Avery Ellis, Author at Gizmodo

Amazon and Facebook Listed Among the Dozen Most Dangerous Workplaces

The National Council for Occupational Safety and Health (COSH) today released its annual “dirty dozen” list of employers operating some of the most dangerous workplaces in America, and Amazon topped the list for the second year running. Among the newcomers, Facebook has now earned a spot on the list. Specifically, COSH cites six fatalities since…

Tech News Avery Ellis Apr 24

Philip Morris Has an Incredible Scheme to Promote the Juicero of Vapes

Cigarette smoking has been on a historic decline in the US. This leaves slightly less profitable tobacco conglomerates with another opportunity to prove yet again that they’re evil and stupid in equal measure. “What’s something all smokers—the people we are slowly making sick and then eventually dead—need” you can practically imagine a suit in the…

Tech News Avery Ellis Apr 24

Gimlet Gets a Union

After over a month of private and not-so-private squabbling, the management of podcasting firm Gimlet has recognized a union composed of staffers at the company. With Spotify’s purchase of the network in February, this makes Gimlet Union one of the first organized workforces under the umbrella of a major tech firm. As Gizmodo previously reported,…

Tech News Avery Ellis Apr 23

The New Vine Is in Closed Beta, Only Needs 499,999,901 More Users

The death of short-form video platform Vine—a wonderful, barely functional and totally unmonetizable comedy playground, may she forever RIP in peace—was the mile marker that ended fun internet and began the era of chore internet. Each tweet holds the possibility of setting off some new shitstorm of a news cycle, every Facebook post is psychotic…

Tech News Avery Ellis Apr 23

Microsoft and GitHub Workers Take a Stand Against Grueling, Inhumane ‘996’ Culture in China

For tech workers in China, a brutal work schedule of 9am to 9pm, 6 days a week (usually just called “996″) is not only commonplace, it’s been hailed as “a huge blessing” by the likes of Alibaba’s eccentric and fantastically wealthy taskmaster, Jack Ma. Workers themselves, as you might imagine, do not all share his…

Tech News Avery Ellis Apr 22

Amazon Will Force Its Flex Delivery Drivers to Snap Selfies for Face-Recognition Authentication

Amazon’s internal delivery service, Amazon Flex, will require its drivers to take photos of themselves to be validated with facial recognition. The detail, first reported by Business Insider, sees Amazon further controlling the work of Flex drivers, which the company considers independent contractors and not employees. They drive their own vehicles, pay out of pocket…

Commerce Avery Ellis Apr 19

The Criterion Channel Should Be My Favorite Streaming Platform

It wasn’t so long ago that Netflix’s focus was on developing a curated library of titles rather than its own original, largely episodic content—and the nostalgics among us still pine for those days. With Filmstruck now deceased, the recently-launched Criterion Channel is close to being the ideal streaming platform for cinephiles. Those familiar with the…

Tech News Avery Ellis Apr 19

A Tech Company That Actually Makes Money Just IPO’d

Zoom is a conference platform business people use to do business. It’s just like Skype, or Lifesize, or Google Hangouts, UberConference, or Bluejeans, but different! Over the past eight years, some very rich people (businesspeople!) gave Zoom over 160 million dollars, which is more money than everyone reading this article will probably make in a…

Tech News Avery Ellis Apr 18

Over 1,000 Counterfeit Juul Pods Containing Questionable Substances Seized by Border Protection

A parcel from China was confiscated in Philadelphia earlier this week containing 36 cartons of knock-off pods fitted for the popular Juul vaping system. Had they been sold as the genuine article, their estimated street value was close to $5,000. Each seized carton contained eight packets of four pods—or 1,152 plastic rectangles—of mystery eJuice. Casey…

Tech News Avery Ellis Apr 18

Fair Warning: Facebook Is Reportedly Building Its Own Voice Assistant

What we can all agree on is that of the heavy hitters operating in the voice assistant market—Siri, Alexa, Google Assistant, and I guess Cortana and Bixby if we’re being generous—exactly none are made by Facebook. We can probably also agree things ought to stay that way, but then, when in recent memory has humanity…

Social Media Avery Ellis Apr 17

UK Legislation Could Create a Parallel Internet for Kids

Internet privacy laws are coming fast and furious in the EU. For those who also feel Online has impaired their sense of time or ability to form new memories, GDPR passed less than a year ago, widely-protested copyright directives passed a vote last month, and the UK put forth broad measures to regulate social media…

Tech News Avery Ellis Apr 15

‘Big Brother is Watching’: Facebook Accidentally Left Hidden Jokes in Thousands of Oculus Controllers

Facebook—a company that is equally known for surveilling an enormous swath of people, and for accidentally exposing their data in one way or another—shipped “tens of thousands” of its Oculus Touch controllers with some fun hidden messages written inside them, like “Big Brother is Watching.” Haha. It’s a joke. About surveillance. From that book? And…

Social Media Avery Ellis Apr 12

Here’s What Could Sink Uber, According to Uber

Uber, the money-losing ridehailing platform which by its own admission in its S-1 filing claims it has “incurred significant losses since inception” and “may not achieve profitability,” has overcome a lot on the road to today’s initial public offering. It’s entire business model however—which involves cost-cutting by arguably misclassifying the overwhelming majority of its workforce—is…

Tech News Avery Ellis Apr 11

Apple Cops Another Anti-Trust Investigation (Congrats!)

