazon, however, appear
Pinterest and add a dash and features” section on increasingly fond of clon-
of Instagram. The result the app’s menu bar. The ing popular apps from fast-
is Amazon Spark , a new tool will first ask you to se- growing startups. Face-
shopping-focused “social lect at least five interests. book, for instance, has
network” aimed at get- Once you do, you’ll see an been trying to copy Snap-
ting hardcore Amazon us- Instagram-like feed of pho- chat one way or another
ers to spend even more to posts bearing shopping- since it failed to buy the
money with the e-com- bag icons that enumerate youth-oriented network
merce giant. The service how many pictured items several years ago. Many of
launched publicly on Tues- — plus related products — those efforts failed, though
day on Amazon’s iPhone you can buy on Amazon. A a Snapchat-like feature on
app, although it’s already cursory glance on Wednes- Instagram, called Stories,
chock full of posts, so the day showed polished- has proven popular.
company has clearly been looking photos of travel Hetu said it’s too soon to
testing it for a while. It’s only scenes, cosmetics and say whether Spark will be a
available to Prime mem- kitchen gadgets for the threat to Pinterest. But if it
bers, who pay $99 a year interests “travel,” ‘’food” is, over the long term, it will
for free shipping, streaming and “beauty & grooming.” be Amazon’s direct con-
videos and other perks. An A user named Kassandra nection to retail that would
Android version is planned. posted a stylized photo of make the difference.
Like Pinterest, Spark lets us- a hand holding a bottle of Pinterest, a seven-year-
ers share photo-heavy posts bright red nail polish. Click- old service now valued
about their interests, ide- ing on the photo highlights at more than $12 billion,
ally those leading to shop- yellow dots on the purchas- didn’t respond to a request
ping. “It’s to learn more, to able items — and one tap for comment.
sell more and to connect will take you to an Amazon Representatives for Ama-
to customers,” said Bob product page. In this case, zon did not immediately
Hetu, research director for the Smith & Cult nail polish respond to messages for
retail at Gartner. He not- was available for $18. This screen grab shows Amazon’s new “social network,” Ama- comment on Wednesday
ed that it’s not intuitive to Spark has drawn compari- zon Spark, displayed on an iPhone. afternoon.q
find Spark on the Amazon sons to both Pinterest and Associated Press

SoftBank CEO sees massive

data, AI as key to future

advances

By YURI KAGEYAMA undergoing regulatory ap-
AP Business Writer proval. Its investments have
TOKYO (AP) — Masayo- included Chinese e-com-
shi Son, chief executive of merce company Alibaba
SoftBank Group Corp., says and Yahoo Japan.
artificial intelligence com- Son set up a private fund
bined with data gathered last year for global invest-
by billions of sensors will ments in the technology
bring on an “information sector, called Vision Fund,
revolution,” that will benefit with the potential to grow
people more than the 19th to as much as $100 billion.
Century Industrial Revolu- He has won praise from
tion. Son, Japan’s richest President Donald Trump for
person, told Softbank cus- promising to invest $50 bil-
tomers and partners gath- lion in U.S. startups to cre-
ered at a Tokyo hotel on ate 50,000 jobs.
Thursday that he believes This week Softbank an- SoftBank Group Corp. Chief Executive Officer Masayoshi Son speaks during a SoftBank World
massive data will help treat nounced it will invest in presentation at a hotel in Tokyo, Thursday, July 20, 2017.
cancer, deliver accident- Encored, a U.S. company Associated Press
free driving and grow safer specializing in IoT technol- for everyone using satellites “Marc, we are going to have criticized it as “not
food. ogy in the energy sector. instead of underground change the world togeth- too smart” haven’t seen
SoftBank, the first carrier to During a nearly three hour cables. er,” Son said on stage. what he has planned.
offer the Apple iPhone in presentation, Son, intro- Son also brought on stage SoftBank already offers one Another of Son’s partner
Japan, has bought lead- duced some of the ven- Spot, a four-legged robot of the most sophisticated ventures, Guardant Health,
ing British semiconductor tures he is partnering, in- that can climb steps and companion robots on the offers blood biopsies, which
company ARM, and its cluding OneWeb, whose dance. Other robots will be market, the chatty, child- are safer and quicker than
acquisition of U.S. robotics founder and chairman able to carry heavy loads, like Pepper. Son seemed a tissue biopsies, to detect
pioneer Boston Dynamics, Greg Wyler wants to offer said Marc Raibert, Boston bit protective of his flagship cancers in their early stag-
announced last month, is affordable internet access Dynamics chief executive. robot, saying those who es. q