Year: 2019

Apple’s decision to greenlight an app called HKmaps, which is being used by pro-democracy protestors in Hong Kong to crowdsource information about street closures and police presence, is attracting the ire of the Chinese government.

An article in Chinese state mouthpiece, China Daily, attacks the iPhone maker for reversing an earlier decision not to allow the app to be listed on the iOS App Store — claiming the app is “allowing the rioters in Hong Kong to go on violent acts” (via The Guardian).

HKmaps uses emoji to denote live police and protest activity around Hong Kong, as reported by users.

The former British colony is a special administrative region of the People’s Republic of China that’s been able to maintain certain economic and and political freedoms since reunification with China — under the one country, two systems principle. But earlier this year pro-democracy protests broke out after the Hong Kong government sought to pass legislation that would allow for extradition to mainland China. It’s policing around those on-going protests that’s being made visible on HKmaps.

The app’s developer denies the map enables illegal activity, saying its function is “for info” purposes only — to allow residents to move freely around the city by being able to avoid protest flash-points. But the Chinese government is branding it “toxic”.

“Business is business, and politics is politics. Nobody wants to drag Apple into the lingering unrest in Hong Kong. But people have reason to assume that Apple is mixing business with politics, and even illegal acts. Apple has to think about the consequences of its unwise and reckless decision,” the China Daily writer warns in a not-so-veiled threat about continued access to the Chinese market.

“Providing a gateway for ‘toxic apps’ is hurting the feelings of the Chinese people, twisting the facts of Hong Kong affairs, and against the views and principles of the Chinese people,” it goes on. “Apple and other corporations should be able to discern right from wrong. They also need to know that only the prosperity of China and China’s Hong Kong will bring them a broader and more sustainable market.”

The article takes further aim at Apple — claiming it reinstated a song which advocates for independence for Hong Kong and had previously been removed from its music store.

We’ve reached out to Apple for comment.

A few days ago the company was getting flak from the other direction as Western commentators piled on to express incredulity over its decision, at the app review stage, not to allow HKmaps on its store. The app’s developer said Apple App Store reviewers had rejected it citing the reasoning as “the app allowed users to evade law enforcement”.

Yet, as many pointed out at the time, the Google-owned Waze app literally describes its function as “avoid police” if you take the trouble to read its iOS listing. So it looked like a crystal-clear case of double standards by Cupertino. And, most awkwardly for Apple, as if the US tech giant was siding with the Chinese state against Hong Kong as concerned residents fight for their autonomy and call for democracy.

We asked Apple about its decision to reject the app at the App Store review stage last week. It did not provide any comment but a couple of days afterwards a spokesman pointed us to an “update” — where the developer tweeted that the iOS version was “Approved, comming soon!” [sic].

At the time of writing the iOS app remains available on the App Store but the episode highlights the tricky trade-offs Apple is facing by operating in the Chinese market — a choice that risks denting its reputation for highly polished corporate values.

The size of the China market is such that just “economical deceleration” can — and has — put a serious dent in Apple’s bottom line. If the company were to exit — or be ejected — from the market entirely there would be no way for it to cushion the blow for shareholders. Yet with a premium brand so bound up with ethical claims to champion and defend fundamental human rights like privacy Apple risks being pinned between a rock and a hard place as an increasingly powerful China flexes more political and economic muscle.

Wider trade tensions between the US and China are also creating further instability, causing major operating headaches for Chinese tech giant Huawei — with the Trump administration pressuring allies to freeze it out of 5G networks and leaning on US companies not to provide services to Chinese firms (leading to question marks over whether Huawei’s smartphones can continue using Google’s Android OS, and suggestions it might seek to deploy its own OS).

The going is certainly getting tougher for tech businesses working from East to West. But it also remains to be seen how sustainable Apple’s West-to-East democratic balancing act can be given heightened and escalating geopolitical tensions.

Even India’s biggest festive season, featuring blinding marketing blitzkrieg and heavy discounts from Amazon India and Walmart’s Flipkart, has failed to escape the pains of slowing economy.

Online retailers in India sold goods worth $3 billion in the six-day festive sale that concluded last week, growing at an impressive 30% since last year, according to research firm RedSeer. The catch? A year before, the growth rate stood at 93%.