Apple is renowned for its ability to amass thousands of talented engineers, millions of users, and billions in cash-on-hand. While nowhere near prolific in this particular growth sector, it’s also gotten pretty good at attracting anti-trust complaints. As Bloomberg reports, Dutch officials opened an investigation into the computing giant’s alleged preferential treatment of its own…

Tech News Avery Ellis Apr 11

3,500 Amazon Employees Challenge Jeff Bezos to Take Real Action on Climate Change

In the latest in a string of protests from inside major tech firms, thousands of Amazon employees have signed their names to an open letter calling on their employer to do more to combat its carbon emissions and to end its relationships with oil and gas giants. “Amazon has the resources and scale to spark…

Commerce Avery Ellis Apr 10

Amazon’s Cashless Stores to Begin Accepting Cash

Amazon’s cashless convenience stores may be undergoing a significant conceptual overhaul. Specifically, an Amazon spokesperson told Gizmodo, “We are working to accept cash at Amazon Go.” The first Amazon Go location—which allows shoppers to grab snacks, premade meals, and other assorted sundries without interacting with a cashier—opened just over a year ago, and the brand…

Commerce Avery Ellis Apr 10

It Still Takes Almost No Effort to Find White Nationalists on Facebook

To weary enthusiasm, Facebook announced last month it would ban white nationalists and white separatists from the social network, dissolving the company’s bizarre distinction between those ideologies and white supremacism. The policy change, first reported by Motherboard, felt like progress. But as with all things Facebook, here comes the inevitable disappointment. A very basic data…

Social Media Avery Ellis Apr 8

Here’s 40 Pages of Facebook Trying to Figure Out What to Do About White Nationalism

In the process of reporting a related story, a Facebook spokesperson provided Gizmodo with the company’s internal slides discussing its position on white nationalism and white separatism, adopted in late March. What follows is a glimpse into the confusing, often contradictory thinking of one of the most powerful and frequently inept companies on Earth. “Under…

Social Media Avery Ellis Apr 8

‘I Will Nuke You’, Elon Musk Allegedly Tells Former Employee

Elon Musk is, if nothing else, an innovator. He finds new ways to recover rockets from space; new useless holes to drill into the earth; new reasons to get fined by the SEC, and according to a report by Bloomberg, new ways of threatening his subordinates. Mostly you could say he’s guilty of having too…

Tech News Avery Ellis Apr 5

Google Gives Up on AI Ethics (Board)

Less than a week after it was announced, Google is pulling the plug on its controversial AI ethics advisory board—an about-face attributable to Googlers themselves. The formation of the eight-member Advanced Technology External Advisory Council (ATEAC) was broadly met with apprehension. Wasn’t this just Google policing itself with the blessing of a handful of academics?…

Tech News Avery Ellis Apr 5

Avery Ellis

Amazon and Facebook Listed Among the Dozen Most Dangerous Workplaces

Philip Morris Has an Incredible Scheme to Promote the Juicero of Vapes

Gimlet Gets a Union

The New Vine Is in Closed Beta, Only Needs 499,999,901 More Users

Microsoft and GitHub Workers Take a Stand Against Grueling, Inhumane ‘996’ Culture in China

Amazon Will Force Its Flex Delivery Drivers to Snap Selfies for Face-Recognition Authentication

The Criterion Channel Should Be My Favorite Streaming Platform

A Tech Company That Actually Makes Money Just IPO’d

Over 1,000 Counterfeit Juul Pods Containing Questionable Substances Seized by Border Protection

Fair Warning: Facebook Is Reportedly Building Its Own Voice Assistant

UK Legislation Could Create a Parallel Internet for Kids

‘Big Brother is Watching’: Facebook Accidentally Left Hidden Jokes in Thousands of Oculus Controllers

Here’s What Could Sink Uber, According to Uber

Apple Cops Another Anti-Trust Investigation (Congrats!)

3,500 Amazon Employees Challenge Jeff Bezos to Take Real Action on Climate Change

Amazon’s Cashless Stores to Begin Accepting Cash

It Still Takes Almost No Effort to Find White Nationalists on Facebook

Here’s 40 Pages of Facebook Trying to Figure Out What to Do About White Nationalism

‘I Will Nuke You’, Elon Musk Allegedly Tells Former Employee

Google Gives Up on AI Ethics (Board)

See the Early Stages of How ‘Project Hail Mary’ Brought Rocky to Life

‘Cognitive Surrender’ Is a New and Useful Term for How AI Melts Brains

HP Omen Max 45L Review: 4K60 Gaming Has Never Been So Easy

Marshall Acton III Home Speaker Drops to a Record Low, the Deal Countdown Has Already Started

Ecovacs Winbot W3 Omni Review: Window Cleaning Robots Have a Long Way to Go

I’m Worried About the Helpless AI Disruptors of the Future

Russia Allegedly Swung at VPNs but Accidentally Hit Its Own Banking Sector Instead

Ryan Coogler Is Shifting ‘Animorphs’ Into a Disney+ Show

No Fooling, ‘Spaceballs 2’ Will Hit Theaters April 2027

I Regret to Inform You That the Artemis II Astronauts Are Having Lots of Screen Time

AirPods Max 2 vs. Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen): Which ANC Headphones Win?

The Best Gadgets of March 2026

AirPods Max 2 Review: Still Ridiculously Expensive and Ridiculously Nice

DJI Osmo 360 Review: The Best 360 Camera for the DJI-Pilled

Aqara Smart Lock U400 Review: Hands-free Unlocking at Its Best

MSI Prestige 14 Flip AI+ Review: A Solid 2-in-1 Laptop With Some Glaring Flaws

Sonos Play Review: Call It a Comeback

Sonos Era 100 SL Review: The Cheapest Way Into Wired Sonos Sound

Asus ROG’s Massive Swift OLED Gaming Monitor Epitomizes Excess in the Best Way

The Ikea Varmblixt Smart Lamp Fills a Donut Hole in My Life