Welcome to Weekly Roundup, our podcast discussing the latest tech trends, innovation and news from the last few days.
This week Hadlee Simons hosts Andy Walker, Stephen Timm and the newest Burn Media staffer, Daniel Mpala.
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First on the agenda is Psy’s “Gangnam Style” losing its coveted most watched spot to Wiz Khalifa and Charlie Puth’s “See You Again”. The new leader is on its way to cracking three-billion views, but that means little for the artists who have earned more streaming on Spotify than on the video platform.
Next up, Hadlee talks of an incident in the US that saw Google Home calling the police to break up a domestic dispute. Though it seems it was a fluke, the incident highlights smart speakers’ ability to save lives.
Over on Gearburn, the team discuss Hadlee’s Q&A with the CEO of Jump, a subscription service to play indie games. Set to launch this year, Jump is ad-free, and uses “HyperJump” downloading technology — meaning users won’t need to stream or permanently download the game.
Finally, Stephen Timm talks through South Africa’s first equity crowdfunding platform set to launch later this month. Details around the launch have so far been kept under wraps, but a source told Ventureburn that the platform would “stand legal muster”.
What are we watching, reading, playing: Andy has been playing a few PC games, though his loyalty still sits with Plants vs Zombies. In an effort to branch out, he copped himself Fallout: New Vegas and Fallout 3 in the latest Steam sale.
Along with Stephen’s usual “Instagramming”, he is also reading JM Coetzee’s latest novel The Childhood of Jesus.
Daniel has started Barack Obama’s Dreams from my Father and has been listening to The Cornel West Theory, a hip-hop ensemble inspired by the struggles of poor people worldwide.
Lastly, Hadlee has been playing around with the PS4 and War Thunder. He has also been trying his hand at Fire Pro Wrestling World.
Recommended Reading:
- See You Again Gangnam Style: YouTube’s most watched video now belongs to Wiz Khalifa, Charlie Puth
- Google Home breaks up domestic abuse by calling police
- Q&A: Jump CEO on their Netflix-style service for indie games
- SA’s first equity crowdfunding platform to launch later this month
Featured image: Eva Rinaldi via Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0, edited)