Forrester projected online retailers in India to generate about $4.8 billion in sales between September 25 and October 29. Satish Meena, an analyst at the research firm, said about 80% of these projected sales — $3.84 billion — were expected to occur between September 29 and October 4.

For Amazon India, which has invested more than $5.5 billion in the nation, RedSeer’s findings are more troublesome. According to the research firm’s estimate, Flipkart — together with e-commerce businesses Jabong and Myntra that it owns — commanded 63% of the market share during the festive season. Amazon India settled with just 22%.

An Amazon spokesperson in India declined to comment on the finding, but expressed concerns with the way RedSeer conducts its surveys. The spokesperson said these “speculative reports … lack robust and credible methodology.”

Amazon India did not share its internal findings, but volunteered to cite a Nielsen’s survey of 190,000 users in 50 cities. Per Nielsen, Amazon commanded 51% of all transactions during the festive sales, 42% of all orders, and 45% of all “value.”

The spokesperson added that “this event has been our biggest celebration ever.” The company received orders from 99.4% zip codes in India, and saw participation of over 65,000 sellers from 500 cities. “Over 88% new customers came from small towns,” the spokesperson said.

Flipkart did not respond to a request for comment.

Many in India have been watching the e-commerce sales as a test to see if it could kickstart the slowing consumer spending in the nation. The sales, leading up to the Hindu festival of Diwali, has traditionally been the season of lavish and reckless consumption in India.

And for Amazon and Walmart, a lot was riding on this festive season. The first half of this year has been slow for Amazon and Flipkart in India, said Meena. The e-commerce giants were subjected to disruptive changes in local e-commerce policy earlier this year, which forced both to delist hundreds of thousands of goods overnight from their marketplaces.

At a conference last week, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross expressed concerns over some of India’s recent regulatory changes, saying that India has become one of the most protectionist nations in the world. Indian newspaper The Economic Times reported last week that Amazon had cut investment in its India business by a third this year. Citing the report, Ross said disruptive policy changes influence the way global giants see the Indian market.

But disruptive policies is only one of the causes of concerns for international giants. India’s economy has slowed to a six-year low. Forrester’s Meena said the sales last week was the time when both Amazon and Flipkart could have bounced back. According to industry reports, e-commerce businesses generate nearly a third of their annual sales in India during this festive season.

But even as the growth rate has slowed down, Meena said the fact that both these companies along with other online retailers were able to generate so much sale is good news for them.

“Overall 2019 has been a slow year for e-commerce,” he told TechCrunch in an interview. “Two things are clear, though. One is that there remains a big opportunity for e-commerce in India. Second, consumers from smaller cities and towns are increasing their online spending.”

In the meantime, both Amazon and Flipkart have steered clear of sharing any meaningful internal data. Flipkart said that its marketplace had registered “2X sales growth.” The company said it had seen “3X transaction growth” and electronics grew over “70% from tier 2+ cities.” Amazon said “fashion grew 5X” and beauty items saw “7X” jump in sales.

The companies have never disclosed exact figures, so it is impossible to fathom how one should assess this growth.

What does Disrupt Berlin 2019 have in common with the movie “Three Days of the Condor?” Frankly, not much except that there are only three days of the super early bird special left before prices go up. The analogy may be a stretch, but the facts are real. Right now, you can save up to €600 depending on the pass you buy.

Remember, the super early bird is an endangered species. Once the clock strikes 11:59 p.m. (CEST) on Friday, 11 October, the super early bird pricing goes extinct. And who wants to pay more than necessary? Extinction will cost you, so don’t wait. Buy your passes to Disrupt Berlin today.

Once you secure your pass, you can start thinking about all the ways you want to experience Disrupt Berlin. Join an audience of thousands to watch some of the world’s top early-stage startups go head-to head in the Startup Battlefield. Between 15-20 teams will take the Main stage to deliver a 6-minute product pitch and demo to a panel of expert tech and VC judges.

It’s a fast, furious and epic pitch competition that culminates with one outstanding startup claiming the Disrupt Cup and a $50,000 equity-free prize. And all the participants get to bask in the warm, possibly life-changing spotlight of media and investor attention.

You’ll find even more early-stage startups exhibiting a wide range of technologies in Startup Alley, our expo floor and networking paradise. Among the hundreds of exhibitors, be sure to check out the TC Top Picks. TechCrunch editors hand-picked this cohort to find up to five of the best startups representing these tech categories: AI/Machine Learning, Biotech/Healthtech, Blockchain, Fintech, Mobility, Privacy/Security, Retail/E-commerce, Robotics/IoT/Hardware, CRM/Enterprise and Education.

Have you heard about our Extra Crunch stage? That’s where you’ll find fireside chats and panel discussions focused on founder and investor success. Plus, it’s the place to go for practical insights and how-to content. We’re talking advice you can take home and put to work in your business. Straight from the mouths of the people who’ve done the hard work and earned their success.

So much to do and see at Disrupt Berlin 2019 and just three days of the super early bird left. The savings go extinct at 11:59 p.m. (CEST) on Friday, 11 October. Buy your passes to Disrupt Berlin, save a bundle, and we’ll see you in December!

Is your company interested in sponsoring or exhibiting at Disrupt Berlin 2019? Contact our sponsorship sales team by filling out this form.

Early-stage startup founders know that M&Ms are essential ingredients for startup success. We’re not talking about the melt-in-your-mouth-not-in-your-hand confection; we’re talking money and media.

Apply to be TC Top Pick at Disrupt Berlin 2019 and — if you make the cut — you’ll receive a free Startup Alley Exhibitor Package, the VIP treatment and plenty of exposure to both media and investors.

Don’t wait — the application deadline is 18 October at 12 p.m. (PT). Apply to be a TC Top Pick right now.

We’ll get into the details of how to apply in a moment, but here’s an example of why you should apply. Jana Rosenfelder, co-founder of Actijoy, found real value in her Top Pick experience at Disrupt SF 2018.

“Being a TC Top Pick was a door-opener, because the media paid so much attention. It made a big impression with people who visited our booth. Whenever I mentioned we were a Top Pick, it was like a trigger. It gave us more credibility, and everyone listened to us.”

You’re eligible to apply if your early-stage startup falls into one of the following tech categories: AI/Machine Learning, Biotech/Healthtech, Blockchain, Fintech, Mobility, Privacy/Security, Retail/E-commerce, Robotics/IoT/Hardware, CRM/Enterprise and Education.

TC Top Picks is a competitive process, and TechCrunch editors review the applications looking for interesting startups that show solid potential. They’ll choose up to five startups for each category.

All TC Top Pick startups receive a free Startup Alley Exhibitor Package, which includes one full day exhibiting in a dedicated space within Startup Alley — the Disrupt expo floor teeming with opportunity. Your package also includes access to the programming on all stages (including the Startup Battlefield competition), three Founder passes, the complete attendee list (via TC Events Mobile App), the list of attending press, use of the Startup Alley Exhibitor Lounge and CrunchMatch — our business networking platform.

Plus, a TechCrunch editor will interview each Top Pick live on our Showcase Stage, and we’ll promote that video across our social media platforms, which can help drive traffic to your site. It’s a marketing gift that keeps on giving.

As if that weren’t enough, you might pull a Legacy. Each exhibiting startup has a shot at being chosen as a Wild Card and competing in the Startup Battlefield. Last year, Legacy earned the Wild Card slot, and then went on to win the Startup Battlefield competition.

Disrupt Berlin 2019 takes place on 11-12 December, and this is your chance to bask in the attention of investors and global media. Apply to be a TC Top Pick before the clock runs out on 18 October at 12 p.m. (PT).

Is your company interested in sponsoring or exhibiting at Disrupt Berlin 2019? Contact our sponsorship sales team by filling out this form.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology said it is reviewing the university’s relationship with SenseTime, one of eight Chinese tech companies placed on the U.S. Entity List yesterday for their alleged role in human rights abuses against Muslim minority groups in China.

A MIT spokesperson told Bloomberg that “MIT has long had a robust export controls function that pays careful attention to export control regulations and compliance. MIT will review all existing relationships with organizations added to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Entity List, and modify any interactions, as necessary.”

A SenseTime representative told Bloomberg “We are deeply disappointed with this decision by the U.S. Department of Commerce. We will work closely with all relevant authorities to fully understand and resolve the situation.”

The companies placed on the blacklist included several of China’s top AI startups and companies that have supplied software to mass surveillance systems that may have been used by the Chinese government to persecute Uyghurs and other Muslim minority groups.

Over one million Uyghurs are believed to currently be held in detention camps, where human rights observers report they have been subjected to forced labor and torture.

SenseTime, the world’s mostly highly-valued AI startup, provided software to the Chinese government for its national surveillance system, including CCTV cameras. It was the first company to join a MIT Intelligence Quest initiative launched last year with the goal of “driv[ing] technological breakthroughs in AI that have the potential to confront some of the world’s greatest challenges.” Since then, it has provided funding for 27 projects by MIT researchers.

Earlier this year, MIT ended its working relationships with Huawei and ZTE over alleged sanction violations.

Suse, the newly independent open-source company behind the eponymous Linux distribution and an increasingly large set of managed enterprise services, today announced a bit of a new strategy as it looks to stay on top of the changing trends in the enterprise developer space. Over the course of the last few years, Suse put a strong emphasis on the OpenStack platform, an open-source project that essentially allows big enterprises to build something in their own data centers akin to the core services of a public cloud like AWS or Azure. With this new strategy, Suse is transitioning away from OpenStack . It’s ceasing both production of new versions of its OpenStack Cloud and sales of its existing OpenStack product.

“As Suse embarks on the next stage of our growth and evolution as the world’s largest independent open source company, we will grow the business by aligning our strategy to meet the current and future needs of our enterprise customers as they move to increasingly dynamic hybrid and multi-cloud application landscapes and DevOps processes,” the company said in a statement. “We are ideally positioned to execute on this strategy and help our customers embrace the full spectrum of computing environments, from edge to core to cloud.”

What Suse will focus on going forward are its Cloud Application Platform (which is based on the open-source Cloud Foundry platform) and Kubernetes-based container platform.

Chances are, Suse wouldn’t shut down its OpenStack services if it saw growing sales in this segment. But while the hype around OpenStack died down in recent years, it’s still among the world’s most active open-source projects and runs the production environments of some of the world’s largest companies, including some very large telcos. It took a while for the project to position itself in a space where all of the mindshare went to containers — and especially Kubernetes — for the last few years. At the same time, though, containers are also opening up new opportunities for OpenStack, as you still need some way to manage those containers and the rest of your infrastructure.

The OpenStack Foundation, the umbrella organization that helps guide the project, remains upbeat.

“The market for OpenStack distributions is settling on a core group of highly supported, well-adopted players, just as has happened with Linux and other large-scale, open-source projects,” said OpenStack Foundation COO Mark Collier in a statement. “All companies adjust strategic priorities from time to time, and for those distro providers that continue to focus on providing open-source infrastructure products for containers, VMs and bare metal in private cloud, OpenStack is the market’s leading choice.”

He also notes that analyst firm 451 Research believes there is a combined Kubernetes and OpenStack market of about $11 billion, with $7.7 billion of that focused on OpenStack. “As the overall open-source cloud market continues its march toward eight figures in revenue and beyond — most of it concentrated in OpenStack products and services — it’s clear that the natural consolidation of distros is having no impact on adoption,” Collier argues.

For Suse, though, this marks the end of its OpenStack products. As of now, though, the company remains a top-level Platinum sponsor of the OpenStack Foundation and Suse’s Alan Clark remains on the Foundation’s board. Suse is involved in some of the other projects under the OpenStack brand, so the company will likely remain a sponsor, but it’s probably a fair guess that it won’t continue to do so at the highest level.

Southeast Asian real estate portal 99.co has agreed to form a joint venture with iProperty. As part of the deal, iProperty owner REA Group will invest $8 million of working capital into the venture, expected to be finalized by the second quarter of 2020.

99.co and REA Group, a real estate-focused digital advertising conglomerate that is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), say that the JV immediately makes 99.co the market leader in Indonesia and positions it to take the top spot in Singapore, as well. The deal also makes 99.co a more formidable rival to PropertyGuru. Backed by TPG Capital and KKR, PropertyGuru is expected to raise up to AUD $380.2 million (about USD $255.9 million) in an IPO on the ASX this month.

The joint venture is expected to be finalized by the second quarter of 2020 and 99.co will assume full control of REA Group brands iProperty.com.sg in Singapore and Rumah123.com in Indonesia. The JV will be led by 99.co’s management team, including co-founder and CEO Darius Cheung.

99.co’s last round of funding was a $15.2 million Series B, announced in August, that the company says took its valuation to over $100 million.

In a press statement, Cheung said “We are coming for market leadership. This is a key milestone that positions us instantly as number one in Indonesia, and well on our way to that in Singapore. Our innovative DNA plus REA’s unrivaled experience and resources makes this partnership a lethal combination Southeast Asia has not seen before.”

The company’s existing shareholders, including Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, Sequoia Capital, MindWorks Ventures, Allianz X, East Ventures and 500 Startups, will have a combined stake of 73%, with REA Group holding the remaining 27%.

Launched in 2014, 99.co was created to make real estate listings more navigable for renters and buyers in Singapore and other Southeast Asian markets. REA Group owns portals in Malaysia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Singapore and China, and a property review site in Thailand. It is also a stakeholder in Move, the American real estate site, and Indian property portal PropTiger.

Just weeks after Canoo took the wraps off of its electric vehicle, the Los Angeles-based startup and co-founder Stefan Krause has been accused of gender and marital discrimination, harassment, breach of contract, and wrongful termination in a lawsuit filed Tuesday.

The lawsuit, which was filed by Christina Krause, the company’s former head of communications and Stefan Krause’s wife, was first reported by The Verge.

A Canoo spokesperson said the company doesn’t comment on pending litigation.

The lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court makes a number of allegations against Stefan Krause and Canoo, including that Christina Krause was paid less than other founding members and not given the co-founder designation or the equity stake that often comes with that title despite being a founding employee. Much of the lawsuit focuses on Stefan Krause, who stepped away from the CEO role at Canoo in August for personal reasons. Stefan Krause filed for divorce from Christina Krause in July 2019.

Ulrich Kranz, originally the company’s CTO, has since taken over the day-to-day operations of Canoo. Stefan Krause remains at the company and is focused on fundraising, according to a spokesperson. His current title is chairman of the Advisory Board.

The lawsuit also reveals more details about Canoo — originally named Evelozcity — its investors and how it has scaled in a just a few years time.

Some of the nuggets that stood out, include its origin story and rapid growth. The company was founded in late 2017, after a meeting in Hong Kong with Pak Tam “David” Li and David Stern, who would become investors in Canoo, according to the lawsuit. Canoo has never revealed the names of its primary investors. Stern is a German entrepreneur who the lawsuit also lists as a friend of Stefan Krause. Stern is listed as a director to UK incubator Pitch@Palace and as consultant for Celestial Limited.

Li, Stern and Stefan Krause made a “gentlemen’s agreement” to start an EV company at the conclusion of the meeting and Christina Krause was tasked with securing talent and performing other administrative tasks related to the formation of a new company, the lawsuit says. The meeting with Li and Stern occurred around the same time that Stefan Krause left his job as CFO of the troubled company Faraday Future .

The company launched a month later, and by December it had 10 founding employees. Nine of those became co-founders. Christina Krause alleges in the lawsuit that she was the only one excluded from the founder designation status because her “role wasn’t critical for the building of the car.” She was also allegedly told that it would be “distasteful” for the wife of a co-founder to also receive the same designation and get an equity stake. 

By March 2018, just four months since its official formation, Canoo had more than 100 employees. That number spiked again to 200 by September, 300 by March 2019 and now reaches more than 400, according to the lawsuit.

As the company scaled, the relationship between Christina and Stefan Krause deteriorated. It hit a new low in March 2019 when Stefan Krause allegedly asked his wife to agree to a postnuptial agreement, which would presumably handle how shares of Canoo would be divided in the event of a divorce. The lawsuit alleges that Stefan Krause, Stern and Krantz pressured Christina Krause to sign the agreement.

Canoo has completed the design and engineering of its vehicle and is now preparing it for production through an unnamed contract manufacturer based in Michigan. The first cars are slated to appear on the road by 2021.

Adriana Herrera first came up with the idea for EpicHint, a training and staffing service for cannabis dispensaries, while she was surfing off the coast of Oaxaca, Mexico.

Decompressing after the dissolution of her last startup venture — her second attempt at running her own business — Herrera realized quickly that surfing and #vanlife wasn’t her ultimate calling.

The serial entrepreneur had previously founded FashioningChange, a recommendation engine for sustainable shopping, back in 2011. The company was gaining traction and had some initial support, but it ran into the buzzsaw of Amazon’s product development group, which Herrera claims copied their platform to build a competing product.

Undeterred, Herrera took some of the tools that FashioningChange had developed and morphed them into a business focused on online marketing to shoppers at the point of sale — helping sites like Cooking.com pitch products to people based on what their browsing history revealed about their intent.

By 2017, that business had also run into problems, and Herrera had to shut down the company. She sold her stuff and had headed down to Oaxaca, but kept thinking about the emergent cannabis industry that was taking off back in the U.S.

Herrera had a friend who’d been diagnosed with colon cancer and was taking medicinal marijuana to address side effects from the operation that removed his colon.

“When recovering from the removal of his colon, he’d run out of his homegrown medicine and go to dispensaries where he . got the worst service,” Herrera wrote in an email. “He would ask for something pain, nausea, and sleep, and was always recommended the most expensive product or a product that was being promoted. He never got what he needed and had to self advocate for the right product while barely being able to stand.”

Herrera buckled down and did research throughout the course of 2018. She hit up pharmacies first as a customer, asking different “budtenders” for information about the product they were selling. Their answers were… underwhelming, according to Herrera. The next step was to talk to dispensary managers and research the weed industry.

By her own calculations, cannabis companies (including dispensaries and growers) will add roughly 300,000 jobs — most of them starting out at near-minimum-wage salaries of $16 per-hour. Meanwhile current training programs cost between $250 and $7,000.

That disconnect led Herrera to hit on her current business model — selling an annual subscription software for brands and dispensaries that would offer a training program for would-be job applicants. The training would give dispensaries a leg up for experienced hires, increasing sales and ideally reducing turnover that costs the industry as much as $438 million.

“The data is showing an average of a 30% turnover rate in 21 months,” says Herrera. “Looking at turnover and a lot of that comes down to bad hiring.”

The company is on its first eight customers, but counts one undisclosed, large, multi-state dispensary along with a few mom and pop shops.

Herrera also says that the service can reduce bias in hiring. Because dispensaries only hire candidates after they’ve completed the program, any unconscious bias won’t creep into the hiring process, she says.

Applicants interested in a dispensary can enroll in the dispensary “university” and once they complete the curriculum go through a standardized form to apply for the job.

“Our  recommendation to run and get the best results is to pre-train, pre-screen and have the graduates unlock the ability to apply.”

Essential CEO Andy Rubin has been pretty silent over the past year for, well, lots of reasons — both business and otherwise. The company has struggled to sell devices, reportedly shipping only 88,000 handsets in its first year. On a far more serious note, Rubin has been plagued by reports of inappropriate behavior during his time at Google. A bombshell report from The New York Times highlighted sexual misconduct accusations prior to his receiving a $90 million exit package from the company. 

The former Google executive last used Twitter to state that the story “contains numerous inaccuracies about my employment at Google.” Now, a year later, he’s back on the platform touting a new device. It could be the next Essential handset, or it could be something else entirely.

It’s not the shiny “GEM Colorshift material” on the back that’s caught viewers’ eyes, as much as the “new UI for radically different formfactor.” The closet thing I can thing to compare the long, skinny handset to is the new Galaxy Fold when closed. Of course, this has the decided advantage of a full length screen.

The UI appears to be a collection of different widgets, each sporting different apps: weather, maps, calendar and Uber on one, with a full length map on the other. It’s certainly different and even more of a departure from the original Essential handset, which had very little of the industry revolutionizing impact the company was initially hoping for.

A spokesperson for the company confirmed that the new device is in “early testing” in the real world, which is probably why Rubin opted to get out in front of leaks by showing the half-phone on his own terms, rather than grainy leaks. Here’s the official statement from Essential:

We’ve been working on a new device that’s now in early testing with our team outside the lab. We look forward to sharing more in the near future.

There are, of course, way more questions than answers right now, like whether the company is abandoning the first gen’s modular attachment system. Also, is the lack of cellular information at top a sign? Is this why the company acquired CloudMagic? Can one say this is truly “essential”?

At the very least, the existence of such a device does seem to contradict earlier rumors about Rubin canceling the device and attempting to sell the company. Maybe. If I had to venture a guess, I’d say Essential is courting a similar secondary handset market as Palm — though that, too, didn’t exactly set the smartphone world ablaze.

More soon, I suppose.